Thursday We were supposed to be going to London for the day as a local HEor had gotten tickets for the Maharaja exhibition at the V&A. I’d already thought on Wednesday that we might be better off having a day at home but set my alarm to get up, make picnic lunch and rouse Davies and Scarlett. Davies was already up but sneezing like mad and looking pretty pale and washed out. A quick confer between the three of us concluded we’d all actually rather just stay home and have a peaceful day so I texted our apologies to the organiser and we settled in with various things we each wanted to do.
Davies had some new ideas for animation station stuff thanks to working on things with M on Wednesday on their animation station. He also did some fab paint pictures of Day, his crisp packet character who lives at a landfill site. We talked some more about what he wants to do with that and hopefully we’ll find some time in the next week to set something up, a blog or website or something for him to progress with his plans for that. Will link as and when that’s sorted and will also post a pic of his paint stuff too soon.
Scarlett spent some time looking at books and DSing, she’s into mini-games style games on the DS at the moment and is spending lots of time hushing everyone and telling us off for distracting her while she is trying to concentrate! 😆
I carried on trying to get a handle on the crazy world of Home Education in the UK and spent some time dreamily looking forward to camp. I really need the break, the relaxed time spent with friends who also happen to be HEors and the chance to switch off from everything other than why we do what we do. I had a text from our mate Jim, who moved to Ireland 5 years ago asking if we were up for him coming over for the evening as he was staying locally with his MIL for the night before heading to his annual lads weekend at Butlins on Friday. I texted back to say yes.
The kids and I have been talking about going to Emmaus for weeks to look for various bits for our Secret Santas so we decided to do that. As usual we got lost on the way – it is very close to us and I do know the way if I go via one road but I always decide it would be quicker to go via another route and then realise it probably is, if I only knew which road to turn off at to get there 😆 We drove past it three times then because there was nowhere to park before eventually driving a short way away and parking and walking back to it.
Scarlett and Davies both got some bits for SS, both got something small each and I picked up a top for me, about 5 different kits (perfume factory, brand new fimo kit, flower pressing kit and various other things) which I was anticipating paying about a tenner for in total – the top was labelled at £2.50 and Scarlett had already asked the price of the armful of stuff she had and been told £1.50 the lot, but the bloke at the till just asked me for £4.50 for everything :). Hurrah!
We came home via Sainsburys where I rather blew that good work by buying two jumpers in their half price sale for myself (bargains but not as bargaintastic as Emmaus!), various bits for lunch and some stuff for the kids tea to make up for them not having McDonalds at Victoria which I’d said they could probably have when we’d been planning to go to London.
Home for a very late lunch and we all watched Coraline together which we’d picked up at the library on Tuesday. I think it’s a fab film, enjoyed it at the cinema when Ady and I took Davies to see it in 3D. Scarlett was a bit reluctant but she actually enjoyed it too despite it being pretty dark. We then watched all the dvd extras (aside from the entire film again with directors commentary) which meant we spent about 3 hours watching various Coraline related stuff. Davies was very envious of the puppeteers and all the various little bits and pieces of body they were making. We talked about the voiceover actors and other things they had been in / done voices for (Jennifer Saunders is in Shrek as Fairy Godmother, Dakota Fanning is in Cat in the Hat and War of the Worlds, oh and Charlottes Web that Davies knows of).
I did their tea, spoke to Jim to confirm he was welcome over any time and then Ady arrived home. Ady and Davies spent some time looking at a DS game site while Scarlett and I ploughed through a HUGE pile of picture books I’d picked up at Shoreham library. I’ve taken them all back now and can’t remember them all but we read for nearly an hour.
