Liebster award

Posted on July 11, 2012 by Darren

The brilliant Mum of Three World has awarded me a Liebster Award and this means in German sweetheart or beloved person.

Part of the accepting of this award means I have to give 11 facts about myself, answer the questions set by Mum of Three World, set 11 new questions and tag various people so here goes.

11 Facts about myself

I used to be a cross country running and have represented my school and district in events.

I met my wife Laura when I was 18 and she was 17.

I was born in Crawley.

I was present for the births of both my girls and wouldn’t have missed it for the World.

I enjoy most sports.

I’m a big kid when it comes to Lego

I only learnt to drive at the age of 28

My middle name is Richard

I enjoy gardening

I love stand up comedy and have seen most big stars live

I have never broken a bone in my body

My answers to Mum of Three World’s questions.

When did you start blogging?
I starting blogging a few years back but OneDad3Girls started in September 2011.

Why do you blog?
I blog to get things off my chest and to share experiences.

How do you fit blogging into your life?
It’s all about time management and also scheduling posts.

What keeps you awake at night?
To be honest nothing unless I’m too hot.

What makes you smile?
The girls, the little things they say or do.

What makes you laugh?
Mia’s laugh makes me laugh especially when she’s being tickled.

What makes you cringe?
Any of those reality tv shows, I can’t watch any of them.

What are your pet hates?
People who sit and talk and tell you what’s about to happen when watching a film.

What are your hobbies?
I enjoy gardening and photography but don’t get much time to do either.

What are your favourite books?
I’m not much of a reader but I will read an autobiography if I get the chance. I did enjoy Steven Gerrard’s and Gordon Ramsey’s.

Would you rather read or watch TV?
I’m not one for either really but I’ll choose TV

Now I’m going to wimp out and not tag anyone as most people seem to have been tagged but if you haven’t leave a comment and I’ll tag you and set some questions.

My Birthday Meme – 26th November

Posted on March 15, 2012 by Darren

Thank you to BlabberBlog for tagging me in this Birthday Meme

So here’s the basis of this meme: Kate, of The Five Fs Blog, is compiling a list of birthday related information for each day of the year. While doing this I have learnt quite a few thngs about my birthday and I hope you do to.

When is your birthday?

26th Novermber 1982

Pick three people who share your birthday and share what you know about them.

Natasha Bedingfield, British singer (1981) – I’m sure some people have forgotten about her, but she is the singing sister of Daniel.

Tina Turner, [Anna Mae Bullock] (1938) – Is an American singer and actress whose career has spanned more than 50 years. Surely everyone has heard of her.

Charles Forte, Italian/British hotel magnate (1908) – was a British caterer and hotelier whose empire included His empire included the Little Chef and Happy Eater roadside restaurants, Crest, Forte Grand, Travelodge and Posthouse hotels, as well as the wine merchant Grierson-Blumenthal and a majority (although non-controlling) stake in the Savoy Hotel.

Is anyone listed as being born on the same day as you (ie the same year). If so, what do you know about them?

Sorry to be boring but no.

List three people who died on your birthday and tell us what you know about them?

Flora Call Disney (1938) - As the name suggests the mother of Walt Disney. Flora died of asphyxiation caused by the fumes at age 70 in the house Walt bought her. She is entombed next to her husband in Glendale’s Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery.

Dave Cockrum (2006) – was an American comic book artist known for his co-creation of the new X-Men characters Nightcrawler, Storm, and Colossus. Cockrum was also a prolific and inventive costume designer, who updated the uniforms of the Legion of Super-Heroes, and did the same for the new X-Men and many of their antagonists, in the 1970s and early 1980s.

Edna Ruth Parker (2008) – was an American supercentenarian and, until her death, was recognized as the oldest person in the world. Parker was the 20th verified, undisputed supercentenarian to reach age 115. At the time of her death, Parker was listed as the 11th longest lived person ever. She is also the latest person to hold the title of being the oldest living person for over a year.

List three notable events that took place on your birthday.

2003 – Concorde makes its final flight, over Bristol, England.

1998 – Tony Blair becomes the first Prime Minister of the United Kingdom to address the Republic of Ireland’s parliament.

1863 – President Abraham Lincoln proclaims November 26 as a national Thanksgiving Day, to be celebrated annually on the final Thursday of November (since 1941, on the fourth Thursday).

