My Prime 5 - Things to look forward to in Spring

Spring is my Favourite season of all and here are the top 5 things I am looking forward to over the coming months...

Light - Waking up with the sunlight coming through the window makes me happy, I don't feel like I'm getting out of bed in the middle of the night and it seems like I've slept for longer, even though I always sleep for the same amount of hours! After school its like there is still the day ahead to do stuff, like go to the park for a run (yes eventually I will get round to it) and visit people rather than running home to shelter from the darkness.

Warmth - Yes I admit I'm one of those people that complain in the winter that its too cold and then I complain in the summer that its too hot, what can I say I'm like the three bears, I like things to be just right! I think it may be to do with clothes as well, I feel a bit exposed and uncomfortable in summer when I have to strip off to cool down so prefer it when it's not too hot!

Colour - Bare trees do nothing for me, they're just too twiggy and boring! I cant even go into the garden in the winter because it depresses me, so I'm looking forward to some colour appearing on my bushes and having a good clear out the back (not a euphemism)

Chocolate - Yes its Easter and the only thing stopping me from getting all the kids eggs is that I know I will eat them all before Easter actually arrives! Is it just me or does chocolate taste better in egg form.. it just seems to fit perfectly over the tongue!

Birthday - I know when you get to a certain age birthdays are not so exciting but I love being in my 30s, I feel all grown up... even if I do act like a 10 year old at times! I always go out with friends as it is also one of their birthdays around the same time, this year we are planning on going to a karaoke bar which means this year I will be getting very drunk (it usually takes me about 2 hours to get through one bottle of cider)

So what are you most looking forward to in spring?
Write a post and add to the linky below...

Thorpe Park

Last week we were lucky enough to be given Four free tickets to Thorpe park from Mumsnet, these were to take part in the #myfirstcoaster event to celebrate reaching 1.4m and being tall enough to ride on the 'big boy' rollercoasters.

If you read my last post on Thorpe park you would know that I wasn't planning to return to any sort of theme park (unless it's Disneyland) as I am not a big fan of the sick feeling you get after queuing for an hour to spend less than a minute in all sorts of angles, hundreds of feet up in the air! But I couldn't let Kieron miss out on the experience of trying the grown up rides for the first time.

The first stop was the Angry Birds 4D cinema experience, I wasn't expecting much from this as I am not really an Angry Birds fan but we all really enjoyed the surprises and I found that I was actually moving around to avoid things coming out of the screen.

It was a pretty cold and miserable day so we avoided the water rides, which was a shame as these are usually my favourite (no hanging upside down) The kids went on the boat slides but there is not much splash back from these, unlike the others! We did go to a few of the rides that only had five minute queues as I thought they would be tame however the massive swing that is Rush actually gave me nightmares! It didn't seem to faze the children though! 

Luckily the picture isn't clear enough to see me screaming!

We chose to eat in the Pizza and Pasta buffet restaurant as it is the only meal that all my kids will actually eat and we wanted to get in out of the cold for a while. I thought they were reasonably priced but didn't like that they give out little plates so you had to keep going back up to get food. There wasn't many choices either but it seemed to fill us all up so there were no complaints.

The park wasn't too packed as it is only the start of the season which meant there were not too many long queues but there were a lot of groups of teenagers and I didn't notice many things for families with younger children which is a shame, I think if there were then it would attract more family groups. There is an outdoor beach which I have never been in but this was closed, I think there should be more areas where people can sit and relax dotted around as not everybody wants to spend the whole day on rides and may choose to bring their own snacks rather than sitting in the many food places on offer.

The kids favourite rides were Swarm and Nemesis Inferno but the highlight of Kieron's day was having his picture taken with The Sideman... a group of youtube vloggers that he follows

The highlight of my day was this Vanilla latte I picked up on the way out to warm me up and prepare me for the long journey home.

This post is linked up to #countrykids over at Coombe Mill

Black and White Studio

This term at college we have been looking at studio portraiture. We first practiced with other class members, changing backdrops and lighting and using filters. We then had to choose our own model and book a slot in the studio to take a mixture of digital and film photographs.

