Lovely Noz!

Ok, so once I got better, I resumed my fabulous and joyous project of preparing for Megan's (Norris') Hen.

We had a fantastic picnic in Windsor, well to be more specific in the Brocas park in Eton.  And this was where we presented her with our creative triumph ... Megan's Hen Quilt!  Lots of the ladies sent in a carefully crafted square, and I sewed them all together.  It took a long time, but I learned a lot about quilt making ... and it looks fantastic!  Most importantly, Norris seemed to really like it.

We then went for a walk around Windsor Great Park before heading back into London for drinks and dinner at Smollensky's on the Strand.

Then I rustled up a smashing vegetarian brunch at Norris' place the next morning.

So pleased it all went so well ... phew!  And now ... relax!

Better

So, my throat turned out to be an abscess, which managed to pop by itself (yuck!).  Gross, but at least I avoided a hospital stay, intravenous antibiotics and having it popped by a doctor with a scalpel.

And I felt better almost instantly.  So back at work on Tuesday and, despite a bit of a tummy upset on Fri/Sat, still feeling full of beans.

Have had a relaxing weekend, mostly getting ready for Norris' hen next weekend.  And also having a lovely time at Massimo and Sonia's with them and all the rest of the NCT posse, as we were celebrating the babies all being 1 year old.

Started the quiz last week too ... a hard one, though we did come second.  Bring it on, season 2!

Sick and Cross

Another blog post so soon?  That can only mean that I am stuck in bed with a throat that feels like a razor blade is hacking away at it.

The sun has been shining all day, and I have been resting in bed all day far away from its beaming loveliness, seeking out morsels of unchallenging content from the Interweb and our DVD collections.

From TED videos, to Horrible Histories (Jane's suggestion), all have been trying to numb my crossness at being so disabled by this thing.  I cannot swallow without it hurting, so my only food today has been a small bowl of sweet potato mash.  Water is drunk begrudgingly, as I know it will help in the long term, but every gulp is painful.  Talking has been kept to a minimum, with Penny's baby signing book a useful bridge, as making the shapes of words with my mouth is also excruciating.

And so here is the crux of the problem ... at what point do you go back to the docs?  It is clear that one of the following is true:
1 - The antibiotics will work, but have not kicked in yet (has been 2 days so far).
2 - The thing can be kicked by antibiotics, but not the ones I am taking.
3 - It is what I thought it was, a pertonsilliar abcess, and will need draining as well as antibiotics to get entirely better.

And the weekend provides me with a handy check step ... as the docs is shut till Monday, if I am not better by Mon AM, I won't be able to go back to work and so will go back to the docs then.  After all, 4 days of antibiotics should be enough to feel at least some improvement, so if there is none, I have every right to

And the throat looks the same.  Red, collapsing in from the right, really quite scary to feel one's windpipe closing in.  My ear hurts, and even my nose/sinuses are now throbbing.  Hard to believe there is not something pressing against my whole ENT area.

Ok, whinge over now, but I am hoping that getting all this off my chest (especially as I can't really tell it to anybody) will make me feel better.

In the meantime C has been very good, and has been spending the day out and about with a jolly Penny.  At when it comes to it, I would rather me be ill than her or him ... 

Meah ... sick!

Swallowing, talking, eating, drinking, moving ... all these things hurt.  Ok, so I am pleased I don't have the pertonsilliar abcess that I thought I had (damn you, scary internet research), but I feel dreadful.

Even having been up from the pain overnight, as it hurt whenever I swallowed, I still didn't feel too bad this morning.  But slowly as the day went by, I felt worse and worse, so I was pretty pathetic by the time I finally got in to see the docs at 3:45pm.  She was v nice though, sympathetic, and had looked after me while I was heavily pregnant with Penny ... so she asked after the little bundle too.

P is fantastic ... chatting away, trying so hard to walk by herself (but still needing a hand).

Going to rest for the evening and all through tomorrow, so hopefully the antibiotics will start doing their job.

