Week 2 of Summer Holidays...

Our Week In Pictures 

So I hadn't intended on doing my week in pictures but after seeing last weeks I kinda like it, so here we go, this past week this is what we got up to!

We went to Kilkenny (without kids!!) Saturday night for a family members birthday. It was a great night away, we ate in Rinuccini's and had an area reserved in The Left Bank.....

 We did some gardening...

We went for lots of long walks in the countryside....bliss....

I went to a shoe event in Korkys in the Ilac Centre....

Here are some of the fab outfits styled by Justine King....

We brought the kids to Kildare Maze in Prosperous, Co. Kildare. It was fantastic, I would highly recommend it as a family day out! 

We had a busy morning of painting, blowing bubble and lots of water play in the sink, the toddler really loved it! I will definitely be doing more water play with him...

We went for a lovely breakfast in Miller&Cook in Mullingar, it was very tasty....

And we had a great world cup party!! Senan was party planner extraordinaire, its amazing how much a 9 year old can actually do when given the responsibility! It was great fun and we were delighted Germany won...

How are you summer holidays going??

My first week of summer holidays...

What a great first week of holidays we've had! We had very little planned (which is quite unlike me!) Things just kinda happened, the weather was a big bonus and made the days long, lazy and fun! 

Last week we.....

Played tennis....

Went to the playground...

Had a picnic in Pheonix Park...

Baked...

Played hurling...

Walked along the canal...

Went to the lake...

And ate ice cream...

Went to Kidz and Co...

And I went to my friends wedding...

There was lots of catching up with friends that I don't get to see during the school year, hanging out with family and of course plenty of laundry, cooking and cleaning!! 

If the rest of the summer goes as well as the first week we'll all be very happy campers! Fingers crossed the nice weather comes back! What are you up to for the summer? Any good suggestions for nice family days out? :) 

Presents for teachers

So this year I decided I'd try do 'thoughful' presents and stick to a budget! As a teacher I genuinely love getting presents and lovely cards that the children have so carefully written their name in their neatest writing for teacher!! I especially love when a parent write a few nice words, I figure they must mean it or they wouldn't have gone to the effort on the first place! 

My son is finishing third class, he has had an amazing substitute teacher over the last few months so this is the gift he is giving her...

                                 

....along with a bottle of wine and a card. 

I printed the thank you card off from online and I also got the 'smart cookie' label online (I must check back where and link it!) I think it's very cute! 

There is also an SNA in my sons class who I know he gets on great with so he is giving her a bottle of wine...

                                           

My younger son attended crèche for 2 days a week since Christmas and is finished up for the summer now so we dropped in this home made gift....

                                 

I filled old jam jars (I am a chronic hoarder so I was secretly delighted a finally found a use for them!) with sweets, glued on the label (also printed from the Internet) and added some ribbon. The card is also printed,,,a great way of keeping costs down. 

Like I say I went for a 'thoughtful gift' and hopefully they'll be liked/enjoyed! :) 

Do you agree with giving teachers presents? 

TJ @ 20 months!

My baby is 20 months old!! And I have to admit I just love from this age on, I way prefer it to the baby stage. I just love watching them in awe of the simplest things! I feel like his little personality is really beginning to shine through! He's a little messer, a stubborn little boy too! 

FOOD

TJ seems to eat most things. Although bananas are perhaps his least favourite! 

I would like if he ate a breakfast cereal such as porridge or weetabix but he won't! Every morning he has chopped fruit, usually melon, pineapple, strawberries and blueberries with a few raisins thrown in. 

These are some of the foods he might eat for lunch or as a snack: youghart, a cheese sandwich, ham, apple, orange, apple and pear purée, beans, scrambled eggs, they're the main ones. 

Dinner is usually whatever we are eating, shepherds pie, spaghetti bolognaise, spuds, veg and meat, he loves pizza and chicken goujons! And there is always a spare jar of baby food in the press, he has been known to get on occasion! 

SPEECH

So, I'm not hugely sure where he ment to be at but he has the usual Mama, Dada, bye-bye, he seems to have a lot of the -uck words, truck, buck, duck, stuck. He hasn't grasped his brother Senans name yet but he is starting to put 2 words together 'Hiya Dada' 'All gone'. 

SLEEP
TJ is a nightmare when it comes to sleep!! He usually ends up in our bed by 4am! He has a great bedtime routine and goes down easy, but he will not sleep the night through! I'm told this should improve naturally by the time he's 2...I'm waiting patiently!! 

At the moment he is obsessed with tractors and lorries and trucks! (Not as interested in trains as his big brother was at that age.) He is really starting to enjoy looking through books and pointing t the pictures, hi favourite is a farm book he has. He loves playing outside. He isn't very interested in TV, I know most parents would be happy with this but he wudnt even sit and watch a cartoon so you could load the dishwasher!! He enjoys going for walks in his buggy. He's starting to throw the ball to his brother! He really does seem like a little messer, full of divilment! We love him to pieces!

Hen Party!

In April we had my sisters Hen Party! As one of 4 bridesmaids I had surpringsly little to do with regards organising the event! The credit really has to go to my sister Doreen who did an amazing job, the effort and attention to detail was unbelievable! None of us want to be her bridesmaid now if that's the standard we have to live up to!! 

We stayed in the Strandhill Lodge, it was fabulous and the staff were fantastic, so so helpful and friendly to us all weekend. Our room was fab and we had a gorgeous view of the Atlantic Ocean!  

