Running, ruins, and rhythm.

My goodness, where do I start?! We have had a fantastically busy week or two :)

Sam spent the Jubilee bank holiday with his dad which left me free to avoid all red-white-and-blue festivities, yay. Instead I saw a friend on Sunday, went to Skegness on Monday, out for dinner Monday night, shift on Tuesday and then ice cream in the Bail (don't tell Sam...!). On Wednesday I collected Sam from his dad's, went for lunch with my parents and then left him again :( Felt like a very bad Mummy, but it was just unfortunate timing as I was due at a fundraising quiz that evening. Quiz was good - I even got a sports question right which had stumped the rest of my team, which I still can't quite believe :) Thursday was a trip to Lis and Alan's, then off to the beach at Gibraltar Point with them, Sam, and my nephew William. Lovely walk (actually, it was mainly running, owing to two under-ten boys!) then lunch, after which we went to Bolingbroke Castle for a game of hide and seek.

Whereas this would normally have been a highlight of our week (and without detracting from our enjoyment of the day), it was overshadowed by the events of the weekend. Sam's first music festival!

We set off for Wychwood with a car loaded to the roof, collecting my dad and his partner on the way.  After a McDonald's lunch break we reached our apartment for the weekend, having decided not to introduce Sam to festivalling and camping in the same weekend. On entering, the only word was 'wow':

After settling in it was over to the festival village, full of apprehension about how Sam would cope. I needn't have worried - we'd watched Mr. Tumble's festival episode time and again, and it had done the trick:

We spent the whole weekend dancing, singing, laughing and smiling. I honestly don't think I've ever seen such a twinkle in Sam's eyes. There was one moment of panic when Sam slipped and hit his lip on the trolley, I was concerned he had bitten all the way through and dragged him off to the first aid tent - much to his irritation! He stood up, cried for a minute but then wiped his face and said "I'm okay Mummy. More music bands". What a brave soldier! Turns out that he had bitten the inside twice and cut the outside, but they were separate injuries and would therefore heal without any need for further intervention. Phew :)

Sam had his guitar with him, of course, and impressed us all with his feel for the music. He knew when to applaud, he knew when it was a quite lull rather than the end of the track, and he certainly knew when there was an awesome guitar solo to be enjoyed:

We had so many people come over and say how wonderful he was, and people were frequently found watching him rather than watching the stage! According to one of the official organisers, "He has got the best smile in the whole festival" :) Yep, I'm inclined to agree.

Further photos can be found here (I hope), I'm too shattered to upload them all onto here! But we had a truly fantastic weekend, despite the weather throwing all it could at us - trench foot with sunburnt face, anyone?!  Sam did not want to leave, we're looking forward to next year.

S xx

Sara vs Sara

Disclaimer: this is an observation, not a complaint. I love my life. I love Sam, and Sam is my life, so therefore I love my life.  It just occurred to me as I lay in bed last night that my entire life reflects that feeling of being too tired to do anything like read a book, but too awake to sleep: the upshot of which is that one ends up doing the enemy of sleep - thinking.

I currently occupy that same no-man's land  - I am neither one thing nor the other. The twenty-something-year-old women I know all fit into one of two categories: footloose and fancyfree, enjoying impromptu days out and alcohol fuelled nights; or settled down, enjoying quiet nights in with a partner and family day trips.  And yet I am neither of these. I cannot share the impulsive life of my non-parent friends, as I am tied to the house from 6pm each evening when Sam goes to bed. But nor do I enjoy sharing those evenings with anyone else. I cannot indulge in last-minute weekend shennanigans as everything requires planning and arrangement, but nor is there much appeal in days or meals out with Sam, without an adult or older child to provide some semblance of conversation!

I suppose I get the best of both worlds...at the weekends I can (with enough warning) go out with my friends, and in the week I can enjoy time with my son. But in reality I feel like a fraud if I go out, as I should be a responsible mother at all times; and I feel like a fraud when I meet up with other friends with children, as they all live in their little family units and Sam and I are like loose ended tag alongs.

There's only one solution - Sam needs to hurry up and start talking properly so that his company feels more like a pleasure and less like a commitment!  Until then, I shall continue to drag my mother along so that Sam and I can enjoy a "family holiday", and pack Sam off to his father's at the weekends so that I can see those limited friends that can be bothered to wait until I'm free: I swear, the next person who texts on a midweek night asking me if I'm free to do something will wish they hadn't....

S xx

Next cognitive level

So, Sam's signing something. And I don't understand. I ask for a clue:
"What's it like, Sam?"
"Like aeroplane, Mummy."
"Oh, helicopter?"
"Yes!"

