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Raisie Bay

Kids Say and Do the Funniest Things, latest offerings.

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Every now and then I like to do a post when I record some of the funniest things my children have said and done over the years. These are the things that pop up on my Facebook Memories and I want to keep them all on my blog, my little space on the Internet. I’ve just had a pretty awful weekend with lots of illness with me and the Little Man. So this is the perfect pick me up for me. I hope you enjoy it too.

Body Parts

I love it when our children are leaning about their body parts. Who doesn’t love a fun round of ‘Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes’ with their little ones. Ah, I miss those days. Here’s a little memory that popped up from 2011.


Boo fell over and landed on her knees, she said “mummy, I’ve hurt my leg elbows”

We teased her about her ‘leg elbows’ for many years.

Sisters

I had three brothers and I always wondered what it would be like to have a sister. When I had Star and Boo close together, I always knew they would be best friends. This little snippet popped up from 2014 when Star would have been 9 years old and Boo 7.

Star just promised Boo a hug if she would go out and play with her, so Boo grabbed her coat and they had a hug before going out…… ahhhh sisters

Two sisters sitting on the grass
Sisters

2019 Funniest Things

As time goes by I notice the funny little snippets get less and less, or at least they are repeated. But last year I had a few funnies pop up. So, I’m not giving up just yet. Here’s some moments to remember from 2019, which suddenly seems so long ago.

Star catches the end of the One Show and sings ‘Never Going to give You Up’ word perfect along with Rick Astley. Then she turns around and says ‘ I can’t believe he sang that song, who is he? ‘

Went to see The Impractical Jokers live last night. It was recommended 16 but I called and asked for advice on taking Boo, 12, as she’s a huge fan. I was told there would be swearing and some sexual references, but as long as there was an adult with her it was ok for her to attend. We told her it wouldn’t be like the TV show but in the end it didn’t matter as she was too star struck. The bad language was not excessive and most of the sexual references went over her head. But on the way home we were laughing about Sal (One of the Jokers) mixing up lozenges for condoms. Boo didn’t know what lozenges were but she did know what condoms were, because, and I quote, “I learned all about condoms in Geography at school. ” 😂😂

Finally, This quote was around my birthday last year.

This morning, Boo asks me how old I am and when I told her she exclaimed “wow, that’s older than the Queen” “but the queen is 93!! ” I said, feeling a bit hurt and smoothing out my wrinkles. “I know” said Boo “but she has 2 birthdays every year! ” After some working out, I mean, the Queen has only had 2 birthdays since she became queen, I am happy to proclaim… The Queen is still bloody older than ME!!!

Thank you for indulging me on my trip down memory lane. You can read more of my funniest things memories here.

Word of the Week 48 – Eventful

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Hello and welcome to the home of Word of the Week. A nice and simple weekly linky, with everyone welcome to pop by and share. The idea of the linky is to reflect back on your past week and share it with us. It’s great if you can sum it up in a word or phrase, hence giving us your Word of the Week. My word this week is ‘eventful’ and you can read more about that below.

I’m not totally strict on using just a word or phrase. But please try to stick to the theme of summing up your week. There are not too many rules with this linky, just remember to read at least another couple of posts in the link up after adding your link. I will read and comment on all posts and tweet them out for you. I also have a Pinterest board devoted to Word of the Week and I will add posts to Mix Please add the badge below to your post so that others may find us and join in. If you comment or tweet then please use the hashtag #WotW

Word of the Week is open from 6am on Friday Morning to 12 noon on Monday. Plenty of time to join in!

If you are unfamiliar with the Word of the Week linky then please feel free to ask any questions. New linkers are always welcome, we love to hear what you have been up to in the past week.

MY WORD OF THE WEEK – Eventful

Monday began with Graham taking Eldest Daughter to work, then the Little Man to school…then he noticed he had two flat tyres. He managed to get the car to the garage but they had no tyres in stock so he had to leave it there. That meant a very long walk to pick up the Little Man from school, and Eldest Daughter had to get a taxi home from work. Talk about an eventful start to the week!

It didn’t end there though. I was worried that the shopping would arrive while he Graham was picking up Little Man but I needn’t have worried. It didn’t. It was supposed to come before 3pm and after many phone calls I managed to track it down and it arrived at 8pm. In the meantime we’d had to order take out…and have it delivered because we had no car! (I could have rustled something up from the freezer/cupboards but my lot were being fussy, and I was feeling stressed out.)

