Favourite Things

A few things that are lighting my fire at the moment:

Eve Lom Cleanser - Why did I wait so long to try it? Fantastic stuff.

Weleda Calendula Weather Protection Cream- Keeping the babies' cheeks from getting chapped this winter.

Challah bread - A Jewish bread that I allow myself to buy only occasionally because I can work my way through a whole loaf in one day.

Pilates - Every Saturday morning. No sweating, no bouncing but a great work out.

Perez Hilton - My trashy addiction.

Flash Dustmaster Extend and Reach - I've dusted all the picture rails, above the windows, on top of the bookshelves, tops of the wardrobes, cleared all the cobwebs...

Costa's medio iced latte with skim milk and a chocolate florentine - Every morning. They start making it when I walk in the door. Seriously.

Comice pears - I've never liked pears but there's a supplier at the Blackheath farmer's market that sells the most amazing pears and apples. I'm totally hooked on these and I'm already starting to worry about how I'll cope when the season ends.

Le Baiser du Dragon - The weather is finally cold enough to get away with my favourite perfume. Too heady for sunny days, I usually save it just for evenings but I can wear it now on cold, dark days. Delicious.

Toby and J did some face painting this weekend. Tobes is supposed to have an ice cream cone on his face and J has a sun, rainbow and birds on his. They obviously had a good time.

Still fairly quiet here. J is in the States this week and this children and I have a busy week of classes, playdates and coffee with friends. Today we went to Monkey Music and then down to the playground at Greenwich Park. It's lovely to have these days to just focus on the children.

On Sunday we're off to Woolley Grange again. We went last year and loved it. It's such a fantastic place to do a lot of nothing. I'm looking forward to getting on the trampoline with Toby this year. I had a go last year but it was just a few months after my cesarean and I had to take it easy for fear that my guts would fall out. This year nothing will hold me back.

We're also taking our wellies so we can do some hiking around the grounds. Rosie even has a tiny pair of Kate's old wellies so I'm sure we'll all get out there and stomp around. I'm also really looking forward to the food. They have the most fantastic butter. Everything is organic, in season and locally produced and it is amazing. I'm living on soup and salad this week so I can really enjoy myself while we're away.

I've been tagged

Elizabeth has tagged me which means that I have to take the nearest book, open it to page 123 and type 6-8 lines of text. The first book I grabbed was a library book called London Peculiars by Peter Ashley but it only goes up to page 117. So I grabbed my other library book, The Debutante Divorcee by Plum Sykes. I'm obviously doing some very light reading at the moment. Page 123 only has a small amount of text and here it is in full:

"I hate Bungalow 8 anyway. I couldn't get in with Christopher. He was too overweight," said Marci, wiping her tears with her lace cuffs. Then, looking at me desperately, she asked, "How long does it take to have reflection, exactly? Three weeks? Could I be done reflecting by Thanksgiving?"

Now I tag Nikki, Dad and Xavier (though X, I know you have other things on your mind).

Just a day

Things are pretty calm here at the moment, which I like. I think it's good for the children to have plenty of routine boring days to stick together all of the more exciting ones. Gives us a nice base to start from and I always enjoy the break.

This morning Tobes had nursery and Rosie had Sing and Sign at Mycenae House. After the usual grumbles and grumps about putting on coats, shoes, etc we made it out the door in time, dropped Toby off at school and got a great parking space. Very good start to the day. Sing and Sign went well. Rosie is really picking up the signs. The teacher is a bit manic though. Almost a caricature of a baby music teacher, very enthusiastic and slightly scary, but Rosie loves it. Afterwards Rosie is always exhausted so we headed over to Costa. I had dreams of a quiet coffee and a trashy mag while Rosie napped. Not to be though. One of Rosie's friends, a little girl called Lily, was there and they played and squawked and had a brilliant time.

Toby was having lunch at school and I soon realised that I didn't have time to take Rosie home to feed her but I hadn't brought anything out with us. We ended up going to a new cafe in the village and getting a jacket potato with plain tuna. Rosie was happy. When we picked up Toby he was not so happy. Apparently they had something yucky for lunch at school, Tobes wouldn't eat it and therefore did not get dessert. Oh, there were tears. Lots of tears.

Managed to calm Tobes down with the promise of a snack then realised that Rosie had done a poo. Nowhere to change her so ended up changing a very messy nappy on the front seat of the car. Finally piled the kids in and took off for Homebase to get some DIY stuff for the flat. I've finally got the urge to sort out the flat and have been hanging photos where I want them rather than on the handy hooks the previous owners left in the walls.

As we were leaving Homebase Rosie did another massive poo. Where does she keep it all? All they had was a very grotty bathroom floor on which to change her so it was back to the front seat of the car again. Twice in less than an hour, what are the odds?

Now we've come home, the children have had their afternoon snack and I have a date with a toilet that needs a new flush handle and a door that needs to be draftproofed. Just another day.

Friends in high places & Toby saves the day

What a fantastic day we've had. It started yesterday morning when I realised that this was the last weekend of the Hockney exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery. I rang the gallery to try and book tickets only to be told that they were totally sold out. Oh poo. I emailed Elizabeth to let her know because we were hoping that they would come with us then I resigned myself to missing the exhibition, which is said to be an important one for Hockney. Very disappointing.

Well, a few minutes later Elizabeth emailed back to say that her boss is on the board of the NPG and maybe she could ask a favour... By that afternoon Elizabeth's boss had called the museum director and arranged for complimentary tickets to be waiting for us. Very cool. Not only would we get to go but we would go as VIPs with no time limits on our visit. Very handy when you have a total of three children in tow.

This morning we decided to drive into town and parked at the Savoy Hotel. Parking in London is always a challenge and they have public parking at the Savoy along with the valet parking so we dropped off our keys and headed out. We met up with Elizabeth, Andrew and Mary Catherine at the new National Gallery Cafe for lunch. The children's macaroni and cheese was not a hit. The cheddar was too mature and they had added leeks and breadcrumbs on top. Toby wouldn't take a single bite after asking 'Mommy, what's this stuff on my pasta?!' Mary Catherine did a bit better but there was lots of mac and cheese left over. The adult meals were very tasty and the hand-churned ice cream with toppings for dessert was fantastic. Next time we'll just go for extra scoops of ice cream.

After lunch we moseyed on over to the exhibition. The place was heaving. It was obviously a very popular show. When we entered the exhibition Elizabeth and I noticed a very arty looking elderly lady with a lovely wicker shopping basket on wheels. The lady was obviously in her 80s or later and was very well dressed in a black and white houndstooth jacket and big black hat. She was a tiny woman but you could tell she was a real character. Elizabeth was admiring the shopping basket and as we passed I overhead the lady talking to her companion about the time she shared a lemonade with Picasso! Obviously a real character.

The exhibition was fantastic and had works from each of Hockney's periods including many paintings owned by the artist himself. Mary Catherine had brought her sketch pad and pens and the museum had given the children crayons and activity books so whenever we found a bench we would stop so the children could draw. We had stopped in my favourite part of the exhibition, Hockney's recent portraits, and Toby was drawing away when I heard someone say 'How wonderful! You must always encourage them to draw!' I turned to see the arty elderly lady from the entrance. I was so pleased because I had hoped to speak to her. I love slightly mad eccentric older people as I absolutely hope to be one myself one day.

The lady was really charming. She's half French, half Aussie and has lived in London for over 50 years. She started drawing when she was seven and has been drawing and painting ever since. She illustrated children's books for a while and has had a few shows of her paintings. She spent seven years perfecting a painting of St Paul's Cathedral but the recent cleaning of the building has completely changed the look of it so she's not sure she'll ever be able to complete it. You can tell that we chatted for quite a bit and she asked about the children and said that I must encourage them to be artistic. Such an interesting woman.

When we were leaving I heard a voice saying 'Goodbye Tobias! Goodbye Rosamund!' and turned to see our lady again. Very kind and what an amazing life!

After the museum we strolled around Trafalgar Square and the children climbed up to the lions. Toby loves the lions. Then we all went to Villiers Street for a coffee. As we were leaving the coffee shop J suddenly realised that he couldn't find his keys. He went back into the coffee shop and searched the floor. I searched through the other coats and bags but no keys. For some reason I hadn't brought my keys out today so if we couldn't find J's keys we were in for a very long night. We had checked our coats at the museum so J sprinted off to see if they had been turned into lost and found. Just as J ran off Toby asked what was going on and I explained that we had lost the keys. Toby said 'I know where the keys are.' 'Really darling?' I said but I was more interested in what he was going to say than actually thinking he knew where the keys were. 'We left them with that man where we parked the car,' Toby said. What a brilliant boy! He was absolutely right!

Andrew sprinted off to try and catch J but Jason was long gone. I told them that we would catch up with J at the gallery and said goodnight, laughing at our forgetfulness and Toby's amazing memory. By the time the children and I found J at the museum he was wild eyed with worry about the keys. I told Toby to tell J where the keys were and I swear Jason actually blushed when he heard. We had both just completely forgotten about leaving them at the carpark with the attendant. Thank goodness our gorgeous boy was with us. Toby really did save the day.