The first night we went for a gorgeous dinner in The Strand Bar. The food was very tasty and the staff were again so friendly and attentive. 

On Saturday afternoon the bridesmaids transformed the breakfast area of the hotel to cater for High Tea complete with fine china and lace tablecloths. Here are some pictures of the afternoon...

It was such an enjoyable afternoon, lots of tea (and prosecco!), cucumber sandwiches and cakes! 

That night we went to the same restaurant again for an equally delicious meal as the night before! Here is a picture of me and my 3 sisters, the bride to be is in white! 

My sisters wedding!!!

This was a long waiting, HUGELY anticipated event! There are 4girls and 2boys in my family and this was the FIRST family wedding! Bernadette is the the eldest of the bunch and to make it even more exciting Bernadette along with my younger brother and sister were all travelling home from Australia for the special day! It was the first time in years that the 6 of us were actually together again! 

Myself and my two sisters were bridesmaids and Bernadettes friend was Maid of Honor. A lovely lady in Swords made our bridesmaid dresses. They were fab, so comfy, elegant and flattering! The lace back was amazing! 

We got our tan and shellac nails done in Totally You in Mullingar, both turned out perfect! Our hair was by Aggie and Elaine in Stylemasters Mullingar, I adored my hair! And the makeup was by Annemarie who is based in Athboy,,, again she did an amazing job! I loved the morning of pampering! 

Before....

After....

My son was Page boys and his suit was hired from Galvins Menswear in Mullingar, he looked so handsome and loved his role for the day! The baby (really a toddler now!) didn't actually go to the wedding but he had a cute tshirt from Next and navy chinos from Dunnes Stores for a little photo! 

We were blessed with the weather, the sun shone all day. The reception was in Glasson House and Country Club, not far outside Athlone. It was a stunning location, I might do another post on the reception, there's just so much to cover on a wedding day!!

We all had a ball and danced the night away. Bernadette was the most beautiful bride I have ever seen, and I wish her and her lovely husband Keith a long, happy, prosperous life together x 

Punchestown Races 2014

Myself and my 3 sisters went to the Punchestown Races recently. (That's me in the bright blazer). I had such a fun day, and being honest I really wasn't looking forward to it! 

On the Thursday night we went to see Ross O Carroll-Kelly's hilarious show Breaking Dad in the Gaiety. I LOVED it! We stayed in the Hilton Double Tree on Burlingtin Road. It was fab! (and my first full nights sleep in months because my 19 month old boy doesn't sleep through the night!) 

So, Friday morning we got ready in the hotel and headed to Naas, only to sit in traffic for an hour because of a burst water pipe! 

But we got there! Amy Huberman got stuck in the same traffic and had to get a Garda escort as she was announcing the winner of 'Most Stylish Lady'. 

The style was amazing,,, it was like 10 weddings rolled into one!! Really the horse racing didn't hugely interest me as much as the style did!! 

Rozanna Purcell and Nuala Carey scouted for 10 finalists, there was a real variety of different looks. I loved the stories behind each outfit. Amy Huberman announced Emer Flanagan as the winner. 

I also really loved Amy's outfit for the day. After the The Most Stylish Lady we concentrated on picking some winners! I always think races are more run if you back some horses, I usually pick which I'm going to back by their names! I didn't have any big winners but I think I just about broke even and had a great day in the process....now to check out when and where the next Ladies Day is!! 

Mothers Day

On  Mothers Day myself and a friend went to a fashion show in the Four Seasons Hotel in Dublin in aid of Dublin Rape Crisis Centre. 

I did feel a tiny bit of guilt that I wasn't spending it with my 2 boys,,,or my own mother for that matter, but I had such a great day I felt at least it was worth it!! And Senan told his teacher on Monday my mothers day present was a day off from him and his brother...kids, they'd hang ya!! 

Anyhow, back to the fashion show! Claire Byrne was MC for the afternoon, she looked great! We had a drinks reception followed by a very tasty dinner. The smoked salmon on brown bread starter was my favourite, dinner was chicken with potatoes and veg, I felt like the country came out in me, I could have done with a few more spuds!! For dessert we had coffee and chocolates, just enough to satisfy the sweet tooth and not feel too guilty! 

Next up was the Arnotts Fashion Show, styled by Cathy O Connor. It was lovely to see all the bright colours! Lots of fab style, a lot it cobalt blue on show and a good variation between casual outfits and dresses etc. 

After the fashion show prizes were handed out, a lady at our table won first prize, a signed Irish rugby jersey, hand delivered by Rob Kearney himself! She was delighted-I can't blame her, I would have been too! 

We rounded the day of with a drink in the bar and more chatting to lovely ladies. I have to say it was such an enjoyable day from start to finish, there was not one part of the day I could fault,,,all I can say is roll on next year!

What I wore...

                   

Casual and Comfy

I just came across this outfit I wore sight seeing in Madrid. It was perfect, casual, comfy and bright :) 

The white jumper, scarf and 'cons' are all Penneys. The jeans are Pepe Jeans. 

Car-less!!

This weekend the car was with the mechanic so I was car-less!! It was a big shock to the system, I'm usually never off the road whether it's going to soccer matches, gym, grocery shopping, meeting friends! Saturday my sister 'chauffeured' us to a bridesmaid dress fitting in Dublin but Sunday I was at home all day. I cannot remember the last full day I spent at home! It was such a refreshing day! Breakfast and newspapers, cooking Sunday and Mondays dinner, weeding my flower bed, walk down the field and even squeezed in a jog!