Creper Roses

[SheherazadeSchadenfreude]

Here!

OPm I just need weather and an occasion to wear my crepey sandals.
That of course would be a crepey meetup but boohoo, no chance of shuffling to London this month. Just too much walking.

I have achieved some gentle gardening involving potplants , window boxes and a pair if scissors.
I was going to call it lady-gardening but that's something else isn't it?

Loving the sound of that cake MrsS!

Oh was going to ask you about Naot sandels - do you highly recommend? (Seen a pair I like the style of and my Merrills are giving up the ghost...

MrsS, thanks for the recipe, it sounds delicious. Question: does it freeze, or do you need to eat it straight away or leave it a day?

We had a lovely birthday cake at DS's - he had made the cake (a sponge) and DDil had decorated it with fondant icing and Peppa Pig figures which she had made. I was very impressed with DS and DDil's handiwork, tbh.

It's taken me all weekend to sit down and catch up. The driving lesson went well, we've managed to trade in dh's car today for a little white 1 litre car so she will be able to practice soon with us. I can't work out who will be the best driving instructor; he is clearly a more trained driver, but I will be a lot less panicky!

That cake sounds yum, Mrs S. I have an egg problem at the moment. They are bring stolen, newly laid, by a magpie. He/she is taking up to three a day. It's driving us nuts....

Very peaceful here, still recovering from taking dd1 and four of her friends to Chase and Status on Friday night. My god, if you want to feel crepey, just go to a Chase and Status night!

Almond and poppy seed cake looks lush, Peppa Pig is my favourite (which amuses the DC at work!)

Beachy, if mine ever have lessons, it will be with DH - my nerves couldn't stand it!
And I must be very crepey, because I have no idea what Chase and Status is

Cremo, hope DD's date goes well. Surely your leg could manage just a little exercise by the 27th?!

Had a lovely afternoon in the gorgeous gardens - massive and really beautifully planted. Plus there was tea and cakes and live music! Oh to live in one of those houses

DH and DS have come back beetroot, despite putting on suncream. I have a slight tan line where my shorts come to!

NU - it freezes fine and also keeps well - not like a fruitcake, but better than a sponge.

BD - I love Naot sandals. Bought a pair when I was living in Israel, lived in them while I was there, got another pair that I wore throughout my first pregnancy. They are soooo comfy, even if a lot of the styles are a bit fugly.

Dd2 made me a cake. This is partly because NONE (zero, 0) of my birthday presents from my fellow-inmates have arrived yet.

I sat happily in the garden with cake, glass of wine and gory thriller. So chilled out I then cleaned the kitchen and despatched the Inferiorettes to Hoover own rooms. Vocal objections just made me more determined to get the lazy buggers doing it regularly.

Friend is at One Direction concert, sending piteous texts begging for rescue or, failing that, decent wine.

Hi, I'm here - we lost our internet for a week and now I'm lurking trying to keep up in between numerous bank holidays and the bac. I really need an i-phone so I can post when sitting in the car waiting for children.

I will get back into the swing of things eventually and start posting again. We had a battery of exams last week and now we have a long weekend and a week's break. Exams will be resumed with a vengeance next week with the heavyweights ie. maths, physics etc.

There has been a very nice ambience in Paris with the Queen very well received and British and French flags down the Champs Elysée. The French were shouting "long live the Queen"!

By the way, I'm reading the Tenant of Wildfell Hall and it seems in 1843 egotistical bastards were pretty much the same as now - great stuff.

Thinking of you all and good luck to all the exam takers.

That cake does indeed sound lush. MrsS Do the poppy seeds get stuck in one's teeth though…?
I am indeed in need of some comfy sandals that are not my trekker sandals which are so old lady, I only dare wear them for proper walks. I'm scared of Birkies…they look like instruments of torture, somehow even though a lot of people swear by them.I will check out Naot…thought they sounded Israeli!
Crem gets the prize for the funniest comment of the day, to me any way, and yes, I certainly need to get a bit of lady gardening done…have just texted gardener whoops... beautician. Close second is Mother's comments about friend at 1D gig…
Ok…boring comment alert…DD's school have tweeted safe arrival…they are getting settled into the guest house. Guess that will have to suffice to calm my nerves. Have comfort eaten all day…no all week. Feeling the blubber badly.

Where has DD gone, Rosebag?

Oh dear, Rose, you still do sound down - I was hoping that once you knew that DD had arrived safely you would feel happier. You know she will be fine.... Having said that, one of the worst days of my life was when DD was in labour with her first baby. Now before that day it had never occurred to me that I would feel that it was my place to be there with her (I really felt that I am not that kind of interfering mum), but, but, but .... When DSoniL rang me to tell me that she had started I was fine, but as the time went on I really truly felt that I should be there with her. I wasn't, of course, I just think that giving birth has been women's work for so many millennia, that subconsciously it was where I should have been. Waiting at the end of the phone was not good.

Incidentally, Rose, I have Birkenstocks and absolutely love them - so multi-functional, particularly on holiday where 1 pair of white ones will be my "house" shoes, pool shoes and going out shoes. I think Costco have them on offer at the moment. They do take a little bit of getting used to, but once you have done that you're hooked (or I am).

