Eight years ago I was in the UK, in labour, tired and scared. My husband had popped out of the hospital to get food and for reasons no one will ever understand, he stopped off on the way back at B&Q to buy light fittings. To be fair we needed those light fittings, although likely not urgently. So I spent an hour or two, no idea how long, alone apart from the machines that go ping. 40 minutes before my 40th birthday small person arrived. Face scrunched up, with lines across his brow as if to say " what did you wake me up for, I was asleep". Within two days the nurses on the Mat ward informed me "he's got a temper!" And so it began...the journey into parenthood.
On his third birthday we had Jo Jingles sing and play, so sweet. By 4 it was super heroes with the real Spider-Man. The muscles on that guy were very pleasing to the mums at the party. For his 5th birthday they ran screaming around Manic Monsters, slides, football and sausage and chips. Off to Canada we went, so his 6th was a Star Wars art party in Ontario, with his whole class as we tried to help him make friends. The kittens actually helped there but they came the following March. For his 7th we went to Chuck e Cheese, which was the loudest, purplest party ever. He loved it. We loved that he loved it. This year, for 8th, we took the kids to Lazer Tag on a school night. It was "awesome" but a struggle to get him up and dressed the next day, for school.
Today, on his birthday, he went to school in his pyjamas, (they spell that pajamas!) as a celebration that the class "beat the teacher". It's like Harry Potter- they get house points for being good, quiet, kind etc. So a very excited 8 year old borded the bus today, at minus 2 degrees, in his pjs.
The house is now silent. The cats have gone to sleep, likely together as they do like a cuddle. I am off to work, back into a busy and fast changing workplace. Reorganization sees colleagues and friends leaving at the end of today. This time around I get to stay, like last time, and that is a bitter pill as you see yourself catapulted into a reality that you didn't choose. Weeks ahead of working out what your role is; lots of emotions crammed into every work day spilling out into home life unless I'm super focussed on that. Health report back from my annual medical. Not "sick" but not "well". Too heavy, too round, lacking iron, needing exercise...no more wine, liver not happy. Hoping the iron tablets will kick in soon...a slimmer fitter me is coming to this town soon.
Namaste
Monday, 30 November 2015
Thursday, 22 October 2015
Pre Coffee Rant
Great fun at art class last night. Its an painting free-for-all - which means you paint what you want over 3 evenings. We chat whilst we paint with our core subjects being the Blue Jays and the school strike. I did divert the conversation to discussing how hot the PM is but apparently that's not a key asset for a leader. Who knew?
Blue Jays won - yay! So we talked school. The teachers are on a work to rule, have been for months. The Office staff the same. Cleaners are on all out strike. My friend recounted how she went to pick her kid up early for a dental appointment and the Principal had to open the door as the office staff can't press a buzzer under the terms of their industrial action. It gets better. When she asked the office worker to call the classroom to send her daughter up, she declined "work to rule!" so they had to wait for the Principal to return to have him call ahead.
Now here's my point, for I always have a point. This is a great, free, democratic country. Always a socialist at heart, with a very small S, I respect people's right to take organized action to confront hardship and tyranny. I support action like the UK General Strike of 1926 where pay was so low people in work were starving and those out of work, back for the war, were without prospects and starving. That was a movement to say "enough inequality, enough starvation, enough!"
Roll forward to the Miners Strikes, where the Government closed the mines without any regeneration plans for those communities. Not cost effective to mine coal? - fair enough, I'm a capitalist too, again small C. But to take away work without any plans for the survivors to find new work was shameful and inhuman. Generation grew up without work. IMO from that came "the choice to not work" as living on the state became an option for some, whilst many had no choice but to do that.
So the point in all of this - industrial action in the face of a future human and social catastrophe or as a challenge to current hardship - GOOD. Industrial action because you aren't getting paid as much as you wish you were - NOT GOOD.
