Crepes, Cats and Calamari

[MrsSchadenfreude]

Here you go.

Monty, sorry to hear that - has she not found any kindred souls yet or had a falling out with the girls at her school? A meeting with the HOY sounds a good plan. Girls can be so very difficult and dramatic

WAF sending positive work vibes - you will be great

MI, do you think your DPs differences are just the normal kind of thing that happen in most relationships or are they making you truly miserable? If the latter, would relationship counselling help?

What immensely cheering photos, NU (can't see the squirrel either but lovely pix anyway!) and CV.

I sooo wish someone had told me to lift weights when the dc were little. I would have been a much better mother. Just done a class, 8 women and I was maybe not the oldest, all sweating and grunting, nice young man telling us how strong we are....mind goes completely blank.....tis good for the soul.

Crem, crossing everything here too that you start to feel more yourself very very soon....hang on in there.....

Monty, do you feel you are at the bottom of why she wants to move? Is it "just" friends being elsewhere? Is she year 7?

And MI, that sounds reasonable....don't feel bad for feeling that way. But I think long hours/stress and lots of travelling take a tremendous toll....my dh's health has in the past really suffered and with it his ability to engage....what are the things you enjoy doing together?

Sorry not to have made it to d and ss yesterday and sorry to hear about migraine BD. Hope you're feeling better - headache before drinking is shurelyshome mistake as wrong way round?!

BTM: it might.
Lalsy: I really don't know any more. Going away and looking at stuff is fun. Maybe we should blow some of my dad's cash on another weekend. Those can be good fun.

He just finds me so loud. I've grumbled before about how it's the stuff that makes me me - loud, prone to chatting to strange babies, enthusiastic about stuff - that attracted him in the first place and now he finds a Bit Much.

I of course am utterly blameless and saintly.

Jerry and Margot are here!

Mmm, MI, I know what you mean. Could that be as much about what his working weeks are like (if stressful, over-stimulating, tough), as about you?

Gulp, Herbs (speaking as non-cat-lover)

HERBS!!!!! Oh they are adorable!

DP has just slipped in catshit

Delicious kitties!!!!

Monty - that is a deeply wearing sitch, I'm sorry. Fwiw, our year 7 is the main source of had wringage chef WAF. Will NEVER talk about her probs, just acts out with vilitude a lot of the time. However, we ate fortunate that this doesn't often involve her wanting to change school.

She has inherited the 'don't ask, don't tell' mode of emotional sharing from IL,s. Mil just called to ask how dh was. He had just left after STAYING THERE FOR FOUR DAYS.

Nice to see that Jerry has already discovered the drinks cupboard, Herbs. They are very cute.

Exactly, WAF. That's the top and bottom of it. If it weren't school it would be something else. If she were elsewhere, there would be a different stick with which to beat me. I am sorry to hear that she is challenging you too, but glad it is not just dd who is hard work.

Reading between the lines WAF that all sounds like a very tough gig. I do wish you luck with the pitching

Monty slay me if this is way off piste but is it worth looking at the offending schools last ofsted? Sometimes what they fail on isn't actually that relevant to the students progress. I only say this because , Ds2s old school (family dynasty, DS1 went there plus me and all my sibs) got down graded to a school needing improvement a year ago amid much media furore and craziness. The parent body stood by the school i.e. Didn't start withdrawing their kids and it was as over subscribed as ever... when it was revealed what they were downgraded on. Can't go into detail here but can talk more if you'd like.

Mi maybe you and DP just need to get away together to rediscover what it was that made you get together in the first place. DH knows how different I am sans DC etc

CV so pleased you had such a lovely birthday weekend!
I am in transit, having a quick break before braving the London bit of the journey. I gather Kew Bridge is a nightmare. I must be nice to DH who has over seen all home work, tested on script learning, and taken DD to the mall to get her revolting scent from Victoria's Secret.

