February is always a very fun month for me, as it’s my Birthday Month! This year I turned 30, so we had so many celebrations. There was also the half term, towards the end of the month. Though the UK had tons of rain in February, we really made the most of the sunshine and of all of the lovely days we had in such a short month. I write about my day every day as a part of Project 365 – where bloggers are challenged to take a picture and share a little about it each day. Some bloggers share theirs daily, others month, and some weekly.
February 1st – Birthday Dinner
It’s my birthday month, and I am turning 30, so I am off to a very strong start with having a birthday dinner! The first of the month worked well for everyone – so we started off the day as a lazy morning. Dann made me my favorite brunch, which is avocado toast with poached eggs, and we lounged around until it was time for Pokemon Go. It was Community Day, and I got a lot of Vulpixs! Then we headed home, to hang out a bit longer, until my birthday dinner! A bunch of my friends came – Dann and I had the six course tasting menu at Yakimono Robata, which is one of my favorite places to eat. My heart was so warm, filled with friends, and laughter, and fun. They even sung me Happy Birthday and brought out a free bottle of Sake for my birthday as well.
February 2nd – The Start of a Work Week
Today was a pretty normal day. I walked Kai’s lunch to his school and dropped Robin’s off at hers. I then headed home to get some work done. We just had a lot of work on, especially as it’s the start of the month. Dann is making great food so much lately, and made these dumplings in a Thai curry sauce – they were so good. Then, in the evening, I went out for Max Monday before the house was full of people for DnD. I made them chili cheese dogs, which were a lot of fun, and I spent a lot of the day watching Bates Motel – I’ve got myself all the seasons for my birthday – so was enjoying that.
February 3rd – Tabletop Tuesday
Today was another work day, with a lot of work, after dropping in lunches. Dann made lunch, which was great – a ramen bowl – and I had so many meetings. We then went out to Spotlight Hour in Pokemon go, walking around town with a few of our friends, before returning home to make breakfast for dinner. I love doing breakfast for dinner as there are a lot of good foods – especially French toast, which is a favorite. Two of our friends brought al the drinks! We played Cozy Stickerville which was a lot of fun, before everyone headed home and we went to bed for the night.
February 4th – Raid Hour and a Movie
Wednesdays feel pretty textbook by now! I got up, made lunches, dropped them in – same old morning. Then, I went into meetings. Dann made a lovely mini-hot pot for lunch, with silken tofu, which is my favorite type of tofu. In the afternoon, we went out to Raid Hour where Amelia joined us. We all had a lot of fun. Tom and Ryan then took Dann and I out for dinner, at Mui & Koko Noodle Bar – it was delicious. We then saw Shelter at the cinema, which was an action movie. It was just okay – harmless even – then we went home and went to bed.
February 5th – DIY Girly
Another early morning, another dropping off lunches! We had an “at home” day today. In England, the ceilings of bathrooms get pretty cracky due to the water and the way their houses are. So, I decided to scrape off a lot of the cracked paint, prime it, sand it, prime it again, sand it again, paint it, paint it again. This took all day and into the next, really, as I was doing it in between work and trying to get other tasks done. I also did a little clear out of the back shed, so it all felt productive! In the evening, Dann and I watched some of Bates Motel in the living room, which is always nice. It was just a productive, task-filled day.
February 6th – Litter Pick and a Play
Today was much like yesterday at the start – early morning, dropping off lunches, and then meetings for the day. We had a lot of work to get done so I got some of the last bits of painting done and dusted. I grabbed Robin from school after doing a litter pick in her nearby school. Another couple of parents have seen me do this every week and have asked to join in and where to get the official bags, so that’s exciting. Then we headed home, and then relaxed for a bit before Amelia and I headed to the Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch for a play. Robin went to Preform, and Kai went to the gym. Amelia and I had a really fun time – we very much enjoyed it, and then headed home in time to get right to bed, really.
February 7th – Busy Saturday
Today we slept in a bit! I got Amelia a 30 Anniversary Pokemon Go card pack, with promo card, so she opened that up first thing in the morning. We all got settled for the day, as Robin was very excited – she is going to her first ever sleepover party. We all went out, for some Pokemon, and did some shopping in town, before heading home. Amelia’s friend came over for the afternoon, Robin headed to her sleepover, Kai headed to the gym, and we all got settled in for the night. It was a busy day, but not as busy as others. Robin was perfectly fine at her sleepover (we knew she would be!) and it was lovely to hear from her before bed. Normally, on Saturdays, Robin and I go roller skating – but as she was at a sleepover I said I would myself. Kai, strangely, asked to come with me, so we both skated! When I got home I called my dad and went to bed shortly after.
