{Sad that Glasgow 2014 is over}

That's it, the Games are over :-(

We well at truly got in the spirit of the games here at the Glasgow Mummy house.

I was a proud #Team14 blogger, and was really lucky to be invited along to some fantastic events such as a lawn bowling coaching session with the kids, a tour of the Athlete's Village and I got a ticket for the Opening Ceremony Dress Rehearsal too. I also had purchased tickets myself for the weightlifting, and was very lucky to win tickets for the athletics from Virgin Media. I invited Lauren along with me and we had amazing seats!!

I had a good friend that was dancing in the Opening Ceremony who had a great story to share, and we also had my sister's friend Laura and her wife Hannah staying with us for the duration of the Games. They're both medics and were volunteering at some of the sporting events.

I asked Laura a few questions about her time in Glasgow as I thought it was interesting to get her perspective...

"Tell us a little bit about yourself.

I work as a general surgeon in the Highlands but do a bit of event medicine and expeditions in my spare time!

Laura & Clyde

What made you sign up to volunteer for the Games?

After going to The Olympics and finding an amazing atmosphere in London, I decided that being part of that would be incredible and Glasgow seemed like the next big thing!

Laura & Hannah

What training was involved?

Training involved a few trips to The Emirates Arena for general training followed by venue-specific training where we learnt all about the venue we'd be working in. I also had to do some online training as I couldn't make it to Glasgow for all the dates.

What did your job entail?

I had two roles. I was the Field of Play Medical Lead for netball which involved sitting on the court side and assisting the athletes and their medical teams if required and I worked as the Sports and Exercise Medicine Doctor for both the mountain biking and the road biking.

Hockey selfie :-)

With the Jersey road biking team!

What was your favourite part of the Games?

Difficult...I think my favourite part was the atmosphere in Glasgow and the attitude of people who are going out of their way to make it a success from volunteering to providing a much needed sofa bed to friends (that's me!!).

Were there any negatives?

Not really, I didn't even mind cycling through the rain to get to events! I suppose the only negative would be that I'm feeling quite exhausted!

What did you get up to in Glasgow when you weren't working?

When I wasn't working I managed to catch up with friends and sample some of Glasgow's amazing cuisine."

Thank you Laura!!

{Vlog Challenge - Week 4}

This week we went to see Yellow Valley by Starcatchers at the Glasgow Tramway (@GlasgowTramway) as part of the Culture 2014 programme.

After the show we grabbed a snack at the cafe and relaxed in The Hidden Gardens. It was a fantastic afternoon & we all thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

Check out the vlog for more!

Yellow Valley at Glasgow Tramway

Yellow Valley

Wild flowers at The Hidden Gardens

My son and his girlfriend ;-)

The Hidden Gardens

Watch the vlog below to find out what this is all about!!

{Bring It On! Glasgow Games Opening Ceremony!!}

Tonight is the official start of Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games. How very exciting!!!

As I mentioned in my post yesterday, I know two of the cast members that will be on stage tonight for the Glasgow Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony.

One of these girls is my gorgeous friend Lorna, and she was lovely enough to take some time out from her busy schedule to share a little on her experiences here with us. Lorna is already mummy to one beautiful little girl, and she has another baby on the way!! So it makes her involvement with the Opening Ceremony even more special!! Thank you Lorna and good luck for tonight!!

Girl's Night Out :-)

Here's her story:

"It's been an amazing experience being part of the cast of the Opening Ceremony. After months of auditions, rehearsals and military organisation the night is finally here! People from all walks of life are taking part - grannies, children and my 5 month old foetus! I'm nervous but not sure if it's butterflies or the baby kicking! There is a real sense of camaraderie and team support. I just hope I don't trip on stage during my routine. Although maybe Rod Stewart will come and help me!

Once the Ceremony is over, I'm looking forward to attending a few events including the 100m final! We were really lucky with tickets; my husband is also going to the wrestling, boxing and judo. Then on my 35th birthday we have tickets to the Closing Ceremony but this time I will be watching all the other performers take to the stage.

There's so much to do in Glasgow over the next couple of weeks, I'm delighted to still be on maternity leave. I plan to take my daughter to Glasgow Green and the Merchant City Festival. I suggest tourists check out the Festival 2014 programme and find themselves a good pub to get the craic with the Glasgow punters!"

