Smiles 365:365

It's been a year of two halves - Swiss and English. Lots of smiles along the way - tears too or I wouldn't be human, but lots of smiles and laughs.

Happy New Year to you all and thank you to my lovely boys for providing so many of the smiles, many unrecorded. 

I'll leave you with some of my favourite pictures from this year. But I'll be back tomorrow, by popular demand, with ...

MoreSmiles365!

And here's the link to all the photos from the year!

Smiles 364:365

We're in the middle of visits to John's side of the family at the moment. More present exchanging has ensued including selection boxes (which is best - Mars or Cadbury?) books and calendars. We were somewhat puzzled by the Arsenal calendar however as none of us support them - Man Utd, Liverpool and Spurs x2 in our house! Still, made us giggle! As did Nanny Mu telling John's sister (on the phone) that we'd "survived dinner"!

And a night at a Premier Inn always makes Jude smile in anticipation of the breakfast!

Smiles 363:365

Happy birthday to my big boy Isaac who is 15 today! 

Smiley faces on frosty cars...

The Library of Birmingham on the way back from Nandos...

and (well) toasted marshmallows in the garden.

And now I need to start thinking about next year's challenge...

Smiles 362:365

My Narnia lamppost. I miss it! Thanks to the Pickups I got a Christmas card to remind me, and this was taken on this day last year.
Made me smile thinking of it though!

Smiles today as we shared cracker jokes and watched TV.  Jude made us all smile with his annoyance at the ending of The Italian Job - "I'll be awake all night wondering about what happened!" And the sunshine on my run made me smile too.

Smiles 361:365

A family get-together at Mum's today with paella, champagne and lots of chocolate biscuits. Robert was rather pleased about the chocolate biscuits - and about his new Thomas the Tank Engine DVD!

Good to see Isaac Jude and Harry having fun together and being equally appalled by Grandma's dancing...

Jacuzzi time made me smile too. 

And my new book too - Rebus always makes me smile!

Also amusing me - the look of disdain on the faces of the camels as James Cracknell berates them for being a disgrace to their species!

Smiles 360:365

Isaac's turbo is finally up and running. The boys had great fun, especially Isaac.

The 12 days of Christmas is back! Day 1 saw us playing a board game. We failed to catch Mister X (Isaac) -  but it was very close!

Boxing Day saw plenty of reading, a new pair of boots and some funky tights, and a run in the sunshine. Lots of smiles there!

Smiles 359:365

Christmas is here! Smiles as we opened presents, as Jude won the accolade of 'Most unusual present' for his telescopic backscratcher at church and as I sang the descant with Shelagh.

More smiles at my guillotine, John wearing his cycling shoes indoors, at Christmas dinner of venison and then passion fruit mousse (delicious!) and watching Toy Story 3.

Merry Christmas, Feliz Navidad, Frohe Weihnachten, Bon Nadal et Joyeux Noël.

Cheers!

Smiles 358:365

Merry Christmas everyone. 

Back from the Christmas Eve service having sung all my favourite carols.

All the presents are wrapped and under the tree.

See you tomorrow!

Smiles 357:365

Leaving snowy Scotland didn't make me smile but I take lots of smiles home with me. 

The look on Jude and especially Isaac's face as they were handed kiddie bags in Bella Pasta today was priceless!

And discovering that John had bought First Class tickets for the return trip made us all smile, especially as the journey was much longer than it should have been thanks to the weather. Never mind, I've had two glasses of Prosecco... ;)

And we did make it home in the end.

Smiles 356:365

Jude creases me up with his facial expressions!

And I noticed this evening that there's a mouse house in the skirting board!

Lots of Scottish smiles today - running in the sleet and snow with the wind in my face but a beautiful view; delicious food at every turn; laughs with my family and a good hot bath!

Smiles 355:365

I ❤️ Scotland

That's Glen Nevis. 

And this is us on the way up Ben Nevis (we didn't reach the top!)

Just beautiful - and the road through Glen Nevis is brilliant. A great surface and it has humps and switchbacks and had us all screeching. 

Great bacon and haggis sandwich here - thoroughly recommended!

Then a walk around our bit of Loch Leven. Plenty of seaweed fun for the boys, only curtailed by the fast falling darkness.

Off out for seafood dinner soon. Oh I do like being on holiday!

Smiles 354:365

Lots of smiles today! I'm on holiday :)

Glasgow - a statue with a traffic cone in front of GoMA. 

Loch Lomond (cue singing)

Made it to the cottage.

Meet Glen Cow (and Mango of course!) Love a cow!

Smiles 353:365

On the way to Glasgow on the train. We're all sitting playing with mobile devices. Currently in the Lake District. Not that we can see anything as it's very dark!

Today was a hard day for a few reasons but my colleagues were lovely and very caring, and I survived (with a wobble in the middle!) 

I smiled because...

Y5 and 6 did brilliantly in their carol presentation to other year groups. 

My class this morning loved the Turkey challenge. And colouring!

I enjoyed watching Pixar shorts in the "overflow chill out room" from the party this afternoon. I didn't realise there were so many Pixar shorts - and thank heavens for Youtube!

I'm on the way to Scotland. The mountains and lochs are calling! 

I was given a free cup of tea as the lad had already cashed up his till. 

John's obsession with salmon also amused me no end!

Smiles 351:365

Smiles today came through the haze of a splitting sinus headache. However, year3 DT making picture frames with lolly sticks, glitter, feathers and crepe paper didn't kill me despite the tears and tantrums so I doubt anything will today. You have to smile at times like these or you'd cry. One child burst into tears because she had a headache after 25 seconds of noise, failing to consider that her voice is the loudest of them all and is used incessantly. The irony!

The Plantsbrook Christmas concert was rather good, despite not being able to see Jude at all as he was right at the back and one of the littlest! Still, whilst there are no pictures, here are Boos containing all the orchestra/brass band pieces. http://audioboo.fm/boos/1803282

http://audioboo.fm/boos/1803347

http://audioboo.fm/boos/1803450

http://audioboo.fm/boos/1803464

http://audioboo.fm/boos/1803469

http://audioboo.fm/boos/1803501

http://audioboo.fm/boos/1803507

And today's photo? 

Lisa at Christmas as a child. I have no recollection of the huge doll...!

Smiles 352:365

This sculpture always makes me smile, simply because I cannot do handstands. I'm not sure I've ever done them very well, and I've certainly never managed a cartwheel. I used to joke that I was an expert at trolley wheels (starts as a cartwheel then turns into a sideways bunny hop!)

Still, you can't be good at everything ;)

Thanks to my Secret Santa for my gift - disappointed it wasn't lilac lacy lingerie but you went with S for Stevens rather than L for Lisa so that's ok, and I do like spotty scarves. 

And for the second day running I was tasked with a year 3 class and glitter... I thought yesterday was carnage but this was something else. I was still dusting it out of my hair at bathtime!

Smiles 350:365

This was posted on Twitter. Funny!

Smiles 349:365

The Christmas tree is up and twinkling away. 

Mango and Pippo both tried to hang onto the star and top the tree but couldn't hold on and fell off. 

A pleasant walk on Cannock Chase resulted in a search for a stick for whittling - you can take the boys out if Switzerland but you can't take Switzerland out of the boys! Good to be back though and discover old and new sculptures on the trail.

And finally, my youngest may be 12 but we still make funny faces with food ;)

Smiles 348:365

Biscuits and my little boy. Big smiles!