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Home with the Kids - R2BC

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Well, that escalated quickly didn't it?

Only a couple of weeks ago the word seemed like a different place,  then schools closed,  followed by restaurants, cafes and pubs,   then 'non-essential' shops and now  we have to text for permission to leave the house (or complete a form when the text message service is not working.)

It's a crazy situation and totally surreal.

We are doing fine,  feeling grateful for many things knowing that so many people are struggling in so many different ways.   We can't go out to the beach, and we can't meet our friends but it's a small problem compared to many, we can power through.

At the start I thought slightly enviously of the people who could lay around watching endless TV, and spending their days exactly as they wished, while we tried to work from home, cook dinners and entertain and educate two over excited kids.

Then I realised that they are actually a great distraction, although drive us crazy, they keep us busy, keep…
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Photos with the boys

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When I was going through old folders of photos to make my decade slideshow I came across a set of photos that Aaron took back in 2014. 
I'd just started the Famagusta Parents Network as it was called back then and had been interview by the Cyprus Mail, and to accompany the interview I had to send them a photo. 
I decided to use the boys as a cute distraction and asked Aaron to get a pic of the three of us. 
Here it is...

Looks lovely doesn't it, blue skies, gorgeous boys, happily family by the sea.  Just sit down, take a quick photo and then carry on with a carefree family outing. 
If you think that you are spending too much time on social media!
At the time I used the photo for the article, and I posted it to facebook.   While I've never deliberatley tried to portray a perfect online image by any means, I don't post the bad stuff - who wants to read that anyway, and who wants to look at 100s of photos of the same thing.      I post photos online that I would put in a…
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A strange time

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I'm sharing a photo for no apparent reason other than it was taken exactly one week ago when everything was normal on our little island.

Some people were worrying about the spread of coronavirus.    I wasn't really one of them. 

Don't judge me,  I'm so over debating it,  if you were worried then, or you are now, that's fine, just do it quietly.

Over the last few days I did start to worry a little,  not about contracting the virus but at the panic that was starting to set in here in Cyprus and across Europe and the imapct it would have on the economy and tourism etc.   I know 'health is more important than money'     - if I had a euro for everytime I read that this week I wouldn't need to worry about money!

Anyway,  it's out of my hands of course,   what will be will be,   maybe Cyprus is right, maybe the UK is right,  no-one really knows.

Cyprus along with many other European countries is effectively on lockdown until 30th April, pretty much only s…
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Waterworld vs Fasouri Water parks - Our opinion

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Cyprus has three main waterparks,

Waterworld Themed waterpark, Ayia Napa, Fasouri Watermaina, Limassol and Paphos Aphrodite Waterpark. 
We live on the east coast about 15 minutes drive from Ayia Napa so Waterworld has always been our park of choice but I'd fancied visiting one of the others for a while now and we decided last year to try it. 
My boys are currently 10 and 7 years old and our annual trip to Waterworld is one of the highlights of the year.  It's not cheap for a family costing easily over €100 for entrance tickets, food and drink throughout the day but it's our special treat and you can often make savings by looking out for discount vouchers towards the end of season. 
We were lucky enough to also get discount vouchers for Fasouri last year so visited both.  
We had a fantastic day at both waterparks and we spent a lot of time comparing the two.
Waterworld Themed Waterpark, Ayia Napa. 
By far the boys favourite attraction is the Minotaur's Labyrinth,  or t…
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Upgrading through the decades

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As we start another decade I can't help but wallow in a bit of nostalgia.  I love a flashback as you may know so have been enjoying a trip down memory lane.

They don't seem to make decades like they used to though,  it doesn't seem possible that it's been 10 years since 2010,  where did it go?

How is it that when I hear 2003 I still automatically think people are talking about 10 years ago? Is that going to finally change now?

For Christmas this year Aaron joined the boys and became the owner of a Kindle, he's been very anti Kindle preferring (justifiably) to read a proper book, but it got me thinking about tech gone by.

In the 80s I used to watch 'Tomorrows World' with my Dad and I was excited about all the new and amazing things that would appear.    Do you remember how cool CD's were going to be!?

Dad used to rent our TV and video player so we often changed them as the years went by. It meant that we didn't have old models going spare though but…
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2010 - 2019 in photos

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Happy new Year!

2019 was a good year for us, and I hope 2020 will be even better. Of course at this time of year you can't help but look back over the year that has passed,  and with this year being a brand new decade (

By the way, it absolutely is a brand new decade, just in case you had any doubt.   I can't even begin to describe how cross I got reading a load of comments on facebook from people arguing that there was another year to go.  I assume these people have forgotten the well known decades of the 80's and 90's just to name a couple.

Anyway because of the shiny new decade many people are sharing the #10yearChallenge photos.  I am loving them all,  it's fascinating me to see how things have changed in the last 10 years.

The first change of decade I remember was the start of the 90's, as I was 12 in 1989.  It seemed like a huge thing to be happening and I couldn't imagine what I would be doing at the end of the decade, apart from partying like it wa…
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Christmas Traditions - Santa, Stockings and Presents

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Everyone has a Christmas traditions story to tell and I love hearing how they differ between families and yet are still all so similar,  always full of memories.

Santa or Father Christmas? 
Growing up he was only ever Father Christmas to me but somewhere over the years he became Santa!  I don't know if it's anything to do with the fact we live in Cyprus- what do people say in the UK these days?   I don't know if it was me that started saying Santa to the boys or if I got it from them, but they never say Father Christmas.   The children at school would either say Agios Vasilis or Santa so they were quite confused the first time someone asked them about Father Christmas.

Christmas Eve Traditions
What did you do on Christmas Eve?   Were you a church family going to Christingle or Midnight Mass,   or did you stay home and drive your Mum crazy as you were so impatient for the big day?
We sometimes went to the Christingle service at our local church, but apart from that we had no…
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