Nephews, Brothers

I haven't mentioned those boys in a while. You know them. My nephews, Connor 3 and Ryan 6.

I popped in to see them tonight after work and town. They were all upstairs are Dad is about to start painting their rooms. You see they've been busy with paints and pencils. Mostly over the walls next to their beds. It is a mess. A funny mess though.

Tonight their mum and my dad were cleaning the rooms out in preparation for the decorating. Ryan started helping and Connor was playing with an old toy laptop of Ryan's.

He was sitting at a little desk and pressing the buttons. "Look Angie I done a number". "Look Granda it's a B"... then ...

"Look Ryan I did a 5". Ryan runs over to where he was sitting. Looked at the tiny VTech screen and said "Oh yeah, cool!", patted Connor's back and gave his head a little kiss.

I melted.

My Nephews. The best ever. It's a pleasure to watch them grow and have so much love inside of them for each other.

Signing off: Proud Aunty Angie x

.

A night at The Enchanted Forest

Last Monday my sister and I took the boys (Ryan and Connor) to the Enchanted Forest in Pitlochry. I'd been wanting to go for about 3 years now and the boys being 6 and 3, we decided they were old enough.

We drove up on a lovely brisk autumn day. Made good time and arrived a little after 4pm in time to get a leisurely something to eat and head to the bus pick up point at Fishers Hotel.

After a little wander along the main street we headed back towards the beginning and decided to head into a cafe. From the outside the menu looked cheap and cheerful and decent value. Inside the floor was dirty and it wasn't my ideal place.

see! dirty floor, yuck

But before long we'd ordered. Mac n cheese for me, fish n chips for sister and burgers for the boys from the kids menu. To say the food was passable would be generous. The boys wolfed theirs down though. I could tell my sister wasn't keen on her fish and my mac n cheese was both tasteless and not very cheesy. And the drinks... the cups were dirty and the tea became stewed. As soon as the boys had finished and peed we were out of there. It's such a pity but i really hate eating establishments where basic cleanliness is overlooked for turning tables over. In fact that's not even an excuse because there were empty tables and it wasn't that busy. Their standards can't be that high.

Anyway it was time to head to the 'horest' as Connor has been calling it most of the day.

We got on the bus and made the short drive (about 7 minutes) to the horest. They played a tape with music and silly voices which were mostly talking about health and safety and what we'd find when we got there. I could see Ryan's face fall. The tape was really loud on the bus (turn it down please!). Then we arrived and dusk had started to fall. We could see some lights and that's when i noticed a guy dressed up in a cape with a huge stick. Obviously these were people there to help us but Ryan started crying. He didn't like the look of it.

We got off the bus and wandered over with the rest of the group. The guy started talking loudly (shouting) so that everyone could hear and Ryan couldn't stop crying. "I don't like this" he said. I could understand, it was a bit shouty to me and so probably seemed a little scary to some sensitive little kids like Ryan. Connor on the other hand, well nothing phases him. He's like a wise old owl.

Look at this wonderfully pink tree - gorgeous!

We managed to walk ahead and lose most of the large group and Ryan started to relax and enjoy it. He really liked the bridge with the blue waterfall like water. I liked that one too. It was named Flow. Really cool.

Flow

Further on there were symbols hanging in the trees (Dialect of leaves 1) and it reminded me of The Blair Witch Project (the symbols). I wanted to get in about them and get some photos of me amongst them but you weren't allowed. The druid guy made sure of that!

Dialect of leaves 1

A little further and we came across the unicorn we'd been told we might encounter. "Gather round" she kept saying in a manner that made the child-catcher seem tame. We headed on past her. She even freaked me out.

Next up was Rise and Fall. A light show and musical accompaniment. It was really beautiful. I loved the huge moon that appeared at the end. Connor was mesmerised at this, and frankly so were we.

By now it was proper dark and looking around the colours were really wonderful against the treelined background. It really was enchanting in this horest.

Further on we managed to get a steward to take a group photo of us at the other side of the Flow bridge.

Pollen was another area I found magical. Large amber coloured pollen shapes hung above our heads, just out of reach. I wanted to touch them but for obvious reasons that would be stupid.

Pollen. A beauty eh.

It was really dark now and starting to get chilly cold. We all had our wellies on and my feet were freezing so the little drinks stall was a welcome sight. Cup of tea done we headed to the final section, Drift. Another light and music show right next to the bus pick up point. We hung around as long as we could and then headed for the bus. By this point Ryan really liked it, Connor was still chatting and saying how beautiful this horest had been and we were all tired and ready for the drive home.

Wellies!

If you haven't been you should try to get along. It's something i'd wanted to see and so glad i did. Tickets can be bought easily from their website but be quick it's only another couple of weeks then its gone. One thing. Our slot was 6.30pm. I'd say the 7pm showing would be late enough for kids as it was getting really cold by the time we left at 7.30pm. We were fortunate with the weather and it was dry but i can imagine in the rain it might be miserable (a wee bit).

Back at the car we changed out of wellies and got settled and cosy then set off down the road. Just over an hour saw us home with two snoring boys in the back of the car. All in all a great day out.

Angela x

.

Brothers

Whilst I was on my day off on Tuesday, awaiting the delivery and collection of the MacBook Pro's, a funny thing happened. The boys, my nephews, Ryan (6) and Connor (2) were outside playing in the drizzly rain. Ryan had been bemoaning the fact he couldn't go out because of said rain and wanted to come with me into town. That was until someone knocked on the door asking if he was going out to play. Then I was duly told "Angie, I'm not coming to Stirling with you. I'm going out to play with Dean". Dean is about 7 or 8.

