Tea Room 17 - The Tropical Beach Hut

[amberlight]

Welcome to the 17th version of the Tea Room. We find ourselves on a tropical beach, with the tea room now in a beach hut on stilts, the waves lapping on the golden sands beneath. Palm trees surround us. Our virtual gardener/beach surfing dude/handyman, Mellors, is here to tend to your every need. He looks like the person of your dreams (male, female or otherwise ). There are of course holidaying Bishops and other leaders of faith, the Camels, the Bison, various guinea pigs, the tea room horses, a life-size cut out of George Clooney, the NMBs (please don't ask me to explain how Mohawk Babies joined us, and a wide variety of other virtual followers. We chat, we relax, we share how life is. All in need of friendship are most welcome. The kettle is on...and the distressed chintz sofa has of course made the journey over. Enjoy.

I always like the taste of de Jour Amber

Scout - have you tried a self hypnosis tape ? I got an MP3 of one for riding confidence, and discovered that it sent me to sleep in minutes, no matter where I was or when - I listen to it on planes now and zonk out totally.

Oxeye - don't worry - you have quite enough to deal with. No, DS's future wife (apparently) won't be going to the same school. Hopefully they will keep seeing each other at riding and in the holidays as they both want to go to holiday pony club.

DH working hard today at the cricket..

Very happy news here - we have a new cleaner starting next week as we finally know that our old one isn't coming back. T'will be blissful as we are both slatterns

CMot - our dog walker took on some cleaning too - and does chick sitting - but she's in hospital at the mo so we're struggling!

no no no, emailing you is not "stuff to deal with" tis pleasure, but I am just not quite up to speed I like your DH's job sound!

Amber, not surprised you got Inception. I see you as an Architect

hope all and sundry are well. We are off on hols so I will see you soon - perhaps another thread! Remember to leave crumb/ aspidetra/ nmb trail
xx

Have a nice time Oxeye. If you arebringing aback pressies.... I've a hankering for some sweet and sticky rock please

Have a luvverly time Oxeye

Hope the hol is lovely, Oxeye

'Evening all

Hey guys! I'm back from my trip down the country. How's everything around here? Scout, how are you doing? I've been thinking about you and hoping all is going well.

Nice to see you both.

Ehllo everyone - quiet down time in the tea room at the mo, isn't it! Everyone must be on hols.

I was just starting to get all maudlin and fed up because some of my best mates (I thought) in the UK hadn't replied to my email - so I sent them a more specific one, just in case they'd missed the first one. Thankfully got a reply this eve so feeling slightly less unloved! Silly, isn't it.

Am v.grumpy at the mo - will join MMMM in the belligerent corner, being grumpy and belligerent at anyone outside of the tearoom who annoys me (yes, that includes YOU, beachsellertypes!)

I've been lurking. We're at the in-laws this weekend for FiL's birthday (tomorrow) and my birthday (next week, while at Guide camp). Stupid medicines make me tired and cause sleep disruption all at the same time so haven't been sleeping well and have been napping in the morning and afternoon when BabyScout sleeps. He, however, is also sleeping poorly this weekend and think it's down to sharing a room with HubbyScout and I. Since he's been in his own room he sleeps really well and I think the three of us are keeping each other awake. The next few weeks will be interesting since we'll all be in the same tent at camp then in the same room on holiday.

BabyScout has really settled into nursery well. (WHEW!) I picked him up early on Friday (to come to IL's) and all of the babies were at the table having their snacks and drinks. He saw me come in and his WHOLE BODY lit up. His arms and legs started going and I swear had he not been strapped into his chair he'd have gone dive-bombing trying to get me. Then he kept grinning at the teachers and the other babies and smiling at me going "momomomomom". He made me a painting as well on Friday and it will have pride of place on the refrigerator when we get home tonight. He's painted before, but this is the first picture he made without me being there.

It still makes me well up with tears at the thought of the full body light up and the excitement he had at seeing me.

Getting my haircut on Tuesday -- can't wait as I can no longer see.

Waves hello to everyone!

Awww SCout - that's lovely!

Damn it, just posted a long message and it disappeared!!!

Basically I said:

Scout - Are you sure about camp? I'm worried that you are putting too much pressure on yourself during this time.

Also, what are you doing to your hair? A trim or a dramatic change?

Thumb - Feel free to be belligerent !

Re quietness, Racing, Mary and Oxeye are on hols. But what about Tea and Small? They don't seem to have been around for a while.

I have good news, we have reached our savings target for our Goa trip!!!

Also, I have a thread in childrens books. Here is the link:

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/childrens_books/1017623-Big-books-for-a-4-year-old-boy

Any book recommendations would be welcome.

Thanks AandO, but I should be okay. My role at camp has changed dramatically and am really only needed for an hour or so in the morning and an hour or so in the evening. I'm now activities coordinator for our group, which means I need to make sure all of the girls have signed up for the next days program and that they have their kit packed for the next day. And then, in the mornings, making sure they get on the right coach or go to the right activity. MrsGuider has also said if it gets to be too much they'll work something out and I shouldn't worry myself.