Tell us about a holiday that falls on your birthday.

Earliest day on which Cyber Monday can fall, while December 2 is the latest; observed on the first Monday after Thanksgiving. (United States)

It seems 26th November has been a boring day in history.

Now time to tag a few people

@mummyglitzer

@daddacool

@Twilight_Deb

@RealMummyDiary

@Daley_84

A quick Q and A

Posted on March 15, 2012 by Darren

I was tagged in a Q&A post by Comfort in Sound.

It’s been a while since I was tagged in something like this, I hope you enjoy it.
First the rules….

You must post these rules.
Each person must post 11 things about herself on their blog.
Answer the questions the “tagger” listed for you in her post, and create 11 new questions for the people you tag to answer.
Choose 11 people to tag and link to them in the post.
Let each blogger know that you have tagged them

Heres my Q and A

1) which character do you prefer from only fools and horses, Grandpa or Uncle Albert and why?

I always prefered Uncle Albert, just because him, Rodney and Del Boy seemed to have better chemistry and the comedy worked better.

2) if you had 3 wishes what would they be other than money, and eternal life?

My three wishes would be for my girls to live a happy and long life, us to own our own home and finally to have the opportunity to travel the World with my family.

3) if you could live in any period of time when would you live and why?

I pretty happy living life now. It’s such an exciting time with many new developments in technology. But if I had to travel back it’d like to live around the time that Henry VIII was King, it seemed like a crazy time and he seemed a mad hatter.
4) if you had to live as the opposite gender for 1 day what would you do?

I don’t have much desire to be a woman but I guess I’d visit a bar just to see how creepy some of us guys are.
5) would you rather be a pirate or a ninja and why?

Pirate…who wouldn’t want to be a pirate. I doubt I’d be as cool as Jack Sparrow. Ideally I wouldn’t have a wooden leg too.
6) what would be your catchphrase if you were a game show host?

The Earth Is Full – Go Home in a kind of an Anne Robinson kind of way.
7) if you had to write a book what would you write about?

If I was to write a book it would be some sort of horror story, may be a book made up of short horror stories.
8) if you could choose a fictional character from a Book/TV/Movie to be real who would you chose and why?

Rusty Ryan (Brad Pitt in Ocean’s 11) this character was so cool and had it all (ok he stole it but…) he always dressed smart and in the end had millions of dollars.
9) What would you like to be your legacy to be?

The guy who changed England for the better.
10) Which Cartoon Character best sums you up and why?

It’s probably Homer Simpson just because I eat all day and love to lazy on the sofa…ummmm donuts.
11) Why is your favourite colour your favourite?

My favourite colour is blue, basically because I love seeing a beautiful blue sky and because BHAFC play in blue.

Now for my questions.

1) If you could change your name what would you change it to?

2) If you knew today was your last day on Earth, how would you spend it and why?

3) If you could have sex with any superhero, who would you choose and why?

4) If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go first and why?

5) If you could have only 3 electrical appliances in your house, what would they be and why?

6) Which 3 famous people would you hate to be stuck in a lift with?

7) Whats your favourite season and why?

8) If you could live anywhere in the world where would you chose and why?

9) If you could appear in a sporting event which one would you chose?

10) If you was sent off to live on the moon what 3 things would you take with you?

11) If you could play any musical instrument what would it be?

Now the people to tag

@Twilight_Deb

@mummyglitzer

@TomBriggs79

@babberblog

@AMummyToo

@OurPeaGreenPod

@chickenruby

@trouble_doubled

@davidinglis

@motherventing

@ladybanana

My town…Uckfield

Posted on February 4, 2012 by Darren

This is just a little piece on the place I have called home for 20 years…Uckfield.

Uckfield currently has a population on around 15,000 covers 3 sq mi and is situated in East Sussex in between London and Brighton and nearby to Eastbourne and Tunbridge Wells. In the town we have one secondary school and five primary schools all of which perform really well on Ofsted reports.

Uckfield isn’t really that famous but a few people have heard of it for the following reasons;
- the floods of 2000 which along with Lewes was on the national news
- Uckfield was also the last place that Lord Lucan was seen before he disappeared
- and finally Nicholas van Hoogstraten (enough said)

The town is pretty quiet with not too much happens apart from the annual Carnival and the Monthly farmers market.

