Fathers Day and my Granny’s birthday here today. Davies and Scarlett were up early with Ady to give him some paintings they’d done for him and a little cardboard tool box (marked ‘torl box’) Davies had made and filled with chocolates. No idea where he bought into the Dad’s tool box stereotype mind you as Ady is not of the tool-toting Dad type ;).
They’d also chosen a film (Night at the musuem which they’d all watched together and enjoyed when it first came out on dvd from the library and we found for £3 and a Toblerone which he loves) so they handed those over too.
Not sure where the morning went really; Davies spent some time outside and Scarlett has been quite engrossed in a new DS game – Puffin Island.
Then we headed off to Granny’s where we were meeting Mum, Dad and Frazer and between us bringing all the food for a lunch there. My uncle Tony lives next door so he was there too. It’s the first time we’ve all been together in years (well ever actually in the case of Davies and Scarlett) although it was a shame not to see my cousin, Dan who I’ve not seen in many years but also lives next door but wouldn’t attend as he and my Granny (who is also his Granny of course) had a big falling out about 3 years ago and have not spoken since.
Cards and presents were given to Dad (Fathers Day) and Granny (birthday), tea was drunk, lunch was eaten and the children mostly amused themselves in the garden with the odd bit of attention from various grown ups. During the 4 hours we were there a friend of my Granny’s called in to bring a cake. She knew Mum but had not met the rest of us before but was annoyingly gushing and over-friendly which I was not feeling very receptive to. Later another friend of Granny’s arrived. She used to work for my Granny (who was a florist and had several flower shops over the years) and I do sort of remember her from my childhood although I had no idea just how old she was (89). She looked amazingly young with either an excellent wig or hairdyed to my colour, a low cut top and full make up and was very alert and alive.
Unfortunately she also managed to put my back up by not listening to Davies properly when he answered her about school and insisting that ‘Everyone has to go to school. If you don’t go to school you’ll never learn anything or get anywhere in life’. I do think someone else might have stepped in and been more diplomatic but they didn’t so I gave a rather spiky correction to that and then equally didn’t respond very well to her questions on whether you could do that and how on earth I managed to find any time for myself and what a big responsibility it must be 🙁
It was one of those being a bitch and knowing you’re being one type moments which I hate and was feeling generally hormonal and unattractive anyway and knowing I was giving a really bad impression to everyone of both me and Home Education. Ah well, never mind.
We did have a few laughs and a mostly pleasant time though and when it became apparent that Davies and Scarlett had had enough and were on the verge of getting squabbly and really letting us all down we left them all to it. I’m imagining they used that as their cue to talk unfavourably about me! 😉
Back home Ady offered to cook dinner so I could go and water the allotment before rather than after dinner so I headed up there on my bike. I picked some more broad beans and peas to have with our dinner, gave it a good watering and rode home again. It’s definitely getting easier to cycle, I should probably up it to at least twice a week now really.
Back home I sat in the garden and shelled the peas and beans and plaited some of the garlic we picked last week so it can be hung up to dry out and the skins go papery. Ady brought me a glass of cider and I felt much cheerier sitting in the sunshine with a drink and some peas to shell :).
Dinner was lovely and we watched Night at the Musem while we ate, which we don’t normally do. Scarlett and I weren’t all that interested in the film so we went and did the washing up and walked round to the shop to get some cream so we could make chocolate cake in a cup for Ady for pudding which he loves.
Once the film was over the kids went to bed and I had a bath. Davies came to chat to me about various things including hormones, what actually happens when you have a period and why it makes me stroppy, what physical and mental changes the body undergoes due to hormones and puberty and menopause and then moved on to Badger camp. We talked about the conversation earlier about Home Ed and he said he’d tried to make sure he chatted to me lots and asked lots of interesting questions infront of the woman to demonstrate how Home Ed works for us. Bless him :). He is still of the opinion he wants to try Badger camp but has firm reservations. I am torn between letting him work it out all by himself and ensuring he is up for it properly before paying the balance! 😆
Tomorrow I will be cheerier!