Tea Room the Eighteenth - the Cricket Pavilion

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Welcome one and all to our new abode - a lovely old-fashioned Cricket Pavilion, with decks outdoors and a rather lovely Members' Bar, complete with deep-seated leather comfy chairs and any drink you care to mention.

Our outdoor amenities include the well-tended cricket pitch, kept immaculate by Mellors, our multi-purpose man; a couple of tennis courts round the back for those who prefer the Wimbledon scene; and another multi-purpose pitch (can be used for hosting Fine Lad-style rugby matches, or Little Kickers' football, or the occasional All Comers' Lacrosse Tournament.

Bishops abound, mostly snoozing in the leather armchairs; there are sundry animals around - guineapigs and bison mostly - and of course the Naked Mohawk Babies, fetchingly attired in cricket whites (most unusual for them!)

The cricket pavilion tea room is open to all - those with only one child who need a safe haven predominate but having more than one child is fine - come in, have an egg'n'cress sandwich and a glass of Pimms!

*other fillings and beverages also available.

oh....

I'm behind on my Christmas cards this year. Usually I have them finished by now but I'm only about half way done this year. ACK! Last year, for the first time since we were married, we had bought cards because I couldn't get my pregnant bum in gear to do them before BabyScout was born.

How about some glittery makeup? Or you can get moisturiser or foundation with glitter in?

Hmph. DH is out being cultured tonight watching WNO do The Magic Flute with his nephew. I am at home doing laundry.

I had acupuncture for the first time today which was interesting. Am getting to know everyone at the physio dept (in our dinky community hospital which has one ward) very well now.

DS has not been well behaved at school - well, it varies. Numeracy, literacy, music, french, pe are all ok, sitting and drawing etc not so good. Teacher is confused by his total disinterest in stickers/incentives

Is he not very good at drawing, CMOTD, or does it just bore him? Would he be better off with a set square, ruler and technical drawing, perhaps?

Did the acupuncture help?

He can draw, and not too badly. I think there may be a case that he is bored by being told what to draw, so messes about. Who knows how his mind works

It was only a 10 minute trial to check I wasn't going to keel over, but it did something, but didn't last

Fashion show started with a "wow" and finished with a round of applause and "bravo bravo"

Sometimes I love my family sooooo soooo very much!!!

Green and glittery, scout - Well...

My Mum's sea grass carpet.... seriously!!!

My sister and I went to a halloween party and dyed our hair green and glittery... yeeeaaaars - I mean ten years plus later you could and perhaps even now can still see tiny pieces of green glitter in the woven sea grass carpet in certain lights!

My parents are very house proud but like the glitter. I think they mourn our teenage years a bit like I do Milk's babyhood (I have no idea why because we were horrible navel gazing self hating and grungy teenagers) and like a little reminder around the place of crazy things that happened in that time that actually has a chance of staying with them forever.

Aaaahaaa - lovely pics scout!!!! Your lad is certainly gonna break a few girls hearts in his life time but probably after his bath!

CMOT - Sympathies re CMOTtiddler's behaviour... have you already been down the working towards a treat route?

Scout - I am not sure whether you are completely wonderful or a bit mental re making Christmas cards... how many do you make and what sort of thing do you do on each card???

Working towards a treat only works if it is something large - sweets/toys are not an incentive.

I feel for you.

Do you catch him being good as often as possible?

"Well done - that is exactly what I expect." schtuuurrrff???

Mind you I am not one to offer much advice...
We went out for a Lebonese with a friend on Monday and Milk acted like a half-crazed brat over the whole dinner. Friend's daughter was completely 100 percent angelic...

Yes, lots of praise for good behaviour - and it's not that he can't do it, he knows the rules perfectly and can, just chooses not to when it suits his plan not to. Gah. MIL tells me he is exactly like dh at that age and he sent her round the twist too.

But a lot of it is seeking that we don't see at home as obv he gets the adult attention

green and glittery. Kermit in tinsel?

I'm cold, must go get a jumper. or shall I light the stove...

Have lit teh stove, and will also go get a jumper.

Need to deal with smelly slippers next.

Clearing up after invasion of the relatives too. Sad to see them go as probably won't see them for years now. I've either left my jumper in their car or its some where in teh mess in teh kitchen. Every thing was dumped after our day out as they needed to get off fairly early , kids won't sleep in teh car.

BUT we did have a really nice day out at a beach. kite flying, hunting in rock pools, building sand castles, having to shift half way through lunch as tide came up rather fast, crabbing, walking along harbour wall in the wind and sun AND eating LARGE ice creams, perfect.

sympathy for your 4 yr old CMOT. I suspect boy will be similar once at school, he just doesn't see teh point in drawing/ colouring and he does like to talk and talk. stickers are not much motivation, time on i-player is.

Thanks, tea. He is a big flirt already, and has been for months. Take us into a room full of babies and he finds the girls. "Big girls" come into a room or cafe and he turns on the charm. I'm convinced that's why he's such a good boy at Guides and Seniors.

