A new addition to the family

  And no, it's not a baby!

Meet Basil, our new puddy cat.

We adopted him from the Cats Protection League in Belfast last Sunday after being assessed by them and approved a few days earlier.  The kids couldn't wait to pick out their new pet.  We had already been told about Basil and so we met him first and fell in love with him.  Tarja and Barney came with me to choose him.  But it was hard to choose. So many beautiful, friendly cats, all waiting for a home. How does one choose?? In the end we went with Basil because he was super friendly and we'd already seen photos of him and had him in mind. 

It took well over an hour to get home, because it was rush hour. But Basil sat in his box on Tarjas lap and made no fuss at all.  We had been told to keep him alone in a room for a day or two until he got used to the new environment, and to expect him to be out of sorts and scared.  

But when we opened his box up at home, he came straight out, jumped down, did his own tour of EVERY room in the house and then started purring and cuddling! Within no time at all he was up on my knee, lapping up the love and making himself at home.

The kids absolutely adore him, and I get the impression he will be very happy here. He used to live on a farm before it was demolished and he became homeless. I can tell that he really wants to get outside into the great outdoors, but he will have to wait a few weeks until he is allowed. 

The first night he snuck onto by bed in the night and took as much space up as he could! He is going to be one spoilt kitty!

Christmas 2011

My baby turns 3.

My baby has turned 3 and is really no longer a baby. She is a little madam! She is so like both Tarja and Barney at that age... but in different ways. She can't entertain herself for a second! But loves someone to play with. She loves Peppa Pig, swimming, going to the park, play dough and playing with her new 'doggies' set.

She had been waiting for months for her birthday and was very excited when the day finally came. This year we had a little family party for her at home. Her aunts, uncles, cousins and Nanny came and the next day she kept saying "wow, Mummy, everybody really loves me!" So she obviously felt really special and was feeling the love!

Here are a few photos of her special day.

Marrakesh, Morocco, Nov 2011

Marrakesh has to be one of the most magical places that I've ever been to. It's like another world. Tiny streets filled with masses of people, motorbikes, donkeys, horses and carts, all bustling around competing for space to get by.  At first it was a bit of a culture shock, but very quickly we realised that the people were lovely and felt really safe and at ease.

We stayed in Riad Linda which is in the heart of the medina. The Riad is a grand old house and we stayed in the Kings suite which gave us more space. Such luxury!  The staff and owners were lovely and most helpful.  But the best thing about the Riad was its closeness to the Djemaa el Fna or main square. 

The main square is where we spent most of our time. The smells, sights and sounds were from another world. In the centre of the square are hundreds of stalls all selling traditional Moroccan food.  One night we sat on a balcony in a restaurant looking down over the square. We just watched the hustle and bustle, whilst the steam from all the food stalls rose into the sky and across the mosque. Such an awesome way to spend an evening! 

We spent days just wandering around the maze of souks, which are never ending. Getting lost was part of the fun but often locals would try to guide us to their shops in the hope that we would spend lots of money.  Of course we brought back souvenirs and I got presents for the kids. We sampled all the Moroccan pastries and ate all sorts of tagines in various restaurants. You can't go to Morocco and not try all the local food. The only thing we didn't try were the snails. They just didn't appeal to us! 

We did a sort of cooking course at the Riad, which turned out to be more of a demonstration. Then we ate it that evening in the Riad courtyard.  One of the staff took us shopping and we both bought tagines to bring home, along with lots of local spices to cook with.  The smell of the spice souks were totally intoxicating! 

I would have been happy enough just wandering around for weeks with my camera as the entire place was just one amazing photo opportunity. I made Hank a photo book of Marrakesh for Christmas so that he can keep the memory of our amazing trip alive forever. 

I could add hundreds of photos to this post but better not or the page will never load. But here are a few of my favourites.  I would definitely go back there again. Without a doubt. 

Tarja turns 15 in the style of Tim Burton!

Wow, I am so incredibly late with updating my blog posts. So much has happened since I last posted. But first let me start with Tarjas 15th birthday. It's hard to believe that my baby girl is nearly a fully grown adult. But she is turning into the most beautiful, helpful, kind young lady and I'm so very proud of her.

We of course had a birthday celebration at home. She wanted money to buy a laptop with (she's
been saving for months) but she still got a few wee presents too. New clothes and girlie things. But this year she, her cousin and her aunties organised a special Johnny Depp/Helena Bonham Carter/Tim Burton themed birthday party for both Tarja and her cousin B at Nannys
house.

What a great night it was! Aunty J had made the most amazing Tim Burton themed cakes, and Aunty M put a lot of effort into food and decorations. Everyone dressed up and it was a memorable night.