S.H.O.P.P.I.N.G.

The impending OfSTED visit means Babs is having to put a few extra hours in at work.

As a result, 'The Lads' were trusted to do the weekly shopping. With races down the aisles, competitions who could put things in the trolley the fastest and lots of generally boisterous behaviour, it wasn't long before everyone in Sainsburys knew who we were!

Samuel was a great help, and as you can see, enjoyed riding on the trolley too!

This image is a quick snapshot from my phone.

In other news, we've just had pancakes (pancake Tuesday).

Must dash, as Babs needs the computer and I want to try and post this before midnight!

As a side note, todays title is also 80's song related - a classic by the Pet Shop Boys! (Yesterday's could also have been an 80's song - Seconds by U2).

Righty, enough music trivia ... bedtime for me, while Babs burns the midnight oil ....

Hang in pet x

Seconds.

This post is 'Seconds' in so many ways.

1. It is the second time I have taken a photo like this - the first one was better as I used a better camera and a better watch.

2. It depicts seconds passing you by.

3. It took me seconds to set it up and take it - still a busy man!

In other news today, Babs found out she has the dreaded OfSTED coming in on Wednesday.

Watch this space towards the back end of the week, once they've gone, for lots of happy, relieved shots!

TIME to go. Keep WATCHing !

Chores.

Another busy day for us.

With Babs being in bed feeling very rough, it was down to Samuel and I to do the chores that needed doing.

First up was washing the car. Samuel enjoyed using the jet wash to spray the car, although his shoes seemed to get covered in more water than anything else!

From then on, there was gardening to do.

Luckily, like all good workers, we managed our time beautifully to allow plenty of time for a play once we had finished.

I am now currently educating Samuel in the ways of Star Wars (Empire Strikes Back - Luke and R2D2 have just met Yoda.).

Does it get any better ?

Let's hope Babs does !

Don't Go Chasing Waterfalls.

That's what TLC advised us not to do in their 1995 single.

It's also exactly what I HAVE done today.

An early start saw me arriving at my mate Trev's house, only to find him still asleep, despite the alarm call an hour earlier!

From then on, we followed a dodgy map and a brief description of whereabouts, until we arrived at our final destination - Tigers Clough Waterfall in Rivington.

Trev, his mate Pete and myself then enjoyed a thoroughly good few hours taking photos and discussing exposures. Actually, it's probably best for me to say Pete and I enjoyed taking photos, whilst Trev stood on the banks of the river, throwing stones, eating biscuits and moaning that he wanted a cup of coffee - it was like having a 5 year old with us!!

I have included my favourite shot of the day (which incidentally was also the first shot I took). Trev and Pete also took some great images - so I am looking forward to seeing them soon.

For now though, the rest of the weekend involves housework - and meeting Trev for that longed-after coffee in a few hours.

Enjoy the view - we did!

From Small Acorns, Mighty Oak Trees Grow.

This is Samuel's sunflower. He planted it last week at nursery and has been eagerly watching it's growth.

Every day we have to water it and check to see if it has "started growing". Samuel is fascinated by the fact that this small thing can grow to be 'even bigger than Daddy' (and I'm 6'2" !).

Which brings me to the title of today's blog. In the same way Samuel is fascinated by the growing of the seed, my wife (Babs) and I are fascinated by his growth and development.

On an almost daily basis, he continues to amaze us with his knowledge of new words, or the way his inquisitive mind works. Which in turn, leads us to wonder what the future will hold for Samuel. What will he be when he grows up? A pilot is top of the list at the moment (cheap holidays for us!).

So, whilst the sunflower seed continues to grow, we are also watching our very own acorn grow! Although, in our eyes, he's already a mighty oak!

This is a soppy Dad signing off on a Friday evening.

x

World Book Day.

Yesterday I promised to tell you more about 'the outfit'. Well, here goes ...

