Bells Palsy: The Day I Lost My Smile!

Saturday 29 July 2006.  The day I lost my smile.

The first day of me learning a big lesson in humility.
The first day of a few months of pain.
The first day of realising just how vain I was.
The first day of realising how strong my faith in Christ had become.
The first day of the rest of my life... my life with a wonky smile!

The above photo was taken 4 Aug 2006. I can literally only move one side of my face, look at my forehead and the lack of wrinkles on that side. I also have a droop to my mouth still at this point.

The above photo was taken 14 October 2006. Still no wrinkles by the side of my eye on one side and my smile won't lift properly.

Reasons to be Cheerful - Family Time, Blogging Success and the Beach #R2BC

Hello friends, happy Thursday, I hope it looks to be a good one for you. Mine should be good and busy as I'm on the school run and then coaching my little boy first thing. Next I need to get a couple of tyres changed (Nothing exciting there) and then it is time for quick bite to eat and the girls parents consultations at school. Once they are home, it will be the normal homework, catching up with blog work and doing their dinner before I escape out with the my lovely friend Izzy for a meal and a catch up.

I'm sorry I haven't posted many R2BC posts recently, I seem to have had loads of paid work to do and whilst that's good (and with the summer holidays looming, definitely a reason to be cheerful) if I want any kind of work/ life balance it means I need to do less personal content but you've got me for every Thursday in July now as it's my month to host.

Blogging Success

In fact I think I could name all things blogging related as reasons to be cheerful as my Facebook blog page seems to have taken off and I am managing to be consistent in my posting and I've had a wonderful blip on YouTube. I assuming it is a blip but you never know I might just be the next big thing! Lol At the time of writing this I've had over 33,500 views on a slime tutorial I put up about five weeks ago. For the first four weeks it did what I thought was well with about 5,000 views and in the last week it has moved up by nearly 30K, that's pretty astonishing isn't it?

A Beautiful Day for a Dog Walk on the Beach

One of the biggest benefits of having moved to East Sussex is being close to the beach. It is my go to happy place whatever the weather but especially when the sun is shining.

Earlier in the month my Dad joined my girls and I to take the dog for a walk down on Bexhill seafront and then have a bacon sandwich and cuppa at Kerry's cafe (you guessed it, it was pre-slimming world!). We had a wonderful couple of hours together before he had to head off on the long drive back home.

Both girls were wearing their new ECCO boots with built-in GORE-TEX technology to keep their feet dry and warm in these wet and wintry months. This meant when they walked on the stones, run towards the waters edge or climbed and ran I didn't bat an eyelid about how their footwear would hold up as I know I can trust any pair of shoes or boots that GORE-TEX have approved to work with. Their checks are super intensive and they only work with the best and most trusted shoe-makers.

Boxing Day in Brighton - Sale Shopping and Ice-Skating

For as long as I can remember I have looked forward to the January sales, all sales in fact. We would have our family Christmas and all I'd hope for was money to be able to go and shop on 27th December. As of course when I was young shops didn't open on Boxing Day like they do now so I had to wait that extra day. Over the years I've grown less and less fond of shopping and now I hardly go to the sales at all but I do seem to have cultivated two young girls that have gained my love of shopping.

As Christmas starts early on 23rd December in our community by the time it gets to Boxing Day we are all ready to escape and thus two coaches arrived on Boxing Day morning and off we all went to Brighton. We did the same last year and it was a great day; friends and families split into smaller groups and we go off and do our own thing. My husband and son headed off for a waffle and then to the cinema to see Rogue One and us girls indulged in some sale shopping and a gorgeous Italian lunch, followed by ice-skating at the Pavilion ice-rink with about thirty other friends from our community.

8 Ways to Prepare for Baby Number Two

Image Credit: Boy cuddling pregnant belly from Shutterstock

You've found out you're pregnant, you've had the three month scan and all is looking good so now is the time you can start to tell all your friends and family and spread the joy of knowing that a new babe will soon join your family. Of course you are excited, but if you are anything like me you'll also be a little nervous and maybe even overwhelmed. Your family of three will never be the same again!

