Chelle Shocked

It's official - Egypt it is !!

After being together 22 1/2 years, hubs and I have decided we are finally going to take a holiday abroad !

Of course we get to take the kids and Grand kids too, but that's ok - It wouldn't be a Family holiday without them *smiles*

After trawling the internet for hours this afternoon, Jemma and I decided on Egypt. Why ? - I don't know really, just that it appealed to us. Long hot sunshine, sandy beaches, luxurious hotels, endless warm clear sea, pools, lots to sightsee ... OMG the list is endless ... ROFL !

Tomorrow Paul and I are going to go gather brochures from the many travel agents around here, and as a family we will agree on our final destination and hotel to stay in :) I am thinking luxury and pampering and TG so is Paul .... LOL - That said, we would both like to visit Luxor and the Valley of the Kings, and I'd love to scuba dive too, as would Jemma.

I am soooo excited.

All I need to do now is lose heaps of weight and get fitter - We are planning this for NEXT year so I have plenty of time ... LOL I really do need to lose weight as one of my plans is to ride on a camel, poor thing will never get up off the ground as I am right now .... PMSL - I seriously need to lose some weight - WW here I come :)

On a real high tonight for a change, so on that note, I'm off to my bed.

Take care all
Chelle xxx

Chelle 2008-06-23 19:39:56, General Blogs; 2 comments

A Mad, Mad Day !!

All my own fault though ... LOL

My youngest son, Jack flies out to Bulgaria tomorrow (Friday) with my Brother and SIL and their younger kids.

He's going because my SIL had a lot of problems with her 2nd oldest Son (16 yrs old) and decided in the end not to take him with them, as they were worried he would misbehave whilst away. Not a good thing in a foreign country !!!

As they had already paid for J's ticket, they called and asked if Jack would like to go in his place (he's 14) - All we had to pay was the cost for the ticket to be changed into his name, my SIL went down and did this the very next day because she knew if she didn't she would relent and take J. Harsh as this may sound, he would have spoiled it for everyone and as the legal age for drinking in Bulgaria is 16, he would have probably ended up arrested - this is NO exaggeration !!!

Anyways .....

We've known about this for some time now - did we do anything about it ---- Hell no !!!

The weekend before he goes is Father's Day so we are away all weekend ... ut oh !!

So from Monday onwards, this has been the week from hell, rushing around trying to get everything done.

I picked up his money this morning from the bank (Bulgarian LEV's) then rushed down to the main Post Office to get some Travel Insurance for him (Yes he really is flying out tomorrow and NO I really hadn't sorted out travel insurance before now !!!) I get to the Post office and, Oh No, it's closed for refurbishment !!!

No biggie, I have to pick Jemma up and take her shopping, there is another Main PO about 5mins drive from her, we'll go there before going shopping. Emmmm Not so - It closed down a year ago ... Ut oh !!!

We are going to Asda which is a stones throw from The Mall, so we decide to call in at the Mall as there are several Travel Agents there. Would have been easier if we'd picked up the buggy for Aimee, easier still if we hadn't also had Connor, the 2yr old who refuses to hold your hand along with the baby (Aimee - 10mths old) who is far too fat and heavy to be carried far ... LOL

Still, off we trek, we try the first two by the entrance to be told 'You need to have booked your holiday with us' that was it, no explanation. So we end up right at the other end of the Mall at the last Travel Agents only to be told the same thing, the girl there was more helpful though and explained why - because of money laundering, Travel agents are no longer licensed to offer insurance unless it is to go with a holiday booked by them. She did point us in the direction of Marks & Spencer tho, who COULD help us and arrange insurance for us. Now M & S is right by the entrance of the Mall where we had walked in .... ARRRRRRGGGGGHHHHH !!!

By this time we had got Leah and Connor (both 2yrs old) to hold hands together, we figured, if we were gonna lose them, we may as well lose them both together !!!! We were taking turns in holding Aimee - god that kid is heavy !!!

We finally arrive back at M&S and head for the Bureau de Change only to be pointed in the direction of a customer computer where I had to do it all online - OMG I could have done all this at home 'online' this morning with NONE of this stress *screams extremely loudly*

We finally make it back to the car and as I am driving over to Asda/Walmart, Leah spots the 'Golden Arches' of McDonalds and has a hissy fit, it suddenly dawns on us that the poor kids must be starving as we've been out so long and they havent had any lunch yet ... Oops - So I also get to treat everyone to lunch !!!!

