Watching Joseph in costume!
008/365 Go Go Go Joseph!
Category Archives: singing
It's A Wonderful Life
I love Christmas, and Christmas would not be Christmas without snuggling up under a blanket with the ones you love to watch Frank Capra’s It’s A Wonderful Life. It is such a magical festive film and a firm family favourite. I love it. It makes me feel all warm inside, and for me does not work digitally remastered in colour. It has to be, as it is meant to be, in black and white.
James Stewart and Donna Reed form a formidable team in this festive fantasy. I always find myself singing ‘Buffalo Girl Won’t You Come Out Tonight’ long after the film is over. I love that song and that moment in the film. Just beautiful! George volunteers to lasso the moon for Mary. A lovely love story!
The most famous moment and quote from the film is near the end as the family are reunited by the Christmas tree.
“Every Time a Bell Rings, an Angel Gets Its Wings”
This is a feel good comedy drama about hopes and dreams and love, families and friendships. It is about loyalty and faith. It is about Christmas, and it features the song that marks the end and beginning of every year, Auld Lang Syne.
One for the family to start the festivities and to make you want to snuggle up close to the ones that you love.
A beauty in black and white.
Why not hop on over to Metal Mummy’s blog to share your favourite black and white movie?
Music I Want My Children to Listen To – Robbie Williams
He’s the One!!!
I have loved Robbie Williams for as long as I can remember from his early days in Take That to his amazing solo career and back into the arms of his buddies in Take That.
I love his songs and adore his personality, that cheeky chappy, very naughty boy next door. I think he always comes across well on television and his live shows are fantastic. He is a natural all round performer and a true show man, which is something I admire and like.
I saw Robbie live at Roundhay Park for my 30th birthday. It was amazing, a great exhausting day and night with my wee sis. We had a great time bouncing to the Basement Jaxx and singing every word of the Robbie repertoire. One of the best days and nights of my life and one never to be forgotten.
Made even more special as I shared with my little sister, Julie. I cried when she gave me the tickets for my birthday and we queued from early in the morning so that we could get somewhere close to the front.
Robbie owned the stage as he always does and we were in awe and amazed. He put on a real show and I felt that it was just for me, for my birthday. It was just wonderful and sealed my obsession with Robbie.
I want my children to enjoy his music, to know all the words to the ballads and miror the moves from his dance tracks. I want them to bounce to Let Me Entertain You and cry as soon as Angels begins.
I hope they have No Regrets and are One of God’s Better People.
I want my children to listen to Robbie Williams and see him perform even if only on television.
What music do you want your children to listen to?
Listography – My Perfect Day
I am so thankful to have this to do today as I am having the worst few days ever with Esther and William, well William really. He is teething with a temperature and refusing to eat or sleep. I love him with all my heart but he is exhausting at the moment as he is often inconsolable. David works from home and is getting increasingly stressed that he is needed to help with the babies rather than focus all his attentions on his work. I think we are both nearing breaking point, so taking 5 minutes (albeit with William in my arms!) to ponder on what would be a perfect day for me right now is a really rather nice thing to do.
What would make my perfect day right now?
1 – I would wake up to a warm, sunny morning. The babies would wake smiling in their cot and we would go downstairs where I would put them down to play on the lawn whilst I got a breakfast of coffee, orange juice, fruit and croissants. I would sit in the warmth of the sun and watch my children playing happily together. It would be quiet apart from their beautiful coos and babbles. There would be periods of warm hazy silence.
2 – The postman would deliver a letter from my sister telling me that she is pregnant and that she is moving home from Australia not just to the UK but to Kent where we will be sisters, friends and neighbours and our children will grow up knowing each other like cousins should.
3 – I would have lunch in a cafe courtyard in the sun and enjoy drinking wine and eating finger foods with good adult conversation with a group of friends. We would laugh and joke and be playful. We would discuss and debate. We would not notice the sun beginning to set and day turning to night. It would be wonderful.
4 – I would go to a salon and have a relaxing back massage, facial with Indian head massage and have my hair cut and styled. I would take a lovely outfit with me to the salon and would dress there ready for an evening out.