How you feel might well depend on the age of your first child and the potential gap you'll have between your children. According to the U.K. office for National statistics the average age gap between a first and second babe is about 36 months, although I have friends who had as little a gap as 8 months by falling PG with a newborn and then having their second baby prematurely. That really would scare the pants off me! My age gap was a much more sensible 45 months but the tricky part for me was that babes two and three came at the same time of course!

To help you beat that feeling of being weighed down with worries of what might be it is important to get prepared for your second babes arrival. Try and get all the practical things but of the way nice and early and this means if you do feel tired or poorly later on in pregnancy you are not stressing about all the tasks still to be done.

Kidzania - A Kids Paradise in London's Westfield Centre

I've been dealing with a very tired 9 year old today, she didn't get to sleep until gone 11pm last night and now she is jumpy and hyper-sensitive. Thank the Lord that our 1pm arrival time has come around for entry into Kidzania as she may now finally calm down a little and settle in to her afternoon of fun!

At the beginning of the year my 9 year old twin girls came to Kidzania with their school class and loved it. It was all they talked about for a couple of weeks. So when it got close to JJ's 13th birthday and he said he fancied a visit too, I jumped at Kidzania's offer to host our family on a date of our choice. We visited on Saturday 8th October for the 4 hour slot commencing at 1pm and I expected it to be heaving but thankfully I was wrong (although the girls tell me it was busier than the school day they had last visited).

Arrival

As our tickets had been booked in advance for us we had printed tickets and this meant we could head straight inside Kidzania and go up the three floor to the British Airways departure lounge. Check-in was easy and the member of staff very smiley and friendly, he certainly knew how to relate to kids. He checked if the kids had any allergies or additional needs and fitted us all with a security bracelet. This meant the kids couldn't leave without my husband or myself and it also acts as a location tracker.

They were handed 50 kidZos each (money just available for the children to earn and spend in Kidzania) and the girls explained to their brother how he earns or spent them. Miss E had saved some KidZos from her previous visit and thus had enough to open a bank account if she wanted. This was the cause of great excitement.

It's the Global Fund Replenishment Today, Should You Care? #Girlseverywhere

I suspect many of you reading this are wondering what the Global Fund is and that is OK, as it is not necessarily something that Joe Average knows about. I only know as the amazing people at ONE helped to peel the scales back from my eyes and now I actively seek out information about the positive steps being taken towards a fairer world where extreme poverty is being eradicated and preventable diseases minimised. 

Let me explain a little - The Global Fund is a public, private partnership, where Governments, companies, consumers (via the RED brand) and private donors come together to pledge money into the fund that specifically fights HIV, tuberculosis and malaria.

Back to School with Hotter Shoes (Review)

Last week just before the kids went back to school we headed into Eastbourne for the dreaded back to school shoe shop. Well I say dreaded but actually on this occasion it wasn't as we knew we were heading for the Hotter shop and as they only sell adult sized shoes we didn't have to worry about coming up against screaming toddlers and too-hot preschoolers who would rather be in the park.

I've been a keen Hotter customer for about five years now. I recall when they first approached me in 2011 and I assumed their shoes were all for the older ladies who couldn't wear heels anymore and yes they do cater for that market but they really are so much more than that. I have trainers, comfy boots and stylish pumps from Hotter, no heels but that is only because I rarely wear them nowadays.

Making the most of the Great Outdoors

My little girls love to be outdoors, it is a real challenge to keep them in. As many of you will know we live in an amazing place with 220 acres of land including three lakes, so we have an abundance of space but sadly we don't have a private garden by our house. So no trampoline or garden equipment for the girls but they make the most of the beautiful courtyard that is outside our door and having a shared space means they can always play with our little neighbours.

As the girls get bigger they want to go further afield and escape the courtyard, so often their older brother or my husband and I will head out with them to explore the wider landscape. Both girls have been sent some Superfit GORE-TEX trainers to trial out and have fun in and you'll see from these pictures, they are certainly having fun and putting the shoes through their paces. I'm pleased to report that they are doing really well, the girls say the shoes are comfy, easy to put on and they keep their feet dry and sweet free.

Can You Transform a Child's Future? #GiveABackPack

I don't expect you realised that being the kind of person who reads this blog that you have the power to change a child's future.

