You must click here:

http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/UtgIEvohrQ5CsZNA

to see mommy shake it with Obama!

http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/XWNlUAyZFRkLU6ePtaGZ

to see Cole, Tim and Nicki shake it!!

You must click here:

http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/UtgIEvohrQ5CsZNA

to see mommy shake it with Obama!

http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/XWNlUAyZFRkLU6ePtaGZ

to see Cole, Tim and Nicki shake it!!

YES WE CAN YES WE CAN YES WE CAN!!!!!!!

Greetings to all!! I'm sorry it's been over two months since my last posting, I'm amazed at how quickly the year has flown by. The twins are growing up so fast it's making me want another baby but then my sister reminded me that THAT baby will grow up super fast too......

Well, the above video is the celebratory drum circle that the children participated in with their Uncle Will once he explained that the crazy woman running for Vice President of the United States didn't get into office. Instead, the man who Grammie M has a crush on did! I'm very please, relieved, etc. Now there is ALOT of work to be done. A Canadian paper's headline read : Black Man Given America's Worst Job. Makes me feel bad for the guy. He's gonna need all the help he can get so I hope the media can steer away from THAT CRAZY WOMAN IN ALASKA for four years and focus on the important stuff like fixing the world and everything. Enough ranting...

It's the busy season of balls and dinners and entertaining and I've been attempting to "work out" which is the activity I do to justify all of the candy I eat, in order to fit into some dresses to look like a woman who has had twins but is starting to work out. It's a tough look to achieve....

My mom and Nicole are coming out for Christmas, should be a blast since Tim's folks and Uncle Will are coming too! Now I just wish the other Uncle's could be here!! I'm already planning my dinners with Nigella Lawson's Christmas book. I think people either love her or hate her. I think she is the woman that Tim fantasizes that he is really married too. Keep your friends close and your enemies closer....

OBAMA!!!!

Well folks, we are officially registered to vote and are PUMPED for the election! The Flatman household supports Obama 110% and I have the bumper sticker to prove it! Not that it does me any good out here... We watched the conventions and the twins sat around clapping their hands and saying " yeaaaaa" and really enjoyed the enthusiasm of the crowds. I can't say the same for Tim, he just doesn't get American politics and kept saying, " Are they really going to clap after EVERY sentence someone says?" The answer is "yes" and then there are lots of balloons and that is all that matters....

It's the worst weather ever out here, practically hurricane winds and almost no sun. I am translucent, and when I passed by a lamp recently, Tim swore that he could see my brain. So not alot of outdoor time going on, hence, I have massive crush on the children's TV presenter. We've decided to get the babies a trampoline for Christmas due to their insatiable jumping habits.

That's pretty much it over here! Hope all is well!!!

And....we're back

Hey everyone! Well, I'm sorry to report that I am leaving for Devon with the kids for the next week and will not have internet! So I'll try to pack a bunch in this posting:

1. We have been to the states and back.

2. We have moved to yet another house.

3. My friend Dianne was here for two weeks.

4. We went to Dublin and Edinburgh while she was here

5. I hurt my back again.

6. Cole had an ear infection.

7. I got sick too.

8. Tim's getting promoted, finally, stupid navy.

The pics above are from Edinburgh and our back yard. I like lillies. Edinburgh was absolutely amazing, I can't wait to go back! the whole town is beautiful and Dianne is the ultimate tour guide! The twins were spectacular, we stayed at a country hotel a few miles from the center of town with a restaurant in the hotel so we could dine there at night with the kids in the room! It was nice to have a little city break! I 've decided that this is the worst summer ever, it has been raining all of the time and I seldom wear shorts, Tim has alot of work to do if he thinks I'm going to live out here for the rest of our lives....I dont' actually know how to take any new videos on this new camera so here are some older ones from the states:

Bodnant Gardens with Grandad and Grandma

Alice comes to hang with the twins!!

Where to start? Well, we had a massive oil leak in the house around mid-April. My buddy Buffy, who has a house-bunny named Muffin, not kidding, stopped in for the usual " I'm going to save my neighbor Katie who never seems to have make-up on and make her a cup of tea in her own home" stop. She is also my chiropractor and noticed that the twins and I were not very well, she also noticed the petrol smell in our house and demanded that I call the housing people for the military. The next day we were evacuated and the rest is history. We are currently in our third home in Rhosneigr, soon to be moved to our fourth. With any luck, we will have lived on every house on the street before we leave!

