A Tale of the Fuzzy Daddy.

A while back I asked my friend who runs her own Personalised gift and clothing business to come up with a set of appreciative t-shirts for father day for M. As you can see M has a MASSIVE beard. It is a mega thing that he keeps the beard. You see when he shaves he looks about 12 and much younger than me! As he has a few years on me I can't cope with people thinking we are the same age!
 

These tops were made by Sarah over at Little Miss B's Boutique.

From the moment I enquired about them to the moment I got them she could not be more helpful. I don't like the usual round necked T-shirt style, Sarah was quick to show me all the styles I could pick from and finally I settled on the V-neck which wasn't low cut. Next i wanted to find out which colours we could have, Sarah sent me colour charts and I decided to have classic black and white. The invoice came quickly so there was no doubt on the order getting done, Don't you just hate when people are all thank you for your order but I wont invoice you for ages, making you second guess if they still know you are ordering.

The tops were done quickly and ready to be picked up or sent out (I decided to pick them up as a catch up with the lovely Sarah was long over due)

I loved the tops so much I just could not keep them under wraps for another week, so i gave them to M as soon as he got home from work. They were good quality fabric and done with HTV vinyl. They seem hard wearing and not flimsy in the least they will last us years unless the boys grow out of them.

I really love that I was able to get a matching top to the boys. As a boy mama it is so hard to find matching family sets which aren't just daddy/son, I like to be included, anyone who knows our family know we love to match.

So Thank you Sarah we will be ordering again.

Trains, Planes and Automobiles. Our tips to make your life easier when travelling with smalls.

I thought as it was getting into summer and lots of people are off on holiday, I would do a blog on travelling with children.

We mostly travel by car with our boys but have gone by train and plane. I will share what works for us and if anyone has any tips please share.

Trains are always a fun way to travel. My boys are train mad, so that in itself is entertainment enough some times. here are my top tips :

• Always give yourself more time than needed. If you are 20 mins early it's better than finding your platform and carrying luggage and a child who may not be cooperating with only seconds to spare to make your train.

• Toilet before boarding the train in your spare time is much easier than trying to pee with two small boys running around you on a moving train.

• Snacks!!! My boys love holidays and the nice snacks I take. If travelling by train it is much cheaper and easier to pack a sandwich and some healthy snacking, prices on trains can be pretty steep.

• Note books for writing memories in are a lovely keep sake of your holiday. If a child is too young for this then colouring in or a worksheet can be amazing for keeping small hands busy.

• Pack sensibly. Lugging lots of things around on a train with smalls is just a hassle.

Planes are a new sort of transport to my boys, we've always had fun road tripping but we have been introducing plane travel. 

• Like the train always give yourself time to get to the airport, rushing is just a stress I am not willing to have.

• Have all documentation in order. we have a carry wallet which zips up I have all our passports, EHIC cards, accommodation details and transfer papers.

• Try to book sensible flight times. Think 'is it more hassle to get up early and arrive at a sensible time or will we be arriving in a new country late when children are tired and fed up of travelling?' We try to aim for lunch time flights so that we can have breakfast/ brunch in the airport, therefore we get no "I am hungry mammy" every few minutes.

• Try to get a window seat in the airport. Nothing passes the two hour waiting time before a flight than excited children watching planes and trying to guess where they are going to. Newcastle airport is amazing for watching planes, they have huge floor to ceiling windows.

• Backpacks full of chewitts (to stop ears popping), colouring in or a note book, a map or guide book on where you are holidaying (there is some nice child friendly ones around), change of clothes (in case your suitcase goes missing the other end or spills happen, they mostly certainly do with my two) and when you get through security it is always an idea to get a bottle of water to go in your child's bag as keeping hydrated on the plane is needed.

• Have a plan for when you get to the other side. Where is your first stop?  Make sure there is no doubt in the adults you are travelling with minds as to where you are herding your children too. Arguing in a packed airport is not something I would like to do. M and I always have a clear plan with a few back up plans. It normally goes toilet, baggage and then find our form of transport.

• Make sure you talk your child through what may happen during going through security. Our eldest is always stopped during checks, he loves it as he knows its keeping us safe and he rather likes the gadgets the security has.  This is how it should be, no child should be scared of people who are keeping them safe. 

• A point we have from last year is if you are travelling and you need medication, (our eldest got an infection a week before travelling although he was cleared to fly he was on his last days of antibiotics, he got 10 days instead of the usual 7) make sure you have all information on the tablets/medicine from your doctor.  Keep it in your hand luggage in original boxes, inform your travel operator as they can mark it on your file to get quickly through the airport, always declare them and be ready to answer questions.

• Make sure you pack well in advance and check weights and restrictions on your airline of choice, having to open cases at the airport is my idea of stress!

Now for our favourite form of transport. We love travelling by car. It feels easier to travel by car when you have smalls and we feel we have master easy travelling.

