The Gallery

As you may have noticed I have had a little bit of a blog freshen up . . .
I took my girl into Violet Posy's blog salon and she beautified us a treat.
There was a purpose to all of this: I want to show my photos off more effectively because, well, photography is my 'thing', my love, my passion.
That's not to say I'm particularly good at it or even know what I'm talking about, but I do appreciate good photos and want to be able to showcase them better.

And so, to really kick this off, I'm going to launch a new weekly feature for people like me to participate in.
It's an idea I've stolen from another blogger I greatly admire who launched a fantastic Writing Workshop to encourage other writers, offer inspiration and give them all a place to showcase their work.

And it's been a wonderful way to give writers a platform to launch themselves from.

I want to do that for our photographs.
So Josie, thank you for your idea. Now I'm stealing it x

The Gallery

Every week I will give you a prompt, an idea, a notion and you go out and take a photograph using that prompt. Or just use a photo you already have.

The prompt could be one word, an object, an idea, a phrase, anything, and you have to post a picture which you feel represents that prompt.

Post it on your blog and write about it.

That's it.

It's not about taking technically brilliant photos - although if you do, I'd love to see them too. It's about having a passion for pictures; any photos, all photos whether you took it with your all singing all dancing SLR or snapped it on your camera phone.
You don't even have to be a blogger to take part - just send me your photo and I will publish it on my blog for you. You don't even have to include your name if you prefer.

When you've published it, come back on Wednesday and via a groovy widget thing you can add a link to your post and share it with everyone.

Visit others, comment if you like them or feel inspired by them. Just go out and encourage and support amateur photographers out there.

Today's prompt

Here goes with number 1 then.

I'll start with an easy one: Beauty.

Personally I find trees really really beautiful, but don't get me started on that one again!

But what is beauty to you? Where do you see beauty?

Come back on Wednesday and join in. I can't wait to see what you come up with.

And if you want to make sure you don't miss any prompts or entries in future, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed.

Go on, clicky click away, you know you want to ...

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Can you underschedule your children's time too?

My son is a sportsman. He never wants to stop.

He plays rugby and football, is begging us to take in to a judo class and if he wasn't able to play tig or British Bulldog or whatever the current game of choice is during breaktime at school, he's had the most BORING day ever.

And boy don't we all know about it.

Last year the after-school clubs at his school included short tennis, cricket, multi skills, yoga and cross country running.

He wanted to do every single one of them. I swear to you, it makes me feel tired just thinking about what that boy is capable of.

So he picked a couple (they really are quite cheap considering the coaching they get) to run alongside his beloved rugby as well as the football. Oh and he was having swimming lessons too.

But all the while he was taking part in these activities I was being gnawed with the age-old mummy guilt: was I over-scheduling a 6 year old?

So this year I cut back. Football and rugby. That still takes out 4 days, but at least he'll be getting more 'down time', right?

Now I'm having another round of guilt. Am I under-scheduling him? Am I depriving my a clearly very energetic and enthusiastic young man?

My daughter isn't the slightest bit interested in any clubs.

"I don't want anyone telling me what to do" was her response when I asked if she fancied joining a gymnastics club (if you could see how this girl climbs you'd understand).

And when her best friend joined a ballet class I even asked if she wanted to go along to that.

I got a withering look and a "ballet?" in a raised voice, as if I'd asked if she'd fancy going to Thumb Sucking club and it was TOTALLY beneath her.

Like all parents, the bottom line is I want my children to be happy. To have a go at things if they want to and if they enjoy them to keep it up.

But how do you know when it's too much or not enough? Or am I just thinking too much about it and should stop fretting too much about filling their free hours with “enriching” activities?

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The Apprentice

There are things my children do that really make my teeth clench; make me grip at the chair arm I'm sat next to; make me seethe until I begin to shake very slightly.

Dumping every toy they own on their bedroom floor to find one, tiny, pretty rubbish toy - and then leaving everything lying there like a sea of primary-coloured plastic is one.

Going to the toilet and never ever flushing is another.

But one of my real pet hates, the one that gives me a slight tic in my left eye is when my 7-year-old son yells at the top of his lungs from somewhere in the house: "MUM!"

