Happy ooo, originally uploaded by L.B.

"Oooo" is what Chris sings out to Alex all the time.....the poor love!

"He's an ooo he's a dooo.....is he an ooo or is he a dooo? Maybe he's an ooo AND a doo!!!"

Don't tell me that won't scar him in later life.....

Anyway, hardly ever a sob or a cry comes from little Alex...until he wants food or sleep!

He loves being awake and puts up such a fight when he is tired. When he is tired he tries so hard to stay awake that he starts to grizzle a little...then cry...then falls asleep anyway.

This top picture is the happy chappy just after his morning bath....which he loves! We really need to get him down to a swimming pool - He'll love that!

Meanwhile he's up and about...ish! He can roll about and he is trying to get his knees underneath him.....which currently ends up propelling him backwards quite successfully! He also loves being gently held whilst he stands up - and is getting very stable on two feet whilst staionary....and with a little help from a hand on his hip from Mum or Dad!

Vocally he is also coming along with chirps, blars, squeeks and squeels! The BLAR and RASPBERRY follow up are his favorites!

In the morning he sits in his exersaucer and blars way...then turns and sees the cats eating their breakfast...and screams excitedly at them! They are getting used to it and now just give a slightly concerned look rather than skidaddling out of the house!

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Guess who's back, originally uploaded by L.B.

Yup....every day "Heron" sits and looks for fish. Pretty much Heron take out city with the lake and private ponds...

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Messiah Matt, originally uploaded by L.B.

The old wooden front door had to come out. The lock was so simple...and the stained glass window could be removed by just thinking about it.....not good.

The new door was fitted by Matt, a top mate who is damned good at his job....which around our house is generally taking out doors and putting in new ones...and doing it very well indeed.

I think it was Archimedes who said "give me a long enough lever and I could move the World"...but we know that it isn't practical or really possible...

....mind you ANYTHING can be fixed with a big enough lever AND a hammer...

On reflection, anything can be fixed by someone with Matt's phone number....

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First cut, originally uploaded by L.B.

The "new" Lee Enfield is undergoing some major changes. It wasn't in the best of nick when I bought it, but it does have a good barrel.

The plan is to change it from a single shot to a ten shot mag. Re-seat (bed) the barrel and action, then strip it and re-paint the whole thing....or something along those lines.

At this stage I have taken a chisel to the stock to make the slot for the magasine to fit, as it didn't have one to start with.

To make sure everything sits firmly in place, but still leaving the full barrel length free from touching anything (which can upset the accuracy - this is called floating a barrel), I have used a glass resin mix to "snuggly" fit all the parts of the rifle into the stock to allow good clearance around the barrel, but everything else is tight.

Here is the resin setting under a heat lamp. I have also applied resin to texture the cheek piece and the grip on the stock. This will give better grip qualities...but first it'll need sanding down a bit because as it is, it is very sharp.

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Happy Al, originally uploaded by L.B.

Smiler on the drool path!

It's pretty tough taking photos of lil' Al', because everytime he puts on a big grin, I just want to put the camera down and hug him!

I ride motorbikes (I used to go to Hells Angels bike shows!), eat stupidly hot chiles and shoot big guns....and hug babies! Well...if you don't have one, you won't know what I mean!

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At last she has an age matched steel, originally uploaded by L.B.

Finally my bayonet arrived....

Yes, I don't need one and it serves no purpose, but it is age related to the rifle, and it completes the outfit.

If you bought a VW Beetle that had its badge missing, you would replace the badge because it's all part of what the Beetle is.

It's the same with my Lee Enfield - It was designed and supplied with the bayonet, so it's nice to keep the whole historic outfit together because it's all part of what the WW1 Lee Enfield is about.

With the steel attached to the front this WW1 rifle is even more humbling. The thought of those thousands upon thousands of soldiers, fighting close combat with weapons like this...in fact this very one was there...it really makes you stop and respect what has gone on before us.

I hope Alex takes an interest in history. I think it is important to know what people have had to go through to give us what we have today. A 90 year old rifle gives somrthing solid to hold onto, a real link with the past that helps put you in touch with history. Unless you hold and fire one yourself, you probably wouldn't grasp what I mean to such an extent.

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Fireworks (3), originally uploaded by L.B.

A great evening with an old friend and her family. I've known her for half of her life (yup - that made me feel old!).

