So this week hasn't been the best, it's been stressful and busy, Mr T's dad was rushed by ambulance to hospital last Thursday so we have all been worried sick and trying to fit in hospital visits, we have all had colds (and as a result Tinker particularly has had a bad week of moaning and whinging – after I posted last week about how good she's been lately, Sod's law!) and to top it all off our house is a building site and we don't have a kitchen! On the whole it has been one of those weeks that has just felt a bit tougher than usual and as a result I've not had the time or the inclination to blog, or even take many photos of the kids. However, the whole point of this series of posts is that even the rubbish weeks bring something to smile about so even if I've had to dig a bit deeper than usual to find those things, here they are:

• Family – both Mr T and I are lucky to have our parents close by, and we really do appreciate them and everything they do for us and the kids. I can't imagine life without them and I know how lucky we are.

• Health – even though we have been plagued by colds, obviously it's a very trivial ailment which we are already bouncing back from. I'd consider us a very healthy family and this is something you should never take for granted. I am honestly grateful everyday that my loved ones are healthy. This week has certainly demonstrated that you never know what's around the corner and we should all be grateful for what we have right now.

• The NHS – I have mentioned them before, but again this week our family has had first hand experience of how great they are. Although admittedly they still have not got to the bottom of Mr T's dad's condition, the care he has received has been prompt and efficient, with several tests undergone already (and thankfully a lot of unpleasant things have been ruled out) with more tests to come. Although it is an ongoing puzzle he has never been fobbed off and the NHS staff continue to work tirelessly to find answers for him. He was allowed home after a week in hospital, but tests and appointments will continue until they get to the bottom of things. 

• Mr T – in a tough week which has been very busy for him at home and at work, he has never flagged and keeps going for us all. He is amazing and I don't tell him often enough (he reads my blog though, so hopefully seeing it here in black and white is enough!) This week he has had to deal with his dad being in hospital, demolishing the kitchen/dining room wall, ripping out our old kitchen and floor tiles, getting a huge amount of work done for his day job, and then in between work, hospital visits and building work he has as usual helped keep everything ticking over at home and helped me deal with whiny kids. He has never moaned once even though he'd have every right to, and I hope he knows how much I appreciate him. I am so lucky to have him! 

• The kitchen – okay, so technically we don't have one, but it is very exciting to have started the process and the kitchen fitters arrive tomorrow morning, so it will be great to see some progress. As I mentioned earlier, we are lucky to have our families close and on demolition day when the wall came down Mr T's brother and my dad were on hand to help, so Mr T didn't have to manage singlehandedly and although we have a makeshift kitchen in Totsy's room (while she has moved temporarily in with Tinker) and my slow cooker has been put to good use, we have also been lucky to have had home cooked meals at both our parents' and at Mr T's brother's which has been really great.

Hopefully next weeks pictures will show at least a little progress!

Keep smiling x