Flashback Friday - Happy 40th Big Sis!

It's my big Sister's 40th birthday today.

I can't believe it.

I can't believe it because in just over 3 years it will be my 40th birthday. Eek!

My Sister has actually featured in the last two Flashback Fridays I've joined in with (see Beach Holidays and Scary Bear) because, thankfully, I have so many pictures of us together as kids.

My Sister and I have always got on well, although we did go through a stage in our late teens/early twenties where we used to wind eachother up quite a bit.  Usually because she would make a mess of my bedroom trying to borrow my clothes and make-up.  I even remember driving up to the local pub because I knew she's pinched my favourite lipstick and we had a massive row in the toilets about it.

Through our 20's and 30's though, my Sister and I have become like best friends.  I feel like I can tell her anything and I love spending time with her.  She's also a great Auntie to Mini Cheddar.

So Happy 40th Birthday Sis.  I love you.

Now head over to Cafebebe and check out the other entries and why not join in yourself?

Flashback Friday - Scary Bear

You think of childrens theme parks and you think of Disney World maybe...or perhaps the recently opened Peppa Pig World in this country. You have visions of people dressed in fantastic character costumes delighting the children!

Even now with holiday parks such as Haven and you think of lovable characters such as Rory The Tiger or Bradley Bear. Ah, how fabulous.

So, what was on offer at our holiday park when my Sister and I were kids?

A big moth-eaten scary old bear that's what!

I'm useless with ages but I'm guessing that I'm about 5 or 6 in this photo (I'm the one on the right) which would put the year at about 1979/1980.

Every time my Sister and I see this photo we end up in hysterics laughing at the state of the bear.  This was obviously taken in the days when you could sit on a bears knee to have your photo taken (what a shame!).  I do believe there is another take of this photo where my Sister and I are looking totally horrified but I can't find it.

I'm not surprised we were looking horrified, just look at the state of the bear. Look at his shoes sticking out the bottom of the costume. Look at his eyes! 

It's a wonder we didn't have nightmares if I'm honest.

Now head over to Cafebebe and check out the other entries and why not join in yourself?  The link up has been struggling a little the past few weeks - I know I've not joined in because of holiday and other commitments - so let's keep this wonderful linky alive!

Flashback Friday - Beach Holidays

It's all kinds of crazy in my life at the moment and the main reason is we are preparing for a trip abroad. Trying to organise things for a holiday with a toddler is demanding to say the least.  Added to the fact we chose now (why?) to get our bedroom and en-suite decorated.

With the holiday just around the corner, it got me thinking what Mini Cheddar will make of it this year. Last year she was only 13 months old so was limited in what she could gain from the experience.

It also got me thinking about holidays I had as a child.  We never went abroad for our holidays when I was young, actually I think I was 13 years old before I first went on an aeroplane.  However, I have such fond memories of our holidays.

We wouldn't always go far, sometimes even just an hour and a half away to Black Rock Sands where we would rent a caravan for a week or two.  Quite often my Grandparents would come over to join us on the weekends.  My Sister and I would love spending time on the beach.

I hope that Mini Cheddar also gets to experience this kind of holiday too.

Me (on the left) and my big Sis.
Check out my strap marks!

That's right, take a photo where we have
to look directly at the sun.

The windbreak is purely to protect my
Dads mahooooooosive sideburns

My Sister loves me so much she decides to bury me

I get my revenge my chopping her head off
and feeding it to our pet poodle Tina.

A helmet haircut and a home-knitted cardi...
I was always at the cutting edge of fashion!

Now head over to Cafebebe and check out the other entries...

Flashback Friday - Do You Take My Little Sister

I really can't believe it's almost 4 years since I said "I do" to my wonderful husband Matt.

This coming Wednesday (18th May) will be 4 years to the day that we exchanged rings and became man and wife.  I feel like I've known Matt all my life but then when I think back to how we first met and our wedding and honeymoon, it only seems like yesterday.  For those of you who haven't read the story of how we got together, even though I say it myself, I recommend you do, it's a good one - 'He's Definitely My Favourite'.