Jim arrived while that was all still happening and sat watching us all for a bit before the kids eventually went off to bed. Scarlett did lots of coming back in and out, Davies cleared off and stayed away. I won’t say too much about Jim’s life as it’s his story not mine but I did feel very sad to hear and see someone I’ve known for nearly 20 years, when we were both just starting out as adults really, having such high hopes and dreams for himself and his family and now sitting here with regrets and sadness 🙁 We had a great evening, full of laughs and in-jokes that five years distance will never erase and we picked up where we left off really. There were some poignant moments where he said he wished he’d been as involved with and taken as much joy from his sons when they were still as little as Davies and Scarlett, and another moment when he said he asked his wife for a radio for Christmas after one of the first times he’d come round here for dinner and sat listening to Ady and I singing along to the radio together in the kitchen while doing the washing up. He says that radio has always lived in his kitchen with the intention of he and his wife singing along to it together. They never have 🙁
I realised the difference between us though when I said I considered the most important thing I will ever impart to my kids is that they are responsible for their own happienss, life will be to do with their perspective on what is dealt them and we choose to be happy or not. He said he agreed to a point but still felt money made a huge difference and would continue to encourage his kids to amass as much money as they could. Maybe it’s to do with being the child of two parents with that attitude and seeing it never made either of them happy despite the vast amounts they have amassed that makes me disagree with him but I suspect Ady and I would still sing together in the kitchen even if we couldn’t afford to have a radio and that will be what makes us happy.
Philosophising aside we had a great night, way, way, way too much alcohol was consumed. Laughter got louder, Ady and Jim have the same slide phone as each other so I was calling ‘DRAW!’ every so often and they were racing to slide their keypads out, we put a sticky plaster on a can of beer to represent Pudsey and found that hysterical and it was all just very silly but very fun. Jim finally left at about 230am and my alarm went off at 8am, a mere five hours after I’d finally got to bed.
Which brings me to Friday. Ady bought me and the kids all different Pudsey t shirts a couple of weeks ago (mine is red, Scarlett’s is black with rhinestones, Davies’ is long sleeved pretend t shirt over long top) so I was wearing mine and then got a text from F at work to say it was dress down day and we could wear jeans so I quickly got changed and headed off to work.
5 hours sleep and 1.5 bottles of wine does not make for a buzzed up, enthusiastic Baby Rhyme Time leader really but I’m assured I pulled it off ;).
The day felt pretty slow though. I had tea with a couple of colleagues who were talking jokingly about reusable sanitary towels (no idea how we got on to the subject) so I said I used them, and a mooncup and they were shocked and rather horrified, which I found a bit sad really. Quite ironic that I then had to ring Ady to ask him to bring me an emergency parcel of just that 😆 It was spotted being handed over and they asked what it was to which I tried to persuade them to see but they refused to be anything other than grossed out by it all. Ah well. F said her 17 year old daughter is still so squeamish about the whole thing she has to buy it all for her as she can’t even buy the stuff. I’m thinking Scarlett – and actually Davies, already having a very matter of fact attitude to all these things is surely a better way forward?
I planned my Christmas display (12 days of Christmas, planning to enlist D and S’s help on that one) and generally did my job really. Not sure I was in a fit state to recall detail worthy of blogging.
Davies is definitely coldy, hopefully that’s all it is and I feel on the rough side but I’m assuming hormones and hangover are responsible rather than a virus.
Back at home Dad was here as Mum had dashed off to accept a job offer. She has been doing some voluntary work for another charity shop and they have now offered her a proper job too. I’ve not spoken to her about it all yet but Ady said she was really buzzed up and is planning on taking that one and turning the other one down now. Massive confidence boost to her to be offered two jobs within two weeks though :).
I cooked dinner for the kids, walked Tarly round to Rainbows, chatted to the leader who said that it is the last Rainbows before Christmas next week, they have a Christmas presentation and it will also be Scarlett’s leaving session as she turns 7 the following week. Wow, end of Rainbows! They did practising for the Christmas presentation (singing mostly I think). I went back to pick her up and Ady arrived home at the same time as we did.
I cooked, we all watched Children in Need, I tried and failed to have a peaceful bath as all three of them kept coming to tell me stuff and try to talk to me (grr) and finally everyone went to bed. Which is precisely what I’m about to do too.