Wednesday

Nothing like a big blank page to stop all thought and creativity dead in the water.  Also, nothing like trying to write in the blog every day for a month.  

Randomly, on a Wednesday.

1. I am knitting away like mad, and making little or no progress on any of the projects.

2. The Ealing 135 Fair is looming, and my stock is currently about three baby-gros and a bunch of mixed size tee-shirts that are at the Post Office collection place.  Bum.

3. We've only been back at school 3 days, and I'm already ready for a holiday.

4. There's the horror of the Nursery Christmas extravaganza to get through first.

5. I need to make a Christmas cake.

6. Hattie will be 3 soon (3!), and wants a Gruffalo Party, followed by an Elephant Party.  Both of these require thinking, planning and doing.  The elephant party is a trip to Whipsnade, and she's agreed that it should be just family.  At the moment, for her presents, she wants a lion, a penguin, an elephant and a pretend cloud. 

7.  I can't seem to stop buying fabric, and now am the proud owner of two metres of wool blend tartan, and can finally make a green/blue tartan skirt for myself, in time for tartan to be in fashion again.  (Winter 2017) 

8. It needs lining, which is a world of worry and stress for me, so I am leaving it in a carrier bag and ignoring it for the moment.

9. I'll be able to wear it with my Peerie Flooers vest - estimated completion date Winter 2017.

10. I should probably start doing my Shred again before embarking on even more adventures in handmade clothes.

Things That Hattie Says

Harriet is very much a "say what you see" child.  Literal minded in the way that little children are, forthright in her opinions, and delightfully uncensored.

"You too old to walk"

Last week, we went to visit my parents; my French grandmother was staying for ten days.  She is in her late eighties, very infirm and finds it hard to climb the stairs.  Hattie went to kiss her goodnight, and as she struggled out of her chair, informed her that she couldn't walk as she was too old.  Fortunately, Granny adores Hattie and thought this was hilarious. 

"Why you have a beard?"

A visit to her godmother, involving a bus from West Ealing to Acton Central.  On the bus home, we sat next to an old lady going shopping in Ealing Broadway.  She was very pleasant, and seemed to genuinely enjoy chatting to the girls about this and that, and certainly didn't deserve Hattie's question.  Again, Hattie got away with it, as she found it funny.

"You having a BIG baby"

A friend is 7 months pregnant, and, thanks to excessive amniotic fluid, is measuring ahead of date.  She is hot and bothered and uncomfortable, and was a bit non-plussed by Hattie's tone of wonder and surprise about the size of her bump.

It's a bit "2 year olds say the FUNNIEST things", I know.  Hattie is genuinely interested in the world, and when she wants to know something, she asks.  When something interests her, and she wants to tell everyone about it, she does.  Social graces can come later.

Handmade Monday

Blackberry and Apple Jam

1. Take your two daughters blackberry picking.  The older one will help, the younger one will come too.

2. Try not to strangle younger daughter after she runs away up the towpath, very close to the edge of the canal.

3. Take children to Waitrose to buy cooking apples, as they are not yet appearing as windfalls in either Hanwell or West Ealing, which are the only places you are prepared to look.

4. Put all ingredients in the fridge and get on with other things such as mopping up accidents, trying not to shout, light crying and serious gin drinking.

5. After children are in bed, get all ingredients out of fridge, sterilise jam jars in a half hearted manner, find recipe, put younger daughter back to bed, drink gin.

6. Weigh ingredients.  Discover that the ratios mean that you now need to peel, core and chop 7 apples.  Cry quietly.  Peel, core and chop 7 apples.  Cut hand with peeler.  Drink gin.

7. Make jam in standard manner; bung everything in a pan, boil until setting point is reached - forget to place saucer in freezer prior to starting jam making, so test for setting point on bottle of vodka.  Contemplate drinking vodka.  Finish gin, search vainly for bottle.

8. Pour boiling hot jam into boiling hot jars.  Get jam on hands, tea towel, feet and work surfaces.  Curse gin.

9. Put lids on jam jars and photograph.  Bask in all round domestic goddessness and pour a small celebratory vodka.  Top up with gin.

Today

I walked over to Waitrose earlier, in order to take advantage of their "£10 Dinner for Two", and ran into three people I know.  They all said that I look tired.  I do look tired.  It's the end of term, we have a week left, and I'm tired.  Worn out.  Both children are ill-ish, both of us are ill-ish, and I'm pretty much on my knees.  It's just not going to stop either - we have class swaps and handing over assessments and finishing stuff up, planning for next year, tidying, washing, filing, and oh Lord, it's making me feel worse and worse just writing it down.  Add the ill-ish-ness to that, and it's no wonder I don't look my best.

Perhaps I should start using some make up.  My friend Steph, a lady who loves challenges and projects, is doing some sort of "Use it Up" challenge; some sort of save to spend sort of thing.  She wears make up regularly, unlike me; I cannot be bothered.  But I look terrible.  Like something that has been dug up after a few weeks underground.  I'm not sure there is enough foundation to improve this state of affairs.  I do, however, have a lot of make up lying around; and I'm about to spend a small fortune getting my hair highlighted and cut and generally tamed into something resembling a do, so maybe a bit of slap is in order.

Do you notice the smooth way I went from being tired to talking about make up?  It's writing of this calibre that makes me a proud member of the Mumsnet bloggers network.

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