February 8th – Lazy Sunday
On Sunday, we had breakfast and everyone cracked on with some homework. Kai worked on his schooling, as did Amelia, and Robin played video games. Amelia made her famous battered fish for lunch, which we all enjoyed, and then I spent some time cleaning graffiti off our back garden wall, as some teenagers wrote horrible things across our entire row of houses. I am honestly really sad about the state of the world, and that there are flags being used as prejudice symbols, which in turn becomes writing across walls. Before dinner, we did go to the in-laws, as some of our children’s Christmas gifts had arrived late there from extended family. They opened them, made some candles, and hung out before coming home for dinner. Their nan makes jewellery, resin items and now candles and sells them in craft fairs. After dinner, Amelia and I played Cozy Stickerville, which was a lot of fun! For dessert, Robin had got one of those spin a wheel and maybe eat a gross jelly bean kits from her nan, which we all played too.
February 9th – Monday!
Today we all woke up, had breakfast, and then headed into school. I had some work, and focused on that until school pick-up time. Kai got out a bit early, as he has testing. I went to pick up Robin, who had a book fair, and we grabbed a few books for her. Then, we all headed to Geek Retreat to play a Dog Man dice game. This was quite fun! After playing the game, we went into the cinema, as Cineworld is getting rid of their ice cream display, and so the scoups are MASSIVE at the moment! Kai went to the gym, opting out of ice cream, but the rest of us all got some ice cream before heading home for a bit. Amelia wanted to get her drumming done before Raid Hour and Robin needed to clean her room up. After all that was done, we went back up town to play Pokemon Go for Max Monday, where Robin and Amelia’s friends joined us. We all then went home, including the friends, where I served dinner to everyone, along with Dann and Kai’s DnD friends, before Robin, Amelia, their friends and I settled in for a movie night upstairs on the projector. We had a fun evening, everyone went home, and I went right to bed.
February 10th – Early Valentine’s Day
Today started like a normal day, getting everyone off to school. I then spent the daytime doing a bunch of work, as did Dann, before we all headed out for a Valentine’s Day meal. We sort of celebrate events whenever we like, around the date, so that it fits in best with our schedule. Both of us have gone out on Valentine’s Day itself, and it’s just far too busy, especially with it falling on a Saturday this year! We went to Nom Nom to have a huge hot pot, which was absolutely lovely. This was where we had our first ever hot pot, so felt very fitting. Then, we headed home and hung out together for the evening.
February 11th – Dumpling Lunch
Today I woke up, made lunches, and dropped them in – a very normal start. From there, I went straight into work, as there is always work to be done! In the afternoon, Dann and I got a Ding Dong Dim Sum Set Box to review, for our lunch. This was so much fun to make and eat – perfect for an at-home date night. In the evening, we went out for Raid Hour, then had some of our friends come to ours before the movie this week. We all hung out, then went back out and saw Send Help, which had some needless jump scares but was fine overall. It was a normal Wednesday really!
February 12th – The Guild
Another day where I woke up, did packed lunches, and then went right to work. We got a package from the Pokemon Centre which had a bunch of fun items from their Museum collab, which were for Amelia. I got Robin from school, made her an afterschool snack as she was hungry today, and hung out for a bit with her and Amelia (Kai went to the gym) before I headed off for the evening with Claire. We went to a play reading, for the show The Guild, which was very interesting! Afterwards, we went to 5 Guys for dinner, before I returned home just in time to go to bed for tomorrow.
February 13th – Perform Preview
Finally Friday! Today was a very busy day, as once everyone was dropped into school, Dann and I headed to the Excel for EUIC – a Pokemon event. We were invited as press, so we had a lot to do in the morning including the games there and seeing everything. We also went to the Pokemon Centre, which had tons of stuff, and got a bunch of cards for Amelia. She’s really into Pokemon as well! We had the provided lunch, which was a fantastic buffet, before heading back for the school run. Once everyone was home and changed, Kai went to the gym, and I went with Dann to Robin’s Preform session, as she had a preview event where we can see what she’s been working on and a bit about the show. She is SO good at acting, and it’s fantastic to see her shine. She absolutely takes to it and I can see so much of myself in her. We had dinner, then Robin and I made chocolate lollipops for dessert today.
