Avengers Assemble!!

 

That is all...

You never see Spider-man going food shopping!!!

Going food shopping is grim! as my friend Chris put it tonight 'It's a chore'. It's not just the standing at the end of the checkout watching the final item getting swiped through and realising that you've spent 3 times what you had planned (although it add's to the experience) but more the aisle upon aisle of supermarket zombies walking around filling their trollies in a daze (that Includes me), there's something about walking through those doors that sends me into a trance and why is it I can never remember what I need? Even if we've written a list I still manage to forget something important like loo roll. Mrs M says I spend most of my time walking round with my head in the clouds, the supermarket just seems to magnify that.

Luckily today mine and Opeie's silent agreement has kicked in and he dropped off right before we arrived, Perfect timing. Thus leaving Mrs M to go in rather than me as she shops like a grown up and I'm more likely to hit the toy aisle and add a minifigure or two. well I have to add something to make the experience more exciting. If your a regular reader then you'll know that I love this time in the car to reflect, or in this case have a little man moan.

At least when we get home i can take advantage of all the goodies that Mrs M has picked up so at least that's something. Fingers crossed this is the last time we will have to come this week.  

Rant over...

"Accept the challenges so that you can feel the exhilaration of victory."

Despite many failed attempts it finally seems that we have crossed the bath time hurdle with Opeie, it's been a long and frustrating process but we're now at the point (like this morning) where he is actually crying to get in the bath rather than out and seems more than happy to have his hair washed. Fingers crossed this is how things will stay. Thanks to Nuby he has more than enough things to keep him Occupied in the tub and as i write this Mrs M has just started coughing and spluttering because she yawned and Opeie shot her in the mouth with Squid the Squirter so thanks to Nuby also for my boy becoming quite the marksman.

This may have been a frustrating time but its only setting us up for the inevitable potty training saga which I'm sure is just around the corner (should be fun). Its great to know that he's in to a good routine now and enjoys being in the bath and brushing his teeth (even more so now with his new Spider-man toothbrush, thanks Nanny Roo and Grandad). He's really growing up fast and although Mrs M wanted her little baby to stay that way forever I'm really glad that he's now starting to understand things a bit more and is a lot more independent.

Congratulations Opeie on your latest victory me and mommy are very proud of you.

You're off to Great Places! Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting, So... get on your way!”

So, The last 24 hours have been really good! I'm always grateful for everyday since being ill, but sometimes things start to look even rosier than they did the day before. Yesterday after I published the Mother's day post that I finished off, I got a phone call unexpectedly from a guy who had interviewed me a few weeks before, to say out of 440 people ( I know, loads!) I'd got the job! I was so happy, it is a brilliant job, and I am so happy as it will bring so much more opportunity our way. This morning, with a spring in my step, I headed out to my course I've been doing to gain some extra qualifications for my career. I had a really good few hours with some interesting case studies, and ideas flying around. When I was done I was greeted in the snow ( Yes, snow! ) by Pauly and Opeie, in a steamy car, which was toasty warm and welcoming! Opeie was grasping a new book by Dr. Seuss , and Pauly had Dr Seuss Green Eggs & Ham being sung by Bob Dylan on the iPod & stereo..... an interesting combination I can tell you! 
I think that Dr Seuss can teach children some amazing things, not only how to have an imagination, explore, and how it's important not to take life too seriously, but also how it's important to see the positives.  

When we finally got home after a trip to Holland and Barrett for Dairy/Soya free snacks for Opeie, a trip to Tesco ( eugh) for yummy veg, and a sit in the car whilst I fed Opeie milk til he fell asleep, whilst also car dancing to this song.... we got home, and Opeie decided he wanted to do some colouring in pages from Dr Seuss.

After the boys had been bathed, they did some more colouring in, and then watched Cat in the Hat on TV and also on the Macbook simultaneously.... these crazy boys have a new way of multitasking! They did some more colouring in, played with the Florida Thing 1 and Thing 2 toys, and looked at the books Pauly bought from the charity shop earlier.

All in all, a busy, happy, fun few hours! I've really got into Dr Seuss the last couple of years, especially since we went to Florida, it's such a colourful and happy place. This weekend we watched 'Cat In The Hat' from a few years ago, you know the one with Mike Myers? Well, I fell in love with it! Not so much the actual story, as I know that off by heart ( it's a great story ) but I love the costumes, set and colours!

I've decided our new house when we get round to moving will resemble that house. Maybe I will dress the boys as Thing 1 and Thing 2 .... watch this space!

