Pancake Day

Not a good start to the day - I woke to see a dark shape standing close - Nathaniel wondering what time it was. I told him (Grumpily) that it was 5.55 and get back to bed. He went back to sleep but I didn’t. He came in beside me at 7.10 and Ella didn’t surface till after 8. They had big breakfasts and Ella went with Mr C to Whitley Bay to pick up the boys. Nathaniel helped me chop veg and then we took turns at children’s Articulate. He’s very good at describing the word. We only did the people section as he was waiting for footballers to come up. I didn’t know any of the Marvel Comic characters.

When the boys came Nathaniel and James went upstairs to play with football cards and Ella taught Thomas to play the ukulele. She was good - she showed him a few bits to try and she’d count slowly to 4 till he got it. I heard her say “well done! Did you notice how I counted faster and you still kept up?”

After lunch I sent them all out to play in the woods. I said the challenge was to find the sliding rock. Ella said she’d take her phone “just in case”. Thomas was confident and she phoned to say they were playing there but coming home soon. When they got back they said they’d met people who’d all asked where they were from and were they on their own. I suppose it’s about 1.5 miles there and back, depending on which path they took.

We made pancakes till I ran out of milk. They had them with maple syrup. We saved one each for the pancake race which we did when #3 daughter and Luke got back. Ella got the heaviest pan being the strongest. (According to her). They had to run to the top of the hill where Mr C was waiting to declare the winner. Oddly it went in age order. They all got £1. #2 daughter said she’d got 20p for coming second when they did it in Mendlesham when they were children.

Thomas and James are chilling with the iPad - something about the most dangerous trees in the world. I hope they settle down and stay upstairs at bedtime - unlike their cousins last night.

Specsavers and Boots all over the north east have no appointments for clearing earwax till April. Mr C wants it done before we fly so he’s got one at House of Hearing which isn’t cheap.

The flood damage decorators now can’t come on Thursday and Friday. They are coming on Saturday and Sunday when friend Jo is staying. What a pest.