February 14th – Busy Saturday
I went back to EUIC first thing in the morning, for their press breakfast! I got a bunch of goodies and took some more pictures of the event before I headed back home in time to hang out with Amelia, Robin and Kai before they headed out for the weekend. We then hosted a raid day in Pokemon Go. It was a nice, sunny day and I got a bunch of different Pokemon that were shiny and rare. Afterwards, Dann and I went home, Dann made me hot pot, and we hung out watching TV until bedtime. It was a nice but busy Saturday.
February 15th – Card Show
Today, Dann and I got up early to get to the London Card Show – which was a lot of fun. We saw a variety of events, tons of the card they had for sale, and checked out a bunch of the McDonalds trading cards. It was so fun to go! We then went to Lakeside, so I could get a birthday meal that was free, due to the birthday rewards on the app. From there, we went home to host a Pokemon Go Max Battle day, which was a lot of fun and a lot of shinies! By sunset, we were pretty spent. Dann and I went home for dinner and to just spend some time at home.
February 16th – Work Day!
Today was another day of rain, and I was really getting down about the rain! So, Dann surprised me by taking me out around lunch to check out the sun while it was out! I primarily did work otherwise, until Max Monday kicked off. I went out and played a bit of Pokemon, then came home and made food for Dann’s DnD group. I then returned to work and really got a lot done – it’s a lot of good that a bit of sun can do! When everyone left, I watched some TV with Dann and went to bed.
February 17th – Tabletop Day
Today I woke up early and started getting the house in order as we were having my at-home birthday celebration. I went out shopping and got the tacos on that we were having for dinner, before getting straight to work. At midday, Dann and I went out again with our cameras to take pictures, and in the afternoon we went out and did some of Spotlight Hour for Pokemon Go. Then, when our friends arrived, we played board games, hung out together, and eat tons of food until the early hours of the morning.
February 18th – Pokemon Go Raid Hour
Today we were also celebrating my birthday! And I had a lot of work to get done, so we did some shopping and some working, and a lot of just being at my desk. In the afternoon, we went to Raid Hour where I brought cupcakes of my favorite Pokemon. It was fun handing them out and hanging out with everyone else. I got quite a few gifts too, which is always a lovely surprise. Dann and I went with a bunch of friends to get food and then to the movies, to see Whistle. I did not like this horror – it was a lot. Then I went home and went to bed.
February 19th – Half Term Fun
We picked up the kids bright and early today, and all of them complained about being very bored so far for their half term. So, we got right into it! I made a DIY Sushi bar for lunch, and we went out to see GOAT in the afternoon, which was a pretty good kid’s movie. Then, we went home and played with toys, Dann and Kai played video games. Robin played VR and Amelia opened up loads of Pokemon Cards. We all chilled until the evening, had dinner, watched some TV and went to bed for the night.
February 20th – Centre Parcs
We woke up early, I packed up all of the kid’s stuff, then waited around for them to get up so that we could all go to Centre Parcs! We got there at midday and went straight to the water park. We did tons of rapids, tons of swimming and had lunch at the cabana inside the water park! In the afternoon, we went to our cabin, unpacked, settled in, and get ready for dinner. We went to the new Indian, which had some very new and fun foods for our kids to try, before walking around the park and checking out all of the lights! We headed home and settled into bed.
February 21st – My Birthday Day!
Today was my birthday day, so I woke up and was given some very lovely and touching cards from Robin, Amelia and Kai. They all made quite an effort this year – it was so lovely to read their messages. From there, Robin and I headed out for a bit of a walk and grabbed some food for the rest of the household, before returning and getting ready for the day. We had a few activities planned, the first being seeing some owls! Because it was my birthday, I got to hold Moon Beam, who is a very big and cute owl. Robin had my camera and took this picture of me. We got to pet a lot of owls, which was lovely, and we all had a fantastic time. Then, we headed back to have some lunch, before going to pottery painting. Amelia and I made fairy houses for our front garden, where as Kai made a mug and Robin picked a massive cookie jar that Dann helped her paint. Once these were done, we of course, went swimming. Dann, however, went on the rapids once and smashed his head, bleeding everywhere (he was okay) so had to go for stitches. We all stayed at the water park with Robin declaring we should “go on the rapids that killed Daddy” – but Dann wasn’t allowed in the water for the rest of the trip. We were still at the waterpark until late, then went to eat at the Mexican place that has robot cat waiters, which is our favorite. Afterwards we went on a light trail walk, saw a circus performer, and then headed back home for a DIY smores kit as they had shut the fire roasting early – which was perfect.