He can't be bothered to come and find me. He will sit there glued to the TV or his DS and without so much as raising his eyes, shout for all his lung capacity will allow: "MUUUUM?"

Somehow the move to 'mum' from 'mummy' makes it even worse.

I ignore him for as long as I can. In fact, I've been known to hide.

But usually I'll go and find him because I'm just about fit to burst and quite calmly I'll say: "Dan. If you want me come and find me. Do not yell through the house."

"Ok. Sorry. But can you get me a smoothie now you're here?"

The fridge is mere footsteps from where he's sat making bum-shaped indentations in the sofa.

This weekend it slipped up another notch. Another notch which could see me self-combust.

I hear the familiar screech through the house - only this time it's his sister!

Ye gods, she's picked up his habit now.

I can't have both of them doing this, for my sanity's sake, plus coming from a 4-year-old it sounds strangely demonic.

I hunt her down to put a stop to this once and for all.

"Mia . . ."

"But mummy mummy . . . "

"Mia, you cannot yell through the house if you want me. I will not accept this. It's . . ."

"But mummy, Daniel asked me to call you for him."

Hmm, getting someone else to do your dirty work? You've got to admire his enterprise!

Now if I could just get him to adopt this innovative thought process to the toilet issue . . .

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The Gallery

Photography is my 'thing', my love, my passion.
That's not to say I'm particularly good at it or even know what I'm talking about, but I do appreciate good photos and love taking them.

And so, to this end, I launched The Gallery, a weekly feature for people like me to participate in.
I want to encourage other bloggers, offer inspiration, give them all a place to showcase their work.
It's essentially a virtual art gallery of photographs which opens its doors every week for everyone and anyone to join in.

Every Friday I give a prompt, an idea, a notion and you go out and take a photograph using that prompt. Or just use a photo you already have.
The prompt could be one word, an object, an idea, a phrase, anything, and you have to post a picture which you feel represents that prompt.
Post it on your blog and write about it.
That's it.

It's not about taking technically brilliant photos - although if you do, I'd love to see them too. It's about having a passion for pictures; any photos, all photos whether you took it with your all singing all dancing SLR or snapped it on your camera phone.

When you've published it, come back on Wednesday and via a groovy widget thing you can add a link to your post and share it with everyone.
Visit others, comment if you like them or feel inspired by them. Just go out and encourage and support amateur photographers out there.
You can subscribe to the Sticky Fingers RSS or email feed to ensure you get all posts to your inbox.

For the latest Gallery theme click here.

To date The Gallery has exceeded my wildest dreams. I have seen people discovering each other, I have seen people really push themselves, I have seen fantastic writing to accompany photographs and best of all I have seen people rediscover their love of photographs.

If you like what you've read here then come join in. We really are a lovely bunch.
You can see the old entries for yourself here.
And if you'd like the fancy pants code for yourself, I have that too . . .


<a href="http://stickyfingers1.blogspot.com/search/label/The%20Gallery"><img src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_YvvceOEVsWU/S6fY0nf07UE/AAAAAAAABD0/SbguGrqPapE/s160-c/Badges.jpg" width="160" height="160" style="margin:1px 0 0 4px;" /></a>

Here are all the themes we've completed to date:

Beauty            
Number                
Colour          
Me                
Outside My Front Door              
Ugly            
Joy                       

7 Deadly Sins                              
Portrait          
The World We Live In

Men                
Self Portrait          
Friendship    
Still Life        
Motherhood    
Creatures              
Emotions      
Holidays                

Can you see what it is yet?