So we made it home with no problems and the children fell asleep almost as soon as their heads hit the pillows. Such a great day out with great friends. Couldn't really ask for more.

Your mission, should you choose to accept it...

I've been trying to find a particular wallpaper and it seems impossible. We had it in our bathroom when I was growing up and I loved it then and would love to have it now. It was black and white, in the toile de jouy style but instead of frolicking sheperds or ruined castles it featured various styles of toilets. My favourite was a toilet that looked like a real throne, fit for a princess. It was fabtastic (actually that was a typo but it really works!). It was cool and quirky and gave you something interesting to look at while you were sitting there.

I've tried ebay and various vintage (god I hate using that word for something from my own lifetime) wallpaper shops from New York to Paris to Tokyo. Nothin'. Anyone who fancies a challenge please have a go and see if you can find it. I would love to have it in black and white but would take it in any colour. Even just something similiar would be great. I want my toilet wallpaper!

I think I've been looking at wallpaper for too long tonight. Saw some beautiful stuff but no toilets. My eyes are feeling like they might actually have wallpaper paste in them so think it's time for bed. So glad to be back on blogger. Night night.

At last!!

I've been trying to update the blog for ages but blogger has been playing up. Finally got the time to do some troubleshooting and here I am. So much to say so here are the highlights:

First and foremost

We have a walking girl! Rosie started walking last week. She still prefers crawling but will walk a few steps on her own now and loves to walk around while holding hands. She's also made a leap in her talking and is adding new words to her vocabulary every day. I've started consistently signing with her and she picks them right up too and is really enjoying being able to communicate with us.

Happy birthday to me

Last week I turned 36. That sounds so strange. It's like saying last week I turned into a chicken. It just seems so unreal that I could be so old. OK, OK, I know it's not really that old but it sure sounds old. I got some lovely gifts and cards from J and the children and then had a day out on Saturday with my friend Natasha. We indulged in a three hour lunch at the new National Portrait Gallery restaurant that has views over Trafalgar Square. It was fantastic. I had the mixed game terrine with chutney to start. Then I had a slice of apple, onion and sweet potato pie with butternut squash puree. It was all delicious and we had timed it just right. We were there from 2-5pm so we saw the sun set and the lights come up. Big Ben looked so beautiful. Afterwards we went to the Velazquez exhibition at the National Gallery. I had heard mixed reviews but I really enjoyed it. I thought it illustrated well his evolution as an artist and I do like royal portraits anyway. I wore my new Celia Birtwell dress with jeans for the day out and realised that I was perfectly dressed for the Hockney exhibition at the NPG! Oh well, next time.

On Sunday, Jenny & Kieran came down with their children and we all went out to lunch. They brought me some lovely gifts too including a navy sweater vest which I think I'll be wearing a lot this winter. We had a great time chatting and causing chaos at Cafe Rouge and the children played very well together as usual.

I know there's more

But I've had a terrible cold for over a week and I'm overexcited about finally getting into blogger. I can't think of anything else!! Well, J is in New York this week so I'm sure I'll be back again soon. Hope you're all well!

Happy 2007!

I can't believe the holidays are over. I feel like I never really caught up and now it's all over. We did have a really lovely Christmas and new year though. We went up to Cambridge for new year's eve and stayed with Jenny and Kieran. Toby had so much fun with Jack and Kate. We even put all four children in the bath together (pictures to follow one of these days!). The kids did really well and were all asleep by 8.00 and slept through just past midnight so we got some grown up time. Some other friends came over and Jenny prepared a gorgeous meal of duckling and red cabbage. There was loads of champagne and buck's fizz and lots of laughter. My head didn't feel so great the following morning but it was worth it.

On new year's day we all went out to lunch and met up with some other friends we hadn't seen for a couple of years. They recently had their third baby so there was lots of talk about what it's like with three children. It was so great to see so many old friends and to catch up. We had all been friends back when J and I lived in Cambridge, long before any of us had babies and before all the other couples had even married. So many good memories. I remember one summer when one of the guys rented a house boat and we had a huge party on the river with an Elvis impersonator. The highlight was when Elvis stood on the prow of the boat and sang Proud Mary as we rolled down the river waving to all of the bemused passersby on the riverwalk. It wasn't quite such an uproarous time yesterday but it was lovely to see everyone, to sit and eat, talk and laugh and see all the new little faces around the table with us.

And now it's a new year. My resolutions for this year are to take better care of my health and wellbeing, to spend more time just having fun with the children, to spend more time with J as a couple and to investigate the possibility of having a baby privately. My birth experience with Rosie was quite negative so if we do it again I'd prefer to go private rather than National Health. I need to find out if that's possible without needing to remortgage.

And since it's been ages since I posted a photo here is our latest family portrait. Please excuse the big copyright stamp across it. I think the photographer must be getting tired of me nicking photos from his website.

Hope you all had a great new year and all the best for 2007!

Christmas day Futers style

Well, we had a lovely Christmas day for the most part. It started at 2.30am when Toby woke up, found the stocking at the foot of his bed and shouted "Mommy! Daddy! Santa's come!!". Toby, Jason and I got up and Toby checked out all of his presents. Rosie very sensibly slept through this part of the day. J has a cold so he went back to bed and Tobes and I stayed up until 4am trying out his Superman bike, turning the Transformer into a car and then back into a robot half a dozen times, dressing Polly Pocket up in each of her outfits (that's my boy) and opening and examining the contents of every box.

We went back to sleep at four then got up again around nine with Rosie. It was all a bit over Rosie's head. She has a stomach virus and is not a happy little girl at the moment. She did love the tea set Toby gave her and her dolly that opens and closes her eyes. I was surprised that Rosie is already able to play make-believe but she was giving her dolly sips of 'tea' and bites of 'cake'. Very sweet.

While Rosie napped and J and Tobes went out to try the new bike I started preparing lunch. I don't know why I bother with such a big meal but I do like to do the whole traditional thing. Today we had turkey, stuffing, sausages, cranberry sauce, gravy, honey roasted parsnips and carrots, roast potatoes, brussel sprouts and cauliflower cheese. I just can't imagine not doing the whole thing. This year I made the cauliflower cheese with an amazing goats cheese we got at the farmers market. It was lovely. I make a ton of food because the leftovers are almost as good as the meal. I make a turkey pie and bubble & squeak with the leftover veg. So yummy.

So I got the meal ready, just over an hour later than planned, and even managed to shower before we sat down at the table. Toby decided he didn't want to eat anything and would rather go watch a DVD on his own in the living room. Rosie was cranky and grumbling because of her stomach virus. J and I were doing our best to enjoy the meal. I had put Rosie in my lap to calm her and just when I thought I was going to get to actually taste some of the food I had spent the previous few hours preparing Rosie threw up all over me, herself and my plate.

Much, much later I did manage to sit down and enjoy a plate of food without any regurgitated additions. It was worth the wait.

You know, there are families who all sit down together at lunchtime on Christmas day. They're all clean and dressed in their Sunday best, have good conversation and eat well. No one goes off to watch A Muppet Christmas. No one declares the food to be 'a bit yucky'. And no one throws up on the plates. What a strange family they must be.

Track Santa

We've been having fun with the Norad tracking Santa website today. We just looked and he's in Kabul now giving out presents. Tobes loves checking to see how close he's getting to London and I'm hoping this will provide a good incentive to go to bed at a decent hour tonight. "Santa" has a cold and needs to put a bike together tonight. I'm hoping it won't be a late night or Mrs Claus might have to finish that bike which could be dangerous.

London fog

Growing up one of the stock images of London was the fog. I remember reading about it in novels, especially Sherlock Holmes. It was as much a part of London as Big Ben. Well, in all my years of living in England I have to admit that I've rarely experienced real fog. The occasional misty morning and early evening but nothing like the current state. When we left the house this morning we couldn't see the end of our street the fog was so thick. The heath looks like something straight out of a horror movie. It's well creepy, as Annelouise's Rowan would say.

It's funny how it changes the quality of sound too. Everything sounds more crisp, as if all the usual background noise is muffled into silence by the weight of the fog. All domestic flights from Heathrow have been cancelled and even some flights to Europe. It's causing chaos for people trying to get home for Christmas. They think we have about another 24 hours of it. Sounds nice to me. I'm actually enjoying it. The legendary London fog. Makes me want to get out my deerstalker and magnifying glass and look for a crime to solve, though I think I would probably look more like Elmer Fudd hunting wabbits.

Santa's Ho (Ho Ho)

I've been doing my Santa work this morning, wrapping presents and sorting out the stocking stuffers, making sure that neither child has 'more' than the other. This is particularly tough because it's not straightforward. This year much more has been spent on Toby because he's getting a bike but Rosie has more physically large items but Toby has more presents to unwrap because he's getting more little things. It makes my head spin.

The funny thing is I'm not sure the kids will even notice this stuff. Rosie certainly won't. I should probably be careful I don't start projecting my gift concerns onto the children. Geez, I think I need to go lay down.