The Promise of Time

A tiring week, but with the promise of a 3 day weekend at the end of it.  And, for the first time this week, I really felt the need to spend more time with Penny.  So 3 days of freedom has come at just the right time.

After the usual week, with Mum coming over to stay and look after Penny, and the usual sneaking out in the sunshine on Tuesday to play in the park, spent a lovely night with Norris on Friday having dinner, drinking wine and talking about the upcoming wedding.  Not long now!

Saturday we had lots of visitors, Fish's Risk Legacy crowd who first went out to play badminton, and Kirsten and Natalie popped round to say hello too.

Then Sunday we went over to Cobham to wish James F a surprise happy birthday.  It was a great lazy day, sitting around, eating delicious food Amanda had prepared, and chatting about all sorts.

Out and About

Spent a very fun night at Fujiyama on Monday with the NCT girls.  Good to see them all on such good form, I miss them now I am back at work, so good to catch up and have a chatty night powered by white wine and raw fish.

Then the last night of the pub quiz season on Tuesday.  Not our finest week, but no matter ... we are raring to go for the next season.  Yoshi's Island had a spectacular win, with Team Science in second place.

Mum and Dad kindly looked after Penny for Fish and I to go out to the cinema on Thursday.  We saw the Avengers Assemble, which was quite fun really.  Action packed, and also entertaining, we were also joined by Ryan.

And today we joined Alex, Norris and Liam at the Tate Modern for the Boetti exhibition.  Some great patterns, and intricate embroidery, including the fantastic maps embroidered with the colours of the respective country's flags.  After a painfully long lunch at Pizza Express we made our way to Beckenham for Greg & Kate's housewarming.  A lovely place, with fireplaces and stone steps, we had a relaxing time while the rain beat down outside.  And good to spend some more time with Penny after such a busy week.

And tomorrow is a day of rest ... ahhhhh!

A spare second ...

Ahhhh ... a reasonably free weekend, and a chance to catch up on the bloglett.

We had a fantastic Easter, last weekend we had a fun time at Patrick's housewarming, then went to Alex's to play board games, and making things at Norris' on the Sunday.

Penny and I braved the rain on Thursday to go to the London Aquarium, lots of fun, especially the glass floor over the shark tank!

Oh, and our Vauxhall Griffin pub quiz team finally won last Tuesday ... yay!

And this weekend is fairly unbooked, so I spent today charity shopping in Balham before having a treat ... an Indian Head Massage at the Aveda salon.  Fab!

A Whole 5 Days off! And a Birthday Girl :)

So, a month back into full time work, and I now merit a day off.  Oh, wait a minute, and I also get a long weekend off as it is Easter ... hooray!

After our fun Saturday in Guildford, we spent Sunday with Keith, Danni and the family at their new house to celebrate Bettie's birthday.  Was a lovely sunny day, and lots of fun to scamper and play in their garden.

A fair performance (joint 3rd) in the Vauxhall Griffin quiz on Tuesday, which was preceded by spending some time with Penny-Wenny to celebrate a special day.

So my little girl is a whole one year old!  Was surreal to think of being in labour a year ago, and lovely to think of the long, happy year we have all had together.  And she is so big now, standing and sitting with ease, chattering happily (especially favouring the 'row row row' bit of the song) and still making friends, at nursery and wherever she goes.  What a special little girl I am honoured to be such a blessed Mummy.

And so tomorrow we will spend the day together, having fun and pootling about.  Can't wait!

A Guildford Wander

After a morning doing a few jobs, headed off to Guildford on the train to meet with James and Clare F.

Had an indulgent and very yummy lunch at Cote, always goo dot have steak tartare and frites.  Then we went for a wander by the river, so we could get to know Guildford a little better.  Some fantastic views from the top of the hills, but hard to get to the top!

Dashed onto a train, and then onto a bus at Clapham Junction, to get home for a chilled out evening in.

All Sunny and Well!

Wow, is it really Friday again?  Seems that full time work really makes time fly!

We had a fun weekend last week with King of Games on Saturday, with its epic finale that saw Jane B become Queen of Games (I do love it when there is a Queen of Games!).