• Have a plan of what you need over what you would like to include in packing up the car.

• Always have a first aid kit in your car and spare bottle of at least 2 litres of water, we have once on a road trip ran out of windscreen wiper water. Which brings us on to our next point...

• Always maintain your car. Make sure water, oil and petrol is topped up. check your car over including paint work and tyres.

• Make a plan of action. Where are you going to stop for toilet breaks? Where will you drive to first? Where will you stop for food and which route will you take?

• In between the boys chairs we put a basket full of snacks and some small activities (magazine, colouring, and a small amount of lego)

• We have DVD players which we hook on to the back of the cars front seats. our boys can then watch a movie and it keeps them entertained. Although we have these our boys love looking out the window and doing a check list.  You can see amazing sights like the time an eagle took off from a tree at the roadside as we passed.

• Break up your journey where you can. We will drive on a night time to our first stop and take our second day stopping at a few places if we have time before stopping over in our end location.

for stressful travel always have a plan of who, what, where, and when:

• Who is going?
• What is the reason behind the trip and what places do you need to be? What do you need to take?
• Where are you going?
• When are you going and when will you be in certain places?

The more you can be prepared the better and a little tip for in current events, always make sure people know where you are for safety issues, also so there is no unnecessary worry from loved ones. Make sure you have a fully charged phone where ever you may be going and most of all enjoy it and have fun! Happy holidaying!

It's taken a year and a half but here we are!

We haven't blogged in so long, life has been super busy so let us fill you in.
In 2015 M was made redundant so we took the leap to set up our own business, it has taken time and hard work to sort out all the different bits but we are finally there.
M is doing amazing zero relapses and has only 34 blood test left. Doctors are happy how he is progressing and he has a MRI in a few weeks to make sure it is not just outward stability.
New to the boys and M is the return of the love and enjoyment of rugby in this house. M has started coaching at the club where we have joined the boys to play. Happy Sunday mornings of wearing two active boys out is much welcome! It also shows how well M is doing health wise.

Our boys are now 4 and 6. I do not know where time has gone and littlest Wardle is starting school in September. Our boys love in no particular order, mountain climbing, rugby, gardening, movies and dressing up. We have had many a trip to A & E with cut open heads, suspected broken bones and of course a swallowed coin (at 4 we thought mini Wardle wouldn't of declared late at night that he had found a 50p and had swallowed it, gladly it turned out to be a 5p!!!)
Our little guys are rough and tumble and full of life, we wouldn't want them any other way.

Life for me is busy I spend my time on school run and under a layer of paperwork.

We are still on our journey to figuring out why I miscarried and haven't succeeded in falling pregnant again. We, may I state, are very happy with our two boys, we are so very lucky to have them and have found out how much so since on the fertility route.

Me and M decided last year to replace our kitchen. What started out as replacing our kitchen, ended up with knocking out walls, changing windows in to doors, removing 50 ton of mud from our back garden, a pizza oven inserted into the garden and our living room and dining room swapped around. Not to mention all of the other things we updated here, but we will leave that to another blog to explain.

We have done a bit of travelling which included a trip to Dublin last summer and many more which we may blog about in the coming weeks.

Now I need to explain why we haven't blogged in so long and let me explain. When M was having his treatment we blogged most days, this kept us going through the hard weeks and it let us not have to explain his situation to friends and family. After his treatment we needed to come to terms with the whirlwind shock of hearing what his medical issue was. We took time to have fun as a family and build up his movements.

On Thursday I was out with a friend who also blogs. She asked why she hadn't seen any posts in so long from us and well I didn't know how to answer. There is no reason but now we are back and hope to carry on from where we left off.

So here we are back and ready to write again.

A Round Up Of The Year

So here it goes...
This year hasn't Traditionally gone to "plan". Plans were made to be broken and the bigger plan of life was ready to kick the tribe up the bum and give us a good shake up

So we will start in January when we were told having more children would take fertility treatment for us to get pregnant and keep the baby. It's not the best thing to hear and the tablets we got were not the most pleasant things to take, hormones and my body don't mix!

February brought excitement and apprehension... I decided to do an intense driving course and resulted in passing my test on the 9th. One hurdle we had to get through that week was the all important Ms neurologist specialist appointment, which my darling M had. The 11th came and we faced the inevitable news that what was going on was indeed Multiple sclerosis. Tears were shed but what was to follow during the next week or so was unexpected and hard to deal with.
the week of the 15th M has a relapse leaving him unable to walk. His leg felt heavy and unable to work in the way it had done for the last 35 years. what followed was a test of family strength which we were yet to understand we had. M under took a course of steroids and was able to function with his leg in a way which was a bit easier. After some intensive physiotherapy  M was back to full strength minus his occasional tired/bad days. That week we found out he was in that 50% of people who were most at risk from his intended treatment, a blow which hit us hard. That month I must add at this point was only gotten through by a beautiful soul of a lady whom was M's MS nurse called Barbara, she brought new hope with every blow we were dealt, being positive that this would all be a distant memory of scared times. She recommended M started a treatment called alemtuzumab which he started within a month of his diagnosis.

