2012 in review

I freely admit that this blog was very sadly neglected in 2012.  It wasn't that I didn't want to blog, it was also that I had no energy to do so.  However, in a time honoured tradition, I thought I'd resurrect With a Fork by doing a year in review post, which will hopefully spur me towards blogging more regularly as well.

So what did I achieve in 2012?  Well, I will look back at that year with much fondness, because 2012 was a year of change for Mr Fork and I.  In December 2011, I was newly married, and settling into life as a wife.  In December 2012, I am settling into life as a mother.  We found out that I was pregnant in early February (a honeymoon baby pretty much, take that William and Kate!) and the year went remarkably quickly.  I was truly lucky in my pregnancy; I didn't experience severe morning sickness, I didn't gain too much weight, I didn't get stretch marks, and by all accounts I had a relatively easy labour and birth.  The only hiccups occurred in the last trimester when my pelvis started to separate, I started to swell and I developed cholestasis, however all is back to normal now.  I'm back to pre-baby weight and I'm even planning to re-join that touch football team as a player again.

Ellie was born on September 28, at 10:49am.  We didn't know we were in actual labour and had happily gone out to dinner the night before!  Mr Fork and I hadn't even finished up work yet, as Ellie came so much earlier than expected.  I will never forgive the fact that I missed out, not just on maternity leave and swanning around the house, but on my own maternity cake from work - while they sent flowers, I'd gone into labour on my last day at the client and they neglected to send a piece of the cake to hospital with those flowers.  Rude!

2012 saw me transition from a full time worker to a full time mother.  A transition from a couple to a family.  I admit that it's been hard, and if I'm honest with myself, much harder than I expected it to be.  I was truly shocked by the fact that as hard as I thought pregnancy was (at the time), motherhood is much harder.  Motherhood is not instinctual, breastfeeding does not come naturally and that all those people who say enjoy sleep while you can were right.  Having said that, I do not begrudge one (well, maybe one) missed minute of sleep, as I also learnt what it is to truly care for a baby, and the depths of love that come along with that.

With all the new things I did/learnt/saw in 2012, I can't wait to see what 2013 will bring!

Giving

I think I already mentioned that I was going to be trying new things this year and having more adventures (and lets be honest, an adventure for me is trying new foods, going to a new restaurant, heck, even signing up to play on a touch football team!).

Anyway, I decided that one of the first new experiences I would try this year would be to donate blood. Now I've tried to do it several times over the years but I've been rejected for one reason or another (not weighing enough, not enough iron), so I was a bit apprehensive when I walked in.  The next hurdle was to get over my needle phobia.  I've had a few bad experiences when I've had blood collected before - think collapsed veins and failed attempts - so I was chuffed when they brought out the little finger prick needle to test for oxygen levels.  I guess anyone can have a finger stick needle though.

Next step was the chair.  I lay there all comfy under the blanket with the little cuff on, squeezing that tube thing with all I had.  "Hmmm" says the nurse, tapping away on my arm.  "Hmmm" says the nurse, trying my other arm.  "You definitely have veins," she says, "that's not the problem.  The problem is that they're not juicy enough for me to get one of these needles into them." I gazed at her pitifully, "Is there no hope, am I a permanent donor dud?" I asked.  Apparently, there was no hope.  She did suggest drinking more before I came in next time, but since I'd already prepped by drinking 2L that morning, she said it was unlikely that anything would change.  Some people are just not cut out to donate blood.  Donor Fail.  It does beg the question though, how they would get blood into me if I ever needed it, given that it was so hard to get it out...

Container list

Inspired by a uni friend's goal to have, on average, one new experience per week, I'm going to break out of my rut and start trying new things myself.  It's not exactly a bucket list, more of a smaller version - a container list!!

 

First on the list, I've signed up for a mixed touch football team.  Now those who know me know I'm not really a sporty kind of girl.  Especially, I'm not a team sports kind of girl, where I have a whole host of other people relying on my performance.  Nevertheless, I've signed up.  I figure, worst comes to worst, I'll make some new friends and have some fun running around getting fit.  This is a big thing for me.  Next thing to do - read up on touch football rules and practice catching a ball....

Another year over

And what have you done?  For me, 2011 was the year of organisation. Mr Fork had proposed and I was busy, busy, busy organising our weddings. Which I'm pleased to say went off without any major hitches. Actually they were both great events and I can honestly say that I had a lot of fun. How many brides can say that they actually had fun at their weddings? My face didn't crack from too much smiling, no family meltdowns occured, I didn't spill food on my dress. An all round success I'd say! The origami bouquets were a bit of a hit, as was the cheese 'cake', which we're still working our way through at the moment come to think of it!

What does 2012 hold? I can't say for sure yet. There's some weddings to attend, some conferences to go to, new clients to meet and maybe even some work related travel to foreign locations. What I do know is that I'm going to embreace it all with open arms and sieze the opportunities. Mr Fork and I will probably do some more garden work around the house, and focus on our changed relationship status. Not that anything much as changed, married life seems pretty much the same as non married life as far as I can see.

Updates and stuff - again

Holy guacamole, where has the year gone?  These last few months have been flying by and my poor blog has been neglected.  So, what has been happening, you ask?  Well!

 

Wedding planning continues with a vengeance, and we're well and truly into count down phase now, with three weeks to go.  It's all very exciting.  Mr Fork has had his buck's night, and I've been talked into having a girly day.  That's happening in two weeks - a high tea at home and a mobile spa that comes to you for pampering, very swish!  We have bonboniere boxes (yay!) and must get organised about something to go into them soon too I suppose.  Although I wanted to elope and I'm been very blah about having this wedding, I'm really looking forward to catching up with everyone and having a lovely evening.

The gardening has been going swimmingly.  The carrots I blogged about previously have all been eaten (I think I got one, the puppies got the rest as treats), and the new excitement is my baby pineapple

I don't remember exactly when I planted this little cutie, but it's been a bit neglected so I'm pretty chuffed it's growing at all really.  We've also gotten the big guns in to help with the tidy up of the garden which just never seems to happen on the weekends.  All the (horrid! disgusting!) palms have been cut down, and the inside hedge has disappeared to leave us with a yard so large I can't beleive it.  I'm also having a dedicated vegetable patch put in, so my home made compost will soon be in use and enjoyed.  I can't wait until I can make an entire salad out of goodies I've grown myself.

 

Does anyone have any tips about what I should be growing right now?

Beavericious!

I know I've been a bit slack, which I definitely promise to remedy.  In the meantime, here's a filler post of something I saw in the pet store last weekend but was over-ruled because apparently it was just "stupid".  I still think our furbabies would have loved this little guy!!

Justin Beaver

I grew that

This is my first baby carrot, pictured with a Haviana for size purposes.  I couldn't be prouder if I'd grown it myself... oh but wait, I did!  It's brothers and sisters are still happily growing away, but I got impatient when I saw this one poking it's orange head above the soil and pulled it out.  I think I'll wait until the others get bigger because while it was tasty, there wasn't much to taste.

I included it into a simple pasta dish, served with a red wine sauce chock full of veggies.  I can't wait for the weather to be right to grow some more fresh produce.  At the moment I have carrots, garlic, mint, parsley, rosemary, spring onions, leek, pineapple and chilli growing.  I'd love to add some beans, tomatoes and other delicious spring time foods.  I've also got a compost bin on the go, so that ought to add some nutrients when required!

What does your garden grow?