Pick Me Up! 15-Mar-2018

I’d like to thank my lovely mum for being there for me through the hardest times. She never let us kids suffer or stress about things. Mum raised us on her own and had three different jobs! I remember Mum going to university and working at the same time when I was young. She’s been trained in so many professions just to look after her kids. She’s now 52 and is a dump-truck driver! As her only daughter, my mum is like my best friend. She helped me through my pregnancies and supported me through my stillbirth. Now, she’s the best nanny to my children. She knows when I’m struggling and offers all the help I need. I can’t put into words how much Mum’s done, and I can never…

MESSY NIGHT This is what happens when you play Pie Face with your mates! Emma Matthews, Heaviley FOR THE CHOP My son-in-law has a pretty unique way of chopping onions! T Griffin, Bristol YEE-HAW! Me (right), my bestie Christine and my daughter Abbie all had an amazing time at Buffalo Billy’s! I didn’t want to take that hat off! Jackie Cruickshanks, Paisley NAP PARTNERS Here’s my daughter Phoebe, 4, enjoying an afternoon snooze with her Jack Russell pal Peppa! Natalie Wright, Radcliffe HEAVY SNACK Boy, this crisp got really heavy for me and my girlfriend Deena to hold during our visit to the Egyptian desert! Len Allen, Huntingdon NUTTY PROFESSOR My lovely daughter Lucy won first prize for dressing up as a wild scientist in her school’s costume competition! Lisa…

Iwasn’t somebody who worried about my weight. At 25st, though, some might say I should have! But my size had never held me back. Confident and bubbly, I wore what I wanted and still got plenty of attention from men. I was happy being big. When I had my daughter Bethany in November 2011, I didn’t lose the baby weight. A single mum, the last thing on my mind was my size. But then in early 2015, I started suffering extreme pains in my hip. I went to my GP and he blamed my weight. ‘Have you considered gastric-bypass surgery?’ he asked me. I wasn’t convinced that surgery was the answer. I was no dieter, I liked my food too much, so perhaps it was my only option? ‘If you…

Hands up! As I opened the front door, all hell broke loose Piling his shopping on the counter, Steven Webb flashed me a cheeky smile. ‘Hello, beautiful, it’s your lucky day,’ he said. It was July 2013 and I loved working in my village shop. There were always familiar faces popping in. And Steven, then 41, who worked at the local horse stud, never failed to make me smile. He popped in most days for his lunch, beers after work. ‘I suppose I should do some work, then,’ I’d laughed. A single mum with four kids - Lucy, then 19, Christina, then 17, and two boys at primary school - I wasn’t looking for love. But Steven was so charming. So, that month, when he invited me to dinner, I…

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Egg-cellent cup The lids from body lotion bottles make great egg cups if you can’t find yours! Jane Whitaker, Margate Helping hand When the garden birds are busy collecting soft bedding for their nests, I fill a bird feeder with short strands of wool to help them out! Lynne Newton, Spennymoor On the hook! Instead of hanging my keys on one hook, I’ve placed stick-on plastic hooks around the house near exit points, so if there’s an emergency, the keys are always close. Sharon Carey, Runcorn New lid An upside-down jam-jar lid is just the right size to cover an opened small pet-food tin! Lucy Robinson, Bristol Fresh lamp Squirt a few drops of perfume on your lampshade before turning it on to fill the room with a glorious scent!…