I don’t know what it is about October, but here I am again, almost a year to the day later and let’s have a look at what’s changed!
Firstly, my children are all in good health… Thriving, in fact. The eldest is in school and ridiculously well behaved there, if not always at home. Middle child doesn’t seem to be suffering too badly from middle child syndrome thus far and is delightful, though gently entering the terrible threes (twos have nothing on threes, as any parent will tell you), which provides hours of noisy entertainment. And number three is exhibiting all signs of being the youngest (funny, incorrigible, irrepressible) whilst also being greedy beyond belief and something of a thug.
My put-upon husband is just about coping with the pressures of home life and doing a truly wonderful job of bringing up our children – they are a real credit to him, and I’m super-proud.
My job is fab and allows me occasional glimpses of sanity amongst the chaos of parenthood, and I am held together and propped up by the funny, kind girls and guys that I am fortunate to have as colleagues, nay friends. And the Friday beer trolley. Which sadly doesn’t look like this. Yet….
Friends. I used to have some of those, but by virtue of a full time day job and a full time evening and weekend job, they’re rather on the backburner these days – which is a shame as they’re generally a pretty awesome bunch. Awful bunch, I mean, obviously. Still, there’s always Facebook which is a great replacement for actually having a life.
And the bane of my life is still going strong. At 95 years young, my mother-in-law is showing no signs of stopping. She’s lived with us for 5 and a half years now, and is as batty as ever. People reading this (all one of you) might take me for a brutal, unforgiving bitch, with no compassion for an elderly lady in the harsh winter of life. And you might be right. But I don’t judge you for putting your smelly old rellies in a home, so please don’t judge me for finding my world a bit tricky and frustrating on occasion. Daily.
In other news, the big project in Italy is full steam ahead, but the funding isn’t as relaxed as we’d like it to be, so compromises a-plenty. That said, despite the penny pinching, we are going to end up with a seriously stunning house in beautiful wooded hilly countryside in Umbria. This is a picture of my stairwell wall. How can a simple wall elicit such emotion?!
Oh, the bloody thing won’t load. Suffice it to say, it’s wonderful.
I’ve had enough for tonight, but more on the mother in law in due course – recent antics have been particularly blood-pressure increasing and are worthy of a post or two in their own right.
Na-night.
Madre di Trio 