A dog is for Christmas but absolutely not for Life !

Every year without fail since she was 3 yrs old, a month or so before Christmas, Miss C starts asking for a dog as her present. She's now 16 and so we have endured this relentless pestering for the last 13 Christmases! Now when she was little and still believed in Father Christmas we could just about get away with it by telling her that it was impossible for him to 'deliver' livestock on account of them not fitting in the sleigh or that he had no 'toilet facilities' on board for them. But still each year, without fail, she’d ask!

So once she discovered Santa wasn't real (which hit her hard) not because of the loss of Santa, but more as she realised that the real reason she didn't have a dog was because her parents were just plain and simple....evil liars! Now with this knowledge she began focusing all her efforts towards us instead, using many different and ingenious methods to get us to buy her a dog and to fulfil her very 'basic' need for a canine companionship. In fact she tried all manner of convincers in order to make this happen, like demanding, begging, or telling us she was 'lonely' and sad and therefore a dog would be far easier for us than 'buying' a baby sister or brother!

In an effort to console her, we bought her a myriad of toy dogs that included those that barked, snored and cried if left alone for too long. They came with dog baskets, brushes, play food and collars and leads! However rather than satisfying her desire for a dog, she took her role play as dog owner so seriously that she was convinced it proved to us that she had the ability to care for a real dog.

Festive and Forty ! ( At Albert's Shed )

A Big Thank You Albert's Shed !

So I’ve finally reached the age of  40!
And I will carry on being ‘naughty',
With a wink of an eye ;)
At the odd passer by
I’m classy but deffo not haughty !

So for dinner it’s off to The Shed,
To be spoilt and hopefully well fed!
It’s named after Albert,
So it says in the advert,
And to there from Deansgate we sped!

Having a Birthday near Christmas is tough,
And being 40 I’m no longer ‘hot stuff’!
But at Albert’s Shed they were ace,
Put a smile on my face,
They simply couldn’t do more than enough.

The service was friendly and polite,
It gave me great excitement for the impending night,
Our waitress was so sweet,
A real South African treat,
She was efficient, smiley and a delight.

The menu looked simply divine,
I perused it whilst sipping my larger and lime,
Once we’d chosen our dish,
Some picked meat, some chose fish,
I sat back and pretended I was still 39!

Albert’s food is second to none,
Delicious and tasty, never overdone,
We left suitable stuffed,
Just enough alcohol not too feel rough,
Albert’s Shed you are my number 1

So we’ll be back to see you next year,
And my gratitude for last night is sincere,
Please say thanks to your staff,
And on the Farrow’s behalf,
Accept this rhyming gift to you all as some festive cheer!

　

　

　

　

　

Festive and Forty !

So, two weeks till Christmas and I've had a really busy week, what with Christmas shopping, school plays, the school disco, no not mine ( for which I was required to buy a black 70's catsuit for my 9 yr old !) and general 'Mum and wife' stuff. But hey it's all good so far and in the grand scheme of things I'm all ready for Christmas.....well nearly !

But you know what, in 4 days time there's an event which is even more important than the birth of Christ...well anyway it's more important to me, if not the Catholic church. This year, on this Saturday at precisely 12.17am on December 17th 2011 I shall turn the grand old age of 40 ! Now, that's a whopping great decade older than 30 and at the rate time flies by these days, it's only 10 short years from me becoming 50 ! Oh god, how has this happened? How did my babies grow to be 16 and 9 without me even noticing and what's more how will I feel? Am I going to embrace my 40's or instead fear them? Well knowing myself fairly well now (this comes with age) I reckon I'll probably do both, but with a very conscious effort to err on the side of embracement !

Having a Birthday a week before Christmas has always been a little tough. It's just close enough to the 'big day' to be slightly overlooked but then again its not actually Christmas Eve or Christmas Day where everyone makes a special fuss of you out of pity! So try as I might, I always feel a little selfish for wanting a fuss but the sad fact is that my Birthday often slips by without much pomp and ceremony......

Ding Dong Doris on High!

Many of my friends think I’m crazy for putting up my Christmas tree in November, but it is without doubt my most favourite time of the year. The twinkle of the fairy lights, sparkly decorations and the smell from the mulled wine scented candles fills my house. In doing so it gives me a feeling of warmth and cosiness that no other time of the year can match.

So why dear god am I stressed beyond belief and ready to dismantle the tree and rip down the lights before it’s even been up a week?
 
One word…. Doris! She is our super cute kitty, all soft and squishy. She’s a picture purrfect cat and looks just like Felix from the advert. However beneath the adorable face with elegant, elongated whiskers and the soft angelic mewing sound she makes (when she wants something), lies a most fearsome creature not nearly as far removed from her lion ancestors as we first thought.

Usually I can handle the random unprovoked attacks that come from under the bed, where my ankles bear the brunt of her pointy little claws and sharp catty teeth. Or the way she leaps from the top of the fridge like ninja cat and lands on the worktop with a delicate thud and a conceited look on her face; as I jump and squeal in shock. But now I think she’s pushed it one step too far!

Am I made of ‘The Wright Stuff’?....

As I climb into bed tonight with a ridiculous smile on my face, and reflect upon my unusual day; I’m reminded of a couple of expressions people often say in life.
‘Do something that scares you every day’ and ‘Well think of it as a good deed’.

Today (my unusual day) I did both! 

 

'Gorgeous!!'

Every week day morning I flick on channel five for the Wright Stuff. Sometimes I listen giving it my full attention, for if truth be known I have a gigantic crush on Matthew Wright! Other times it just plays in the background whilst I go about my day to day life. But hearing the first topic of debate was about Christmas (all my friends know of my absolute love and infantile excitement of Christmas!), I found myself doing the unimaginable…well for me anyway!

I don’t really understand why or how I ended up calling into the show and speaking to the very friendly researchers, who after deciding I had something interesting to say put me ‘live on air’ to Matthew!

All I Want For Christmas....is the starring role !

Well it’s that time of the year again, the kids are back at school after Autumn Half Term and already the buzz of the impending Christmas play has begun! 

Which play will be chosen? Those of us who have an older child, who went to the same school, will be more than familiar with the repetitive loop of plays that do the rounds every 3-4 years! We even remember some of the songs and still have the costumes in a dusty box somewhere amongst the Halloween decs , baby clothes and ‘car boot sale’ stuff that’s never been near a boot! 

Rumours of the specific roles up for grab, solo singing slots and the auditioning process is rife throughout the playground and in fact I think is healthy competitiveness. In today’s world where school life seems devoid of anything involving competition, it’s rather nice to see the most confident, talented kids thrive! After all that is what ‘real life’ is actually about isn’t it? And besides who really wants to watch a performance where the script is re-written so every child has a speaking part in the interest of fairness, regardless of whether they want it or not? !