“Think it's my birthday tomorrow though can't be sure. To be sure I'd have to know what day it is today. Which I don't. #sleepdeprivation :-/ "
- www.twitter.com/slc84

I’m hoping you’ll forgive me, not only for paying you very little attention and not blogging for these past few weeks, but also for the inevitable lack of amusement or wit that I fear I will have to offer you in this blog post.

(And if this is your first visit to my little blog, you should know that normally I am obviously much funnier, wittier and generally more charming than the following ramble shall demonstrate. *Obviously. ;-) )

You see even with the addition of my brand new (very, very) smart phone, (which was an early b’day pressie from Mr. C – see, told you it was my Birthday sometime soon . . . ) I have yet to master the art of juggling my life into something a little more manageable, something that isn’t whizzing by in a haze of, erm, ‘blurriness.’

I’m not very witty at the moment, I can barely string a sentence together, my vocabulary is pants (for want of a better word,) and my brain is a little bit numb. So I ought not to waste too much of your time this evening.

My third and final Bambino, baby Mason Joshua, (or MJ as he’s known to us,) is, as you’ve probably gathered, here at last! And boy was he worth the wait. I’ve recorded you guys a little vid, by way of introducing you to the new man in my life, hope you like it! (Ignore the commentary by the way, I hadn’t realised how deranged I sound when talking to him. Lol)

His arrival was, thankfully, a very speedy one. Born here at home, on Mummy and Daddy’s bed at 1:50am on Jan 13th, Mj was a respectable 9lb 4ounces, back-to-back, and yet the labour was probably the easiest of the three. (Feel free to send medals, or shoes!) The whole experience of homebirth was everything that I’d hoped for, and much more! But I won’t rave about it today, (primarily because I’m typing this entry with a teeny-tiny person balanced on my knee and can’t type one-handed) – perhaps I’ll cover it at a later date? Or perhaps you’ll have to get your mitts on a copy of my new book for all the gory details!

Of course in order to read my new book, (The Real Girls Guide to Growing a Baby,) I understand I shall have to actually finish writing it. (I don’t know who’s idea it was to write a book and grow a baby at the same time, but clearly it hasn’t gone quite to plan.) So I’m being sensible. I’m taking a little official Maternity Leave, but I shall crack straight on again in a few weeks. I’ll make the deadline. I promise.

Juggling three children, too many animals, a small business and the biggest writing project I’ve ever attempted, is no easy task, so I’m discovering. Especially when one of my babies has been knocked sideways by a bug from hell. Poor Leo, I’d never seen him look so rough; pale, skinny, dark circles under his eyes. He was unable to keep anything down, nothing at all, and subsequently several trips and overnight stays in the Childrens Ward were made last week.

It’s heartbreaking to see children poorly, but thankfully he’s fine now, our cheeky charmer. He’s back toddling around the house, chattering away in his own little language and helping himself to all the food in the fridge whenever he feels inclined. God I love him. I love them all.

Lorelei goes to theatre school now every Saturday, and she loves it! She returns with new songs to add to her repertoire of tunes that she currently belts out at the crack of dawn for all to hear, (until I yell at her and ask her to sing elsewhere,) and she struts around in high heels (that’s my girl) and various home-made costumes, speaking in an American accent and saying things like, ‘Come on Leo, teeth-brushed, bot-bot and bed. Because that is how we roll.’

I think she’s destined for stardom. That’s where she appears to be heading anyway. Either way she always shines in her Mumma’s eyes. J

So it would seem, what with Jays ambition to become a TV presenter, (is 30 too early to experience a mid-life crisis?! Haha!) that I’m the only one in this household that isn’t destined for fame. And that’s fine by me. Except that it might be a little late to suddenly declare myself the shy and retiring wall-flower-type.

I just saw an ad for our TV show and nearly wet myself. I’d sort of forgotten we were going to be on the telly. Until I just sat getting my Fairy Gok Mother Fix, as I do every Tuesday, and suddenly saw a whole bunch of people I recognise, in HD on our tv in our living room. Oh god.

The series starts next week on Channel4. That means that next week people will be able to add it to their Sky+ planners if they wish. And they’ll be able to series link it. And then people, all sorts of people, will be able to watch it. And people that I don’t even know will probably see me cry on telly. Bugger. It’s going to be like that scene from Bridget Jones, when she slides down that Fireman’s pole and knocks the cameraman out with her arse. Oh the shame.