Lightning strikes twice

Drove into the village at 8.30 this morning for a breakfast with Santa. Cafe Rouge was having a special childrens' breakfast with a visit from Santa and even little gifts for the kids. J went in with us and while he was sorting out the parking ticket I went around to the boot to get the stroller out. It wasn't there! A quick series of thoughts ran through my head. Why would anyone steal a stroller... deja vu... haven't I been through this once before... oh shit, where did I leave it this time?

After some quick crime scene reconstruction in my head I realised that the last time I had seen the stroller was the night before when we met up with Elizabeth, Andrew and Mary Catherine for a last supper before they go off to the States for the holidays. Obviously I had the stroller when we left the restaurant. I took it to the car. Do I remember putting it in the boot? No. Crap.

I think J was genuinely shocked that I could do something so stupid TWICE. Oh well, nothing for it. We had a date with Father Christmas and a missing stroller wasn't going to get in the way of that. So I picked up Rosie and the nappy bag, took Tobes by the hand and schlepped through the village. We had to pass the spot where I had parked the night before and lo and behold it was a Christmas miracle. The stroller was still there.

Some kind soul had pushed it up under cover and it was fine though a little wet with morning dew. I had a quick sniff to make sure it really was morning dew and not some drunk guy's wee from the night before then plonked Rosie in it and we were off.

Very glad to have found the stroller but I must admit that I was already planning what kind to buy next.

It's hard being in this family

I was just looking at the photos from Texas. I had some bad parma ham yesterday and wasn't feeling so great while sorting them out last night. It was nice to look at them today without thinking I might throw up. One of the things that made me laugh are the pics of me and Toby trying to take a photo of J in the shower. My family have always been big on practical jokes which was a shock to J when he joined up. He was so reserved and shy and, unfortunately for him, it just made him a bigger target.

When I was little Mom used to play jokes on us all the time. She would hide behind doors and tell us stories that ended with her jumping up and shouting something which made us jump out of our skins. Jon and I were terrible to each other. We would roll each other's room in toilet paper and he would tie my doorknob to the one across the hall so that I couldn't open my bedroom door and would have to climb out of my window and through the hedge. I remember once putting mascara on Jon while he slept, the night before swimming lessons. When he got in the pool the next day the mascara ran. So mean but so funny.

Then there was the time that Jon thought he would really get me. He put cling film over the toilet bowl and Vaseline on the inside bathroom doorknob. Then he sat in his room across the hall and waited for me to go in. Unfortunately, Dad went in before me. Dad shut the door, there was a moment of silence then "Jon!" then the doorknob started rattling as Dad tried to open the greased door and then "JON!!".

So, when I decided to pick the lock on the bathroom and try to get a naked photo of J, I was just following family tradition. The proof of this is that Dad walked down the hall and saw me standing in front of the bathroom door with an ice pick in one hand and a camera in the other. Did he looked shocked? Did he ask what the hell I was doing? Nope. He just asked who was in the bathroom and kept walking. I think he was just glad it wasn't him.

Texas pics

Finally got the Texas pics up. They're here. The password is either 'texas' or 'quentin'. Never can remember.

Stolen from Ebeth's blog

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? I'd have to go with hot chocolate. Especially if it's Swiss Miss (I'm a cheap date.)

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? When I was growing up Santa would arrange the toys in little vignettes. I especially remember the year I got a family of dolls and they were arranged around a little playset. The children were swinging, Mom was pushing them and Dad was watching. Santa isn't quite so creative these days and the gifts are usually wrapped in red paper.

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? White, always.

4. Do you hang mistletoe? This year I did buy some mistletoe from our fruit and veg shop in the village. Once I got it home I couldn't decide the best way to hang it. It sat on the kitchen table for a while but I kept freaking out about the children touching it because it's apparently poisonous if eaten. At the moment it's drying out on top of the TV in the kitchen. The only way anyone could get under our mistletoe is if they laid down on the floor next to the freezer.

5. When do you put your decorations up? The weekend after Thanksgiving which is at the end of November.

6. What is your favorite holiday dish? I love the whole meal. We usually do the full American Thanksgiving and then have an English Christmas lunch with turkey, brussel sprouts, roast potatoes and parsnips, sage and onion stuffing, etc, etc.

7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child? The one that stands out is the year Jon wanted a bike but we didn't have enough money for a new bike. Dad took my old bike and painted it red then painted black web all over it and a Spiderman face on the seat. He put on new handles with tassles and it was the coolest bike on the block!

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? It wasn't a big revelation. It was the year I got my Lemon Meringue doll (part of the Strawberry Shortcake family). I think I had been suspicious before then but that year I remember laying in bed and hearing lots of shuffling and moving in the living room and Mom and Dad talking. That's when I knew for sure.

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Usually just one and it's always pajamas.

10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree? With a mishmash of homemade ornaments and odd baubles. This year it's dominated by some Lego ornaments Toby and J made and a big rainbow coloured paper chain that Tobes and I made. I still have ornaments from mine and Jason's first Christmas together. We were completely broke so I made all the ornaments for our first tree. I dream of a designer tree but the closest I've come is the tiny tree we had in Tokyo. I had to buy all the ornaments and they were all either white or crystal. Very pretty tree but I think I prefer the mishmash.

11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? Love it but never really experienced it. My first Christmas in England I remember walking down Barnet High Street and it started to snow really hard. It's barely snowed since.

12. Can you ice skate? Oh yes. We're going skating at Somerset House this year. Can't wait.

13. Do you remember your favorite gift? I had a Barbie perfume maker that I loved. And my Pink Thunder Huffy bike. My EasyBake oven too. I was a lucky little girl.

14. What’s the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Being with family and friends.

15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? Mom's sugar cookies.

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? This will only be the second year that we've done it but I love the Christmas Eve procession in Blackheath. A little girl and boy ride through the village on a donkey as Mary and Joseph followed by other children dressed as shepherds. Everyone follows them down to the heath carrying lanterns or flashlights. We all gather outside All Saints Church and sing Christmas carols. I love it last year and I've been looking forward to doing it again.

17. What tops your tree? A little angel.

18.Which do you prefer giving or receiving? Probably giving. That's not me being generous, I just dread getting a gift I really don't like and not being able to hide my reaction.

19. What is your favorite Christmas Song? I love most of them (barring Cliff Richards) from the traditional carols to the children's songs to the modern stuff. I do love Wizzard's I Wish it Could be Christmas Everyday. Perhaps I've been in England too long.

20. Candy Canes! Yuck or Yum? Definitely yum. I carted back over a hundred of them from Texas. The ones here just don't taste right. You can do so much with them - hang them on the tree, make peppermint bark, put them into cookies, smash them up and sprinkle them on ice cream. I even got some tiny ones for the tops of cupcakes. They're so festive.

Really getting into the Christmas spirit now. I went to the grocery store this morning and the Salvation Army band were playing. Lovely to do my shopping with the accompaniment of a brass band playing Christmas carols.

We had the ceremony to turn on the Blackheath Village Christmas lights a few weeks ago. It was a lot of fun. They had a little funfair for the kids and an Elvis impersonator entertained the crowd with some of his greatest hits (and was surprisingly good). The vicar of All Saints blessed the occasion and the lights were turned on to lots of cheers. I love this little community.

Ye olde U S of A

Well, it's that time of year again. When Toby starts behaving (Look, I'm being nice not naughty, Mommy.) and I attempt to eat my bodyweight in Ferrero Rocher and Matchmakers. My Mom gave me some great little cookbooks called Gifts from a Jar. The idea is that you put all of the dry ingredients for a recipe in a jar, a bit like those colorful jars of sand we used to make at school, then attach a note with the wet ingredients that need to be added and the cooking details and voila! A nice little homemade gift. I thought that it would make a good present for Toby's teachers since it's something he can help me make.

My first task was finding the jars. This is the kind of thing that would be no problem to find in the States but requires a bit of hunting in England. Only people who make their own jams would buy them so I needed a specialist shop. Luckily we have a gourmet kitchen store right here in Blackheath. I went in yesterday and explained that I was looking for the equivalent of an American quart jar. Obviously I grew up with 'quarts' but when I said the word out loud it sounded funny to my ears and I wasn't quite sure whether to pronounce it 'kort' or 'kwort'.

The sales assistant squinted his eyes and said 'Quart? I have no idea.' He then got out a big conversion book but American quart wasn't listed. He scratched his head and said 'Well, I assume it means a quarter of something.' I had never thought about it but that made sense. Suddenly a 'quart' seemed like a strange and ancient measurement. Almost quaint.

After coming home and doing some research I discovered that a quart is very conveniently almost exactly a litre. That makes it much easier. Now I'm planning to use some of the Christmasty chocolate chips that I dragged back from the States for the teachers' jars. I'll be off to buy two litre jars tomorrow and Ms Suki and Ms Carla will get their very own American-style Christmas presents this year.

Just opened another book of matches. This time they were from Homeworks, site of the infamous 'you may lose control of your movements' discussion.

Motherhood necessitates invention

I was hoping to post our holiday pics tonight but one very small girl has kept me busy. Rosie Rae was not a happy gal this evening. There are a number of reasons why this may be.