Matt proposed to me 31st January 2007, over dinner, at one of our favourite restaurants.  We had gone out for a meal to celebrate 3 years to the date that we first met.  He took me totally by surprise saying how much he loved me and how much he couldn't imagine ever being without me and then presented me with the ring box and said "Will you marry me?".  I didn't need asking twice.

When I accepted his proposal, his exact words to me were:

"I want a marriage, not a wedding"

I couldn't have been happier.  Neither of us wanted to wait, nor did we want a big wedding so we planned it for May 18th of that year, a mere 3 and a half months later.

My Sister is a Registrar of Births, Marriages and Deaths at a nearby registry office and luckily the registry office where we planned to get married knew of my Sister and granted her permission to perform the ceremony.  My Sister wrote out a special ceremony for us as a surprise.

I'll never forget the moment she said:

"Matthew, do you take my little Sister Heather to be your lawfully wedded wife?" *

I don't think there was a dry eye in the house.

We wanted only our immediate family and closest friends there (if we could have run off and do it we would have!) and a meal afterwards.  We chose The Stables Restaurant where Matt had proposed to me and just invited our other friends over for a drink in the bar at a local hotel in the evening.  For us, it was perfect.

To complete our marriage celebration we booked a fantastic honeymoon - 3 nights in San Francisco, 3 nights on Waikiki Beach in Honolulu, Hawaii (where we learnt to surf) and 9 nights on the island of Maui in Hawaii.  It was amazing!

Our first wedding anniversary in 2008 we spent on a self-planned 21 day holiday tour of America and Canada. We spent the night of our first wedding anniversary and the night after in a gold lake view room here at Chateau Lake Louise. It was magical!

So anyway, how are we spending our 4th wedding anniversary next week?  We are travelling down to Hampshire on the Wednesday of our anniversary for 2 nights and taking our daughter to Peppa Pig World on Thursday. Oh how times have changed! Although I'm sure it will be amazing and magical for other reasons.

Friday 18th May 2007...MwaH!

Signing the register - Matts family weren't happy he
decided not to wear a tie to the wedding...the rebel!

Our balcony over-looking Waikiki Beach in Honolulu

Yes that's me riding the waves of Waikiki Beach. What a sight!

Now head over to Cafebebe and check out the other entries...

*Obviously she read out our full names but I felt a bit strange about writing our full names (and my maiden name) out on the Internet and yet photos of me looking a bugger surfing (or looking like Deirdre Barlow)  I'll happily post.  If the link doesn't work there that's because BLOGGER are IDIOTS and they still haven't restored my post from Thursday!

Flashback Friday - Laganas 'Ladies'

I missed Flashback Friday totally last week.  The long Bank Holiday weekends and the good weather went to my head and I've been totally slacking in the blog department lately. So I'm making up for it with a bit of an epic this week.

I'd always been fairly long-term relationships from the age of 14-15 then got married first time around at the age of 22 so I never got to experience a 'girls holiday'.  To be perfectly honest, the idea of a holiday with a massive gang of girls in some 18-30 club never really appealed to me.

When my first marriage ended in 2001 I lived with my best friend for about 2-3 months until I was able to get my own place (there was no way I could have lived with my parents - as much as I love them).  I still owe my friend and her Son, who was about 8 at the time, so much.  He gave up his cabin bed for me and slept in with his Mum whilst I took over his bedroom. Having her Son at a younger age my friend had never been abroad for a girly holiday either.

We decided to go for it - we both deserved it!  Her Son was more than happy to stay with his Nan and Grandad for a week and my friend and I booked an apartment on the island of Zante, Greece for July 2002.  We ended up in Laganas.  I believe now, this is the biggest (and noisiest) resorts on the island.  I'm not saying it was quiet when we went - far from it.

My friend and I had 'bumped' into a gang of about 14 rugby players from Bradford in a bar on our 2nd or 3rd night I think.  Okay, I hold my hands up...I fancied the pants off one of them and in my drunken stupor practically forced my friend to go and check him out for me. The whole "See my friend over there? She really likes you" thing.  All very cringeworthy but it worked!  We ended up with them all night dancing and larking about then staggering back to the apartment and dunking each other in the sea at 6am.