March Brought M's treatment and a blow that we had to stop trying to extend our family, the hurt of stopping the fertility treatment was dulled with the hope to have a better over all outcome for our family. Nine months on and our forfeit of more children seems small as M's relapses stay away and our boys blossom with a father able to build his strength up to what it had been.

April ,May, June and July brought changes to our families way of life. We couldn't have take outs or eat out and every meal had to be monitored to reduce the risk of listeria as M's treatent left him with a reduced immune system..

End of July brought the end of the four month strict diet, we kept to it as much as possible after but a holiday was quickly booked and having lobster by the seaside in North Berwick has to be up there with one of those most life changing experiences of appreciating everything we have, and the face value of beautiful family moments.

August brought My birthday one more birthday now until the big 30! I feel I need to use the, now, last year and half wisely and for fill some pinterst goals I long to complete.

Our Biggest change happened in September when Master Wardle the elder started Reception... I'm sure I was holding him saying  "Oh wow, look at what we created" merely a blink in time ago.
One of the most uneventful months was October not much to report but that was fine by us!

Now November was a shake up month, lets say, a month in which like February/ March made us reassess life as we lived it. M was made redundant and as they go I wont go into it but it made us realised we need to see what would make M most happy. Two months off and looking for the perfect situation to make him happy, it was!

In those two months we have reconnected as a family, M has bonded one on one with II our youngest in a way which wasn't possible when he worked full time and we had another child around (B at school meant one on one time with II).

December brought a beautiful meaningful Christmas run-up which included activities with the kids and a few date lunches so me and M could find our feet as a married couple again which can get lost in the hustle and bustle of everyday life.

So we are going into 2016 ready to fight another round of treatment for M in March a little wiser about the way the world works and a little more realistic on what life can hold for us.
Realistic isn't a scary word, the world still holds no limits but as a family we know what our limits should be and to be honest that is more than OK with us!

2016 bringing the hope that we will stay connected as a family in the busy day to day running of our lives and know when to stop and enjoy the now.

We have learnt who is by our sides every step of the way, people we least expected and of course our loyal friends which we did (this will have no hatefulness as we believe everyone has been so kind this year).

 So thank you for sticking by us and we hope you are around in 2016 to see the bigger plan in which we believe is the next step of our road in this life.

"He has made everything beautiful in it's time" - Ecclesiastes 3:11

It's Been A Long time!

Hello! Its been far too long since we blogged and in this post we will share why and update you.
The boys are growing quickly and we are spending every spare minute at the moment making sure the garden is at the best for the boys for summer (we will do a blog on what we have done so far)... we are in the process of preparing and sorting B for starting school in September! How he is 4 already is anybodies guess, but if you can tell me why these four years have been the fastest of our lives, please share!
C (me)- I have been spending all my spare time in the gym trying to get into shape and trying to get the house in to order.
Now the update people really want... M is coming to the end of his four months in which his diet can go back to normal, I wouldn't say his diet has been the easiest of things at times and we have had more waste than we usually do but we are getting in to the habit in which we have less waste again.
M is finally feeling the effects of the lemtrada and has had to admit defeat (rather a strong word but not the less defeat, even though he isn't going down with out a fight) he has had to slow down on a lot of things, cycling mainly and has in the past month had to take time off to rest. With the Lemtrada treatment wiping his immune system it has finally wiped a bit of his energy though his long restful weekend did include gardening in which he lost his wedding ring for the second time this year! He is doing amazing and hasn't let anything stop him, I always look at him and think how can i be a better wife for him as he is the best husband and still, even with his lack of energy, lets me have lies in and will do anything for me (and the boys).


So we haven't blogged because we have been finding our feet as a family after this life changing news and treatment. We have also had a lot going on in our wider family, both bad news and good news, but all things balance out in the grand scheme of life.

Tribe Wardle is so ready for summer! Six weeks with the boys, B is ready for the long break and am ready for some quality time with him. I can't wait for our adventures.

Well that is all for now, but I promise it wont be so long until we post again.

Chestnut Flour!

Looking for a new all rounder in your flour? Look no further...
Shipton mill flour can be purchased in the northeast from mmm... Situated in the Grainger market for £4.95 per 500g.... Expensive compared to your bog standard plain flour but you will not be disappointed.

Firstly we made Chilli and salt flour coated prawns to go in with other sea food... our favourite Saturday night treat.
You salt and pepper your prawns drop them in some whisked egg then drop in the flour... deep fry, then add to some garlic, onion and chilli into a pan... so yummy and quick and made at home for a fraction of the price you pay in the take away. normally we use cornflower but i wanted to try it with this flour, we were not disappointed!

