27th June 2010

well I'm up...I woke up at 7.30am and I don't know how I managed it, with the heat, and the snoring and the massive amount of adrenalin in my stomach - but I got back to sleep until about 5 minutes ago. When I woke up again I knew I would never get to sleep again so I got up. I was surprised to find I was the only one in the house up! Although girl and boy twin are really tired - girl twin went to prom the night before last and had a party to go to last night - boy twin had a party on prom night (he didn't go to prom) and he apparently didn't sleep at all...literally.

I cant sleep because we are off to Egypt tomorrow...I am always like this when we go away - I have a mixture of nervousness and excitement. I get nervous thinking...will we remember everything?will we get the the airport okay? will the cats be okay and will the house sitters have any problems? will the cases weight too much? will the flight be okay? will we all die in a plane crash? providing we survive...will we get out cases back okay? will we get the hotel okay? will they be expecting us or claim we don't have a booking? will our rooms be okay? will be be close together in the hotel? If all that goes well, then I'll relax. But I still worry about whether it will be too hot? will we get ill? etc.. etc.. maybe I worry too much!

I do get excited as well...about having lots of fun and new experiences, about diving and snorkelling in the red sea and seeing the pyramids and having lots of fun and laughs with the twins and the OH etc..

Anyway...today is supposed to be the hottest day so far in the UK - it supposed to get to about 30 degrees, so we are having a BBQ and have invited the very kind people around who will be looking after my house and cats! So in a minute I am going to go and marinate some chicken and I also need to clean the WHOLE HOUSE! I always have to leave the house clean when I go away and even more so when other people will be staying here! I also have to make sure everybody is packed and all my camera's have chargers and their memory cards are clean etc..I am going to be taking 4 cameras with me! I know that sounds a bit mad - but I have my Canon camera - my big proper one, with the lens and stuff - I cant go to Egypt and not be prepared to take amazing pictures! Then I have my small canon camera - to take out if we go out in the evening and I just wanna take snaps and I don't want to lug about my big camera. Then I have my waterproof camera (to 3 metres) which we can mess with in the pool or snorkelling - and then I have my new camera which I can take diving as its waterproof up to 40 metres!! So with a bit of luck I'll have loads of brilliant pictures by the time I get back!

England are playing Germany in the world cup at 2pm too...so I dont really have that much time to get organised really - so why am I sat here writing this...?

Okay - I'd better go - hopefully - I'll keep you updated from Egypt!!!

18th June 2010

Hello! well today I got my BSAC Ocean Diver qualification!! (so did my OH) we went to Swanage and did a dive under the pier and then did a wreck dive - the Fleur de Lys - which is 13 metres down. 13 metres is nothing for experienced divers but it was out first wreck dive so that was far enough for me!! There have been so many challenges during the training - the first being the theory weekend that we did in March. I thought to myself, a whole weekend for the theory is overkill - surely we'll whizz through it and leave early. Ha! we only just fit it into a full weekend! Then we had 5 pool sessions which were fun and easy and the time flew by, but this time I didn't want it to. The difficult bit was lugging the air cylinder, the BCD (jacket) and your boots, fins, snorkle and mask - as well as towels etc. Its really hard to carry everything as the cylinder alone weights a ton!

Last weekend we went to Wraysbury for our first open water dive. Its a lake with camper vans and helicopters and stuff in the water. The first challenge here was getting kitted up! A wetsuit is sooooo difficult to get on as it is so tight fitting and thick - then I had a short wetsuit over the top and then hood, gloves, mask, boots and fins - it is so restrictive - by the time you have half of it on its really difficult to get the rest on and if I'm honest I was trying to get stuff on like the fins and having a mini tantrum about it, and swearing that I was NOT going to do this again!! It all felt okay once in the water though...

On the Saturday we failed as my ears were massively painful and the OH couldn't breathe...so the group went ahead without us. We were pretty gutted - but we went back on the Sunday and Jon (my boss and the trainer) took us separately from the rest of the group and we overcame our problems and we did 3 dives down to about 7 metres and it felt brilliant! The visibility was really bad but just getting under the water and not dying was ace! getting kitted up also got easier each time as we were getting used to it.

We decided to go to Swanage last night and stay over as our enthusiastic trainer wanted to be there by 7.30am, so we went last night and stayed in a really nice place called Clare House and we went out for a meal and had too much to drink! When I woke up this morning I felt a bit rough, but soon recovered when I had to think about getting all my kit and stuff on!

So all in all it was a very cool experience today! The first dive under the pier was only about 2.5 metres deep but we saw massive spider crabs - as my OH was examining a spider crab I could see that there was another one right underneath him standing on it back legs with it claws opening and closing about an inch away from his erm...sensitive bits shall we say. It looked very comical. We also saw other fish - one was really unusual - I thought it was a snake - it was black and white and I realised it was a fish when I saw it had a long nose, apparently it was a relative of the seahorse.