Thanks for the info re freezing the cake, MrsS - I intend to visit Waitrose tomorrow to get the marzipan and I hope, poppy seeds.

I just have to occupy myself, NU which is a bit harder on an unstructured Sunday when I've had no sleep! DD's more vulnerable than the boys were so I tend to be a bit over protective. She went off really happily today, and I hope will soon be getting to bed (they're 2 hours ahead where she is!). I must get on and try Birkenstocks, mustn't I? I have so many friends who love them like you do. I do have large ugly size sevens though, and have to be careful to but flattering footwear. I should try a few on!
btw I do think mothers have a connection with their daughters who are giving birth (often not always). I teach expectant couples and find that women sometimes confide that they would prefer to have their Mum in the room rather than the baby's father!

Rose Birkies are sooooo comfortable! I have 3 pairs and wear them to walk to and from work every day. AND my friends gorgeous nearly 16 year old DD told me that the pair she saw me in on Friday are in fashion and why doesn't her mum get some

And you need to size down - I am usually a 39, but take a 38.

Have a look online - I have bought them from Amazon... shopping helps to cheer me up

Blimey Beachy you deserve a gin medal. I am always quite pleased to be on the outside of gigs and not actually at them. When we had Wand Erection here the girls started queuing outside in tents the day before we had to organise a crèche for 'kiddo collapsos'

Rose I'm so sorry for your wibbliness - hand holding available..
I am hoping when dd goes to Africa in a few weeks.....

Yes, on Birkies, size down and get the narrow fitting, even if you have square feet. They look much neater.

NU - the poppy seeds are optional, so don't stress too much if you can't get them. If you can't, I would go for the grated rind of a lemon instead, but even that is optional.

Have friend staying, and we were going to sit in the garden and drink Cava, but DH is out and has the back door keys with him...

I have v flat feet. Birkies are really quite painful.

MrsS, that sounds just the ticket!

Ah, MI maybe I like them so much because I have high insteps and they are shaped. Mind you, DH loves his and his feet are like great slabs of meat

I don't like the toe post on birdies - too hard - and hate the slip one - I Walsh out of them, but do have a pair of tow wrap ones I like....

Rose, I am a size 7 - 7 and a half, so no dainty feet here, either! I can't wear toe post sandals at all, just hate the feeling of something between my toes.

Thanks for the info about the poppyseeds, MrsS.

Love the sound of that recipe, MrsS. Thank you for sharing. I really like marzipan. Mmmm.

My weekend seems to have been all about making sure everyone is organized. I am now even more tired than I was on Friday. Sat morning was swimming/lifesaving lessons, followed by super-speedy lunch and then taxi-ing dh and his gear to the fete the band were playing. Lead singer: It's a church fete - maybe we shouldn't do "Always Look on the Bright Side". Thankfully, they didn't. Went back later with the dcs to watch them play. Dd was strangely impressed and told dh afterwards that they were "quite good". High praise indeed. I thought he was going to faint with the shock of her saying something positive to him.
Family film night last night with a bottle of rather nice Chianti for me and dh. Up early this morning for ds's tae kwondo grading (Green stripe belt with distinction - yay) and then stuffing a quick lunch down him before whisking him off to Youth Theatre for a 4-hour rehearsal. I have tried hard to clean up the house and provide everyone with sensible food while also getting 5 loads of washing done and sorted. Once again failed totally to make any impact on the garden and now have 2 broody chickens, who are both stopping the other hens from getting in the nest box while also managing to break several of the eggs that do get laid. Buggering things appear to be more trouble to manage than I was led to believe.

Must do some business admin now and do not feel like it. Meh.

Egads. Spent the weekend in Farnham with DP's best buddy and his wife, who is a few months upduffed, after many hideous IVF attempts, plus miscarriages. They've got the most lovely new house, complete with basement cinema room and THREE bathrooms. Went to a dear little village fete yesterday, dear little ruined abbey this morning, then lovely barbeque with the rest of their family this afternoon, at which I couldn't drink as I was driving. It took over THREE HOURS to get home. This included queues on the M3, and two detours to find McDonalds for DS to go to the toilet.

Did make us wonder why exactly we live in a grimy bit of north east London when we spend many of our weekends in the car on the north circular, going to much nicer bits of the country.

Now, wine and newspaper.

Oh and poor dd has the period from hell that seems to be making her really ill. She looks like death warmed up and has her Maths exam tomorrow.

Stropps - dd also predicts her period for exams, She is on the pill as had v bad periods before. I was wondering about the wisdom of taking two packets of pills back to back without the gap for her period.

Enormous storm here with spectacular lightning strikes. DS has texted in a panic from a party that we need to get him before storm strikes. Bless him - I think that ship has sailed.

Oh Stropps poor dd. Warm bath and chocolate ? Works for my dd- allegedly

< idly wonders how date is going>

Oh Stropps, I used to have the most horrendous periods as a teen. I took double doses of Feminax which helped a bit. A hot water bottle is good too.