Summer Holidays - Part 1 Tantallon Castle

This post is a week late but better late than never! I have finally found the time to sit down and go through our holiday photos there are quite literally loads but I have scaled down as much as I can.

The blog this week is dedicated to capturing our holiday memories, our first holiday as a family of five and our Little Fella was great and enjoyed being out and about every day getting spoiled by his big sister and big brother.

One of the first places we visited on our holiday was the very beautiful Tantallon Castle just a short drive from Dunbar.

It was such a lovely drive despite the rain and I will always remember gazing out of the car window at the beautiful yellow fields full of corn thinking to myself that this really is the life.

Thankfully the rain stopped not long after we arrived at the castle grounds.

Tantallon Castle is truly in the most beautiful setting on the edge of the coast opposite what is known as The Bass Rock and the sight of this as you drive towards it is breathtaking.

The castle was built in the 14th century by William Douglas, the 1st earl of Douglas, whose family was one of the most powerful in Scotland. 

We spent ages here enjoying the views, exploring the ruins and walking around.  Our lot had a great time which is always an added bonus especially after spending way too much time travelling the previous day.

The staff here were so friendly and helpful to us and I just loved the accents - so soft and gentle.

Here are some of our pictures from Tantallon Castle and The Bass Rock.

And if you are ever in this area I would recommend a visit because it's well worth it.

Joining in with Country Kids at Coombe Mill Blog, click on the badge to check out some of the other fabulous outdoor adventures. 

10 Months New

A whole 10 months old today.

Yet another month has flown in and I can't believe how fast the time is flying, I keep saying this and I'm starting to sound like a broken record but it's true.

Our Little Fella is getting extremely independent and we crawl at great speed. Only this evening I was met at our patio doors by him coming along smiling as always.

I have never seen a child that smiles so much, he is such a happy little soul.

He is getting more cheeky by the day and I just know he is going to be trouble. Already he knows how to get his own way and has us all wrapped firmly around his little finger.

He does this funny little thing with his mouth showing off all his teeth, there has been no more since but six is a good number.

I love the way he gets shy when strangers look and talk to him, he cuddles into to me and puts his fingers in his mouth. It doesn't take him long to come round though.

He is eating loads and have finally accepted that its ok to eat food that is a bit more lumpy.

He has also developed a wild attachment to my Dad. 

When he sees him he gets really excited and just has to get over to him. It's lovely to see that he is just as mad about him as the other two are and he's going to be every bit as spoilt.

I think that over the last two days it has clicked with him to smile for the camera and look at it instead of turning every way but the right way but what can we expect from a little trouble maker.

XXX

Photo of the Week

It's been a quite week and hopefully the weekend will follow suit.

I'm feeling super organised this Friday evening with our weekly shopping done, clothes have been washed and dried courtesy of the beautiful sunny day we have had. 

For the first time in a long time the clothes bin has been emptied completely and I have found lots of matches for the growing number of odd socks that are accumulating in the laundry basket.

I'm thinking of having some retail therapy tomorrow.

How cute is this photo of our Little Fella's footprint in the sand?

I just love it and it's my photo of the week.

Hope your weekend is great.

9 Months Today...

9 months old today.

This time last year I had a huge bump and was waddling about. I couldn't even bend down to tie my own shoes and we were wondering if you were going to be a girl or a boy.

Now you are here and a huge part of our family, it feels like you've been around for so much longer.

Always smiling and laughing, you are such a great little person and your cheeky personality is really starting to shine through.

Since last month we now have six whole teeth which are beautiful, crispy white and extremely sharp.

I am constantly impressed with you and how you are progressing. Everybody comments on how good you are when we are out and about. 

You love being chatted to and sometimes pretend to be shy and hide away when strangers speak to you.

You move with great speed and accuracy much to the dismay of our cat Roxy, who lost a handful of fur last week and got a shock when you grabbed his tail.

You are now starting to pull yourself up and are determined to stand on your own. Crawling about the floor is just the best fun.

You are happiest when you are sitting on your own and can move about by yourself. I don't think it will be long until you are walking or running rather about the kitchen. 

I can't wait.

Our 8 Month Round Up

On Saturday our Little Fella turned eight months old.

He really is growing up too fast and each day that passes he is getting to be more and more fun.

His hair is really starting to grow now and it's hard to tell what colour it's going to be as it seems to change with different light but I'm sure it's going to be dark.

We brought down the baby walker from the attic last week and he absolutely loves his new found freedom.

Moving backwards and banging into doors (the louder the better) is totally hilarious to him.

When he lies on his tummy he tries so hard to get moving but as of yet he cannot co-ordinate legs and arms. We'll keep trying though.

He loves his new teddy friend Chip or maybe it's just his shoes and labels.

Learning how to wave and clap hands is so much fun.

He still has two teeth but there's a third due any day now.

He continues to be amazed by his hands getting so much amusement out of them.

We have lots of tickles hidden away at the top of our leg, feet and tummy. 

Our home is filled with squeals of delight.

