I AM INNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WoooooHooooo, thanks to Boo and Trevor's tireless efforts and at least 13 invitations IT WORKED!!!!Yeah yeah yeah and thanks you two.

So, am I officially a Carter now?

Converted

Apparently the blog is now converted. You'll need to use the switch option in order to post new items I think. Painless, you have to create a google account but can use the same email and password you've used for the blog anyway. I'll let you know if there is anything new. The text display actually looks clearer whilst I write this, so that is something............

Trevor

New Blog

You may have noticed that there is a new version of the blog, so we'll be switching soon. This shouldn't affect your access or what it looks like, but no doubt it'll be worth everyone moving once we have. I'll let you know if it is painful....

Trevor

Christine's Blog

Hi,

If you're interested in Christine's new life in Spain then go to http://orenetaaground.blogspot.com/. Loads to read and entertaining.

Weekly weigh-in

It's that time again, and this week I actually did fall off the wagon :(

Well, more like I dangled my legs off as I had two glasses of wine on Friday night. I did plan to abstain from alcohol until this Saturday (27th) but unfortunately I'm weak and the girl whose wedding I'm actually dieting for convinced me to give in and have a drink!

However, I'm pleased to say I've had another pound off which means 6lbs in total so I should reach my first goal of half a stone off by the end of January. A good week's progress I feel. Although it could yet go horribly wrong as I have a free champagne party to go to on Saturday and am in London for an exhibtion (cue copious amounts of drinking on bosses company credit card) so fingers crossed I retain a smidgen of will power to see me through!

Love Kate xxxx

Nintendo Wii

This Christmas we bought Kieran a Nintendo wii. Well when I say we bought one for Christmas we went on a waiting list for one before Christmas at a local Computer emporium. This meant that we could go into a shop and say we wanted a wii!
Anyway, as you may or may not know wiis are very hard to come by and we didn't expect it until his birthday in March. However, imagine our surprise when we got the phone call last week to say it had arrived. Kieran had left for university and we're not likely to see him till March. Clearly we had to check that it worked properly. So we had a go this weekend. IT IS BRILLIANT. It's like being in the holodeck in Star Trek. You have this controller and you control the ball, tennis racquet, golf club etc. It is sooooo clever. Unfortunately we are hobbling around feeling rather stiff today from lobbing virtual balls, bats etc in the sitting room.
Anyway, if you have a chance to have a go with one you should. Great fun! Great choice of present, K!

Weddings galore

Why I wonder is my birthday this year proving the day to have a wedding? My friend Louise's daughter Jenny is getting married on 28 July and I was all set to go to Glasgow for the wedding, when in the post came the invite to Jon and Niamh's wedding onthe same day! Then when I told Louise I wouldn't be able to come to Jenny's wedding she told me another friend was also unable to come because her niece was getting married in Cyprus on the same day as well. Having not been invited to any weddings for years it seems odd that they are all coming at once. Is there I wonder some secret significance to 28 July this year - other than it being my birthday of course.

Helen

Congratulations Kate - and can I just say that that graph is really impressive!
Seriously though - best of luck.
I am personally overjoyed to announce that I have finally managed to log in to the new blogger for the first time since I signed up for the new blogger - so had to post something just to celebrate.

I still owe 6 weird things about myself so here goes:

1) I live in Poland
2) I'm married to a Polish guy
3) I work for McDonald's
4) I LIKE working for McDonald's ;-)
5) I prefer shopping alone - and have my own system of scanning an entire store and then trying on every single think that looks half decent - so I take about 40 items into the dressing room with me at a time
6) All the other things I can think of are pretty embarassing - hmmm - ok - totally love Bob Marley - always have - always will

Bridesmaid diet: Weigh in, week 2

So far, so good! Pleased to say I've lost another 3lbs this week so that's 5lbs in total :)

Even having been out for dinner twice over the weekend, I managed to stay on the wagon and on the diet. Subsequently am ahead of schedule which is great but it really does illustrate how much not drinking helps which means I must really drink a lot usually, hmmm.....

Have also headed back to the gym and am aiming to do a 10km run sometime in 2007 (thanks for the tip Boo!) and weirdly I'm quite enjoying it...though there's plenty of time for that to wear off!!

Carl is getting on OK in Qatar, slightly bored if anything which certainly beats ducking mortars in Basra I suppose.