1) The GP and chemist can't seem to get their act together and haven't fulfilled Rosie's formula prescription even though I put in my request last Thursday. We ran out of formula powder this morning so I was unable to give Rosie her bedtime bottle.

2) Rosie managed to get to some bread that Toby was eating. She was shoving it in her mouth as fast as possible when I saw her. I'm sure she got at least two good bites. It's a wholemeal granary bread and I'm wondering if the wheat has given her a poorly tummy.

3) She might be teething.

With all of these things in mind and after two hours of trying to get her to sleep I came up with a plan. First, a dose of Calpol to help with any pains she might be having. Second, a bottle of something. I had given her water but that obviously wasn't doing the trick. I thought about fruit juice but if the water didn't satisfy her then the juice probably wouldn't either. She needed something to satisfy her, fill her up. Finally I came up with a concoction. It reminded me of when I was little and would make 'potions' which usually consisted of things like milk, sugar and peppermint oil or milk and food colouring.

Rosie's potion contained 220ml of warm water, a teaspoon of enriched baby rice for vitamins and body, a teaspoon of olive oil for fat, half a teaspoon of sugar for calories and flavour and a teaspoon of Rosie's calcium supplement... for calcium. I put it all in a bottle, shook it up, offered it to Rosie and she drank it down. Five minutes later she was fast asleep. Hopefully I haven't poisoned her.

Better just go and check on her...

Body clock disfunction

OK, so first night back we sleep 16 hours. Last night, not so lucky. Tobes was up until after 11.00 and Rosie finally went to sleep some time after 2am. I lay awake wishing for sleep until almost 5am then Rosie woke up at 10am and the day started. I have a feeling I'm not going to be at my best today. Jet lag is a bitch.

Back to normal. Well, almost.

Last night I went to bed with the children around 8pm. We woke up this afternoon at 12.30! Toby missed school and swimming lessons because we slept right through them. I'm suffering with jetlag more than I ever have before. I woke up with a pounding headache, double vision and nausea. Nothing some food, coffee and paracetemol couldn't fix though.

I thought fresh air and exercise would be a good idea so we all bundled up (funny to think that Tobes was wearing a T-shirt and shorts the day before in Texas) and went into the village. It was nice to abandon the hair and make-up routine I fall into in Texas and just go out with a messy ponytail and no make-up. They were testing the Christmas lights for the big turning-on ceremony on Saturday and the village looked lovely. We spent a couple of hours running errands and stopping at Costa for a snack. We bumped into Rosie's friend Fillipa, her brother Freddy and their nanny Haley. By the time we headed home around 4.00pm it was already dark and I had fallen back in love with Blackheath which looks particularly gorgeous this time of year.

Every time we visit the States I start to feel a tug at my heart. That feeling of 'belonging' that I'm not sure I'll ever really have in England. My accent changes, my body language is more relaxed. I can really feel myself shifting into Texan mode and I enjoy it. I start to worry that our flat in London is too small, that life in England is too hard and that maybe it's time to move back. Then we come back to London and I see that our flat is tiny but it's lovely and that I fit in more than I think I do. I do find my Texan accent fading. I speak more quietly and I sit straighter and walk differently but I guess that's just me fitting in. A full-on Texan in Blackheath would be a little disruptive! We've made a lovely life for ourselves in London and I think we'll stay a bit longer.

Our trip home was one of the best ever. Mom had really prepared for us and had gotten a travel cot and double stroller from a cousin. It made things so much easier. I've also learned over the years to keep a kiddy box at Mom and Dad's with a bedguard, kiddy plates and cutlery, sippy cups, sun visors for the car, etc, etc. Having the organic grocery store for Rosie really helped too. I was able to stock up on snacks for her. We came back with some great apple cinnamon oatmeal that Rosie loves. I'm going to have to see if I can buy it online. It's really yummy. Even I like it.

I did buy another suitcase and we stuffed it full. I bought so much but I know we'll use it all. I found some peppermint and white chocolate chips that will make great Christmas cookies and I brought back some shredded coconut. The English coconut is like sawdust but the American kind is soft and sweet. Not sure what I'm going to make with it yet. Maybe a big coconut cake. That always looks festive.

I came back to some amazing news. A friend of mine had a baby over the weekend... and she didn't even know she was pregnant! I thought that kind of thing only happened in magazines or talk shows but I guess not. Thankfully she and the baby, a little girl named Sophie, are both fine. I'm looking forward to introducing them to the world of double strollers soon.

We're baaaack

Arrived back in London a few hours ago. I'm typing this with puffy, tired eyes. Got little sleep on the flight but it all went well. We did have two people ask to be moved away from us. One of them loud enough for J to hear. The guy said to the flight attendant "Do you mind if I move because... you know." He then pointed at us and made a face. Oh well, can't say I really blame him. Rosie was her usual noisy self and ended up waking half the flight once she finished her nap.

We came home and had some lunch and I asked Tobes if he was glad to be home. He said 'Well, a little bit." He was adamant that he wanted to stay in America and never come back to England. I guess that's a sign of a good vacation. After the time at Mom and Dad's we spent a few days with Jim and Kellie and Toby had a brilliant time with their boys, Jack and Benjamin. They all got on so well. Rosie got right there in the middle of the action every chance she had and they were both exhausted at the end of the day.

Lots of pics to come but I hear Rosie crying. Think it's time for naps.

Fluidity of time

I remember writing about this last year when I visited Mom and Dad. Time here is different. In England we wake up in the morning, go to bed at night, then wake up again the following morning. Not so in the Black household. One night last week J woke up at 3am and heard chopping noises. He got up to find Mom in the kitchen chopping onions. She couldn't sleep so she decided to get up and make onion quiches. If you wake up in the night, 9 times out of 10 someone else will be up too.

Mom is unique though. I'm not a big Benny Hill fan but I always hear his theme song if I watch Mom when she's busy. She moves like she's in fast forward. The woman is like the Energiser bunny. One afternoon this week I decided to lay down with Rosie during her afternoon nap. Mom was reading in her chair and said that she might lay down in her room too. After a while it became obvious that Rosie wasn't going to sleep but I was still very tired. I got up and saw that Mom's chair was empty so I went looking for J. I explained that Mom was resting and I wanted to nap so could he look after Rosie. J pointed out that Mom wasn't resting and I looked into the back field to see that she had built a bonfire and was throwing old branches onto it. I hope I have that kind of energy in 25 years. I wish I had that kind of energy now!

It seems like Mom and I have always knocked heads but really that all started in my teens. Having children of my own now I've started to remember what Mom was like when I was growing up. She was always good at things like making tents, playing cat's cradle, twirling batons, baking cookies and telling ghost stories. We would have special theme dinner nights and even 'romantic' dinners with candlelight and fancy food. When I think about it, a lot of the things that I like most about my own parenting style are straight from Mom. I think she would be very surprised to hear it but I do have a new respect for her these days. I just wish it hadn't taken me twenty years to get to this point.

Turkey induced coma

Turkey, spiral ham, sweet potatoes, green bean casserole, corn bread dressing, cranberry sauce (the kind that comes out of the can and is sliced), mashed potatoes, macaroni cheese and giblet gravy then banana pudding with Nilla Wafers, Godiva chocolate cheesecake and a pecan rum cake (a Cajun tradition that Angie made). By round two I had to go take off my skinny jeans and put on something with an elastic waist. Rosie has eaten half of the turkey on her own. She's in her element here. I think there's a lot of Texan in that girl.

We watched the Macy's parade all the way to Santa at the end. Santa has trimmed his beard quite short and I swear he's had Botox but then it is New York City. The guys watched the football while Toby, Dyllin and I played Sorry! and did some jigsaw puzzles. Then it was more food.

Soon we'll put the kids to bed and then we'll open a bottle of wine, get out the cheese and crudite platters and watch HGTV or the Food Network until very late. Tomorrow is the biggest shopping day of the year and Nikki and I are contemplating taking part in the madness. I don't think we'll be getting up at 4am but we might just be elbowing grandmas out of the way to get that last toaster/egg poacher for a mere $9.99. How could anyone pass up a deal like that?!

Happy Thanksgiving!

It's not even 10.00am and the turkey is done, the cornbread dressing is in the oven and the ham is waiting on the sidelines for its time in the heat. The sweet potatoes are cooking and I'll be mashing them with butter, nutmeg, cinnamon and brown sugar before adding the marshmallows on top. It's not Thanksgiving without sweet potatoes with marshmallows on top. Mom cooked the turkey on a low heat all night with herbs and 7Up (yes, 7Up) and got up at 2am to check it. It's definitely Thanksgiving!

Of course, it's not about the food. Well, not all about the food anyway. It's about being thankful for family and friends and all the good things we have in our lives. I certainly have a lot to be thankful for this year. A safe, healthy and happy family, good friends and a life that I'm thankful for every single day. This year I'm giving special thought to my new little nephew who'll make his appearance in the spring, to my friend who is struggling with his health, to J's Nana who's body is getting older though her spirit is just as sharp as ever and to all the friends that I think about all the time but haven't seen in years.