As we enter the flu season, with the schools being filthy, they are starting to ask us to donate antiseptic wipes to clean the kids desks...but they don't ask via a note home as photocopying is not allowed under the work to rule. So, grumpy about all this for both sides - as what is the elected leader doing to resolve this? As Maude always used to say in the Simpsons "won't somebody please think of the children"
Off to work
Namaste
Blue Jays won - yay! So we talked school. The teachers are on a work to rule, have been for months. The Office staff the same. Cleaners are on all out strike. My friend recounted how she went to pick her kid up early for a dental appointment and the Principal had to open the door as the office staff can't press a buzzer under the terms of their industrial action. It gets better. When she asked the office worker to call the classroom to send her daughter up, she declined "work to rule!" so they had to wait for the Principal to return to have him call ahead.
Now here's my point, for I always have a point. This is a great, free, democratic country. Always a socialist at heart, with a very small S, I respect people's right to take organized action to confront hardship and tyranny. I support action like the UK General Strike of 1926 where pay was so low people in work were starving and those out of work, back for the war, were without prospects and starving. That was a movement to say "enough inequality, enough starvation, enough!"
Roll forward to the Miners Strikes, where the Government closed the mines without any regeneration plans for those communities. Not cost effective to mine coal? - fair enough, I'm a capitalist too, again small C. But to take away work without any plans for the survivors to find new work was shameful and inhuman. Generation grew up without work. IMO from that came "the choice to not work" as living on the state became an option for some, whilst many had no choice but to do that.
So the point in all of this - industrial action in the face of a future human and social catastrophe or as a challenge to current hardship - GOOD. Industrial action because you aren't getting paid as much as you wish you were - NOT GOOD.
As we enter the flu season, with the schools being filthy, they are starting to ask us to donate antiseptic wipes to clean the kids desks...but they don't ask via a note home as photocopying is not allowed under the work to rule. So, grumpy about all this for both sides - as what is the elected leader doing to resolve this? As Maude always used to say in the Simpsons "won't somebody please think of the children"
Off to work
Namaste
Saturday, 10 October 2015
Thanksgiving Weekend
That came around super fast. Getting ready to go apple picking later once small person returns from Saturday School. That's so that he can keep up with his Peers, as youngest boy in his year, and not a faith activity at Temple. Small person is proving to be fabulous at math, outspoken and not keen to follow instructions. No idea where that all comes from. ha!
It's been a long and enjoyable seven days for me. Last Saturday we played at the pumpkin festival which was essentially outdoor fun with orange blobs here and there. Then an overnight flight to UK and two days walking around well tended gardens and battling thorns and stings in my own back yard. UK house is sold and we now have a paperwork mountain prior to completion. Great karma that we have sold it to a friend who asked us 5 years ago to let her buy it. Happy for us and for her. Many weeks of reading about tax and money transfers are in my future I reckon. Maybe we will be home owners again in 2016. Dunno, all too complicated with jet lag.
I spent 2 days at work in London, catching up with friends and not catching up with family. Travelling with work is full on, and meeting up with people who are 2 to 4 hours away is impossible. I imagine folks believe it's all nights out and plush hotels when infact its in bed by 8pm, laptop on, back to work. Not complaining, but increasing surprised by how little time I have away from work.
I enjoyed walking around in the drizzley rain, the silence, the beautiful manners and friendliness of people in shops and hotels. Love those Europeans with doctorates who sell coffee in Pret as that is better than being unemployed in Portugal. Everyone I spoke to had an aunt in Toronto but know one asked if I'd met them :-)
I didn't enjoy watching the news, with the party conferences. Hours about the rights and wrongs of having to pay 5p for a carrier bag. What the hell? Children are drowning in the Med. Winters coming and 800k people are living in tents in Germany. It's gonna get bloody cold for them very soon. I wonder what their views are on 5p carrier bags?
The news was so negative, so "problem to solve", so "defending our borders from job stealing foreigners". Maybe as a job stealing foreigner myself I am biased, but what I love about Canada is the " expand, evolve, grow" attitude that sits beneath the news stories. There are problems here too, no one is perfect, but it feels like people solve problems to create opportunities, not to lock things down and preserve the now.