So I continued watching the Andy Murray match on TV.

A little while later I looked out the window and saw them going up and down this little hill on their scooters. Connor was with them too.

A few minutes after that Ryan came trudging up the hill, scowling, holding his wrist. We went to the door t ask what was wrong. "I fell off the scooter into jaggy nettles!"..... and through petted lip and tears "...and Dean told me.....(sob sob) that if you get stung by jaggy nettles you'll die!" and he continued to cry, real sobbing heaving tears.

What a shame I thought. "He's a silly boy and he's just telling you lies. You'll not die from jaggy nettles, it just itches a wee bit". The words weren't consoling him. Eventually I got him inside and into the bathroom, all the while reassuring him that the really faint nettle sting on his wrist would not result in him dying. Poor wee thing. He eventually let me rub some savlon cream onto the area and his tears soon stopped.

We then heard mum shouting on Connor. She was out the back. She couldn't find him. She shouted on him a few times but no reply. We went out front. No sign of him. I could see the colour drain from my mum's cheeks and my heart started to race. Where was he!

He couldn't have gone far. It'd only been about 3 minutes. "Where's my wee brother?" Ryan asked and started to cry once he saw the panic on our faces. I headed up the street to see if i could see him. Still no sign up the hill or around the corner. Then I looked over at my aunts garden and caught sight of his beat up old Fireman Sam scooter. There he was. Playing football with my uncle.

I marched into the garden and ordered him back home as he'd been naughty and run away without telling anyone. Turns out he'd just gone up the hill on his scooter and had saw my aunt and uncle coming back from the shops so went and played football. I was glad he was there but something deep inside said "what if..." i daren't think about it.

He fled down the street on his scooter and said he should say sorry to his granny and big brother for running away. He was so cute saying sorry to Ryan but Ryan was hurt. He's a little chicken hearted you see. I like that about him but i fear he may get taken advantage of like he had been earlier by the older kid.

Back in the house Connor got changed and Ryan and me headed off into Stirling. Partly because i felt sorry for him and partly to give my mum a break. But also because I could tell Ryan was hurt by Connor, "you're my wee brother and you're naughty" were his words.

It's days like that I wonder what they'll have in store for them when they're growing up. I just want to protect them from the bullies and from bad things. I know you can't wrap them in cotton wool, but still. I can't think of a time when they weren't around. They are amongst the few people around me who can bring a smile to my face and cheer me up with a little thumbs up or a cheeky grin.

My nephews. Love.

Angela x
.

Five things on a Friday #20

Number twenty. So that means we've been doing this for twenty weeks? Cool. I say we, in that way I hope you're joining in on this!

1) a video of Arthur Boorman, a war veteran in America who wears a back brace and legs callipers. Told he'd never walk properly again. Never give up were his thoughts. The rest.... Well you'll have to watch this video.

 

2) I finally saw The Avengers!! I really enjoyed it. If I had one minor criticism it would be that the fight scene in the middle was about ten. Invites too long, but other than that I loved it. All the characters in one movie. Ace. Robert Downey Jr always steals the scenes he's in doesn't he. He has that x factor. I loved Scarlett Johanson in it too. In fact no, they were all good. Really good. You have to go see it if you haven't already.

3) Prometheus. I saw the trailer again and for someone who has never been into Alien films, this is really exciting me. I can't wait to see. I tweeted that I hadn't seen Guy Pearce (a love of mine since his days as Mike in a Neighbours) in a trailer yet. A few people tweeted me back to say check out The TED video. I YouTube'd it on my return home and WOWSERS, it's such a great idea. No spoilers here but do go and check it out! Rally really good.

 

4) as I type this I'm watching the results of the American Idol final. I hope Phillip Phillips wins! You may remember him from a few Friday Five posts ago. I want to say how much i like Jennifer Lopez on this show too. She seems really down to earth. And of course she's stunning too.

5) my nephews Ryan and Connor. They really do bring joy to my life. A joy I couldn't possible find elsewhere. I stopped in on my way home from spin class to be told Ryan has chicken pox. I've never had it! Connors face was Brit red too, but that was due to him running riot, chatting the hind legs off a donkey and generally being hyper. He'll calm down soon...I hope. If only you could all meet them. I know they'd bring you joy too. The joy that only two cute little ginger brothers can bring. Awesome little people.

Angela x

 

 

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad


 

Funtime Friday

I spent most of today with some of the best people on the planet. This is day 1 of a 5 day break from work (off til Wednesday) and so I decided that I'd chill out at home, have a lazy day. We watched the track world cycling championships. Ryan kept guessing the 'blue' guy would win. Mostly they did. Sometimes they didn't. The blue girl did though. She being Victoria Pendelton winning a gold medal. Yay!

During that we had breakfast. I had toast. He had a banana on his. One of his faves. Connor declined any form of food having been up during the night with an upset tummy. Wee button. Also during the hours watching cycling, we coloured in the colouring book, laughed at Connor pretending to cry (so funny), me and Ryan did sums with our fingers. It was ten takeaway three leaves seven etc. also amongst those sums was this. Me: "what's one add two?" Ryan: "emmm..... Three". Me: "no, a thumb and the fingers". Hahahaa we both laughed for ages and kept laughing at it during the day.