Maryan and David happened to be here for the weekend when all of this happened, and David drove up from Devon for the next weekend as well to help out with the initial move! We really dont know what we would do without them... We took David to a petting-zoo with lots of farm animals, hence the photo of Tim bottle-feeding a little calf. Trips like this make me want to go vegetarian all over again, however, I had a really nice steak the other day and I just cannot deny that enjoyed it, alot.

The next week we were back in Oakham while Tim had a course to attend at RAF Cottesmore. It was great to catch up with old pals but of course I forgot to take any pictures, we are terrible at this. But, Kerys and Matt's kids Isaac and Finlay are super super cute and Tobs and Tor's kids Tom and Sam had a blast with the twins! You just have to take my word for it as I have no pictures. I think Finlay and Indigo will perhaps become and item!!?? Well, for the sake of space on this blog, I can only brush over the fact that Cole went into the hospital on the Friday that we were in Cottesmore. Viral induced wheeze is what the paper says. He's fine now, and it's all ok. If you need details, call me.

The babies are awesome now, very cute and loving. They have taken to fighting with each other which is always nice. Out come the child discipline books, as Tim and I cannot possibly think for ourselves..
Right, this weekend Mark and Gemma are here with baby Alice. Next weekend at a wedding somewhere. The weekend after the folks are back for the week. Then it's only two weeks to the big trip to the states!! It will fly by...

INDIGO SPEAKS! COLE RUNS IN SOCKS!

New Videos!

HAPPY EASTER!

Hi everyone! We are having a great weekend with Uncle Will! Went to church yesterday at 9am after a very late evening of poker with some friends, needless to say we were a bit exhausted during the day and decided against a big Sunday roast for an unusual Thai curry. No Easter egg hunt or chocolate bunnies for the kids this year as they are too young but next year should be a tad more eventful for the babies! You can see them in their yellow jumpsuits above, plus a video of Uncle Will playing around with the kids earlier, he didn't even touch Indigo, she just started crying for no reason!!! Pretty funny though..

We are getting very excited for the trip out to the states, absolutely desperate for some hot weather and a sun-tan! Already the year is starting to fill up with plans of guests and weddings. My girlfriend Dianne will hopefully be joining us in July for a few weeks, she is the greatest world traveller ever and I'm very excited to see her! Wishing you all a great easter-weekend, the Flatmans

We're coming to the states!

Right. We are arriving on June 8th and departing June 22nd. Make your appropriate arrangements!

More pictures

It's been awhile....

Sorry folks! The last two weeks have been full of sickness and madness! We set off for Devon to celebrate the twins birthday party ( part 1) on a Thursday night, arriving at 1:30am to Tim's folks and spent Friday with our pals Matt and Rebecca. We met up at a country pub in Somerset county. I had called prior to our arrival to ensure that the place was " child friendly" and was told that the twins were welcome to have lunch there and that the only two highchairs would be reserved for us. Excellent.

So, we set off to find ourselves in a total baby-death-trap complete with not one, but three roaring fires and expensive looking china/bottle/antique thing lining all of the shelves, and on the floor. There was also a very menacing looking dog that I was told " did not like children" sitting in a hallway. Indigo loves all animals and decided to break out of her highchair with NO security straps at every possible moment to pursue her deep affection for all things furry. Cole had an equally secure highchair and had suddenly come down with " ants in pants" behavior and was terrorizing all of the old people attending a quiet lunch with a beautiful view by performing his many arias. Castrado perhaps? Who knows...

Needless to say, we had very little eye-contact with any of the employees and guests of this pub I ordered a glass of white wine and Matt and Rebecca had yet another dose of birth-control for the afternoon. Tim and I displayed our ability to multi-task while attempting to feed the children and ourselves, rattle-on in a very civilized manner with our friends while maintaining a calm and rational adult disciplinary tone with our gorgeously behaved children. I included a hearty chuckle occasionally just to keep up apperances..

Saturday was a bit less emotional! We had invited Tim's two best pals and their partners to a very nice new pub in Sidmouth for an afternoon party. So, Tim's folks, Uncle Will, Mark and Gemma with little 7 mth old Alice and Darren and Aneta joined us for a much more civilized birthday celebration!

Unfortunately, the twins came down with horrible chest infections and were not able to make the journey up to Oakham to check on our house so I stayed behind in Seaton with the folks and eventually made our way back up to Rhosneigr. We spent a few days of R and R to prepare for Linda's arrival which included the twins spending time at their day-care facility ( more on this later ).

