Mumsnet Talk

Welcome to the 14th instalment of the Tea Room. It's now officially spring, and we've moved the tea room to a Gipsy caravan pulled by the tea room horses, which is making its way up the countryside in an effort to follow spring. There are of course hedgerows filled with spring flowers, Mellors the handsome gardener/driver/handyperson, the usual virtual Bishops, and the assorted animals and characters from previous tea rooms. All are very welcome to join in with us parents of one (or indeed more!) for general chat and the occasional very odd conversation. Climb aboard, grab a cuppa, enjoy the view, relax!...

GREAT STUFF!!!!

www.bigskygypsy.com/Images/gypsy%20caravans.jpg

Hurrah ! What a beautiful caravan

We have been to a farm today - donkeys/goats/pigs fed, baby guinea pigs cuddled, goat kids bottle fed, cow milked. Lovely

Am now contemplating packing. But tis only 3 days actually there, so not too bad.

Yes, great tea room, Amber. Must say that Mellors has chosen a good spot for the night and the campfire is glowing well. It's really quite nice and warm under this awning with the bunting and the tea lights in all those jam jars - the NMBs have been busy. Amazing the way that the AGA and the aspidistra have followed us again. And the bison is proving more than useful pulling the bishops' conveyance.

I love the thought of a day in the Smoke, but it's not going to happen , due partly to the fact hat train fares went up enormously in the 'simplification of the are structure' last year, when they made it far easier to decide which fare to choose by getting rid of the cheap ones. It is now cheaper to drive - how stupid is that, when we are supposed to be reducing our carbon footprints??

When I was TTC I saw an acupuncturist once a month in London and loved having a day to myself. But now I have no such important reason.

Hormonally, I seem to be in the same condition as many other tea roomers. My body never seemed to get back into gear after three pregnancies and all the assorted chemicals and for some time I have had occasional or more regular hot flushy things. When I still actively was thinking about having another baby, it was very upsetting and a big issue; much less so now. I feel that since I can't have another baby, what does it matter?

(I have a friend who feels that the only reason for being alive is to reproduce and that there is 'no point' in anyone who doesn't have children - would she now have me put down?)

Daisy, one of the things I miss most about no more trips to London is no trips to big museums - you are very lucky! Make the most of the time with DaisyBoy - and take him out of school for the odd day next year.

Amber, I had the same concern about the pond.

um, would some punctuation help? here ,,...,. have some to scatter randomly about my posts, I seldom get it right.

The pike were teh pointy weapon variety rather than teh fish type, and were inside teh house, as were most of the other things I mistakenly ascribed to teh pond. sorry.

Popped into our local NT place today so boy could see teh waterwheels and drop hammers working.

This caravan / tiny tea tent set up is rather fine. good to see teh NMBs being helpful to mellors. Their teeny tiny hamocks are kinda cute.

As teh camp fire is going nicely- who will be joining me in a virtual single malt and staring at flames.

I'll pass on the scotch but would be delighted to stare at Mellors the campfire in the moonlight.

We went to a spring fair today. I am delighted with my pink fir apple potatoes.

How else might we lure Racing to The Smoke? Is there a coach service (although I fear the journey would then take all day)?

Coach!

Fear I was not really built for travel. Sea sick, car sick, afraid of flying ... enjoying the new tea room caravan, though.

Ha! The answer is staring me in the face. The gypsy caravan will eventually bring us all to London and we will go to Liberty for afternoon tea and a sewing lesson and then go to a museum or two. And because this will be the tea room, time will stand still and we will be able to spend as long as we want on these things - and cocktails afterwards at Claridge's - and yet, we will still be home for tea.

<<T&E wonders whether she has been watching too much Doctor Who recently or, alternatively, whether the next tea room might be a tardis and take us to Regency Bath>>

by jove, I think shes got it.

i like tea but prefer coffee

T&E that sounds divine. Much more divine than a coach, definitely. I may take DD to London in the summer, but if DH comes it'll have to be the train (or possibly the coach with heavy medication). Plus if DH comes we'll have to get cat-care sorted ... I shouldn't leave him behind for that reason though.

Despite the lovely spring day we've spent a lot of it inside - bowling. DD's birthday party. I had a look at the video I took earlier, and it looks like hell on earth - about ten lanes of bowling, ultra violet light, lights flashing down the lanes, dance music, a giant dancing pin/skittle, bubbles - but was actually surprisingly bearable, and the kids (mostly) had a blast. DD's beloved was a bit overwhelmed, I had to take him outside for a breather, upon which he told me it was the first day of spring (I had actually forgotten). Such a sweetie.