Then I made an apple and blackberry crumble.
Using the chestnut flour for the topping... I found on trying it to be sweet. So I added coconut oil instead of butter and no honey or sugar.... We used honey on the apple and blackberries so it was all round sweet enough.... It came out delicious a softer type of crumble almost cakey... M and me both agreed it was a lovely alternative...

next up I tried making a family favourite... Brownies!

melt 1 tablespoon if coconut oil with ten dark chocolate buttons(which we also picked up from mmm....)
once melted add one egg two teaspoons of honey and a quarter cup of chestnut flour.
bake at 180 for around 20 minutes.

They came out all fudge-like, so moreish, and my boys exclaimed mummy should never make brownies any other way! I say that is a win!
Without the high sugar content that brownies pack I think that in itself is a mummy victory!

Whilst eating our brownies on our walk from Souter to Latimer's in whitburn (please wait on next post)we ate the brownies... They are a lot richer so satisfied quicker.

From Latimer's we picked a pack of hollandaise sauce up which on getting home I made a chestnut pasta, turning it into crab lasagna.

To make, I used one whole egg and one egg yolk. A cup of chestnut flour and a quarter cup of pasta flour and a tablespoon of olive oil.
The pasta definitely needed the pasta flour to make it a bit smoother.
I mixed all these together worked it a little while then left it to rest for twenty minutes then ran though a pasta machine...
To make the crab lasagne I put some hollandaise sauce then pasta layered four times with the second and third layer having a good portion of white crab meat added... On the top I smeared the hollandaise sauce and added asparagus and baked until cooked...

It was amazing... The nutty taste with the sweet crab worked well and then the fresh hollandaise sauce and crunch of the aspargus added to a perfect dish... It was a lighter lasagne and definitely  one I will be making again as it went down well with everybody in Tribe Wardle.

So all in all, we love chestnut flour. It was an easier alternative to work with. Plain flour is fine but chestnut flour seemed lighter and has a moreish texture.... It did everything we tried with it very well, proving it is a good versatile flour, I think it will be firmly staying on Tribe Wardles shipping list....

But which flour should we try next?

Beautiful Weekend to Get in the Garden

But that does not mean we broke our backs doing all the hard work that is waiting for us.

Easter weekend was glorious, at least the Sunday and Monday, but after a relaxing Sunday with the only gardening being the planting of some more seeds indoors (rainbow chard, courgettes, marrow and a variety of squashes) we decided to spend Monday in the garden.

The lawn had its first mow of the year, its now looking a lot better from a distance, but up close there is another story to tell.  Yes its nice and green, only a couple of bare patches in the shade, but on closer inspection it looks to be mostly down to the even coverage of moss!  There arent too many larger weeds, a handful of dandelions but nothing more.  So something need to be done about the moss before it chokes out all of the grass.  I will aim to rake it this week so long as the weather stays dry, then it will be a prescription of regular weed and feed.  This helps to strip out the moss while also providing nitrogen rich fertilizer to enhance the appearance of the grass.  It will be a long road to a healthy lawn, but so long as I treat it every 4 weeks or so, keep it mowed and rake it to remove the dead moss it should be looking good by the time summer begins for real.

Our lawn does not get as much sum as I would like, and doesnt drain too well as there is a slight slope on the garden that means one side of the lawn collects most of the rain water, and that side is in shade most of the day and only get real sun in the high of summer as its too low later in the day the rest of the year.  It all amounts to a difficult to manage lawn, sounds like a challenge we can meet.

News on the seedlings planted last week is that the majority of the peas have sprouted and are growing well.

Peas

The runner beans are not fairing so well, with only one having made an appearance so far, that one being one of the unidentified beans I harvested from the 2013 crop, it was larger than the scarlet runners I planted, reddish brown in colour with black mottling, and it has grown fast, about 3 inches high now having only appeared 3 days ago.

Runner Bean, cabbage and kohlrabi

The cabbages and kohlrabi are both coming away well, and will need splitting soon, similarly with the leeks and one of the other seedlings which I am uncertain of which it is.  It could be kale of spinach, but whilst currently only about a half an inch high, they are difficult to identify and I foolishly did not label these as I presumed I would be able to tell the difference once the sprouted, as only one has done so I cant tell what it is!  If you review the post about planting these I don't even mention the kale, but it was in there.  The tray with leeks has either kale or spinach in, the other tray has the turnips, celeriac and the missing plant.  the turnips have sprouted, no sign of celeriac, and nothing of the mystery seedlings yet.  Hopefully this week everything will start and I'll be able to tell what is what.

Turnips, no sign of celeriac and what is that single tiny shoot?

Leeks to the right, is it kale or spinach at the left??