Linda arrived on the Friday with zero snags on her travels! We had a great day with the kids until THEY CAME DOWN WITH THE ROTAVIRUS AND WERE SICK THE ENTIRE TIME SHE WAS OUT HERE!!! I am certain that they caught it from day-care and it was horrible. Puking and diarrhea for an entire week. Little Indigo didn't eat for days and was guzzling Dioralyte and looking rough. Poor babies. I was having conversations with God over how the twins could be ill again after the Thanksgiving nightmare... We had to cancel their birthday party for the neighborhood kids but still managed to put together the birthday cakes and hand out the party favors!!

So, Mom helped me out in yet another serious week of parenthood, she is always there to pick up the pieces it seems! Apart from the babies being ill, we had a great time! The twins were madly in love with Mom, Indigo became especially attached and didn't we just know all about it when she woke up the night after Mom left and cried for her all night! Her latest trick is to give kisses on demand, very cute, and to insist on having books read to her. Cole is still interested in things rather than people, but is always a good laugh when he is tearing around the house. He has started to walk around now, laughing the whole time! He is his own best friend!

Well, that's all from this end. It's mother's Day over here and I've slept in this morning until 8:00am. Pathetic. I am no longer young and cool. I will try harder next time! Lots of Love - Katie

Another Sunny Day!!

We've been outside to play at the playground just next to our house!!! It was great to sit in the sun for awhile and watch the kids romp around. Wales and most of England is supposed to have unseasonably nice weather for the nest few days so I'm going to try to make the most of it.

The twins are down for a nap and I'm doing some spring cleaning...sort of. I can't find my back medication so I've been a bit on the sore side today but am hoping to walk it off at the gym tonight. I did zero exercise over the weekend and am needing to burn off some calories!!

Cole is teething big time, it shows in his diapers and on his little red cheeks! Poor baby.. I've been spiking his hair up and making him wear his kilt alot so maybe he's just mad at me? Not sure..

Best thing I've heard all week!!!

EVERYONE needs to go to this website: www.glassbooth.org


If you don't understand the questions wikipedia is linked to the issues so you can understand the questions. Do it and figure out which candidate you are best suited to vote for and just hope you have the chance to vote for them! It is so important, I cannot stress this enough. It is a privilege to have the ability to vote for the next American president. I have alot of friends who wish they had a say in it!! Quit being apathetic!!!

Sun's Out

Hurray!! The sun is out, we are headed out for a walk soon! Yesterday marked yet another milestone for the twins. They are officially out of their newborn carseats and into the big kid carseats. The new one arrived in the mail yesterday and I have zero shame in admitting that I was wiping some tears away as I installed the new ones. They look like spaceship seats, with little jets all over them too! I guess the good news is that they are easier to get the babies into and out of! Now I just need them to be potty trained and I'm good as gold...

They got their first birthday presents in the mail yesterday. Tim's cousin Bev has 3 and half year old twins as well and sent them some musical instruments and a dress for indi. You can see them performing below:

Ug.

Another Sunday. The weather remains awful, BUT I'm not being tortured in America with the dreaded Super Bowl. I hate the Super Bowl. Football scary sport, steriods anyone?? I used to watch it for the commercials. I couldn't care less about who wins. Those stupid commericals really bug me. Especially when I think about how much the companies pay to have them aired. Moving on......

We have a fire going in the livingroom, the kids are playing nicely together for the moment, and I'm recovering from a very social weekend with pals. We are being very civilized right by listening to classical music. Whelp, that's all from this end! Hope you all had a killer weekend, looks like the weather is a bit rough everywhere right now so bundle up people!!

All Hail the conquering Hero...

Hiya folks. We've returned from a long day on the base. Tim had an award presentation for "bravery" in Afghanistan. And by bravery, I mean, behaving like a total hero!!!



Tim's been very tight-lipped about his experience in "the Stan" since he's returned and I had heard it through the grapevine that he had done some serious Rambo stuff warranting this award. Basically he took out some Taliban guys who were firing at some Marines on the ground. The Marines were not quite sure where the enemy were firing from and were in dire need of help. Tim had been in the same spot a few days before and had a hunch. He had very little fuel and guided his wingman to a spot he had been two days earlier, allowing his wingman to finish the job, only for them to crop up somewhere else. Now, with very very little fuel, Tim fired at them from VERY CLOSE UP and succeeded in completing the mission and saving a bunch of dudes!! Tom Cruise better shut his pie-hole and quit pretending, because the real deal is out there people....



