Silence!

Well, today was a little different from planned in that I awoke, tried to speak, and found myself with no voice whatsoever! The kids thought it was hilarious. Actually I was amazed at how little I need to use words in the morning - for example - all I needed to do at twenty to nine was point at the clock, frown and hold up five fingers! 'Five minutes til we go' they all chorused.

Dad's SIL rang, the one who has the baby, Dad's new niece. Not being capable of talking I listened to her message on my machine which blares it out into the room, then texted her after. We all can't wait to see the baby at Christmas, and for a change from shoving us all into a shoebox aka the MIL's house (four kids one of whom leaps about uncontrollably, two who argue and a crawler, a possibly colicky newborn, MIL, FIL, Nervous New Parents aka SIL and BIL, then Dad and I in a shoebox? Hahaha - No) I've indulged in the ultimate luxury - booked a travelodge! Woo-hoo.

Dad was off work today. After several huge meltdowns on my part, most notably in the summer when he was going to the cinema with his sister (who I usually like - blush!) - I decided it was time to address the fact that we have had no time alone whatsoever since Rosie was born. So every now and then he takes the day off on a nursery day and we have four hours. Four croaky hours today! We went to Trattoria Due for lunch and finding it shut went down in the lift to the Snow Goose. A repeat of my summer meltdown almost ensued when he tried to steal some of my carrot cake but we managed to move on thanks to some almond and cherry traybake.

I then had the very unusual treat of an afternoon alone in the house, supposedly to work on my diploma. We are the 'diploma household' right now, both of us are doing one and life consists chiefly of one of us relieving the other of the kids so much work can be done, or, in the case of this afternoon, much staring out of the window/emailing/dozing off can take place!

Only other notable thing was that I took the kids to our church which was being used to host a panto for the local Children's Centre because I had responsibility for the building, locking up, keeping tidy etc - and a bloke with severe learning difficulties wandered in. You know how it feels - you are trying to remember all the rules of keeping children safe etc and so you *can't* just let a bloke wander in, particularly one who is talking and talking and talking but making no sense at all, and yet you don't want to be rude to him either, especially when he has wandered into church - what if he's an Angel in disguise or whatever? Thankfully (for me) he wandered out again of his own accord.

Off to be an angel of mercy myself - by lending my friend some wellies the school has demanded for her son *by tomorrow*! pish!