Plans

The Lake District is beyond beautiful at the moment. Mark took the pictures in the Library Gardens this morning. They are not edited, it really looks like that, and if you can possibly imagine it, it smells just like the colours.

The person who planted it knew a thing or two about autumn scents. There are the sublime burnt sugar trees and some heavily-fragranced flowering shrubs that blossom all year round, and even now they are drenching the mist and still air with their thick perfume.

It is a bit damp and grizzly today, after yesterday’s sunshine, but it is still beautiful. This is the nicest time of year, the time when I least want to emigrate to a lovely warm place despite the fast-approaching chill.

We slept late after last night, and eventually got up to just to make picnics and head straight back to work.

Halfway through this process I had the dreadful recollection that Oliver has been invited to a party in York on Monday.

I am aware that this scarcely sounds like a crisis, but let me assure you that in fact it is.

It sounds like an ace party, three mothers have clubbed together to come up with a fantastic motor racing event, for Oliver’s entire class to have an adventure driving petrol go karts. Of course Oliver needs to go, and I had some trouble persuading Mark that he could not join in with them.

This means three birthday presents and three cards, to be organised before Monday. Also it is in York, which is an hour’s drive further on from Oliver’s school, making it a six hour drive instead of four.

I have got to take Lucy back to school on Sunday. Lucy’s school is just to the south of York, and that is three hours’ drive each way as well.

Thus I could look forward to a bonus twelve hours of driving on wet A roads full of roadworks, on top of driving taxis all weekend.

My soul quailed at the prospect.

I grumbled to Mark over coffee this morning. I grumbled a lot.

In the end Mark suggested that we go down together and stayed overnight. I was not sure what to say to this, because I am having some financial anxiety at the moment. Our economic roller coaster is having a bit of a plunge this month, probably because of the wicked insurers going bankrupt and spending all of our money. The thing is that of course until our camper van is back on the road this sort of thing means an hotel.

We thought about it, and considered doing one horrible drive each, which saves on wear and tear to the temper if not to the car, but in the end we surrendered to the inevitable and booked an hotel.

It promises to be a happy event at least, we have hardly seen the children during the half term, and it will be lovely to have at least a bit of time all together. We are going to meet Nan and Grandad for a late lunch on Sunday afternoon and eat ourselves into an early night, which will be ace fun. Nan and Grandad like eating as much as we do, and there is nothing nicer than lots of dinner accompanied by wine and funny stories.

We explained all of this to the children before we went to work, and apart from Oliver thinking that staying at home sounded better than setting off for school a day early, they agreed cheerfully, although we all wished with our biggest wish that we would get the camper van finished before the next time we need to go away.

The next time is the carol service in the middle of December.

There is so very much to do to it, it will be a bit touch and go.

It been such a difficult year to manage without it.

Fingers crossed.