The next night we had loosely agreed to meet the two lads at 'Cocktails and Dreams' (!!) but they didn't show - turns out afterwards they were in the bar opposite all night.  My friend and I ended up getting absolutely slaughtered as we forgot (!) to eat dinner. We got chatted up by two Swedish guys - it's hard enough to understand someone from another country trying to speak your language when you're sober, nevermind when you're totally wasted on vodka and cocktails.

I dragged my friend away because I needed to be sick - lovely. I found a little spot down a side street that was home to some litter - the height of class.  In true 'friend' fashion my mate photographed the occasion.

Somehow the two of us managed to make it back to our apartment about 3am.  Well, I almost did.  I fell asleep on the bench on the road outside our apartment and woke up about 5 or 6am still holding my handbag! My friend was out cold in her bed in the apartment with the patio door wide open - we were on the ground floor! I really shudder now to think how totally irresponsible we were.  We stayed in bed until about 4pm that day as we couldn't move - apart from fighting eachother over the toilet or sink to throw up in.  Not good.  We vowed never to drink again but after a greasy late afternoon fry up we were fine again.

As it happens we did see our rugby friends again. I actually got a serious relationship out of it back home traveling between Chester and Bradford for a fair few months. He was a lovely guy but I ended it and broke his heart - it's not often you make a rugby player cry. I'm a bitch yes, but it was for the best (long complicated story) and I'm sure he'd thank me for it now.

I've called this post Laganas 'Ladies'...we were far from lady like but it was a great week!

I've been umming and arhing over which photos to post.  I didn't feel it was right to post photos of all the lads (I have some corkers!) incase someone recognises one of them and I didn't want to post the photo of me throwing up near an empty packet of hula hoops down a side street.  It's also unfair to post any of my friend as, at the moment, she doesn't know about my blog.  So, here are two of the shots which sum up what sort of week I had.  Look at the state of me...

Totally wasted!
Before I threw up then slept on a bench.
What the hell am I doing? 

Back on the cocktails.
I really think I'm the dogs doo-dars...
I look like Rudolph.

Now head over to Cafebebe and check out the other entries...

Flashback Friday - Daughter of Deirdre Barlow

Yesterday I posted this post and mentioned how, when I was younger, went through a stage of looking like the off-spring of Deirdre Barlow.

Well, you know what...I'm all for sharing those days in the spirit of having a good laugh.  I'm not embarrassed, I can giggle along at the big perm and the MAHOOOOSIVE glasses.

So, without further ado...let me introduce you to Miss Barlow...

One of my shorter perms that show off my plastic hoop earrings perfectly

I'm sure if I wasn't careful the weight of my perm would have sent me plunging into the sea

Sisters?  No, that was my Mum. OMG we even have matching straw hats!

Just to add to the bad perm and glasses we now have the cemented brace. Lovely.

Now head over to Cafebebe and check out the other entries...

Flashback Friday - 21st Strip-O-Gram Shame

I went looking for some old marketing books in the loft the other week as I promised I would look for a friend who's currently doing her CIM.  I ended up being up there about 40 minutes rummaging around.  I found 'Tessy' my old Teddy bear that I've had since I was born.  My husband wants me to throw it out as it looks disgusting.  How dare he!

Anyway, in amongst the boxes I found some photos that made me actually laugh out loud - however, they also made me cringe.

This week I'm taking you back to 1995.

I was working at a company called Redrow (the housebuilders) and I actually got on with a lot of the blokes there.  It should have been a usual working Thursday but this particular day was my 21st birthday. A few of the blokes kept winding me up that they'd chipped in for a strip-o-gram for me.  I spent the day totally on edge.

Reception kept calling me up and asking me to go downstairs.  Thankfully there was a balcony I could peer over before I made the trip down the stairs.  I'd see flowers and gifts sat on reception and I'd breathe a sigh of relief.

As the day drew to a close I began to relax.  Reception called me at 4.30pm..."Heather, can you come downstairs please, there's something in reception for you".

Oooh who could these flowers be for I wonder?  I glanced over the balcony.  There was a Policeman standing there - a very young Policeman with an earring.

Alarm bells start ringing.

I ran as quick as my legs could carry me out of the back door and into the car park but it was too late. Two of my work colleagues, Steve and Dave grabbed me and dragged me back in the building and into the canteen where practically the whole office (probably about 70 people at the time) and this 'Policeman' were waiting for me.

