Avidly gazing at spring/summer looks, while Wisely purchasing caghouls......

[notyummy]

Hi all!

Sorry about the rain/hairdo situation Hopefully.

I am eating G and Bs Mint dark choc as I write Verity.

Bloody cold here. And wet.

That is amazing rufus, what a challenge. But I really feel for you and all other A&W'ers with missing DH's. I find it hard enough when DH is away during the week, when at least I am out till 4pm at work. DH has put in to do a rugby training course which will mean a weekend. I am already planning on doing a lot of visiting relatives that weekend!
Funny but on Friday DH stumbled on Vintage TV with indie music from 1989. Took us both down memory lane, 1st year Uni etc, heard New Order which emo and decam were talking about last week. Then Stone Roses came on, and both DH and I agreed that for us and our friendships it was like the beginning of the end. It seemed to me that all my friends who liked music suddenly moved away from the relative innocence of drinking and moved on to drug taking. I can't listen to them any more.
Well I'm paying for my lovely time off this morning am now cleaning the bathrooms. Made bearable by the smell of Jamie Oliver's slow roast lamb, and sneaky MN'ing between rooms!

I think there should be an adjustment to take that extra cost into account, MiM. :)

Bloss, I went away for the year when I was 21 and noticed the same thing when I came back. One of my friends never came out of that scene, he became seriously weird. I will look for that channel. I'm playing the Pixies for the DDs right now.

What are you going to do today, Rufus? I think you are owed another weekend at Monart.

Glad you had a good time at the wedding, Red and your outfit sounds great. Good idea about the feed. DH has admitted that he likes feeding her at 11 as otherwise he wouldn't really see her Mon-Fri so as long as he does it, that's ok with me!

DonaAna, have you looked at Me&Em? I like jersey dresses for summer.

Looks like the weather is set to pick up towards the end of the week. :)

Amber, I'd wait for the Gracie. When do you start back at work? Hopefully your DD will sleep for a decent stretch by then.

The My-Wardrobe £25 is for loyalty points, apparently. God knows how much I spent to get it!

Start back at work in Sept, 3 days a week, Decameron. I'm hoping to god she does sleep better by then, she'll be 14mo, so I hope so!

She will, don't worry.

Oh Bloss, a rugby training course - is it so that he can coach or does he play? DH has decided to move from managing the U8s to helping to coach them which is why I'm asking.

Reine, you're doing well with the blog and I agree with Red wrt your photography, perhaps keep experimenting with a range of backgrounds. I'm not sure the 2D-ness is anything to worry about, it may even be part of the charm. Not finishing right to the periphery of the 'item' may help IYKWIM but might also look wrong.

Welcome Dona, lovely to have you on board! And welcome too to the other outed lurkers, stick around why don't you.

It is DH's birthday today and he has been busy reading his present from me, Craig Shirves Grammar Rules (literally a book about English grammar) and he loves it .

Have lovely Sundays All.

Yes MiM, I agree with Decam, couldn't you buy some of your beauty products as part of the weekly shop and so out of the budget for that. Afterall, DH does get to benefit from your resulting gorgeousness.

Amber, another vote for Gracie from me - what colour will you go for? I love the blue that WIT has and I think it was Suburban that was lusting after the nude one.

thanks pickled will definitely have a try with those ideas,really helpful.

Am really intrigued by DD's audition..very,very exciting.she's obviously hugely talented.

Yes Decam he has been forewarned that I will be absent for a weekend for sure. In my mind being absent on a weekday doesn't count as I'm at work or he is at work, and hence gets a break from it all with child care to back him up. Anyway it's different when I go away as opposed to him going away. I do the usual stuff that I need the weekend to get done. He just sits there and minds the children and lets the chaos build around him. No cooking meals for the day nevermind the week ahead. (It's all frozen pizzas and goujons and chips from the local Beshoffs) I know this is what men do, but nonetheless I find it irritating. I am going to go over to my Dsis this afternoon and kill some time. Hilariously, when he was speaking to me this morning, he was feeling very anxious, and was commenting on how relaxed everyone else was and "some people are even smoking" (!) Only in Ireland. Seriously. Apparently, there's a small group who at each stop, have a fag. I just can't believe it!

