Our Bank Holiday Weekend so far

It has been a great weekend so far.

Yesterday we went to Mersea.  I was hoping to go to work and then have the weekend free, but after getting the worst haircut in the world and then having breakfast in The Bungalow Diner, we went out to travel to the seaside.  I had thought that as it looked cold, that it would be better to travel further away so that if it was cold, that we could do other things than freeze on the beach.  My wife however, like on many occasions, was right, and I was wrong.  It was great to go there.  Despite it being a bank holiday weekend the sun came out and it was a great day.  Watching the waves come in was relaxing and we spent time wondering on the beach and also going to get ice cream and playing in the park.  And as you can see from the picture, one of them (my daughter) found a remnants of a dead crab.  The interesting thing was that my wife pointed out that the children have practically grown up there, and it is true.  My old blog has at least one post on this, and like the post featured there, we went to see if we could eat at the West Mersea Oyster Bar.  As usual, parking there was an issue, but there is a new car park down the road where we parked (my daughter had to guard the car for a few minutes), and we had a great meal.

Today though we went to a different beach.  Our friends Isobel and Tony let us come over to Walton-on-the-Naze and visit them in the beach hut that they use with their kids.  We have been there in the past and it was just as great to be there again.  My son loved the pier and when he did finally come back with the two teenagers who were brilliant in looking after him, he brought some of the items that he said he had won.  In the meantime, my daughter and I went for a walk allowing my wife to rest her knee, which while better is not back to full fitness.

The next thing to post is how I have been doing in chess.  My record of some of the tournaments I have lost includes
Premium Member Open #3
ruy lopez tournament
Top of the Pops 17
Space 8
Speed King #132 - Very fast players 3(2)->1 U1500

Now I have to get some rest as I do intend to wake up early tomorrow morning and cycle to work.  Good night!

PUPIL – “Would you punish me for something I didn’t do?”
TEACHER – “Of course not.”
PUPIL – “Good, because I haven`t done my homework.”

IKEA and how it was not the trip to hell

A quick post as I am knackered and need to go to bed.  Last night I was up late as I prepared my appraisal for the coming week.  In addition to this, I attended a course which was very useful.

Once at home, it was lunch and then a trip to see my mother.  I did not get to see one of my brothers as he had taken his partner out for her birthday.  Instead, after a visit to my mother and meeting her lodger, it was to IKEA.  And then buying stuff for my son.

And for the record, I was wrong and my wife was right.  We were able to get everything in the car!

My Egg head

Well, today was interesting.  After dropping the kids at school, when parking I got a call from school.  Now when I say I dropped them at school, rather than take them into the playground and wait for the bell, today I dropped them outside school and, at their request, let them walk in.  They wanted to get in early to play with their friends, which I understood.  But when parking I was called from school.  I tried to answer, but by the time I did so, they had hung up.  So I rang them to find that they were ringing my wife.  My son had fallen, and it appeared that he had fallen on his way into school.  Needless to say, my wife was not pleased with this.  But he appeared okay when I rang so we left him there.  But after lunch, his pain was worse and I was called from work to pick him up (the school are not allowed to give him painkillers).  I felt so sorry for him, he had a lump on his forehead, but he would not tell me what happened.  In fact it was only later that he told me what happened when we picked his sister up.  It happened when he was running in the playground, he tripped over the foot of another child.  This did allow me to get out of jail as there was no fault on my part by letting him walk into school with his sister from down the road.

But my daughter later caused me more grief.  I asked her about something she learned about in school, this being dividing with fractions, only for her to give me the wrong answer.  That was fine, but the attitude that she gave me when I explained this to her!  I should be used to this, she has not listened to me that much since she was born.  But she is to become a teenager soon and I can only dread what will happen when this occurs.  And them my son will join her!

But saying that, I have two great children and an amazing wife and I am very grateful for that.

St Totteringham's Day 2016

What a day!  What a weekend!

First of all, family. My son had been out on a scouts weekend and had a sleep over there.  He seemed to have loved it there and on picking him up today he was full of beans.  After dropping him off, it was a trip to work for paperwork.  I had mentioned to my daughter that we could watch the Arsenal ladies FA cup final, she was honest enough to state that she was not interested in this, which meant that I was able to work longer than I would have otherwise.  Although I cycled to work, I was not able to do it as quickly as well I would have liked.  Also my fitness had not improved as much as I had hoped as I was not able to do it as well as I had done it two weeks ago.  However, on getting back home, it was helping my wife to cook and then off to a friends for Eurovision.  In the past, we would normally travel somewhere to watch it, but now, with children, we do not do that.  Though this weekend, it was only one child with us.  I have to say, other than watching our own entry, we had a few other favourites.  Mine was Belgium, and I think that the rest of the family agreed.  It was a late night and this was after a late night before as well.