I went for a shower, he played with his cars whilst Connor slept. Later we went on a mini road trip to Morrisons for food, and to collect his mummy from her work (she works close by Morrisons). We bought cake making stuff, fruit, sweeties and juice. He swiped them through the self checkout. Beep beep. We met an aunty, an uncle and two big cousins visiting from Kent. We waited in a queue to leave the car park (panic Easter egg buying I expect) and headed to pick up his mummy. Whilst waiting on her appearing we made a little video. I might upload it soon. Keep your eyes peeled.

At home again he had dinner, a pizza. I had tea and we watched some WWE wrestling on YouTube. He got some wrestlers and a ring for Christmas but I don't think he's actually watched a match (bout?). I think they took too long in starting because eventually he got bored and kept repeating the earlier "a thumb and the fingers" joke and laughing. It's our little secret though.

Soon it was time for them to go home to their own house. But what a nice little day that was. Afterwards I ate too much and am nursing a food baby belly. What the heck. It's Easter. Chocolate season. Yay.

Angela x
.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Five things on a Friday #12 and #13

Ok i missed last week's Five Things post. Mostly because I had a flu thing all last week and so nothing much really happened. So i'll throw in a few extra wee snippets this week.

1) the weather! Yes, it's March but it's been like a mini summer. Mostly that means there have been long sunshiney days (of which i haven't seen much working indoors and all) as well as gorgeous sunsets and not to mention great views of the moon, venus and jupiter in close proximity. Sunday and Monday produced great clear skies and views. Even managed to see the red planet Mars. Nice.

Top Venus, middle Moon, bottom Jupiter

2) talking of planets. I read a tweet from Charlie Todd mentioning that the planets were in alignment and that they (over in USA) would be able to see it around 4-5pm EST (9pm here). So I tweeted him a picture of what I could see that minuted and he Favourited it! He favourited MY tweet. Well cool. Charlie Todd in case you didn't know is part of the founder of Improv Everywhere. And in case you don't know who they are well they're responsible for the no pants day on the New York Subway. It takes place in January each year. Obviously pants in America are trousers so it's people on the subway in just their boxer shorts or pants (as we call them).

3) Charlie also gave a great Ted talk that you can view here...



4) last week I went to Ryan's primary school as they were having an open night. By the way, it's also my old primary school and my mum's and most of my family's. Anyway, they were having this open night to try to raise much needed funds for the basics. When I went in it hadn't changed and yet it felt different. The corridors felt much smaller and narrower. The main sports hall/dinner hall also seemed much tinier now that i'm older. In the main hall was a little art gallery of paintings done by each class. Primary 1 (Ryan's class) were hand prints on canvas in various colours. You could buy them for £5. My sister duly did. Very cool. We headed down to the P1 classroom so Ryan could show us where he spends most of his day. It was filled with pictures on the wall they'd drawn, there were balloons with each month written on them and below were a list of names and dates of each of their birthdays. In the back left hand corner was one computer, i'd say a good few years old. One computer for the whole class of about 20 kids. Back right hand side was the house where they can play. Front right was the painting table. Paint pots, paper etc. Nice But also on the table that night were old register books from when the school opened to the recent past. I managed to find my name in there, along with my old class mates. We found my mum and my cousins too. It was good remembering all this stuff. We were allowed to have a look at Ryan's tray too. Inside was a large white folder with his picture on the front. This was where the teacher recorded his progress and stored all his drawings and stuff. The reports were good. It suggested he felt like he always has to answer every question the teacher asks. He got a bit upset if it was wrong. But he now knows that it's ok to be wrong sometimes and she gives him more thinking time. His reading and writing are coming along a treat (we were worried a little while back) and he's very good at sums. In fact when he goes home from our house every night first thing he does is get out his book (homework) and reads or does his sums. I came away feeling good about his progress but i also felt a little bit sad about the state of the school. It's a small school with only about 100 kids. It's close to my heart and perhaps i need to think of ways I can help it get more funds... Maybe that could be my next purpose?..

5) work has been frankly shit the past few weeks. Not that actual work. I love my job and what i do but the atmosphere is pretty low due to various things. Hopefully it'll pick up again soon because it's actually a good place to work. If only the..... nah i won't say any more. But, however, I decided to give spin class a miss again on Monday and went to see Contraband at the cinema. I seem to say this all the time but i quite liked it. Mark Wahlberg is his usual self but is really quite good. And i liked Giovanni Ribisi. He's pretty intense when acting don't you think? I'd give is 3/5 on the Ange movie scale. Not an official scale, just mine.

6) if you've been reading here for a while you'll know one of my all time favourite (if not THE favourite) blogs to read is Pacing The Panic Room by Ryan Marshall and his lovely family. I've been an avid reader for about 3 years now and I've watched as his family grows and takes turns and never fails to amaze with the love the shines through in his wonderful words and pictures. Anyways Ryan was on Twitter but kinda stopped tweeting but thankfully did take up Instagram in a huge way. Both he and his wife Cole's pictures are really great. Recently Ryan started a series on Instagram called #LifewithSMS It's about their little boy LB suffers from SMS. The pictures are so great and Ryan gives an explanation about what's happening to LB in the picture. In this post Ryan gives a fuller explanation in his post An Instagram Series: Life with SMS I urge you to head over and have a read. I did not know what SMS was until I read it on his blog a while back. If nothing else you'll see that LB is a gorgeous little boy and Ryan's pictures capture moments of time that for me give a little insight on how their days are spent coping with a kid with SMS. I say coping onlt because i'm not sure what else to say because from the outside looking in they appear to cope really well and never seem to complain. The pictures are always filled with meaning and there's laughing and obvious love and brilliant little moments. There's also cool posts on jobs, Tessa Tangerine (their smiley little girl), and Ryan's own thoughts about growing a family together with Cole. I love it. Enough of me rambling. Go over and visit. You won't regret it.