On Tuesday we had our COVID testing which we do for the ONS study. The tests are usually dropped off and we do them, stick on the labels, put them back in the bags and then leave them on the doorstep for collection. Questions are then answered on the phone, which takes about 15 minutes. This tester was adamant it was all done correctly and insisted that we each did the test and answered the questions on the doorstep, one by one. There are seven of us and this took nearly an hour. Some family members were not impressed and we nearly didn’t get the testing done at all.

Wednesday was pretty uneventful, but I was feeling a bit stressed out. I have a big family at home and each birthday I make sure I get everything prepared beforehand, presents wrapped, cards written, cakes made. Sadly, the same doesn’t happen when it’s my birthday. I bought some cards online and gave them straight to Graham when they arrived without looking at them. Then he gave them back to me on Wednesday evening, expecting me to round everyone up to write them. He really couldn’t understand why this upset me!

Thursday was the event of the week…my very first zoom! As I’m writing this it’s not happened yet and if I’m honest, I’m a bit scared. I’m taking part in a blogger’s quiz night and I hope it will be fun. Thursday was also our fourth Wedding anniversary. I made Graham a card with some little crochet hearts. It was a bit naff but I made an effort. Oh, it was also my birthday and I had some cards and presents 🙂 I feel a bit old!

My lovely friend surprised me with a doorstep visit and present. I know we are not allowed to meet in gardens but we did stay two meters apart and outside. We mused about how we will miss our trip to the ballet this Christmas. 🙁

So that was my eventful week. Some good some bad, fingers crossed for the zoom meet!

Now it’s your turn, what word or phrase sums up your week this week?

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

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Chocolate Christmas at Cadburys

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I often buy a ton of chocolate to see us through the Christmas season, stocking fillers, movie treats, just a treat for when needed. This year I’ve bought a Chocolate Gingerbread Cottage, it looks great and I can’t wait to get it and make it with my Little Man. The Christmas Cottage is made with six bars of chocolate, including gingerbread flavour. You can buy them for £16 or have a go at the Competition on the website, there are 10 prizes up for grabs. You have until 15th December to enter!

Win 1 of 10 Cadbury Christmas Cottage Kits banner for Cadbury website.

Advent Calendars

I will be using affiliate links in my post which may earn me some money if you click through and buy something, you will not pay any extra. Thank you for your support.

I love how Cadbury have a page devoted to Alternative Advent Calendar ideas if you fancy making something yourself. I have to say, my kids love their little chocolate treats though, and I won’t be denying them this year.

Although they are all out of stock on the website. Maybe they will be back again in time. If not, it’s a trip to the shop for Graham….or maybe I’ll try making my own?

Cadburys Hero Advent Calendar

Gifts for Children

When I was a child I always loved my selection box that I’d find under the Christmas tree. My young ones are no different. I like the things that Cadburys have on offer this year and I’ll definitely be taking my pick from these.

box of chocolate treats from cadburys
Super Fun Pack £10
box of assorted chocolate treats from Cadburys
Chocolate Gift Set £10
Santa Sleigh Kit £14

Gifts for Older Children and Grown Ups

Everybody loves Milk Tray (not just the ladies!)

milk tray box of chocolates
Milk Tray 530g with Christmas Sleeve £12.99
Dairy milk chunk tower
Dairy Milk Chunk Tower 250g £5.99
toblerone gift set
Toblerone Gift set £7.49

The Little Extras for a Chocolate Christmas

From tree decorations to sharing tins, we all like those little chocolate extras for Christmas.

Christmas tree chocolate decorations
Chocolate Tree Decorations £2.19
little robins daim bag of chocolates
Little Robins Daim £1.49
Christmas Hamper £30

I hope I’ve given you a little inspiration here. Do go and visit the Cadbury Gift Shop to see what else they have for Christmas. Their personalised gifts are also a treat and you can find anything big or small. Let me know if you choose something and have a Merry Chocolate Christmas 🙂

Christmas posts on Raisiebay.

5 Small Home Improvements That Can Make a Big Difference

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It’s easy to get bored with your surroundings, but not know how to change them up. What’s more, many alterations can be expensive and disruptive to your daily routine. Here are five small home improvements you can make to your home, which won’t break the bank and will give your space the refresh it deserves!

