Me & Mine June

What a busy June we've had! Lots of photo's taken but managed just one "good" one of the 3 of us, I was behind the camera most of the time.
This month saw us celebrate the big 1st birthday and what wonderful celebrations we had! There was a lovely party in Nanny and Grandad's house where we had lots of nice food, cake and of course a bouncy castle. Luke really was spoiled by everyone who came, we are still trying to find some space for all of his new toys!
June also saw me return to work on a 5 day week for the Summer months. So far it's not too bad, we are so busy at work that the days fly but I do feel it tugging on my heart strings when I feel like I haven't spent some proper time with Luke by the end of the week. Come September again though I will be back on a 4 day week all going well.
As well as holding a party we've also been attending them, Luke loves a good party!
The weather has been glorious this past month except for the odd day here and there so most of our time has been spent in the garden. Due to the hot weather Luke has figured out eh can actually sleep without his sleep bag! He wouldn't settle before unless he was in it but now has no problem going into bed without it.
Of course the new arrival to our family in the shape of Murphy, the 9 month old boxador has been keeping us busy. He's a typical happy, hyper puppy who likes to get up to a bit of mischief now and then.
I can't believe we are already half way through the year and have 6 family portraits. I think it's so nice and important for Luke to be able to look back on pictures of him and his Mum and Dad no matter what.

This month Luke loves:

• Bouncing on the bouncy castles
• Riding his new trike
• Running - this started in the last few days, oh my nerves!

This month Dad loves:

• His new iPhone
• Watching the World Cup
• Having a dog around the house

This month Mum loves:

• Watching Luke hit the big milestone of turning 1
• Walking in the evenings with the dog
• Actually getting a bit of a tan from the sun for once!

Lost My Name - A Review

So we received a lovely little package in the door last week, one I had been waiting on eagerly since we ordered it!
The lovely people over at Lost My Name sent us one of their very awesome personalised books.
I was able to go to on to the website, type in Luke's name and gender and wait a few seconds while his very own book was being created for him. I then got to preview the book before actually having to confirm my order.
It's a wonderfully adventurous book all about a little boy (Luke) who has lost his name and goes about trying to find it again. Along the way he meets some very interesting creatures until he finds his name again.

It is such a wonderful idea and suitable for any age as it can be kept as a keepsake. I particularly like the welcoming message at the start of the book, it just adds a little more to that personal touch the book has. It's a great idea for a a present for a new baby or any birthday.

Spells Of Sunshine

I hope everyone has been lapping up this beautiful weather we have been having these past few weeks. It has completely distracted me from my usual evening and weekend routines. It's been so nice to have the back doors open all evening until we go to bed, the sound of the kids playing in the evenings and the dog walking in and out as he pleases, I love the smell of the Summer air, there's something so calming about it. Having such warm bright evenings has kept me motivated to get out and about walking to enjoy them and get things done around the house I had been putting off.
I've spent the last couple of weeks:
Celebrating the 1st birthday, Luke had a wonderful day at his party, the bouncy castle was of course a great hit!
He had his first go in a digger and a dumper with his Grandad at the weekend, a driver in the making so he is!
We've had plenty of sunny afternoons in Nanny and Grandad's back garden where Luke has enjoyed himself in the paddling pool with his big cousins.
There's been a rare date night for myself and the OH, we went for a meal for the first time in ages and then met some friends for some drinks afterwards. It was nice to have a night off.
Of course the most exciting thing these past few weeks is our new addition to the family, our crazy but adorable dog Murphy. This boy is a boxador (I didn't know there was such a dog), obviously a mixture of a boxer and a labrador. He's still only a pup at 9 months old but he has fit right into the family. We re-homed him from a woman who no longer had any time for him. Luke loves him and he's already very protective of Luke. He's a bit of a whiner at the minute, he takes a while to settle down at night but he's a good dog besides that. House trained and obedient and just wants lots of love and attention. Although I'm not sure I'm too fond of having to hoover twice most days but at least I know the floors are getting a good clean!
Work has kicked up a notch now that I'm back on a 5 day week for the Summer months, so far so good where Luke is concerned with it, he spends his time with his Daddy when he's off and then with his Aunty or Nanny. My 4 day week will recommence in September once the busy period is over.