7) Thornton's strawberry fondant pigs. 'nuff said. I cannot get enough of these sweets. I am a huge chocaholic and Thornton's Moments are a fave at Christmas time, especially the strawberry sweets. But then *cue angelic lah lah lahing* i stumbled upon the kids sweet section. You know the one with the little dancing bear lollipops, the mini fudge pieces and then..... the strawberry fondants pigs! As soon as i read it my mind whirred into action and thought could this be the same strawberry from the Moments box?! YES IT COULD. It's all I can do to get into own of a weekend and purchase my 5 for £3. They're sooooo tasty. I'll be a piggy too if i don't stop eating them though! oink.

8) I bought a nice cute little summer outfit from Zara last week. I say summer but it's actually black shorts and two very smart drop hem t-shirts, one black one white. Classic shades. I cannot wait to wear them *crosses fingers and prays for good weather this year*.

And that my friends is all we've got time for just now.

Angela x

.

Five Things I Liked This Week #1 - 6 January 2012

As a follow up to my Five Things post last week, here's the start of a weekly Five Things series. 


1 - Christmas presents...

...from friends you've met on Twitter. A lovely little surprise waiting on me when I got in from work on my first day back. Was it timed that way? Not sure but it was a welcome little addition to a not too bad day at all. The contents were even better and the kind of presents I wish my family thought about buying me. Just my thing indeed. 

2 - Extra day off work

Not an extra day to me but it seemed to be one day longer than most people had off. That was good. I spent it with mum and the nephews. One was grumpy so me and Ryan spent about hour or so watching Fireman Sam on the iPad and then he tried his hand at tweeting. Not technically old enough for a Twitter account (being 5), but he soon got the hang of it. He even remembered the little search magnifying glass icon from YouTube. "that's what we press then type in Fireman Sam isn't it Angie?". Proud. He didn't tweet much wisdom, instead he chose to type words of things lying around. Irn bru. Phone. Calculator. Wee cutie.

3 - Songs that transport you
Zane Lowe has been on the Radio 1 breakfast show this week and he does a feature called Zane versus... On the morning I was up early to go to a spin class (Wednesday), it was Zane versus Matt Smith aka Dr Who. The first song the Doctor chose was ERASURE - A Little Respect.


Oh my god it just transported me back to happy places. If i hadn't been driving the car i'd have been jiving around my room. However, i find that car-seat-dancing is the new dancing around your room. Try it. Carefully though.

4 - A Two Day working week
ah those extra little holidays mean that this week i've worked just Thursday and Friday. Bliss. It's been quiet so got things done. But also, i'd rather have these two little days back than try to haul myself out of bed on Monday morning after two weeks off. That would be hard. Praise be to small little victories like this.

5 - Sherlock Holmes: a game of shadows and The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

I can't tell you how much i was looking forward to seeing Sherlock Holmes. I saw the first film two years ago on New Years Day sat in a late showing at my local cinema. Me, alone, and about 7 other couples. Cringe. But i liked it a lot. The chemistry between Holmes and Watson was fab and it didn't disappoint in this new one either. Honestly, from the first scene i was grinning like a loon at the screen. It's witty, clever and RDJr is just ace. Jude Law does help too. Also there were a few surprise appearances from actors I didn't know were in it. That was a nice addition to my viewing.

I was looking forward to The Girl WTDT ever since i saw a sneak peak of the trailer a few months back. I'm not a huge fan of Daniel Craig (I've never seen the Bond films he's in), although I did like him in Layercake. But I was willing to give it a go. I watched the original version of the film on a pixelated laptop screen via the LoveFilm website at the beginning of last year. It was good. Very dark and gritty and gruesome at certain parts. I wondered if 'hollywood' could capture that. My verdict is a big fat YES. It's just as dark and gruesome but with a Hollywood sheen over it. Rooney Mara is good and I almost forgot about the original girl. Daniel Craig is blooming marvellous as Mikael. There's even a cameo from Jim Robinson off of Neighbours (he pops up everywhere). It's long at over 2 hours but honestly I didn't really notice the time. It would be too obvious to say it has a bit of the look of Seven to it since Fincher directs here too but I thoroughly enjoyed it and warmed to Daniel Craig more than I thought I would. I would even say i like him now.

I hope they're doing the full series, it would be wrong not to. Can anyone confirm?

One week. Five things. Lots of smiles.
What are yours?

Angela x
.

No Words Wednesday

Saturday evening sunset, raindrops

There's not...

Happy Halloween

The Duo of Wonderful Nephews

Self

Another amazing sunset

Spinning Self

Saturday morning mist

Loch calmness

Mirror

Bridge

Angela xx

I Pedalled for Scotland

This time last week i was just getting home from the Pedal for Scotland bike ride. 51 miles of fun. Here's the story...

Thursday afternoon and I printed off a map off how to get to Glasgow Green from Stirling. It was for my Dad. He would be in a support vehicle for a group who were taking part in the Pedal for Scotland Glasgow to Edinburgh bike ride. I started thinking maybe I could go along too. Then I never thought any more about it, until they tweeted that you could still register online up to 4.30pm on Saturday. I made a mental note of that.