After losing an hour, we had a relaxing Sunday catching up with life. Then work, a quiz at the Vauxhall Griffin for me on Tuesday, then dinner with Mum and Dad on Weds and Thurs (with Dad cooking on Thurs).

A relaxing but sociable weekend awaits, meeting up with James & Clare F in Guildford on Sat, then Bettie's first birthday on Sun.  :)

The New World Order

A peaceful Friday night at the end of a very different week.

Penny spent two full days at nursery and, although very tired after her first day, she was completely herself after the second.  And she had a lovely time with Mum on the Thursday and Friday, going to the park and playing with toys, so it seems like everything is coming together nicely.

And, unsurprisingly, Fish and I are now pretty tired after a busy week.  But no rest for the wicked ... King of Games tomorrow!

Another week goes past ...

Phew ... it really seems like time is flying at the moment.  Work is going well as I get to grips with my new role, can barely believe that this is my fourth week back!

Spent Saturday making lots and lots of Fairy Cakes for Penny's Welcome to the World ceremony on Sunday.  Such a fantastic day, no need to reiterate what Charlie put on the Penny blog here.

Penny had her first full day at nursery today.  I felt a bit emotional last night and this morning, fortunately Charlie was doing the top off and pick up today, but she was apparently fine ... only crying when she spotted that Daddy had come to pick her up!

Birthday Board Games

Such a board gamey weekend!

Had a lovely lunch with the NCT gals, guys and babies at the Lido Cafe.  They were on good form, and seemed pleased that I was getting on well at work.

Then to Norris' for her art sale, where P and I also saw Dan, Erika, Mink, Dave and Alex (clearly the place to be!)  Mink and Dave came back for a veggie pasta bake dinner, along with Charlie's uncle Elias, who is staying for a couple of days.  Lovely to see him :)

Charlie's birthday today ... after tackling the start of his treasure hunt (yay!) he came out for lunch with P, and then brought her into work.  She was very sweet and cuddly, made lots of friends, and joined a few project groups on the way.

Quick handover for C to go out to Board Games & Beyond.  Spent the evening cuddling P, cooking, and chatting with a visiting Norris who came round to pick up teacups.

Hiatus

Ok, so no excuses, I am just not quite finding the time to blog at the moment.  Oh well, let's just hope I find a way to fit it in!

So, in summary:
- We had a fantastic weekend for Dad's birthday, though I was not very well.  We wandered round the Olympic park, went to see a stupendously fast and impressive magician (Hans Klok) and had a lovely family birthday lunch in Dulwich Cafe Rouge.  Lovely to see Mum and Dad, they were on good form even though Mum had a bit of a cough.

- I am now feeling much more energised as my tummy is better, though we all still seem to be a little snotty.  No matter, but at least I now feel capable of carrying out the many roles (wife, mother, colleague) that I have.

- Work is great, Fairtrade Fortnight has been a tremendous time to come back, with happy empowered staff running about making a lot of noise about Fairtrade.  There have been some developments about which role I will actually be doing, so watch this space.

And now we are starting a fun board gamey weekend to celebrate Fishy's birthday.  Yay!  So we are expecting Alex, Andrew and James C, followed later by Greg and Kate ... and for now we are pooling along doing jobs and being jolly.  Hooray for the weekend!

Norovirus

Was uncomfortable, with a hurty tummy, throughout the night.  So was not feeling my best throughout the day.

P seems to be improving though.  C took her to the doctors, and apparently it is the norovirus.  So, with Calpol and dioralyte, we are hoping she will be ok within a few days.

A lazy evening in with Penny while C went to see magic!

Infinite Improbability

So, normal life has resumed.

I am back at work.  It feels like I never left, or rather that I left last Friday and that I am now back in, only to find that my notepad is gone, my diary cleared and my accounts managed by someone else.  Not in a bad way, it is good to refresh, but I look forward to being a little more established with clearer responsibilities.  And it is great to see everybody, they all seem pleased that I am back.

