Sunday Morning

Weekend Again

Husband's been away for a while coinciding at the same time as daughter's end of term and industrial action at son's school. I am shattered and have spent a fortune keeping them amused: Swimming lessons, tennis lessons, ice cream etc. Today I spent the morning with a friend, man, who I haven't seen for twenty years, and it felt odd to be with a man who was not my husband, but with children in tow. Strange indeed. I find it tiring keeping up this blog because of writing another weekly one for Easy Living Magazine//www.easylivingmagazine.com/blog/

What's Happened

Just want to know why the post I've just written says it's scheduled to be published. xx

SAD

Feeling sad and bad to day. It's been a while since I slept well. Some weekends don't work well. I hear myself shouting at the children, wincing from their whining and wondering how to make it work. It's an energy issue thing. Some days I just don't have it. Some days I'd like to be kid free, just do my own thing and it all comes to a head at the weekend. It's not that I don't love the children, I love them passionately. In fact if you asked me what my greatest fear is I would reply, something happening to one of them, something dark, and traumatic and life-changing. Some weekends my husband Luke and I just don't get on well, and this is one of them. I feel ugly, both inside and out.

I am involved in a group called Wecan - originally a group of women who meet every month at a book club. Wecan is our way of asking for climate Action Now. We are staging a protest Vigil this coming Tuesday between 530 and midnight outside parliament on the green - we will have green ribbons, and are (not to be confused with the anti abortion protest) - we are against the third runway and we want a cross party coalition on the subject of climate change. This will be a peaceful protest, with children. Bring a candle and a green ribbon and join us. www.wecan.uk.com

Italy - I Love You

I have just started writing a new novel. It takes place in Italy, in the month of August and so I am thinking back to all the Italian holidays I have ever been on and reading blogs written by expats living in Italy. (Most seem to be filled with endless mouthwatering recipes). I first went to Rome when I was 22 or 23 with a big love. He was English but had an apartment in Rome. He knew it well, and took me to a tiny cocktail bar on the Via Condotti, and to have hot chocolate at one famous Piazza I have momentarily forgotten the name of. After a few weeks I started Italian lessons on the Campo de Fiori and made friends with a Japanese boy. Meanwhile the big Love and I went everywhere on a vespa, and I truly thought I had landed in heaven. I am mad for Italy, and all things Italian.

One summer my husband, Luke and I rented a house near Lucca, which had it's own wild fig tree and a view of mountainous hills. We listened to the cicadas all day long, made mozzarella and tomato lunches with our friends who were staying and walked to the small town of Camiore for breakfast. Heaven.

We went again another year. I try to go to Italy every year, but this summer it will be two years since I was last there. Anyway, it's wonderful to remember details of all things Italian.

Things I love about Italy: Language, Food, Culture, The Italians, Landscapes.

Heathrow Expansion Scheme

I'm really frustrated. I am not a techno geek and now I wish I was. I can't get to grips with how to add anything to this blog. I wanted to show you a one minute film made by my friend Rebecca Frayn. It's a propaganda film showing multicultural children explaining what they want to do when they grow up and as the seconds tick by so does the sound of an aeroplane flying overhead, until the noise of the aeroplane is so loud that we can no longer hear what the children are saying. Message clear and simple: Give our children a future, don't add to the enviromental and noise pollution. It's simple and brilliant. I'd love to go to the rally tonight at Westminster to show my support for the stop the expansion of Heathrow campaign, but I'm otherwise engaged at my writing group. Luke thinks the expansion is a good thing and if I want to protest I should just stop flying.

I also want to buy a table on ebay, but can't even seem to get to grips with that. I put in antiques and it came up with six antique letter box openings. Is that the word? Letter box openings?

My son woke me up at two thirty, because he was scared. It took me three hours to get back to sleep.

I feel dopey, cross, and annoyed that my husband's job (freelance photographer) is taking him away Easter Sunday, Belle's fourth birthday party, Belle's fourth actual birthday, and most of the two week Easter holidays.

Hearts and Flowers

I was so pleased when my husband Luke announced that he was going to make me a Valentine's Day Dinner. (We usually sit and eat separate meals on our laps - mainly because I am on a permanent diet). I had been having exactly the same thought, so we agreed that he would make the main and I would make the pudding. Not that we ever eat pudding I thought afterwards, but planned a fruit salad. He's a photographer and yesterday he announced that he would have to work, tonight, Valentines' Night, so bang goes our romantic dinner.

He gave me a bunch of flowers at breakfast. Very nice too but At 1230 when I was picking up my daughter, I saw a man delivering a huge bunch of red roses to someone at my son's school. "Are they for me?" I joked, wishing slightly that they were. I bundled Belle into the car and whisked her off to the garage for petrol. While we were there, I hastily bought some chocolates in a heart-shaped box to give to Luke before he goes off to his job. Belle had made 2 Valentines Day cards at school, which she said were for her best friend, Ella. Then later she conceded that they were both for me. We gave one to Daddy, plus the chocolates.