Busy busy

Had a pretty good day today. Got up and started off with a good browse through the huge DK Animal book looking at anything and everything that took our attention. We then moved on to looking at and attempting a not-by-the-rules game of the new Hieroglyphics game I picked up at the NCT sale on Saturday. We didn't spend long on it, but it introduced Tamsin to the idea that there are other sorts of writing than that which we use now. Then we had breakfast! After a bit of Nick Jr, we went out to the women's group at church, which as ever was excellently supportive, warm and funny. While there Tamsin drew lots of pictures, which led to a potentially embarrassing moment which thankfully I avoided! The first picture she handed me was a square-ish but smiley face, and whispered "That's Annie!". Although I was surprised that Tamsin had picked up on Annie's name, I attempted to catch Annie's eye across the room and show her that Tamsin had drawn a picture of her. However Annie was busy with her son Oliver, so I couldn't get her attention subtly. Tamsin then presented me with another picture and said "That's Clarabel", and shortly afterwards a third picture, saying "That's Thomas"....!!! Phew!

Came home for a quick lunch involving very fresh hen's eggs which were yummy and then out again to HE group. This is just an informal get-together at someone's house, with no special activities laid on, but it's nice to mix anyway. One of the other women, who couldn't make it today, has been saying to me occasionally that it would be good for me to meet one of the other women with 2 girls around Tamsin's age, but we've kept on missing each other. Well, she was there today, but although Tamsin hit it off very nicely especially with her older girl, who is 5 (the younger one is 3), the mum herself seemed either very out-of-sorts, very unfriendly or very depressed, or something. It was really hard work to engage her in any sort of conversation, and she wouldn't look at me or anyone else much, and for most of the time sat looking at the floor giving off unfriendly vibes. I wondered if it was 'me', as I've actually met her briefly before. I was having a stressful time in Tesco's once, with Tamsin being a bit of a handful and Isabelle getting hungry and wailing, so I ended up sitting down on the edge of a bottom shelf near the freezer section and feeding Isabelle. I was hot and bothered and stressed. Then along came this little girl with an unusually shaped bottom lip, and Tamsin looked at her and whispered to me "Why is her lip like that Mummy?". Since having Benjamin I am pretty unphased by physical differences so said in what I thought was a fairly relaxed, normal voice something along the lines of "Oh, I don't know, it's just grown a bit differently", and the Mum looked at me and said in a fairly tight-lipped fashion, "It's a birthmark". I wondered then if she thought we were rude or I'd handled it badly or something, though I couldn't see how, but thinking about it I now think she's just got that sort of demeanour, judging by today's performance. Anyway, I'm going to e-mail the other woman who I know a bit better (the one who wasn't there today) as she lives in the same village as the unfriendly one (trying to avoid using names here!!) to see if she's always like that or if she was just having an off day. It would be a big shame if the only nearby person who is HEing with girls the same age as mine and who Tamsin likes and wants to get together with is an unfriendly or not very nice woman!

Anyway, we came home for a fairly normal tea/Nick Jr/bedtime so thankfully all is peaceful now although I'm knackered, as usual.