Not just change it but transform it and make it better. In fact help it alter beyond recognition. And I'm not talking about a child that is your own. As parents we tend to realise that we can help shape the course of our children's futures. I'm talking about giving hope, dignity and the knowledge that someone believes in them to a child living in difficult conditions in Eastern Europe.

We tend to take education for granted here, it is standard for all kids in the UK to attend school five days a week and the implications are pretty high if we let our kids skip school. But life is very different elsewhere and it is universally acknowledged that education (especially for girls) can be the difference between a family staying in a cycle of poverty and no prospects and a young adult being able to break free from their chains and gain a valuable job with a bright future.

Chestnuts, Chestnuts Everywhere - Photo Blog

We've had some fabulous weather just recently and the girls and I have been getting out and making the most of it. It is not always necessary to spend lots of money to have a great time together, getting outdoors and foraging for a sweet treat can be really satisfying.

The chestnuts are dropping by the dozen right now and we wanted to get some before all the deers ate them up. We headed out with some friends to go collecting and we didn't have to go far before we found an abundance. Between Friday and Saturday we collected a great haul and the kids got to partake in some of their favourite pass times - tree climbing and mud jumping!

 The golden nectar that we set out to find, they are stunning just to look at, let alone eat!

The Kids Enjoying their New GORE-TEX® Shoes

Back in July I was sent a pair of shoes for Miss M and JJ as part of the new GORE-TEX® Big Days Out Ambassadorship. They asked me to get the kids to have some fun over the summer and put the shoes through their paces to see how they perform. They received a pair of GORE-TEX® Legero Tanaro shoes each.

In general we were really happy with the shoes, they were comfortable for the children, easy to put on and great in all weathers. Miss M's leather shoes did start to look quite worn-in after a while but they polished up well. The black leather does dye onto the white laces but this didn't really create an issue for us but it is interesting trying to teach an 8 year old to tie her own laces

I wouldn't hesitate to buy Legaro sheos with GORE-TEX® in the future as they have performed super well.

Here are some of the adventures that the kids took their shoes on -

Climbing old castle ruins

Visiting National Trust Corfe Castle #CountryKids

I posted last week about our trip out on the Swanage Railway and one of the stops we made was for Corfe Castle as they have a station right in the heart of the village. As members of the National Trust, there was no cost to us to visit the castle ruins but if you are visiting without membership it will cost you £20.45 for a family with two adults and up to three children at peak times. So it is no-where near as expensive as some attractions but to be honest you are probably only going to spend a couple of hours there.

Family Fun on the Swanage Steam Railway

Last week we were away on holiday in Poole. We visit every year and absolutely love the area, there is so much to see and do in Dorset and despite the fact that I have taken probably in excess of 30 holidays and lived there for four years I have never yet grown tired of it. I've now visited most of the main attractons of the area and some call you back time and time again and others are a once only visit.

On this holiday my family and I travelled on the Swanage Railway, which was a first for us and I can honestly say it won't be a last. What a nice addition to any family holiday, it is like a little trip back to the past. I chuckled as my kids looked horrified when they realised that the train door could be opened as the carriage moved (of course we didn't and you wouldn't) but it got me talking about my college days and jumping on moving trains - ekk!

Digital Activism - Why bother?

I can't find who to credit this picture to but thank you and let me know if it is you!

Last Saturday I was privileged to be part of a session at Britmums Live on the subject of digital activism and how it's shaping the world we live in. The 40 minutes went past way too fast and I don't feel I got to share all the information I wanted to, so here I am sharing the rest (and a few things I did get the chance to say for those of you who didn't make it to the session).First off let me reassure you that digital activism does work, it is not just slactivism or armchair activism as some people call it. I can give you so many examples of where bloggers have made a difference; we have a voice,
influence and credibility.