Novel idea      
Nature                  
Playtime        
A memory      
Photo I'm proud of                      
One Day      
Back to school         

Celebration      
Smile                    
Food            
Girls              
Favourite photo    
Red                  
Show me the funny

Seasons            
Before and After  
Black and White     

Celebration      
White                  
Sparkle           

Love              
Body parts            
Mother nature    

Children        
Shapes                
24 Hours
Togetherness
Expressions
Simple Pleasures
One Word
Trees
Education
Hair
Mother Love
Tomorrow
My blog
Green
April
Chilled Out
Moustachioed
My Backyard
I'm Grateful For
Dads
3 Word Gallery
My Weekend
Grandparents
Travel
Vintage
Birth
Water
Black and White #2
World Photography Day
Animals
Shoes
A Happy Memory
Guilty Pleasures
Home
The Letter T
11.11.11
Something I Am Proud Of
The Kitchen
My Awesome Photo
Christmas of Yesteryear
Phone Photo

Now go take lots of photos . . .
Tara x

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Are we raising a generation of wimps?

From the age of 13 I was bullied at school.
I was taunted by older girls who, for whatever reason, didn't like me or my friends.

We didn't have a 'gang'. We loved Duran Duran, sports and each other's company.
We were into make up, dancing and fashion.
We worked hard, were never in trouble (except that time I was caught wearing a 'banned' pair of earrings!) and would never dream of backchatting a teacher.

But these girls took a dislike to us.
Often, we were followed around the school by our bullies who stalked us like sinister shadows.
They would swing their bags so they hit us on the head or the back, issue 'threats' in mock whispers loud enough for us to hear and stand in doorways looking menacing.

It doesn't sound like much. Trivial, almost, when you consider what goes on in some schools today.
But my friends and I were terrified.

I look back on those times now and see them as a learning curve. Those days helped shape the person that I am today and, I hope, have equipped me with the skills needed if ever it happens to my own two children as they make that perilous journey through school.

But when I think back to those days, I was made to feel utterly miserable - and I do not want my children to EVER EVER feel that way, at school or anywhere else for that matter.
I remember reading a blog a couple of years ago about teaching our children how to handle themselves when faced with bullies and how, if we're not careful, we will be raising a generation of wimps.

"You want to know what I teach? That actions have consequences. That one must always take responsibility for one's own actions. That words are sometimes not enough. And that, frequently in life, people need to be taught tough lessons. Don't get me wrong. My daughter is a sweetheart. She's kind. She's caring. And she's extremely empathetic. I don't encourage her to go around indiscriminately hitting people. However, I do teach her not to take shit from anyone. Whenever another child pushes her, I tell her to politely tell that child that you don't like being pushed. But if he does it again, she has my full permission to shove his ass to the ground as hard as she can."
And I have to say I totally agree with him.

I was out last night with a friend whose nine-year-old son is being bullied at school.
He is a sweet, sensitive boy who would never hurt a soul - physically or emotionally - and his mother has brought him up to always consider the feelings of others, to be thoughtful at all times and to never EVER hit another person.

And now she's regretting that mantra because she has no idea of how to handle the situation he is in and she feels totally out of control.
"I thought I was raising him to be a kind and wonderful little boy, but his confidence is shot and I feel totally powerless to do anything," she told me.

I'm sure it's a sentence that could be echoed the world over and I told her that she should be proud that her son would never hit another person - no matter what the provocation.
But it got me thinking about my own son, who has just entered his third year at school, and what his daddy and I should be teaching him.
Sure I want him to be considerate to others and to never use violence. But I also don't want him to become a pushover and to have the school bully think he can take his pound of flesh out of my little man.

So I would be really interested to hear your thoughts on the whole bullying issue.
Do you think it's right to teach the 'never ever hit back' mantra or are there exceptions to the rule?

(*This is a post I originally ran on a blog I wrote for the newspaper I worked on, but the issue is as fresh today as it was back then)

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The Shiny Happy song meme. Remixed

As usual I've taken a meme (this time Rosie's Shiny song meme) and switcherooed it around.

Because I can and because it makes me smile when I think of Rosie tutting at me.

And because I wanted to mix it up with Tim's 'object' meme too (in which he asked for us to come up with a favourite 'thing' from our family history.

Then I was also tagged by Scibbling Mum as Rosie's meme came full circle.

So I've put them all in the blender and come up with this:

My favourite 'things' and my favourite song.

We sing this in the car on the way to school in the morning. It's our wake up song.

We sing it without a care that any car passing by can see us looking like total loons as we sing at the top of our lungs. Actually, it's only me who looks like a loon because the backseat windows are tinted.