February 22nd – Last Day at Centre Parcs
Robin woke up bright and early, so we of course went on our walk around the park while everyone slept. We passed by the hair braiding place and got her hair braded with string in it – which she loved, before returning home. Robin very much wanted to go swimming, so we got ready for that after breakfast, but Amelia and Kai were a little swimmed out. As Dann couldn’t go swimming, the older kids and him went on a walk and chilled about packing up, while Robin and I went on the rapids over and over until our lunch, at Pancake House. This is another favorite! After Pancake House, we went on some pedal boats along the lake, checking out the birds, before we all (other than Dann) went swimming. We did this huge swim until the evening. We then headed home, getting back and unpacking for school the next day. I ordered some food in so we could eat at home – which was a great choice, and we all were quite tired and ready for bed.
February 23rd – Back to School
Back to school time! We woke up, I packed lunches, and everyone was a little less thrilled about being back at school. Then we went to school, really. I had a lot of work to be done during the day! Once everyone was done with school, I picked up Robin and Dann got Amelia. Kai was done early as he’s been doing testing. We all met at home, then went to Geek Retreat to play a new board game – a speed puzzle thing! Geek Retreat also had Pokemon Cards, which Amelia was excited for AND we got a tin from Game that I had pre-ordered. We then hung about until Raid Hour – there is a raid hour every day this week in Pokemon Go. Amelia and Robin had a fun time with their friends before going back home for girls night! One of Robin’s friends came back home, so I served everyone hot dish, as Dann’s friends were over for DnD. One of the partners of one of the DnD people, who I really love hanging out with, also stayed for the evening so we chatted in the kitchen until DnD was done and dusted! It was just a lovely time. I then cleaned up and went to bed.
February 24th – A Play
Today felt very average at the start – waking up, doing lunches, getting everyone off to school. I then went to Pamper Box Salon to get my hair refreshed after several days of water park, which took absolute ages and came out so lovely. I ended up getting a bunch of it chopped off, which felt so healthy!! Afterwards, I headed home to do a bit of work and eat some food before going to Raid Day 2 in Pokemon Go. We did a half event, then Dann and I headed to see The Loot, which was a very funny play! We then came home, watched some TV and cuddled.
February 25th – Movie Night
Today was another very average day! Woke up, packed lunches, walked to Kai’s school. I have a new camera so it was fun taking pictures along the way! From there, I went home and started my job for the day. I had a full day of working before I went off to Raid Hour in the evening, where we did a bunch of raids and had a fantastic turnout. Our not on the internet friend joined us to see Cold Storage at the cinema, which was just OK, a little whacky! It was a special cinema day, so we got free drinks, and as it was my birthday I also got free popcorn (I have been trying to collect all of my freebies for my birthday month), which was lovely. We then went home and I finished up some work and went to bed.
February 26th – Into London
Today was a bit of an odd one! Robin was not feeling well, so we picked her up in the morning from her other house. When we got her, she was singing in the car, wanting to play on VR, and really felt perfectly fine. I headed off to London and Dann stayed home, as we had a press event we were meant to attend to see some new games. I checked out a bunch of the games there and then had some London street food before heading back home. I was back before pickup, so I stayed home with Robin and we had an in day, where everyone just sort of chilled, until Raid Hour. Amelia and I went – Robin also asked to go, but as she had a day off school, we said it was best for her to stay home. After Raid Hour, we got ready for the evening and I went to bed early.
February 27th – Pokemon Day
It was Pokemon Day! Robin woke up feeling well into school, so everyone got ready, lunches packed, etc. Amelia had a trip today, so she had a special lunch and had to head off a bit earlier than others. I then attended some work meetings before heading into London for Pokemon Day! This was so much fun. I got my face drawn in a Pokemon theme, won some merch in a claw machine, got a bunch of Pokemon Card packs, and got to see the Pokemon Presents event. It was just a fantastic day! I got back in the evening, just in time for some dinner with Amelia (Kai was at the gym, and Robin was at her Preform), before Amelia and I went to raid hour. She got two shinies, which is fantastic, and then we went to our cupcake class. I was pretty tired by this point but had a fantastic time creating our cakes. I then came home and honestly went right to bed.
February 28th – Pokemon Go Tour
Today (and tomorrow) are massive event days in Pokemon Go. I started off the morning by getting everything prepped and ready, before we all headed out to meet up with friends. There were tons of walking around, chatting and raiding up until like 2pm. Then, Dann and I grabbed lunch and I went home for an hour long meeting before returning out for more Pokemon adventures. In the evening, Dann made hot pot and we watched some TV together before bed.