Hope you all have a special day today.

I think we need a bigger suitcase

One cupcake stand, one pair of Disney Cars light-up trainers, six magazines, thirteen books, 100 mini candy canes, two bags of Hershey's kisses, two pairs of jeans, three pairs of Batman underpants, boxer shorts, undershirts, socks for the whole family, clothes, clothes, clothes, Benefit's Realness of Concealness and Some Kinda Gorgeous, Estee Lauder's Perfectionist eye pen (the closest thing to a magic wand I've ever seen), one pair of fancy 'feels like you're barefoot' Nike trainers, one T-shirt that says "Everyone loves a Southern girl", two pairs of ladies' shoes and all the other stuff that was bought, put into the suitcase and forgotten.

Plus all the stuff Mom has bought us including one T-shirt that says "Kiss my Southern roots", a jar of sweet potato butter, a jar of blueberry jam, DVDs, clothes, clothes and more clothes for the kids and the list goes on.

One item still in debate - the Bake and Fill cake pan. I really, really want it but I don't think I can get it in my luggage. I'm dreaming of the ice cream cakes I could make in this pan but I might have to buy another freezer to have space for them at home.

Howdy Ya'll

Cinnamon rolls, bacon sandwich, peppermint patties, jelly bellies, Twinkies, Ding Dongs, meatloaf, Olive Garden, Kraft cheese slices, Mrs Baird's bread (yes, Stacy you were right!), Miracle Whip, olive loaf, Dippin Dots ice cream, rainbow sherbet... that's what we've done so far.

It's been a great trip already. Toby is at that age where he's suddenly so aware of everything and remembers details from our last trip. Before now it was new everytime but he's old enough to build up a continuity and has jumped right in to life at Papa and Nana's. Rosie made herself at home as soon as we arrived and they've both been having lots of fun.

We've had a few ups and downs. Today J, Mom, Toby, Rosie and I went into Beaumont for the day to get J's hair cut, do some shopping, see Jon and go out for lunch. It was all going well until we got to the Olive Garden and Rosie threw up. I think it's just the change in her food and water and her tummy is getting used to it all. The American food is richer than what's she used to as well. We were all sitting at the table and I noticed Rosie start to gag. I instinctively put my hands out and she threw up right into my cupped palms. I was sitting there with two hands full of vomit. J had been in the loo and he came running over and whisked Rosie off to the loo to clean her up while Mom gathered napkins and we cleaned up the mess. Afterwards Mom said "I forgot what it was like going out with children. From this side of the table it's pretty funny."

The incident used up all of my baby wipes but I wasn't too worried. I thought I could get some more when we went to the mall. A few hours later we were at the mall, Rosie had diarrhea and not a single shop sold nappy wipes. Mom had bought Rosie a new outfit and we were planning to change her into it because she still had some vomit stains on her clothes. When we found a baby changing area I had to remove Rosie's dirty trousers, wet them in the sink and use them to clean her bottom. Not ideal but the wet toilet paper was useless and the paper towels were too rough on her little bottom. While all of this was going on Toby decided he needed to poo too and was sitting in a stall shouting 'Mommy, I'm finished!" Once we redressed Rosie in her new clothes, sealed the dirty ones in a plastic bag and wiped Toby's bottom things calmed down. Thank goodness Mom was there. J had gone off to buy some new trainers and I think my head would've exploded if I had been on my own.

I also heard a very funny family story for the first time today. I think it's a good example of my parents' relationship. When Mom gave birth to me Dad was in the waiting room, as was the custom in those days. After I was born they asked Dad to come in to see me and Mom. Mom was still on the table with her knees up and a bright light shining down between her legs. As Dad walked into the room he shouted, "Linda, your butt's on fire!" Mom said she was in no mood to laugh but she couldn't help herself.

Everyone send positive vibes out towards San Diego tonight. Nikki's first show as a set designer opens in about an hour. I can't wait to see the photos of her set. It sounds very dramatic. I'm sure it'll all go well but it's a big night. Good luck Nikki!

Tomorrow is the big day

24 hours from now we'll be somewhere over the northeastern US. We leave for Texas tomorrow. I've been packing like crazy since yesterday but I'm sure I'll forget something. As long as we've got the passports and Rosie's milk everything else is expendable.

Before a big trip I always like for the 'last supper' to be a little special. Today I took Tobes and Rosie out for our 'last lunch'. I let Toby choose the venue and he picked Pizza Express. Tobes had the black olive pizza and Rosie and I split a chicken salad (she ate all the chicken). I would've had a pizza but I knew I would be sharing with Rosie and, with her allergies, the salads are all she can eat at Pizza Express. Oh well, Rosie saved me a few calories.

We came home, did loads of laundry, finished the packing and now I'm going to sit and read some of the tabloid mags I bought for Jon & Angie. This time tomorrow night (well, plus the time difference and everything) I'll be sitting at my mother's kitchen table eating a pimento loaf sandwich. On white bread. With Miracle Whip. Ahhhh, home.

Yankee Doodle Rosie

It's official, Rosie is an American. We spent the afternoon at the embassy today and the Government of the United States of America now officially recognise Rosie as a fellow Yank. She has a US passport to add to our collection. When we travel to the States next week the four of us will be going with seven passports - the children each have British and American passports, J has his British passport and I have to travel with both my old and new American passports because the old one has my residency visa in it. Ah, what a diverse little group we are.

So, as I like to say, Rosie is now officially 'half and hawf'.

A bit late but...

I've loaded the pics from last weekend. We had Rosie's birthday party at The Orchard on Saturday then J helped put up the Christmas lights in the village on Sunday morning and Toby had a Halloween party Sunday night. Busy times. The rest of the pics are here:

http://futersfamily.shutterfly.com/action/?a=8AaMmbVqzcNmM0

The password is 'texas' or 'quentin'. I can never remember.

Just had to post the early pic of Rosie. Hasn't she changed!

I tried to post this yesterday for Nikki and Rosie's birthdays but blogger was playing up. Here it is now.

Ah, memories

The Japanese are big smokers and most restaurants have their own matchbooks for customers to take. When we lived in Tokyo I collected the matchbooks and put them into a pot. Over the years whenever I've needed matches I dipped into the pot. Today I decided to light a scented candle and pulled out a matchbook from La Boheme.

We used to go to the one in Omotesando and the interior is all done up to feel as if you're sitting on a roof terrace surrounded by chimneys and rooftops. Gotta love that Japanese whimsicality. I went there mainly with the girls (Annelouise, George and Nikki) for pasta and the best cream cakes ever. They do one that's layer after layer of crepes and cream and is sooo delicious. I remember J and I went there the weekend after we discovered we were expecting Tobes. We went and spent a silly amount at Baby Gap then walked across the street for coffee and cakes at La Boheme.

Enough nostalgia. Best get back to the kiddos. Typical afternoon here. Tobes has stripped down to his underpants and pulled the blue duvet off of our bed to make a 'swimming pool' on the living room floor. Apparently there are sharks in the pool because he keeps saying that Rosie is being eaten by one.

It must be love

I have to admit that I did something last night that I once read about in a book (Angela's Ashes, in case you're wondering). I read it before I had children and thought 'I know I'll love my kids but I can't imagine ever doing that.'

Poor little Rosie has a cold again and she's really congested. Last night she couldn't breathe through her nose and the decongestant, nose drops, humidifier, Vicks rub and Olbas oil were making very little difference. She was laying next to me snuffling and then taking big gasping breaths through her mouth before snuffling again. Tossing and turning, unable to get comfortable or be comforted without her dummy, which was just frustrating her when she couldn't breathe through her nose. I kept thinking about the book and finally in desperation I did it. I sucked the snot out of her nose. It actually wasn't as disgusting as I thought. I just sucked it out, spit it into a tissue and it was done. Rosie was so happy to be able to breathe freely again and she rolled over and went straight to sleep. I guess it was worth it but I hope I never have to do it again.

On this day

Twenty seven years ago today the world was blessed with my sister Nikki Rae and on this day one year ago the world was blessed with my little girl Rosie Rae.

I've never written Rosie's birth story. There was a lot of negativity that day and I guess I'd rather concentrate on the precious little bundle we got at the end of all the frustration. It's basically the story of a lot of waiting and a very fat and frustrated lady throwing her weight around (that's me). Pretty scary.

The funny thing is I can remember seeing Nikki right after she was born as clearly as I can see Rosie. Nikki looked at me and Jon with calm wide eyes. It seemed she was trying to take it all in. She still had blood in her hair and I asked the nurse to show Jon the umbilical cord just to gross him out. I was such a sweet big sister to him. Rosie, on the other hand, literally came out shouting and has been shouting ever since. My first look at her was mostly her tonsils because as J held her down for me to see she just kept shouting with her mouth open wide. She's still one of the loudest children I've ever met. I hope it means she'll have a strong personality and not be afraid to speak her mind when she's older. Lord help us all.

So, my two favourite girls born on the same day with the same middle name. I hope they'll grow to love each other as much as I love them. Though I don't think that's actually humanly possible.

