Abi & Izzy - the next 5 years

So here it is again, Sunday evening - where are the weeks going? This weekend we have mainly been wondering where our children are. Actually, we've either had no children to be seen, or there have been 4 of them in the garden / house. Both yesterday and today Abi and Izzy have been off with Grace and Finn with lots of fun had by all it seems. Grace, despite being year 5 is pretty much the same height and build as Abi, and even more exciting for them both, the same shoe size. This means they can swap just about everything so both Elizabeth and I have spent a fair amount of time folding clothes to return back over the road! This evening we have a pair of leggings, a jumper, one sock and one shoe to go back. Only one because they both spent much of this afternoon limping around the garden on crutches pretending to have broken legs. After all, what better to do on a sunny February afternoon?!  I had to laugh when I went upstairs yesterday to check what was going on (it had all gone ...

What a lovely week we have had - the best half terms are the ones spent at home, with family and friends and just being together. If I make the comparison to spending a packet of cash heading off for sun which may or (in our case) may not appear, I'd take home any day. We had a mix of weather, including high winds and day long down pours, and it was still better than being away. Must remember that! We started the week at home, then down to Taunton for a few days at Mum and Dads. The girls just love going down there and the only battle was that I had decided on 2 nights and they wanted more. We arrived to a slight disappointment. - no Ben and Laurie until the following day. They soon got over this as the fun of being at Fifi and Grumps took over and within 5 mins they were helping with baking, off to see the sheep and playing with the dogs. The following morning we set off for the beach in beautiful sunshine, a proper late winter sunny day, cold and clear. The frost in the morni...

 We have definitely reached the point where the girl's social calendars are as busy as ours and my half term challenge is to ensure it all fits in and everyone arrives where they are supposed to be at the appointed time. We are looking forward to is a few days down in Somerset, seeing everyone and hopefully getting a break in the rain for a long walk on the beach. Kerrie has promised to come over and treat us with a home made cake, and the girls can't wait to see Ben and Laurie of course. I'm just pleased to have a week off, no 5am starts, walking in the daylight and seeing lots of Glenn and the girls. I have a pile of admin to do which I know I need to get around to - but maybe later in the week will suffice! Sunday mornings are one of my favourite times of the week. I did reflect as I was out walking this morning that if I wrote this blog on another day it might not be so upbeat. This morning was no exception with Abi and Izzy making us 'omelettes, noodle...

Happy days - I love the weekend, particularly in the moments (sometimes it feels like it's a glimpse, other times it's hours) where everyone is in equilibrium. This week has been massively busy but also full of privilege. On Friday my role at Oxford University resulted in a day where we were shown round some of the oldest and newest libraries, both stunningly different in their architecture and history. We were also given a talk on some of the University's oldest governance records, including the earliest report of the University's inception dating from the early 1200s. What was funny was the realisation that some of the subjects being discussed in the 1930s are still up for debate today in the audit committee - life at Oxford doesn't move that fast! This morning Glenn is out in his new enduro bike - apparently the last one (sold about 6 months ago) was 'never right' and this one is much better. I'm not sure whether he was disappointed or reassured w...