This week has been focused on four things – Lillie’s special surprise jewellery making corner; Lillie’s day in London with me; Gary’s parents coming to visit and Lillie having a mole removed from her back.
The week began with us surprising Lillie on her return from church with her very own crafting/jewellery making nook in her bedroom:
I wrote about it here, along with some gorgeous photos of her reaction <3
Thomas was likewise a very happy bunny when he received a key board from church which no longer worked reliably. He managed to get it started though and is hopeful of using it as he practices some music recording:
He’s getting quite the set up in his bedroom, so much so that very soon there will be no room for him!
Wednesday came, and with it Lil’s long-awaited day out at the Victoria and Albert Museum:
Of course we headed for…..? You guessed it, the jewellery department!
I managed to get two photos inside before finding out I wasn’t actually allowed to take photos. Ooops!
We stayed an hour and a half before popping to V & A’s book shop for a couple of purchases, taking a selfie or two:
and (grabbing something to eat along the way), we headed home to our visitors for the week, Granda and Granny. She was a tired but very happy young lady:
Once home we found everyone else had beaten us home by about ten minutes. We settled in for the night to catch up with the Northern Irish news:
Thursday morning brought about Lillie’s dreaded minor op. She has a mole on her back which we have been keeping an eye on for the past wee while which had looked like it might be growing. A few weeks ago we took her to see the dermatologist who referred her to have it removed on account of my history and it being an ‘ugly duckling’ (a medical term meaning it stood out because it did not look like the other moles on Lil’s body). We’ll hear back within 4 weeks if it is anything to worry about.
We decided to take everyone shopping to take her mind off the pain. I haven’t driven for years and am trying to get back into it now that Gary has a work vehicle and I have the family car during the day. I’m not keen on driving. My mother had to force me to take my test in my teens, telling me I would regret not taking it. Personally I regret taking it. At least if I had no driving licence I would have a ready-made bona-fide reason never to get into the driving seat of a car. Ever. And frankly that would suit me just fine.
I’m not a bad driver, I just don’t enjoy it much. Anyway, my children have rarely been in the car with me, and as we had Gary’s parents over, I was kinda forced into having to drive because we could not all fit into one car. Well. You would have thought I was creating the cure for cancer at the same time as winning the lottery! For the whole journey, the topic of conversation up for discussion was my driving. Everyone was being incredibly supportive. Too supportive. I was beginning to wonder whether they actually really did have something to worry about. I don’t enjoy driving at the best of times, but it is even less enjoyable with a running commentary! And, in fact, at one point I very nearly stopped the car and got out after my youngest twin cheered me on after turning left. Yes, after turning left. Her loud, jolly, “Oh, well done Mummy!” along with accompanying clapping, made me jump out of my skin! Honestly, all I had done was indicated and turned, something her father does regularly and he never gets applause! And they wonder why I hate driving so much……
The rest of the week has been spent with my lovely in-laws:
They have been teaching A8 to play Sudoku:
and, as seating is a bit sparser on account of there being two extra bodies to accommodate, Thomas is getting very possessive over the seating arrangements, lying across the sofa and refusing to move. No matter. His siblings decided if he wouldn’t move they would just make themselves comfortable on top of him:
Ha! That’ll show him 🙂
If you haven’t already, would you pop over to yesterday’s post about screen and social media use. I would value any input any of you might like to give in the comments’ section.
I hope you all have a wonderful weekend with much time spent with those you love <3
I put off getting my driver’s license too…
Love the pic of your crew on the couch! I’ll pray for Lillie.
Thanks Audria x
The one picture of you with your daughter, looks like you two are twins! Love always hearing about your weeks! I hesitate to comment on the screen time issue because I am way so far on the other side that I understand that it is not “normal .” We have cell phones for those under 18, but they are used only as phones. They get them when they leave the house and return them when they get home. When they either get a full time job or begin college, they get to keep and monitor their own time on them, just as they monitor their own time with their studies, job hours etc. as they are assumed to be adults. My daughter has an active on-line life, but she seems to balance it fine since she completes her needed studies, her chores and has a face-to-face social life. My son doesn’t really have much of an on-line social life, but he is an introvert.
Thanks Phyllis, you’ve just knocked 27 years off my age!! 🙂
Ha! My parents had to threaten me to get my driver’s license. I was almost 18 and they told me if i didn’t get it by my 18th birthday then I was legally considered an adult and would have to pay all accompanying expenses; like insurance and whatnot. Sounds like a lovely outing with your daughter and you two look so much alike!
Lol! I’m glad it’s not just me 🙂
What a lovely mother daughter day. How fantastic to live in a place where you could get way without driving for so long. I would be totally house bound. The bus stop is more than a mile away and then takes two hours to get where I could drive in 15 minutes. Poor public transportation is one of the main flaws in our city.
Blessings, Dawn
We are so blessed by the transport here. We live in the London suburbs so are surrounded by gorgeous countryside yet are a 30 minute train ride to the center of London. Very cool 🙂
It looks like you had a wonderful week. I’ll be praying that the mole is nothing to be concerned about. With my red-headed, blue-eyed kids and a family history of melanoma, we have to keep a close eye on them as well. {sigh}
It is a worry. I don’t think the dermatologist was terribly concerned, but it was good to have it taken off for no other reason than we now do not need to worry at all 🙂
What great pictures, Claire. Everyone is looking so grown-up. I love the one of you and L. You look like twins! I am jealous that you have such great places to visit. I’d really like to get there one day. I am laughing so hard over your driving. I wish I could have been there. I feel the same way, but unfortunately, we have to drive everywhere we go. The freeways are so dangerous and I am a nervous wreck driving and riding. Some days I just have to close my eyes and pray.
Have a wonderful week with the grandparents! Hugs to you.
Thanks Donna! I’m the same – whenever Gary joins the motorway here I am holding on to the door for dear life and pushing my foot down on the imaginary break pedal 🙂
Me, too! It is a wonder there isn’t a hole in the floor of our van.
You and your daughter are darling. I hate driving, but I do it regularly–just took a several hours’ trip with my teens, and I had to do all of the driving because none of them are licensed. Your kids all seem like such good friends!!
They are good friends….most of the time 🙂 A several hours trip sounds a little hellish to me. Well done to you!
I didn’t really want to drive either when I got the chance. But Texas is such a sprawling place and the roads to get anywhere are so busy that walking is not an option. It’s 3-4 miles to get to the nearest grocery store and that’s over highways most of the time.
I had to laugh at her heading straight to the jewelry, that would probably be my last place to go. When my mother-in-law and I went to the art museum at Colonial Williamsburg I headed straight to the historical clothing department, and she thought about it and then went to the antique dishes. I couldn’t imagine spending lots of time there either.
It’s good we’re all different. Think how packed the jewellery department would be if everyone headed their first!