Friday came and I wasn't feeling too great. I know what was up with me but that's not for these parts... Anyway as Friday wore on I was feeling more and more off. I went to spin class in the hope that would sort me out and it kinda did. A little. After spin i rushed home, had a shower then headed to Karen's as everyone was there for Connor's 2nd birthday. He got a guitar and was totally loving it. He had cake and we were all there. We played pass the parcel, Ryan won! Then it was musical statues, Ryan won again! Next up with Just Dance on the Wii. They were great at it. Soon it was time to go home. I think Connor loved his birthday.

Birthday boy, his brother and his Granda

 Back at home I still couldn't shake the feeling that I had. So went to bed after exchanging a few texts.

Saturday I woke up and still wasn't feeling that great. I felt a little better after an exchange of advice from a friend. I watched the rugby and F1 qualifying and headed into town to buy a top for school reunion i was to attend that night. Home from town without a top but i had a lotto ticket and a birthday card. That was fine. It was about 5pm when i decided that yes, i would go along to the cycle. I had a quick blast around on the bike to make sure it was in working order. The seat needed adjusting and the tyres were pumped up a little then it was packed in Dad's work van. That night I was still feeling a little delicate of tum so decided to give the school reunion a miss - which i'm gutted about. I packed my bag, charged the phone and camera batteries and finally went to bed about 11.30pm. We'd be up at 5.45am....

The alarm went off and it was dark outside. I could hear a couple of birds singing and no rain - result. I showered, got dressed and had my Weetabix. I was feeling a little better today. We set off to a meetup point at 6.45am. There were a couple of people there already but we waited about 20 minutes for the rest to arrive. We headed off for Glasgow about 7.15am (via Falkirk) and arrived about 8.15. I was dropped off to go and register at the People's Palace and that would be the last time I saw them all day. (The team Dad was supporting was a company team from Stirling).

After a quick registration I headed to the start line. There were hundreds of people lined up. I admired some of the bikes around me. Some were shiny and new looking, others were well worn. Mine was amongst the former. The rain started to drizzle and i was a bit nervous. Most people there seemed to belong to teams or be 50% of a partnership, i kinda wished i had someone there too but this would be a good thing to do on my own. It's the most spontaneous pursuit i've done in a long time and it would give me a chance to think about things, life, people, a person...

Registered!

Slowly but surely, about every 6 minutes we moved forward and got close to the start line. An announcer was chatting to people at the front and i hoped i would just blend in with the crowd and he wouldn't stop me for a chat. Phew. That was lucky. At 9.15am my group were ushered through the start line and i was off. It felt great. The weather was holding just for now with even some blue patched through the cloud. The first few miles were roads that were blocked off to traffic but soon enough we hit a set of traffic lights which would signal the start of the open roads - watch out for that car!

We rode along through streets i didn't really recognise but soon were out the east end and passing by the big shopping centre at Easterhouse. The Glasgow Fort, couldn't remember what it was called there. It wouldn't be long now until the first feed station. But first, a tricksy hill to split the group. And split the group it did. I got my gear sorted and made my way up. Reaching the top was made slightly difficult by stupids not being in the right gear and stopping right in front of me but reach the top i did and decided to pull over for a wee drink. Turns out i needn't have bothered stopping as a little further on, crossing the M73 we were 2 kms from the first feed station at Drumpelier park. I stopped my Dad's van in the car park and stopped for a wee chat. On my watch it was only 1 hr and 2 mins since i'd set off. Not bad i thought. That was with lots of stops at traffic lights coming out of the city centre. Woohoo. I set off a little further along to the actual feed station and queued up to pick up a bottle of water and a banana. I ate half the banana, drank the water and decided to set off again. I wasn't out of puff yet.

Out of Drumpelier, through the centre of Coatbridge and Airdrie. There was a boy racer in Airdrie who was giving the riders the v sign with his fingers. Eejit. As I passed through Stirling Road roundabout in Airdrie i recalled with fondness and a heavy heart many a day we passed that roundabout to go visit my Pappy in Law village near Carluke. I haven't been through that area for years, maybe i'll take a wee drive through to see the old house again. The weather was beginning to get greyer and the rain turned from light drizzly to a constant pitter patter but it was still not heavy. The skies were grey and the wind had lifted and even worse it was a head wind. That's when your heading straight into a wind, isn't it? Yes a head wind. It was constantly buffeting me and then turned to a cross wind when there were no trees to shelter us. My pace was still constant, occasionally speeding up as I overtook slower riders. We came upon a sign for Longriggend and i can remember thinking what a dreary place. It was quite high up, although i never realised until we got there as the climbs were steady. And then there was a sign for 2kms to the next feed station at Avonbridge. Now in Falkirk Council territory too. I needed this stop. My tummy was starting to grumble and the Weetabix i'd had at 6am wasn't fuelling me any more. I headed into the feed station but the queue was extra long so i headed straight back out and perched on a garden wall across the street so that I could eat my chicken roll i had with me. About 15 minutes later i set off again.