In RL I have a glass of wine, but the caravan is giving me an urge for strong tea in a floral bone china cup and saucer. Odd.

Thank you kindly, Professor Higgins.

Would you like a cup of coffee, dawnangel?

ooh what a lovely new setting! Where I used to live, there was a Very Interesting house at the bottom of my road. Lots of old cars outside, a couple of big white caravans and one teeny old gypsy caravan. I was always interested and would have loved to have been able to see inside but never had the opportunity. However, in the last weeks before we left, we walked past the house and the owner was outside, building a new one! So we stopped and had a chat - he was lovely, very chatty - but the old van wasn't there so I couldn't ask!!

THe Orient Express we could perhaps have as our next tearoom - that used to come past my house every now and then - I remember the first time I heard the whistle and couldn't believe it! It was such a thrill to see it go by. (I love steam engines - my Dad's fault)

Hello dawnangel - excuse my lack of brainpower, are you a new occupant or a returning one? welcome anyway and there is always coffee (and cake) on offer.

Evening all!

Great tearoom Amber!
UniS I thought your pike was a fish!
T&E you have got the whole London day totally sorted, I think we need also to have dinner in some unlikely little Trattoria in Soho, Italian and still in the 70s style with lovely food and then spill out onto the warm night streets and wander along looking at the lights and stopping for a coffee at a table outside before ambling home in time for tea

Thumb thanks for the Hot Flush tips - you know exactly how old I am but sadly this stage of life has come to pass rather jolly very extremely early. Like Racing, partly I think a consequence of all the TTC and partly / mostly the cause. I think because it was so upsetting and involving in terms of trying to hvae a family I have ignored or refused to acknowledge it in terms of me as a person and indeed have peversely taken it as sort of my punishment really - an expression of physical failure. Anyway, the time has come to address the issue so I shall buy teas and menopace and seek some help

Racing, I totally agree, acupuncture for conception seems fine, just for me seems a waste of time and money.....

heh ho, that's a little heavy for Sunday evening. I shall slump with Malt Whiskey but not before saying hello to dawnangel

oh daisy, I am to hear that. Do give the reflexology a go if you can find one near you - it's great stuff, honestly.

There is a rather fab little continental restaurant/trattoria not too far from the Natural History Museum - it's not on the same road, it's on a side road off the other side of the street - if you come out of the NHM and turn left, head for the shops etc, cross over and there is a side road that is at a pretty acute angle - it's down there. The road is part of Thurloe Place, but not the first turning, having looked on Google maps, and it would appear that the place is called Orsini's. It's been a while! But lovely place, if it's still in the same hands - very Franco-Italian feel to it, iyswim. OK, so I've just looked it up and apparently it's just Italian - but it reminded me of some cafés in Paris as well!

well, that's where we shall all have supper then, toward the end of T&E's day. Sounds great Thumb!

<out of breath running after the caravan>

JM, come in, sit down, have something restorative! Tea? or something stronger for you?

Bolly if there's any going. Thumb, are you on FB by any chance?

If you are you can look me up by my email IF you want. If not, no worries!!

no I am one of those saddos who doesn't "do" facebook. I've never been keen on joining things before you can see what they are, iykwim and you can't see FB without joining it. So I'm not on it and have no plans to join it.

Bolly it is - actually, fancy a Kir Royale? I could do with one and it's only lunchtime here!! miniThumb has started to discover the Power of the Veto - i.e. he says NO to everything now.<sigh>. I'm hoping he'll go to sleep soon....

<Mary puffs and pants as she catches up...>

This is pretty cool!

'Morning all, especially dawnangel. Good to see you. Have a coffee.

Anyone else for a drink, now Mellors has got the camp fire going and the kettle boiling over it? Think there's probably sausages being fried.

We seem to have temporarily lost the Bishops, whose Bison went on strike just past Little Piddlemore and is demanding extra hay and no Sunday working. Let's hope they can run this far or the breakfast will be gone...

<whispers> Erm, don't like to ask, but is there a tea room caravan mobile loo? <crosses her legs in a desperate fashion>

I think I saw a pile of peat not too far away Amber, very traditional, fits in with the rustic image

I think I saw the bishops pole vaulting the ditches with their croziers, a few miles back, so they'll catch up soon!

Welcome dawnangel, didn't see we'd got a new arrival

A pile of peat?! I always thought that was for putting on the garden or burning! How little I know!