With her daughter.

{One Day to Go!!! Glasgow Commonwealth Games}

It's just one day to go until the official start of the Glasgow Commonwealth Games.

How exciting!!!!

As I stepped out of my office this afternoon there was a buzz in the air as tourists milled about the city centre. Isn't it also great that the sun is shining!!! Long may it continue.

Last night I was delighted to attend the Dress Rehearsal of the Opening Ceremony. We've been asked to keep all the details secret to #SaveTheSurprise for the rest of the world, but I can tell you that the Opening Ceremony is certainly "uniquely Glaswegian and Scottish".

It's already been in the press that Rod Stewart is performing (he wasn't there last night though, there was a stand in miming in his place!). The other artists include Susan Boyle, violin virtuoso Nicola Benedetti, Glasgow singer/songwriter Amy MacDonald and Julie Fowlis who sang for the film Brave.

Celtic Park - the stage being set. 

At almost 100 metres long, 11 metres high and weighing 38 tonnes the LED screen is Europe's largest!

There are 2000 cast members that will be representing the host city and nation (I know two of them!) as they perform in front of an audience of 40,000 at Celtic Park and a potential television audience of over 1 billion viewers!!!

The partnership with Unicef will also be part of the Opening Ceremony in a global fundraising first which aims to positively impact the lives of children across the Commonwealth. During the ceremony, spectators, athletes and viewers will be invited to Put Children First by making a donation via text creating a powerful Games legacy for children.

The Unicef footage that was shown at the rehearsal last night nearly had me in tears. I felt extremely moved by it. Which made up for some of the more embarrassing parts of the ceremony that had me cringing. Lots of laughs too, don't get me wrong. I'm just not sure that the rest of the world are going to get the Glaswegian banter (and possibly even understand the accent). I had Steven, another blogger from #Team14 sat next to me, who travelled up from England to watch the rehearsal, and I don't think he fully appreciated all the jokes.

Anyway, the Opening Ceremony event will be broadcast live from 8pm on BBC One and you can tweet along using the hashtag #2014Ceremony.

I definitely suggest you tune in - I'd love to know what you think!

The cast at rehearsals

{Eating Out - Guy's Restaurant}

Tuesday marked the anniversary of my first date with R, and to celebrate we decided to head into town for dinner. I had booked a table for two at Guy's Restaurant in the Merchant City. I've only been to Guy's once before, over 5 years ago though, and R hadn't been before so we were both excited to check out the food on offer! 

From my previous visit I remembered that Guy's is renowned for its ravioli and this was evident in the specials menu that we were given upon arrival. There were four ravioli to choose from as either starter or main. However we decided to stick with the Pre-Theatre Menu, and at £13.95 for 2 courses or £16.95 for 3 it's fantastic value for money with a variety of options to choose from too.

I loved the decor in the restaurant. The comfy sofas at the entrance make it feel very relaxed and homely. As does the sideboard and mirror that features in the restaurant. The staff were also very friendly which all in all made for a lovely atmosphere. 

Starter - Smoked salmon terrine

Starter - macaroni cheese

Main - Glasgow Tapas - steak pie, haggis & neeps, mince & tatties and chips!

Dessert - fruit crumble & custard

Dessert - chocolate fudge cake

All the food was lovely. The Glasgow Tapas is such a novel idea & will be great for the tourists that are here for the Commonwealth Games to sample some local delights. My favourite was the haggis. The custard served with the dessert was also immense. Yum!! Definitely worth a visit.

{#Team14 Lawn Bowling}

Last week the #Team14 bloggers were invited along to Woodend Bowling Club for some coaching and a match. Eek... I hadn't bowled before and wasn't sure how I'd get on. 

I shouldn't have been worried... we were coached by local experts and very quickly I picked up the basics. I wasn't brilliant at it, but I definitely saw improvement over the hour or so we were there. The kids, R & I thoroughly enjoyed the evening. Unfortunately we couldn't stay until the end because I had to get the kids home to their bed. My son was devastated to leave as he'd had such great fun. Proper tears as we made our way back to my car!

