This post is a little later then expected but chickenpox gate is finally over!! Two and a bit weeks of the boys being confined indoors but we can finally close that door behind us.

E’s spots were quite mild compared to poor M whose chest was absolutely covered. He was a great patient though and would stay very still when we had to apply the Poxclin mousse into him (it was recommended to us by a friend and it’s fab for getting into the scalp for spots on their heads)

E brought his first ever school report home on friday and it was an absolutely glowing one. Hubby and I could not be more proud of how much he has learnt this year. His teacher is completely spot on saying he has a “thirst for knowledge” and to be a little braggy for just a second – he is exceeding in a good few areas and today he has told me he has moved on another level at reading! That’s 6 levels this year! I can’t believe this time last year he couldn’t even read and now he’s whizzing through books like no tomorrow. I honestly have no idea where he gets this from?

As a reward, hubby and I promised we would take him out on Saturday so he could choose a toy. It was the first weekend we had been out as a family in a couple of weeks and we had the most perfect day. You know the ones that rarely happen but when they do it makes you feel so happy and thankful for what you have? One of those.

We found a new place to go shopping at the beginning of the year when we went to see Dinosaur Zoo in Woking. It’s so easy to get to for us, the shops, cinema and theatre are handily all in one place which make so much difference when you have children. Firstly we took the boys to Toys R Us so they could choose a toy. E went with a shark based toy (surprise surprise) but M could not decide as he was too busy trying everything out and then promptly telling me to “put it back” so we chose a train for him.

We also managed to pick up a bargain Shark encyclopedia in TK Max for only £2.99 and hubby then spent what felt like an age in Debenham choosing clothes. And you know what? The boys were angelic! They sat nicely having snacks and looking through their shark book. They played nicely together and not once did we have to raise our voices or tell them to keep the noise down.

Our new favourite place to buy shoes is Deichmann, a german company that sells well known and also lesser known brands of shoes and trainers at very reasonable prices. Hubby and I picked up trainers each for ourselves and we also managed to buy some shoes for M too. You can also buy online and delivery is free, its worth checking them out as they are very reasonable.

Love my new bargain trainers #latergram #30dayshred

We ended a lovely successful shopping day (a real rarity for us!) with a Slimming World friendly barbecue before the boys flopped into bed with their bellies full dreaming of sharks and trains.

Perfect.

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