Gunpowder, Treason and Crepes

[CointreauVersial]

Here we are again.....

Take heart Rudy Banshee screaming is my default setting when DD presses my buttons.

Uuurrrgh, Fracas.

Agree with QQ, it's all very individual and subjective.

Banshee screaming is the only way I get anyone to do anything in this house. I hate myself for doing it, but my God, they leap into action when I scream. I think it is because I do it so infrequently and they know it is the reaction of last resort.

NU - you need one of those organising bag inserts that you just pop from one bag to another with all of your crap in it.

Busy today - wall-to-wall meetings at work, and no time for my usual lunchtime flick through MN, although one of the two urgent projects has been shelved, thank goodness.

And as I arrived home from work, a van pulled up delivering the new bathroom! Game On! There is now a large stack of boxes at one end of the living room and a bathtub leaning against the piano. The man with the sledgehammer arrives on Thursday (still haven't ordered the bloody skip), and I'm just compiling a list of extra little tasks for the cleaners to tackle, as they will be a bathroom down for a few weeks.

Other news - DD1 had her first period today! Two years earlier than I did. She wasn't remotely worried, just enlisted the help of her best mate at school and kept her legs crossed. Taking it all in her stride. My big girl is getting so grown up......

Wilbur - I'm about to treat myself to a new phone, as my beloved HTC Desire S is four years old and getting extremely temperamental, crashing, freezing and generally failing to perform at times of crisis. So I wouldn't wish it on anyone. But have a look at refurbished phones - all the big retailers (Carphone Warehouse, Argos, Tesco etc) sell them, and you can bag an immaculate phone for a lot less than normal price. Having said that, if you are just after a simple "dumb phone" they are so inexpensive nowadays.

Herbs - I'm not much of a beauty product afficionado but love a nice bottle of fragrance (Coromandel is becoming the crepey scent of choice). I am also contemplating one of those Urban Decay Naked eyeshadow palettes, of which I have read good things.

I just realised I haven't put myself on the Secret Santa list - I can't paste from this tablet, but will add myself tomorrow if no one does it for me by then.....

Secret Santa:
Rudy
BTM
Hatty
Auriga
Molly
MI
Lalsy
Rose
BD
QQ
Beachy
Herbs
MrsSchadenfreude
Addle
MontserratCaballe
NUFC
CremolaFoam
wilbur
CV

There you go CV

I think I'm more on Mrs S's fragrance page, than QQ's. Can't be doing with tuberose at all, but very much liked Coromandel when I had a spray in Selfridges. Intriguing initial note of 'burning tyres'. I also like, or have liked, Aromatics Elixir, Dune, Helmut Lang, Kheil's Musk, Sisley perfumes, and Molecule 01. Didn't like Chanel no 5, but 19 might be a different kettle of fish. Though hopefully not in the olfactory sense.

I can't ask for another bag - DP has already bought me a few, and looks sad if I don't use them. Which I do, 90% of the time.

What I'd really like are some new shoes, decent t-shirts and v-neck cardies that don't bobble within five seconds. But they are rather mundane requests.

I also rather fancy an Alex Monroe necklace, but fear that may be pushing the boat too far from the shore, especially as DP has just discovered we need the back wall rebuilding which could cost £9K. Eeeeeeeeeeep.

love this from Alex Monroe

9K? Eeeeek indeed!

Books here - nothing will turn me into a goddess so I'm not even trying :)

I know it's no comfort to you lot at the moment but everytime one of you 'fesses up to a meltdown I think 'ahh, not just me then'. And I take off hair shirt and decide I'm not that bad a parent....(although I dodnt think I make him eat enough veg...)

Mrs S - I notice one of your DD's has long curly hair. DD2 has similar and it a!ways dry and knotted and she will not brush it out or it frizzes. Do you have any useful tips?

Where is everyone?
Hatty my DD has long curly hair and we have fought battles for her whole life to tame it. She used to scream so much with the combing after a shampoo that I often gave up and it just had to be a birds nest. Then discovered a tea tree leave in conditioner ( will link later. I can now only get it online) which makes combing almost a breeze and helps with the frizz rather well. That and Aussie Miracle frizz or miracle moist shampoo, the latter of which I also use...my hair is curly too but the BBH takes care of it.