I feel I should also explain why they're both sat in the bath to perform this. They climbed in and sat there side by side to clean their teeth one night as we were getting ready for bed. Nope, haven't the foggiest idea why.

* Filmed on my lovely shiny Flip video camera that I've only just brought out after nearly a year! What can I say, I'm a camera girl!

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Wordless Wednesday: The fridge door

Fridge doors can tell you a lot about a family.

It's a hub of activity. A giant noticeboard. And it's appearance ebbs and flows and the children's ages change.

This is our fridge door.

From the photographs, to the magnetic artwork, the 'ornaments' from around the world, the toys and the little emergency card with the NHS Direct number on, they all tell a story of our life with children.

Is your fridge the same?

Or are you one of the few people who has managed to keep the front of the fridge a tat-free zone?

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The Negotiator

How many of you have experienced this scenario at meal times?

"How many more mouthfuls of dinner until I can have pudding?"

"All of it. Eat all your dinner."

"No. How many mouthfuls but don't say all of it."

"Well you've hardly eaten any, so 55 mouthfuls."

"Now you're being ridiculous. How many mouthfuls and say a proper number like 10."

"Ok, 10 more mouthfuls. But mouthFULS, not just a sliver on the end of your fork."

"How about 8?"

"No. I said 10."

"But you meant 8 didn't you?"

"Err, no."

"I'll eat 8 and then shall we decide then?"

This is a regular and infuriating conversation I have with my 4 year old daughter at the dinner table.

It's a constant negotiation and has become so bad I've started increasing the amount I put on her plate to compensate.

I'm not a 'finish your plate' kind of mum by any means. You eat until you're satisfied, then you can have a pudding if you still want one. Or if mummy hasn't eaten them all. Or hidden them so she can eat them all.

But the trouble is, the minute Mia has polished off her pot of yoghurt or bowl of custard or whatever, 15 minutes later she's asking for 'snacks'.

"What about this cottage pie you've left? Shall I warm that up for you?"

She looks at me like I've asked her to eat mud, chooses to pretend I don't exist, turns her back on me and starts rooting through the fridge.

Today the art of negotiation has moved up another notch.

"Mummy, do you want to swap your carrots for my potatoes?" I have 1 solitary sliver of carrot left on my plate.

"No thank you. I'm going to eat all my own dinner thank you."

"Well how many mouthfuls then?" Oh brother.

I give her a look that says 'ask me that question one more time and you may just be wearing that meal'.

I think she picks up my vibes and sits quietly spearing a 'bush' of broccoli then asks: "Can I have a drink please mummy?"

A feel a warm glow upon me as the flush of parenting success makes me sneak a crafty smile as I get up to go to the fridge.

I sit back down and she's still prodding at a lone piece of broccoli. Holy cow, she's nearly finished. No more negotiating. The look was all that required obviously!

I look at my plate, and there joining my single sliver of carrot are a clutch of new friends, 2 potatoes and a telltale trail of gravy joining our two plates together.

Doh!

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The Cupcake Challenge 2010

One of the hardest things I've found since having a second child is dividing my time effectively so that both children feel they get their fair share.

This is not easy.

Yesterday I got to do just that with my little girl who, let's be honest, as she was number two doesn't get much mummy time.

Yesterday we suited up to take part in English Mum's Cupcake Challenge.

We had a blast. We screamed as egg shell got stuck in our mix, we licked spoons, we got food colouring on daddy's top and we smeared the left-over icing on Rich Tea biscuits and indulged.

Here are the results:

Wishing a happy Valentine's Day to you one and all.

Big sloppy kisses and a lubbly homemade cupcake each x

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A whole bunch of Tweeters you should be following

Firstly an apology. For anyone who doesn't follow Twitter this post will seem like a big yawnfest.
But I do follow Twitter. I love Twitter. I have to follow it on behalf of clients I work with and so I'm on there pretty much all the time.
For me it feels like standing in the middle of a busy train station: chatter going on all around you, and you can choose to just stand there or dive in and chitty chatter away too.