My dad used to be an avid lawn bowler and I remember going down South during the summer holidays once to watch him compete in a competition.  I should have paid more attention as I might have been better if I had!

Woodend Bowling Club have a juniors team and apparently their youngest member is just 4 years old. It's not something I'd have previously considered as a sport for my kids, and so this taster session has certainly opened my eyes to the types of activities that are available for pre-schoolers. 

The Commonwealth Bowls

So many pretty colours! Pink for me of course :-)

Perfect technique!! ;-)

Eldest taking his turn!!

Have a peek at this Team14 highlights post from Glasgow 2014 that details some of the other events that the Team14 bloggers have been attending :-)

{The Commonwealth Games Village}

Last week I had the privilege of previewing The Commonwealth Games Village.

The 35 hectare site (which is about 54 football pitches to you & me!) is nearby Celtic Park (where the Opening Ceremony takes place) and it also alongside the Emirates Arena and the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome. The location of the Village is such that 80% of the competition venues are within a 20 minute journey (guess that depends on the traffic though which I'm presuming will be mental!).

We arrived at the site on a coach into the Transport Mall (I was with the media tour of journalists and reporters) and we experienced the boarding process that the athlete's will go through on their arrival. At the Welcome Centre, we went through a security check, similar to that at an airport, and then we had our credentials checked (photographic ID was required so I had my passport with me) before being given our passes for our visit.

The Village isn't just where the athlete's sleep... it's got everything that they could possibly need for their stay in Glasgow from a gymnasium to the medical facility to a hairdresser and the 2000 seat dining hall! The Village aims to be a secure, comfortable and friendly environment - 'a home away from home'.

I was shown round some of the facilities and it's very impressive. Everything is on such a grand scale.

The houses are functional and seem comfortable enough. The schoolchildren's artwork on the walls is a lovely touch and will hopefully be appreciated by the visitors. Around 9,000 posters were produced by schoolchildren from across Scotland and are displayed in the bedrooms. Each artist has included their contact details and it's hoped the athlete's will contact them to say thanks for their work and then they can take the posters away with them as a souvenir of Glasgow 2014.

The Polyclinic has 11 disciplines of healthcare professionals for the athlete's from dentistry to physiotherapy and optometry to pharmacy. The dentist's room even already smells like a dentists! There are so many high tech gadgets on-site including a massive portable MR unit!

The gymnasium wasn't as big as I had thought it would be given the number of residents that will be on-site. Although there are two gyms in the Village and additional facilities available at four external training areas. Here's hoping Mo Farah and Usain Bolt won't be arguing over the treadmills!

Unfortunately due to the wee ones I was unable to join the others for dinner, the overnight stay and breakfast. It would have been nice to have the full experience, but needs must!

The statistics are crazy...

There will be 6800 residents come game time with the first guests checking in next week!

The Village dining hall will serve up more than 390,000 meals with more than 2000 different menu items.

There are 1400 medical services volunteers that will be working at the Polyclinic.

It is expected that 30,000 towels, 26,000 bed sheets, 20,000 toilet rolls and 100,000 bin liners will be used!!!

So what happens when the games are over?

Once the last team has departed, of the 700 homes, 300 will be privately sold... 300 will be used for social housing... and 100 for mid-market rental. (Although there is additional work that needs to be done to the houses to convert them into residential properties as none of them have kitchens!). A two-storey building in the Village is also going to be transformed into a care home.

The furniture, around 36,000 items, will also be made available to Glasgow's vulnerable families and local charities.

{#VMGameOn - join the virtual commonwealth games}

As you may know, the Glasgow Commonwealth Games start this month.

Virgin Media are a Presenting Partner and have given us the opportunity to get involved in their very own virtual games...

#VMGameOn is the answer!

They've come up with nine alternative games and have asked an elite team (that's where I come in!) to create the 10th game!!

Watch the video below to discover what my unique game is... I'd love you to take part and see if you can beat my time ;-)



You can join in too, and the best ideas for armchair games will win t-shirts signed by Usain Bolt!

Just tweet your suggestion to @VMLoves and use the hashtag #VMGameOn.

Do let me know what you think of the video - I had great fun filming it!

This blog post is a competition entry for the #VMGameOn campaign. I received a complimentary T-shirt and headband for the purpose of this video!

