We're having a...

If all goes well, we will be welcoming our fourth baby into the family next May. We couldn't be happier!

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Portugal - Part3

The beaches! Oh, the beaches!

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Portugal - Part 2

Not a bad spot to spend a week! 

Emma with my lovely sister-in-law, Kelly (Greg's wife)

Lily doing a handstand on the bottom of the pool. The Podlings all gained so much confidence in the water during the week.

Family bomb!

After two days of Portugal sunshine, Lily was sporting a rather fabulous invisible swimming costume!

Playing table tennis in the villa's games room with Uncle Greg and Auntie Kelly

The poolside was so pretty at night

My favourite people!

A rare photo of the five of us

Family barbecue

Would someone like to tell me when my little girl got so grown-up?

Tom is very interested in insects at the moment, so was very excited to find this green shield bug sitting on one of the poolside lights. We saw lots of interesting insects while we were on holiday (much to Tom's delight), including the biggest cricket I have ever seen. I'm not kidding, it was huge!

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Portugal - Part 1

To celebrate their golden wedding anniversary, it was my mother-in-law's special wish that she should have a holiday with all of her family together. We often holiday with them and my brothers-in-law also holiday with them, but we have never had a holiday with all of us. Mark and his brothers haven't all had a holiday together since long before Mark and I were married, so it was going to be a very special trip. Mark's Mum and Dad rented a lovely villa in Portugal for a week and we all met up in Manchester on the morning of their anniversary to catch the flight together. Mark's Mum and Dad, his brother Greg and his wife Kelly, his brother Ryan and his fiancee Carrie and the five of us made quite a party!

It was Emma's first time on an aeroplane (and indeed the first time she has been out of the country) and Tom and Lily were so young the last time they flew that I doubt they can remember it. The Podlings were understandably excited to see so many aeroplanes at the airport and to actually be flying in one. They took tremendous delight in announcing the airline of every plane that they saw! They behaved impeccably on the two and a half hour flight and during the long wait for the hire cars at Faro Airport. Always a relief as travelling with children can sometimes be a bit of a challenge!

Despite having been awake since 6.30am with barely six hours sleep under their belts (we were late getting to the hotel in Manchester the night before), the first thing the Podlings wanted to do when we got to the villa in the afternoon was to get in the pool! Costumes were located swiftly and the family spent a delightful afternoon in the beautiful swimming pool enjoying the fabulous Portugal sunshine.

We celebrated the golden wedding anniversary with a lovely Chinese takeaway in the evening. Sitting outside enjoying the balmy night, eating good food, spending time with family; it was a perfect end to the day.

Emma's first time on an aeroplane

Straight in the pool!

Emma had the idea of using a tennis racket to paddle the dinghy round the pool. Clever girl!

Uncle Greg taught Emma to jump into the pool. This girl is utterly fearless in the water!

Two exhausted little girls at the end of a busy day. Tom was still going strong!

The three Podlings shared a bedroom in the villa. We thought this might cause no end of problems since they normally have separate rooms at home, but they were so exhausted at the end of every day that they all just fell straight asleep with no shenanigans at all!

My wonderful in-laws on their golden wedding anniversary.

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50 Golden Years

Celebrating 50 years of marriage in Portugal

Wishing a very Happy Golden Wedding Anniversary to my wonderful mother and father-in-law. They are two very special people who set the whole family a wonderful example of marriage to follow. Thank you for making us all a part of your special celebration.
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Busy, busy, busy!

I just wanted to check in and say hello to anyone who is still reading my poor, neglected blog. Life is crazy busy at the moment and I just don't seem to have any time to blog. We are going on holiday next week, so I am up to my eyeballs in packing, ironing and mending. I'm also planning for Tom's birthday, which is the week we get back from holiday, with Mark's birthday hot on its heels the week after. I also have the usual housework, homework, cooking routine, so I just don't have any time left for blogging right now. I will go back and 'fill in the gaps' as soon as life calms down, because I can't bear for our family record to be incomplete, but I won't make any promises as to when this might happen. Life is full at the moment and I have a great deal to be thankful for. There will be time to write about it later!