Monday, August 13, 2012

New Blog Challenge Starting September!!

I know you all enjoyed the 31 Day Blog Challenge back in May, so I am in the process of working on another.  If you would like to join in you will have to stop by my NEW blog home....on Wordpress.

OUTMUMBERED

Sunday, July 22, 2012

I Moved To Wordpress

So, if you guys still want to read my posts, then visit http://www.outmumbered.com and update your feeds or follow by email! :)

Thursday, July 19, 2012

This time last year...

I've never taken part in Mama Kat's Writers Workshop before and I ventured over today to see the prompts.  I've been lacking a little inspiration when it comes to blogging lately.  The very first prompt was to recycle one of your favourite posts from July of any year you've been blogging.  I went through my archive and it was only on going through my posts in July of last year that I realised....

On this day last year, I reached the 12 weeks milestone in my pregnancy with Nate (My 3rd pregnancy in our attempts to have a second child).  12 weeks was a milestone I craved but never fully imagined I would reach.  I had assumed, probably to keep further heartbreak at bay, that we would never be so lucky as to have another child.  There was the milestone. a small but visible bump and strong symptoms.


I wrote "Woohooo! I made it! 12 weeks is that milestone that a lot of people feel relaxed enough to tell family about. The rate of miscarriage drops to below 2% at 12 weeks also!! Next week is the start of my 2nd trimester and I am excited to get some energy back!"

I wrote that I'd lost half a stone in weight due to nausea, that I was craving indian food, strawberries and cheese, that my boobs were bigger and I was having mood swings!

Looking back at all we went through in trying to have a second child, I can't believe we are where we are today.  I sometimes think to myself that although what we went through was unbelievably heartbreaking, not once, but twice... our family wouldn't be the family we have right now if we hadn't gone through it.

So, the post from last July was not really a post to recycle... more a post that made me realise how truly lucky I am today.

I frickin love my boys.

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Boy Mum Blog-Hop!


Hello!  I'm Emma, a 28 year old mum to TWO bright little boys... Ollie (Oliver) just turned 4 and Nate (Nathaniel) is 6 months old today.  I've been a stay at home mum since Ollie was born and would like to call myself a housewife too but I'm crap at being domestic.  I've been married for 5 years to my awesome hubby James.  He's a geek...


We got pregnant with Ollie soon after we were married and the pregnancy went by smoothly (and the birth, though a little traumatic).  It took us a lot longer to have Nate... 2 years and 2 miscarriages to be exact.  For this reason, our family is complete... we don't ever plan on trying for anymore and I love being the only girl in the house.


I LOVE being a boy mama.  I have fun everyday and am definitely kept on my toes.  They are already great friends and so funny when they are together... and I look forward to bringing them both up to be good husbands and good fathers.  I love our life filled with trucks, trains, spiderman, mud, pee on the toilet seat, random rocks found in pockets and standing on legos!


Some posts that may be of interest to you are the following:

Ollie's birth story
Nate's birth story
Being a mummy to two boys

Let me know if you stop by so that I can visit you also!

Friday, July 6, 2012

Summer Strawberry Cake


6 tablespoons (85 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups (188 grams) all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (200 grams) plus 2 tablespoons (25 grams) granulated sugar
1 large egg
1/2 cup (118 ml) milk (though I use soya milk)
1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract
1 pound (450 grams) strawberries halved
  1. Preheat the oven to 350F (180C) and butter a 9 inch cake tin.
  2. Mix flour, baking soda and salt together in a small bowl.
  3. In a larger bowl beat together the sugar and butter until light and fluffy. 
  4. Mix in the egg, milk and vanilla until combined and add the dry mixture gradually.  Mix until smooth.
  5. Pour into prepared cake tin and arrange the strawberries, cut side down as closely as possible in a single layer.  Sprinkle some sugar onto the strawberries.
  6. Bake cake for 10 minutes and then reduce the temperature to 325F and bake until golden brown.
Recipe from Smitten Kitchen



Thursday, July 5, 2012

Am I young to be settled with 2 kids?

I don't think that I am.  But according to the statistics the average age in the UK to marry is 28 1/2 and the average age for women becoming first time mums is 29 1/2.  I'm going to be 28 in a fortnights time though I've been married for 5 years and have both a 4 year old and an almost 6 month old.  I'm DONE having children before I'm 30 (as far as I can see!!) and I feel happy to be done with that stage of my life, having my complete family here now and for us all to grow together.

I was 21 when James and I got engaged, 22 when we married and 23 when I had my first child.  I don't feel like I missed out on anything getting married and having children younger than the UK average.  I sometimes think about how else I would have spent the last few years had I not followed this path.

When Ollie is 27 and Nate is 23 I will be 50.  The same age difference between Ollie and I as there is between me and my mum.  Me and my mum are very close.  I can tell her anything and I think it's her age that makes the difference in how close we are.  She is still young enough to do fun things with me and young enough be a super trendy fun Grandma.  I hope to be the same when I am her age.

Have I missed out on the student lifestyle?  Living with friends?  Travelling the world?  I don't think so.  I was never a big fan of going out and getting so drunk I pass out.... I also don't mind that James is the first person other than my family, that I have lived with.... and as for travelling the world?  I like to think that James and I did the family thing young enough that we will be in our early 50's when the kids have moved out and have families of their own... 50 is young enough to travel the world without responsibility... plus I envisage we will have more money in savings etc then than we do now, so travelling won't be such a struggle financially.  I'm looking forward to raising my children first, and living out retirement with my husband :)

So in answer to the question.... I don't think I am young to have got married and had children... it suits me perfectly and I wouldn't have it any other way.