Digital activism works
Here is just a couple of examples - back in 2011 Chris Mosler was heading off to the US for a UN General assembly after her trip to Mozambique with Save the Children (STC). About 30 bloggers have been at a STC conference that day and at the end Hello it's Gemma and I wanted to do something to increase the amount of people who had signed the #healthworkers petition and show the UN assembly the strength of opinion on the need to fund more health workers in developing countries. So we set the challenge for bloggers to write 100 words on what their midwife meant to them and we targeted ourselves to get 100 posts live. Within 36 hours there were 164 posts shared and linked up and over a million impressions on twitter. It was an awesome time and possibly the most viral post I've ever had with in excess of 35,000 hits on that page within about a week.

A year in photos (week 31 - 36)

I don't know where the time is going this year but it is just flying by.  It has been an age since I properly joined in with the weekly photo linky, so I thought I better get caught up and then I'm at least in with a chance of getting back on track and completing this year.

I can't possibly show all the photos I want to, so I'll just pick a few from the summer.

Here is Miss E sitting in Bournemouth Gardens, we had a great evening with my brother just wandering around and enjoying hot doughnuts. Just look at her face such joy, this is the kind of photo I need to look at when I need cheering up.

On the same holiday we visited Kingston Lacy and had a great day with my parents.

This is my home, I'll never ever tire of this view.

There was some wonderful opportunities to moon and star spot over the summer, real clear skies -

We had a lovely time in London to celebrate my birthday.

And wonderful beach days at Bexhill on Sea

Then we went away and celebrated dh's birthday at the zoo. The highlight of the day for dh and JJ was hand feeding the lorikeets.

We then spend a few days at Potters Resort in Norfolk and Miss M showed her confidence by going up on the main stage two nights in a row, one night to sing a solo. You'll also see Miss E in the background too as she went up there too and chatted to the host.

On the way back we stopped in Herts and visited the Warner Bros. studio tour. Recognise this house?

And I've had a look through Septembers photos so far and I have to say it is a poor show. I've not taken anything good in the last couple of weeks, I need to sort that out!

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How was the food at @PottersResort?

The Garden Resturant

I know some people are not fans of catered holidays but I love how easy they make it. In my opinion holidays are supposed to be enjoyed by the cook too, so to turn up at a restaurant, get well fed and then walk away and leave the table is my idea of bliss!

Included in the price of your Potters holiday is breakfast, lunch, dinner and midnight supper and our family were really happy with what we were offered.

Most people eat in the very large Garden restaurant but during busy times the Gallery restaurant is used too and all food and service levels are the same. You will be allocated a table for your party and this is yours for the duration of your stay, this makes things very easy come meal times and my kids enjoyed getting to know the people around us. Your waiter/ess also remains the same for your stay and you can thus develop a rapport and also Tracey, our waitress got to know our likes and preferences, so tea would just appear at the table. She really was a character and a great server too.

On the first day there was a wine display and you are encouraged to book your evening meal wine in advance to help make service smooth. You can also book celebration packages in advance, likes balloons, banners and cakes and lots of the tables were decorated for the duration of our stay.

Breakfast (arrival time 8.30 -10am)

You can order tea, coffee, juice, toast and porridge from your waitress. There is a massive continental and cooked selection for you to self-serve and there are also cooked items that you can order, such as kippers, veggie sausages, poached eggs etc and no extra cost for any of it.

Lunch (arrival time 12.30 - 1.30pm)

This can be a three course affair if you are hungry or something much lighter if that suits, the choice is yours. Starters generally are fruit juice or soup and a roll. The buffet has jacket potatoes, a couple of choices of hot mains, omelette's cooked to order and a fabulous selection of cold meats and salads. There are also three main courses cooked to order, such as the salmon goujons and skinny fries I had one day.

Dinner (arrival time 6.30 - 7.30pm)

For dinner you have the choice of three good starters, a roast from the carvery, a buffet hot dish and three dishes you can order. During family breaks there are also specific children's options such  as spaghetti and meatballs or make your own chicken wraps. Children can eat what they like though, from the main menu or children's menu or mix and match as mine did many times.

Dessert is off the menu and there tended to be a hot option, cold option, ice cream with sauce or cheese and biscuits.

Here is an example days menu and the weekly kids menu

Midnight supper

I did not have midnight supper any night as generally I was tucked up in bed by then but the first night I did go by just as it was being served and it was meat or veggie chili, rice and nachos and it looked every nice but after three hearty courses just a few hours before I could not manage it. Plenty of people were though!