On the C4 news they had a writer who took issue with a women in a hijab winning the Great British Bake Off. He felt that Britishness had been and was being diluted. Less than 5% of Europeans are Muslim, and many of those in the UK are 3rd and 4th generation.
What is "Britishness" anyway? A friend at work shared a Ted Talk video with us last week, about who you are. The speaker proposed that you are not "from" a country. You are from a set of experiences. You are local to those experiences. So whilst on paper I am a temporary British foreign worker in Ontario, Canada, I do not relate to the British people I saw on the news in UK. I am local to my community today and my community I had in England, local to artist friends across the world and to a Britain in the 1970s when my Grandparents told me stories of ww1 and ww2 and I wore flares and played outside and drank from hose pipes in the garden. I am local to the islands off Scotland where I felt a spiritual connection to the past; and to a small town in Spain where I can order my breakfast in perfect Spanish.
With a blog your supposed to end on a note that shows a purpose in the writing...not too sure what that is on this one other than I feel at home with people and not places. A friend remarked that I had posted on Facebook that I was flying home to Canada...I explained that I was in fact flying home to my husband and small person as they are my home.
It's been a long and enjoyable seven days for me. Last Saturday we played at the pumpkin festival which was essentially outdoor fun with orange blobs here and there. Then an overnight flight to UK and two days walking around well tended gardens and battling thorns and stings in my own back yard. UK house is sold and we now have a paperwork mountain prior to completion. Great karma that we have sold it to a friend who asked us 5 years ago to let her buy it. Happy for us and for her. Many weeks of reading about tax and money transfers are in my future I reckon. Maybe we will be home owners again in 2016. Dunno, all too complicated with jet lag.
I spent 2 days at work in London, catching up with friends and not catching up with family. Travelling with work is full on, and meeting up with people who are 2 to 4 hours away is impossible. I imagine folks believe it's all nights out and plush hotels when infact its in bed by 8pm, laptop on, back to work. Not complaining, but increasing surprised by how little time I have away from work.
I enjoyed walking around in the drizzley rain, the silence, the beautiful manners and friendliness of people in shops and hotels. Love those Europeans with doctorates who sell coffee in Pret as that is better than being unemployed in Portugal. Everyone I spoke to had an aunt in Toronto but know one asked if I'd met them :-)
I didn't enjoy watching the news, with the party conferences. Hours about the rights and wrongs of having to pay 5p for a carrier bag. What the hell? Children are drowning in the Med. Winters coming and 800k people are living in tents in Germany. It's gonna get bloody cold for them very soon. I wonder what their views are on 5p carrier bags?
The news was so negative, so "problem to solve", so "defending our borders from job stealing foreigners". Maybe as a job stealing foreigner myself I am biased, but what I love about Canada is the " expand, evolve, grow" attitude that sits beneath the news stories. There are problems here too, no one is perfect, but it feels like people solve problems to create opportunities, not to lock things down and preserve the now.
On the C4 news they had a writer who took issue with a women in a hijab winning the Great British Bake Off. He felt that Britishness had been and was being diluted. Less than 5% of Europeans are Muslim, and many of those in the UK are 3rd and 4th generation.
What is "Britishness" anyway? A friend at work shared a Ted Talk video with us last week, about who you are. The speaker proposed that you are not "from" a country. You are from a set of experiences. You are local to those experiences. So whilst on paper I am a temporary British foreign worker in Ontario, Canada, I do not relate to the British people I saw on the news in UK. I am local to my community today and my community I had in England, local to artist friends across the world and to a Britain in the 1970s when my Grandparents told me stories of ww1 and ww2 and I wore flares and played outside and drank from hose pipes in the garden. I am local to the islands off Scotland where I felt a spiritual connection to the past; and to a small town in Spain where I can order my breakfast in perfect Spanish.
With a blog your supposed to end on a note that shows a purpose in the writing...not too sure what that is on this one other than I feel at home with people and not places. A friend remarked that I had posted on Facebook that I was flying home to Canada...I explained that I was in fact flying home to my husband and small person as they are my home.