Of course our episode isn’t on for a few weeks yet, and it’s the only one I don’t want to watch. I’ll definitely tune-in to see the experiences of our fellow contestants, we made some wonderful friends of both the other families and the villagers of Grassington, so I’m looking forward to seeing familiar faces on our screens. Yet when it comes to our own episode I’m not so keen. In fact I’d quite like to forbid family and friends from watching it, to save us from the embarrassment. Alas I know they won’t pay any attention. Naughty bunch that they all are.

Instead Jay and I have decided to throw a little Premiere party and invite a bunch of our nearest and dearest over to watch the show with us. That way, we figured, they won’t be able to poke fun at us behind our backs, and we can get the whole ordeal over and done with nice and quickly, like pulling off a plaster.

I’d love to tell you that I’ll write again before the show airs, but that’s probably not true. Not unless I receive a maid for my birthday or something. I’m just not able to find the time at the mo. But that doesn’t mean I’m not thinking of you, sweet blog.

Please do keep in touch with me though. I’m a twit. That is I am a Twitterer. You know, I tweet and stuff. So you can follow me if you like? (Go on! I’ll tweet funny stuff, i promise!) and of course you can catch me on Facebook too!

I’ll be 27 by the time I blog next. So expect very mature stuff in the future ;-) Haha or perhaps not :-/

Love and best wishes to all,

Steph x

 
 
I’d like to dedicate todays blog entry to a dear friend of mine. A loyal, inspiring and beautiful friend. A friend whom provided company at all hours. A friend who listened intently, who amused and entertained and asked for little more than a few flakes in return. I found her this morning. Her body lifeless, her eyes glistening. My heart sunk.

And so it is with great sorrow that I bid farewell to my dear friend, ‘Goldy.’ May she float in peace in fishy heaven.

We had quite a bit in common, Goldy and I. Aside from the big eyes and same astrological star-sign, (Pisces, of course,) I think we both know, (or knew in her case,) what it feels like to be a little fish in a big pond. (Actually I doubt Goldy knew this feeling at all, since she spent her entire life in her tank on my desk . . . But you know what I mean.)

Yep, this is where I am right now. Trying to navigate my way through an enormous pond, without any flippers.

I love the freedom of writing. It’s like running around naked in the glorious sunshine, (I realise I refer to nudity quite a bit these days, will try to tone it down a bit, so as not to scare anyone.) I love the freedom of writing. It’s like running around with shoes and clothes on in the glorious sunshine.

I can go wherever I like. I can spin around in circles if I so wish. I can feel the warmth on my bare skin (or clothed skin, whichever you prefer,) and I can inhale deeply and let any scent or sensation soak into me whenever I like. 

Yet when my words gel together and create something a little more tangible, like my book, for instance, I suddenly find myself at the waters edge, obliged to jump straight in to the depths of the unknown.

So far I have dipped my toes in a bit. I’ve wiggled them around, felt the temperature and shivered a tad and now I’m stopping, to fill my lungs with the necessary air and to put my goggles on, (only joking, I don’t really ‘do’ goggles.)

And off I go, diving into the minefield of the public relations and promotions industries. (And trying not to drown on the way.)

Just a little fishy, in such an enormous pond. ;-)

Tis my dream to have my book recognised by more and more people, to reach out, share my experiences, amuse, entertain . . .  To make a success of myself, my writing, my passion. Yet I am all too aware that I’m gonna have to make a bit of a splash if I’m to be noticed here, amongst the bigger fish . . . 

Alas water is my favourite element, and what would life be without challenges huh?

So that, ladies and gents is my next mission. ;-)

Any advice, suggestions or oxygen would be gratefully received! In the meantime though you can help keep me afloat by following me on Twitter? Or telling everyone you know about my book? Or simply sending a little love (and some flippers!)

Follow me—www.twitter.com/slc84 ~ or just subscribe to my blog :-)

Love to all,

Steph x

 
 
 

Warning: The following blog has been posted by a nutty woman with barely a brain cell in her vacant mind. The content of this post therefore could very meaningless indeed.

