Jem's field notes

…that moment at work when you sneeze twice in quick succession, and have to stand real still while you mentally assess whether or not you’ve wet yourself.

Karl has been telling people with great glee how the supposed ‘terrible twos’ had obviously skipped over us. Unfortunately, I think the great god of toddler tantrums has been listening and has decided to smite us with a great big shitty stick because our cute little well behaved (albeit mischevious) Isabel has suddenly turned into… read full entry »

After our visitors left yesterday (Amelie, Ben & Thingy) we spent some time pottering around nearby gardening/DIY shops and then started back on the garden. This is exciting news because we’ve a) bought a greenhouse now – one of those slightly wobbly click together w/plastic cover things and b) we’ve decided what we’re going to… read full entry »

One of the hardest parts of reading ‘mommy blogs’ is resisting the urge to leave comments about how ugly other people’s babies are.

Isabel: More sugar puffs please Me: Are you sure you want more sugar puffs? Isabel: yeh Me: Was that a yes? Isabel: YESSSS Me: OK, of course you can have more {gives the cereal} Isabel: no like it, want weetabix

jemjabella.co.uk is going on a little hiatus while I decide what I am doing with myself/what I want to be when I grow up. I will still be available via twitter/facepoop/email as usual. Development on all of my scripts is officially stopped; whether or not I pick them back up again is yet to be… read full entry »

Yes, my weekend was like a scene from The Good Life. Plotting, digging, planting, re-potting, etc. We have Grand Plans to turn the garden (right; not to scale) into something both beautiful and practical over the coming year. Fruit, veg, and flowers for the bees and butterflies. Our back garden is north-facing, which is fairly… read full entry »

If you’ve got me on Facepoop or twitter, you’ll have seen my recent car-hunt adventures. It’s surprisingly hard to find a car that is both small (physical size and engine) but also big enough enough to hold a rear-facing car seat. In 2010, we made the decision to keep Isabel rear-facing for as long as… read full entry »

Just saw an interesting thread on one of the forums I visit, “what do you want to do?” So I had a think about it, and here’s my list (in no particular order): Have more children (at least one), keep chickens, become more self-sufficient, work for myself, ride the world’s biggest rollercoasters, visit Egypt, finish… read full entry »

I applied for a credit card today, and on the form was asked my job: It’s no wonder there’s a global problem with debt if school-aged children can apply for credit.