Lights!

Woke up feeling a bit down, had the news late last night that a friend I had met when cycling to Paris many years ago had died after battling cancer for just over five years (and 62 rounds of Chemo).  

Pottering sort of day, the. boys played all morning, they were both supposed to accompany the husband for a few chores this afternoon but only the eldest could be persuaded to go.  The youngest stayed with me and discovered that life with mummy can be a little dull, involving changing the bedlinen and other house-work.  He did get a Tractor Ted to himself and some Paw Patrol, so was feeling quite happy in truth. 

We had a very exciting evening, going up to Belton to see their light show.  All very, very beautiful but totally ruined by the crowds, how they have calculated their ticket sales to be safe is beyond me and we felt pressured the entire time to be faster than we wanted to be and always closer to crowds than we felt was safe.  It was such a shame as the lights were so amazing. 

Today I'm grateful for: 
The inspiration of a friend who battled with real dignity 
Time with the youngest, we spent some time looking at old photo's and he loved it (we had to go through them all twice) 
Hot chocolate and mince-pies in the car with the boys after the light show - warming up after a cold evening, it was somehow really special