The dive to the wreck was good - I saw a massive fish and Jon and the OH saw a massive shoal of bib fish which somehow I missed!

ANYWAY....

I have now finished in my current department at work and on Monday I start a week of shadowing people in Guildford - then I have next weekend and then we go to Egypt!! AArrgghhhh....scary!! I always get nervous going abroad - until I get there and know everything is okay it just stresses me out. We are also going to go diving and I cant wait!! (but that's scary as well)

On Monday I met my sister in London and we went to the London Bridge experience which was fun - not as scary and fun as I expected but still fun and really good to spend some time with her. She then came back to Sunbury and we went out for drinkies and a Chinese meal and again it was great to spend some time with her and catch up. I just hope I didn't waffle too much....

so - if anybody actually reads this I am sure you must be bored by now...

until next time...

8th June 2010

Hello!

I am on a training course this week - was hoping it would be fun as Yvonne is on the same course. Its a week long and its like being on earlies as I have to be in Guildford by 8am. I thought it would be fun because I forgot how boring these courses can be. I sat there today sooooo tired and was going cross-eyed trying to keep my eyes open. Luckily we finished at 2pm - and rather than go to the gym with Yvonne I came straight home and went to bed. I don't think Yvonne was very impressed with me and seemed to think that I would wake up once I got home. Basically, I think she thought I was making an excuse not to go, but I was so tired nothing could have got me to the gym!! Even after two hours sleep I felt as though I needed to go back to bed!

I am moving jobs soon - within the same company - but a different role and in Guildford rather than Woking. So this week I have training - next week I'm back in my usual department and the week after I am on attachments - then I'm off to Egypt!! woo hoo! when I get back I am working in Guildford and the journey is going to be a nightmare! I have to drive 20 miles and take my bike cos there is no parking - and I have to park about 1 or 2 miles away...joy. maybe I can jog, although I'll need to be able to get changed. HASSLE

I have my sister visiting next Monday. I cant believe how difficult it has been to arrange being available that day. It's because of this role change and training and finishing up in my current department and staff shortages etc. etc. First I had to get the day off (one of the three days I have left in that department) and I was nearly refused it...then I had an eye test (with work) that I had to have for the driving test I have to do the following day (so I can drive work cars) and I nearly had to rearrange the driving test and the eye test..and its basically been a pain in the butt. However, its all sorted now - which is a good job cos I've hardly seen my sister at all in the last few years and we used to be sooo close. I really miss what we used to have - although it was much easier when we lived around the corner from each other. Her husband went to school with my husband and they were best mates (I met my OH through them). We ended up falling out a few years ago which I was devastated about - and things have never been the same since cos we have all been awkward around each other - although much less so the last couple of times. We have only really met up at family parties and stuff. Anyway - Monday should be good as it will just be the two of us we should be able to do lots of catching up!

The new car we bought got picked up today! we got a Honda Insight - its a hybrid car, so we are very 'green' - with that and a Smart Car. I will probably end up using this car more than the Smart car as my bike will fit in the back...

anyway - this has been quite waffly...

speak to you soon!!!

just a couple o pics

The best 'before' picture I have (it was completely overgrown prior to this picture being taken) followed by the after picture

I'm so attractive!

1st June 2010

Evening!

I am aching tonight...I had a session with my personal trainer today - and it was my OH's first day at his new job and he took the car - so I ran to the gym (a mile). When I got there my PT said...we are going out for a run today! I must admit I was worried! I am not the best at running.

Off we went...we got about a mile down the road when a dog ran after us briefly...I had no control over my reaction and I just grabbed hold of my PT's arm, and if the dog had kept coming I would have used him as a human shield! LOL It was rather embarrassing as my PT isn't really somebody I would grab hold of...and even more embarrassing when I saw that the dog was a tiny little thing that ran off in the opposite direction anyway! Anyway, we ran 2.7 miles, which is a lot for me (and I had already ran a mile) and when we got back to the gym I went on the cross trainer for a while...then, when stood at the little desk trying to figure out our next appointment this old women said to me...I used to do a lot of running, and when I was new and not very good my face used to go bright red too. THANKS A LOT! make me feel good!! lol I then ran a mile home again. I had a shower did some washing then fell asleep covered in all the odd socks I was trying to sort out!

Tomorrow, will be my weigh in day...one week on the weight watchers diet. If this doesn't work I am going to give up and be a fatty. I am hopeful though, as i cant be this hungry all the time and not lose weight!

So, my OH had his first day at his new job today...I made him stand there and let me take a picture of him (like first day at school) despite the fact he's been working for 20 years and has put on a suit loads of times before lol

anyhoo....gonna go - c u soon x