I don't dress for the school run, I dress for my (wise & avid) life!!

[LetThemEatCake]

continuing from here and quoting esher!!

Cheers Cakey.

Thanks LTEC.

'Interesting' day at work coming up. All office called in this PM for a meeting, with rumours that the a very senior person from Whitehall will address us on our future (or lack of it......)

Methinks there may be a LOT more ebay and less NAP in my future plans!

Sounds ominous Yummy - hope it goes ok.

I am taking dd to the library for the first time today. I am rather as it is a very short walk from our house but it has never crossed my mind to take her, especially since books are a very important part of our lives.

We are going to stay with our mates who moved to the countryside at the weekend and then next week my diet starts. I wore a t shirt dress yesterday and there was a visible belly underneath. Horrible.

Morning everyone. Good luck with the meeting NY. Enjoy the library MM

Morning. Yey for Holland and all that - good luck for tonight Fritzi (tho secretly I want Spain to win as I don't think Holland would be able to beat Germany!!!!) Everyone in Holland went bonkers after the win - we live in surburbia and I thought it would be pretty quiet after the match but no - we had car horns and those trumpet things (whose name I can't spell) going off til around 1am. Great atmposhere tho - everyone is so happy - and wearing orange!!!

We sent DS1 to bed after the first half as it was already 9.45pm - but he's reaction to being told they won this morning was priceless! Have said he can stay up and watch the whole game on Sunday! We are even going to decorate the house/garden with orange flags etc!

Loved your new dress Fritzi - just the sort of thing I like. Agree re WAG Sylvie - v pretty - they love her over here!

Good luck for the meeting notyummy

Day 3 of the school hols - DS2 at creche so DS1 and I are heading to the garden centre to pick up some new plants for the garden - was inspired by the lovley garden we had on holiday! Told DS1 he can dig all the holes so he is very keen to help! Do we have any W&A gardeners on here???? I buy what I like, plant, and then see if it lives through the winter or not - I am def not blessed with a green thumb!

Where is Roman????

Also - I quite like this dress esp the black - think cos its has pockets and cap sleeves. Maybe a bit shiny tho and not sure when I'd wear it?here

morning all,

Yummy - will be thinking of you this afternoon - I hope it's pleasantly surprising news!

Marsha - glad you are still Dukaning. It's not unbearable is it? I seem to have lost my sweet tooth which is a miracle and I'm very nearly at the 'target weight' which seems to have happened very fast. I would like to go lower but I'm going to be well behaved and stop at target weight (and do the consolidation stage)...and aim to get any extra bits of flab off through shredding. LTEC - I agree that it would be impossible if you don't eat meat or eggs (and probably a little dangerous).

What a miserable day. I decided to be uber organised and plan an outfit last night...which was a waste of time as it is far too cold for the little whisps I had planned. So I've defied the grey with my favourite shocking pink scarf instead (and skinny jeans, tee and jacket). Roll on holidays.

OWW - I think Roman is busy with her new job? Not sure.

OWW - I also quite like the dress. Cut could be quite flattering; although like you, not sure exactly where I would wear it? It looks semi-formal but IMHO, a bit short for work/wedding (unless you are channelling Ally MacBeal!) Could be good for 'dressy' party - depends on how many of those you have in the calender.

Morning all. Hope all goes well today notyummy. Scary times...

Had a lovely eveningin the garden last night with some girlfriends, but feeling a little fuzzy-headed this morning! I need to find a way to clear it though as it's my last tap class of the term tonight and my DH and older DSs are coming to watch, then I'm off to the pub. Thinking of wearing the Arrogany Cat jumpsuit, but of taking the padded cups out as I think it makes me look too busty with them in and a bra underneath

Keeping the Antipodium dress - it is short-ish at the front but will be great with tights and boots in the autumn. I'm kicking myself for not ordering the cut-off rope nexk top at the same time, especially as it was in The Observer style section this week, but think it's sold out now. Clearly need to work on being a bit more avid...

Any tips on flying outfits please? I'm thinking cotton jersey dress and cardie, but will I be too cold? And are sandals a bad idea? Clearly want to attempt to look glam and in control despite presence of 3 small boys, but don't want to be chilly. TIA!

Started level 3 of The Shred a couple of days back, and am enjoying it more than level 2. Hurrah! Although there is no sign of the six-pack Jillian mentions under my mummy-tummy sag . Speaking of which, where's tulpe?

I don't know if you're still around marsha, but I am so with you with the MIL thing:

It's that assumed intimacy thing that makes my skin crawl

Also I love Anne Hathaway's clothes and especially hairstyle in TDWP, aswell as Emily Blunt's look.

oww, yeah to Holland. Good job I don't live there, orange is so not in my colour palette!!
Personally I don't like those visible zips, sorry!

notyummy, good luck for the meeting.

monkeysmama, you sound really down about your weight at the moment. Hope you feel better about it soon. Your outfits and style always sound amazing to me.
We've let our library visits slip since I started minding my nephew after school. I'm sure if this weather is like what I expect to have all summer, we'll be frequent visitors again. Our library is in the secondary school and the librarian has been there since I was in school. She's lovely and incredibly stylish. (Still embarrassed about the silhouette desire books me and my sister used to check out at the time. Anyone remember them? Really raunchy versions of Mills and Boon. Porn! as my mother used to shout - if she found them!).

abo, I much prefer level 3 too. I really did hate level 2 though.
I think if the six pack is there, it's very well hidden!
Ah well, there's still 5 long weeks till my holiday, so I will perservere, and buy lots of fake tan!
tulpe started a thread about support knickers the other day and has had her tuck.