MIM put it into the weekly shop! I remember when my Dsis was at NSEAD with her DH, and the other wives were giving her some very complicated tips on how to "hide" those kind of expenses and make money on them (which of course we found hilarious). I think a lot of it centred on buying stuff returning it, and pocketing ithe proceeds. I couldn't grasp it at the time, but if I had to I'm sure I would!

Slow roast lamb. Mmmmm Bloss.

Also I vote for the Gracie Amber, I like the blue as well. In theory I'd love nude, but I'd have it marked straight away.

Er, I'm not sure I'd be able to pass off the weekly shop being done in Liz Earle somehow.

It's my own fault for having such crap skin and needing to use non Boots/supermarket products.

Happy b'day for Mr pickled

Ah yes, but I think MIM what you do is buy supermarket stuff, and then return it and get the good stuff!

Amber another vote for the Gracie. I got one in the xmas sales and i love it!!! It makes me smile whenever i take it out. Not as hard wearing as some bags though.....but an item of great beauty. Now i want a blue one.....
Has anyone seen any of the new Liz earle make up yet? Am interested in seeing what it is like. I may stay de-lurked for a while yet!
Mim i started putting hairdresser trips etc on the joint expense account the last time i was on maternity leave. DH commented once or twice but then admitted he preferred the groomed wife to bedraggled hound and gave up.....persistence is often the key.

Afternoon All!

DH is also a keen cyclist, I have to say that I do enjoy having the house to myself, he also is into mountaineering and goes on long trips which I don't mind.

The Masterchef party involved sending out Masterchef themed invites which we made, I'll put one up on FB. We made pizzas and tarts, I made the pastry in advance and we used tortillas as pizza bases. The kids got to choose their toppings, we had all the normal stuff for the pizzas and I had made the tomato base in advance. Some of the more creative chefs made a sweet pizza and a savoury tart! I also made creme patisserie, caramel and lemon curd as fillings for the tarts and they picked toppings such as chocolate fruit etc. I printed lots of labels with the masterchef logo and put them on the disposable cups, plates etc and I got aprons embroidered with the logo as the going home pressies. It sounds like a lot more work than it actually was and all the kids seemed to enjoy it.

Rufus when was your Dsis at Insead? I spent a year there with DH, I went to the Sorbonne that year and we put DD1 into an ecole maternelle.

Just went for a walk with DH and the DDs, so nice to have tomorrow off too.

Looks like Gracie has it - will probably be blue or green - as suitable Winter colours... Black would be more sensible but I definitely need a colour pop!

portia that party sounds fab, and very creative - beats pass the parcel!

MiM I think haircuts etc are legit expense, they are in this house. I've also classed the Papaya enzyme peel I bought last week as such.

Her DH was there 2002 to 2003(I think!) Portia.

Ooh Portia which year was that? I was at Insead in 1996/97!

Bonsoir we were there in '94!

Hi all. Lots to catch up on here. Love the sound of the Masterchef party Portia. How clever! Well done to your DH Rufus on his cycling efforts. Hope those of you with weddings to go to this weekend didn't get too chilly. Was fascinated to hear about your DHs A and R link Reine- very cool.

Re the expenses thing, I tend to put anything i can get from an ordinary shop on the joint account, and any larger items of either cosmetics or clothing I buy myself. I am not sure what we would do if I was at home- possibly an amount that I could spend on what I wished I guess.

Have had a very nice weekend. Avengers Assemble was really good fun - not exactly taxing stuff but v funny and some great stuff from Robert Downey Jr and Mark Ruffalo. We had a nice afternoon tea at hotel and then went to the spa for a workout and a massage. Wore the new Ce Me dress to dinner and was glad as most people had dressed up. Had a long run this morning (in sunshine!!) followed by a nice breakfast and a countryside walk.

Am hoping weather is not too bad tomorrow as hoping to take my mum and dad out to a castle not too far away.

Yes pickled that would be for training the juniors. Seems I'm managing the U8s next season!
Just had the strangest experience of being underdressed! My small town made it to the regional final in rugby, so we all went out for the afternoon. Me sensibly dressed in Aigle and 50/50s, well it was cold, and rugby matches have lot of injuries and they go on and on.. I didn't recognize the local girls at all. Massive platform heels, going out clothes, buckets of fake tan, fake nails, heavy make up. Told DH I'd been robbed of an opportunity!

