Episode 32 - The New Zealand tea room

[ComeIntoTheGardenMaud]

Well folks, here we are, beside the hot springs of New Zealand.

The tea room (with the customary distressed chintz sofa) overlooks the steaming, bubbling lake. For the bold and sporty, hiking, biking and sky-diving are on offer. Personally, I'm not planning to leave the spa.

Please come and join us for a celebratory drink and conversation ranging from the profound to the profoundly silly. The cardinal rule remains: no fisticuffs.

I'm sorry we didn't get to the concert - The Girl was invited to a party, which put the timings out, so we went instead to see The Artist. As I said before, it was wonderful.

Would have been nice to see you Maud - but have absolutely no hard feelings about you not coming!!!

OMG! The independant, old-fashioned sweet shop in town now has the most AMAZING array of American candy and other treats (including Root Beer!)!!! I have died and gone to heaven!

:o That's great, Scout! Hopefully they're not charging exorbitant prices for them though.

It's 07:50 am and JB is still sleeping. We had another birthday party to go to yesterday, and then he went to grandma's while I taught my pregnancy yoga classes. He conked out in the car on the way home. Car chatter went something like this:
"Mummy, when we get home, can we play?'
"No, JB, we're going to sleep right away."
"No, no, Mummy, we'll have to eat something, and then play, and then go to sleep."
"You can have a snack, sweetie, but then it will be time to go to sleep."
Grizzle, grizzle, grizzle...
"Mummy...?"
"Yes sweetie?"
"I'm tiiiiiiiiiiiirrrrrrred..."
"Ok, sweetie, just rest your eyes for a moment."
Snore...

Yesterday felt like the longest day. At 1:30 pm it felt like 5 pm. No such luck though.

How's everyone?

I didn't look, JM, and just bought what I went in to get (some gummy rings for Seniors and a couple of mini chocolate mice for Toddler). But they have root beer. Root beer! The one thing I can never bring back with me. I miss root beer. I might have to splurge later in the week and get one. A couple of years ago for Easter, instead of a chocolate Easter Egg, MrScout bought me a case of root beer from the American food shop in the Milton Keynes. Oh did I love him for that!

Hedgepig, fuzpig, hedgehog ....whatever you call it , I saw one in our garden - hurrah, we have a slug eater.

off for big walk tomorrow. with a chap I don't really know! have met him and his wife a few times socially tho. He is helping me take compass bearings for a "treasure hunt" two pairs of eys should be better than one and more accurate.

Good evening!

I love hedgehogs - not sure why we don't have more around here really. I once danced my way down and back up the garden (picking a bay leaf? must have been something like that!) and had trod on 80 large snails by the time I got back to the door. Better dancing as you don't have the other foot on the ground to get squirted that way

Had a 'proper' violin practise session tonight - new shoulder rest very good (he can hold violin up without his hand now). Moved away from the more traditional books - going on sol fa plus a book with mainly rhythms at the moment.

good for Mistle chick. I took boy for a bit of bike training afterschool, 30 min ride home ( instead of teh normal 5) by the scenic route. Potential first race of season on mothers day, or might wait a few more weeks.

Oooh sounds exciting UniS! MC would LOVE to do that sort of thing but we've not found a local club or similar for that sort of thing - he things he goes like the wind, but he's not that quick. Downhill he has momentum helping a lot - uphill needs a bit of a work yet. Has Boy got gears yet or is he managing with just the one? Looks as though we'll be coming down in your direction again - not yet sure of dates etc so I'll let you know just in case we can meet up at a beach or the Totnes thing or similar....

boys bike has 7 gears, they help a lot. not just for uphills but in a race gear management can maximise speed for effort.

Din;t mange to get him out for 30 mins today, we went to the park instead.... and I had a cuppa, then he went to dance class.

tired feet, 5 miles hilly walk today, was nice up on teh moor tho.

We shall have to get gears for the next bike - which was the plan - he'll be growing into the next size up very soon anyway.

Oooohhhh, bikes. Some big boys (probably Boy's age) passed Toddler on bikes over the weekend and he shouted "BIKE!" I've had to promise him when he's a bit bigger that we'd buy him a bike. If the weather ever clears up I'll get TS's scooter out and let him have a go. He's used one at the active group we go to on Mondays and is getting better at knowing what to do and how to do it.

Our "playdate" today, with Toddler's "best friend", had to be postponed until next week. My friend has had two very poorly under-2s.

Tiddler needs a new bike soon too. We are planning an outing to friend of friends bike shop as he has lots of specialist bikes (is a wheelchair user) so I might finally get my double brake lever.

It is sunny and nice in Virginia , and it was lovely to check into a hotel and be greeted like old friends. Well, I have been staying there for 12 years now !

Need hugs, prayers, good thoughts, whatever. Mum emailed this morning at 05:30 to say my stepdad had had a small stroke. He's in hospital. Blood tests ok, some visual impairment, some body-side weakness (not sure which), can speak but very quietly. That's all I know right now.
JB and I are supposed to fly to California to meet DH tomorrow. So far, we're going. I asked mum if she wanted us to come to Toronto instead and she said absolutely not, that if anything changed she would let me know as soon as. So I guess we're going.
Must pack and put JB to bed.
Feeling oddly inert, like all of me is moving through water. I'm so tired.

Thinking of you all JM and sending you big hugs.

Wishing your whole family well JM

Oh JM, that's crap. Sending you big warm hugs and passing you down a fleecy blanket and lots of chocolate.

Have just been told MrScout's working late (like home around 11 late) for most of the rest of the month. Not tramatic like JM's news but sucks the same.

Oh JM. Thinking of you and your family. Fingers crossed for the best possible outcome.

Scout - DP is working very late for most of the next few months as well. It does suck. Full day at work for me, then no respite til DS goes to bed. And he's a bit of a night owl - not often he's in bed before 8/8.30.

Nothing compared to JM, but I'm feeling sorry for myself - got tonsillitis of all things. Apparently I had it once before when I was a tot - I didn't realise it hurt so much!

Scout - That really does suck. Could MrScout casually slip the working time regulations into conversation, or has he voluntarily opted out?

Jacksmama - That is grim, but the outcome could be better than you think. I have PMed you and meanwhile have fingers and toes crossed.

evening all. would you like some ice cream? or maybe a tuna, spaghetti and jam sandwich ( with sprinkles if you like).

My virtulal self is going to spend teh evening in here curled up on distressed chintz sofa with a book. I'm reading "unseen academicals" by T-pratchet. How about you?

I'm sure he knows that law/regulation, Maud. The guy overseeing his current project is a numpty (to put it nicely). MrScout wasn't meant to be on this project and then only temporarily when he took it/got put on it while he's in a holding pattern for the next project he's meant to be on (he was requested by senior people to be on it, gone through the process for it but the work's not available until end of this month/April). It wouldn't be quite so bad if he didn't have nearly a 2 hour commute one way. And because the guy's an idiot MrScout will leave for work early (before his normal 6:30) so he can actually get some work/his work done before Numpty gets in.

I know it's temporary but it's still a pain in the @ss.

It also wasn't supposed to start tonight and MrScout was supposed to beat Toddler and I home from Seniors but he messaged me about 10 minutes ago saying he was just about to leave the office.

Ohhhh. Some of the DC here might like this, too.

We went to something like that in France, but only did the ground-based activities!

Interesting space weather we are having!
Maybe a chance for auroras - although the most likely time for the geomagnetic storm is around dawn (UK time).
JM - you might see something though!

here is the spaceweather forecast!
and here is the Aurora forecast