The next stretch was more b roads. The riders were more stretched out, thank goodness. The weather was the same but on the approach to Linlithgow it got calmer and the sun even poked out from behind the blanket grey clouds. I was ready for this lunch. We were now on 12.45pm. I'd been riding since 9.15am. Not too shabby, Ange, not too shabby at all. There was a long climb up a gentle but never ending hill and i saw a 15 miles to go sign!! Great feeling.

a welcome sign

 The park was great but you couldn't really see the palace that you can see from the motorway or train. I parked my bike on the rails, queued up outside the tent and got my lunch after about 15 minutes. Pasta. Pepper pasta, it was literally dry pasta with peppers mixed through. Hhhmmm dry pasta. I needed the full bottle of water downed to help it go down. A cup of tea too. Albeit too milky. I sat and ate my lunch and then headed off after about 20 minutes, not before getting a guy to take my picture.

Out of Linlithgow and the weather was good. I'd even saw i was hot but my bum was aching. It had survived all those miles so i'm sure another 15 wouldn't matter. Ouch. I was up and out of the saddle a few times but that only served to make it worse when i sat down so i shifted about a bit on it instead. The road was long, relatively flat then we passed through Winchburgh where my cousin used to stay and over the motorway into Kirkliston. NEARLY HOME!! It had only been about 20 minutes cycling since Linlithgow so i opted out of stopping at this feed station. I had my own water so no point. I looked at my watch and it was reading a little over 4 hours. I decided i'd try to make it into Murrayfield under 5 hours. A challenge for myself. Out of Kirkliston a cycle only lane had been set up with cones but people were slow going along it and they were two abreast. It was difficult to overtake but a few squeeks of my brakes and the guy pulled in to let me by. I flew. I was now on a clock... I looked over and saw the airport. Nearly home. That's what i kept thinking to myself. On and on and on. We were now in residential streets and there was a street in Davidson Mains (I think) where we came around the corner and people were clapping and saying not far to go! then up a little hill and group of little boys, about 9 or 10, were lined up and were getting a high five from all the riders. I of course obliged them and got a 'nice shades' shout too. I tell you this, it was so good at that point. There had been hardly anybody on the streets watching and this group of little boys were a boost at just the right time. Thank you wee boys!!

My watch was now about 4hrs 45 minutes. 15 minutes to go. Surely it could be done. We were now on the canal path. It was dark but at least it was flat and smooth. I kept a steady pace but tiredness was starting to set in. I'd wished it would come to an end soon. Then I thought WWPD (what would Pyllon do) and i laughed. He'd grit his teeth and carry on and that's what i did. It worked. Through a break on the tree branches and over a little bridge i caught a glimpse of the metalwork high up on the stadium, woohoo!! It can't be long now. I looked at my watch 5hrs... Oh well. We were directed to get off the bikes and down a steep section which came out onto a street, Roseburn Terrace. I recognised this area from when i attended the Kings of Leon gig here back in June. It was a welcome relief. I'll admit to slowing down a bit. We rode around the back of Murrayfield and what a great surprise, directed into the stadium, out the other side and to the finish line. It was great! I'd done it. YES!

The only sad part was that i crossed the line and no one was waiting on me. That would've been ace. I shed a little tear. More of relief and sense of achievement than sorrow though. I collected my medal and goody bag and called my Dad. They were waiting on the Ogilvie crew who weren't in yet, near Haymarket. I headed around and found them. Awesome. It was great. I got my dad to take a picture of me finished then he loaded my bike into the van. I opened my Wee Bru, ate my crisps and marvelled in what i had just done. I think i'll do it next year.

We waited for about another hour until the riders started to come back to the vans. I felt pretty pleased with myself as some of these people are out on their bikes all the time. Smugface. My battery died on me though so i limited my tweeting but a huge thanks to everyone who wished me well. It was all greatly appreciated.

Look at this cool but scary graffiti i found on a wall where we were parked. Anyone know who did it?

When i got home i showered, had dinner and was tucked up in bed by 9pm. A few texts were exchanged with a fab friend and i dozed off full of tiredness, achievement and excitement at what could be next.

Great things bikes, aren't they!

Angela x

.

Ryan Goes To School

Today was the big day. The day he'd, we'd, been counting down to for a good few weeks (years). He was up at 7.30 and ready to go at 8.30. A crisp white short sleeved shirt, black trousers and shoes he'd chosen himself on holidays. To finish off the uniform was the blue tie with gold diagonal stripes that once belonged to wee Bri (who turns 30 next week). With his hair newly shorn last week he was set. He was well smart.

Ryan, 5, school boy

We went to see him about 8.40 and after a few pictures he was pacing the living room looking out the window at all the children being taken across the road and down the path to St Margaret's, his new primary school. He showed us the contents of his Buzz Lightyear lunch box. Water, orange, banana, a dunker box, two pieces, two mini sausage rolls, beef Hula Hoops and a biscuit. Yes, he can't eat when he wants to.

A little while later Wee Bri and Catherine Anne came to visit and then it was time to go. We set off. Me, Mum, Karen, Brian, Ryan and Connor in his buggy. I can't remember the last time i walked down to the school. The school where we spent some great times as children. Memories were flooding back and i hoped that Ryan's time there would be just as great as when i was there. It really is a good wee school.

St Margaret's

There were little groups of mums, dads, grannies all gathered round whilst the kids went inside with there parents. Karen took Ryan in and we chatted until she came back out. About 10 minutes later she came out saying he was settled in fine and was already in the process of making her a necklace which she might get when she went back for him at 3 o'clock. We were happy. Connor was sitting in his buggy asking for Ryan but Karen was taking him into town on the 'big bus for sweeties'. He was happy. Wait til he realises Ryan wasn't coming back after for a few hours....

Connor

Angela x

.

