Advent calendars

Early to bed for us last night. Before midnight!! But then I also fell asleep putting the boys to bed so I got a couple extra hours anyway as well :D

While Steve had a bit of a lie-in this morning I helped the boys with their advent calendars. Managed to coerce Ben into his dressing gown so I could take pictures of them ;) but in hindsight the best picture was one I missed as I put the camera away: the two of them sitting side by side on the sofa, quiet as anything, munching away happily and contentedly on their chocolate!

We visited the boutique craft market which I'm hoping to sell at next year today. It was no hardship really. Apart from the actual getting out of the house! Charley had already had his morning nap by the time we made it out, so he got to watch the world go by. Hot chocolates, and chocolate and beetroot cake when we got there. Between them the boys ate nearly ALL that piece of cake. I doubt Ben would've touched it if he'd known what was in it...!

I got chance to chat to one of the stallholders which was good, and also to the organiser as well which was the main point of going, to introduce myself. So now I'm ready to prep my stock and display for a small table (which is all I can afford for now) ready for Valentines, Mothers Day, and Easter next year!

On our way into town to visit the boutique, Steve spotted an old typewriter outside one of the (many) junk shops we have near us. I said we'd have a look on our way home if it was still there. And it was, and I asked if we could try it with a bit of paper, and it worked, and the fella sold it us for a TENNER!! Steve has had a bit of fun this evening taking it apart and WD40'ing it and seeing how it works, and it does all work, it's really quite a thing of beauty! We're going to have fun with that I think :) My Messy Mama stuff has already started using an old typewriter font in its stuff so to have a real typewriter to do some of the bits is really brilliant! Now all it needs is a home hahahahaha :D

Think I spent the rest of the afternoon going from shop to supermarket to shop to supermarket. Partly with Charley to try and swap Ben's new trainers for a pair where both shoes lit up and to get a handful of black mounts for my prints, and then my last mad dash out for printer ink without him only to get to the shop minutes after closing. Gutted.

My last craft fair of the year was this evening hence the dash out for mounts and ink, but in the end the ink wasn't necessary as I sold only just enough to cover my stall fees despite lots of seriously amazing feedback. Hey ho. It was nice to have the chance to sit and draw on a couple of mugs in (relative) peace!

Poor Steve had both boys to deal with, along with smoking the ground floor out while priming my new bakestones in the oven. Ben wouldn't get into his pyjamas because Mummy had to do it, and Charley would only drink juice and only out of Ben's new spiderman curly straw beaker, and he nearly nearly fell asleep watching the Gruffalo's Child until the Owl fell out of the tree and he woke up and would not re-settle and I was summoned home pronto.

Home, pyjamas on for Ben and me, into bed and they were snoring within 20 minutes of me walking in the door. I don't think I'm going to be allowed to do another evening event in a hurry.

And while they slept I tidied the living room! Hurrah! Boxes under the sofa filled, toyboxes sorted out, toys tidied - I SHALL have my Christmas tree up this side of Christmas!!!