Photography

Expressions portrait photo #05: Swing

Over the Easter holiday we were at a family wedding. We stayed in the loveliest farm cottage overlooking Dartmoor. There were sheep. I have an odd talent for making animal noises (I know, not particularly useful). It rained a lot! So we were reduced to driving along the lane, baa-ing at the sheep, and trying to figure out what they might be saying in reply. GG insisted that my baas were declaring the deliciousness that is a Sunday leg of lamb. The sheep, unsurprisingly, were angry in their tone, or so she says. Fortunately, there was also a swing set …

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Expressions #04: Joy

This picture makes me smile. She is getting fed up with posing for the camera as I complete my photography homework with a photo a day. I am having to resort to bribery to make her switch on the smile and participate naturally. This wasn’t the shot I was looking for on this particular occasion, but it was by far my best photo of the day. Sheer joy!  

Wot so Funee? Our first wedding.

Last weekend we went to a wedding. It was the first time I have been an actual wedding, where the people involved weren’t married already. M&D’s renewal of vows was awesome fun, but this was an all day long event, full of sunshine, flowers, humour, and love. I adored it!   This was my cousin’s wedding; him being 28 and me being 9 made my Mum feel old. She talked about how it felt like only yesterday (why do grown-ups say that?) that she held him in her arms as a tiny baby, but then she’ll openly admit that she was a …

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The emotional wins of travel with kids

As the coach weaves us out of Val d’Isère I suffer a pang and tears threaten. I don’t think it has anything to do with my aching legs or the grey clouds that have appeared – as if to mark the occasion. No, this strange homesick feeling is more about the end of a beginning. For this was not just a holiday, not merely a week of hanging out with the family, away from the chores of laundry, the routines of school, and the demands of work. This was a first in my children’s lives – a whole raft of …

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Expressions: Bored

15 minutes is a long time to wait when you’re 6. Even if you do have a comfy bench all to yourself. We were waiting for my sister’s Stagecoach performance. Man they took a long time to get ready.   Still waiting. Wonder if I’ll get the loan of an iPhone if I act it really well? Will you stop already with the photos? Oh alright then, here’s a smile. Make the most of it – it’s all you’re getting.

Pink – 365 #13

You know that time of year when the first blossom appears on trees? You get excited for Spring, but then it stalls. You try to take photographs, but there’s just not quite enough. The branches are still there, just dotted with pink. I found my first candy floss tree this week – great big cotton wool balls of pink. And just look at the sky behind. Like a bag of pink and whites. It made me happy. And flowers! I got flowers this week, for Mother’s Day. Not from my kids – they will bounce onto my bed in a …

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Lights, movement, flamenco! 365 #11

I took my daughter to Sadlers Wells this week. It was a first for both of us – I had never been to the iconic dance theatre in 25 years of living in or near our capital city. It was with some trepidation that I booked the two tickets – she is only 9, and it’s serious performance, not the easy, engaging musical theatre that she loves so much. But it is Flamenco season, and I have always wanted to go. Actually Daddy will openly admit that it leaves him cold, so I’ve been waiting until my girl was old …

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Young and free: Felixstowe beach 365 #08

We try to visit Grandma during the school holidays. We look forward to the trip – aside from anything else, Grandma has dogs, the thing we most covet at the moment. But even better is the chance to rummage around  on Felixstowe beach. It doesn’t have to be swimming weather, and we don’t need buckets and spades; we’re happy with simple things: filling Mum’s pockets full of stones suitable for the rock tumbler finding the perfect stick for drawing in the sand throwing pebbles – distance and skim is not important, it’s the satisfying plop into the foam that we …

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Building confidence in kids: from fear to ambition! Project 365 #05

I made my stage debut tonight. I have been at fever pitch all week with late night rehearsals and costume anticipation. I’m performing in the stage version of Grease at the Alban Arena theatre, and I am beyond excited. I have a ‘circle skirt’ which I’ve been telling people about for days, a boiler  suit for Greased Lightning, and an actual prom dress. I’m on a stage – not a raised box in the school hall, a real stage, in a real theatre for the first time in my life! I love the thrill of performing – always have, ever …

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Project 365 #04: Recommended reading

I love to read. I read anywhere and all the time; I frequently generate grumbles from my parents by asking them to carry a bag load of my books on train journeys and trips to the supermarket. You just never know when you might get some down-time, and a book fills it like nothing else. This amount of reading has rendered me practiced at quickly decoding words, and so I’m always looking for the next challenge. But at the age of 9, many of the books I’m capable of reading are deemed unsuitable my my mother, or too complex by …

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Project 365 #03: Experimenting with light

Over Christmas we got into the lush habit of lounging on the sofa on gloomy afternoons, watching films. Christmas presents mostly consisted on box sets, and now that we are old enough to manage more than just Disney animations, the sofa is a tempting alternative to blustery winds and soggy walks. However, as part of our one word resolution, Mummy is determined to get us outdoors, if only for an hour before the lazing begins. This was just an hour, to our local play park, and the sky threatened intermittently to rain us off. But despite our initial reluctance, we …

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Project 365 #02: Aldenham Country Park

It’s a terrible photo – its blurry, the light wasn’t great under all the trees, and if you look closely, I’m squinting. But I was pleased with myself, because I’d just climbed right to the top of a series of climbing nets, and we’d missed the rain. So the smile was genuine. Discovering Aldenham Country Park in Elstree After our centrally heated over-indulgence at Christmas we were keen to get out and see friends, so on the final inset day before the return to school, we arranged to meet at the bowling lanes. So did everyone else. We tried soft …

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Project 365 #01: Love Bombing

By The Bug (mostly) We started joining in with Project 365 – taking and publishing a photo a day – at The Boy and Me in 2011. We tried, but failed to keep going, consistency not always a guarantee with us. Sensibly, we didn’t even sign up in 2012, but as this blog has become more successful, we have increased our brand-related posts, at the expense of some of the anecdotal stories of our family life. That is a shame. And so 2014 sees us joining in again. Just one photo each week. Sometimes with a story behind it, sometimes …

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Instagram fridge magnets: genius idea for Christmas Stocking Fillers

I have been 9 for all of 3 days. It was great, but it’s finished now, so I’m looking forward to Christmas 😉 I used to think that the best part of Christmas was unwrapping presents, but now I’m ancient, I actually love the shopping even more. And with only £2 pocket money a week (I know!!!) I can only afford the stocking fillers. So I was thrilled to discover Stickygram. Something about Instagram appeals to the narcissist in me – I have been known to take ‘selfies’ behind Mummy’s back on numerous occasions: With Stickygram, you can create Instagram …

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Spider Webs: Wot so Funee?

On the School Run “It’s like the spiders have made England into an adventure playground…” Spider webs in the mist I had a whole other #funee lined up for today, but after the school run this morning I couldn’t resist this one. Because that’s the best thing about a Mummy blog – the small moments with your children that make you smile on a misty morning. Now, if you have your own post to link this week, grab the badge code from the sidebar, and click the link below to enter your post – I can’t wait to see what …

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I believe… please help: Wot so Funee?

Four years ago me and the Bug, plus M&D went on holiday with some very good friends. We had the most fabulous holiday, and the presence of my friend’s Mum was a huge advantage, given that she is the best natural family photographer in Hertfordshire! I got this as a housewarming gift later that year: This was followed by a beautiful book of images that we treasure, laughing as we recall a game in the shallow water, a mocktail on the beach, or the sandcastle moat competitions organised daily by our fathers. Oh how we loved that holiday! And how …

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