5 – The evening would be with all my family and friends together at a function rather like a wedding reception with good music and good food. There would be dancing to cheesy music. There would be fun and frolicks and laughter. Lots of laughter. Everyone would be loving the company of everyone else. It would be riotous and yet so peaceful. Like being home!
And if there were just one impossible thing that I could make happen right now, I would like to go to 167 Grange Road for a cup of tea, a game of scrabble and a cuddle with my Nan. Because I miss her so much even now, everyday. That would be a perfect day.
Music I Want My Children to Listen To – Dodgy
I love Dodgy and adore their album Free Peace Sweet from 1996. I had just left school when this was released and bought the CD whilst a Fresher at University. I would listen to this album over and over again.
When I met David, he and I would often listen to this in the car over and over again. Singing at the top of our voices, driving fast, windows down, sun on our faces, wind in our hair!
One of the songs from this album, One of Those Rivers, is one of ‘our songs’ and will feature in our wedding in September. It contains the lyric
Let’s not worry about, what we haven’t got
And let’s not choose the life, that will have the cost
As long as you and I can live happily
then surely all I want is staring back at me
That is how I feel about David, it matters not about anything else, as long as we have each other that is all I need.
Another song, Homegrown, will be played at Esther and William’s christening next year. Homegrown is the way that it should be – those words fit so perfectly over photos of our gorgeous homegrown babies.
These songs just fit us. They mean so much.
David and I were supppsed to get married in August 2010 and I wrote to Dodgy who said that they would record Homegrown for us specially for the service. I didn’t remind them and they have never been in touch again but I might send a link to my blog, explain that the wedding postponed and see if they will do something for us this time. It would mean the world to David and I, and be a treasure for the babies to keep.
Back to the album …
If You’re Thinking of Me is a beautiful, sad song that has gotten me through some sad and lonely times over the years, but now Dodgy reminds me only of my first summer with David and a video he made for me on my birthday that year.
Dodgy are easy to listen to, they have simple and meaningful lyrics which tell a story. The melodies are catchy with some of their faster songs being true Brit Pop anthems.
This band have grown with me from school through Uni to parenthood. They are a shared favourite with the man I love, we listen to them in the car and In a Room; and I can picture us, in the future, as a family Staying Out for the Summer with Dodgy!
Brown Bear Book Review … with a link to audio!
Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See? by Eric Carle
Brown Bear Brown Bear ... again!
Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See? by Eric Carle has become a firm favourite in our household over the last few weeks. The babies, aged six months, love the words and looking at the brightly coloured pictures. They are engrossed in the story from start to finish, sometimes looking at the pages but often looking at me as I say the words. It is a wonderful experience sharing this book together over and over again. We have enjoyed this story so many times that we actually no longer need the book and recite the text at any time, in any place and for any occasion. Twice through it is the perfect length for a complicated nappy change and once through is enough to calm and sooth the most tired and tearful of babies. Here in the Nairn Henley household, we love this book!
It can be used to learn the names of simple animals, for counting all the animals that have been seen. It can be used to learn animal noises and the colours of the rainbow too. We often complement the text by singing I Can Sing A Rainbow afterwards. Esther tries really hard to join in the singing which is just sooo cute!
I really recommend this book as a first try if you are not confident at reading aloud. The text has an easy rhythm and lends itself to being read aloud. The babies soon learn the rhythm of the text and the intonation of my voice. They can almost anticipate what is coming next and always giggle in the same places though I know they do not recognise the actual words.
A final tip that makes the enjoyment of this story even greater for my two is that instead of seeing just children at the end our monkey specifically sees Esther and William, and they love hearing their names in the text.
I hope that you will try out this book for yourself if you have little ones like mine, I am certain that they will love it and you will find many uses for many ages so that it can be enjoyed time and time again.
This link will take you to a video where you can hear me reciting the text to William and singing a rainbow with Esther.
Head Over Feet
William had his cuddle time after Esther. I fell head over heels in love with him during this time. He was looking right at me and making the cutest facial expressions. All the nurses were cooing over him and saying how handsome he is. He is getting a bit chubby now compared to what he has been. He is going to be a beautiful baby boy. Continue reading