rupert's diary

Week_Two....

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Sat, 01 May 2010 18:58:00 +0000

OK all you parents can now tell me I told you so, thinking that I could write a daily diary with a new baby is a stretch too far for me. I am going to attempt to write a weekly update on all things work, life and probably mainly Tallulah Sky!
So here's a quick catch-up - Tallulah is now 2 weeks old and we are just starting to get to grips with what we (Tallulah included) can do and what we can't.
She is very good at sleeping quite regularly giving us 4 or 5 hours between feeds at night, in fact we (well Kylie has, to be perfectly honest!) have had to wake her up sometimes to feed her.
She is now putting on weight too. She only cries when she is hungry, needs a new nappy or has wind. The first two are easily checked, and if they are clear it's wind!!!!! - yeah I know it's not that simple! We both can't quite believe she's ours and of our making.
Work has been conveniently quiet for the first two weeks of parenthood, the studio is finished - bar some minor details and I "moved in" on Friday - just need to sort the extension lead electrics and look into the best way to get some broadband out there!

DAY_TWO

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 06:54:00 +0000

Doing well, Mum and Tallulah doing well, hopefully bringing my girls home tomorrow!

DAY_ONE:-Tallulah_Sky_Barker

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Sat, 17 Apr 2010 21:02:00 +0000

At 0137 on Friday 16th Tallulah Sky Barker stubbornly arrived underwater in the birthing pool at GWH. Kylie had been having contractions since 3 am on Thursday so understandably she was exhausted but new Mummy and baby were fine and healthy. The adventure starts here.......

Kylie_builds_babies_Rupert_builds_sheds!

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 18:55:00 +0000

Two Months without a diary entry.....
This diary is for junior to read when he/she can and as he/she will be here anytime now, I thought I'd better get back into the habit of writing again.
So quick catch up:
We have moved into our new house and have it in some sort of a semblance of order - that's what we've been doing!
And Kylie has been growing a baby, it has not arrived yet, D day was Saturday 10th, so we are 40+3 today, the midwife just wanted to check on the babies heartbeat so they strapped Kylie in for half-an-hour this afternoon and all seems well, probably just to cumfy in there!
And I've built our shed (home offices) for us to work from - very excited to have got it water tight before the baby arrives, not sure I was going to but it is now..... thank you to Phil and John for there help. Just need to finish the inside now. And I have had a hair cut since the image of me!

busy_busy_busy.....

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 20:55:00 +0000

No post does not mean no news - just been working lots on new house - hopefully we can move stuff next week. ll decorating done upstairs - thanks to Mum and Bev (Kylie's Mum) for their help with the bedrooms and Phillip for painting and photographs of me and smiley!
Today I finished the floorboard patch between what was the sitting room and what was the dining room - once varnished it will truly be one room! Thanks to John for all the plastering - will be ready to paint on Monday......
We had our first NCT meeting last night - seem like a nice bunch of fellow prospective parents - real boost to talk to people in exactly the same boat as us....

Killer_filler

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 20:59:00 +0000

Spent the morning on final retouching, editing before sending book orders to Holland and blockmount orders to Wales - I spread the printing love! I have more to go off to London in the morning for 'traditional' printing and framing.
Taking lunch with me I headed to the new house for some 'Killer filler-ing' of the bedrooms ready for decoration - once we have decided on colours/themes - if not plastering tomorrow a decision will be made.......
Taking shots of your own hands without a tripod available is an interesting challenge, swiftly followed by macro focusing left handed (on a very right handed camera) of such a right hand! Guess which finger I use to spread the filler?

Knock_it_down_to_build_it_up.....

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 17:31:00 +0000

This will be my last diary entry about a single wall! Probably not last building post but John and I have had a monster 2 days and now it just has to dry.... (and then be plastered and decorated!)
We accepted an offer on our house too and they are keen to move as soon as possible so decorating starts tomorrow - just not in these particular rooms!
Kylie finished work yesterday - only nine and a bit weeks to go - still does not seem quite real.

New-house_big_HOLE!

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 20:08:00 +0000

We got the keys to our new house on Friday and I spent the weekend preparing for a touch of DIY - it's always easier to do these things with nothing you own in the house!
John (step-Dad) and I knocked doen the wall between the sitting room and the dining room to make one big room...... big thanks to John.
More progress pictures tomorrow when the steel goes in and we start plastering!

Kill_doctor_lucky

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 22:48:00 +0000

Today was spent exclusively glued to the desk editing images except for a brief visit to the kitchen to cook the filling for the lasagna for tonights 'games night' - Kylie was feeling unwell and we have 5 to feed!
Evening spent killing Doctor Lucky with El, Cathy and John - Kylie won - better then me winning in the long term really!

I_love_winter_sun

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 21:15:00 +0000

Winter sun is the best kind - especially when you spend too long staring at a monitor! Shot on Sunday, viewed longingly on a grey Monday!
These guys were hanging around the farm today when I was helping John (step-dad) to put tin up on the new shed - f***ing freezing and holding heat sapping metal sheet did not help - good job done though!

