Tag Archives: About Laura

Lots and lots of changes…

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There’s been a whole lot of change around here, a LOT of change, I think I chose the right word for my One Little Word this year!

We’ve moved out of our old house, which was my childhood home of 24 years. Everything has gone into storage (boy was that a fun and stressful few days right there!). We’ve temporarily moved into the in-laws house for a month or so. The in-laws have gone to Spain for a few months because six people in a very small 3 bed house doesn’t bode very well. We’ve signed all the contracts and exchange don our house. We get the keys in exactly 7 days time to  our house, a place we can finally call our own (this is it below).

The past few months, and specifically the past fortnight has been a time of stress, joys, tears, heated discussions and worry. Not forgetting the little snippets of excitements interspersed in there. It has been worth it though, in the end we will have a place that is ours, a place where the Mr and I can start to create our own memories and our own changes. In all honesty, I cannot wait for this journey of changes and memories to start.

For the time being we are having a few days of breathing space! Blogging has taken a back seat, scrapbooking has taken a back seat, looking after myself has taken a back seat (much to the annoyance of many people!). I will slowly be sharing updates on here of the house and the progress that we hope to make on it.

I remember – house edition

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I remember running through the house, carefree and so small
I remember learning how to bake in this kitchen, the smell of cookies wafting through the house
I remember Dad roller blading across the hall and kitchen, and us laughing uncontrollably on the stairs
I remember having friends round for dinner, fitting 8 round the table, someone had to have the wheely chair and steal the doritos
I remember the dancing, the practicing and the performances for people in the lounge, with it’s large windows and lights
I remember getting locked in the bathroom when the light broke and I thought my world had fallen apart around me
I remember the ladder falling from my feet and dangling from the loft hatch
I remember the Christmas mornings when we’d sneak into each others bedrooms and open our stockings
I remember the sleepovers, when friends pretended not to be drunk whilst reading the glowing alphabet stickers on my ceiling
I remember Saturday morning, creeping into Mum and Dads room, sitting at the end of the bed and watching kids TV
I remember sitting in my bedroom with my first computer and typing up my first word document
I remember the bath times and never wanting to get out of the bath
I remember the cat, doing a slinky down the stairs to greet everybody coming into the house
I remember the water fights in the garden, setting up the hose inbetween garden chairs
I remember catching the frogs, and never succeeding very well
I remember painting the garden furniture, whilst Hannah sat and read a book
I remember my 18th birthday party and the fun had with friends till late in the night
I remember the pain in trying to work out how to park on the drive when I was learning to drive
I remember roller skating up and down the road, and falling over, a lot
I remember welcoming new friends and loves into this house, and saying goodbye to old ones
I remember boxing days in this house, the whole family here, curled up round the fire

I remember this house, and I smile from the bottom of my heart

 

Going on right now…

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There’s lots of change at the moment here. We are packing up one house (that I have lived in for 24 years) and getting ready to take the big step to buy our own house. More on this to come…

Which means that our rooms are currently looking like this, these are JUST our DVDs, videos and half of my bookshelf. I appear to have more stuff than I first thought!

It also means that I am finding all sorts of treasures. On the left is the book that I couldn’t put down in Lower School, on the right, my main dissertation text for my undergraduate degree. I keep finding old school reports, old school photos, bits of dance costumes and too many dance shoes to mention.

The UK celebrated Mothers day last Sunday, we had half the family round at Grandmas for the day. Left to right is my Mum, Aunt, Grandma, Sister and then me. It was a welcome break from dealing with banks and estate agents and boxes and tape.

I’ve been craving healthy home cooked food lately and as part of my healthier changes I am trying to make more healthy dinners for the Mr and I. Monday night we had fajitas, packed with lots of veggies that the Mr didn’t realise were there, success!

My sleeping pattern has gotten a little off beat lately and I’m averaging about 4 hours a night for 4 or 5 days in a row. Luckily this little beauty is more than happy to come and snuggle with me when I’m awake in the early hours. I suspect it’s more to do with the fleecey blanket than wanting to be with me though.

I’m loving that the sun is coming out more now, even if it was -2c yesterday at 10am and snowed for most of the day on and off. There’s something about bright natural light that just makes you feel better about everything.

The bulbs in my garden are starting to flower, crocus’s, snowdrops and tulips are all showing their heads. I’m upset that I have to leave this house with it’s garden, even if it is a really high maintenance garden when it is looked after and in bloom it is beautiful.

What are you up to right now?