Celebrating Mama's Day the Gifts From The Pirates way

Although today is a really happy day I still get a little sad this time of year due to a bad relationship with my own Mom. When i was very little i wasn't really interested in Mother's or Father's Day, I even remember moaning to my sisters once that there should be a son and daughter day. Now I've got older I have realised that it wasn't just me being a selfish little shit but more that neither my Mom or my Dad made much of an effort with the others big day and if they did i honestly don't remember it? Which really just showed how unhappy they both were. I may not have my own mom in my life but i feel very lucky to have Mrs M's Mom, She more than makes up for what i am missing and i know she really loves me, Mrs M and the boys.

Mothers day is really important in our house because... well Mrs M is AMAZING. She really looks after all of us, not just the boys. Plus with everything that she went through during Opeie's pregnancy, treating her like a princess on Mother's day is the least we can do as a family to say thank you for being around (not that she's not treated like a princess every day). Mrs M puts everything she has in to the development of our boys, I think we're a great team. We have the same parenting views and I think that's really important when you have children plus (and it does help) we are so in love with each other and I have so much respect for her.

  Opeie is too young at the moment but I think i have explained to Seth how important the day is. He gets really excited so I know he understands. We've had sneaky half hours here and there over the last few weeks to prepare for the big event and the boys have been their usual creative selves. Seth decided that he wanted to make a card and create a canvas with all the things Mrs M loves. This included Giraffes, Miffy, Elf (the movie),Katy Perry, Trees,  Make Up, Singing, Orla Kiely, Rod Campbell, Flowers, Yankee candles and of course the four of us...

Opeie decided that he wanted his to be a reminder to Mommy of all the things he loves... well Spider-man to be precise...

What i loved most about this year was that Seth had some surprises of his own that even I didn't know about, Seth had obviously been busy at school and had brought home some things that he had made, wrapped and hidden in his school bag. Mrs M was very touched by the decoration he had made and the Certificate for 'Best Mom Award', It's quite an achievment but we all knew eventually she would get some serious recognition for it.

I'll leave you with Mrs M now as she wants to finish off this post and I'll excitedly but patiently wait for the next 3 months and 6 days (you know what I'm talking about).

I've had SUCH a lovely day! Yay for Mother's Day! My boys have made me some lovely things, bought me some lovely books, and drawn me some cute cards! Mother's day is such a lovely day, not just for myself, or my own Mom... I like to thank all Mother lovers, especially Midwives, Doulas, and other lovely people. Being a Mom is the best thing in the world, ever- creating a lovely family, full of lovely memories. The boys make me laugh so much, Seth, Opeie and Pauly 33.3% equally!

Seth said to me today " I'm not having a day off anymore, yesterday I had Tae Kwan Do, and had to tidy my room, and today I've had to do numeracy, I'm more exhausted when I'm at home than when I'm at school, I need a Holiday!"

Last night right before bed, Opeie counted to 10 by himself, without any prompting from us, and then looked so proud of himself. He then did some funny talking!

And Pauly, well, where do I start? We have the same humor, and be laugh all the time. I'm so lucky. He puts up with my crazy dancing in the midnight hours, and doesn't take the micky. I could sit and write all night about our crazy humor, and silly things we get upto. 

Being a Mom to my boys is lovely, I 'spose I kind of Mother Pauly too, as his Mother is a waste of space and hasn't been much of a Mom to him. However I don't mind, being a Mother to three is lovely, even if their combined age is 41.

My ever loving gaze. Smitten since day one.

 If people could see me at home I'm sure they would think i was a bit of a mental case. Earlier this evening Mrs M said she was going in the bath and after the hectic day she has had with yet another night of minimal sleep kicking it off (thanks to that little cherub of ours... Or mine according to Mrs M when he's been a tinker), It was clear that she would be wanting to relax in the tub without said cherub using the bath for this weeks superhero scuba class. So i grabbed the duvet so that we could snuggle on the sofa and give mommy some peace and quiet. Opeie requested 'Cat in the Hat' as he's going through a Dr Seuss phase at the moment (which I'm loving).

Opeie was engrossed in the cat's escapades and as usual i found myself engrossed in Opeie. I spent the entire 30 minutes of the cartoon staring at him and smiling, do any of you other parents find yourself doing this? is this normal behaviour? I find him fascinating! Becoming a dad is by far the greatest thing i have ever done and will ever do in my life and the boys give me never ending entertainment. I spend most of my day with Opeie with a huge smile on my face and i have shed many a happy tear just because he is around. The day we brought him home Myself and Mrs M curled up on the sofa and had a good cry. Being a dad is so overwhelming and something i would never take for granted, i have been through a lot in life to get me to this point. A few weeks after he arrived i took him out in the car to get him to sleep and as he drifted off i was watching him in the mirror and i burst in to tears, i had to pull over to let it all out. I was quite the teary mess over those first few weeks.