Happy Birthday Ryan

Today we celebrate the birthday of my beloved nephew Ryan. It is a milestone birthday, what with him being 5, Five, V, and that. He had a birthday cake at nursery this morning and will get another one later on when the family descend on his house.

I'd got him some books and an All Saints skull t-shirt for his birthday (he loves The Cat in The Hat) but i figured with him being only five he'd also appreciate a toy of some sort. So yesterday, after a few weeks of false starts on this trip, i took him to Hamley's in Glasgow where he was presented with lots of choice. However, there would be a limit! We headed straight for the Toy Story area, then Ben 10, the Skalectrix and then to the demo area where you can play with the remote controlled cars. We were there for a good twenty minutes and i thought he'd have chosen the remote car but no. We moved to another section that had fire engines (he wants to be a fireman when he's a big boy, that or a drummer!). But he has loads of fire engines in various shapes and sizes. But guess what he chose as his birthday toy?....

An £8 police car. "There's no flashing lights or anything" I said. "It doesn't matter, i can play with it with my own hands" was his reply. I smiled. He has a great imagination. Only the other day did he come home with his nursery report card that said he loved the sciences, playing with the animals and...wait for this... a rhythm for music, especially drumming. My sister was delighted to hear that! He's also good on the computer too. Reason number 54 why i always have to go into the Apple store when we go to Glasgow...

Watching Fireman Sam on the iMac's in the Apple store. Its what they're made for

Five years ago today our lives changed for the better when Ryan arrived in it. A timid little boy with a great heart and a bigger soul, he's caring, considerate, highly energetic, has a nifty left foot on him but he hates getting his hair cut. He loves his little brother so much although they're always play fighting.

Right now he's outside sporting a 5 badge and hitting a football off the wall. Brilliant.

Most of all, for me, he makes me smile and laugh and brightens up my day whenever I see him. If you met him he would do he same for you i'm sure.

Apparently i'm not his auntie, i'm his Angie. And that is damn fine with me.

Happy birthday Ryan, Love, Angie xxxx

.

Photoshop First Play

I've finally been having a play around with Photoshop that Ben gave me. After months of not looking at my digital camera, I took a few photos the other day when i was off work. Of course Ryan is in them. To be honest i'd just bought myself a little Joby Gorillapod tripod thing for the camera and wanted to test it out (& Ryan was curious as to what the heck it was!). So here are the results.

crop of original

black and white

purple tint

Not bad but not exactly technical I know. Plus Ryan was watching the telly at the point the camera went off. What I really want to learn is how to do really vivid landscape pictures. Also putting four pictures into one, if you know what I mean? You know, have one picture but two different scenes in it, like I see on other blogs. Also rounded edges. I love rounded edges on pictures. I'll get there though. I've been having a wee play about with it each night. I love this programme. Thank you Woodalls!

Angela xx

.

What a week!

It's been a week of highs and a week of... not-so-highs.  No lows, not this week.  Work flew past pretty quickly but there are interesting developments to come there, let me tell you.  That's for another time though.

Tuesday night saw a trip to Dundee to see Paolo Nutini at the Caird Hall with Susan.  It was a great wee night and we had a lovely dinner in Papa Joe's.  Was a bit strange driving North and NOT going up a mountain though!  Thanks so much for the ticket Susan! x

Monday evenings are now spin bike class evening at The Peak with Elaine.  It's great and gets the legs going like you wouldn't believe.  I come out of there knackered with a face like a beetroot but feeling very refreshed.  In my thinking this can only be a good thing for building up fitness. 

Wednesday evenings are also great!  Yoga class.  It's so good and relaxing but it's great for building strength and stretching my very un-bendy body.  I never knew you didn't need to go to the gym to work up a sweat.  I now love it.  The teacher is great too.  Very calming person.  I feel revived when I leave that class. 

Most evenings are also spent rolling with my TP Therapy rollers (on my dodgy knees/legs).  They do hurt a bit but this is to be expected.  It does take a bit of getting used to but deep breaths help.  I'm so far very pleased with them.

So this weekend was the great WHW*Falldoon with PTC, Phil and Craig and another taking part, Iain was his name.  Regular updates were being provided via Twitter and Spots were being pinged on the SpotTracker.  I decided to take The Boy (Ryan) out for the day today and we ended up at Rowardennan as he wanted to see the 'big boys on their bikes'... oh and 'the big mountains' too!  We headed off along the road towards Loch Lomond and arrived managing to get a space in the car park (it's usually too busy on a nice day).  By the time we'd got there Ryan had fallen asleep and it took me ages to get him wakened and ready to get out the car.  (I had to bribe him with Irn Bru and a pack of Mars Planets). 

We sat on a bench on the shore and watched folk go up and down the loch on jet-ski's and boats.  He loved it.  Then we spied 2 ducks and a swan.  We didn't have any bread to throw them so a guy who was eating his pieces at a nearby bench gave us some crusts to throw.  Both Ryan and the ducks loved it.

A while later we went back to the car to deposit a bag and then walked along the trail a wee bit.  He was trying to jump in puddles i was trying to stop him!  But we managed to get to a nice pebbly beach where we sat on some rocks and shared the aforementioned Irn Bru and Mars Planets - we have a game where we try to see who gets the crunchy ones in the pack, we like it! 

Then he was feeling brave so he went nearer the water to throw some stones in the water.  We were here for ages just throwing stones and he was getting closer and closer to the water.  He survived though without getting wet feet. 