Party pics

These are from Kate's party on Saturday. You can see that Jenny prepared a feast for the kiddos. Rosie was such a big girl and sat at the table with the other children. I brought her lunch (allergies, allergies) but she was able to have some fruit from the table. She was so happy to be eating with the big kids. There's also a pick of Rosie playing Pass the Parcel and Tobes in his knight costume sword fighting with Jack. You can tell the kids had a brilliant day.

Just realised I didn't get a single pic of the birthday girl!

Ah chocolate, like kiddie cocaine

I decided to have a trial run with Rosie's birthday cake today. I've been debating making a cake that everyone can eat or just a little cupcake for Rosie. You can imagine that a dairy, wheat, egg, soya and nut-free cake might not taste so great. Well, I was pleasantly surprised. I found a milk and wheat-free chocolate mix and with a little substituting (it called for eggs) and playing around I managed to make something that's actually quite nice (and guess who got to lick the spoons).

It's more of a brownie than a cake but that ain't no bad thing. And with some chocolate drizzle and Rosie's name on top it should work quite well. Phew! I was so worried my baby wouldn't have a birthday cake.

[We went to a Halloween craft class at the library today, hence the orange ghosty T-shirts on the kiddos. I do like for my children to be dressed appropriately.]

Birthday party and disco brunch

Had a lovely weekend. We went up to Cambridge yesterday for Jenny & Kieran's little girl Kate's 3rd birthday party. It was a princess theme so Toby took his knight costume. Jenny was her usual creative self and the party was a big hit. Lots of food, games and fun for the kiddos and a chance for the grown-ups to chat. The highlight of the party for me was when Tobes was in his knight costume and a pretty little girl in a pink fairy costume came up to him and said 'I'll be your princess if you want me to." Toby's reply, "OK, but we need a dragon."

After the party we went back to Jenny & Kieran's to hang out, let the children play and have dinner. Jenny was my first friend in England. We met when we worked together at Cambridge University way back in '94. We lived across the hall from each other for a year when she and Kieran moved into Chichester House which stands out as one of the happiest years of my life. She and Kieran are like family so time spent with them is always special.

Today we went into London and met up with Elizabeth, Andrew and the lovely Mary Catherine for brunch. We went to Smiths of Smithfield in the heart of the City. We hadn't realised that it was the seventh birthday of Fabric, a very cool London nightclub next door to SOS which has a dancefloor beneath the restaurant. They were celebrating with an all night party that ended at noon today which meant that our brunch was accompanied by a vibrating, pounding beat. It was an opportunity to dust off some dance moves and Elizabeth and I giggled and took advantage of our right to occasionally be typical noisy Americans as we got the children to do the cabbage patch and the snake. Even Rosie was bopping her head along and Elizabeth and I threatened to go next door but weren't sure they would let us in wearing our weekend 'Mom gear'.

We did manage to snag some party favours. They were handing out oven mitts (yes, oven mitts) with 'LOVE' and 'BAKE' on the knuckles of the mitts. Strange but apparently very cool.

Marie Antoinette

Saw the film today and really enjoyed it. I think you'll either love or hate it and I loved the fun and frivolity of it. So beautiful and so little dialogue. The story is told mostly in facial expressions and images. Beautiful, beautiful clothes and shoes and pastries and an interesting combination of period and contemporary details (loved the pair of lavender Converse in Marie Antoinette's wardrobe). Like a Laduree macaroon it was gorgeous, sweet, delicious and surprisingly fulfilling.

Lurgy, lurgy and a movie

Illness continues. Rosie has started waking up in the middle of the night for a bottle, which is something she hasn't done in ages. I think it's because she lost weight from her tummy bug and is trying to make up some calories now. That's great. Fine with me. Just wish I could sleep through it somehow.

I've been fighting a bug and not sleeping very much, which hasn't helped. I hate being ill and can only tolerate about a day in bed before I get antsy. I decided to just ignore it, carry on as normal and ride it out. I've become one of those people that you see out and about, eyes streaming, nose bright red with something disgusting dripping off the end, and you think 'For God's sake go home and go to bed!'.

Finally, last night in desperation I got the children and myself ready for bed and we all went to sleep in 'Mommy & Daddy's bed' at 7.00. J slept in Toby's room to avoid the night wakings but miraculously we all slept through. I woke up this morning after twelve hours of sleep and felt... like crap. So it was off to the doc's to be told that I have a very bad sinus infection and need lots of drugs. I'm hoping that within a day or two I'll be as good as new.

I really want to get better because there are so many nice things to do. Toby has half term next week and I'm making plans for lots of activities and days out. We're also on that slippery slope to Christmas. They're hanging the village lights on the 29th and J is volunteering to help this year. It's always surprised me how much community spirit you can still find in a city as big as London. Our little village is like a little world of its own and I can't walk down the street without seeing familiar faces now. We have a Halloween party on the afternoon of the 29th, then Halloween itself, then Guy Fawke's Night on the 5 November with a huge fireworks display on the heath on the 4th, and then we'll be getting ready for our trip to Texas for Thanksgiving. Such a wonderful time of year.

Tomorrow Rosie and I are going to the Big Scream at the Greenwich Picture House. They're showing Marie Antoinette and I'm really intrigued to see it. We're going with Pete and Philippa and their new baby, Joseph. I'm really looking forward to some popcorn and a good film.

Momentous event

I've just turned the heat on for the first time this autumn. We would've done it sooner but the boiler needed a little help getting started. J and I seemed to be in a stand-off as to who was going to do it and the cold has finally broken me. I had to go through an endless chain of "Push 1 for cranky operator", "Push 2 for staff who know nothing about our product", etc, etc and then scrabble around under the boiler to top it up, reset all the thermostats and finally... we have heat!

I've saved the nasty job of going around and bleeding all the radiators for J though.

Look who's got hair!

Rosie is finally getting a bit more than fluff on her head. It's sandy now but Mom is convinced that she's going to be a blonde.

We're all much better. Just lingering colds now. Toby has half-term next week so I'm trying to find some fun stuff for us to do. Tate Modern has a new installation using huge slides which sounds like fun.

Take a look at Dad's blog (link on the right in the sidebar). He has some photos of the rain in Texas. You can see why I love it so much.

I guess it had to happen

I've caught the lurgy. Woke up at 4am on Thursday morning with a high fever. By 9am I had my head down the loo. Feeling better today but still not great. J had to cancel a business trip to Paris to take care of the kids. Poor thing. Now we're all just hoping for a nice weekend.

Just a typical breakfast at our place

I'm finally loading my photos from this summer. Here we are having a nice, peaceful breakfast. I love the look on Rosie's face in one of the photos - "Can you believe what I have to live with?!" I can't remember what Tobes was singing that morning but he was keeping us all entertained.

For those contemplating children - a cautionary tale

Rosie is still vomiting. We've been to the doctor and they say it's a virus and we just have to ride it out. So, I'm riding the crest of a wave of sick. Nice.

Last night I went to bed at 9.30. At 10.00 Rosie woke up. I was immediately on Vomit Watch. No, she was just unhappy. Put her in bed with me and went back to sleep. Midnight and Toby woke up. J was in the kitchen and didn't hear him so I got out of bed, trying not to wake Rosie. Toby wasn't happy so he got in our bed too. J went to sleep in Toby's bed. 3am Rosie woke up, leaned over and puked on my chest. Got up with her as quietly and carefully as possible trying not to wake Toby. Took Rosie into her room, cleaned her up and changed her jammies. Cleaned myself up. Got Rosie a drink of water, got clean towels, went back and stripped my side of the bed. Went back to the kitchen to get Rosie a clean dummy. Resettled Rosie, looked at the clock. It was 4am. 6.45am and Toby woke up ready to start the day. He sat up and woke Rosie and my day began. When I brushed my hair this morning I found two perfectly formed regurgitated peas nestled underneath.

And that was the best night this week.

My boy

J was given a survival pack by one of his clients and it included some glow sticks. One of the perks of working in risk management, you're always prepared for natural disasters. Tobes has been playing with one of the glowsticks. He likes to pretend he's a superhero with amazing powers and he puts the glowstick down his trouser leg then says "I'm going to show you something you've never seen before. I have a magic bone. Let me get it out and show you."

Funny, I'm sure one of my highschool boyfriends used the same chat up line.

And how's your day going?

Rosie has a tummy bug. She's thrown up in the kitchen, the living room and most recently in her car seat. Toby's contribution to the car-full-of-vomit situation: "When did she eat raisins?!"

Rosie is sleeping now, Tobes is watching Batman and I have a date with a chunk covered carseat.

Mystery of the fire trucks solved

We've discovered why the fire engines were here on Saturday night. On Friday night, or the early hours of Saturday morning to be precise, I opened my eyes to look at the clock. 6.23am. Suddenly the room was filled with bright white light followed a millisecond later by the loudest clap of thunder I've ever heard in my life. It was so loud that it woke Jason up. Now, this is saying something when you consider that J has slept through earthquakes, my screaming nightmares and an IRA bomb going off about 100 yards from our flat.