Rosey_rose

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 21:43:00 +0000

I've been meaning to shoot these roses that a client gave Kylie as a thank you - it was her last treatment before she stops for maternity.
Spent the whole day photographing products for Absorbent Minds - an educational toy firm run by Leon and Fiona in Sherston - good day, lots of fun and shots and coffee!

misty_Malmesbury_morning

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 18:31:00 +0000

I picked the title for alliteration but it shows my mind/mood at the moment that I had to go and check what is the difference between fog and mist!
- when I say go I actually mean open a new window and google it! -
and the answer is if you have no more than 1000m of viability it is fog and if you have between 1000 and 2000m it is mist. So technically it should be foggy_Malmesbury_morning..... bugger!
We'll learn something new and all.

the_world_in_a_dew_drop

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 19:43:00 +0000

We had a viewing on the house today - the first since Christmas - so after several hours of manic cleaning and tidying I had to be out of the house with Thor! I set myself a 10 minute project and these are the results.........

I_want_one!!!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 19:21:00 +0000

Have spent the whole day feeding a mixer with cement, gravel and sand - more of the same tomorrow! Building walls on the farm for a new straw barn - good, hard, honest work!

Snow_drive (my last snow based post..... for now)

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 10:58:00 +0000

A_continuation_of_snow_based_fun!

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 17:37:00 +0000

Thor loves the snow and he loves his swimming lessons - sorry hydrotherapy!!!!

The_lady_leans

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 20:36:00 +0000

Fun_in_the_Snow!

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 16:54:00 +0000

Welcome Back

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 15:02:00 +0000

I have deliberately not started posting again on January 1st - far to predictable!

Happy New Year and new decade!

Check out some posts for images from Christmas time - I have taken a nice break from the computer for a couple of weeks and with the hectic pre-Christmas deadlines it seems to have been a whole month since I last wrote anything - feeling refreshed and up for the challenges the 2010 will bring.........

Puddle_splashing

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 15:07:00 +0000

Issy_and_bump

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Fri, 25 Dec 2009 15:09:00 +0000

Thor_atop_a_Tor!

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 15:10:00 +0000

Goodbye_november_hello_december

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 17:10:00 +0000

Over night the Malmesbury new it had changed from November to December - yesterday, 30th November I walked through the river were it had burst it's banks in the Congyre Mead - today my boots did not even get wet as the ground was all frozen! I love nature!

Weekend Catchup -

Friday was my Mum's birthday (60 but don't tell anyone) and John took her and some of there friends and Kylie and I to 'The Vine Tree' at Norton - one of our favourite pubs for food, the food was good but we have had better there before and the service was a bit slow ( table booked for 7.45 an mains served nearly 10!) - one swallow does not make a spring, and it was busy - Mum enjoyed herself which was the main thing.

Saturday raced by, after a walk with Thor we went to Countrywide to get his food and Kylie ended up get herself a fleece (to cover ever expanding bump!), blue and white spotted Wellies, a jumper and body warmer for my Birthday as well as the dog food! This was followed by a big Tesco's shop and returning home thinking that most of the day had already gone! I cooked a sausage casserole and cheesy mash for Fi, Rich, Oli, Natasha, Ella, and Issy who all came over for Poker - the food turned out delicious but as always I was rubbish at poker and had washed up and cleaned the Kitchen before Rich out lasted Kylie!

Sunday was spent over at Mum's, family and lazing in front of the fire!

Monday was spent mainly editing and re-touching images for the printer and a fun shoot in the afternoon.

Today I have again been mainly editing and listening (again) to Stephen Fry's brilliant audiobook of Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows - new film coming soon... (well next year!)

Thursday!

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 20:11:00 +0000

Went to Chippenham to visit the emporium of Comet to buy Mum's Birthday present, she's got a big one tomorrow, but I'm to polite to say which! Conveniently also managed to get Kylie's Christmas present sorted - toyed with the idea that she would really want a giant TV and a PS3 but realised that I would be very unpopular -but well entertained- if I did that!

After yet more editing and a quick lunch - dived down to Sil's farm near Radstock - also known as Stranglers HQ to get some images of Baz and JJ recording the new single - Baz was a bit under the weather but the single rocks - a good afternoon - played with commuter traffic for the first time in I don't know when - the wonders of self employment and an office at home!

Chip butties for dinner and a night on the sofa with a rapidly expanding wife - baby not chips!

Here's an image of Ami with a microphone coming out of her nose from the gig at The Star in Hullavington that a big gang of us went to on Saturday night and I forgot to mention!!! Xen and El did some bellydancing in the intermission too!

Thor's_Sick!

noreply@blogger.com (Rupert) — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 18:28:00 +0000

Thor has had a bud stomach for about a week now - he now has to have 24hrs of starvation - and it has fallen to me to entertain him whilst we try to miss his dinner without him noticing - not that easy for a dog who's always hungry, even when clearing up behind him requires a hand full of leaves!

Today had been spent editing and designing my new Gift Card in time for Christmas - I have nearly got it but Phil is going to come round this evening to cast his professional eye over it..... in other words I'll get a graphic designer to do it rather than me cock it up!