This long Bank Holiday Weekend we mostly have been...

Basking on blankets in the sunshine (or in the shade if your LL!)

Meeting my in-laws in Stamford for the day and going for lunch and playing in the park.

Going down slides with Daddy really fast!

Having a picnic in the back garden.

Mixing paints in order to create masterpieces.

Creating those masterpieces.

Been put in stupid sun hats that completely ruin our street cred.

We went to the park for a walk and of course had to stop for an ice cream.

And we found a 'jungle' that needed exploring.

We stopped for a nice long picnic in the sunshine.

And lay on a blanket and looked up at the sky.

We went to a family BBQ at Grandma's house.

And we shared a joke with the rest of the family.

All in all it has been a lovely, relaxed long bank holiday with a mixture of DIY and house sorting thrown in for good measure.  

Why can't all weekend's be three days long?

Every morning at pretty much half past seven on the dot, a little voice shouts 'Dadddddddy.'  Not Mummy, but Daddy.  My husband gets out of bed, goes and gets Mads milk and then picks her up from her cot, scoops her into his arms and brings her into our bed for a cuddle.  

And so begins the morning ritual.  He takes her downstairs, makes her breakfast and gets her dressed.  That's just what he does.  

If you look up the definition of Father in the dictionary it says 'A man in relation to his natural child or children.'  Then there is that expression 'Any man can be a Father, but it takes someone very special to be a Daddy.'  

Some people are Fathers. Take my husbands father for example.  He is a relation, he fathered Mr E, he wouldn't be here without him, but at the tender age of three, only one year older than Mads is now, his 'father' walked out on my mother in law and out of his responsibilities of raising two young children.  Just like that.  He left her to look after those young boys and raise them into the men they are today.  He lost that important role of being someone for his children to inspire too, to help nurture them and raise them into decent, caring human beings.

My husband may not have had a father figure in his life, but that hasn't stopped him in being a Daddy to my girls.

From the day Mads was born he has made me exceptionally proud.  He was the first to hold her in the operating theatre, he kissed her head and I saw the tears in his eyes as he looked at her.  I knew then that he would do anything for her, regardless of whatever happened to our relationship in the future.  He was the first to change her nappy and for the first couple of months he got up with me for every night feed even though I was breastfeeding.

As she grew more interactive their bond grew stronger.  Now they are as thick as thieves, and I love watching them together more than anything.  There isn't a day that goes past where he doesn't tell her that he loves her.  And Mads adores him, she talks about him all day and she can't wait till he comes back from work.  He is so hands on with them and he couldn't live up to his role more.

Since LL came along he is exactly the same with her, although he definitely prefers them when they are more interactive as according to him 'babies don't do much.'  But he cuddles her, kisses her and snuggles up on the sofa with her at night.  And I see the love in his eyes as he looks at her.  As I write this he is watching a film on his ipad, Mads is napping and LL is snuggled up on his lap.

It is going to take two very special men to capture my girls hearts when they are older.  I hope that they use their Daddy as the standard by which they measure all men.  After all a Daddy holds a very special place in a little girl's heart.  I know mine still does for me.

One day, a long time away, my husband will walk both my girls down the aisle on their wedding days.  He will 'give them away' to let them start a new life with someone who hopefully will treat them exactly how they deserve to be treated.  Just like my own Dad did to me.

Until then, they can know for sure that they have most certainly captured one man's heart.

And that person is their wonderful, caring and utterly fabulous Daddy.

I couldn't ask for a better partner to help me raise my children.

Just because it's always lovely to see scrummy little ladies on a Monday morning...especially with their Daddy...

Our little lady is six weeks today and has fitted in just perfectly.

We love her.

Pssst...I am a finalist in three categories in the Mad Blog awards including Best Photography, plus Best Family Life Blog and Best Pregnancy Blog.  If you like my photos, my tales of family life and my pregnancy diaries please do take two minutes and vote!  Thank you. :)  

Voting closes tomorrow at midnight.

Just click the link below...

This time exactly three years ago, I awoke to a freezing yet beautifully sunny day. You know the ones, where the air is cold and crisp, but the sunny is shining and there isn't a cloud in the sky.  There was also a thick white blanket of snow covering the ground.

It was my last morning waking up as a Miss, and I celebrated it in style with breakfast in bed and bucks fizz with three of my closest friends.

Later that day I became a Mrs, and a wife to my wonderful partner.

Today we have been married three years and I love him even more than the day I said I do.

Our life has changed dramatically.  We have gone from a couple who spent all our money on drinking and eating out, living in Leeds and London, to home owners with a mortgage and other outgoings.  We have matured and grown up with one another.

A year and four days after our wedding we got the best Christmas present ever in the form of Mads who was born on Christmas Eve 2010.  Soon our twosome became a three.

Being parents has changed us again- we don't have the money to treat ourselves like we used to, and we don't have the time together doing what we used to.  Instead we have quality time as a family, learning new things and creating memories as a three.  We bicker about silly things more, but at the same time we have created a person who is a part of both of us and that is an incredible thing.

In February we will become a four- I still can't quite believe that the same man I used to go out and down jagermeisters with is now the father to my children.  The same man whose hand I shook that day I went for the part time bar interview- little did I know then that I would hold those hands pretty much every day for the rest of my life.  Life has changed, but it most certainly has changed for the better.  And we still get to down jagermeisters, just very rarely nowadays.

Mr E has been a part of my life for eight years now, from when we were friends living together in our little flat together in Leeds, and there is not a single day that has gone by where I haven't spoken to him.

I know everyone says their husbands are the best, but I truly believe mine is, for me at least.  He doesn't have a selfish bone in his body and is the most selfless person I know. He would do anything for anyone, and especially for me and Mads.  He supports us, looks after us, gets Mads ready every morning, gets her to bed at night most evenings, cooks for us, helps me with the cleaning, and works so hard to provide for our future.  I am so incredibly proud of him, and so proud to call him my husband.  He always treats me, not necessarily with presents as much nowadays, but with hot baths filled with bubbles and candles, and a little card with meaningful words to show he cares.  The way he is with our little girl melts my heart, he would do anything for her and is so hands on with her.  Even when I was breastfeeding her, he would wake up on the night feeds just so I didn't feel lonely.

He can be grumpy, he uses the last of the toilet roll and instead of putting it in the bin he chucks it on the bathroom floor, and he seems to think our bedroom floor is his wardrobe, but he is one of a kind, incredibly thoughtful and I thank god every day I went into that bar on that sunny lunchtime all those years ago.

Happy 3rd wedding anniversary to my Mr E, I love you.  Thank you for being the best.