Tea room the Eighth - sun, sea, sangria, and perhaps a sandy Mellors

[DontCallMeBaby]

Greetings, welcome to the eighth incarnation of the tearoom.

The tearoom has been, and will be again, a virtual safe haven for anyone up for rather random chat and a comprehensive range of virtual snacks. Nothing in the tearoom will make you fat, or drunk (unless you want it to) or cause an allergic reaction.

The new tearoom location is a beautiful beachside cafe (no need for factor 50, the virtual sun will just lightly tan you, bring out your freckles or simply warm your skin, as you prefer) with a range of garden swings, hammocks, sunloungers, deckchairs etc (as well as a rather incongruous, but well-loved, chaise longue). For those in need of sanctuary, we have managed to fashion a new priesthole out of woven grasses.

Our fellow residents include Mellors the rugged gardener of few-but-well-chosen words, the naked mohawk babies, a coterie of bishops, various domestic pets, and a selection of others. On the human side, all are welcome - while we live in the One Child topic some regulars have more than one, and we are welcome all (except people who put their heads on one side and tell those of us with one child that it's just not fair to have only one child).

Please help yourself to a glass of Champagne and a canape on the way in ...

www.amazon.co.uk/Taking-Bath-Other-Things-Happy/dp/0763629197/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1242944 032&sr=8-1

What a fab looking book UniS!!!

T42 adds it to her Amazon wishlist!!!!!

Bath with the dog? Blimey no, you get scratched all over! Mind you bathing a dog you might as well get in the amount of stuff that flies!

Rats, Thumb, bad bad wee

Amber, I think relaxation techinques without the breathing may be good - what about a yoga tape? Could you do a flotation tank - no touching, no sensory anything. I've never done it but wonder if it would help or panic you?

Hope birthday people are well - CMOT did your DH manage a second day in the smoke?

we're off with family for the weekend, should be fun. DaisyBoy is beside himself with excitement. I felt very today. Getting into his bath he was tired and hyper and generally toddlerish and he weed on the bathroom floor. As I lifted him into bath so it went EVERYWHERE, includng me.

Oh DaisyBoy I said with some exasperation. Why did you do that?

Because I am not a very nice boy and I am not a thoughtful boy he said sadly

OF COURSE I now feel totally terrible and miserable and spent ages saying no, no, no, you are a lovely boy and have spent the evening telling myself I must try to find more patience from anywhere.....

that just about sums up Daisy's day ...

Ahh, Daisy. Don't beat yourself up. Being wee-ed on is exasperating. Give Daisyboy a big hug and tomorrow will be a different, better day.

Thumb - So sorry about the bad bad wee but you're right about the downside of being pregnant right now. We'll have another cocktail night soon so you can get your Between The Sheets action.

Amber - I think yoga might suit you. You can get a DVD if classes would be too uncomfortable.

Anyone want to help me finish the pinot grigio?

daisy, I think the floatation tank would panic ME - if amber has any kind of claustrophobia issues it would be a Bad Idea, although you can apparently leave the lid open. We had one in the therapy centre where I worked for a while - I was never tempted to go in it! Plus the water was heavily chlorinated for hygiene reasons - yuk.

for DaisyBoy and you - sometimes those days just get on top of us, don't they.

amber - I am still trying to think of things that would help you - how are you with having your head only touched, or your feet only, or your hands?
head - you could consider Indian Head Massage OR cranial massage
feet - you could try reflexology, but if feet are a no-go then it can be done on the hands instead.
Reflexology can be very soothing and relaxing.

There are points on your forehead, directly above the centre of your pupils, just where the bone of the forehead goes into a natural depression - these are called the Emergency Stress Release points. You can try laying your fingertips lightly on these, both at the same time, and taking slow, deep breaths. When we are shocked or panic or in a stew, sometimes we clap a hand to our foreheads - this is an instinctive reaction to activate these Emergency Stress Release points, but for general relaxation, you can forego the clapping the hand to the forehead thing and use the gentle fingertips option instead. Don't push, you don't need to - just let the fingertips rest on the points.

What are you like with music? Does it soothe or irritate you? Just lying in a darkened room with music on and focusing only on the music can help people to relax as well.

Tis a shame about the useless wee but I might have another go tomorrow morning as no show so far for the period, and I am due to go for the x-ray tomorrow so might as well make sure!

Oooh, Thumb, hope tomorrow's wee is more exciting!