I said to J that it sounded as if the lightning had hit something close by to be so loud. He said something along the lines of 'hmmm' which translates into 'don't be so silly things like that don't happen in southeast London'. Apparently things like that do happen in southeast London because after the heavy rain on Saturday night our neighbor's chimney collapsed. It had been hit by the lightning. Bricks fell onto the roof, the pavement, and a car parked in front of their house. Needless to say, a lot of damage was done. The area is still cordoned off.

We've got it all on Quentin Road. Stabbings, acts of God, you name it. What we really need to lighten the mood is a streaker. I wonder if I could talk J into doing it?

Dad, you would've loved it

I was woken up at 2.30 this morning by the sound of a large engine and blue flashing lights. I laid in bed thinking 'Good lord, what is wrong with this street!' before curiousity, or plain old nosiness, got the better of me. I was very concerned to find two fire engines parked outside our building. I leaned out the window to see if they were at a house on our side of the road. The walls between the terraced houses (that's what they're called when they're all stuck together like on our street) are over a foot thick solid stone so they're quite safe but it's still very scary to think of a neighbor's house on fire. There didn't seem to be any panic and I couldn't smell smoke so I went back to bed.

Soon I heard the high whine of a different kind of motor. Perhaps it was a false alarm and they were retracting the hoses. I lay and listened. No! That's the sound of the big ladder going up. I was out of bed again and sure enough there was a fire fighter suspended over the rooftop of a house across the road. These are tall houses, three stories, and it was quite a site seeing that ladder fully extended and the silhouette of the fire fighter against the night sky. Then he turned on a bright light and started examining the rooftop and chimney. It looked as if he was taking samples too.

I decided not to fight my natural inclination and made myself comfortable at the window. As I looked down our side of the road I could see other heads popping out of windows for a look and the people across the street had pulled up chairs to their window. A few neighbors (all men) had put on their dressing gowns and gone down to the pavement to see what was going on. I so wish Dad was here because I know he would've been down there like a shot and I would have the full story by now. I toyed with the idea of going down myself but it looked like a boy's club so I stayed put.

Eventually they started to bring the ladder down. They were brilliant. Aside from the engine noise there were no raised voices, everything done so carefully. At one point it looked like the ladder might damage the branches of a tree so one of the fire fighters climbed up and held the branches out of the way as they brought the ladder down.

And then, the moment I had been waiting for. The moment that I knew would come. The moment that makes me almost misty-eyed over England. One of the neighbors further down the road came out with a big tray of mismatched mugs of steaming hot tea and a small plate of biscuits. As soon as the ladder was safely back in place the fire fighters gathered round the tray and warmed themselves with tea and biscuits.

Now they're packing up and leaving as quietly as they came. It's 3.30am and I absolutely must get back to sleep. I just wanted to be sure to capture the adventure before other things got in the way.

Good night, Dad.

J took Tobes to school this morning so I've been catching up on odd jobs in the flat. Now Rosie is napping and the flat is so peaceful. It's raining again and I've turned off all the lights and cracked the windows. I do love the rain. I have lots of memories of sitting wrapped in blankets with Dad on our patio on Loyce and listening to the rain on the metal roof.

I made myself a cup of tea and while I waited for the kettle to boil I stood and leaned against the window. I love these old houses. The dirty bricks, the slate roof tiles, the old wonky chimneys. Even the drafty windows. I stood for a long time and just watched the rain.

It's getting to that time of year when I just want to wrap my arms around London. I'm already thinking about Christmas and the procession through the village. I wonder if Tobes will be a sheperd in the nativity play this year. I want to take the children ice skating at Somerset House. They have little sleds that Rosie can ride around in. I can't wait to see her all wrapped up in her winter coat, her little cheeks all pink with the cold. It's my favourite time of year.

D'ya ever have one of those days?

J left the house just after 7am for work. He had a meeting in Oxfordshire today and needed an early start. I had been awake since about 5.15am and out of bed since 6.15am. The children have had a string of terrible nights. From Rosie's teething to Toby falling out of bed it's been hell. They both want to get up about 5.30 most mornings too so J and I have been zombies.

This morning was one of the worst ever. Rosie was tired and cranky and kept screaming, not out of sadness but out of anger and frustration. She's at that age where she thinks she can do more than she actually can is always trying to keep up with Toby. Toby has suddenly realised that there's someone in the house smaller than him and has started bossing Rosie around. Well, I guess it's more that he tries to be a little parent to her. He's constantly telling her what she can't do and sometimes he'll eat something that she can't have, like a cookie, right in front of her. Every time she tries to take a bite he'll say 'No, you can't have this Rosie. It has wheat in it.' Then take another big bite. Little stinker.

Of course, I do intervene but this morning they were getting on each other's nerves and they were both driving me crazy. Finally managed to get Tobes to school and thought I would have a coffee while Rosie napped. She woke up as soon as the cup hit the table and I ended up leaving almost a whole cup to go cold while I dealt with her.

I had booked a session at the gym at 2.00 and had booked both children into the creche. Rosie has decided that she hates the creche so I thought having Toby there with her might help. I was really looking forward to my quiet time on the treadmill. It's so stress-relieving.

We rushed through lunch and I miraculously got both children in the car on time. I got behind the wheel, turned the key... and nothing. The engine didn't respond at all. I tried again... and again. I was ready to bang my head on the steering wheel. Back inside I called the creche to cancel, texted J and called RAC to come out and take a look at it. J rang and asked if I had checked whether or not the car had been left in gear. I hadn't.

Back to the car. Sure enough the last time I drove the car I had left it in reverse! I put it in Park, turned the key and the engine sprang to life. Ran back in the house to cancel the RAC call-out. I thought about still trying to go to the gym but the way my day is going I just know I would break my neck on the treadmill.

A weight off my mind

Mom found a shop in Beaumont called Basic Foods that sells organic fruit, vegetables and meats AND they stock lots of wheat- and dairy-free foods that Rosie can eat. Mom gave me their number and I rang today just to make sure that they had suitable food and it's fantastic! I'm so pleased. I could really feel my tension building as I worried about feeding the smallest kiddo in Texas. They did say that they're the only supplier from Louisiana to Houston! So glad they're in Beaumont.

Rain, rain

Felt like a real English mummy today. It was chucking down rain when it was time to pick Tobes up from school so I bundled Rosie up and put her in the stroller with the rain cover. I put on my wellies and my waterproof jacket with the hood (umbrellas are for wimps), grabbed Toby's waterproofs and we splashed off to get the boy.

Since it's such a rainy day we stopped at the DVD shop and got the second Harry Potter film then we all stomped home together. Rosie has learned how to kick her rain cover hard enough to get her legs outside. I think she likes to feel the rain. You know, I've heard the phrase 'bull in a china shop' but I don't think I ever really saw it until Rosie started crawling. The child is into everything. She never wants to stop. About the only time she's still is when she's sleeping or eating and even then she's usually trying to stand up in her highchair. I was cooking in the kitchen one afternoon and turned around to find Rosie sitting in the centre of the dining table merrily eating grapes out of the fruit bowl. The girl is a handfull.

But back to the rain. We've come home, stripped off, hung our jackets over the bathtub and had a nice lunch. Now it's Harry Potter until Toby gets bored and then we'll probably make some cookies. Can't wait until wintertime when the hiss of the radiators will make it feel even more cozy.

An allergy-free Nigella

Rosie's dietician gave us the details of a website that specialises in food and ingredients for people with allergies. I did a big order for Rosie of things like corn pasta (they even had it in animal shapes!), rice flour, egg substitute and special oatmeal cookies. She's been having the pasta with veggie purees and small pieces of meat but tonight is the first time that I've really cooked anything for her.

One of the challenges is getting enough protein, calcium and fat into Rosie. For some reason her formula, Neocate, is high in vitamins and amino acids but not these other things. Rosie does take a calcium supplement but the dietician recommended trying to get as much calcium as possible in Rosie's food too. She eats a lot of beans, spinach, broccoli and dried fruit. I decided to start out easy today and make fishcakes. I looked up my favorite recipe (Nigella, of course) and adapted it using the special ingredients. They were fantastic! Even I liked them. They're great for freezing too which will make things easier on busy days. Very pleased and looking forward to adapting some more recipes.

I am starting to worry about feeding Rosie in the States in November. She can't tolerate lecithin and so many foods in America use it as a preservative. Organic fruit and vegetables are also difficult to find where Mom and Dad live. I'm planning to take a suitcase full of Rosie's pasta, biscuits, rice flour, formula, egg substitute, etc, etc and then just prepare very simple meals for her. What a big fuss for such a little girl.

Learning and looking

Had a day out today with my friend Natasha. It was London Open House this weekend when a number of buildings of architectural interest that are not usually open to the public open their doors. We decided to visit the Ismaili Centre in South Kensington. It's a kind of social club with a prayer room for Ismaili Muslims. The Aga Khan himself helped to design the building which is really beautiful. It's an amazing place and forms the heart of the Ismaili community in London. We removed our shoes and visited the prayer room where we learned about the history of the Ismaili religion and were able to ask questions. The speaker was very eloquent and patiently answered some rather rude and inappropriate questions.