Very cute Herbs

Lovely kittens. Strength to those that need it. And a boring question from me: does anyone know if it is possible to reverse the shrinkage of a viscose dress that has probably been caused by washing at too high a temp and/or tumble drying?

It's not massively shrunk and it's in proportion but it's just now a bit too short. Dh thought rewashing might 'relax' the fibres but frankly what he knows about laundry can be written on the back of a dry cleaning ticket. Are any of you knowledgeable about such things?

Mrs W - I think you can pull viscose into shape whilst damp so maybe rewet it.

Kittens are too cute Herbs and NU I can spot the squirrel in one photo but not the other.

Monty sorry about difficult DD. DS is just being generally adolescent and grumpy.

Have booked to go to China in August - will be horribly hot but we don't really have another option. I spent ges planning and agonising but I couldn't make a decision so DH finally took the plunge.

MI - DP and I like some films together but anything like X men has to be seen with DD1 or DS who seem to have inherited his taste for this genre.

Thanks Hattie - will try and see. I like this dress so don't want to give up on it without trying to resurrect it.

Oh what a shame Mrs W.im sorry I don't have a miracle cure.
WAf, that is all very hard going I think. You will, however be brilliant at the pitching. I know it. I hope you are right about the feeling better. Had a dreadful nights sleep last night, as dh was pissed and spinning in bed like a hog roast, and I was SO HOT, I had to strip off and open the windows, like it was Greece or somewhere.
Monty I'm sorry about the dd sitch. What can you do? I would say you are right about her obsessing about one thing , and it could be anything. I recall dd being painfully challenging at that age. It was about. Hen that she started lying about stuff, or only half telling the truth. There were agonising hours of trying to extract information from her. In a way, it's better that you know what is bothering her.

BD so sorry you didn't get a drink last night. At least it was restorative to see the squad. Can ai recommend Funny Girl With La Streisand which is on TV now. Just fantastically cathartic and silly.

Herbs I am beside my self with kitten-envy. They are perfect, and could easily sport Dark and Stormy as names as well.

MI, been through this and out the other side. We lived parallel lives for a while. in hindsight stress and too much job focus was the root cause. I recommend the counselling if for nothing else, to announce and name that there are issues needing addressed.
CV wow what a great weekend. So nice to have a proper marker and nice memories for your half century.

WAF and Monty, it seems to me that many if not most teen girls go through a hellish phase. You have my sympathies. It is just a phase but seemed to last forever

Herbs, they were clearly made for you, seeing them in the drinks cabinet already!

Hatty, how exciting - China!

MrsW, no idea, but hair conditioner on woolly jumpers seems to work to relax the fibres, then a gentle wash off and stretch into shape if they haven't been too horribly shrunk.

Shopping trip was disastrous. Am hoping DH is able to work his magic on DS

This is our rat bag grey squirrel. On a raid.

I can definitely see him Crem!

Yep, there he is!

Man alive - he's huge! Hard to miss.

Kitten update - now asleep, curled up together, after three hours of tearing around the kitchen. DS totally in love with them.

One day I'll stop posting kitten pics. Until then...

Awwwwww Herbs they are cuter than very cute things!

Keep the photos coming, Herbs.

Sorry to hear about DC, job and marriage problems. Have to say, MI, that although DH and I have some things in common there are lots we don't - films and music being top of the list. I think, tbh, that we all go through stages in our relationships when we need to work a little harder, and then other times when everything swims along.

The squirrel is on the ground in one photo, and sitting on the feeder half way up the tree on the other.

China sounds good, Hatty. We're still suffering from lethargy here when it comes to holiday planning. DH goes to Majorca on 2nd May for a week and I think we should try to avoid mid June because of the new baby, although I know DDiL's parents are around, so we're more restricted this year time-wise. I have spent the afternoon looking at cruises almost as a "well, it's easy" option. And we still haven't organised our American trip in September as DGD2 starts school then and will be on a phased start so we will be needed to help out.