What’s right with Uckfield?

- Like I said its fairly quiet with not too much trouble and crime is pretty low.

- It still has a country feel to it and with this comes some lovely woods to go walking in.

- On the High Street we’ve got some great independent shops and plus a place called Corbin’s that do amazing sandwiches and all sorts of cheeses and meats.

- We are also in easy reach of Brighton and have a train service direct to London in an hour.

- We, unlike so many towns these days have a brilliant little cinema which is underrated and underused.

What’s wrong with Uckfield?

- Traffic is the biggest problem and the High Street at peak times cannot cope. Uckfield has just outgrown it. Just 200 years ago the population was 900 not it’s 15000.

- Car parking is also a big problem. With so many people using the train station for London and the fact the station only has about 10 spaces the other car parks get so full. This of course affects the local businesses in the town. Maybe it’s time for pay and display parking

- The actual quality of the shops is the last problem. Although we have a good quality of independent shops we need a few well know names. As a guy in his 20s (just) there is nowhere I can go in the town and buy clothes or even shoes, even for a woman it is limited.
If you want charity shops/estate agents/hairdressers we have plenty of those.

Here is a quick list of dream shops for Uckfield
- Next
- Marks & Spencer
- Adams
- Body Shop
- TopShop

Plus a Subways would he good.

I think that just about covers my town.

This will be followed up with a post called “If I was Mayor”

Versatile Blogger Award

Posted on January 31, 2012 by Darren

The brilliant Jude Wharton has nominated for a Versatile Blogger award.

Now that I have been nominated I have to tell my readers seven random facts about myself and then nominate 15 other blogs who I feel are worthy of this accolade. This will not be as easy as it sounds.

1. When I was 18months old I had to have a major eye operation because I had a kind of bubble growing over my eye. I can’t remember much about this and there doesn’t seem to be any photos of me at this time.

2. I was cross country champion at my school and represented my county a few times.

3. The first music concert I went to was Busted…in my defence it was a present for my wife (I must have still been trying to impress her)

4. I once did a 30mile charity bike ride and my legs have never hurt so much having not done any training for it.

5. I love pretty much all food apart from cream, I can’t stand cream.

6. In my adult years I have only cried 3 times, once for a moment on my wedding day, when Alyssa was born and when Mia was born.

7. My final random fact is erm I’m struggling… I have never been clubbing and to be honest I don’t think I’ve missed out much. When I was in my teens it was more about house parties.

Now I have completed my seven random facts I have to nominate 15 other blogs who I feel are worthy of this accolade.

- Musodad

Wow coming up with just 15 bloggers that I feel deserve the nomination was hard and I’m sorry for the people I didn’t include.

I hope you learnt a little more about me and as always feel free to comment.

Prostate Cancer…Guys get checked

Posted on January 20, 2012 by Darren

This is a serious blog post about Prostate Cancer.

Hope fully this will raise just a little bit of thought to guys to get themselves checked out. Even if just one person gets checked from reading this then I have helped in some little way.

The prostate is a small gland found only in men.

It is the size of a walnut and surrounds the first part of the tube (urethra) which carriesurine from the bladder to the penis.

The prostate produces a thick white fluid called semen that mixes with the sperm produced by the testes. It also produces a protein called prostate-specific antigen (PSA) that turns the semen into liquid.

The gland is surrounded by a sheet of muscle and a fibrous capsule. The growth of prostate cells and the way the prostate gland works is dependent on the male sex hormone, testosterone, which is produced in the testicles.

The back of the prostate gland is close to the rectum (back passage). Near to the prostate are collections of lymph nodes. These are small glands, about the size of a baked bean.

In the UK about 1 in 14 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime. In the USA the incidence is much higher. This is thought to be due to the fact that in the USA more men have tests to try to detect early prostate cancer.

Risk factors and causes of prostate cancer

The number of men being diagnosed with cancer of the prostate gland in the UK (and many other countries) has increased in recent years. It is thought that the incidence is increasing because more men are having tests that detect very early prostate cancers that would previously not have been found. It may also be because the number of older men in the population is growing.

Researchers are trying to find out more about the causes of prostate cancer. Although the causes of cancer of the prostate are still unknown, there are some factors that are known to increase a man’s chance of developing the disease.