We are running so late by this stage that I forget I have to actually pick Jack up from school at 4.45pm as he has athletics after school. We get to the check out with 2 trolleys full of groceries and I ask Jemma 'what's the time hon' she says '4.30' .... Imma like WTF - it's gonna take me over 15mins to drive to the school and we still have to get all this through the checkout, bag it, pay and then load it all into the car !!!!

ALL 3 kids are getting pretty fractious by this time, they have drunk most of the juice I've put into the trolley and made a huge inroad into the crisps I've also not paid for yet, any minute now one of them is going to demand a toilet (Both Leah and Conner are potty training - we only 'do' nappies at bedtime), I can just see a disaster looming !!!

Luckily that didn't happen ! They were both little stars in holding on until we actually got back home, then it was a fight for who was gonna sit on the potty first, Leah won as she only had knickers to pull down, Conner had jeans and pants ... LOLOL

I finally got to the school at just after 5.10pm, Jemma had texted Jack to let him know we were going to be late and wait for us.

We pick him up, take Jemma and her shopping home, unload and help her put away, then I have to take Jack to football training, drop him off just in time (he has a phobia about being late - obviously doesn't get that from me !!!) then I have to drop Conner home.

My SIL's b/day was in March and my Brother's b/day will be in July - we didn't know what to get them, so far I haven't got my SIL anything.

They went to see Bon Jovi, live in Southampton last week, so we decided as a 'late' surprise we would pay for their tickets. When I dropped Conner home, I gave them a card containing the cost of their tickets in half Bulgarian LEV's and, half GBP Sterling - my SIL burst into tears and I think my Brother even liked me for a second or two PMSL !!!!

We have spent every night this week (apart from tonight) out at the Mall, shopping for Jack for his holiday !!!!

God this kid better appreciate just what we have crammed into 4 days and nights ... ROFLMAO !!!

Still .....

He's ready to go tomorrow, with a new wardrobe full of summer stuff (which he so won't need back here in the UK !!), Bulgarian money to buy us all useless pressies and, travel insurance 'just in case' ....

Phew ......... I did it !!!

Tonight I ironed all his stuffs and picked up a suitcase from Mum (Had to borrow one ... LOL) - it's all in piles on chairs and table as I have to dry his beach towels (Tigger and Disney Cars .... His choice, he's still my LITTLE boy ... LOL) tomorrow and they need to go in the suitcase first. So I have the joy of packing for him tomorrow whilst he's in school !!!!

I can't wait ..... NOT !!!!

All flippancy out of the way - this is the first time my son will Fly !!!

He went to Paris last year but they 'sailed' there - I have asked my Brother to keep a close eye on him and keep him away from my SIL who is a basket case when it comes to flying !!!!

I lurve flying .. seriously, I really do - I just hope Jack takes after me !!!

I'm going to miss my baby for the next week and will worry about him constantly - but hell, that's a Mum's job isn't it :D

Take care all xxxx

Chelle 2008-06-19 20:39:25, General Blogs; 2 comments

Baaad Me !!

So shoot me - I haven't blogged in forever - why ? ... either, there just hasn't been time or, I've been feeling too vulnerable and so would write too much !!!

My online time has been severely curtailed since December when we 'lost' my Mother in Law. Life sort of spiralled out of control from that moment and I realised how much I had missed whilst 'closeted' in my internet world !!

My Daughter has finally moved into her own home and whilst I miss her and my 2 Grand Babies - I don't miss the noise or the mess ... LOL - In fact I haven't had much time to miss THEM as she's either been up here with the kids or phoning me asking me to go down there to help her with something or the other, so I have seen them all most days since she moved .... LOL

We spent the weekend just passed up with my Father in Law as it was Fathers Day on Sunday and is his birthday today (Tuesday) - We also all got together as a Family to finalise my Mother In Law's Estate. Paul's Sister as Trustee, along with his Dad, wanted us all together as the bank account was closed and cheques written for closure.

It's hard to explain how we all felt when delving through her 'things' after her death, and finding just how much she had 'put away' - It was a very tearful and emotional day - lots of hugs and hand holding as we all went through the process of finalization.

The hardest thing was leaving at the end of the day knowing that Paul's sister had her hubby to drive home with, Paul had Me, our kids and Grand-kids and his Brother had his Partner and their son, we were leaving my FIL alone in that HUGE house with just his many memories !!