What was it like?

I can honestly say that I really enjoyed every meal I had at Potters, I went home absolutely stuffed and you really do not need anything in between meals. There was plenty of choice and healthier options were available. I really liked the fact that the kids were not made to have kiddie food and Miss M enjoyed her duck leg and Miss E her daily roast dinner. Probably the only thing I was not fussed on was the leek and potato soup I had for starter one night, it was just a bit watery for me. The kids did not really the pizza but dh said it was very nice, I just think they are used to a thin base and this looked like a thick homemade bready dough base. Apart from these two minor points we had fabulous food and a fabulous time and our family is really happy to recommend Potters Resort as a wonderful place to stay.

Disclosure: We were staying at Potters for three nights for the purpose of viewing the holiday resort. I have not been instructed what to write and I remain honest.

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Potters Resort - worth a visit? (@pottersresort)

Potters Resort advertises itself as Visit Britain's (AKA the tourist board) first 5 star holiday village in the UK. It has held this 5 star award for 12 years now and that speaks volumes. It is also telling when you look at Trip Advisor that you find more good reviews than bad. This site is notorious for being brutally truthful and it is good to see that in the case of Potters Resort the truth is positive.

Whilst Potters has some aspects that duplicate other holiday villages we have been to before, my overriding feeling is that it is really unique and pretty darn special too, I suppose some of that might come from it being the longest serving and still privately owned holiday centre in the UK (the Potters family built and opened it in 1920). When we first drove onto the site we were greeted with the hotel with its balconies and posh looking penthouses at the rear and then you look right and see all the bungalows and yes on the outside they are not that attractive and the paved floor is a bit gloomy but you get inside them and see the luxurious finish and forget about the outside facade.

A walk up to the main complex takes you past tennis courts, adventure golf, an outside bar and a beautiful pool. Everything looks fresh and new and it is clear Potters have an ongoing renovation plan and a commitment to keeping the place updated.

Once in the main building we were first greeted by the enormous garden restaurant, which looks as if it should be on board a luxury cruise liner and then shortly after a small over 18's and children's amusements area and I commented to my husband we were in little Vegas as much of the decor looks a bit mock Grecian. Next up we caught sight of a Zumba class and a group of women and girls following the dance instructor and for a moment I was transported to Kellermans and Dirty Dancing. It really it is a little bit of everything.

On reflection the next day I actually think that the main complex in Potters is like an up-market David Lloyd fitness centre; you can enjoy a beer or coffee whilst watching various sports or children's activities. It was great that all the main areas link and we could allow the children to make friends and go off for short times, this definitely added to their holiday experience and Buzbys basement was particularly appreciated as this allowed them a kids only play and chill out zone.

I can't believe that anyone could be bored at Potters Resort, I understand that organised fun is not for everyone but if you are a sporty family then you can independently book for darts, golf, pool, snooker, table tennis, tennis, squash, badminton, bowls, segway, archery, football, swimming and so many other activities that I can't even recall. Oh and do not worry they are all included in the price you have already paid.

Our family is not really a sporty one but there was still loads to keep us entertained too. The kids enjoyed soft play, an inflatable assault course, the play park, laser quest, the climbing wall, skateboarding, adventure golf, meet the animals, back stage tour, village fete on the green and various activities at their kids clubs like 5 aside football, nail art, crafting and dancing games.

Everyone was exhausted on the first day so we headed home at 9pm after the kids clubs but on the second day after the back stage tour there was no way the kids were going to let us go. So we found seats to watch the show and I'm so glad we did, as the entertainment is really high end. The performers could easily have been in a West End show and after watching once we of course went back the next night too!

Potters is set right on the beach and you can easily walk down to the beach from the football field or golf course. The beach is truly stunning but I see at the moment they are redeveloping the beach to put natural stone breakers in this, this of course spoils parts of it at the moment but once it is all done it will be even better.