Penny has seemed not to miss me, but she has been very ill.  After being sick (exorcist sick) twice on Sunday night, she has had very little appetite and everything has gone through her in quite an explosive fashion.  She was a complete mess in her cot when I woke her this morning, though at least she had slept. On Sun night and Tues night she was up for most of the night, sometimes crying inconsolably.  Charlie has done an amazing job nursing her and staying up where needed, and he still seems to be full of beans from his paternity leave.

Mum looked after P today, sort of in rehearsal for her upcoming childcare duties, but Penny is not herself so it was a little different to how we all expect it to be.  But they had a pleasant walk in the park, and P was apparently fairly jolly, considering.  Perhaps a visit to the docs tomorrow.

The house is still fairly tidy after the swapping.  I made a new rug out of carpet offcuts for the lounge, and got some colourful washing baskets for P's toys to keep them tidy.

As for now?  I am tired and a bit coldy, and about to be sent to bed by Nurse Fishy ... goodnight!

Home

Tired and carrying 3 small bags, 3 massive bags, a stroller, a carseat and a baby, we dragged ourselves back to Brixton. P bore up very well in the day, having a couple of naps and yet staying awake when she was supposed to.

Once the suitcases were emptied and the washing on, I however fell asleep in the bath.  So C let me grab a couple of hours in bed, as I clearly couldn't function.

So when I got up I was pretty productive, especially in completing a massive sort out of Penny's clothes (well overdue!)

Uncle Andrew popped round in a very jolly mood, and shared some fajitas with us. 

Going Home

Said goodbye to David at Austin Bergstrom Airport, having said goodbye to Justina earlier as she had left for Louisiana for work.  P was a bit grumpy on our 40 min flight to Dallas airport, but we were hoping she would get it all out of her system before the big trans-Atlantic flight home.

A very quick transfer at Dallas (duh duuuuuh, duh duuuuh, du duuuuh dennannaaaanaaa etc.) which was helpful as we only had 40 mins to get to our next flight.  Pleased to see that we were put just behind the business seats, giving us lots of space.

Charlie slept a little, P slept a little more than that, and I slept zilch.  A grumbly tummy and general discomfort was enough to keep me awake, so instead I watched a documentary about Pearl Jam.  Very interesting, but would have been better off sleeping.

Sunshiny Birthday

Awoke at about 7am to see the burning sun just outside our bedroom window ... perfect 32nd birthday weather!

Charlie looked after Penny so I could have a lie in, then popped downstairs to open cards and let Penny play with the envelopes.  So kind of people to send cards, plus various nice online messages.

Justina couldn't bear the idea of us having cereal, and so made biscuits (southern US style biscuits, kind of like English muffins) with mushroom sauce and egg style tofu ... again, so yummy!  Charlie also popped out with David to have a ride on his Ducati motorbike, and I think he really enjoyed the adrenalin.

Then we spent the day driving round in the sunshine, with the boys playing ball in the park, popping into a few shops, seeing where D&J will soon get legally married, then finishing high up at the Oasis to see the burning red sunset.

A great day, finished off by watching a film 'Friends with Benefits' (cheesy but fun) in the hot tub with beer and birthday cake ... oooooh yeeeeeeah!

The Rain in Texas falls mainly in the Hot Tub

CHUCKING it down with rain, are we really in Texas???  Though David made it all better by cooking yummy choc chip pancakes with raspberries!

Saw various bits and pieces in Austin, from the Farmers Market to Anthropology, to Paper Source.  Lots of fun shops, and we stopped for a rainy lunch in Wholefoods, where they had amazing ice creams (mango & avocado ... mmmmm!) and Charlie and I shared a slow roasted brisket sandwich ... yum!

Got a kind Skype from Theresa, Erika, Demetris and Anna while we waited for Justina in the car, I was totally weirded out that it was already my birthday in the UK ... had not even occurred to me!

More great food from Justina, this time a vegan Thanksgiving dinner (again, totally delicious).  Then we watched the film 'Rio' before bed ... very sweet!