Come the morning, my daughter was up before us.  But she has a desire to always be up as she knows that things happen when she is asleep.  But later, it was a trip out on our bikes.  My wife is not able to take part yet due to her knee, so it was a ride with my daughter and me.  She ideally wanted to go on her preferred route, but this was limited due by the Para 10 run, so we went on another trip instead to Hilly Fields.  My daughter had a say in which way we went, but was not too keen on making the choices.  I did learn that if we do such a trip again, I am to let her look beforehand.    

Once home, lunch and then a trip to collect my son.  After picking him up, it was a stop over on the way home to collect some ice-cream and then home to mow the lawn. But before I did so, temptation got me.  I had to look at the scores.  You see, if you are not interested in football, you might not be aware that Arsenal, after leading the table at one time were on course to finish in third place while our local rivals were to finish in second.  This week, after Newcastle were relegated,  I realised that the players would no longer have the stress of avoiding relegation in place and also would want to win the final home game of the season, especially as the fans would be watching second division football next season.  My concern was if Arsenal would win the game.  I felt that Newcastle would not lose, but a draw would not be good enough for us.  And at half time, I had hope.  Not much as Arsenal were only leading by a goal, but while mowing the lawn with my headphones on (something I do not recommend people do in general) I had a shock as Newcastle went down to ten men.  The stress of the next 45 minutes was huge but Arsenal came through and finished in second, our highest league position since the team left Highbury.  

It was stressful, but finally, the season ended better than it might have.  I am not sure if the season was a failure still, but it certainly would have been if we had ended behind our rivals!  

I am a nobody. Nobody is perfect, therefore I am perfect

Yesterday I had to go into the loft.  While doing so on my return from work, my daughter commented that she was surprised that I didn't fall through the ceiling. I need to exercise more.

The Fox (What Does the Fox Say?)

It has been a great Sunday.  It could have been better if Arsenal had won but a draw was better than a loss.  And it has been an interesting weekend for wildlife.  We have foxes living in our garden, or rather a mother fox and her cubs (also called pups or kits).  We have noted foxes in our garden ever since we have moved in, but there has been a fox seen more often of late.  And now its cubs have been seen.  I have to say, they are cute, but we would rather not have them here.  Especially as the kids do tend to leave things in the garden (we have lost footballs to them, and have had a softball bat chewed quite badly) and have gained trainers brought to the garden by them.  (It was a shock the first time it happened).  We know that there are at least two ways for them to get in, one being dug at our back fence, and at the back where a neighbours fence does not quite meet the back fence.  They love the playing fields at the back, but prefer our garden more.  

I did get to take my son out on his bike again today, while my wife, who's knee is improving went to the shops with my daughter.  It was a long ride, and once again, he has improved his stamina and as noted today, his speed.  As before, he was awesome, but the only downside of this was that on the way home, when cycling down a hill, he lost control and crashed.  We would not have been going so fast, but I encouraged him to do so.  To be fair to him, he cycled home (reluctantly at first) really well afterwards.  My daughter was not interested on going out on her bike as they both started to use their science kits when at home which allowed me to go out by myself and try to get fitter and they have now started to make some crystals.  I had the opportunity to increase my speed at cycling as well as trying to make it up a steep hill that is defeating me for now.

After this, it was time to do some much needed gardening.  To be fair, my wife did most while we helped.  I was given some simple work that I could not ruin (I hope) which involved taking dead things out of the ground, taking down some dead plants and making sure that everything fitted in the recycling bags that the council use and collect every other week.  In addition to this, my wife made me put up the birdhouses that the children had painted earlier in the year, a lot earlier in the year.  After this it was a trip to Tony and Isobel to watch the Arsenal game.  I had hoped that The Manchester team that rhymes with City would have won against Real Madrid, on penalties, but that did not happen.  After a very nervy start and going down a goal (and after equalising, another) I thought we did quite well.  While I think that it is a disappointment that we did not take the opportunity to finish top of the league, it is much more of an issue for them.  While we have put together an expensive team, others have spent more and our opponents today have the most expensive squad, featuring several of our old players.

Anyway, time for bed.  Goodnight!