Harry Potter Studio Tour

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Back in June the Mr and I visited the Harry Potter Studio Tour. I realised that I hadn’t shared the photos since I had to re-do the blog! I really love Harry Potter. I was a teenager when the first books came out and it wasn’t really the “in” thing for my age to read, but who am I to follow the social norm? I read them as soon as they came out and the films are always on repeat in my DVD player. So when the Mr asked me what I wanted for my birthday last year I knew there was only one thing I wanted, to go to the Harry Potter Studios. He has never read any of the books, seen any of the films and doesn’t really have any interest in them, but he was a good sport and played along for me.

So, without further ado here are some of the photos, the full set can be found on my Flickr account. My sister and I also went again a few weeks ago for her Christmas present (we had to re-arrange it twice due to the snow!).

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Blogging dilemma…

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I’ve debated about this post for so long, I’ve written it, then deleted it, then re-written it. I did eventually delete it and have written instead a post about the dilemma which caused all this agro.

How much is too much when it comes to sharing online via your blog?

I’m still figuring out how I want to use this blog. Part of me wants to shout from the rooftops about all the issues I want to discuss. Then part of me remembers that the whole wide world can read this blog and that actually a lot of those things are quite private to me. Then another part of me thinks that although these things are private to me they could really help someone reading this blog. Then I remember that I want this blog to be an honest reflection of me as a person and these issues, they make me who I am. They may be taboo, they may be difficult for me to discuss, they may be very private to me, but they are a part of me. Without them I wouldn’t be who I am. Then I come back to the whole wide world issue again.

Can you see my predicament? Any advice from seasoned bloggers out there?

This thing called roller derby

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I tweeted the other day that I’ve got a crazy weekend of roller derby ahead of me and Megan replied that she was looking forward to hearing it all about it. It was then that I realised that I hadn’t actually written a blog post about roller derby, this crazy, wonderful sport, which takes up so much of my free (and not so free) time and I had never written about it. Well . . . that had to change!

How do you describe roller derby? It is a full contact sport played by mainly females (but the boys are getting in on it too!) and it is played on quad skates. There are no balls, there are no goals, there is just a track and some fast and hard hitting skaters. The best way to explain the sport and the rules is to direct you to Rebellion Roller Derby (my team) website where they have some great tutorials. So this is what takes up my weekends and my evenings, this sport, which is so un-me, this sport which involves confident, athletic females, and I’m right in the middle of it, that seems weird to me. One huge difference though, I do not skate. I can skate (kind of), but I have a habit of breaking bones, mainly my back, when I get on skates. So a year ago after another fall I decided it was time to hang my skates up, but not my love and passion for this sport.

I am Head Non-Skating Official (NSO) for my team, which means that I’m usually the one running round with a clipboard, much more me. The NSOs are the ones that effectively run the game, they are the glue that hold the game together. They track the scores, record the penalties, make sure it is all safe and make sure it is possible to put the game on for the skaters. I organise a team of NSOs, I produce the statistics for the skaters so they can better their performance, I am there, in the background working away whilst they’re training and working on their skills. It can be time consuming, it can be stressful, it can cause a lot of conflict, it can be difficult, it can be lonely, but I love it and it is hugely rewarding. The hardest part for me; NSOs are completely impartial. On game day I can’t be cheering, I can’t be coaching, I can’t be letting the skaters know what’s going on, and somedays that is really difficult.

After a game whilst the skaters are cheering and hugging each other and getting their awards I’m in the center making sure all the paperwork is there and that I have everything I need to finish the game, because for me the game doesn’t finish on the final whistle. It finishes a fortnight later, when I have to have all the stats done, and that is what I love the most. Producing the stats and showing the skaters that although they may have not won their game they improved so much on the last game they played. Being able to show a new skater that she scored points on one of the most difficult skaters, that’s what I love.

To some being an NSO may be a boring job, but it’s an essential job, it’s an integral part of the game. Roller derby is a growing sport, it’s a DIY sport, it’s run by the skaters for the skaters. I may not be a skater but my role is just as important as a skater, and I wouldn’t change a thing about it!

Right now…

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This is what is going on right now with me:

  • I’m thinking I need more sleep than the 3.5 hours I managed last night
  • I only had 3.5 hours as I went to a fantastic Sandi Thom concert last night
  • I’m listening to old Linkin Park albums and feeling like a teenager again
  • I want to go and re-watch all the Greys Anatomy DVDs from the beginning after watching a season of Private Practice in 24 hours
  • I’m looking at going back to studying, just one module, but having to restrain until I have more time
  • I’m trying to get a Christmas list out of the Mr, and failing miserably
  • I’m looking forward to another fairly clear and empty weekend
  • I’m trying to remember to take more “everyday” photos
  • I’m wishing I had more photos of me as a child at Christmas time, a lot of photos were destroyed in my parents divorce
  • I’m loving Pinterest even more with the addition of the secret boards

What are you up to right now?