Bloss hi. Yes way to intimate and assuming. You know I've been thinking about the swimming thing and I think it would be too much for me. Ltec do you think you will? If you do I will be cheering you from the internet.

yes AH looks great post-transformation, and a few of the lines make me smile.

Hells I think Dukan has just been re-learning how to eat so I don't feel like I am on a diet anymore even though it is restrictive. I keep thinking of that food pyramid they teach you at school. You kind of have to re-learn all that.

Love the new title

Still in awe of all Dukaners and shredders!

Fritzi the dress on your profile is beautiful, as is your dd

Good luck NY hope meeting is not as bad as you anticipate.

Has anyone bought from Nicole Farhi's website - their customer service is dreadful. I have been very frugal lately, but fell for these as navy is my staple colour since I abandoned black. It's really hard to find navy shoes. There is virtually no description on the site just one photo, so I emailed them, then rang their customer service(no-one answered the phone during office hours, left message).I just want to know the heel height! I consider 200 to be a significant amount to spend on a sale item, but clearly they couldn't be bothered. Very annoying. Anyway I have been looking at them all week and I think I'm bored with them now!

Chilly and grey here, hope the sun comes back soon, I have been enjoying summer dresses and sandals.

LTEC the combination of ILs, religion and swimming would tip me over the edge. I would be saying an emphatic NO to that engagement!

I think we've got so used to excellent customer service and brilliant websites verity, that it comes as a surprise that they're not all the same! I'd be inclined to save my money and head out to RL shops, especially for shoes.

If I was to do public swimming (ie not dh, kids and a beach of unknowns) I would be in my miraclesuit, with the straps on.

Verity made me lol. Yes indeed Cakey, ILs, religion and swimming in one swoop is too much for anyone.

I have to share this story re ILs. My ILs were here with mil's mum yesterday for around 12 hours. During dinner mil said she was planning a surprise for my birthday . I hate surprises. She continued that we should keep the day of my birthday and indeed weekend of my birthday (it's on a Friday) free. Even dp started to look worried. She then, very excitedly said she'd booked for pil, great nan and dp's sister and kids (wtf) to have lunch on my birthday and for us to stay with them that evening and go to the zoo the next day then for all the family to come over on the Sunday for a bbq to celebrate. It really was a jaw hitting floor moment and I admit I reacted immediately and honestly with a loud and pained "noooo". I then said "I would like to see my family. And it's likely my mum will have planned something". Her response was rather bizzare "why didn't your mum check if I'd planned anything". Ummm, I'm 34 not 2 and how odd it would be for my mum to be asking my not-even-mil if it was ok to take me out on the day she gave birth to me. So I know what you mean about assumed intimacy. Even now I am feeling slightly stunned.

I love the instinctive 'nooo'.

I have loads of bizarre coping mechanisms which mean I am rather busy and elusive. But mil keeps bringing a snappy camera and taking pics of me, It's quite funny really, if I didn't think she was trying to steal my soul

Yes! What is it with the photos? They take my photo all the time. (And thanks for helping me spell bizarre-I spent a while trying to remember the spg)

MM what a shame that your mum just told you about the lovely surprise she has planned for you. Sadly mums trump MILs

Marsha your MIL sounds a bit stalkerish!

Bloss miraclesuits are the business. I was quite taken with the Kelly Brook one in the (ahem) mail yesterday, seems v flattering, but I would def need to be shredding and dukaning to wear a bikini in public.

ha I didn't notice that, just had to check it.

Yes mil doesn't take photos of her son, just me and ds2 . I think it's to show her friends, aaarrgh

Same here Marsha. Her best effort was the photo of me just post birth breast feeding for one of the first times and crying (with joy) that she circulated via email
to everyone she's ever met. I understand, and actively encourage, the grandparent-grandkid bond but it was a pretty personal moment.

MM - that is very bizarre of your MIL - does she have any daughters?

Mine are arriving shortly but I must admit we get on pretty well - after having ds2 when he was in hospital for a week and I spent most of my time there - I was forced to just let mil get on with stuff.

So she just took over all housework/looking after DS1 etc and did a fab job. Has been much easier since then as I realised she does like to help and I am more than happy to let her.

So had made 12 further cupcakes before school run and then decorated them and made a further dozen just now - so all cakes ready for H to take to school tomorrow for early birthday celebration. And relax

Think we're going to stay renting this house for another year so am going to get some curtains made for the sitting room and may ask landlord if we can get a new carpet in spare room - I'd happily pay for it so hopefully they'll let us do that.

Talking of customer service - Kew are fab! I panic ordered a dress yesterday to wear to the funeral tomorrow as realised I had nothing appropriate and it arrived first thing this morning.

ooh

For that purpose I really like that dress Tracey. I hope tomorrow goes ok.

Mil has a daughter - dreaded sil. The 3 generations of women in their family have issues - mainly "he said, she said" all playing each other off. Makes me feel like I am being smothered with a pillow saying "family" to even hear about it. It is nice that she likes me but I just spent a week on holiday with them. I thought that was going to get me a break.

I have just placed a very large River Island order. I expect most of it will be returned but I was looking for the Houli copies and ended up ordering loads. Avid but probably not wise. Does anyone have a denim shirt dress? I just ordered one as they look easy to wear though may look matronly over my chest.

Joins marsha in sharp intake of breath!