Then it was questions about 'the big mountains'.  'When can Ryan go up the mountains?' was the question.  When he's a big boy I replied.  'I need boots, i'll tell Granda',  'Yes and a rucksack' i said.  'Oh yeah... a rocksack, ha ha ha'.  Kids are so funny with their own words and interpretations.  'How do we get up the mountains?'  'We have to walk up' i said... 'Oh i see!' he exclaimed like it was the strangest thing ever.  He loves being outdoors, whether it be on his bike, his tractor, playing football or just digging in the dirt.  A typical boy.  Fireman Sam is his latest obsession.     

By this point i thought we'd missed the 'big boys on the bikes' but lo and behold about 5 minutes later they were there.  We didn't see them at first being as we were so engrossed in the game of stone throwing.  It was Phil I saw first but he was on his way soon enough and then PTC followed stopping for a wee quick chat.  They were doing well but he said they were tired.

Time was getting on and it was time for us to head home for our dinner.  We headed for the car and packed up and drove down the road passing the boys on the way.  'Angie, there's the boy on his bike' were the words from the back seat.  I didn't peep the horn (incase PTC got a fright!) but gave a wave goodbye instead.  It seems the guys made it to the finish line some time around 8pm this evening.  A great effort by all involved.  Can't wait to read all the stories.   

'That was a lovely day Angie' were more words from the backseat and my heart melted.  It's good to get outdoors with the family.  And tiny little sentences like that make it all the more worthwhile.  He will go up 'a big mountain' soon enough.  But we'll start with Dumyat first before we head to Ben Nevis! ha ha.

Tomorrow I say goodbye to a friend.  Someone I shared my Everest experience with.  Who kept me warm on those cold nights in the Himalayas and who also retreated with me when it all went wrong.  Yes...  Mr Rab Atlas 1000 is being sold.  He's great but way too heavy for me to carry in a pack.  But he's going to a good home in Mr Ian who is a seasoned hill-walker and climber.  He'll use him more than I ever would and it makes sense for someone else to get the use.  Bye bye Mr Rab... Hello Mr PHD Green!!     :o)

So, yeah, what a week!  I'm now going to finish it off by watching one of my favourite films ever - Good Will Hunting.  A great film.    

Ange xx

Musical update:
Paloma Faith - New York
Max Richter - Vladimir's Blues (beautiful tune)
Echo and the Bunnymen - Think I need It Too
Coldplay (all songs)
Paolo Nutini - Sunnyside Up album
Kings of Leon (still love this alum!)

Guess Who's Back?

Yeah "The Boy" has arrived back from his holidays with his Ganny, Ganda and Mummy. He's all pink skin and freckles but just as cute. And I swear he's grown a few inches too! He's already run riot, ate some Strawbies from the plant out the back garden and secretly told me few new "words"... ahem, cough cough, he's learned on holiday! I told him off for it and I know you're not meant to but I did have a wee laugh to myself. Anyway here he is... all glowing and cheeky faced.

It was good to see him today as I'm now off for my much anticipated first visit to London this weekend. I can't wait. The occasion is Kate's 30th birthday party on Saturday night with a great dose of catching up, visit to tourist attractions and much fun in between all that. I've not seen Kate since we parted at Heathrow airport after the trek so it will be great. I'll be lodging with Ruth in Putney (I think?) and can't wait for that too. I managed to grab a wee hour with Ruth about a month ago when she was up North for a wedding. We met on the banks of Loch Lomond just before she drove back to Glasgow airport. It'll be great and we'll do what girls do best, catch up chit chat gossip about life and how it's all going since our epic trip to the Himalayas (did I mention how I love saying that?! ha ha).

Anyway that's my weekend sorted. There was talk of a camping trip this weekend and I'm annoyed I'll miss it but I'm sure there'll be others, guys keep me updated of plans for the next one!!

Happy weekend people,

Ange xx

Adventures with The Boy

Yeah, ok, so I'll admit it... I'm missing him - lots. I've seen him nearly everyday for the past 3 and a bit years and i miss him after a few days of not seeing him. I can't wait 'til he gets home from his holidays and he makes me laugh again. We have good wee adventures and photo sessions - he's such a poser! But it's those wee cheeky sly looks or things he comes out with that I like the best. He's such a happy wee guy too. Never cries until he's hurt... or when he's taking the piss out of his mummy - which happens a lot and i can't help but laugh. He's kinda like a best friend and although only 3 years you can hold a good conversation with him. He loves playing football, driving his tractor, pretending to play drums with his knife and fork on a dinner plate (gets that from his Granda!) and playing guitar with a pen! He's funny...

In saying all of that i do fear for him sometimes. He's a little red-head you see and to boot he's got gorgeous curls (ok as a curly-head I'm biased!) and we all know that children can be cruel to each other. He'll soon be going to nursery and who knows what that holds. He's into his books too as long as they've got Bob the Builder or Peppa Pig in them. With a great imagination he started asking me 'How's your work Angie?' to which i replied 'Oh not so good, how was yours?'. His reply? 'It was good, I finised 'at wee job'. 'What was that?' I questioned. 'I painted Ganny's wall'. Then he started calling me Wendy and I had to hammer a pretend nail into a pretend bit of wood!! Anyway yeah he's got a great imagination.

He's dying to 'go up the big moutains wi Angie' and one day he will, just as soon as he gets his trail shoes sorted :o) Never mind. He'll be back soon enough. He'll be making me laugh. He'll be shouting up the stairs to me 'Angie, gie me kiss!, gie me cuddle'. Cannae wait!

Ange xx