I won't tell you what happened...I think the series of Polaroids that my 'friend' Dave supplied me with afterwards speak for themselves.

For someone who hates to be the centre of attention, this was a truly awful experience for me.  I was SO embarrassed.

Added to the fact the stripper had dirty finger nails.

Hello hello hello! Who's been a naughty girl then?

I think I must be laughing at the fact the menu says baked potatoes are 65p!

Yes, I was handcuffed and the bugger kept pulling the balloon back - gross!

Yes, blindfolded. And handcuffed. In a canteen. With a stranger. And 70 work colleagues. Nightmare.

He's clearly clenching and look how grubby his feet are

It may be a 'sweet' note from the blokes but I'm going to bloody kill them!

I'd just like to add that 'hair scrunchies' were still in fashion then.

I did check with Karin at Cafebebe if it was okay for me to post a photo of a naked backside for Flashback Friday but obviously I didn't check if it was okay for me to post a photo of me trying to pop a balloon between a strippers legs.  Karin, please feel free to unlink me if you wish - I won't be offended at all.  I don't want the good name of Flashback Friday tainted with my filth!


Now head over to Cafebebe and check out the other, not so filthy, entries...

Flashback Friday - My Mum Before Me

A little bit later than usual to Karin's fab Flashback Friday this week - I'm normally organised and prep in advance.  Yes, I know I'm sad and I'm writing this on a Friday night but my husband is working late - cue violins and sad face - so I'm blogging.  I officially have no life - cue another sad face.

This will be my second post about my Mum this week but as it was Mother's Day AND her birthday - both on the same day (how cute!) I thought she deserved it.  Maybe one day I'll tell her about my blog....or given some of the rude stories I've divulged previously, maybe not!

Now I'm a mother I sometimes struggle to remember my life before my daughter so I imagine how hard it must be for my Mum.  She's 66 now and has two daughters ages 36 (me) and 39.  It must be so strange to look back on her younger days when she was footloose and fancy free.

So I dedicate this weeks post to my Mum before she had me!

At the beach with her Mum (my Nanna)

Very studious at school

Turning into a young woman

With my Nan again at a wedding

Dancing with an old boyfriend - go Mum!

Then she met my Dad - I *love* this photo

Mum & Dad

If you're interested in seeing what my Mum looks like now and you didn't see my entry to The Gallery this week you can have a little look here.

Now I'm heading off to link up with Flashback Friday over at Cafebebe and rummage through everyone else's archives on this lovely sunny Friday night.

Flashback Friday - Get Your Kicks On Route 66

It's that time of year when I'm starting to think about whether or not we'll get a holiday this year.  BMC (before Mini Cheddar) we were lucky enough to do a lot of traveling and the other day I was thinking back to one of our amazing trips we did which was exactly 6 years ago.  We planned the trip ourselves booking flights, our car and all our hotel stops ourselves and planning out our route - it was so much fun.  It was something both of us had always longed to do.  So, March 2005 we headed off ready for our long planned adventure...

to travel across Route 66, the mother road, right across America in a convertible car.

The trip saw us stop for a few days with relatives in Washington DC first before getting a connecting flight to Chicago to pick up our car.  Then, after a quick detour to Iowa to visit more relatives we headed down through Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California.  We covered well over 3,000 miles in 16 days - it was incredible.  We even threw in a quick detour into Nevada to visit the Hoover Dam and stayed in Las Vegas for a couple of nights (never again) and stopped off at the Grand Canyon.  We also travelled down to San Diego after visiting L.A. and shoehorned a trip to Death Valley too.

We have so many fantastic memories, I still can't believe it was 6 years ago.  What made the trip even more memorable was there was a random freak snow storm in Texas one day then it was boiling hot the next day!  This is when my love affair with America started.

Never ending road

Oklahoma (oh dear)

Texas or The Arctic?

New Mexico

Grand Canyon

Driving down The Strip in Las Vegas

Kodak Theatre (Oscars), L.A.

Can you tell I wasn't exactly into photography then?


Now head over to Karin's place at Cafebebe and check out all the other entries...