Rudebarb prep

  I was given a lovely armful of Rhubarb by my parents at the weekend. Or as it's called in this house rudebarb. The name stuck after an incredible cute conversation with a young DD.

I spent the morning nap time sat at the dinner table cutting it up with a pair of scissors (such a great tip!) ready for the freezer. I like to mix crumble ingredients so I cut it quite small and popped it into some ice cream tubs.

I left out one mug full though and microwaved it with a little water. Gave it a quick wizz with my trusty stick blender and have frozen down the puree in an ice cube tray. 

It's the beginnings of G-mans weening stash. I'm hoping to add a few cubes of this and that over time so he has a nice selection of fruit, veg and dinners to try.

 Day five post section and I'm frugalling again. Ohhhhhhhhhh it feels good!

X x X

Life at Chez Random

Life is slowly settling into our new routine. Tomorrow is going to be a challenge I think, our first day of school runs after our quiet weekend bonding as a family of five!

We've kept visitors to a minimum (just grandparents and the neighbour who spotted us coming home) to let girls get used to being around G. Both of them are smitten but a little over enthusiastic to help.

D has found the whole thing exhausting and we keep finding her flaked out in various spots around the house. 

Boo has been enjoying the many many craft kit distractions we stashed for G's arrival. They all require minimal assistance to complete letting us feed and change G in peace. But also builds up a stunning showcase of "things" for her to proudly show visitors in the next few days.

As for me I am definitely feeling more mobile. I still haven't quiet mastered standing to sitting and back but otherwise recovery is pretty swift. 

I have some really impressive bruising from the cannulas though which surprised me by popping up overnight. 

X x x

Welcome G- man.

A new baby Random has been born into the world. To be known as  G-man on the blog :)

Born 7.47am on 14th May 2015 via semi-elective csection at 37w6d

Weighing a squish able 7lb10oz.

We were home the next day and so far everything is going smoothly. The girls are besotted with him as are mummy and daddy.

Looking forward to returning properly to blogging soon. If I can just stop staring into those big blue eyes.

 X x X 

A little update from the Randoms.

I was hoping to blog today about splurging our Grand National winnings but sadly not.

Not one of our horses even finished this year.  Daddy lost his on jump three, DD on jump 6, me on jump 8! Baby D did the best with her choice (The Druids Nephew) making it 27 jumps before falling over and actually led the runners for a short while.

 It was a lot of fun though watching this year as DD could follow it better. It also led onto some nice conversations about horses and racing etc.

Tomorrow the girls are going out for the day with my parents. OH and I are planning to use the opportunity for a breakfast date at our favourite cafe followed by a walk on the beach (bump permitting). It'll be nice to get some time together before LO arrives. I'm 35 weeks Friday so we might have as little as 3 weeks to go. Both girls arriving in the 38th week, but I'm told boy babies tend to good longer so maybe not.

X x x

A picnic at the farm

Today is another beautiful day down south. We decided to take full advantage of the nice weather and have a little picnic at Staunton Farm. Hubby kindly dropped us off on his way into work.

We sat in the lunch area eating our lunches and enjoying the antics of the chickens pecking for crumbs around our feet. Every so often you can hear a bell ring, the bell announces a new lamb is being born and you can go and watch in the barn. 

We decided not to watch any deliveries but did visit the newly born lambs shortly after. 

(I was careful to make sure I didn't touch anything and the girls had a good hand washing afterwards too)

It's not just lambs being born on the farm. This lovely litter of piglets were recently born to. Tiny pink piglets have to be the most amusing creatures to watch. I think we could have stayed all day watching them play and frolic.

 We stayed at the farm for almost three hours in the end, only deciding to walk home once Baby D's legs needed a rest in her buggy.  

Our only purchase was an ice cold bottle of water to share from the shop on the walk back. We were all hot and thirsty so I couldn't resist.

X x X

A morning in the garden.

This morning has been sunny and bright which really got our blood moving. Though we're planning to stay close to home and frugal, we certainly won't be staying indoors with weather like this. 

Inspired by Grandads allotment yesterday we headed out into the garden.

We potted up some spring onions and leeks we'd grown from cooking offcuts. They are both experiments but seem to be doing well so far. 

DD wanted a "big girl job" so she was put in charge of the first batch of cut and come again salad leaves. She's a doting plant parent and has been checking for growth every 5 minutes since planting this morning. 

We also deweeded the front path, planted my tree from Mother's day, and gave the whole plot a dig over. I'm hoping the two lavender plants take off this year after surviving their first winter. I am not expecting much for a few years but hoping they do well for future use.

X x x 

Happy Easter!

We are all finally well and rested enough to start enjoying the school break. It's taken me a good while to feel back on my feet and one by one each member of the household has succumbed to the virus and needed nursing. 

We started our day with an Easter egg hunt through the house following clues. 

 Then an Easter Turkey roast at Nanny and Grandads house. After our big dinner we decided on a nice walk to Grandads allotment and back. Next term DD is learning about mini - beasts and life cycles so we jumped at the chance to discover some tadpoles in a bath pond. Baby D was fascinated by them.

We also found a slow worm enjoying lunch on the compost heap.  After watching him for a few minutes we made sure to tuck him back in safely and warm under his carpet blanket. 

DD is convinced he was a snake and I will hold up my hands and admit after ten minutes of trying to convince her otherwise I gave up. There are some battles you will just never win with a five year old and this was definitely one of them.

X x X