My social life is currently being conducted in a very 21st century manner. That is to say virtually all social interactions i am having lately have been via the wonderful world of the world wide web. My fingers are officially doing the talking and my brain is feeling a little numb today. I am so uber modern and chic ;-)

I've always been a Net junkie, (confession: I am secretly a bit of a geek too, don't be fooled by the rocks that I got - cos this diva even knows a little HTML - shocker! lol) - I usually begin my day with a cuppa (two Weetabix smothered in way too much sugar - accompanies my this whilst I am pregnant and trying to combat Morning Sickness,) and Facebook is officially my homepage and therefore the first port of call as soon as I fire up my trusty laptop in the mornings.

Lately as well as FB (and of courseTwitter, which is still fairly new to me but highly addictive nevertheless) I am also a big fan and a regular virtual visitor of a pregnancy and parenting website Babycentre.

Ordinarily I love my trips to Babycentre - they tell me all about my bod and baby and the homepage is customised to match my specific stage of pregnancy, and furthermore there is an enormous community of ladies to chat to, all of whom are expecting their bubba's in the same month as me!

It used to be that BC was a haven of serenity whereby one can ask questions on all manner of subjects and will recieve lots of advice and words of wisdom from others. We discuss highly important subjects, such as what we've had for breakfast and what we're going to have for tea and in the middle of the night, when we're up with heartburn, braxton hicks contractions or mad cravings for cheese there is always someone else online ready to offer sympathy, advice, virtual hugs or just plenty of "rotflmao"'s.

But that was then. Now it seems BC has been transported right smack bang to the middle of the set of the Jeremy Kyle show.

It's so complicated, and so frustrating. And I'm sure I don't know exactly how it all kicked off, not every single fact or anything but I do know that lots and lots of us have become victims of bitches on power trips and I'm not happy about it.

We had a troll a few weeks back, not a lovely little cute troll with whippy hair and a wrinkly face (although this description could be quite apt, i'm not entirely sure) but a mean Cyber Troll. - 'She' (or 'he' or 'it' - again cannot be sure) began posting horrible messages that left many of us vulnerable and hormonal women feeling devestated, worried, anxious and powerless - posts about how she 'was suicidal,' and 'had taken lots of pills to kill herself and her baby,' etc - I read lots of them, i genuinely believed they were true, (I was quite innocent to the crimes of Cyber Trolls) and I got quite upset by all that i read, as most of the other ladies did.

When it became apparent that we were victims of a lying freak and we tried to complain to the BC authorities we were pretty much ignored. So some of us posters decided to warn other members by subtly pointing the troll out and suddenly all hell broke loose.

The moderators and admins in control of the boards on BC decided that 'Freedom of Speech,' should be a thing of the past and they began to closely monitor everything that we were discussing. If any of us dared to mention the troll our posts were automatically deleted, without any reasons or explanations at all. Later journal posts were deleted, this of course provoked a strong reaction from us hormonal (and therefore occasinally nutty - i'm speaking for myself here) mummies-to-be - as it became apparent that we're not allowed to share our opinions on being lied to by a troll, or indeed being governed by a power-happy admin. We were allowed to discuss nipples, nappies and water works, but mention being disgruntled by missing posts or journal entires and you run the risk of having all conversations erased.

People began to wonder what was going on, but nobody could tell them, not unless you typed in some kind of code and just hoped they'd be able to translate before the admin team, and when people starting to defend each others posts, (i.e question why a post had been deleted) the admins and moderators began to get even bigger for their cyber boots and progressed to deleting peoples entire profiles. You are an opinionated link. Goodbye.

We, rebellious (and by 'rebellious' i simply mean with minds of our own,) ladies have been discussing these actions in our secret FB group where a very nasty message from one of these admins, (in which she states how 'scared she is by the thought that we will all soon be responsible for new life . . . ') was published for all to see. I bought it to the attention of the other ladies on BC and for that I sneakily suspect my own profile will be amongst those on the banned list.

Why I am allowing myself to be so frustrated by something happening in a virtual world is beyond me, yet I have been following the antics today with such intensity I feel as though I have been in court on the jury of a murder case or something.

I'm so tense and pent up with stress that my shoulders have gone stiff and my finger hurt from such violent typing, (I type very loudly and incredibly fast when I'm pissed off) -  I'm definitely in need of a massage, will need to work on powers of persuasion and bat my eye lashes later at the boy ;-)

You made it this far and for that i salute you! I shall also put you out of your misery by stating that I'm done ranting now. And breath. ;-)

I love you for listening!

Steph x

(Nutty and hormonal - yet fabulous neverthless!)