Today is World Book Day. As a result at work, we were required to dress up as a character from a book. As we are teaching the kids about World War 2 and The Machine Gunners by Robert Westall, I came dressed as a soldier from WW2.

Here I am about to leave home for another hard day protecting the front line!

Not the most flattering image of me, but I'm sure over the course of time there'll be plenty more to make up for it.

Busy night ahead, bath for Samuel then off to Photography club.

But that's all after I finish last night's curry! After all, an army marches on it's stomach!

Reflection.

Well, after the hustle and bustle of the week so far, it was nice to get out of work a little earlier (I had to pick up an 'outfit', but more on this tomorrow!) .

As it was another gorgeous day, I decided I would take a stroll along the canal. With the sun just about to set, there was a lovely light and after a day at work, it was nice to get out and get some fresh air.

Wandering up the canal path gave me time to collect my thoughts and reflect on the day. Looking for inspiration for a photo, I saw this and knew that tonight I'd be writing about another meaning of reflection too!

The only downside of the walk was afterwards. Getting back into the (new) car, there was a very unpleasant smell (not unusual around me!). A quick look at the left foot revealed that some dog owner had not followed the 'Clean Up Your Mess' rule - leaving a nice target for me to hit!

Luckily, with the new car being an automatic, this meant that I could wrap my left shoe in a carrier bag, chuck it in the boot of car and drive home without hassle, or smell !

The offending shoe has now been cleaned and polished ... in fact I can see my reflection in it!

Home Comforts

Home. The heart of the family. A place of respite and solace.

As mentioned yesterday, very busy at work. Consequently, I did not get in until fairly late on tonight - feeling very tired.

So what better than to slip into some big, baggy, comfortable clothes (hooded top and tracky bottoms), before sitting down to a lovely home cooked meal of bangers and mash - with super thick gravy and veg! Lovely.

Believe it or not, today's photograph was going to be a bit more exciting than this - I have had some creative ideas today, but unfortunately I need to get some 'props' to set up the shot, AND, as a result of being in late, I bottled it and took the easy shot, of my tea!

Anyway, here's today pic .... on a related note, Samuel will like this picture. He loves sausages and finds the word SIZZLE hilarious!

I promise I will try and be a bit more creative tomorrow. In the meanwhile, enjoy my tea, I know I did!

H.E.C.T.I.C.

Busy. Busy. Busy.

Wake up. Go to work. Get home. Work on and in the house. Finish that. Do more work. Go to bed.

A very busy day, with loads to do.

Still had time to inspire myself to take a picture though!

Anyway, must dash. (Work to do).

Working Together To Get The Job Done.

For those of you unfamiliar with Bob The Builder, (an English children's TV animated series), he always encourages people to work as a team in order to complete the task quicker.

Samuel watches and loves Bob and seems to have taken his advice to heart. He was very keen to help us this morning on our DIY around the home.

After helping empty a wardrobe, Samuel then asked to get involved with some painting.

As you can see, we are extremely brave parents - letting a 2year old loose with a paintbrush and a tin of white emulsion is not the norm! Samuel, however was very sensible and did a great job!

Afterwards we had a trip to the Barbers. Nothing major in that you say, BUT, the last time we took Samuel to get his hair cut was horrific - with lots of tears from Samuel, and a very upset Mammy & Daddy !

Today however was different, Samuel was a very big boy, getting his hair cut without incident. Afterwards, he seemed really pleased with his new 'super cool' haircut and was more than happy to pose for lots of photographs - my favourite 3 are included here, but there's lots more!!

Afterwards, Samuel was rewarded for his 'Barbershop Bravery' with a trip to the shop to buy some new crayons and colouring in books!

It's nearly the end of the weekend now, but still so many jobs to be done!

Hope you had a good one.

Early Start, Early Finish !

Following on from last night's post about the weekend being relaxing ....

By midday today, we had moved 3 sofas, washed the floor, defrosted the freezer and been awake for over 5 hours!!!! Pretty hectic! It seemed to be spreading too, as all of our neighbours seemed busy with DIY tasks, or sorting their houses out!

