http://adserver.adtech.de/?adlink|3.0|311|1072359|1|16|AdId%3D6699352;BnId%3D1;link%3Dhttp://www.askamum.co.uk(They love my blog, ooo-errr how exciting!) 

Well, it’s been a while but we have a good reason… The Chicken Pox lasted for just such a long time that we didn’t get to go out anywhere and cabin fever had more than set in when I realised I would have nothing important to blog about. Short of telling you all about our ‘spot watch’ and how many episodes of ‘Peppa Pig’ we’d seen (far too many and far too many times for each one) I decided we’d just have a short blog break then come back to you with something stunning.  Read on and the stunning will come because last night we attended London’s opening of Batman Live and I’m not sure the word ‘stunning’ does it justice but before I get to that I’ll have to fill you in on everything else!

 

So, while we were in quarantine I found out about The Mum of the Year awards and they look totally fab! Tesco have teamed up with DJ Sara Cox and her Mum Jackie to open nominations for this, the seventh year of these awards which are set to be the biggest and best yet! Eight inspirational mums will be honoured at the glittering, star-studded event, where they will walk the red carpet, enjoy a three-course lunch and watch performances from some of the UK’s top music acts, before being presented with their Award. Maureen Rice, Editorial Director of Tesco magazine, said: “We are very proud that 2012 will be the seventh year of the Tesco Mum of the Year Awards. During that time, we’ve heard so many incredible stories and met so many inspirational women. This is our chance to celebrate these unsung heroes, who, often despite their own difficult circumstances, have truly gone above and beyond to help others and make a difference.” Sara Cox said: “I’m really excited to be part of the Tesco Mum of the Year Awards. I attended the 2011 Awards, earlier this year, and was moved to tears by the stories of the winning mums.

“It’s so important to celebrate our mums and make a fuss of them because they really deserve it – I certainly couldn’t have got to where I am today without my own wonderful and supportive mum. There are millions of mums out there doing all these extraordinary things, struggling against the odds and facing challenges. If you know a mum who really deserves to be shown just how special she is, get nominating!” Well, Florence and I think it’s an absolutely brilliant idea and we fully intend to nominate my Mum for being such an inspiration. She’s done and does so much for us and indeed her own Mum, my lovely Grandma who she looked after when Grandma was ill and then sadly passed away while I was pregnant, that she totally deserves a nomination and we think that If you know an amazing mum who could be a Tesco Mum of the Year you should get nominating too! Find out how to nominate her at www.tescomagazine.com. Nominations close on 23^rd September 2011.

 

Every day during what I now call ‘Chicken Pox fortnight’ Florence kept putting her shoes on and asking if we could go for a walk and knowing that she was still contagious and in need of some fresh air we decided to hot foot it up to my Mum’s house in Norwich and enjoy her lovely garden even if we couldn’t go out and about. It wasn’t much longer however until Florence’s spots thankfully dried up and we were mobile once again, so boy have we been making the most of it! While in Norfolk we discovered a brilliant park with a water feature to run in and out of and when we got back to London we decided to find one here in the capital too! Not surprisingly there were loads to choose from but we chose to go and experience what the Southbank Centre has to offer this summer. This year it’s a brilliant man made beach complete with beach huts filled with artists works and one in particular fantastic exhibition, Jeppe Hein’s ‘Appearing Rooms’ which provided us with the water play we’d been looking for! It’s absolutely brilliant and if you’d like to read more about our visit please log onto the blog page at www.kidsfunlondon.co.uk  where I’ll give you a full run down on our seaside day in Central London!

 

Before we came back home we did have a very important party to attend in Norwich, Florence’s cousin Freddy’s fourth birthday ‘Super Hero’ party! Somewhat duped into dressing up in fancy dress ourselves, Banana Man, Super Ladybird (well – we had the costume already) and I ‘Super Gran’ set off for what proved to be a really nice opener to my week of ‘Super Hero’ excitement! Florence’s Uncle and his cousin had dressed up as Batman and Robin and I think you’ll agree after seeing this video, they’re real ringers for the famous duo!

 

 

When I say famous duo, I of course mean Del Boy and Rodney when they dressed up as Gotham City’s finest crime fighters! They obviously couldn’t compete with the real deal! The real deal can only be caught at the new show ‘Batman Live’! It’s currently playing at London’s o2 arena now until 4^th September before moving onto Liverpool, Nottingham and Dublin before finishing its tour in Belfast this October. After having been kindly invited to come and see London’s opening night I can only urge you to get in quick and see it while it’s here because in all honesty and I’m a big critic at the theatre and don’t take my reviews lightly, it’s the best thing I have ever seen performed live! This show is like taking a step inside a comic book and while I can imagine for the die hard comic book fanatic this is the closest thing to ecstasy believe me, it’s not just for the most serious of fans! This show is pure brilliance from the opening moment, and it can’t be described as anything other than a ‘moment’, right until the closing scene. It has you, literally on the edge of your seat with wonder at what awe inspiring thing will happen next. The scenery is out of this world, the music, the dancing, the acrobatics, the costumes, the story, the acting, the actors, the well… EVERYTHING really! The show is frantic but not in a way that leaves you exhausted it just makes you want more, more, more! The ensemble cast is utterly wonderful, they were step perfect on everything, not one eyelash was out of sync with the rest of the movers and every leap left us gasping with delight and amazement. As the 3D backdrop changed from Gotham City to Circus to Bat Cave to Asylum, as we were introduced to all the characters we know so well, the Penguin, the Scarecrow, Cat Woman and the rest, as we learned how Robin became first Bruce Wayne’s friend and moved onto Batman’s side kick we were just open jawed with utter glee! I can honestly say the whole cast was totally and utterly fantastic, it felt like we were inside a film, but the true stand out star had to be and of course would have been disappointing if not, ‘The Joker’ in all his clown mouthed scary glory! He popped up out of no where as a jack in the Box and stole the show from that moment on, rivalled only by the irreplaceable ‘Dr Harley Quinn’, this actress is mesmerising!

 

Everything about Batman Live is tremendous and if you don’t go and see it you’re missing out! This is one treat that’s a must see for all! From children as young as five right through to 105, nobody should go without this experience! There’s only one problem, once you’ve seen it, I’m not sure any other show could compare… The crew must have worked so hard on this show and the directive talents of Anthony Van Laast and James Powell need highly commending! Go on, go for it, I’m telling you now, you simply cannot wait! Tickets start at £20 and there are family and group rates so for all the information you need log onto www.batmanlive.com.

 

For me that’s another week and what a week we’ve had, from spots to Super Heroes (and that includes my Mum) but we’re gonna look forward to the week ahead and meeting Florence’s new idols Daddy Pig, Peppa and Co when we visit Paultons Park this weekend. Find out how we get on right here next week when we’ll be back with all our latest goss again! Until then do check out Askamum linked at the top of this page, they’ve just said they love my blog which is very kind of them but I’ll bet they can’t love it as much as I love them, I turn to them for all my baby related questions and while I’m there I enter a competition or two… Absolutely fabby site! So for now I’ll leave you with this, I may not have ‘Batman’ to snuggle down next to at night but I do have my very own Banana Man! Check out the home made costume… Poor old Jonny!

 

 And fair’s fair…