Saturday 25 August 2012

24th and 25th August

In the butterfly house with their identification sheets

I said he got stuck in the mud, Jasper mustered up enough courage to have a ride




Asa talking to the paleontologists. 



On our way to get milk
 
Something has changed, in me I mean. A feeling really. I have one week left of work. About this I am so contented really. I get to focus on my boys, running our little home and my baking
 
As in life not everything is easy, I am having to really cut back on our food bill so with this in mind I am going to start a series of posts about frugal food that tastes delish, wish me luck!
 
We spent Friday at the Bristol Zoo. With some Christmas money I got the boys and me membership. We had another great day finding the dinosaurs currently in residence! Saturday was spent walking the dog. Asa and Jasper have been such good boys all week, of these times I am truly grateful
 
Oh my darling boys, I love them so very much
 
Take care, Natalie x

Thursday 23 August 2012

22nd & 23rd August

After working the first two days of the week I wanted to spend some relaxed time with friends and my sons


We met friends at the park and then walked them home, a great excuse to scoot, balance bike ride and paddle

I am ashamed to say these are not drawings my children did, they are mine, I was drawing a picture of Asa' s story he was telling

Today was spent at Bournstream. A wonderful park/field/play area/water park which was donated to by Barbara Saxon to the trust. Any child with a disability and their family can go and play

Amazing car tyre horses

My husband made the water feature at the park, it is fed from a natural stream and has a wheel chair splash too
 
Barry and Mark
 


 
The view into the lake
 
We are off the Bristol Zoo tomorrow, I feel several lattes will be needed
 
Take care, Natalie x  

Tuesday 21 August 2012

19th, 20th & 21st August

My boys are back! They spent a week with my parents in the New Forest, I missed them so much. As soon as I picked them up I thought we needed some time just having fun, I took them to a park where I used to go as a child with my nan, Vassals

Jasper was on his balance bike (a brilliant £6 yard sale bargain, pink, but he loves it) and Asa on his birthday bike

Our dog Quill came too along with my brand new salt waters


My dear friend invited us over on Saturday evening, we parked at home and cycled over, a brilliant evening. The boys had water pistols, well you can imagine how wet they got. A sure fire way to cool young children down

2 bottles of cava, so generous of our friends. They had made lamb koftas with garden mint, spicy chicken skewers and good old sausages

The boys found a mass of flying ants all zooming up into the sky

Sunday, and we had our traditional American pancakes made by Barry. He has perfected his recipe now and the boys always come running when Daddy calls to say they are ready

I took the boys to the park while Barry cleared up. As we went in we Jasper shouted "badger" as we looked up there one was just running slowly back to the set

We took the boys to Nailsworth cycle track on Sunday afternoon, a new find for us and we defiantly will be going back again


Take care, Natalie x

Saturday 18 August 2012

18th August


I was asked so many times when I was pregnant with both my boys "what do you want, a boy or a girl?" I say with no hesitation that I really did not mind. Just a baby to love is all I wanted

My brother is autistic and so I was very conscious that having a baby is jumping into the unknown, could I handle all that came with it?

While pregnant with Jasper, Asa and I wandered into a lovely little charity shop, we were on the hunt for toys. I spotted this beautiful handmade dress. Soft corduroy, reversible and the pattern is different vegetables. Well I fell in love and as it was just £2 I thought I would get it "just in case"

Well Jasper came and it has stayed hidden away, wrapped in tissue paper until today. I have sent it to my lovely friend for her little girl to wear. What a lovey surprise that will be

Take care, Natalie xx

Friday 17 August 2012

17th August

My now big boy when he was 18 months old, just a month after Jasper was born my sister took him out for the day

Asa's first birthday at Bristol Zoo, this is me and my lush sis Rachel. I can't believe that was nearly four years ago! I still have those converse!