Afterwards we went for lunch in an outdoor cafe and then visited the Serpentine Gallery. I wanted to see the exhibition Uncertain States of America and Natasha wanted to visit the Koolhaas/Balmond pavilion before it's removed in October. The exhibtion was OK but there were a great number of works that seemd to have no concept or craft and left us both cold. There were some great video works that saved us though and the giant hazelnut meringue we shared in the pavilion topped the day off nicely.

Afterwards we walked through Kensington Gardens and I stopped to take a photo of the Peter Pan statue for Tobes. It was lovely to see Natasha and to learn something new.

Oh I do love to be beside the sea

After pilates class this morning my friend Poppy and I were chatting over coffee. Poppy was telling me how much she enjoyed living in this area. We have all the urban grit and excitement of London with the convenience of Bluewater (Europe's largest shopping mall) just twenty minutes away and the coast only forty minutes away. She told me about a lovely seaside town called Whitstable that they like to visit.

By the time I got home I felt ready for an adventure so we loaded up the car and headed off to Whitstable. One of the best things about living on such a small island is that you're never very far from the sea. In just over an hour we were in Whitstable and it was as lovely and charming as Poppy had described. First stop was lunch. We found the East Quay Restaurant with tables outside on the beach and had proper chunky fish and chips with lots of salt and vinegar. Afterwards we walked down to the water, took off our shoes and went wading. Even Rosie had a splash.

Now I should explain that English beaches are not like the beaches we have in Texas. No one was swimming and I didn't even see anyone wearing a bathing suit. There are sandy beaches in England but most are pebble, as is Whitstable. In high summer and in places like Cornwall you do get more of the typical beachy atmosphere but places like Whitstable are more for walking and wading and enjoying the sea air. It's on the North Sea and that water is COLD. Described as 'bollock shrinking' cold today (well it is September).

It was a lovely day. Even the drive was nice. Getting out of London and seeing the patchwork of fields - bright green pastures dotted with sheep, plowed fields all golden brown with dark green hedges in between. Tobes had a great time and didn't want to leave. Of course, we came home with a few seashells and promises to visit again. Maybe for a long weekend next time.

Fame still awaits

Well, didn't hear back from Dove. Felt a bit down about it over the weekend, mostly because I had already spent the money in my head, but OK now. At least it was a new experience.

I've been sorting out the flat this week. I moved the furniture in the living room around on Monday. It's an improvement but still not how I'd really like it. We need a TV cabinet before I can get it just right. Then I sorted through the hall cupboard and put loads of stuff in the charity box. Cleaned out the storage under Toby's bed so he can actually keep some toys under there now. Today I cleaned out the bookshelves in the living room and organised the utility cupboard. Just felt like the place needed a good tidy. We basically shoved things into closets when we moved here then had Rosie two weeks later and everything just stayed put until now.

Speaking of Rosie, she's started pulling up on the furniture and is into everything. She can now say 'cracker' and 'banana' and nods her head yes and no (mostly no). It's so funny to suddenly be able to have a conversation with her. Admittedly they generally consist of 'Rosie, would you like a banana?'. Rosie nods yes. 'Rosie, are you ready to get out of the bath?' Rosie shakes her head no. 'Rosie, do you love your Mommy?' Rosie shouts 'dadadada'.

Holding my breath

Well, the audition was an experience. As I was getting ready to leave the house with the children, checking the nappy bag, packing Toby a 'picnic' dinner, getting jackets, etc, etc I did wonder what on earth I was doing dragging the kids across London at dinnertime for something as frivolous as an advertisement. It all went surprisingly well though.

We arrived in WC1 with lots of time so we sat in an outdoor cafe and people-watched while I fed Rosie. Toby is very good company and it was nice to just sit and chat. I thought we'd have a little walk around the area before going for the audition and as we were strolling Toby suddenly announced that he needed the loo and that he 'might've had a very little accident'. Geez. We ran into the British Museum and found a loo. Toby's underpants had a small wet patch which I had to dry under the hand dryer. As I stood there with Toby naked from the waist down, holding his underpants under the dryer, I noticed that Rosie had a very concentrated look on her face. So, I changed Rosie's poopy nappy while Tobes got dressed. By the time everyone was clean and dry we had about two minutes to get to the audition.

I arrived sweaty and flustered to a very chic office. At first I thought the receptionist was working on a shoot or something and was only half dressed but no, she was actually wearing a very, very short dress and hadn't forgotten to put her trousers on. I felt absolutely ancient. I sat in an industrial looking waiting room with a bunch of twenty-something American girls. They sat calmly chatting while I was trying to fill in forms, feed Rosie raisins to keep her quiet, put on lip gloss and help Tobes colour all at the same time. We were given a wide berth. The receptionist came over to look at Rosie and told me how cute she was while standing back and cautiously touching Rosie with one finger. She seemed to think that Rosie was a bomb that might go off at any moment.

Finally the casting agent came out. She took one look at the children and said 'oh look, little people' in the same tone in which she might've said 'oh look, someone has shit in the middle of the floor'. Not a great sign. I followed her into a room set up for a shoot with a white backdrop and a video camera. As I struggled through the heavy metal door, trying to hold it open and maneuver the stroller and Toby (who was clinging to my leg) into the room I said "Well, you asked for real women. It doesn't get any more real than this!"

I was asked to stand in front of the camera while they asked me a few questions. They asked how long I had been in England and when I said almost thirteen years they said "Ah, that's why you sound like Madonna. Can you turn up the American accent?" which I dutifully did. Then I had to put my hands on my head while they took a few photos. They had asked me to wear a white tank top and I'm sure they took a close-up of one of my arm pits which felt very strange. Then I had to throw my hands in the air and say "Seven days! Yes!". I felt very silly.

The children were very good. As I was standing in front of the camera I could see Toby, stony-faced and bored, watching me which made me laugh. It all took about five minutes and then we were gone. I should find out by Friday if I've got the job. I was so flustered that I didn't ask about being paid. It just seemed like a bit of a laugh to me but a friend today told me that she knew someone who was in a Dove ad and they were paid quite well. So, who knows!

The media career continues!

Oh my good lord. You'll never guess what I'm doing tomorrow. Going for a screen test! You know how Dove soap has stopped using models and started using real people? Well, I heard through the Texas Exes (my American expat group) that they were looking for Americans in London for their next ad campaign. I thought what the hell and sent off an email with a couple of pics, thinking nothing would actually come of it. Very excited now!

So tomorrow the children and I (they were very happy for the kids to come along) are going down to a casting studio in WC1 where I'll be photographed and filmed. Even if nothing else happens it sounds like it'll be an interesting experience.

Big Nikki-shaped hole in the house

Nikki left on Friday and I've been moping ever since. When I'm down I clean. Today I cleaned out the fridge including removing and washing each shelf, scrubbed the bathroom taps to remove all the limescale, washed the children's bath mat with bleach, cleaned the doors of the kitchen cupboards, cleaned the garbage bin and did five loads of laundry. Yes, I'm missing Nikki just a little bit.

Her actual leaving was quite manic as Heathrow was in full chaos as only Heathrow can be. Nikki was one of the last people to get on the plane because the lines and delays at security were so long. She did make it to Boston though, where she's staying with her friend Mary, and will head back to California on Wednesday.

I know the children are missing her too. I rang Nikki yesterday and Toby said 'Tell her that we miss her, Mommy.' A few days before Nikki left Rosie started saying 'Kikki' and has been asking for 'Kikki' ever since. Thank goodness it's just a few months before we see her again for Thanksgiving.

It was so great having her here. We talked a lot about our childhoods. A lot of things we shared like spying on Jon through the AC vents and Mom's Christmas cookies but a lot of things were different too. There are nine years between us so while my childhood memories include Nancy Drew books and wanting to look like Linda Blair in Roller Boogie, Nikki's were all about Sweet Valley High and Grease 2. I remembered 'Chinese night' when Mom and I would wear cheong sams and we would eat dinner sitting on the floor, lots of baking with Mom and even once having a taffy pull. By the time Nikki came along Mom and Dad were that bit older and had three children so her memories were more about pee wee drill team and me sneaking her into inappropriate places like clubs on Sixth Street when she was 11 or letting her drive my car when she was 9. I left home when Nikki was 11 so there are a lot of things that I missed. It was nice to hear about it all and to have the time to really talk.

I think Toby saw a different side to his Mom. More than once Nikki and I would be sharing stories, rehashing old family tales or just bursting into song at the breakfast table and Toby would look at us both with surprise and rapt attention. I suspect he's saving some of the stories for future use. Jon and I played endless practical jokes on each other when we were growing up and I'm sure my stories gave Toby more than a few ideas.

So, now life goes on. A bit more quietly. It was wonderful having Nikki here. So young and fresh and (dare I say it) American. She kept me on my toes and being with Nikki reminded me of who I was before marriage and babies and England. It was nice to reaquaint myself with some of the qualities that I've lost along the way. After a summer with my little sister I definitely have a lighter spirit and my toenails have never looked better.