I have a die-cutting system, an electronic cutter and now, this year, a stamp system. A lot of times I use the cutting systems, then glue everything and put the toppers onto a card, then stamp a Christmas greeting inside. I think I make about 150 cards a year -- MrScout's friends/colleagues, my friends/colleagues and then all of the Americans. This year I'm doing something slightly different.

I often think I should make packs of cards to sell but never get my bum in gear in time.

CMOT, wasn't it weird having all of those needles poking out? The thought gives me the heeby-jeebies.

Ah yes very good! I have a friend who lives not too far away from you who is into the same thing. Infact she is also into guiding...

- maybe you know her!!!

I don't do Guiding in my county, but in the neighboring county that shares a name with ye old University town....

I loathe Christmas, but also make our own cards. Luckily we have no friends we only ever send/give about 15 cards a year. We choose a Sunday in early December, invite friends round with their children, get out all Wriggle's arty stuff and make soup. Most cards get made by friends' partners who spend hours on details, while we women are all racing round wiping, mopping, feeding, washing, mopping up again, making drinks, etc. That makes it sound like we have lots of friends, but it is usually only two other families.

Small, we are missing you! Why is middle age getting you down? I am sure that there are many compensations ... I sometimes feel relief that it no longer matters that I am not beautiful and can concentrate on my beautiful daughter. And there is no longer any need to try to impress (never very successful, anyway). Come back, please!

Boy and I have made xmas card for last couple of years, but not on scouts scale of operation . WOW. we just do some for close family. Last year I let boy loose with christmas theme stampers on a mauve piece of card that I then stuck on teh front of silver card stock. He has also done Christmas stickers on gold or silver card stock. it helps that he is minimalist, the right stickers look good when there is only one or 2 on a card.

This year I'm already getting boy to make some cards for his preschool buddies. Last years christmas cards to us, take teh fronts off, use them as postcards and he decorates the back with christmas stampers , writes his name and if I can persuade him , the name of recipient child. no envelopes needed. Am I being tight fisted?

STove lit now, took me several goes, but its my first time. just hope DH didn't count teh matches :-)

MAy I offer you roasted chestnuts and a warming glass of something mulled. Seems appropriate with all this christmas talk.

Actually the more I think about it the more I am scared of scouts die-cutting system and electronic cutter...

electronic cutter??! does sound bit serious.

night all

UniS - depending on your stove type, you can just burn the used matches as well so DH will never know...

Am also scared of Scout's scale of card making. I buy cards, nearly always have done apart from about 3 years at senior school when I made my own template and we ran off lots on the Roneo duplicator that we had (oo aren't I ooooollllllddd)

They don't seem to sell the machine I came over with, but it was manual and I over-used it. But our second Christmas as married, MrScout gave me this (in white). Then, two Christmases ago he gave me one of Expression Machine these.

They really do make making cards easy to "mass produce."

I think next year on BabyScout's second birthday I'll do his handprint, then scan it into the computer and use it to make Christmas trees (upside hand) for cards. That way he's helping, but I don't think he'll be willing to do much more at two. I might be able to get him to stick some stickers on his tree-hand as ornaments, but we'll see.

Yes, I am sad.

I know they start dropping their morning nap around 12/13 months. But I KNOW he's tired. He was falling asleep over his toys. Why oh why won't he just give in and go to sleep?!?!

Scout - you may, like us - be saying the same thing about the odd weekend afternoon when he could really do with catching up on a few zzzs to get ready for the school week to come... but, oh no, he won't have any of it!!!

handprints also make good reindeer horns too....

For those potato printers (rather than electronic cutters) out there, I have found that if you use a metal holly leaf cutter, put it in the flat cut side of a potato and then cut to the metal you get quite an accurate stamper - then blue and yellow makes a decent green - particularly good if its a bit varied over the leaf - and small fingers do good berries in clusters... Very easy to sort. Stars are also good to cut this way too - mc did cards for his classmates last year like this (no envelopes!)

CMOt - I hope that you find accupuncture does help a bit - was the person hopeful when you discussed things? I only had it sort of accidentally - but having had it once am very prepared to have it again, although it is a bit strange.... I have actually fallen asleep on the couch which is pretty amazing really. Mistlechick wasn't keen on seeing me like a hedgehog - and this was some time ago, and I had to get the person back in (she was treating someone else whilst leaving me doing a hedgehog impression with mistlechick) to take him for a wee!

Just popping in to get back on "Threads I'm On" - busy week. Will update later on or tomorrow. Have a funny if embarrassing story to share (not me this time but my friend who's my hair stylist). Serious foot in mouth issue :o

Ok well, my patient is late so here goes:

my girlfriend who owns a hair salon rang last night and left me a voice mail. As nearly as I can, I'll transcribe here:

"Hi there... I have to tell you something I did today. I feel like such a tool. You had referred a patient of yours to the salon and she came in to see (one of the stylists). So she was sitting there and of course I had no way of knowing that she has Parkinson's Disease. So as I walked past her I asked her if she was bobbing her head in time to the music

OMG."

:o :o :o :o :o

I was absolutely PISSING myself laughing. Oh my poor friend!!! But :o :o :o

Had to tell you all. I knew you guys would get it.
BTW, I know the patient rather well, she'd have rolled her eyes and laughed it off. So no worries on that front. :o