Amber, scrap the flotation tank, it sounds like a Bad Option

thanks for the pinot grigio MadBad, that's a bit better

I wouldn't like the floatation tank either - too claustrophobic - and in the Bond stories you end up being locked in them don't you... (or is that steam things instead... not sure, and can't remember title of book)

Went to the races with work yesterday which was fun although rather too alchoholic - so I think I might stick to the pineapple juice
today. (Don't have a headache - clearly managed to drink sufficient water to stave that off, but still think that a bit too much was partaken)

Bathing Mistledog is quite difficult - she doesn't like baths, so trying to get her inot the bath is quite difficult - she seems to develop paws that cna shoot out in all directions and brace away from the bottom of the bath. MJ thinks its great fun (probably because she hates it so much) and is fascinted with the water running off dirty. But at least she's not slippery like parent's collie/terrier cross - who would shoot out of the bath given the opportunity and was very difficult to hold when wet.

MJ is having a 'camping' day at school today - great excitement - he doesn't know yet that a F&C van is coming to provide lunch for them! Hope it stays fine as they've got tents set up on the field - but I think they'll have to retire to the hall if it gets too wet (not that MJ will mind of course - he has a waterproof - and is used to getting drowned in the rain when out!)

DH managed to get back from the smoke fine (seems like it's a terribly hard life getting legal advice in restaurants), and departed for Belfast yesterday morning. I have dispatched him to Homebase on his way back from the airport to get carpet cleaner solution. I looked at the carpet downstairs this morning, and the effect of cat-the-younger eating a rabbit in the hall yesterday needs a full clean before guests tomorrow

I note that I forgot it was a bank holiday on Monday. It obv isn't in Switzerland where I am going for the day. Ho hum.

I bath with DS. This is more exciting than with a dog I think as a dog would not pretend that I was a cow, the lid of the toothpaste pump was a milking machine, and the bath boat was a tanker to take my milk to market Or decorate me with bath crayons

This morning I have made some chebe bread cinnamon rolls if anyone would like to partake ? And my Starbucks home delivery (ie DH was instructed to bring some home) will be here soon if you would like to make requests

Those cinamon rolls sound just the job. And I think I'd like a double espresso and a really weak Earl Grey tea please.

(Strangely I like coffee strong but tea really weak - can't work out why though )

CMOt - hope he gets home safely!

What excitement!!! Switzerland for the day - you do lead the life CMOT!!!

Our Bank holiday was yesterday - I too worked through it. It doesn't feel like a sacrafice when it is (I think) the third we have had in as many weeks! France completely shuts down for the month of August and semi shuts down in May!

Flotation tanks feel a little too 'Absolutely Fabulous' for me... but then again they might be just all in a day's work for a Bolly Guzzler, table dancer, wheels on fire chick like Amberlight and of course the rest of the tearoom laaaaydiiiiies!!!!!

Talking abou the 'tearoom culture' in rl I actually purchased a pair of Mary Janes (I think).... I will see if I can find a link to them for tearoom aproval/disaproval later today....

Not exciting at all - I have to talk for 90 minutes to a couple of hundred sales people who may not be interested at all in what I have to say. This will be fly in, get train to hotel, talk, back to airport, fly home. Boring airport too. And then I fly out to Toronto on Thursday so have to be prepared for that trip too

I feel I may complain about my travel a bit too much, and some may think that they'd love to be doing it and I am an ungrateful moo. But it's just like doing a long and tedious commute to work where you have to stay over and miss your family really. The gloss went off travel 9 years ago (after my 3rd trip for this company and 1 month into the job). So I apologise if thats the case

CMot - other people might be looking at your jettsetting lifestyle with (not tearoom special) but I look at it with (tearoom special). Whilst I'm very happy making my way around the country, and occasionally using the train (or even tube if pressed), I am not keen on airports or air travel. Whilst I might not have an aversion to the same degree as Amber I do get unduely stressed with the whole tickets/passports/car keys/ queueing for ages etc etc etc and I'm very happy for someone else to be the travel correspondent for the tearoom. It must get tiresome when you do it so much rather than 'fun' having the occasional 'jolly' away.

Dh was contracting for a while - and although he got decent places to stay and OK expense rates, it didn't make up for him not being around.

CMOT: I understand more or less. I loved travelling in my twenties (which is how I ended up in Mexico) and have a job which, if I wanted to, could mean a lot of travelling within Mexico (and Mexico is huge!) and sometimes abroad.

After a couple of trips the appeal goes away. Then if you factor in a child, its even worse. I now can say with complete honesty that I hate travelling, with or without DS. It's painful leaving him behind, it's a nightmare navigating hostile aeroports and missing connections etc. etc. with him.

Keep on moaning! That's what we're here for, after all

Just in case JM's on later - the thread we've been following - there has been movement and Stars is safe!!!!!

CHEEEEEEEEEEEEEERS!!!!!!!!!!***
Thank you MT for letting me know!!!

fudge any body- which do you prefer, teh crumbly kind or teh chewy kind? Think I'ma crumbly my self. ohh, or tablet, I think I like that more than fudge even.

Any there is sea side rock on teh kitchen table if any body fancyies breaking their teeth.