The long shot is - we are probably never going to have financial worries again due to my MIL's legacy but, I would give it all up in a heartbeat to have her back - She has left a BIG hole in all our lives.

That statement may sound flippant, but I honestly mean it, the cheque is still sat in my purse - I know I should pay it into the bank but, I don't want to, I can still pretend that she's a 2hr drive away, sat waiting for us to get there - always Late ... LOL - If we said we'd be there by 6pm - she would make sure that dinner was ready for no earlier than 7.30 - that gave us 10mins to unload the car too .... LOL

Rose, I miss you, We all do !!

Chelle 2008-06-16 22:45:03, General Blogs; 1 comments

MURDER ............. Of a Pillow !!

Short story long ... ROFLMAO !!!

My oldest grand-daughter has a sand pit out in the garden, boy does she love that sand .... LOL

I have hardwood floors downstairs, today my Daughter and I have spent most of the day, skating on sand - A whole new concept I guess I need to patent !!!! Leah just loves to bring that sand inside to show us ... and manages to shake it all everywhere each time !!!!

Suffice to say, she tends not to concentrate just on downstairs with the sand !

Given the fact we are overcrowded until My Daughter finally moves out, Jemma does like to get ready to go out in our bedroom, of course she is making the most of having Mum and Dad on hand to babysit at will, so is out most nights once the girls are in bed now, which is fine by us too *smiles* - providing they are BOTH asleep ... LOL

What WE tend to forget tho, is that Jemma will sacrifice just about anything in order to get herself ready to go out without dispruption, that includes MY bedroom !!!

Yesterday we had a full length busy day, rushing around all day whilst trying to fit time for going to the flat to sort out Jemma's kitchen and finally get to put all her 'stuffs' away !!! .... WOOT another milestone crossed.

We then rush home and I rush to prepare dinner before Hubs and oldest son come home from work. Youngest son then decides to test my patience by NOT arriving home from school ! 45mins after his due time home I call the school, they inform me, there was no problem on the school buses tonight, all ran normally !!!

Errr ok - so where is he ? - this child is NEVER late home !!!

They tell me to call back in 15mins if he is still not home !

OK, 15 mins later, Imma dialling the school number again !!

This time I get to talk to a sensible teacher, One I know !!!! - she goes off to make some inquieries and calls me back within 10 mins, seems Jack was seen with 2 other boys on a 'pay' bus stop ! .... why ????

She gets the names of the other 2 boys and manages to call the home of one of them, seems they all missed the school bus so decided to walk home - NOT One of them thinking to call a parent and let them know !!!! She had called the home of the boy closest to the school who had actually arrived home by that time - the other 2 were still walking !

By this time, Aimee (youngest grand-baby, 8mths), is asleep and sleep bouncing in her chair - the sleep bouncing has to be seen to be believed ... LMAO ! - Leah (oldest grand-baby, 2yrs) is out in the garden playing in her sand and her jump, jump (trampoline)

Imma in the kitchen, chopping stuffs for a cassarole and making/answering calls looking for my son - So I miss my lil Leah sneak past me covered in sand and rushing upstairs to see her Mummy !!!!

Who - Of course is in MY bedroom after having a shower and getting herself ready for a night out with her b/f and fully prepared to allow Leah license to anything providing it takes the heat offa her !!!

Skip forwards a few hours .......

It's now 4am - Imma knackered, fully done with the PC and ready for my bed, I grab a glass of water, lock all doors, grab my cigs (Yeah I know, nasty habit, smack me !) Visit the bathroom, do what I gotta (clean my teeth !!!!!) strip, throw my clothes into the laundry basket (hell, at least ONE Of this family gotta know how to use it !) then turn off all lights and feel my way to bed !!!!

Manage to place glass of water down without knocking over anything else and climb quietly into bed *bliss*

You'd think !!!!

Jump straight back out again because my bed is like lying on a beach !!!!! How more sandy could these sheets be ?????

I try to brush out the sand - emmm now I have hubby grunting *Just get in and shuttup* .... Imma like .... WTF - I can't sleep in all this *brushes some more*

I finally get into bed and make myself comfortable, from then in - EVERY time I turned over, I woke up ! - Hell my skin was scratched to pieces come morning .... LOL

Sooooo today was a bit like yesterday .... LOTS of running around, we finally get home around 6pm - oops, everyone else is home by now too, dinner to make etc ... then I remember .... MY BED !!!!! - NO way can I sleep in that sand pit again, so I tell Jemma - go strip my bed so we can sleep tonight !!!!