I was smitten by Opeie within seconds of Mrs M waving the pregnancy test at me and i knew from that moment i would do anything in my power to make sure he was always happy. He's a very smiley and excited boy so i know we're doing a great job, i really hope he's always like that. We wont be having any more children due to issues with the pregnancy so i knew i wanted to be at home with Opeie, i didn't want to miss anything. Spending as much time with your children in the first few years is really important, i wanted to have a really strong bond with him early on.

Opeie is going to be two in a few weeks and i cant believe how quickly he is growing up. The last two years have gone by with the blink of an eye but we have had such an amazing time together so far and our family is so strong. I really couldn't ask for more amazing people in my life. His speech is coming on beautifully and so many of the things that come out of his mouth make my heart melt. I'm sure when he wakes up in the morning and we are back on the sofa cuddling again i will go back to my Opeie induced catatonic state, but having a child as beautiful as him how could i not.

"A man can be destroyed but not defeated."

Apparently nothing lasts forever, that couldn't be more true than when talking about thing's we build in our house. Weeks back I wrote a post about the Lego ice-cream parlour that we built, it took us a couple of weeks to build, yet took about two seconds to destroy. Opeie had been playing with it on The floor when Seth slipped off his chair, tried to keep himself up, lost his balance and went bum first through it. I couldn't stop laughing, Seth on the other hand being the sensitive little chap that he is had a little breakdown.

Thinking i was going to go mad, Seth instantly burst in to tears, looked up with very sad and worried eyes and said "I'm really sorry, I'll do anything, I'm so sorry", bless him. I thought that the fact that i was in hysterics would be comforting for him and would stop him feeling bad but it unfortunately just made the situation worse. After about 20 minutes he calmed down but sadly still didn't see the funny side. I really wish i had have been filming him at the time as his face was priceless.

So what do we do next? what shall we build in its place? Do you guys have any ideas? We only built this because of an idea given to us by one of our readers so if you would like to see us have a go at something then feel free to send your idea's our way and if it gets our creative juices flowing you might just see it on here over the coming weeks. Then you may also see it again a few weeks later when one of the boys have ended up on top of it. That's the great thing about Lego, it may break but that's just a reason to build another interesting piece, the reincarnation of a great toy.

"We cast a shadow on something wherever we stand."

I love how excited Opeie gets about EVERYTHING, it would be amazing to be him for a day. When your an innocent child of 2 many of the things you experience on a daily basis are completely new to you, going through that again would be amazing. In the kitchen today while we were cooking there was a small Moth like insect flying about low and it blew Opeie's tiny mind. He was running about and screaming excitably shouting fly with a big smile on his face.

Today was also the first time Opeie has really paid full attention to his shadow, the school playground became the perfect play area for him and his over sized silhouette, as he chased it about, it's such a shame that as an adult most of us become hardened to the simple fun things that happen day to day.

Here's to being a big kid myself.

Nuby bathtime fun competition

 Competition time again.

As you know (if your one of our regular readers) i have been the daddy blogger for Nuby for a few months, Its great being able to write about such great products and the boys have had a lot of fun trying them out, but now its time to share some with one of our readers. Thanks to Nuby Uk up for grabs is 7 of their great bath items, including my personal favourite 'Squid the Squirter' (all pictured below). To take part in this great competition all you need to do is first like our Facebook page (make sure you do this as it is how we will contact you)...

https://www.facebook.com/GiftsFromThePiratesBlog

Once you have liked the page then please comment on this post and let us know what your favourite bath time toy was when you were younger and you'll be in with a chance to win these great products.

Closing date for the competition is Sunday 17th March and the winner will be notified within 2 days of closing.

Good luck Nuby fans.

A weekend building activity - Building a Lego Batman Tumbler

What do you want to do this weekend Seth? Erm.... I'd like to build a Lego tumbler! Seth could have chosen to do anything but that was his big plan for the weekend. He has been asking me for some time for a Batman tumbler and I'll be honest I've been avoiding it as Seth wanted it built with the Lego instructions we had downloaded online and I was concerned we wouldn't have all the parts. This weekend I finally caved and said I'd give it a go.

The sun was out for a change so there was no way we were going to spend the whole weekend building Lego so after Tae kwon do we headed over to visit auntie Lotty and had a good walk round the park and got the playground all to ourselves which was nice...

We got home at lunch time and once we had eaten we got on with the building.. When you have as much Lego as we do, building from downloaded instructions can be really tedious as it takes time searching for specific pieces, Seth was more than happy to help though and it's always nice spending time playing together. I knew somewhere along the build we would be missing a part, but as with all our builds I tweak them to make them work (I even had to melt and reshape a couple of pieces to make them fit).

It took us two days of serious rooting  but we managed to pull it together, Seth was really excited and kept saying he was really proud of me (so cute), he never said that when i made the Ice-cream parlour and that was from our imagination, kids! Seth's been playing with it none stop which is always great to see and Ive been told were attempting two-faces truck next so be sure to check in on us again. Anyway here's the finished piece...