Ooh, tablet - my favourite. I'll pass on the rock

How about a glass of something pink and fizzy ?

um , please. can it be pink grapefruit flavoured... or maybe raspberry. I had a fab raspberry cup cake today, at Sainsburts cafe of all places.

Just waiting for a few weeks before my raspberry bushes in garden go ballistic. sods law says it will be when we are away. they are groaning with proto berries at teh mo and a buzz with bees.

We've got lots of redcurrants coming - rasberries not too bad. Just planted some new fruit - loganberry, a black and red currant, a gooseberry and some more raspberries.

In the tearoom, it can always be just the pink and fizzy drink that you require.

Ds's strawberries are doing really well in spite of enthusiastic watering

anyone still around?

Well I'll fill you in on today's events (or non-events) anyway - this morning's test was a failure as the control window didn't work. So I phoned the hospital X-ray dept and by luck managed to speak to the very nice Radiation Protection expert radiographer, who, on hearing my dilemma, told me to wait until Tuesday (this Monday being a bloody BH Monday of course means I can't get it done now until Tuesday) and if I ask for him, he will personally take the X-rays across the road to the GP surgery that I have to attend the following tuesday! How nice is that? I am so impressed.

So, by Tuesday I will DEFINITELY know whether or not I am pg and whether or not I need the flippin X ray.

Had miniThumb stabbed with his hib/menc vaccine today - only 6m late, our vaccine coordination programme seemed to have forgotten about us and just when I was getting around to thinking of phoning the GP about it, the contaminated menC vaccine thingy came up, so have waited (and kept forgetting) til now. He wasn't too bad - cried a fair bit (it STINGS!) and was quite whingy and clingy for the rest of the day but no fever or other real problem.

I'll have some tablet if it's going - my favourite! Don't like soft chewy fudge.

It sounds like you found a frieedly soul, Thumb.
I just hope by Tuesday you'll have a Very Good Reason to not to have to have the x-ray

Well, we survived the week's events which have included the two funerals, and the big disability conference yesterday which I organised (and which saw a very puzzled set of conference centre people wonder why the organiser turns up with a team of helpers, a squashy cushion to hug when needed, (and needs a quiet room in which to do so). They coped, bless them. and it helped more than just me to have a quiet space yesterday). Many old friends there, which was so lovely.

Thinking really hard about the relaxation thingies - I'm ok with touch IF I know what they're going to do,and when, and it's not too much pressure being applied. Otherwise it switches off the communication circuit in my brain and all of it gets diverted to 'silent panic'. Dh is great at gentle foot massage or shoulder massage sometimes (when he concentrates), but if he's having a difficult time it's not fair on him. Some of the gentler things mentioned might be worth a try, yes. I can't cope with being in water or enclosed spaces where I can't see out, so not sure I'd be ok with a flotation tank. But I love music. Not usually the relaxing kind, though. (ds wants his CD collection back at some stage, he said ). I play the piano or do art, but when I'm stressed I forget to do it or can't concentrate well enough.

I was also contemplating yesterday in the quiet prayer room at the centre why this tea room works so well for me. I guess because there aren't a huge number of people on here, so I can keep a list of who's who in front of me and if there's new people it's very manageable (and always good to see new people)

And because I can be silly and people don't seem to mind it, which is a bigger relief than you know.

And because it's mostly visual imagery, and that's what my brain does. This is the one place on mumsnet that I can visualise: tearoom, Mellors, horses, camels, bison, mad Bishops, a haha, a priest hole, cake or tea etc. I know what those look like. Visual imagery is my first language.

Anyway, this isn't getting the washing up done, or the kettle on for the morning tea for everyone...

Thumbwitch, arrghh! re your things yesterday. Goodness!

Cmot, I love listening to travel tales, good bad or indifferent. Didn't get to do a lot of travelling until I was well into adult life, and it's still a huge challenge/adventure for me to go somewhere, so I'd never tire of listening.

Daisy, shall keep a very large pot of something brewing for you for this weekend. Hope you find some joy and happiness in it.

MT, did you win anything?

Hello everyone else Best stop talking...

Morning Amber - a cup of tea and a piece of toast would be lovely thank you.

I've had a giggle about your conference - I have been imagining more people IN the 'quiet' room than outside... I'm sure it wasn't like that in practise, but did give me a moment this morning.

TW - good to know that there are some helpful people out there sometimes!

Might not be visiting the tearoom much over the next week - halfterm elsewhere! (Currently meant to be packing (whoops!))

amber, glad things went well or you at the conference - how lovely that people are able to accommodate you properly and as you need.

quick report my end: x-ray definitely required now - period started today. Ah well, best in the long run, the stress is getting to the point where I just want to hide under the bed (although I can't because it's still full of junk ) and that wouldn't have been good.

Next time!

hot chocolate over here please - lots of whipped cream and sprinkles, oh and perhaps just a small double choc chip muffin...