There is something quite marvellous about having to keep to 140 characters. I think it appeals to the editor in me and the way you have to be short and concise and not say 10 words when you can say it in 2. It's so much more fast moving and 'real' than blogging - dramas happen right before your eyes, friendships form, news is spread, jokes are told, information is shared.

And the best thing of all is you can talk to absolutely anyone if you are following them. Anyone. Whether they will answer you back is another thing, but Twitter has opened up a whole new spectrum of blogs to me also that I probably would never have found without it.

And so I would like to share some of these people with you. They are in no particular order, but they are Tweeters I have enjoyed over the past few months and who, for me at least, have made it a great deal of fun. And a big distraction, but let's concentrate of the positives here, eh?

@CosmicGirl

I've only recently 'discovered' her but boy does she brighten your day when you're scrolling through TweetDeck and there she is shouting C*CK (without the star) at the top of her Twitter voice.
She's crude and loud and if you're easily offended you'll still love her because despite the rough tough grrrr exterior, she is a big old softie. And she has the cutest baby you've ever seen.
Sample Tweet: Next thing to address: finish the half-assed, whiny, woe-is-me blog post. You know, the ones you all just love to hate (it's the cleanest one I could find!)

@DGHughes

He's a 'bumbling idiot' (his words not mine), a total geek boy (did you see his post about making porridge with Diet Coke?) and hails from the north of England - but try not to hold that against him too much.

He tweets his wife from inside their house because he's lazy or something. Oh and he's also organising the most amazing 84-mile sponsored walk with bloggers from all over the world taking part. And he probably should be President of the Internet if such a role existed. Maybe I should have talked about those bits first?
Sample Tweet: I have just spammed a load of spammers. Felt good.

@PorridgeBrain
Big heart, big personality, small mouth oddly enough. Josie is the sort of person you can rely on when you need a Twitter bear hug.
It's hard not to adore her when she wears her heart on her sleeve so - she's like the best friend at school you never had. I had a best friend at school and quite frankly she was rubbish, so it's good to Josie there as a back up!

Sample Tweet: I have absolutely nothing of interest to say today so I am going to say nothing at all and spare you all a lot of drivel. Except this tweet.

@TimBrownson
Tim is a life coach based in America who swears a lot. Not as much as @cosmicgirlie it has to be said, but his bio does read: "World class farter that once nearly met the Queen" so take from that what you will.
I don't really engage with him much, he sits in my twitter stream making me chuckle throughout the day as I watch his car crash tweets slip by. He's a Brit transplanted to the US, and as you can see from his sample tweet, the minute he crossed that big pond he stopped being able to spell properly. It is from him I also pinched this blog post idea from.

Sample Tweet: Whenever I close the blinds to have a cheeky meditation I'm sure the neighbors are thinking I'm doing something altogether different.

@LauraAWNTYM
If you like random thoughts from a slightly deranged mind, you can't go far wrong here. And before you go thinking, hang on a minute, that's a rather unfair tag, she would totally agree.
I suspect Laura sometimes forgets that she actually has a job as she seems to be blathering away every waking hour on Twitter. Either that or she has a minion tweeting for her while she's at work. But then thinking about it, no one else could be that strange.
Sample tweet: Just had a CV from Mick Hunt. His parents clearly didn't think that one through.

@RosieScribble

If ever I'm feeling a bit fed up I look to see if Rosie is on Twitter. Fun, funny, smart, sharp. Plus her profile picture has my name on the nametag. Yes, yes I am that shallow.

She's kept in line by her adorable 6-year-old and her Twitter persona is exactly as she is, honest, caring and inclusive. One look at her Twitter feed and you'll see just how many people she interacts with in one day -she's like a one woman party.

And the £5 she paid me to say all of that has run out now so I'll just add don't ever ever get her on the phone - oh brother can she TALK.
Sample Tweet: Tonight I am going to lie about the time and send my daughter to bed an hour early. She has been up since six.

@VioletPosy
Is there an award for the most helpful person on Twitter? No? Well, there should be and Liz should be in the running for it. She's full of useful blog information and dishes it out like, well, like I dish out drivel on Twitter.