Off to the apple orchard...
Sunday, 27 September 2015
What have we learnt?
We have been in Canada now for two years and 2 days...I can't believe it's that long and at the same time I can't imagine living anywhere else. Our town, Bolton, which always make me chuckle as it is so not like Lancashire, holds a Fall Fair this week each year. It's like the Lingfield and Oxted show if that were 1/20 th the size, and had no animals larger than a llama. We went along yesterday after an hour running around town dishing out leaflets for next weekends Pumpkin Fest. Small person slid down the jumbo slide 5 times- a lover of the simple rides...we avoided a big bowl thing that was like the cage from my youth.
The best part of the show for me was meeting up and talking to people that I know...#community. The cub leaders tried again to enrol me as a leader. "Where's you red shirt" they shouted every time I walked by. I explained "I don't like kids!" But apparently that's no barrier. I will resist. Inside the arena, on the skating rink ( no ice yet, phew) I met up with the community farm people and we chatted about the Fest. I met friends whilst we watched the dog show and on the way back chatted to the ladies in the wine store about an up coming toonie sale. When we first arrived in Canada I recall that it was hard starting conversations - not sure if it was my accent or that I was a stranger but there were many monosyllabic conversations in shops. Now small person gets cross " stop talking to everybody mom!" Can't help it, it's what I do.
So, how to capture our time here so far...blatent copying of a cool post on Facebook that listed 30 things about Britain. Here's 30 things about Canada...
The best part of the show for me was meeting up and talking to people that I know...#community. The cub leaders tried again to enrol me as a leader. "Where's you red shirt" they shouted every time I walked by. I explained "I don't like kids!" But apparently that's no barrier. I will resist. Inside the arena, on the skating rink ( no ice yet, phew) I met up with the community farm people and we chatted about the Fest. I met friends whilst we watched the dog show and on the way back chatted to the ladies in the wine store about an up coming toonie sale. When we first arrived in Canada I recall that it was hard starting conversations - not sure if it was my accent or that I was a stranger but there were many monosyllabic conversations in shops. Now small person gets cross " stop talking to everybody mom!" Can't help it, it's what I do.
So, how to capture our time here so far...blatent copying of a cool post on Facebook that listed 30 things about Britain. Here's 30 things about Canada...
- It's not like America
- Crisp are called chips
- Chips are called fries
- No one understand you when you say "half past three"
- Men wear baseball caps a lot, mostly backwards
- Milk comes in plastic bags
- People call you "Hun" but not in a German way
- People really do say "eh?" at the end of sentences, but not all the time and not everyone
- No one knows what a jumper is.
- It's not like America
- Cars run on gas, but it's not a gas, it's a liquid. What's up with that?
- All teenagers are beautiful human beings, with Saturday job, manners and great teeth
- Getting a coffee at the drive through is normal. Getting out of your car to get one is the strange way
- Most people drink bad coffee from a donut chain, but no one admits it is bad. It's a patriotism thing. They've introduce a dark roast version to give it some flavour. It's not awful.
- Canadians are as polite as you have been told they are
- Canadians in cars are appalling.
- Some Canadian cars have rust holes that you could put your fist through and no one minds
- They have a really great baseball team
- Teachers go on strike to "protect education" but that harms the kids education. No one seems that mad about it...goes to point 15.
- They sing the national anthem in school every day
- The language is like syrup, everything blends and flows. "Wad hur" comes out of taps. The second city is call "Tor-on-oh"
- Towns are named after British towns, but pronounced literally, like folks learnt English from books. Tottenham is pronounced Tot En Ham; Scarborough is pronounced Scar Bore Oh
- The cheese is generally bland, ever when it proclaims itself Fort
- You can buy a tea pot and a tent in a shop called Canadian Tire
- Some words are spelt right but they say Pross ess for process.
- You have to buy alcohol in government owned store. It's tied to preventing young people drinking too much. Ontario has a huge under age drinking issue. Guess that didn't work, eh?