Hi everyone, had a lovely time at the wedding yesterday tempered only slightly by the fact that we foolishly decided to go to Ikea in the morning then DP missed the turning on the way back so we ended up going half way to Exeter on the way home. Lovely part of the world hopefully but DD missed her nap and I only had 10 mins to get ready

blue the article of shame is supposedly out tomorrow but I am not holding my breath because they have already changed the publication date three times. I am so sorry to hear about your friend, you sound incredibly supportive.

I am holding out for a Camel mini Gracie, but need to get ebaying to top my fund up a bit because I keep dipping into it

Rufus we went to a wedding in Ireland where the photographer stopped halfway through taking pictures of the bride and groom and said he wouldn't carry on until somebody gave him a fag.

MiM Do you have any Nectar points you can exchange for an Amazon voucher to buy Liz Earle? I make sure to buy as much of DD related stuff as possible from Boots so I can use my advantage card points to keep up my Chanel Lipstick habit.

Hi Donna life in Rome sounds fabulous very .

LOL at the fag.
Have a better one Suburban! At a recent (distant) family funeral. My DM told me that the undertaker arrived to remove the body. The family offered him a cup of tea and he declined politely saying "but I'll have a brandy". He was driving the hearse!

The party sounds fantastic portia- what a great idea!

suburban- good tips on the nectar and boots points! I must sign up for an advantage card!

MIM- I can see what you are saying about splitting any extra income but it isn't quite fair in reality. There are plenty of things that are considered almost essential for a woman but not for men e.g. make up and other things that cost more for women than for men e.g. £5-10 for trip to the barbers whilst lower end women's hair cost will cost double and average salon probably charges £30-40.
Women are also generally expected to 'maintain' themselves more in terms of dyeing hair once it greys, styling their hair, etc.
Overall, it would probably be fair for you to have at least double the budget for hair/ make up/ skin care or to take it from the household budget unless you are using a luxury brand.

Also, by popping off for the weekend, he isn't just spending money but also relying on you to do all the childcare, etc, 'buying' time away as well as spending money so he really is getting a much better deal.

By the way, have you tried the oil cleansing method? I find it really good and it is practically free. My skin is much less oily and my nose is v smooth whereas it was quite rough with blackheads before. Just a thought....

The downside of having colours done is that it is making me imagine all sorts of lovely outfits. I am trying to resist in the main/ wait until the sales as realistically, I am probably going to be wearing loose fitting trousers/ tops for a few weeks after the baby is born rather than anything glamorous/ fashionable!
Don't laugh but I have been seriously considering these boden pull ons for comfort!

Just read your article in DM suburban! V positive and a lovely picture of you and your adorable DD. Well done!

A fantastic day today. 3rd birthday party was fab, the sun shone, the DC all played outside on the bouncy castle and behaved brilliantly and the adults had wine and chocolate cake. A very stylish affair too, normally I feel absurdly overdressed at these things but I fitted right in in peppermint skinnies, cream silk slouchy top, navy blazer, lily and Lionel seashell top and tan wedges. Lots of great blazer, skinnies and scarf combinations and in fact one other woman was wearing the same jeans as me - and with a top I actually own so it could have been even worse!

Then tonight my two oldest friends and their husbands came over dinner. They both live miles away so we see them far too little so it was a wonderful catch up. DH did all the cooking leaving me to gab away to my heart's content!

Lovely to have tomorrow 'off' and DH here. DS is getting his first bed and we're going for breakfast out and a walk.

Hope you're all having great weekends too. Will read back properly now.

Lily and Lionel scarf obviously.

Gracie definitely won the day amber. They really are lovely. Raoul's strap just too short for me I have concluded sadly. I nearly won a Rosie mulberry on eBay the other day then chickened out at the last minute.

Wow that party sounds great portia, bet they loved it. Think DS will be happy with tearing round the garden this year hopefully although he has already requested a gruffalo cake three months in advance.

Enjoyed all the tips about purchasing beauty products and paying for hair appts. I am probably horribly un-PC in that I just don't care asking for more money if I run out, we just share all funds and DH will often borrow cash off me too so it doesn't feel one way. Plus he never asks what I need it for - hmm perhaps he thinks I'm spending it all on the DC... which to be fair a lot of it does go on them but certainly not all.

looby I still wear pyjama bottoms from around 7pm onwards most days. The bodens are definitely forgiveable post birth

Really should go back to bed now! .