As we leave Potters Resort to go home my overriding feeling is one of sadness; I could just do with another couple of days here. I think this is probably JJ's best holiday ever as the park is small enough and he is now old enough that he could go off with his new mates and have so much fun. The girls have tried all sorts of new activities and stayed out for their latest holiday bedtimes ever and Miss M is now convinced that she will be a famous performer one day! And dh and I? We have done what we do best on holiday, we have enjoyed our children having a wonderful time and got to relax and chat together.

I always like to do a balanced review and to tell you the good with the bad. At the moment I'm struggling to find any bad points to talk to you about. The jolly join-in kind of atmosphere might not be for everyone but we did not find it over the top and the staff really do seem to care and enjoy their work. As I mentioned the bungalows do look quite old fashioned on the outside but from my point of view who cares, they are fabulous inside and really practical. I suppose the one thing that was the most annoying for me was the wi-fi was a bit patchy in the main building. At times it was brilliant and I could download to iPlayer at others I struggled to get connected to the cloud and I'd really of liked the option to have wi-fi in my room (but I suppose that was just because I'm a blogger).

I asked dh what his recommendations were to make our stay better and he suggested an optional welcome talk, as there is so much going on it would be great to find out all about it at the beginning of the stay and then we could have planned better and also he said booster seats in the theatre (like you get in a cinema) would have been a great addition and I think he is right.

Thanks so much Potters Resort for having us, we have had a wonderful time and as we left today the kids kept telling their friends they would see them next year so we need to get saving!

Here is just a few more memorable moments from our stay and I'll post about our eating experiences at Potters Resort next week. You can also see our intial reaction over here.

Disclosure: We are staying at Potters for three nights for the purpose of viewing the holiday resort. I have not been instructed what to write and I remain honest.

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Our first impressions of Potters Resort

For weeks our family has been looking forward to this week and being able to be a family of five with no work (well except my blogging I suppose) and a whole lot of family fun.  We left home on Sunday and have spent two rainy days in Colchester (but still had a great time thankfully) and today we arrived in Norfok to stay at Potters Resort for 4 days.

We are reviewing this holiday but will still do so in a completely honest fashion as I know that is what my readers have come to expect of me and to be frank from what we have seen and experienced today we are going to have very few moans and groans.

Take a peek at our first impressions of Potters Resort -

Our very first impression was a fabulous one when we were greeted by Daniel at the reception desk. He was super smiley and informed us about all we needed to know to make our stay enjoyable. We had arrived a couple of hours before the 2pm arrival time and thankfully our room was ready for us.

JJ was quick to spot that you could buy 5 drinks tokens for £10 and this means the kids can get served at the bar by just handing over their token for a milkshake or pop, he loved the idea of being independent and when we found out this would actually save us money (as the drinks are normally £2.20 each) we quickly parted with our money!

We headed straight to our room to get settled and boy were we impressed when we walked in. We had been booked into the most basic accommodation type, a bungalow and frankly it is fabulous. They had put an extra bed in the twin room so we had three full size beds and three happy kids.

After getting unpacked we headed out to explore and see what Potters could offer us during our stay and again we were a bit blown away, there is so much going on and each time we saw something new JJ would ask 'does it cost more Mum?' and I was pleased to be able to say NO. The only things that seem to cost more are ten pin bowling and clay pigeon shooting. The kids have now got super-full plans for the rest of our stay and I'll blog about some of the things we get up to over the next few days.

One of the nice little extra touches that Potters offer, which we all loved is the kids check-in. Between 2-4pm the children could have their picture taken and a mini passport made, they then wear these all week and each time they take part in an activity they get a stamp in their passport and a certificate at the end of the stay. The girls were very pleased to get to meet Boo at check-in time too.

We did so much today in the short time we have been here, we swam, we ate (magnificently), we went to kids clubs and we relaxed but I'll write about those things another day.

For now it is goodnight and I hope you have a great day tomorrow, I sure know we will.

Mich x

Disclosure: We are staying at Potters for three nights for the purpose of viewing the holiday resort. I have not been instructed what to write and I remain honest.

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If you like what you have read and want to stay up-to-date then subscribe by email for free and receive blog posts directly to your in-box - just click the link Subscribe to Mummy From The Heart... by Email or perhaps you like to keep all your blog reading in one place, if that is the case you can follow me on BlogLovin too!