Project 366 Week 10

 

 

 

 

 

 

The week started with me crawling into bed: getting home at after midnight for the first time in a long time, and grateful that neither child woke before 6.30am. Sunday dawned wet and grey- a sign of the weather to come if the forecast is accurate, and with DH working, I elected to take an easy outing to the end of the road for the family church service. We are sporadic attendees of our local church, as we spend most weekends at The Beach House, but we go when we can. DH had very kindly made lunch so that we returned to warm food and the promise of an afternoon in front of the fire.

Punctual as ever, our builder reversed into his regular spot at 7.31am so I put on the kettle for him and whilst he lined the shell of the building with timber, The Girls and I went to visit Lady D and her Girls. we had such a lovely time exploring Deptford’s enviably smart library and having lunch at The Albury Theatre. I made a mental note to schedule a return visit to coincide with Baby Disco.

On Tuesday morning we all bid a tearful farewell to Domestic God who set sail for Bristol to deal with a work-related matter, leaving us to fend without him until the end of the week. I began my first day of solo-parenting clearing up mouse blood after a rodent made a spectacular end in a trap. I have been sanitising my hands all day, and still feel quite nauseous. By the time Dimples and I were on our way home from cooking with a Pineapple Upside Down cake, the memory had faded a little. And by the time The Girls and I had consumed all the cake, I had stopped shaking. I would have been a hopeless farmer’s wife.

It occurred to me on Wednesday morning, as I woke beside my two small Girls, that this is the longest that DH has ever been away for work. I used to be absolutely hopeless without him, sleeping badly and counting the hours until his return. I can be grateful to the Little Misses for exhausting me so much that I always sleep these days, even without my beloved. It also reminded me how much The God does for us: keeping things running in his absence leaves little spare time for idle thought.

By Thursday though, being a solo-parent was starting to bite. After the school run, I called in at The Lavender House for a double-shot cappuccino before heading to open up at playgroup. Coffee after playgroup boosted me for an afternoon visit from NCT friends. The Little Misses and their friends enjoyed slapping newly-arrived stickers all over leftover wallpaper until it was time for them to go home. I left Granny in charge and went out for supper: slightly marred by the fact that the nearby flower beds had clearly been spread with manure that day, so every time the front door opened, we got a whiff of something less pleasant than steak and frites.

Friday came, at last. Evicted from the house by Electricians who needed to pull up our floorboards we headed to Waterstones with a mission and our World Book Day voucher. Several new books later, and remembering to pick up Daddy’s suit for the Dry Cleaner’s, we headed back home for lunch. Before we knew it, Granny was here to babysit again and I headed out to meet The Moiderer after months of trying. As an added bonus, I also got a hug from Sandy Calico. A few hours later and I finally gave DH a hug after a week apart. It’s good to have him home.

Unsurprisingly, the Little Misses were over the moon to have Daddy home and occupied him for most of the day, leaving me free to catch up on sleep, walk the dog and cook. LBG took her Daddy to a Pirate Birthday Party (I’m wearing a princess dress. I don’t like pirates really!) whilst I forced an over-excited two-year-old to sleep. A delicious supper, courtesy of Pioneer Woman and DH and I had plans to start a new European Crime Drama series. Sadly I fell asleep putting The Girls to bed: best laid plans and all that!