I used my daughter as a model because, being 16, she doesn't mind posing in front of the camera!

Here are a few (of the many) photos I took with my Nikon DSLR...

I did like shooting in the studio but if I'm honest I much prefer being outside in the natural light. I did love the film developing process though and being in the darkroom on my own was very relaxing, I hope I get the chance to do some more in the future.

This post is linked with #BWphotoproject

Shaking Head Syndrome

I am not sure if Shaking Head Syndrome an actual condition but my son has recently developed a tic where he keeps shaking his head.

During half term Kieron was complaining that his head hurt, this is not unusual because he has complained on other occasions that he has a headache, having mentioned it to the doctor in the past he did not seem worried and said it was normal for children to get headaches from time to time. Over half term however he seemed to have a headache everyday and on one occasion slept through the afternoon and vomited as he woke up. This was particularly worrying as he had no other symptoms other than a headache. He also started shaking his head from side to side every few minutes, as well as being really annoying I thought this was probably making matters worse and I repeatedly told him to stop as I didn't know what else to do about it. He said he was doing it because his head was hurting and he couldn't help it...it just happened.

We went back to the doctor who checked him over and spoke to him about where it hurt in his head, he said it sounded as if he was suffering from a mixture of tension headaches and migraines but was reluctant to give him migraine medication as he is only 10yrs old. He also said that when he got back into a routine at school he shouldn't get them so much but did not seem too bothered about him shaking his head.

Thankfully his headaches have seemed to appear less frequent now he is back at school but the head shaking has continued. Apparently (according to Google research) developing tics at this age is not uncommon but having worked in a primary school for nearly ten years I have never heard or seen this before. He has mentioned that kids in his class have started asking him about it and are even copying him but I am sure they will soon get bored of that.

I know every individual health case is different but I was wondering if anybody else's children have developed an unusual habit and how long it is expected to last?

Hotpod yoga with TENA

Last month I was invited to take part in a session of Hotpod Yoga by the lovely people of Myriad PR and Lights by TENA. The response I usually get when talking about it is 'Hot what yoga??' Well if you have never heard of it (which I hadn't) then it is basically a normal Vinyasa Yoga class that takes place in a pod heated to 37 degrees... sounds hot but on a cold miserable day it was actually very cosy!

The reason myself and a group of other bloggers were asked to attend the session was to highlight the problem of light bladder weakness and the importance of strengthening the pelvic floor. After having four children I know all to well about the side effects pregnancy can have on your body, although I must admit bladder weakness is not something I have had a problem with (so far) It may have something to do with the fact that every time I hear the words 'pelvic floor exercise' I automatically start doing them! (yes I am doing them right now)

Yoga is a great way to strengthen the pelvic floor as well as all those other muscles that we are unable to see, and I felt thoroughly worked out after completing what I thought would be a short beginner class...It was bloody hard work and my muscles were still aching two days later!
A full on workout is not practical to do everyday, particularly for busy mums, which is why Lights by TENA have developed an app featuring the following...

• Professional tutorial
• Easy to follow exercises
• Progress tracking to monitor muscle tone improvement
• Daily reminders to fit in with your routine

After our workout we were given some lovely healthy snacks from Social Pantry while we listened to some interesting facts about bladder weakness. Did you know...

Bladder weakness can be caused by the smallest of things including: coughing, sneezing or exercising

Up to 69% of pregnant women and new mums will experience light bladder weakness making it surprisingly common!

Experiencing light bladder weakness is the biggest concern for over a quarter of pregnant women in the UK

1 in 5 women would rather go a week with out make up than speak out about their bladder weakness problem and over half label it as a taboo subject!

 

There is a whole range of Lights by TENA specifically suited to light bladder weakness, unlike sanitary towels they are designed for the faster flow and have odour control.

For information on the full range, details about the App and even to add your own ooops moment experiences visit the Lights by TENA website

*Disclaimer - I was given a free session of hotpod yoga, lovely snacks and some lights by Tena samples but I have to complete those pelvic floor exercises myself, now come on...squeeeeze!