Thoroughly likeable, friendly and warm. In fact, if you get her and @porridgebrain together it's like a big ole Twitter hug fest.
Sample tweet: HA HA I've been invited to London Fashion Week - everyone who actually knows me or has ever seen me will wet themselves laughing!

@singleparentdad

Cheeky, risque, controversial and has a very big soft spot for @dghughes (honestly, the way they tweet each other sometimes is quite embarrassing).

Despite his rough, tough bloke exterior he is actually a thoroughly decent and lovely chap. But if you tell him that, I will deny all knowledge . . .

Sample tweet: Tuesday night appears to have become 'subject yourself to crap' night. In-laws, ironing, and Tesco delivery. Deserve my dose of Shameless.

@EnglishMum

Who needs recipe books when you have EnglishMum on hand to offer you instant answers to things like 'what can I do with left over potatoes' or 'don't know what to make for tea tonight. Help'. In fact she's probably reading those now and her brains clickety clicking away thinking up answers.

Just looking at her profile pic makes you go 'nomnomnom' (the cupcake one, not the one of her on her wedding day).

Sample tweet: My BFF has just described me as a 'passionate, scatty, funny gastromuffin' I think she was being nice...

@Erica

Young, feisty, Scottish. Admittedly not all of those are good things, but I have to say I have a very big soft spot for Erica.

She's level headed beyond her years (but for heaven's sake don't get her started on her age - she's like 12 or something if the way she bangs on about everyone being so old is anything to go by) and a great source of inspiration if you are new to blogging.

Sample tweet: Nearly missed out on slagging @tara_cain for being ancient. Duran duran, were they before tv?

@ThatGirl39

She's like a fashion magazine right there in your Twitter stream. Shoe obsessive (she makes you post pictures of the shoes you're wearing) and all round good egg. That's a good thing.

I actually like to pretend that she's the much more accessible version of Sarah Jessica Parker. But nicer.

Sample tweet: Just going past Fleet on M3 & am trying not think about needing a wee already. #morejoysofchildbirth

@Nickie72

A new find for me, Nickie and her bright green smiley face avatar just makes me smile. She's funny, engaging and a girl's girl. And I hope she doesn't take offence at that!

Her bio reads: 1972 model, good condition (large scratch on bodywork), one careful owner since 1990. Genuine mileage. Full history available. And that just about says it all really!

Sample tweet: All that make up and a crappy track-suit. & pale brown lippy doesn't suit anyone - it didn't suit me when I was 16 for sure @MissKatiePrice

Of course there are many other Tweeters I've not included. People who share great information, people who make me smile, people who are rude AND give out great information, people who are smart and sassy, people I just take a shine to, people I stumble on, people who are just starting out. And people who post pictures of hunky men on their blogs . . . ahem.

And if you're not already following me on Twitter, click away and do so!

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Teaching my children about love

How exactly do you do that? Teach your children about love?

When my son met his baby sister for the first time he had love in his eyes.

Hubby and I had worried ourselves to the point of distraction about how he would receive her, whether he would accept her or whether he would feel put out after having us to himself for nearly 3 years.

Would he try poking sharp toys into her newborn face (I have heard stories) or would he just pretend she didn't exist?

He didn't. He embraced and loved her and fussed over her and when I am in my dotage and someone asks me what have been some of the proudest moments in my life, that will be one of them.

Ever since that day he has taken her under his wing. He holds her hand when we are somewhere new and a little bit scary, he fusses over where she is if I can't find her and he does everything in his power to make her giggle when she is down.

I've even caught him check in on her when she's sleeping and say: "She's so cute when she sleeps isn't she mum?"

That my friends is the sort of love I want my children to feel.

During a recent school project, Mia was asked who her very best friend is: The person she wants to be with all the time.

She said 'my brother Daniel' and a roomful hearts melted as she wrote his name on her friendship pack.

But how long does this last?

Will they turn on each other once they hit double figures and their lives start to really diverge?

Do we, as parents, have any real control over it?

My children know love. They feel it. They are wrapped in it.

They see hubby and I say 'I love you' to each other and do the usual tut and roll their eyes and act like we're the most embarrassing people on the planet.

