S*#t happens...

It's been a constant battle to get E to go to school willingly. Everything was going very well until year 7 and then bang. We've just about reached the end of year 10 and I am not the only one dreading year 11.

Recently we had one of those major crying episodes which are always hard to follow, a nightmare to lip read. I usually walk away until the crying is over. This time it was about work load. Having had a few moaning sessions previously I was short on patience and understanding (heck she used up all my P&U a long time ago!). So I simply said, well you can either fail some of the exams or choose to figure out a work schedule. Imagine here, if you will, wails of, 'you don't understand...' Kids never realise you've been there, done it and got the t shirt do they?! I refrain from suggesting that O Levels were harder in my day!

The next morning she casually told me she'd done a mind map and felt better. Later that morning I had a look at it. Well OK, so I've failed on the language side of things but I've definitely passed on one of the most useful things I learnt from my Mum, and that was simply that problems never look so bad when they're down on paper!

Cooling down...

We've had a few blazing hot days her in the UK. It's not often I have to sit in the shade, or dunk my feet in icy cold water for that matter, but that's what I wanted to do the other day. When our bigger dog Jake was alive we would fill a child's paddling pool right up to the top and he would come along and just sit in it, or even lie down sometimes. He'd also allow you to splash it over his back and pour a bucket of water over his face. He truly was a sensible dog when it came to blistering heat. Not so sensible was when he got out and tore round the garden like a mad thing spraying grass everywhere.

You'd think our water loving Springer would be the same wouldn't you? He sniffs out puddles, streams, rivers etc from a mile off and comes back to us on walks with a filthy boggy wet overcoat and a big happy look on his face. So how much terror should a small sand pit filled with clean water hold? Infinite. It took me ages to coax him anywhere near and then only by standing in it myself (that was bliss after the icy shock) and he will only walk through it and out the other side. Clearly he doesn't trust water without generous amounts of bog underfoot!

The beck running alongside the house is running dry in a few places and the rest has only a shallow level of water. It is bog heaven for Harvey. Admittedly we don't discourage him from venturing in when our tennis balls or shuttlecocks go down there (he's a fantastic ball boy) but when there are no ball games going on he sometimes tramps up and down in expectation. So now the make shift paddling pool has become a rinse station.

By the way, the photo above was the best of a bunch of thirty odd shots. I gave up after that!

Busy week...

Well that was fun and now back to the grown up stuff. Washing cricket kit mainly! Six matches between them this week. Two of them were today. My flask and I will be joined at the hip this week.

Before the first match today M and I popped over to Louth to pick up a special training bat. I never mind having to drive through the countryside to the cricket shop because its the nearest thing we have to proper rolling hills in this county. Reminds me of home. Not only that but Louth has a generous sprinkling of vintage and charity shops.

I managed to acquire two new pottery mugs for my collection and unusually for me I bought a skirt (I'll do a post with pics soon). I also picked up a couple of paperbacks; I want a good supply for the two cricket weeks we have coming up in August. The children board for their respective weeks and M and I stay in the caravan. We watch their matches by day and chill out each evening. It's the best we can do for an annual holiday.

My last read (The story of Edgar Sawtelle) was quite a pleasant read in its various parts, but didn't work as a sum of its total parts, if that makes any sense? I checked out some reviews after I'd read it and it seems I am not alone in this conclusion.

My thinking cap is on for a small portable crochet project to take along to matches. The blanket is big and heavy now and the balls of wool are 400g so not ideal when we already have so much stuff to cart about.

Deja vu...

My life is on permanent déjà vu at the moment. Precisely three years ago there was a whole sequence of creative school projects that needed my 'assistance'. So today, in glorious sunshine what am I doing? Building a Motte and Bailey Castle of course!

Three years ago I helped Ella build a Square Stone Keep castle that just happened to win out of 250 year 7 pupils. It was fun but I did feel a bit guilty about helping, now I feel obliged to help J make an equally good model.

He is elsewhere cricket related today so I am just laying the foundations and undertaking the papier mache in order for it to be dry enough to paint and add fences and buildings and drawbridges etc. Typically for this boy he has had the brief in his school bag for three weeks, magically producing it the days before it has to be handed in. Mum to the rescue eh?

British summer jumper...

I have at long last finished something! The main body of the jumper and first sleeve took a matter of days and the last sleeve took another week. I blame the cricket. This is a great Rowan pattern, ideal for beginners. I bought it when I first started knitting. This jumper lends itself to easy variations and alterations. I added quite a bit of length to the main body and sleeves; the pattern seems to be based on people under five feet tall! Next time I make one I plan to do a traditional rib for the cuffs and bottom. I can see the curling up of the stocking stitch is going to annoy me, even if it is blocked or steamed.