As for my hair, just a trim. I got it all cut off in May, when I went home. My hair used to be down almost to my bum but I got tired of BabyScout swinging from it. In May I got it about chin-length so now he just tugs, not swings. Really I just need my fringe/bangs trimmed so I can see.

Tea is local -- I'm meeting up with her this week.

YAY for reaching your target, AandO!

Unis wanders in to the tea rom, she has a wis of hay behind one ear and is whistling a folk tune.

work over for teh weekend. In laws packed off to a concert at local festival ( where and Dh were both working) . Boy has had a fantastic weekend, hes been SOOOO confident about getting up and doing stuff in the kids dance workshops and demos. And living here its fine for boys to dance, the winner of the U16 step dance comp ws a boy who has just left the local school. Boy just did his thing in the U6 demo group and when Morris teams wanted kids to join in. we had to persaude him that he should not enter the step dance comp himself after only 30 mins of beginner workshop... he was wanting too.

any one for a ginger beer and a bacon bap?

Not in a lewd roll.

Spoke too soon -- by the time I got home from the in-laws tonight I was starting to feel bad. Felt a bit better, did bottles, etc. (which would do even if feeling bad because BabyScout needs to be fed!), and feel bad again. HubbyScout isn't home tonight, so feeling bad alone. Fingers crossed because BabyScout had a wake & feed around 9 o'clock when we got home (had to get him out of the car) that he sleeps through until the early hours.

Off to try to sleep.

Any sleep had?

Teas, coffees and breakfast now cooking on the tea room beach Aga, thanks to Mellors in his small white pinny over his short shorts.

BabyScout slept through until about 6:30/6:45. YAY! I've been awake since 5:45 though.

Mmmm, breakfast. Thanks!

How are you, amber?

Glad you had a reasonable night Scout! Ds woke up at 7.30 () on Sunday morning. Unfortunately, I had gone to bed at a realatively early time on Sat pm - so my back had had enough of lying down so I'd been awake from 5ish...

And this mornign is the early start for DH (alarm at 4.30, off by 5.10) and I was awake for at least 30mins before that - although I did manage to get a little bit more sleep before getting up.

UniS - I can just imagine Boy joining in with great enthusiasm! I think Mistlechick would probably have joined in too quite happily.... in fact, he is asking to do ballet at school this year - I'm not really into ballet and would have prefered him to do the jazz dance but it clashes with tennis.... We shall wait and see!

Morning all.

Thanks for the scrummy breakfast Amber. Glad you slept well Scout. LittleO woke at about 8.15. He is not one for early mornings thank goodness. He usualy wakes between 8 and 8.30am.

Mistle - Do boys commonly do ballet in his school? (Is it a class offered in school btw?). Also, I've been meaning to ask for a while, how is Mistlechick getting on at school now? I remember some time back there was an issue with arm swinging and being a bit 'lively' and you were concerned he would get labelled.

LittleO starts summer camp this afternoon. I booked him in so that we can get on with packing up the house but I have been concerned about it ever since I signed him up. He is not great at going to people he does not know, and takes a while before he'll relax around other people. I'm concerned that he'll get upset. I don't want to force him to go if he is crying. But I also don't want to just bring him home. What should I do?

How am I? I'm not sure. Functioning, but in a 'really easily derailed into feeling awful' sort of way. Think I need a holiday, or a new brain, or both.

Amber - try one of these - its a 'summer holiday special' cocktail, of your favourite colour, with a cocktail umbrella to match - and can be alcoholic or not as required... Let us know if off-loading helps!

A&O - thank you for asking aobut mistlechick's progress - he did get significantly better at around halfterm of the Spring term - I told him that he wouldn't have any party at all if he didn't start behaving better, and I think that was a factor in getting a bit more effort on that front - and becuase of that he found out that behaving was actually not bad in itself and had its own rewards... Quite luckily, another boy started in teh summer term - from a different country, minimal English, never been to school before - his behaviour was SO AWFUL that he took over as the worst boy in the class quite easily (and we majored on that too ) - in fact, mistlechick was picked out to do some helping with him etc - he could put up wiht the roughness a bit better - and actually put himself in between the boy and girls in his class so that the boy didn't hit the girls (I'm a boy, he doesn't hurt me!). He got one of those reports that I think we're going to get quite familiar with - that you can read things into the comments without them being explicit... 'Demonstrates great enthusiasm' , 'keen to discuss' (won't stop talking to let anyone else have their say) etc - although some very good things - and his imagination has been remarked upon... .

I think that its his imagination that's causing him to hare into our room at midnight after bad dreams...

Ooo, an Irish Liqueur Ice Cream cocktail! My favourite! Thanks!

Offloading helps me but does nothing for other people, so right now I'm throwing myself into work (not literally) and trying not to think.

Lunch time already - have laid out some tropical beach buffet.

I do like all this nice fruit for lunch Amber - thank you! I will leave the seafood for other people that way inclined though...

Thinking ahead - I was wondering about a quintisentially English Beach with a beachhut on wheels (or at least painted in different colours), an icecream vendor with one of those bicyle/icebox contraptions, seagulls and sandcastles?