- People smoke pot, you can smell it everywhere
- It's not like America
- In two years of living in the 4th most diverse area in the the world (Greater Toronto) I have only experienced one example of racism, and that was a taxi driver who smelt of beer and had issues with Judeism. There's always one looney out there
- It's a fabulous place to live and we love it here
Tuesday, 4 August 2015
Wheels within wheels
Everything feels cyclical at the moment. I planted the allotment and now we are into harvest, eat and store. The coriander has shot off so I'm drying bunches upside down in bags, to catch the seeds. Some for storing, some for sowing,
Every day begins with tea, then coffee, ends with wine. That's not healthy and whilst I am working on that I do wonder how I got here. Small person was watching Kung Fu Panda fighting bad guys the other day and in an attempt to connect with the snarling child I asked "ooh, how does he do that, does he have magic powers?" "No mom!" He snapped. "He is using inner peace!". Lucky him, peace and agility, mind you he doesn't have a 7 year old moaning "I'm bored" every 15 minutes.
To be clear, small person goes to various camps throughout the summer. This is week 6 of a 10 week summer break. He has been rock climbing, scooting, played floor hockey, soccer, basket ball. He has painted a cheetah, learnt circus skills, been whale spotting. Hardship is not on his list of things to gripe about. He also had a week hanging out with me, unplugged and "entertain ourselves". That's when the boredom first surfaced. I was searching for a metaphor yesterday to explain to my husband what it feels like to have a bored child complaining for days. I think I found it...imagine you are on a 8 hour flight with a kid in the seat behind who keeps kicking your seat, nonstop except when he is eating. That's where the tea, coffee, wine come in...although that's not his doing, that's my lack of panda inner peace at play.
So what to do? We went out for a meal last night, nothing fancy. Small person was stroppy and octopus arms. He knocked over a glass of wine that soaked daddy chest to crotch. So we are now avoiding public places. Small person has struck a deal to have "big brother play dates" with the 4 year old son of close friends. They played together for hours on Saturday with next to no drama, so that is looking great. Camping? We are test driving our new tent next weekend...hopefully 24 hours without electricity will bring some calm. Plus we are camping down inToronto near the British Grocer, so we can restock the beans and Branston on the way home!
I am cutting out the wine from today, for all of August. We'll see how that works out. Work wise, still underwater but my latest plan is foolproof...go home on time. That way I will have time to exercise and I can spend time with the small person (short bursts...nothing too planned). He hates me at the moment because I am mean. Daddy and I call it parenting. Small person calls it mean. I don't think kids should play out in the semi dark at 9.30 at night; I don't care if his friends are out running the streets. don't think that watching grand theft auto is okay for kids aged 6 to 8. I don't care if his friends play it all the time. I don't agree that the TV should be on at meal times; and our latest point of contention...if we are going out somewhere as a family, daddy and I don't want to bring street kids with us. So all in all a lot of disagreements and "mean mum", door slamming, some bad language. So grounded a fair bit...which...wait a minute, means he stuck in with me and boredom. Hmmm, he has his own little cycle of life going on there.
#need 2 days alone at a spa.
Talking of circles a recommend this cool online class exploring Mandalas. It's fabulous, if a little addictive
Namaste
Every day begins with tea, then coffee, ends with wine. That's not healthy and whilst I am working on that I do wonder how I got here. Small person was watching Kung Fu Panda fighting bad guys the other day and in an attempt to connect with the snarling child I asked "ooh, how does he do that, does he have magic powers?" "No mom!" He snapped. "He is using inner peace!". Lucky him, peace and agility, mind you he doesn't have a 7 year old moaning "I'm bored" every 15 minutes.