The funnel neck, whilst it looks better on, is a bit generous, 7 rows I think. I might leave a few out next time. I'm quite pleased with the fit though. It hugs in all the right places which will make for a very warm layer. Just perfect for the British summer we've been having lately!

Some more cricket news; Ella played really well last night. She bowled well but the highlight of the match for her was batting at number 3 and staying in until the end. She was quite pleased with that since she is more of a bowler. She got a quarter of the teams total runs and was awarded 'woman of the match' which meant she got to take the match ball home. Jake watched from the sidelines and was absolutely itching to get up and bowl the opposition's best batswoman out!

Bonding and beer drinking...

I've been reliably informed that it wasn't quite as hot elsewhere in the country on Sunday. (Yes I know these posts are a bit out of sync). We were lucky to be watching a cricket match in glorious warmth, albeit breezy, then. In fact I even put up a golf umbrella at one stage to keep the sun off. We already look like we have been holidaying in the Bahamas for a month. I hardly recognise myself in the mirror.

You know your children are bonding when they each enjoy watching the other's cricket matches. J is to forego football training tonight to watch Ella play cricket, and the above photo from Sunday shows just how close they are these days. That is not a double sun bed by the way, it's a nifty device for throwing cricket balls at so that they come out at difficult angles for catching practice. The only downside is that it is a bit noisy. Too noisy to use whilst a match is taking place.

They were talking tactics apparently. Who would have imagined?

It's a shame this particular day out was ruined by a large bunch of teenagers who thought nothing of playing football a few yards from us, repeatedly kicking the ball on the pitch, making a lot of noise, kicking bottles and beer cans all over the place (which my Mother started to clear up and suggested they join in, they didn't, surprise surprise), they hit both cars with the ball which made M rather mad and he said he didn't care how many of them there were they'd picked the wrong man to have an argument with (ooooh! I was chuckling about that for ages afterwards, him and whose army?). Funnily enough it was none of those things that really ruined it for me, but rather the invasion of our space. They were very close to us indeed. I've always been brought up to choose tables in cafes wisely, based on not crowding people if you can possibly help it. To picnic well away from others, and even to choose a path out of a cafe or restaurant that gives diners a wide berth wherever possible. When queuing I tend to give space to people and expect space in return. These kids obviously hadn't been brought up the same way. We've been to several matches at this ground in Bourne and had this type of problem on every occasion. Next time we will probably sit nearer the clubhouse where they daren't cause trouble. It's a shame, I like cricket precisely because it is usually free from the hooliganism that goes with football and beer drinking. The frustrating thing was that they refused to move to the football field that was right next to the cricket pitch and not being used. It's definitely an issue that Bourne Cricket Club need to be addressing.

Jumps and bumps...

We went to see England versus Pakistan Women's International Cricket at Louth today. The ball was delivered by The Falcons. I'm not usually impressed with air shows and this sort of thing but it was hard not to be impressed on such a windy day. They let several balloons go to track the wind, and one minute we were talking to one of the team and the next he was jumping out of a plane above our heads. Not only that but they were wired for sound too, which I am sure would have been even more impressive if I could have heard it. M said the team leader was giving directions. It was pretty windy today so I was glad when they all touched down safely. E and J thought it would be a cool way to start their county matches!

The England Women's Cricket Team were pretty good too! We were watching Dani Hazell and Lydia Greenway particularly because E had the lucky opportunity to have an hour's coaching with them both last month and they were really nice and approachable (we had a little chat too).

After the sunshine of yesterday (we caught the sun at one of J's county matches) I was optimistically dressed for another warm day. Winter woollies would have been more appropriate. I ended up wearing every left behind jumper from the boot of the car that I could find. Sadly no socks though so my feet ended up like blocks of ice.

E had to take part in a 'quick cricket' demonstration at half time along with all the county girls. The rest of the time they were supposed to be 'ball girls' but cricket really isn't like tennis so this part was quite pointless but E did enjoy one of the best views of the game.

We noticed that an ambulance as well as a St Johns Ambulance crew were in attendance. I don't know how many people they attended to today but E was their first customer! We had to arrive several hours before the match started and during a knockabout with a proper leather ball it bounced off someone's foot and straight into E's eye. Once we'd filled in a large sheet of details she was given an ice pack to reduce the swelling, which by now had closed her eye up almost completely. By the second ice pack she was feeling chirpier and starting to laugh about it. I think it might be a bit purple tomorrow but luckily it hasn't put her off the game at all.