My bath room is very much a make do. It's fine and everything. It's been decorated. But it's not perfect. But perfect is not so important right now. It's actually a toilet room and a bathroom. I still haven't figured out if i love it or hate it. Since moving in i have thought of knocking through to make one big room. But as time goes on i am not so sure. I just wish i had a sink in the toilet room so hands don't have to go through two rooms to be washed! Maybe one day i will get a Japanese / Australian  toilet, which has a sink built in. Doesn't really go with the style of my home though.

But making do with decor doesn't mean i have to with organisation. So I relied on ikeas £3 spice racks (again) to get everything off my windowsill. Now everything looks like it has a place, and is easy to keep neat and under control.

I put the bottom shelf upside down. We have kept a hand towel on the radiator since we moved in, and i had had enough of it falling on the floor and looking messy. 

It's always good to find something that fits just where you want it and does the job you want perfectly. It may not look great to others, but on a day to day basis is really brings a new life to your home.

Both new and old.

My sister and I have birthdays within days of each other, so this year my brother decided to get us a joint birthday gift. My brother is an original acid rave and festival goer. Started in the 80's and never really stopped. He is what is known as 'an old timer' on the dance floor, purely because it's obvious he has been there for much longer than most of the dancers. He bought all three of us tickets to a weekend festival. It was not a huge one like Glastonbury (he's not made of money, these things are not cheap anymore) but a nice small one that is trying to keep local and family accepting.
My initial response when he phoned to tell me he had bought me a ticket to a festival and i was to spend the weekend in a tent on a cow field completely panicked me. I had not been to a festival or done anything like this since i was a teenager. My pastimes these days are far from festivals. The closest i get are family weddings and there really have been a shortage of them in past years. It had become way out of my comfort zone.

So here i was with my siblings at Brownstock festival. And i enjoyed every moment. I had forgotten how much i love to dance, and i mean really dance, for hours. I realised how much my comfort zone was just my perception. There were some great bands and DJ's, families everywhere and i even had feathers weaved into my hair. Everywhere my brother went people shook his hand for being an old timer.

The toilets were something else though. Young people have changed festivals. Their version of roughing it is quite different to what our version used to be (gee sounding older every minute). It's always said the best thing after a festival is a bath, or maybe even your own bed. But it's lies, the best thing is the moment you sit on your own toilet seat.

I plan to go again next year, and possibly take Vivienne.

Lights

Our lounge is pretty much how we want it except from a few finishing touches that i want to get just right. This week we accidentally happened upon some lighting. I love when you find the perfect items when you are not looking for them. We popped to ikea (haha the very idea of popping to ikea, we took a day trip) for my most favourite storage boxes.

The SORTERA. Isn't it beautiful. If these were a food i would live on them. They stack and still allow me to get inside them (and more importantly the family can still get in them while stacked so actually put things away) and quite wonderfully, they recently went down in price by £3.

While we were there browsing each department we came into lighting, and (sorry ikea) i was poo pooing them all. Claimed all the lamps look exactly like their bins (waste paper basket) without a bottom. And then, there is was. The most perfect lamp for my room. An old look, made out of modern ingredients, which is good while having children it stops me going all Gollum over it.

When we first (almost) completed our lounge my sister visited and said if she didn't know better she would say an old lady lived here. Now i took that as a complement, as that was totally the look i was going for, and besides who ever went in an old ladies house and didn't feel cosy.

Well this lamp, is something i could definitely see in an old ladies house.

It also has the fabulous quality of optical illusion. From the other side of the room it appears circular instead of oval.

As a bonus, i also found this amazing beaut of a (cake) light fitting. We needed something that didn't hang down too much as we use the blind on our window to project onto. Our projector is the other side of the room and with the light fitting dangling in the middle it could be in the way. We also needed something that would fit our (granny) look.

My mum says she remembers when these where everywhere. It's not up yet, hubby is not too happy with electrics, but i will show you when it's done.

future

This little nutcase had a birthday Friday. She turned seven. As per usual we filled the lounge with balloons. failed with a cake (becoming a family tradition) and ate sushi.

People always say it, we all hear it, my baby is growing up. She wasn't even a twinkle in my eye when i started blogging. I love children, and would have loved a couple more, the fatigue just got too much, i knew i couldn't. But this is very bitter sweet. I want them to stay and play all carefree with me forever, and at the same time, i am so very looking forward to spending time with my husband again. It's like i see light at the end of the tunnel, but the tunnel is just as bright.

Maybe this is what you call 'being blessed'.

Computer play time for children.

Many of us like to limit out children's play time with electronics to help expand their imaginations. But being truthful a lot of us use it during play time. And perhaps that is not a bad thing, computers and the technology branching off is a great part of our future, so having good motor skills with them is a must.

Our lastest find for computer free time (this is not so educational and indeed free time stuff) is an online game called Amazing world. It's aimed at younger children (but we all have a membership here except my husband, so that's ranging in age from 6 to 30 something). It's not really hard, more busy.

It's filled with lots of mini games, including fishing, and a character to dress. You have your own home where you can add furniture (even fish tanks for the fish you catch) which can be made bigger.

The children are enjoying it. Will be interesting to see if they keep updated with new content, because it is a cheaper game to be a member of than club penguin (though i agree has less things like reading).

I = We

I have always been very aware of how much i type the words I, me, my (i even lower case my 'i'). I saw them as conceited, big headed and selfish. I thought it was good to encourage the human race to be more compassionate, gracious and courteous to each other, be the change you want to see and such. But part of the importance to change is that we as a race figure out what is good for the I, me, my. Because the results are the same as thinking about everybody. If we started doing what is good for I, me and my it would help everybody. Because issues that are bad for everybody actually damage us personally. Look at fossil fuels for example. If we started to listen to I, me and my, we would know these things damage us, and selfishly change them. These things are not just bad for the earth and everybody, but we can feel they are not good to us personally. If we started looking after I, me and my everyone else would be looked after as well.

OTT

Don't even know why i am here, or why i am showing you this image to be honest. But it inspired me. I am a big fan of social media, i spend a lot of my spare time with these things. Well today this image was shared on social media by a man.

I don't think this photo has the effect and message that the owner wanted it to.

I understand all parts of the photo are things that we are starting to discover are very good for the health and well being of humans. Breast feeding, yoga, green clean surroundings, and being one with the earth. But all together. WOW how strange a photo this looks to many of us. We call it over the top. It contains too much of a good thing. We get excited, we get disgusted. Hopefully it's just too ahead of the times for us. Cause it would be nice for earth to end up this way, instead of some of the other options floating about right now.