To be clear, small person goes to various camps throughout the summer. This is week 6 of a 10 week summer break. He has been rock climbing, scooting, played floor hockey, soccer, basket ball. He has painted a cheetah, learnt circus skills, been whale spotting. Hardship is not on his list of things to gripe about. He also had a week hanging out with me, unplugged and "entertain ourselves". That's when the boredom first surfaced. I was searching for a metaphor yesterday to explain to my husband what it feels like to have a bored child complaining for days. I think I found it...imagine you are on a 8 hour flight with a kid in the seat behind who keeps kicking your seat, nonstop except when he is eating. That's where the tea, coffee, wine come in...although that's not his doing, that's my lack of panda inner peace at play.
So what to do? We went out for a meal last night, nothing fancy. Small person was stroppy and octopus arms. He knocked over a glass of wine that soaked daddy chest to crotch. So we are now avoiding public places. Small person has struck a deal to have "big brother play dates" with the 4 year old son of close friends. They played together for hours on Saturday with next to no drama, so that is looking great. Camping? We are test driving our new tent next weekend...hopefully 24 hours without electricity will bring some calm. Plus we are camping down inToronto near the British Grocer, so we can restock the beans and Branston on the way home!
I am cutting out the wine from today, for all of August. We'll see how that works out. Work wise, still underwater but my latest plan is foolproof...go home on time. That way I will have time to exercise and I can spend time with the small person (short bursts...nothing too planned). He hates me at the moment because I am mean. Daddy and I call it parenting. Small person calls it mean. I don't think kids should play out in the semi dark at 9.30 at night; I don't care if his friends are out running the streets. don't think that watching grand theft auto is okay for kids aged 6 to 8. I don't care if his friends play it all the time. I don't agree that the TV should be on at meal times; and our latest point of contention...if we are going out somewhere as a family, daddy and I don't want to bring street kids with us. So all in all a lot of disagreements and "mean mum", door slamming, some bad language. So grounded a fair bit...which...wait a minute, means he stuck in with me and boredom. Hmmm, he has his own little cycle of life going on there.
#need 2 days alone at a spa.
Talking of circles a recommend this cool online class exploring Mandalas. It's fabulous, if a little addictive
Namaste
Sunday, 12 July 2015
Day 6 at sea...
Day six and we are surviving on only 6 meals a day. There are rumours that Rennies and Tums may need to be rationed such is the quantity of food consumed ship wide and the extreme size of many of the passengers. Absent mindedly I got in the elevator yesterday to go up one floor...embarrassed I apologies to the ladies in the lift. "It's okay dear, there is no judgement on the ship!". Really? We have been people watching and judging since day one. It's what we do best.
We have seen 20 Stone people eat mountains of food from the comfort of immobility scooters before rolling over everyone to get by. People who think it is acceptable to clear their sinus' and hock up snot in any public place. We deduce that that is a cultural thing as so many folks who look alike are doing it with no qualms. People drinking themselves into a drunken blur with minutes of boarding the ship. Old people acting like teenagers, loud and tipsy. Worst of all is the rudeness that some people display to the staff. Or lack of courtesy like saying thank you or acknowling people with a smile.
I wasn't sure what to expect having never cruised before but I have found that I have a physical discomfort and guilt about having access to so much when the staff have so much less. I can't imagine how that feels, to see people indulge so much around you, and you are away from your family for 9 months. The staff are all very cheerful and professional but I can't escape the fact that if they had greater choices in life many wouldn't be doing this. Yes, part of our affluence is because we have worked hard, but the fact that we were born into an affluent, free and stable society is a huge factor in why we are lounging about eating fresh baked cookies every afternoon contemplating "Spa or sleep?"
But we are enjoying ourselves despite my social angst. We are pretty much busy doing nothing. Small person continues to refuse to go ashore. He stays in the fun club for every available minute. I have bearly seen him all week which is a shame as I wanted to sit and read stories together. But that was never going to happen as he can't sit still and " reading is boring".
We check him in to the kids club after breakfast and collect him at tea time, feed him, let him chill watching Danger Mouse on the iPad then check him back in at 7pm for play until 10.30pm. Then he demands more food ( last night he had cookies, fish fingers and nachos on the same plate ). He gets to bed around 11.30pm and falls asleep in seconds. With the long days of sun it feels earlier as it is daylight until midnight.
