One word? When seven would do…

First of all thank you soooo much for all the comments, emails and the phonecall from people about Ady. It was all very much appreciated and we are both feeling very reassured that it will be fine, and if it isn’t then we have people to share it with – so thanks 🙂

Secondly thanks for your concern about where I am / was! I’ve been pretty busy (see below) and have come down with the kids fluey thing so am feeling pretty crappy and sorry for myself generally 🙁

Thirdly, nah, I don’t like the twisty phones, I did look at them but they seem pretty bulky and I specifically want a dinky phone which does not look like some sort of puzzle created by Rubik!

So. Yesterday then… Out pretty early with Davies begging at regular intervals for me to tell him what the ‘prize’ (surprise) was – I had told him there would be one if he was good 🙂 We delivered a few Christmas cards to various old ladies who Ady used to do gardening work for way back when we first had the house and were poor about 10 years ago – we have stayed in touch with them all and they were desperate to see the kids – especially Scarlett who we didn’t even have last time they all saw us before we moved up north. So that was pleasant and festive feeling…. a funny moment when one particu larly whiskery lady leaned in the car to kiss me and Davies said ‘Mummy, why has that lady got?…’ and I managed to shush him thinking the worst… after she’d gone back in her house he asked ‘Mummy why did you shush me when I wanted to know why that lady had a walking stick?’ evil Mummy thinking the worst eh?!

We then went to my parents where we got Dad to drive us back into town and bring our car back home with him to prevent the whole dilema about parking – too busy to park right in town, we were going to be in town too long for the panto to park in short stay and long stay are too far out of town for Tarly to walk and we didn’t want to take the pushchair cos of the panto. We had lunch, which the kids both ate and were well behaved for, wandered round town listening to all the various tin rattling brass bands playing carols and saw at least three santas before going to the theatre for the panto.

As we sat down and took our coats off I told Davies what it was – don’t think he really understood until it started but we got them a little glowstick laser light thingy each to wave and a big bag of maltesers each and the lights dimmed. The only person we had ever heard of (despite the glowing write ups in the programme about all the stars previous work) was Nick Cotton from Eastenders playing Fleshcreep the baddy. Davies did sit on my lap for both acts – although he got down and sat in his seat again during the interval but I think it was more to do with being higher up and seeing more than anything else. Scarlett was very good really – she did join in with the Booing and shouting but was either on my lap (yes with Davies – just as well I have a big lap eh?!), Ady’s lap, on the floor or somewhere on the two seats between me and Ady, but she did seem to enjoy it. Davies loved every minute – he shouted and screamed, boo-ed and hissed and was in his element. He followed the story far more than we had realised too and has been re-enacting it ever since! It was Jack and the Beanstalk and there was a supporting cast of Jill who he resuced from the giant and married.

Dad then picked us up and we went back to their house for a while where Davies and Tarly spent a happy hour running in and out of Tarly’s playhouse which is still set up in their lounge pretending to me Jack and Jill – which was very cute. Mum and Dad then came over later for fish and chips. I had only been saying to Dad that I didn’t know how I managed to escape getting this flu when half an hour later in the chip shop he said to me ‘are you alright, you look really pale’ and I realised I was actually feeling pretty crap… so that’ll teach me to gloat !

Today we delivered a couple more Christmas cards to people who were not in, then went to Chris and Julie’s. We had not intended to stay long but they cooked some mince pies and the kids were all playing so nicely and they had their real fire lit and Chris kept making me cups of tea so we ended up staying ’til 4pm when we rushed home, so Ady could wash his car before it got pitch dark.

I did have a list of stuff I wanted to get done tonight, but it has fallen apart so I will have to drag myself in order tomorrow to get it all done. The kids were both still awake at 8.30 – not dreadful but we had been trying to get them to sleep since before 7 🙁 I watched Different Life on video while struggling with Scarlett but it was fab – well done Anna 🙂 I also arang my parents this morning to ask them to watch it and they were both very impressed with Anna and the rest of the Clarkes. Don’t think it taught them much though as Mum was full of comments like ‘It’s just as well she went to school for a year as she can help to teach her little brother and sister’ and ‘what subject was Sarah a teacher in then?’ ARGH! She also had another say on what a big committment it was but at least they watched it, saw that there are other people out there doing it who in their own words were ‘a lovely family’ and it’s not just drop out weirdo hippies 🙂

So that’s it really. A nice weekend – the panto went very well and we will definitely do it again next year – gives me confidence for trying some other show type things too next year although not sure what exactly!

Ooh a funny thing Davies said today which gives me concerns about my policy of answering any and all questions though. This may be TMI for some of you so be warned! Both kids are always following me to the loo and so they are familiar with the sight of sanitary protection (see, quite delicate so far eh!) Davies more so as he was seen blood and wanted to know if I am hurt etc. I have explained that a lady makes an egg every month which could be added to a man’s seeds which would result in a baby, but if she does not want a baby then the egg comes out of her body with some blood. It does not hurt and happens every month if she is not having a baby. To stop the blood from making a mess she can either use a tampon which goes inside her or a sanitary towel which is a bit like a nappy and goes in her pants to catch the blood (I know you all know this but I need to explain how i have told it to him). So every month we have this, and as I currently have my period we had it again yesterday. So today we were in the car having some conversation about why the giant was so tall and scary in the panto. I explained that often taller people can seem scarier than shorted people and used the example of Granny and Grandad, which led to men generally being taller than women, which led to me saying that when he grows up to be a man he will probably (I bloody hope!) be taller than me.
‘Do you know where I am going to live when I grow up Mummy?’
‘No darling, you tell me’
‘I’m going to live in the same place still with you Mummy, but I will need to have a bigger bed if I am going to get taller’
‘Ok darling, but don’t you want to get married like Jack and Jill? And I thought you wanted to have babies?’
‘No I don’t want to get married. And I don’t want to have babies’
‘ok darling, well not everyone does get married, or have babies’
‘so will I need to wear a blood towel then Mummy?’
‘A WHAT!’
‘if I don’t want to have babies then will I need to wear a blood towel like you do when you don’t want babies each month?’

erm….. 🙂 🙂 🙂