Wednesday Hodgepodge (2)

I'm super late (ordinary life getting in the way, nothing exciting- although we did take a mini holiday to Wales recently with the kids which I will have to share soon) so I've missed several Wednesday Hodgepodges with Joyce at From This Side of the Pond but I'm here for this week's (just!)

1. What's one piece of advice you would give a recent or soon-to-be graduate? 

I would probably say to them to keep their heads up. It is super tough here right now to get a job in a lot of fields students are qualifying in. Increasingly, young people are finding they can't get into work they've graduated in or they are over qualified for other jobs that would at least give them an income while they continue to search for a job in their area of study. So resilience, keep going. If you can't find what you want for a while, take what you need and don't give up if its your passion! 

2. May 15th marks the birth date of L. Frank Baum, author of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. At this point in time are you more in need of brains, courage, heart, or a trip back home? Explain. 

I would love more brains. I often feel like I'm the most unknowledgable, unqualified person in the room. I wish my brain could retain information so much better. I always need courage, especially now I'm taking on new roles within my lovely church. 

3. "There's no place like home" is an oft repeated line from Baum's book. When was the last time you felt the truth of that statement?

I feel this statement on a regular basis. I love my friends and I adore my family but it doesn’t take me long to feel drained by people-ing. After an evening out, a day trip or a family visit, I am always happy to get back to my home, my cats, my bed, my atmosphere or reclaim my space if I've had to share it. 

4. May is National BBQ Month...do you own a grill? Who does the grilling at your house? What's your favorite thing to throw on the grill? What's the last thing you grilled? 

We do own a BBQ but it's a rather sad looking thing! In England, unless you're a big BBQ fan, you will probably use it about twice a year. We either don't have the weather for it or would rather leave it to someone else to do! We last used ours last August to cook some sausages on. I love a high quality pork and apple sausage for a hot dog!

5. What's a memory you replay in your head when you need a little joy? 

Little snippets of fun things I did as a little girl. I grew up in the countryside and I was so free. Bike rides, jumping from hay bales in the barn, hanging out with horses and my Dad. I once watched a foal be born and it was amazing. 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

I found a stray cat 2 days ago and he was looking sorry for himself. In 24 hours ive had him de-flead, wormed and neutered. He only seems young. Ive been told I can turf him out again and in 4 weeks he can be put up for adoption if they can catch him. Only, I can't seem to turf him out! Who knows if he will be a permanent fixture but I feel like we can at least keep him happy for a few days as long as our girls are happy too. Any tips for introducing cats to eachother? 

Below is a photo of my daughter with the cat. Ive named him Moses. (Yes I know, don't name things!) 

Hannah x

Hodgepodge Wednesdays ( #1)

Back when I was regularly blogging from 2011 to probably 2017, I loved a good linky. To get back into writing again I decided to look around at the bloggers I used to follow. It was quite sad to see how many of us stopped, but I was pleased to find a few who have kept up. Life As Kim has been on my reading list for years and when I saw a link up I didnt recognise I went straight to This Side of the Pond to find out more.

Joyce at This Side of the Pond hosts a weekly link-up called Wednesday Hodgepodge that is a little collection of questions for bloggers to answer just for fun and to get to know each other.

I'm in!

1. April 22nd is Earth Day...what's the most 'out of this world' place on earth you've ever visited? Tell us something about it. 

I am not well travelled, by choice and by lifestyle, but the most beautiful place I have been so far is Snowdon in Wales. We stopped for lunch at the most breath taking frozen lake surrounded by a snow covered Mount Snowdon. Most people love the top, but it was eating lunch and resting here that made that trip for me.

2. A favorite quote, verse, or song lyric with the word earth in it? 

Psalm 104:24-25 - 'O Lord, how manifold are your works! In wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of your creatures. Yonder is the sea, great and wide, creeping things innumerable are there, living things both small and great.'

3. What's the most trivial thing about which you have a strong opinion? 

Balloons. I hate balloons with all the passion in my body. If you're a fellow friend of the environment or perhaps an animal lover then maybe this is reasonable, but to many this is trivial. Balloons are nasty things that litter our sea, countryside and urban areas, they kill many wildlife creatures from sea life to the horses in a paddock. I understand balloons are fun for people, but they're just not my thing. 

4. What's your most commonly used kitchen utensil or tool? What's the last thing you made using that tool? 

I don't know the correct term for this utensil, but is the spoon with the holes in! I use it the most to dish up dinner every day. Mostly anything in water but its had plenty of use on food that should probably have been picked up with a spatula! 

5. Marilyn (Memphis Bridges) gave me a great book of 3000 questions, and I'm going to try to use one in our Hodgepodge every week. Here is today's - 

What is your greatest extravagance? 

A massage. I don't have one very often but they are probably the most extravagant thing I do. They really help me to relax. My favourite is a sports massage because the massage therapist goes really deep into the muscles.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

My husband missed a meeting the other day because of a misunderstanding over when the week begins. For him, he says that Sunday is the first day of the week and I said well, its always been a Monday to me.

Anyway, he even wrote a blog post on it with some interesting history. I wonder, what's the first day of the week for others? Turns out it starts a few debates! 

Join the link and have some fun!

Hannah

Its Our 2 Year Wedding Anniversary!

The last time I wrote, Martyn and I had just celebrated our wedding day. It was a wonderful day, a small celebration with those we love the most. 

A Cupcake Kitney Wedding!

Finally! I'm so happy to be able to write here about becoming Mrs Kitney at long last! 

On April 20th, Martyn and I tied the knot at our lovely church where we are regular members of the congregation. It was such a wonderful day full of family, friends and so much love. 

Ten Things You May Have Missed

So it's been a while! Just over a year to be precise! I never really got my blogging mojo back after 2019 and I had to think about what to write about now I no longer wish to have such a large focus on my children. They will always have some mention on here, with their permission, because they enjoy looking back on some of their life in this format and I don't wish to take that away from them.

Five Myths About Dating Someone with a Physical Disabilty

When you begin dating someone there's always a lot of interest from those around you. Where do they live? What are they into? How did you meet? And so on. 

When you start dating someone with a physical disability you get questions like: How does that work? Can they do anything? Are you sure you want to do this?

I wanted to write this post to burst a few myth bubbles that I've personally come across. 

Four Teens and a Catch Up

I haven't posted here since Midge turned 14 with her birthday post. Do I feel a little bad that I seemed to have packed it in a bit before writing up my 3 boys birthdays? I do a little!

The title of this post is a smidge inaccurate; I technically only have two teens but my youngest two, J and A, have turned 11 this year and they're full on pre-teen so I really don't feel like I only have two teens to be honest!