We have wobbled ashore without him - to Juneau, Skagway and earlier today Ketchican I think it was called. Strange towns surviving in part on selling diamonds ( not from Alaska ), T-shirts and other souvenirs, made in China, to cruise ship passengers largely made up of Chinese people. We are reminded of Cornwall, for the weather, and the Lake District for the foliage and terrain...although no Kendle mint cake here. Nothing much to buy that is made locally by locals. The guide who took us tree walking and zip lining described Skagway as being like Disney Land...It kind of was.
We sail onwards, arriving in Canada tomorrow pm, in BC. Looking forward to that but we are not going ashore until after the kids theatre show at 4pm where small person and his friends ( all newly appointed junior Rangers and pirates after a week of adventures) are staging a circus show. Bless them, they have been practicing all week...it's serious stuff.
Would we cruise again? Small person - "yes, yes, yes!"; husband - "dunno"; me - if they both said yes, then yes. It's been a new experience, and a good one. But living on the set of Walli is just a little odd. Hey you, pass me my hover chair, I'm due an apple pie smoothie about now!
Thursday, 2 July 2015
Heading West
Yay! On holiday as a family for the first time in forever. Leaving for the airport in an hour for the short hop to Seattle where we have rented a tiny house on Airbnb. We have 2 full days in Seattle over Independence Day then it's onto a cruise ship for a week of adventures - we get to visit Canada on the cruise...can't wait. Packing is very methodical chez Fiona. I boss everyone around and they either go with that or put up futile resistance. I think we have packed it all but we always forget one thing which we only discover when it is too late.
I tried to pack light but I think we will visit climate changes from Scorcio to soggy. Small person gets to pick three stuffies to take on the adventure. My money's on Georgie the Monkey who got lost last year and then arrived home like new in the post some weeks later. Yesterday small person revealed to me that he knows is not the same Georgie " I call it Georgie 2". The innocence is ebbing away.
When I say I tried to pack light I don't include my wheely case full of wool, acrylic paint, paper and Gouache...I am allowed to take what I want...others sacrifice their weight allowance. We are trying to go internet free but apparently we need to take a laptop and an iPad so that we can watch movies. My plan for the cruise is rest, exercise, paint, read. My husband will do that too, sans paint.
Small person has announced that he "just wants to hang out in the pool and relax" which sees us sighing as that will involve effort on our part too. Hopefully the kids club will be so awesome that we get an hour or two each day to do nothing. Small person is planning late nights as the kids clubs closes at 10.30. He has been practicing "fancy eating" after we told him that cruises are posh. It involves eating with his mouth closed and taking the food to his face not his face to the plate. Despite his best efforts I imagine we won't be eating in a smart restaurant...he is not public friendly at the moment...loud and wriggley.
Taxi beckons.
Happy holidays!
I tried to pack light but I think we will visit climate changes from Scorcio to soggy. Small person gets to pick three stuffies to take on the adventure. My money's on Georgie the Monkey who got lost last year and then arrived home like new in the post some weeks later. Yesterday small person revealed to me that he knows is not the same Georgie " I call it Georgie 2". The innocence is ebbing away.
When I say I tried to pack light I don't include my wheely case full of wool, acrylic paint, paper and Gouache...I am allowed to take what I want...others sacrifice their weight allowance. We are trying to go internet free but apparently we need to take a laptop and an iPad so that we can watch movies. My plan for the cruise is rest, exercise, paint, read. My husband will do that too, sans paint.
Small person has announced that he "just wants to hang out in the pool and relax" which sees us sighing as that will involve effort on our part too. Hopefully the kids club will be so awesome that we get an hour or two each day to do nothing. Small person is planning late nights as the kids clubs closes at 10.30. He has been practicing "fancy eating" after we told him that cruises are posh. It involves eating with his mouth closed and taking the food to his face not his face to the plate. Despite his best efforts I imagine we won't be eating in a smart restaurant...he is not public friendly at the moment...loud and wriggley.
Taxi beckons.
Happy holidays!
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