The strongest risk factor for prostate cancer is age. Men under 50 have a very low risk of prostate cancer, but their risk increases as they get older. It’s estimated that around 80% of men in their 80s will have prostate cancer.

Some ethnic groups have a higher chance of developing prostate cancer than others. For example, black African and black Caribbean men are more likely to develop prostate cancer than white men. Asian men have a lower risk of developing it.

Men who have close relatives (a father, brother, grandfather or uncle) who have had prostate cancer are slightly more likely to develop it themselves. It is thought that a man’s risk of developing prostate cancer is more likely if:

their father or brother developed prostate cancer at or under the age of 60
more than one man on the same side of the family has had prostate cancer.

If this is the case in your family it may indicate that a faulty gene is present. However, a specific gene linked to prostate cancer has not yet been identified.

If several women in a family have had breast cancer (especially before the age of 40), it could also indicate that a faulty gene may be present. This gene may increase the risk of men in the family getting prostate cancer. Only a small number of prostate cancers (5-10% or less than 1 in 10 cases) are thought to be due to an inherited faulty gene in the family.

If you are worried about your family history see our section about cancer genetics and prostate cancer.

It is thought that a diet high in animal fat (including dairy products) and low in fresh fruit and vegetables may increase your risk of prostate cancer. A high intake of calcium (such as from dairy foods) may increase the risk of developing prostate cancer.

Tomatoes and tomato products (such as ketchup) may help to protect against prostate cancer. This may be because they contain high levels of a substance called lycopene.

Prostate cancer generally affects men over 50, and is rarely found in younger men. It is the commonest type of cancer in men. Around 34,000 men in the UK are diagnosed with prostate cancer each year.

It differs from most other cancers in the body, in that small areas of cancer within the prostate are very common and may stay dormant (inactive) for many years.

Approximately one half of all men in their fifties have some cancer cells within their prostate and 8 out of 10 men (80%) over the age of 80 have a small area of prostate cancer. Most of these cancers grow extremely slowly and so, particularly in elderly men, will never cause any problems.

In a small proportion of men, the prostate cancer can grow more quickly and in some cases may spread to other parts of the body, particularly the bones.

All of this information was taken from MacMillan. Please if you have any worries contact them or your doctor.

My First…

Posted on January 3, 2012 by Darren

I thought to start the year off I’d do a Q & A on a collection of My First

The idea is that you’ll get to know a little bit more about me. If you’d like to copy this feel free but just send me a link so I can have a read and get to know you better.

Kiss – This was when I was 11 with a girl called Heather. It happened at a swimming pool party at our local leisure centre.

Pet – I think my first pet was a goldfish I won at the funfair. I can’t remember it’s name but I would imagine I’d call it Goldie.

Holiday – This was when I was around 18 months old when we went to Disney World. I almost didn’t make it back as I fell into the swimming pool an my grandad had to dive in full clothed to save me.

Job – A totally rubbish job but when I was 15 I thought it was amazing and it meant I had my own money. It was packing things in envelopes and occasionally scanning coupons.

Car – I have only been driving for a little under a year but my first car was a Renault Clio.

Crush – I don’t remember ever having a crush on a teacher so I think it must have been either Cat Deely or Mel Skyes.

Alcoholic drink – My first drink was when I was 12 and I had a sip of Hooch with friends. My next drink wasn’t until I was 16 and then I think it was some type of cheap cider.

Love – This may sound silly but my first love is my wife. Our first date was to the cinema back in Jan 2001 and we’ve been together ever since.

I hope you’ve enjoyed reading this and please feel free to leave a comment.

Man Flu – Scientific Facts

Posted on November 25, 2011 by Darren

I thought I’d right a blog about Man Flu and the scientific facts.

What follows is all FACT and really can’t be questioned.

It has been proven that Man Flu is a lot worse than people think, normal medicine and cold tablets won’t help.

Doctors advise also that doing the washing up, cooking or really any household chores are no good to man at this point. Things such as watching TV especially football and occasionally having a night out are very helpful.

Although we won’t be able to cook that doesn’t mean we won’t want a curry or kebab, again junk food will really help, along with chocolate.

Like I said before this is scientific facts…I’m sorry.

OneDad3Girls – The Tales of our Young Family

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