Love to all
Kate xxxxx

First weekly weigh-in...

Well, week 1 of the bridesmaid diet has passed and I'm pleased to say I've lost 2lbs :)

Not a flying start but a start nonetheless. I haven't posted the chart up as you can't really see it, but hopefully next week I'll have lost some more and you'll be able to see the little pink line creeping up towards my target.

I've got to say it's been pretty easy this week. I think having eaten and drunk anything that came within 5 feet of me over Christmas I was pretty ready to stop eating rubbish and certainly ready to lay off the booze for a bit. We shall see if it continues to be easy but having resisted all the post-christmas office chocolates and the constant runs to the chippy or McDonald's (unfortunately I work in an office where everyone is obsessed with food!) I feel pretty optimistic. Quite fancy a glass of wine though, hmmm.

Also, Carl has jetted off today to Qatar for at least 2 months, possibly 3, so I'm now temporarily a single parent to Saffy and a bit miserable, but hey, there's always the diet to cheer me up.....

Love to all
Kate xxxx

Bridesmaid Diet 2007

So how do most of us start off the new year? On the wagon and on a diet if you're me. However, 2007 holds particular significance for me as on November 4th I shall be a bridesmaid for my best friend.

Miss Kelsie Newton (the bride) is a size 8. The other two bridesmaids are my other best friend Alyson who is approximately a size 10 and Kelsie's cousin Sophie who is also a size 10. So you can see my dilemma as I am not a size 8, nor indeed a size 10. Not even close.

So, bridesmaid bootcamp started yesterday and will continue throughout 2007. Bridesmaid dresses I am told, need to be bought around early September so there will be a particular focus for this date. I am DETERMINED not to be the only fatty in the wedding pictures.

As I am too ashamed to actually tell you all what I actually weigh, I have instead created a graph to chart my weight loss to my goal of 20 lbs (not quite 2 stone). In order to make me stick to this regime I will be posting an update every week to confess how much I have (or haven't) lost. Kind of an online diary room for the dietary challenged.

So here's the graph at the bottom and hopefully I'll be at the top come September.

Wish me luck :)
Love Kate

MC Gromster

Here is a video of Gromit's best moves, who needs TV when you can watch this- it even has outtakes at the end.

Photos of Florence

here we have pictures of Brian at the top of the Campanile with the dome of the Duomo in the background - and there were a lot of stairs to get up there!!!

A picture of the Ponte Vecchio and a picture of Florence at night and Brian eating hot chestnuts - which bucked the trend by being delicious and not expensive as well as being one of Brian's favourite things


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6 wierd things

I don't know 6 other bloggers - this is my only blog!!

I don't have any wierd things as I am completely normal in every respect and only other people are a bit odd. However make what you will of the following

1) I am still a science fiction fan even though I am no longer a member of the British science Fiction Association
2) I would much rather sit at home with a book or the tv than go out to a party in most instances
3) Scissors do not like me - no matter how many pairs I buy we can never find any in the house
4) I had leprechauns as friends up to the age of 5
5) I go on diets and stick to them religiously and still fail to lose any weight (I can't figure it out)
6) Electrical equipment will take a dislike to me and die despite me being nice to them - we are currently going through toasters at a daft rate. I have also had a bad effect of fridges.