Check out some of our snaps from these sunshine filled few weeks:

The 1st Birthday Celebrations

Digger driving with Grandad 

Being silly on a rare night off 

New best friends :)

1 Year Old

Today my baby, my little boy is 1 year old. A whole year since he joined us in our world and made our lives 100% better. I can't quite get my head around it, has to have been the fastest year of my life ever. I still feels like I only brought him home from the hospital last week. It has been filled with many a sleepless night, laughter, tears (both Luke's and mine), cuddles, kisses, battles (he does not like getting dressed after the bath at the moment), fun times and some hard times but I can wholeheartedly say that I wouldn't want it any other way.
Luke has come from being such a serious little newborn to a wonderful, happy, gorgeous little boy who has a smile for anyone no matter what form he's in, even when he's sick or in the height of teething pain, he'll still have a smile for you.
This bundling little person is on his feet constantly now! He's become so much more confident in the last few weeks, he will take off up the garden now as long as he can still see us he's perfectly happy to potter away and explore by himself. He loves animals, thankfully the newest addition to our house (Murphy, the lab x) is fast becoming Luke's new best friend.
Slowly but surely everyday Luke is gaining in his independence too. This is bittersweet for me, on one hand I am so super proud of everything he can do but on the other hand it just reminds me that he's growing up so so fast.
He is my most favorite person, my driving force to succeed, my reason for getting up every morning, my sunshine on a cloudy day and we are going to give him the best 1st birthday ever, not that he'll even remember it but we will and there will plenty of picture to show him in later years.

So today, my little buddy, you are 1 year old and we hope that you know just how much Mum and Dad love you and how proud you make us and how excited we are to see what journey you take us on in the next year to come xxx

12 Things I've Learned In 12 Months #1

So my little man is going to be turning 1 year old this week but before I post about that big milestone, I've decided to do a list of 12 things I've learned in 12 months! Here goes:

1. I can do just about anything these days with one hand and a baby on my hip! This also extends to being able to do everyday things including going to the bathroom while having a baby clutching to my leg / trousers / hand / ankle.
2. It is possible to survive on a broken nights sleep for pretty much 10 months straight! 
3. I really should have listened to everyone when they said "sleep when baby sleeps" or "catch up on your sleep before the baby is born" - Oh how I wished I had.
4. Never go anywhere without baby wipes.
5. Saucepans really are a lot of noisy fun for a baby - much prefers taking them all out of the drawer and dragging them around the tiled kitchen floor than playing with his own toys!
6. If he wants to play with the Sky remote he bloody well can if it keeps him happy on a day where nothing else pleases him. This has resulted in some drool damaged buttons but hey, it was quiet for a few brief minutes so it was all worth it! 
7. I know the entire days line up for Baby TV for every single day and the songs that they play and the characters names and exactly what they are going to say because it feels like the same few episodes of every show are repeated every day! 
8. No matter where I put the folded washing, he will find it and decide that it looks much better scattered across the floor.
9. Flexibility - I have managed to manoeuvre myself in all kinds of positions while trying to move off the couch / chair / bed without WAKING THE BABY! This is still happening when trying to lift him from the car to the house without waking him, it's an intense race against time trying to get up those stairs before his eyes snap open.
10. Suddenly I've found some compassion, ah no I always had compassion but...Oh my goodness, I can't watch anything with kids in it when something bad is happening, not even Criminal Minds, which I love, we have to skip those episodes. I've always felt strongly about children's rights having volunteered for the ISPCC for a while but since Luke came along it's just enforced that feeling, honestly my bladder is up by eyes these days!
11. Hard work, now I've always been a hard worker but this mothering lark is tough, my toughest task yet. No job I've had can compare to how much hard work being a parent is, always wondering, hoping that you are doing things right. Having an off day is no more, when all I want to do is crawl back into bed, there's a chubby little face looking up at me waiting to play with him or feed him, there's no sick days in this position. As hard as it is, it's the most rewarding, as cliched as that sounds. 
12. Lastly and most importantly, unconditional love, plain and simple.

Luke has learned to multi task since he was a new born, now he can watch television AND read his book at the same time! 

Me & Mine May

May was busy busy busy in our household! This month Luke decided he was ready to walk and we have not been able to keep up with him since, his Nanny bought him his first proper pair of shoes so he is well and truly established on his feet, its so cute watching toddle around by himself. Luke was also a bit down in the dumps this month as he's had a chesty cough that he hasn't been able to shift, this result in a couple of trip to the doctor and one to the hospital for some xrays but he's all good and getting better.
This month the OH and I also had some holidays from work so we got to spend some quality time together as a family before my hectic work schedule kicks off for the Summer. We had some lovely family days out, visited some soft play areas, Luke is a sucker for a ball pond. He went to his friends birthday party as well as his big sister's Holy Communion ceremony, he's had numerous play dates...this kid has a better social life than his parents! We have also had a couple of girly nights and night with the boys for ourselves too. So May really has been jam packed.
Our family portrait was taken in my Mam's house after a long day of playing in the sunshine and having a family BBQ (excuse the bags under my eyes, a mixture of too much sun, hayfever and being tired!) but I love this month's picture as it captures us on the last day of a really good month.