This is where the short story long should have started .... LMAO !!!

She bribes my oldest son to do it for her !! ---- MISTAKE !!!!

However unhygenic (don't care, won't care) - I have had the same foam filled pillow since I was around 10yrs old (Imma 46 come august this year) When I left home, I brought this baby with me - Yeah I know it is wrapped up in far more pillow cases than are actually healthy but, I always wash the top 3 !!!!!

Daniel went upstairs tonight, to strip my bed, and OMG he murdered my pillow !!!!!!

He took off ALL the pillowcases .....................

My Mum says it was only manslaughter, but hell ..... you needed to see that massacre !!!!!

There was foam EVERYWHERE !!!!!!!

This was most definately a Murder scene, tonight I have a NEW pillow and I am sooooo not looking forwards to going to bed !!!!!

Think of me please .... ROFLMAO !!!!

Hugs to all xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Chelle 2008-04-23 20:47:20, General Blogs; 2 comments

Waaaaay too close to home !!

OK - The past 48hrs here have been absolutely nuts !!! AND for once it's not been caused by members of my Family ... ROFL !

Most of you UK'ers will know there has been a terrorism alert going on here in Bristol, what you wouldn't have known is that it is at the end of the street I live in !!!

Thursday evening around 10.15pm my 2 boys and their friend (who is staying here during half term) walked up to the shop for some nibbles ( Yeah I need to go do a grocery shop ) - Then a half hour later hubs says goodnight and goes up to bed.

5 mins after he's gone up, he comes running (Panic - Paul doesn't run !) back down again, says - Don't know what's going on but suggest you look out the window.

So me, Jemma and Paul run to the kitchen window, turning off lights as we go (Fight each other for space once there)

Outside the road is completely blocked off and there are police everywhere ! - Imma like - WTF ??? - I have 3 boys out there - Then Jemma points and says 'Mum the boys are across the road' and there they are, the other side of the road block !!

5 mins later the police escort them back to the house.

Of course, I 'pounce' as soon as they walk through the door and bombard them with questions - 'what's happening' etc ... But the police would only tell them, get inside your house and don't come out again for your own safety, we are responding to a serious allegation and can tell you no more !!

Now I have 3 kids of my own, plus 1 who doesn't belong to me, and 3 babies under my roof ( My baby nephew Connor was here too overnight ), as well as me and hubby - Please tell me how not to be scared by all this !

At around half midnight we get a knock on the door and a newsletter from the police - nothing much to say other than due to an arrest earlier in the day, extensive searches have to be carried out at a propery close by.

At this point, I demanded everyone go to bed - If anything bad was going to happen we'd have been told by now - So I scoot them all off albeit they go unwillingly !!

Me, and Jemma stay up and are still watching through the window ... LOL

Then the tape is lifted as the bomb squad and 2 fire engines go sailing down our road !!!!

We now have the police, ambulance, fire service and the freaking army camped out on our estate - WTF is happening !!!!!

Finally around 5.30am, car doors stopped slamming quite so loud and I managed to drift off to sleep - only to be woken by my daughter at 8.30am saying ... 'Mum wake up and listen, I'm gonna be on the radio' !!!

At this stage I won't type what actually went through my head as an answer !!!

She had heard an update on the radio and 'texted in' with what information she had from the night before, they had called her back for a live interview.

So at 8.30 after less than 3 hrs sleep, I have Jemma stood in my bedroom jumping up and down with the radio blaring ... She gave her interview. I listened -

Then ....

I ask - what the hell happened ?

She then goes into detail, explaining exactly what she has learned from the news and the internet about the gradually unfolding events of the night.

HERE Easier for me to link, than try and explain !

There were a further 2 controlled explosions this morning and we had another newletter delivered this afternoon saying that the police presence will be around until at least tuesday !

All this is something I would rather read about than watch unfold !!!!

As the title says ... this is way to close to home !!!!!

We live in a QUIET suburban area, when I say quiet I mean quiet - we have lived here over 11yrs now and apart from petty car theft which happens everywhere - we have never experienced any trouble, NOW we have armed police on our street - This is just surreal !!!!!

I wish !

Chelle 2008-04-19 20:36:40, General Blogs; 2 comments