So all of this is being read aloud in front of this whole room of important people and I'm listening to it thinking " they can't possibly be talking about Tim?" , totally slack-jawed and looking like an idiot I'm sure. Not to mention my babies babbling loudly and trying to escape my arms...

Needless to say, I'm a VERY proud wife at this moment.



Right, well, we forgot the camera. Sorry. But here is the only pic I could muster before the battery died: Plus a vid of Tim playing with Cole

My New Fav Quote

"Sleep deprivation is a form of torture, and new parents who chronically lack sleep can become a little deranged."

I got that out of a parent's guide written by Dr. Christopher Green, aka my new hero. Cole had yet another rough night so here I am, probably looking like Amy Winehouse ( or a version of Amy Winehouse that eats hydrogenated fat on a regular basis), sinking yet another cup of tea. It is like a hurricane outside this morning, huge gusts of wind and rain are pelting the windows making me just want to dive under the duvet and sleep,sleep,sleep. However, the twins are in party-mode and I'm wondering if they had the same kind of night I did? If so, then why are they so happy?

They go to day-care today from 2-4pm and I'll "hit the gym", or probably sit in a gym and watch music videos while I slowly burn a whopping 142 calories over an hour by strolling around on a treadmill. There is usually nobody else in the gym so I have zero motivation to look like I'm doing something. However, once some of the 20-year-old future pilots of the Air Force/Navy arrive I suddenly kick it into 4th gear. This usually lasts for roughly 3 min before I'm gasping for air and have to get off the treadmill and go for a long drink of water, convincingly mopping my forehead as if I've been sprinting for 45 min or so. This has been going on for awhile now and it's probably time to end the charade and just go for a cup of coffee while the kids are at nursury as I'm sure I'm not fooling anyone!! There is also a sunbed but it's in between the locker rooms and the very thought that one of these guys might see me in an enormous towel on my way to the solarium is just too traumatic so I continue to maintain my vampire-like skin. Tim thinks I'm " pale and interesting", while I think I look like a celery with hair. Or on a really bad day, Chewbacca. Here is some footage of Indigo over Christmas standing and blowing bubbles, then falling, then standing again...

Good Morning!!!

The sun is shining, there is minimal wind, and we have just been out on a walk with some of the ladies and other babies in the neighborhood! The beaches looked amazing this morning and we were the only people out!! We have new neighbors on exchange from Austrailia, they are great and have a little girl, Bronte. Bronte is very cute, 14 months old, and she loves to play with the twins, so we have alot of fun! We were also out with my friend Lianne, who has a 14 month old as well, Robert, plus a 225lb. Great Dane named Callum. Needless to say, I feel very safe with Callum around and Robert is an old buddy of the twins!

Both twins have a chesty cough and were up for a few hours on and off last night so I'm about to pour yet another cup of tea for myself. Lets see, 9:39 am and I've changed 6 diapers, done almost two loads of laundry, read 3 books and have sung 3 songs for the babies. They are currently playing under the dining table :

If anyone is on Skype and has a webcam let me know, we have been on it for months and the only person I've managed to get convinced to use it is my sister!! It will allow you to see the twins and myself LIVE, and it's FREE!!!

I came across this on the internet yesterday:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmNCALGHOC4

It's Obama's response to Bush's State of the Union. If it's not your thing, I hate to inform you that more of this stuff will be on my blog site, but ignore it if you wish. That's what I do with some of the politically driven emails I get!!

Here's Hillary's:

www.hillaryclinton.com/blog/

Checking in, table for four please....

Hello everyone! This is the first of hopefully many posts that will keep you informed of what is going on in Northern Wales at the home of Tim, Indigo, Cole and myself. Should be a blast...

I should be able to add some pics and videos to help you all fully appreciate just how flipping cute the twins are these days! For example: here we have the twins in the bath a few weeks ago.

Today was another rotten day in terms of weather. Cole has bronchitis, which is a bummer, but was in a good mood today at baby club. Indigo toddles around the furniture and today they both learned how to climb on up onto the couch and spent a large part of the afternoon shouting at the neighborhood out the front window. See? The party never stops! Here's a clip of Indigo having some first steps!!