Children see, children do and surely if there is love in their home, they will carry that into adulthood?

Won't they?

I suppose it's something you don't really think about developing as a parent. You worry about their nutrition, their health, how much TV they are watching, their education, their physical development.

But teaching your children about love is equally as important because it will shape them as adults and how they will treat others.

We are surrounded by so many stories of children who don't know love. And of adults who were children that didn't know love. And it's heartbreaking.

Dear reader, if this sounds like I am preaching or tub-thumping, I apologise because I am not.

My children aren't perfect. They row and argue and call each other bum head or something equally toe curling.

But my hope is that love is ingrained in them now; they love each other and, I hope, always will.

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Young at Heart Photo Album

It's no secret that I have a big passion for photographs.

New photos, dusty old photos, embarrassing photos, clever composition, snapshots, whatever, I love them all.

Today I am going to have you all really dig deep and reveal a few more of yours.

After the massive success of the Favourite Photo Meme which unearthed some utterly gorgeous stories from everyone stretching right across the internet, I am starting another. Stop tutting.

And when I say 'I' I mean 'we' because this new baby is the brain child of two of us who have plotted and hatched away behind the scenes.

Also I have been given lots of 'homework' to do by way of tags and memes and as ever, I'm bundling them all up together and spitting out something similar but not the same.

So my grateful thanks to Tim, Linda, Rosie, Jumbly Mummy, Kat, Bec and Magic Mummy.

So this tag is aiming to create a giant photo album of baby photos across the ether.

But not baby/toddler/youth photos of your children - these photos are of YOU.

Imagine that, a giant wave of photos in a virtual album.

Plus this tag has an air of mystery about it. You have to guess who I'm tagging . . .

I've already done it behind the scenes and she's all primed to go. And she's already primed her tagee (MTJAM made me use that word!) etc.

So without further ado, I will kick it off with my own Young at Heart photo.

That's me in the photo above. I am 6 years old and it's one of my mum's favourite photos of me.

I am in Morocco with my family on a 6-month travelling holiday around France, Spain and north Africa and, as you can see, I am a proper hippy chick.

Check out my hat. And the kaftan!

During the holiday my mum had me keep a diary/scrapbook of everything we did - an idea I had my own son adopt when we travelled on a memorable 3-week holiday to America last year.

The love of hats thing has stayed with me too.

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Now, want to see who is in on this tag with me?

Isn't she gorgeous?

See if you can guess who it is before you click through to find out who this too cool for school blogger is . . .
She will be posting her Young at Heart photo and story tomorrow, and revealing another youthful blogger for the photo album, so keep them peeled.

And you never know, you could be next to be tagged . . .

NOTE: Make sure you include the name 'Young at Heart Photo Album' in your title and post so your entry is easy to find in Google. I will be looking out for you ...

There are no rules as such, just keep paying it forward.

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The best feelings in the world

• When you walk in the door and your children race at you squealing with excitement "MUMMY!"
• Getting into bed and laying your head on the pillow when you're really, really tired.
• Hugging.
• Discovering there is one last bar of chocolate left, hidden behind the bag of rice and the tins of baked beans.
• When your son who refuses to kiss you at the school gate, turns around and mouths 'I love you' as he runs into the playground.
• Sunday mornings.
• Coveting a pair of beautiful shoes and then discovering they're in a 70% off sale.
• Family walks in the woods on a cold, frosty day when you're all wrapped up.
• Unconditional love.
• Discovering a really really good movie.
• When your husband writes 'because you're worth it' on the tag of your birthday present.
• Being a mum.

What are yours?

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Do you think Robbie Williams ever had this problem?

Dan: "Why do boys sometimes wear nail varnish?"

Me: "I've no idea. Who wears nail varnish?"

Dan: "Just some boys. Laurence at school had some on but it was white."

Me: "White? Are you sure he wasn't fooling around in class painting Tippex on his nails?"

Dan: "Nah. He says he wanted to be a rock star, but he couldn't find any black varnish so he had to settle for white Tippex instead.

"Looks a bit daft really."

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