Alex loved meeting new faces, and I enjoyed catching up. Chris had a good time too, as there was a comfy sofa, friendly people...and finger food :-)

Fireworks bought the evening to a sparkling end...as you can see!

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DSCF3785, originally uploaded by L.B.

We had to go to Portsmouth the other day to buy some rifle kit. As soon as we drove into the city we wanted to turn back. Kids just being little thugs, people not giving a damn about anything....and the thing that shocked me after not living there for so long...IT SMELLS! You don't realise unless you have been away from it for a few weeks, but there you go - trust me.

So we get back to our new house in Farnborough, park the car (pretty much where we want to thanks to the ample parking)...take our 5 minute stroll to the lake through the quiet green tree lined street and into the woods....and it doesn't take a genius to see why we love it here!






Yup...it's pure hell here....pah! I don't know how we can stand it! The peace, the quiet! The wildlife and friendly atmosphere! I think the "greeness" of the area just makes everyone that little bit more subdued and relaxed. Kids can play in the woods or parks, rather than hanging around street corners or disused buildings. There is an understated pride in the surrounding area.

True, there was the Portsmouth pride...but that was mainly for the football...and if pride means being drunk and fighting with other team fans, then you've got it all wrong. Living within concrete and brick structures, with everything on top of you all the time can't be good. At least here we can just step out of the front door and we have a lot more open space - room to breathe.

I understand that some people like the city, but a lot of them need to get out and see what they could have. We aren't rich by a long shot - our house was just about affordable, but the area is so much fresher. For the same money I could have stayed in Portsmouth in a bleak gardenless house with no parking. The sums aren't that hard to figure out.

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So far...., originally uploaded by L.B.

I only went out to buy ammunition and ended up buying another rifle...

It's not as bad as it sounds - I have a set collection in mind that I want to build up (I am 3 short now - but one is arriving for Chris at Christmas - The .357 Magnum Marlin Underlever).

I now just need a genuine Russian Nagant PU/PE sniper rifle (as in "Enemy at the Gate")...and maybe a Ruger 10/22 for a bit of fun.

These are not "just guns", these are little bits of history (apart from the bottom two - those are very accurate competition target rifles).

Top to bottom:

Lee Enfield No.4 Mk2F in 7.62x51 NATO/.308. Regulated by Fultons. Heavy barrel.
Lee Enfield 1917 No.1 MkIII/III* cross over in .303. Regulated by Fultons.
Mosin Nagant M44 in 7.62x54r.
Anschutz 1813 Supermatch target rifle in .22.
Anschutz 1913/2213 Supermatch rifle in .22.

Now some people might think that it is wrong for us to have guns in a house with a baby. This isn't the gun totting "yee-hah" USA though - and these guns are kept very secure.

UK law means that certain parts of a gun have to be locked seperately from other [arts, and that ammunition is also kept seperate. There are specifications of gun safes that must be used, and you must have a license to buy/own and buy guns and ammunition. It's not just a case of keeping them under the bed.

As for shooting them - the UK is again, very regulated. You can't just go out and shoot them in a field - it has to be a home office approved club, and you must be a member of a home office approved club.

So quite strict really. Banning guns won't solve anything, but a better education regarding firearms will go a long way.

If you want to ban guns for killing people, you'd better ban McDonalds for making people fat.

More non-smoker people die from passive smoking in a day than have been killed (in the UK) in the last 20 years by guns (and that includes accidental death by guns and any mass murders).

Get educated before you go around saying that "guns kill people and should be banned!". A pencil, bread knife, brick, hammer....these will also kill people....oh no, hang on - It's the person USING the tool that kills people.....see the subtle difference?

Think about how a gun could kill someone the next time you are talking on your mobile phone in the car (35 in a 30 zone, but hey - it's only a little over the limit...), whilst changing radio stations....and not seeing the child/car that has just moved out in front of you....Yes - you are several hundred thousand times more likely to kill than someone with a gun...

Our Prime Minister - He's anti-gun....but only as a vote winner....Old Tony used to be a target shooter himself. Funny that.

Grrrrr....must calm down! Luckily I am a calm person (or the Doctors would never have signed me off to the Police to allow me my firearms certificate...YES! more checks!)....and yes, there have been a few slip ups in the law that have ended in tradgedy, but that was because the law wasn't being followed....a bit like the 35 in a 30 zone...or dropping litter...talking on a mobile in your car...If the law is broken, it doesn't have to be a gun that ends up killing someone.

Hey! I guess you can guess one of my "hot buttons" now!

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