Amazing, he's learning to categorise objects and knows that there are elements in common. Similarly the other day with Nanny, moving things from one bowl to another - Nanny wasn't responding to Sam saying "one", so he helped her out with the clue "one, two, three, Nanny". Clever boy :)

S xx

What's happening to me?

Got dragged to the cinema to see Avengers Assemble last night - and I really enjoyed it. What's going on, I don't like sci-fi...! Lots of funny moments though, and I'm now looking forward to seeing Prometheus when it comes out. Had a lovely lunch out and then a wander around town before absorbing the sunshine next to the Brayford Pool until it was time for the film - the wander around town involved heading to both downhill and uphill Lincoln, hard work in high heels I can tell you, and I have some pretty impressive blisters as proof!

Today I've made up for my gallavanting of last weekend by finally catching up on the housework and mowing the lawn (man was that a hard job, I've not done it for a few weeks due to all the rain we've had, and it had certainly been growing in that time!). Then this evening I fancied something sweet for pudding, and decided I could justify eating custard if I added eggs and made it high protein :) So here are my little egg custards tarts, minus the high fat pastry (and the nutmeg, which I don't like):

Yummy :)

S xx

Weekend away

Sam has been in Norfolk with Lis and Alan this weekend, whilst I went on a jolly to Leeds with Lilly. We went to an outdoor gig with performances from Sway, Wretch32, and headlined by Example. It rained on and off the whole way there and as we shopped in the afternoon, but thankfully it stayed dry all evening, although it was somewhat colder than we anticipated May being when we booked in December! Great gig, and great weekend away with Lilly :)

It sounds like Sam has been having a great time with Nanny and Grandad, and I'm sure Lis will blog about it later!  But I just had to share this text I received from Lis, which brought a tear to my eye - I swear my little boy is a real life angel, sent to bring joy to this world:

- - OMG a random man in the cafe (not a regular) just bothered to come and say 

how watching and listening to Sam over lunch had made his day and 

how he would never forget it and how wonderful he is. - -

S xx

Expensive day

I got a text from Sam's dad last night, saying he had hurt his back so couldn't drive to bring Sam back to me. I agreed to go over to Boston to fetch him, but on pulling up outside his house I somehow managed to burst my front tyre, and dent the wheel. No spare. Crap! Not a lot of mobile wheel replacers around on a Sunday evening :( Ultimately decided that the only option was to phone Lis and Alan, Lis was in the bath but Al, being the wonderful man he is, drove down to fetch Sam and myself. We spent the night with them - Sam slept like an angel, while I spent the time stressing about a) leaving my poor Beattie in the roughest part of town (see here) and b) how I was going to contact the educational psychologist who was due to make a home visit first thing this morning.

This morning saw an early start, and Al got us down to Bush Tyres for 8am, meaning the manager could send the mobile recovery van out to me before it started on the day's tasks. Excellent :) Things were starting to look up. Meeting the fitter at the car, he reckoned that although I would clearly need a new tyre, the actual wheel was only minimally damaged and could probably be hammered back into shape. He duly fixed the wheel and changed the tyre, during which time I received a phone call from the Ed Psych's secretary, saying she's ill and would have to rearrange the appointment. With no rush to return to Lincoln, we went back to Lis and Alan's.

Lis was due at the doctor's so we all went up there, and I suggested that while we were there we could nip into the travel agents. Just to look, of course.... We left above an hour later, with a holiday booked! Turkey, in June - I can't wait. Last year I fulfilled my dream of visiting Vesuvius and Pompeii, this year it will be Troy and Ephesus!!!

We spent the afternoon relaxing in the garden, and today ended on a much more positive note than yesterday. But my poor bank account won't know what's hit it, what with a holiday and new tyre...oops!

Here's hoping that the rest of this week is rather calmer. Lilly and I are off to Leeds at the weekend, to see Example, supported by Wretch 32. This year is a social whirl :)

S xx

Catching the limited rays of sun

I had a lovely weekend, despite the torrential rain - went out for lunch with a friend on Saturday and discovered the most amazing puddle, which we had to drive through (many times!). After a yummy lunch and a wander around the garden centre, we headed home to cook dinner ready for some other friends to join us. Had a great evening with dinner, laughter, chocolate cake, and the Rocky Horror Picture Show. What more could a girl want?!

Monday saw Sam having one of his trademark lie ins - after waking briefly at 8am, he went back to sleep until midday, totalling 18 hours in bed! When he eventually woke up, we joined Grandad Tick Tock for some lunch, followed by some sundrenched time in the garden.

Sam and Grandad watched the fish in the pond.

 Then Sam led Grandad on a trip down the garden path...

Before emerging in the wheelbarrow!

Which of course Mummy had to get into as well! No one was willing to push me though :)











Back to rain today though, rubbish! Come on summer, where are you hiding??

S xx