love Helen

Travels with Helen

Hi - I am getting to be nearly as well travelled as the Polish/Canadian/Hungarian/Spanish Carters - not quite but still. However this last couple of months I have been to Barcelona with everyone else for Peggy's birthday which was lovely and so warm (!). It was really nice to spend time with Chris and the girls and meet George and Oscar at last. Then in the middle of December Brian and I went to Florence. He has wanted to see Michaelangelo's David for ages so we had 5 days in Florence and walked our feet until they were begging for mercy. Highlights were all the various Michaelangelo sculptures in various places, not only the David, which gave us a chance to see different moods and different types of his sculptures in real life which is not something you can do in many places, and to study them in relative peace as there weren't hordes of tourists around. I loved seeing all the early art - Fra Angelico, Giotto etc which (being frescos mostly) you can only see in situ and which mean a lot more when you see them in context, and see them together. The Duomo is magnificent, the Baptistry is absolutly stunning and the Duomo museum is wonderful. The Accademia, in addition to David, has a really good little musical instrument museum which we spent ages looking at. They have 2 Stradivarius violins (in cases - a shame, they should be played) an original fortepiano by Christofieri (not sure about the spelling here) who invented the piano, and lots of other really interesting things. We sightsaw solidly every day we were there and still only saw parts of what there is to see. Down sides were the food which was exorbitantly expensive and not very good - after one awful lunch I did even say that I would have preferred to go to McDonalds (which is not a place I go to (sorry Joanne)), so that was disappointing. The other big disappointment was the Uffizi. We had prebooked tickets on the internet for which you are charged more than the cost of the ticket, and the way they had it set up when we got there you had to go elsewhere (not marked, you got told to go when you reached the ticket desk) then get your ticket there and come back to the entrance you had just left - by which time a busfull of Japanese had arrived. We queue jumped. In december you don't need to prebook. But the real disappointment was the gallery. The paintings were not well lit, they weren't even well marked - they had no information up about them, the place was shabby with cracks in the paint and looking just a bit down at heel. Some of the pictures were unavailable and a lot were in different places from the locations in the guide book, so it was generally just a bit of a let down. Not nearly as good as some of the other places we went to, which considering its reputation is sad. We were really lucky with the weather which was dry, clear and sunny every day. I would recommend Florence in December if you want to go - everything was open, there were lots of tourists, but no crowds, we saw everything we wanted and spent as much time as we wanted in every place. It was pleasant to walk around, not boiling hot as in the summer. However I would go self catering and not bother spending a lot on mediocre food. Fantastic experience though, and looking through art books for the Xmas art quiz I can see lots of paintings that I have now seen in real life which is a thrill and gives a different perspective onto things.

Just thought of another weird thing...

Am obsessed with strictly come dancing and may I just say what a travesty it is that lovely Emma Bunton has gone out and rubbish old Matt Dawson is still in. An abomination.

6 weird things about me? There are so many, where to begin?!

1. I love my job
2. Now when people tell me that having the dog is like having a child substitute, an inner voice tells me they might be right...
3. I want the new Girls Aloud greatest hits album
4. I used to hate marmite and now I love it - have totally crossed over to the dark side
5. I can leave the dishes unwashed for days but can't leave the cushions unarranged on the sofa
6. When I should know better and stop drinking and go to bed, I never do

So I now need to tag other people? Don't think we have enough other bloggers for me to tag....

Will be able to contribute lots more in the new year as I think Santa's getting me a digital camera for Christmas :)

Tagged

Well, you can all blame Christine for this. She tagged Mr K and he tagged us.
I have to say 6 wierd things about Trev and me. (Only 6?)
OK
1. It is a truth universally acknowledge that I am probably a bit obsessed with poo. I'm not proud of it but toilet humour always makes me laugh. Ho hum!
2. I do like to dress up the dog in clothes - luckily Trev stops me.
3. Trevor and I do the dog's voice. He has whole conversations where we are giving him a part in the proceedings.
4. I do have problems opening gates and doors. I am like the opposite of Houdini
5. I am probably more interested in Harry Potter than is normal
6. Trevor is always singing the lyrics Shields Up Shields down to the tune of the Darth Vadar march from Empire strikes back.

OK now I have to tag six people which will have to be contributors because I don't think I know many more bloggers so I tag Joanne, Kate, Helen, Moira, Matt Carter and Matthew Hull. Now you have to write 6 wierd things about yourselves and tag 6 other bloggers. Good luck! Boo

And we're back. Having spent 2 weeks in France in October, 3 days in York at the begining of November and now 4 days in Barcelona, its kind of nice to stay at home for Christmas. Below are some photos from Barcelona, and one of Erin and Boo in York.

First, Erin and Boo




Now Matt and Boo



Next John and Matt



Inside of Sagradia Famillia (Christine may correct the spelling!)



On the roof of Casa Mila



Boo and Helen in Placa Catalunya

I have been inspired to post again by Boo's fabulous photos and daring feats in France.
Here are some pictures of our Halloween pumpkin carving party - complete with spotty George who has Chicken pox. Most of the invited kids (2 out 0f 3) were scared off by the chicken pox - so it was a relatively small party, but with a lot of pumpkins.
I baked pumpkin pie and pumpkin apple bread - with pretty good success (the bread more than the pie) - but the mulled wine went over really well! Next stop - Barcelona - when finally many of you will get to meet our kids. Can't wait - see you there (probably with a spotty Oscar....).