I am feeling a little humbled. Have just finished working with a young woman who wants to improve her speech...she has two lines in a play for the first time and is trying to over come a fairly marked speech disability. Her determination and dignity is wonderful. And as I was driving back it was coming up to 11. I felt the need to pull over and put on the radio to observe the two mins silence. Some things are just important, aren't they.

On the off chance I have a quiet day on Thursday. Is anyone up for a coffee. Preferably north of the river?

conditioner

I would be Rose, if I wasn't at work

My friend and another friends DD both have long, thick, curly hair and they don't use shampoo, only conditioner. Apparently it works.

I am just back from taking DGD2 to the hairdresser for her very first cut: she cried all the way through but they said that she was better than her DB who screamed all the time for his first cut. I am exhausted now.

This morning we went into town to see Fenwick's windows which were lovely - I think we will all sleep well tonight.

I used to scream like a fish wife and occasionally now with the GC when DGS is having a tantrum I really have to hold my tongue.

Thanks Rose - I have the Aussie stuff but not convinced for DD although it works really well for me. I always stock up in the UK as we can't get the Aussie products in France.

NU - Fenwick's window - nostalgia.

Have been to see Interstellar with DS - very good but even that cannot inspire him to be a physicist. DS is really passionate about nothing except Minecraft. I think I'm going to have to ban the computer as he didn't want to go on a bike ride with his father or to the cinema. He would have just sat there on the computer all day.

Hatty, about DS. My problem with DS used to be getting him to stay in to do any work; mind you the only computer games then used to be things like The Revenge of the Mutant Camels which I adored. I meant to say before, do let me know if you have any time when you visit DPs in Yorkshire, and perhaps we could meet up. I appreciate it's not as simple as that as I have difficulty visiting anyone other than DSis when we go home. I can always drive down.

NU, The Revenge of the Mutant Camels !

Hatty, I feel your pain. ds is 15 now, and takes a more balanced approach than he did. I think I started out too tough - thinking an hour was shedloads on those games - but I can see you can't build many castles in that time! But he seemed to have no sense of time passing when he was younger. Nowadays I am also relieved he doesn't show much interest in Going Out - at least he is safe on X box (he does do sport, school activities and homework and even things with us sometimes).

DH is in a VERY bad mood after the meeting with HoY.
Let's hope DS can make some major changes at school.

Sympathies, Hatty.

Sympathies to you too BTM - I have to say DS is my youngest and is whole different ball game to the girls.

Lalsy - I agree the computer does keep them from roaming the streets and getting up to other mischief.

Hatty - dealing with long curly hair in France... we used Schwarzkopf Gliss detangling spray - the pink silk one which you shake. There is also a yellow one, which is better, but not readily available. The other secret is not to brush the hair - wash it, cover it liberally with a silicone free conditioner (there is a Gliss one), comb the conditioner through, rinse hair. Wrap hair in towel, when just damp, either comb through again, or run your fingers through it to get rid of any rogue knots. Then twist hair, sort of into rope/ringlets and leave to dry. Next day, either comb or run your fingers through hair to get rid of knots, and go. Use a bit of Extraordinary Oil on the ends if they are a bit flyaway/dry. DD2 washes her hair every 3-4 days.

Rose - if you are anywhere near Trafalgar Square on Thursday, I could do coffee/lunch.

We had a nice triumphal moment today - the woman who has been making my team's life so difficult has been taken off the project!

YES! MrsS

Great news, MrsS!

I have just spent a painful half hour with DS on French homework. Not a Scooby Doo about conjugating even the simplest verbs

woot woot, MrsS!!

Up at 4.30 to leave at 5.30 to ensure I arrived at teaching practice school in good time. Blah, blah, blah. Home. Wine.

Result! Mrs S. RESULT!!

Poor you Stropps. That's a long day.
Hope you are lightly sozzled by now.

Were watching The Missing.
What the hec happened there?

Stropps, how did it go today?