    

#MayThe4thBeWithYou

My kids are awesome and I do not say this enough to them.  Today we were in the garden fighting with lightsabers and while I had to let them win last year, this time they beat me fair and square. Saying that, it is when they work together as they are not good enough to take me on one-on-one.  But I am both a lot older and taller than they are. 

On Monday my son demonstrated his improvement with his bike.  We had to see if we could get some vouchers from one of the shops in town so we cycled there (well part of the way) and then cycled as much as we could home. I was able to cycle up slopes that I could not tackle before, but I have had more practice than he has had.  But he did really well with what he was able to do.  I did push him and he was able to do more than he has done before which was really impressive. He refused to give up where he had to do so before.

I was not able to take my daughter out on her bike as I had to put a bookcase together that my wife had bought months ago.  And today when mowing the lawn I realised that I appeared to have more energy once I finished which I think was due to exercise that I am now trying to do on weekends.

Good night all!

I've created a shoe made out of Lego, so when you step on Lego it doesn't hurt. You just get taller.

We are back at home, the kids are in bed and we are watching Modern Family.  While the children, I and Alex went out to Legoland, my wife spent the day resting and then with Isobel and Tony.  

Legoland was great, and for me, a very full day.  While the children are getting too old for the rides, they did appreciate the Star Wars weekend that is held there and did enjoy the few rides that bring them some of the adrenaline that they crave.  Needless to say, I did not scream on any of the rides.  But they enjoyed meeting up with many people from Star Wars.  I have to say that there were not as many as there had been last year, but it was still an enjoyable Sunday (and if anyone from Legoland is reading this, get more for next year).  I got the two not as little ones to close their eyes in the back of the Saab on the way home and it did work to make them get some sleep, which was just as well as it was late when we got back home.  I now have many photos of them with characters from Star Wars, memories to treasure, and they have memories of me (fake, honestly) screaming on the rides!

Yesterday we had spent time with Isobel and Tony as well.  In the morning, I had been out to work, and as a personal achievement, I was able to ride to work better than I had done ever so far.  There is a steep hill on the way there, and I was able to ride up part of it.  Following this, there is a shallow gradient up which I was not able to cycle up before, but was able to do so.  I did not leave as early in the morning as I wanted so I did not complete as much paperwork as I needed to go through, but still, it was an improvement.  I need to get fitter, I know that it will not guarantee health, but I know that it will improve my odds of being a father to my children, and a husband to my wife for longer.

Later when at home, we went out for a meal at Bambu Vietnamese restaurant.  My wife had been here earlier in the week with Isobel had kindly taken her out.  Her knee is improving compared to last week, but still it needs lots of rest, however, she has returned to work (a decision I do not agree with).  While the initial service could have been better, it was good food and it is somewhere that I am sure we will be returning to.  My only issue with it is parking which is limited.  Although there are some parking bays opposite it, when we arrived there yesterday, one BMW had decided to park in two spaces. 

After this and returning the television that Father Christmas had bought for us, it was a trip to watch the Arsenal game with Tony, my daughter reading a book, my son playing MineCraft with Ben (who sadly I did not get to take to Legoland) and my wife resting there.  When it came to the Arsenal game, it was good that we won, and with other results, we may even be able to finish above the scum.  But our ability to finish in third is dependent on our own results, not that of others.  We are aided by the decision of The Manchester Team That Rhymes With City to replace their manager at the end of the season.  This means that his priority will be to win a trophy rather than finish in the top three, or possibly four.  And the only trophy that he can now win is the European Cup.  So I am hoping that they are still in it when it comes to them playing us on the 8th of May, ideally after an exhausting game against Real Madrid on the 4th that has gone to extra time and preferably penalties.  The game was noted for the demonstration for a change of manager, and while I understand that desire, I think that it is wrong to do so in the ground when there is so much to play for.  In the ground support the team and the players (even Giroud) but outside the ground, let the board know about the feelings and frustrations of the supporters who bring the atmosphere to the ground that is needed to help the team win.  While Arsène Wenger has brought two FA cups to Arsenal in the last three seasons, we were top this season and threw it all away.  I, like so many others was amazed that Giroud was starting and that Alex Iwobi was taken off, but Arsène was right as it was Giroud who provided the header for Welbeck to score in a game that meant so much to Norwich considering the results earlier in the day.

Dinner with Tony and Isobel was much appreciated and now to bed.

Goodnight all and enjoy the music from Max Milner!