Feature Wall

If you’ve got any budding artists in the family, why not devote one wall to becoming a feature wall? This could mean a bold, eye-catching wallpaper design, block colour paint or space to let imaginations run wild! Feature walls are great to add a pop of personality to a room, on a budget. Painted murals can be gorgeous to look at, and a chance to practice those art skills. Everyone can contribute in some way, making your wall a visual representation of your whole family. What’s more, you could even paint or paper over it as often as you like, allowing you to refresh and update it constantly.

feature wall, hallway. Wallpaper squares spelling out No Place Like Home.
The feature wall I have in my hallway

Artwork

Prints, wall hanging, portraits; there are endless options when it comes to updating your space with artwork. Supporting independent artists through platforms like Etsy is the perfect way to improve your home and help out a small business. You could choose a specific theme for a room, like the ocean in the bathroom, or florals in the living room, and over time your collection will grow! The artwork is also really mobile, so you can rearrange your pieces as often as you like, changing frames and locations to freshen up any room in your home.

Heating for Home Improvements

With the winter months moving in, it’s a great time to update your space with a stylish new radiator or heating system. They are available in a huge variety of shapes, sizes and colours, with places like Warmrooms providing a vast range and making it easy to find something you love. Something as simple as a new wall radiator can make a huge difference to a room, whilst also improving your comfort.

Co-ordinate 

Another great way to update your home quickly and easily is colour coordination! Why not try ordering all your books by colour to add a little rainbow to your shelves? Super easy, cheap, and fun, this will also allow you to take stock of what you’ve got, maybe freeing up some space, or adding to your ‘to be read’ list. If you have a favourite colour, you could spend time finding accessories or appliances for a room in that colour. Imagine a deep purple kitchen, or a bright blue bathroom, with fittings and furnishings to match. 

Upcycle

If you have lots of furniture that you don’t want or need to get rid of but want to update, why not try some upcycling? Another great task for the whole family, you can turn old pieces into something brand new, with books like Reinventing Ikea making it easy to the potential of an old chair or table. What’s more, the things you create will be completely unique to your home, making it a true representation of your family’s creativity and personality

home improvements, an old chair, lamp and curtains ready for upcycling.
Furniture in need of upcycling for home improvements

What to Get Someone when they become new Homeowners.

*This is a collaborative post

My Sunday Snapshot and Ordinary Moments, Mandala

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Yesterday I spent the afternoon making this mandala. I’ll be sure to be making some more of them.

My First Mandala

a ring with a crochet mandala in the colours of pink, cream, blue and green.
crochet mandala

Making the mandala has to be the most exciting thing I’ve done this week. Well, I did finish reading a rather good book, The New Girlfriend which I have reviewed here if you are interested. But it’s been a fairly quiet week.

The Bad Morning.

I had a bad morning. It started with a weird dream, but then I woke and I couldn’t move. The room was dark and I confused my son because I couldn’t speak when he came in. He did come back though and when he turned on the lamp he realised something was wrong. With his help I managed to get moving and eventually sitting on the edge of the bed where he gave me my medication. He gives me my medication every morning, today he had to put them in my mouth for me and pour the water in too so I could swallow them. I feel so sad. He’s 10 years old and these are the memories he will have of me when he grows up.

My oldest son realised something was wrong and came into help. He got me standing and helped me down the stairs. It’s days like this that I wish I’d had my lift installed. It’s so scary trying to go down the stairs when your body isn’t responding. I couldn’t even bend to go down on my bottom.

An hour on the settee with a nice cup of tea which was made for me, and couple of extra, different painkillers, and I was feeling much better. I got to watch my morning Christmas movie wrapped in a blanket. The Little Man played Roblox on his laptop next to me.

I dread the time when this becomes an every day occurrence. I may have to consider that lift, or maybe even a stair lift. It’s crazy, but the occupational health team are happy to pay for a lift installation but won’t approve a stair lift because they don’t think it would be safe enough for me. A lift sounds great, but I would have to lose a large chunk of my bedroom and living room to have it installed and I really don’t want that.

Ok, I’m rambling now. Today will be okay now I can move again and the pain is under control. I may even cook the kids favourite roast chicken for dinner.

my sunday snapshot badge from Rachel Swirl dot co dot uk
The Ordinary Moments

Check out my Etsy Christmas Gift Guide