Luckily, the early start also meant we got to finish early. So, as you can see, this gave Samuel ample time to test drive the new sofa - I think he liked it!!

After a busy morning, we decided to spend the afternoon relaxing and met some friends for coffee and chat. The high street was very busy when we arrived at about 2.30pm. However, like us, by late afternoon, things were a lot quieter and more relaxed .... this street, which had been bustling earlier, was now deserted

Like I said, early start, early finish!

Coffee, Cake and Chillout.

I don't need to say much today.

It's Friday. The weekend has landed. A time for relaxation.

Samuel ordered this. Daddy ate it!

Happy Days.

All Light ?

Photography, loosely translated, means to draw or write with light. The word comes from the ancient Greek words of photo (light) and graph (draw).

Moving on from the history lesson, today has been all about light! Weather-wise, the sun has been shining brightly all day. This in turn has led to everyone seeming much happier and having a spring in their step! Curtains have been drawn open wildly and windows opened to 'get some fresh air'. Being British, the main conversation has been focused around how nice it is outside.

In fact, today's image was going to include the sun or the sky. Driving home from work in a lovely light, I had visions of a shot of a blue, cloudless sky. Or a crocus emerging from the ground to announce the arrival of spring.

This would have happened had there not been a slight mix up with some company delivering a parcel ! This 'mix up' resulted in me spending too long on a (10p per minute) helpline, sorting out the problem. By the time we had resolved the situation (the company classing a Littlewoods Catalogue as a parcel, which I don't!), the lovely light had long since gone!

Which brings me on to today's image ... I have just spent a thoroughly enjoyable evening attending my local photography club. I'm attending for the same reasons I'm getting this blog going - to revitalise my love of photography.

Anyway, the subject of tonight's club was mono prints, or black and white photography. So, after arriving home, I set up and took this image - it's a now pretty dead rose, which was one of a dozen I gave to my wife on Valentine's Day. A quick conversion to black and white meant I had a story for tonight.

Ironically, as I am lying in bed writing this, my final act of the day will be to turn off the lights !

Sweet dreams !

Ever wanted to pour paint down your ears ?

That's exactly what I would like to do right now!

As I sit and type this, some alarm is blasting out. Not got a clue where it is coming from, but it is one continuous high pitch drone - and it's doing my head in!!!

The paint ... well, the last week or so has been a bit mental in our house. As a result of Samuel's ever growing toy collection, we have had a joiner in building a new cupboard. I could arguably have done it myself, but whether or not it would be standing this time next week, is a different matter!

*UPDATE** - alarm has just stopped, yet my ears are still ringing!

You can see some evidence of the new cupboard and the tools of our trade below!

On a related note, we're off to California in just over a month. San Fran to be precise, where apparently they never stop painting the Golden Gate Bridge !

That's a lot of paint to pour down your lugs!

Sidetracked.

I really should be doing some work! Instead, I am 're-familiarising' myself with the settings on blogger. This is typical of me.

Anyway, it's too late to be getting my camera out now (especially when I should be doing my work), so instead I am going to show you a picture I took at the weekend. This is my son, Samuel, aged 2 (but very nearly 3) doing what I'm planning on doing once I log off blogger and finish my work!

And on that note ...... goodnight.

What's this? And why now?

Well, here we go.

Many years ago, I started a blog. It was fun while it lasted, but like everything else, it had to end. Recently, I've had the urge to write, not to tell a story, but rather just to document and record events in my life. Maybe someday I will look back on this and laugh ... maybe it'll just go into the realms of cyberspace - but at least I've started it!

Another reason I want to start blogging, is to reignite my love of photography. It's been ages since I really got involved with the camera. So,what better way to challenge myself than to get out with the camera more and think about the images I am taking and pop them on here for the world to see ?

Anyway, thanks for starting this journey with me ... watch this space for some more instalments.