Also linking up with Let's Talk Mommy's Share With Me linky...

{What's On Glasgow for the Grown-Ups - Part 2}

Ok, so following on from my 'What's On for the Grown-Ups - Part 1', it seemed sensible to follow this with Part 2!!

So instead of some quirky activities like was discussed last time, I thought I'd share a few ideas of places to visit in Glasgow and hopefully this will be helpful for the influx of tourists that will be coming to the city in a few weeks time for Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games!

6. The Barras - for a true Glasgow experience head to the East End for The Barras market where you'll find a mixture of street markets, indoor markets, shops and pubs. The market got it's name from hawkers who used to sell from handcarts (barras or barrows) in the early part of the 20th Century.

{image source}

Whilst you're in the East End pop along to the People's Palace which tells the story of Glasgow and its people. I'm ashamed to admit though that in my 10 years in the city I'm yet to visit here (it's on my list and I've no idea why I've not been yet!).

{image source}

7. The Hydro - is a gigantic entertainment venue (that looks a bit like a UFO!) which opened in September 2013 with a four night run of Rod Stewart (I was there!!). It's also going to host some of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth events. The cladding around the Hydro was originally developed for the space industry and is able to glow in 12.8 million colours apparently. Have a peek here for some more crazy facts!!

{image source}

Me before the Rod Stewart gig! 

8. City Chambers - the City Chambers overlook George Square and it's a very impressive looking building! There are public tours of the chambers, twice daily at 10.30am and 2.30pm, and they are free of charge. You can find out more here. I popped in for a tour a number of years ago (when I was a brunette!) and I was amazed at the opulent marble interior. The grand marble staircase is apparently the largest in the world.

Here we are in the Lord Provost's chair!

{image source}

{image source}

9. Willow Tearooms - the Willow Tearooms were designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh, the Glasgow born architect, in 1904. My mum was a huge Mackintosh fan and as a child I was taken to many of his buildings. The tearooms are a must see for visitors to Glasgow. You'll find the original tea rooms on Sauchiehall Street and there's a newer site on Buchanan Street.

{image source}

10. House for an Art Lover - sticking with the Charles Rennie Mackintosh theme, head to the Southside for 'House for an Art Lover' that is nestled in Bellahouston Park. It's absolutely beautiful and the Art Lovers Cafe serve an amazing lunch. I've been a few times to dine at the cafe and the food is presented so well. Almost looks too good to eat!

{image source}

{image source}

{Once in a Lifetime}

At the risk of sounding old (and I know, I'm not even that old!), back in the day, there were plenty more events and experiences that were considered 'once in a lifetime'... that amazing holiday to somewhere exotic, or getting married. 

I think it's more difficult now to experience something that truly is 'once in a lifetime'. We fly all over the world on a regular basis and marriage is now not necessarily something that's only done once.

After a quick Google search, I discovered that the planetary alignment with the Giza Pyramids only happens once in every 2,737 years. That truly is 'once in a lifetime'.

{image source}

And we all know that lightening never strikes the same spot more than once... let's hope it never hits the Glasgow Mummy house!! 

{image source}

Closer to home, some 'once in a lifetime' experiences might be watching a Hollywood movie being filmed, or maybe even being in the movie as an extra! Remember when Brad Pitt came to George Square to film World War Z?

{image source}

Or more recently, it might be partying to the amazing line up of artists at Radio One's Big Weekend at George Square last month.

{image source}

Anyway, I think you can see where I'm going with this!!

I truly believe that the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games will be a Once in a Lifetime experience for many of us.

I was thrilled to get tickets for the Weightlifting and am really looking forward to it.

{image source}

And if sports aren't your thing, there will be plenty of other things going on in the city.

It's now just One Month to Go!!!

The games will bring together literally thousands of elite athletes, volunteers and spectators to enjoy an incredible festival of sport and culture.

There is going to be an immense buzz in Glasgow in a month's time and I personally can't wait to be a part of Scotland's biggest party.

{image source}

For the tourists that are visiting Glasgow over the next few months, the 'once in a lifetime' experience you need to try is a deep fried Mars bar (which originated in my hometown Aberdeen!) washed down with Irn Bru! ;-)

{image source}