Sprained ankle Day 3

Sprained ankle Day 3, originally uploaded by Racmol.

I managed to injure myself on my first lunchtime run of the year, tripping over some uneven paving on the Embankment. Real dignity stripper - flat on face and feet all twisted up.

GP says it's just a sprain, because you can see where the blood is pooling under the skin along the lateral ligament. And it does feel a lot better already.

The main thing I've learnt from this experience is that my children are ten times more annoying when their destructive/creative impulses are confined to the flat! And, as I should know by now, baking with two helpers just turns me into a dragon...

Need a better plan for tomorrow. Roll on the weekend I say.

First picnic in the park of 2011

Grey heron in Regent's Park, originally uploaded by Racmol.

I picnicked in Regent's Park today with my friend Sineva - a fabulous warm day as you can see. Didn't take any form of jacket and wore sandals and 3/4 jeans. Spring has sprung! Of course, this doesn't mean that we won't get snow at Easter like in 2008, but it certainly felt hopeful today.

In other news, I have to have two separate job interviews for the two jobs I'm going for in the new structure at work. That's on top of the 3-hour assessment centre I went to earlier this month. The first of these interviews, helpfully titled L2006 in the meeting request so I had no idea which job it was for(!), is on 5 April. It's in external comms and one of the skills you need to demonstrate is blogging. So I just might be able to do that!

Bunk report - morning after the night before

Bunks , originally uploaded by Racmol.

Actually they were pretty good. Willy was so shattered after his day out in the park and not being able to have a nap due to his bed being in pieces that he rolled over and went straight to sleep. Fia took a little longer, but not too bad.

Willy started patting my face at 5.45am, but then he got in with us and went back to sleep for another hour or so before Fia arrived, so that wasn't too bad either.

It could be remarkably easy to get up to go running at 6am this year...

The man in the (super) moon

Super moon over Winchester Avenue, originally uploaded by Racmol.

Well, apparently tonight the moon is the closest it's been to earth in nearly two decades, so we went out the front door to have a look at it. I took this rather atmospheric shot - can you see the face immediately to the left of the moon?

In other news, at our house it's goodbye to the cot and the toddler bed and hello bunks. Jules has been a trooper throughout the whole transition - working from home to receive the delivery on Tuesday and then disassembling the cot and toddler bed and assembling the bunks today - on probably the sunniest, warmest Spring day we've had so far.

Fia and Willy's room looks much better with bunks - it's never going to be palatial but there's a good square of floor to play on now and because the bottom bunk has good clearance, we should be able to store all the train track and blocks etc down there and get them out of the living room. Plus they are just so excited about the bunks!

Fia and I took Willy to ballet this morning so Jules could have some time alone with his screwdrivers. He (Willy, not Jules) definitely has ballet envy. The teachers had covered the window in the door with paper, which he ripped off so he could watch the class, and then he said 'I wanna do ballet'. Which was pretty clear, I thought. Maybe next year, although he shows a lot more aptitude for anything involving a bat and a ball. His carer at nursery, Vanessa, was telling me just the other day that she gave him a recorder to play, and he blew through it for 2 seconds and then ran across the room to whack a ball with it!

After ballet we went to the park. Going to the park with Willy is a bit like walking an over-enthusiastic dog. 'That stick is too big!' you find yourself shouting as he drags half a tree across the grass. 'Yes, I can see you're wet - well, if you will roll in the grass...'

And finally, around 4pm, the bunks were erected without injury to either parent - although there were a few near misses. Damned tricky getting the top bunk onto the pegs in a confined space.

Oh, and in case I haven't already told everyone, I miraculously got a public place in the Royal Parks Half Marathon second chance ballot, so I will be busy doing that on 9 October. Jules is doing the Windsor on 25 September and it would be good if everyone could remind him to actually register and pay his race fee before it fills up. Lean Heath Christmas in south east Asia, anyone?

Fairytale happy family at the combined party

Fairytale happy family, originally uploaded by Racmol.