They laughed at Louie Armstrong when he said he was going to the moon, and now he's laughing at them from up there.

Some things.

I channelled my friend Jason and made a striped Coco, with shorter sleeves.

It's MEANT to have the stripes on the very slight diagonal.  I love it, and I've been wearing it all day.  It's been a more traditional English summer day today in London.  There's been masses of flooding not very far from us, as in less than 10 miles away, but we've barely had any rain at all, despite a massive thunderstorm this morning. 

The girls are knackered from their busy weekend, so we had a very quiet morning.  They were quite happy playing, stark naked, in the other room, so I decided to try to make a new Anna dress.  It was much too hot in the conservatory, and I cut and sweated and swore for about an hour, only realising that I didn't have enough fabric just that bit too late.  Because the Anna has lots of pieces to the skirt, and this print really relies on direction, I have to have 3 metres rather than 2, so I had to buy some more on ebay as an emergency. It won't come until after our holidays though. I'll have a skirt panel left to cut out, and will have more than enough left to make Lucy a flamingo print dress too, which is pleasing.  Shame about the stupid narrow stupid quilting stupid cotton.

I also felt that I should really at least try to make one of my Mollie Makes kits, so had a bash at this one.  The cherries are easy, but I need to concentrate on the leaves, so I'll leave (leaf) them until later.  This solo parenting lark is a doddle, but does cut into the concentration.

Still, new brooch for our holidays.  

Hattie's cardigan will be finished tonight, which I'm very pleased about.  The sleeves are a bit too long, which I'm not happy about, but she can push them up, and her arms are growing very fast.

I can hear that my angels in human form are still awake, and it is nearly half 8.  Better go and do some growling, then a glass of wine and some knitting feature heavily in my plans for the evening.

Weeds are flowers too, once you get to know them.

Together at last. A very easy make from Mollie Makes, and so gorgeous.  The girls love them, and I'm considering making myself one in purple.  

I don't have much to say tonight. School is going well, the girls are happy, the craft mania progresses.  I wore an almost entirely handmade outfit on Wednesday, and my colleagues were very complimentary.  My Head, a knitter, was very impressed, but teased me about making everything except my tights.  I think when I have an urge to make my own shoes, it'll be time to take a long hard look at my life.

March Madness, 20/31

If you’re going to let one stupid prick ruin your life, you’re not the girl I thought you were.

Monday night, fell asleep in the bath.  Do you want more wine, asks my husband.  There's a pile of stuff to do, but I can't, I'm too tired.

A brooch, made for Lucy from a Mollie Makes kit.  She loves it.  She doesn't want to wear it in case she loses it.  Hattie wants hers yesterday.  It is on its way.  Slowly.

Today wasn't even that bad, as they go.  We had an Arabic speaking TA to help with one of my autistic children, and a Polish volunteer.  Amazing the difference that made.  Fantastic, beautiful, almost relaxing, except for the other autistic boy insisting on taking his trousers and pants off outside; at least he knows to do that before doing a wee.  For the first time in weeks, I didn't feel like screaming as I left work.  Or lying on the chairs and crying quietly.  Mr Gove, you know nothing.  You have never been bitten or scratched, hit, kicked or slapped at work, and you've probably only worked with people who understand what needing a wee feels like.  But go ahead and undermine our profession.  Someone I correspond with on Twitter told me that she has parents who cannot spell their own child's name.  You have genuinely no idea what happens in schools, and how we stagger on through it all, teaching, caring, loving, guiding.  But please, undermine us some more.  You have no idea.  No idea at all.

This wasn't intended to be political, but it was.  The personal is political, and the political is personal.

March Madness - 17/31  

You mean you'll put down your rock and I'll put down my sword and we'll try to kill each other like civilized people, is that it?

Mollie Makes is a lovely magazine, full of pretty things done by interesting people; I mean, who doesn't want a wire mobile with bottles filled with wild flowers hanging in their white walled, massive open space?

Each month brings a new and exciting present to make; and I have quite the collection now.

My husband finds this extraordinary; even after 10 years together, he barely knows me!

I've decided in the interest of marital harmony that I should try to make at least half of the collection, turning them into something lovely instead of, well, mess.  The first one I'm going to make is for the children (obviously); a fox brooch each for their duffle coats. 

I have a very silly fox collar that I bought from the Renegade Craft Fair last year, and the girls (Lucy) are very jealous.  Hopefully it won't take that long to make.

March Madness 11/31