He loves to pull his hat off when we are going out even though it's still so cold here.

He likes to pull hair and moves with great speed and accuracy to get you at the roots where it hurts most.

He is amazing and whilst I wonder where the last eight months have gone I am looking forward to the next few weeks to see what they bring.

XXX

Photo of the Week

This week we've have been busy spring cleaning inside as we haven't been able to get out and about as much as usual with all the rain, hailstones and wind.

I don't feel as organised as I normally am and I have lots of half finished posts for my blog which has been slightly neglected.

That being said I did get up early two mornings this week to go out for a jog in my attempt to get fit again, it wasn't pleasant but I'm hoping next week will be better.

I'm really looking forward to this weekend because we are off on another adventure tomorrow around our county, where we are going hasn't been decided yet but we will make a decision in the car tomorrow morning. 

All of a sudden today a blue sky and some sunshine has appeared. It's nice to step outside your door and feel warm rays of sun on your skin. The tiredness that has been hanging over me all week is starting to lift.

I'm hoping that the sun will remain until at least Sunday evening because our Teen is taking part in a community clean up on Sunday.

Tomorrow our Little Fella will be eight months old, I will have a whole post dedicated on this but for now this is my photo of the week.

Hoping your weekend is great xxx

Photo of the Week

My photo of the week is of our Little Fella.

Only last weekend he started to sit up on his own. 

At first he could only sit up for seconds at a time.

He fell over almost immediately but we kept on trying it out for a while every day. 

Slowly as the week has gone in he has mastered it. 

He is so chuffed with himself I'm convinced he knows that he has accomplished something new because we are getting lots of smiles and giggles - nothing to do with the cheers and clapping of hands!!

We are also getting used to the idea of having his picture taken.

I'm linking up with Louise at Team Lloyd for Photo of the Week, follow this link to pop over and have a look.

7 Months On

Having a baby in the house means that time flies past so quickly, weeks suddenly become months.

Babies don't stay brand new for long and today 7 whole months have passed.

We are learning new things every day.

This tiny little person is fast becoming a very determined and strong willed individual.

His giggles fill our home.

He makes the most hilarious noises and has a very high pitched scream that our cat and dog don't quite understand.

He has a great sense of humour and loves tickles especially his feet.

He is learning how to sit up on his own and rolling, rolling, rolling!

He continues to be totally amazed by his hands, I love the way he studies them.

 He loves music and singing.

He goes into long rants of dadadadada, bababababa and sometimes maaam, maaam, maaam.

I love driving along in the car and listening to him babble away to himself.

He is going to move into his own room this month (fingers crossed)!

It's the most wonderful thing watching your child take wonder in everyday things we take for granted.

Our world is so much better having our Little Fella in it, we love him xxx

In the Garden...

I've taken some time this week to rediscover our garden. With all the lovely sunshine last weekend I started to notice that it was looking a bit frightful and neglected.

It was The Little Man's first proper visit out into the garden, somewhere that he will be getting to know very well in the next few months and years ahead.

Our garden is not huge but it is somewhere tranquil where we can go to relax and enjoy ourselves as a family. In the summer we love to eat outside and spend the summer evenings just chilling outside, chatting, reflecting, maybe with a book and a glass of wine.

It's our little piece of heaven, somewhere to unwind.

Plants are waking up, the pots need to be cleaned out and weeded, the flower beds need sorted, our poor gnome had fallen over and lost his glasses! Soon the garden will be a place to arouse all the senses.

I'm really excited about the wild roses I took from my Granny's garden a few years ago because with every year that passes they are spreading out more and should be beautiful when they bloom this year, they are looking very promising at the moment.

Lots to do and it's going to take a bit of effort but little bits at a time can lead to something very delightful.

Baby's First Easter

Baby's celebrate lots of first's and I always think there's something special about Easter. 

This was an extra long weekend and we spent some lovely time together as a family.

There was lots of fun, laughs, chocolate, relaxing days, a sofa day - all in all a lovely first Easter for
our Little Fella.

Here are some photos of our weekend so far....

On Thursday we went to the Lough to feed the ducks it was so cold but really good fun....

Good Friday we just chilled at home....

Saturday we visited my Grandparents, who are an even better Great Granny and Great Granda and shared some cuddles and kisses....

On Easter Sunday we dressed up in our new clothes and looked super smart. 

In the morning we went to Easter Sunday mass as a family, one of my favourite things to do at Easter.

I cooked dinner at home, ate lots of chocolates, watched a few films and visited Granny & Grandad before getting home and falling fast asleep on Daddy's knee....

We have another busy day planned for today Bank Holiday Monday to finish up our Easter Holidays and I'm really looking forward to it.

I hope you had a lovely Easter weekend!

Photo of the Week

This is my first submission to Photo of the Week.

It's not the best photo ever taken but I had just grabbed my camera after discovering the arrival of 

The Little Fellows 2nd Tooth - he got his first last week. 

Great excitement and what makes it for me is that he actually smiled and looked at the camera!

To see more photos, go to Team Lloyd