Jasper and me on a land train, oh the chubby cheeks

Jasper and me at Iron Action may day celebrations 2 years ago

My boys have been away, on their holidays with my Mum and Dad, I miss them so very much. I'm picking them up tomorrow. I think a simple balloon each from mummy will go down nicely

Take care, Natalie x

Thursday 16 August 2012

16th August


We renovated our little stone cottage 3 years ago, since then I have been adding pieces slowly. Putting up a print, painting the kitchen chairs, renovating charity shop finds.To be honest I did not do anything for the first year, after 3 months of living in a building site with 2 young children I wanted to just live and be happy. Barry worked so hard to get our house just the way we wanted it I feel I now have the big responsibility of making it a home


I am going to start sharing more images from around our cottage. I am always so inspired by other people and how they decorate or use spaces. For inspiration take some flowers and put them in a few glass jam jars, make bunting and hang it from your mantelpiece, discover what you love and don't be afraid to go with it, I'm always re-watching Kirstie Allsopp's Home Made Home.   

Take care, Natalie xx

15th August

Leaving work last night...the Bristol see no evil street art project. I have been watching it go up from my desk all week. It is a free event happening in Bristol all this weekend, there will be bands, stools etc. Barry is taking his bike to the bike show on corn street so has been tasked (by me) to take some photos.


Me, on my lunch, buying school daps for Asa

Not many more lunch breaks for me, I now have 2 more weeks left of work and then I am a full time mumma and small business owner. Today as I am alone without my boys I am going to 1. Print off posters and put up to advertise my cupcake decorating classes, buy Asa his school trousers and shorts, buy some cheap frames for some prints I have. Make tea just for me and B

Take care, Natalie x

Wednesday 15 August 2012

14th August


No, not taken yesterday or even by me! My brother in law sent me lots of photos yesterday of the boys, I love this photo, Barry and little Jasper having fun at Olddown Country Park

Take care, Natalie xx

Monday 13 August 2012

Givaway



I am very excited to announce that I am going to be running a little giveaway, as of September I will be running my business more full time as I have been juggling working two and a half days a week, being with my boys and running Natalie's Kitchen, poof, I feel tired just thinking about it!

We have a beautiful little shop here in Wotton Under Edge called Paper & Cotton, my dear friend Belinda owns it and we are starting a series of workshops in September, I am so excited I can't tell you :)

So in celebration of this I am having a giveaway - the prize is 1 place on a cupcake decorating class, the dates are:

Sunday 30th September                  10:30 am to 12:30pm
Sunday 14th September                  10:30 am to 12:30pm
Sunday 28th October                      10:30 am to 12:30am

If you can't get to the Gloucester area then I have another little prize, a lovely cupcake stand which Belinda has made using vintage plates.

To be in with a chance to win all you need to do is start following my blog, for a second chance please follow my facebook page and for a third chance please tweet:
I have entered @nats_kitchen giveaway to win a cupcake decorating class http://nataliejtc.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/givaway.html
I do hope lots of you enter and have a chance to come along to the class, it is so much fun, you will learn how to pipe your own butter cream, use sugar paste to decorate cupcakes, make edible buttons, butterflies and roses. All to decorate your 12 freshly baked organic cupcakes, oh I'm excited for you!

I will be announcing the winner on Friday 24th August , good luck everyone

If you would like to book on a class please contact me here, the classes are £40 each however if you book with a friend they go down to £35, good eh!?!
Take care, Natalie xx

12th August







Last year we parked our little red car on the downs and cycled with our boys on the back of our bikes into the Bristol balloon fiesta, on the way we cycled past a beautiful little spot, just past Bristol zoo up a very steep hill, we then carried on over the suspension bridge to the fiesta. Asa and Jasper loved it but me, well it was too busy, too many crappy plastic things the boys saw and then immediately wanted and full of noise, not really what I had in mind.

So this year Barry and I decided to stop at the spot we'd cycled past last year and enjoy a quieter evening.

I hope you like the photos

Take care, Natalie xx

11th August












What a weekend! Our little family has been through a pretty rough patch of late so I decided we needed to have some fun and get out of our normal routine. We packed our things and went camping, just one night but it was brilliant.

We arrived at 7pm to the campsite as Barry was working late, he set up the tent while the Asa and Jasper ran around on the grass soaking up the sunshine. The boys and I went off looking for a stone to put the disposable BBQ on then set about cooking the tea. Salmon parcels (thanks littlegreenshed for the inspiration) and corn of the cob finished with Barry's delicious banana and chocolate pudding.

In the morning Barry juggled some grapes while I packed our things away, then off to the canal we went with our inflatable canoe for a paddle, just what we all needed.

Take care, Natalie x

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