It's wet therefore I blog

Oh no, I'm in catch-up position again. Must get better blogging habits.
Well, J and I went away for 2 nights, F stayed at home with her grandma and it went really well. We had a nice time, she had a nice time. We can definitely do that again, if and when money ever allows! Our friend got married, a civil ceremony in a hotel set in a beautiful location with views over wooded hills and valleys. I only got a little bit drunk and only fell over once, that's not bad is it? And we enjoyed some *blush* time to ourselves, in several ways that are just a bit easier without a small person in the next room...
Anyway, moving right along, while we were away, F showed her Grandma how good she is on Headsprout, although Grandma was insistent that the sounds used were 'wrong' (the old 'b' versus 'buh' thing). And they went out and about a little bit, and F apparently loved Grandma's fave TV prog, which is the BBC1 Dance thing, and also apparently told Grandma that J and I dance the mamba every night in the living-room when she's in bed! LOL an unlikely scenario but not without its charm!
Journey back was crap, Sunday trains on go-slow and J in full rant mode. Bleargh. Still, am concentrating on remembering the good stuff.
It was lovely to get back and have cuddles with F, who was excited to see us, but had obviously been fine with Grandma - I think the timing was just right, she can communicate what she needs, is fairly independent, and I'm sure it has been good for her relationship with Grandma too, to get to know each other a bit more.
So a success!
Other things:
On Wednesday we all went for a walk (J has this week off work), following the path that starts behind our house and going up to just the start of the Downs. It was lovely, did me so much good, it was sunny although windy, and I thoroughly enjoyed walking at F's pace and enjoying noticing things with her and talking about them - lots of different species of wildflowers and grasses, sheep, bits of their wool, bits of their pooh, straw, fences, rabbits, clouds, signs, gates, etc. Everything at this age has the potential to be the start of an interesting conversation, as F starts to see the world opening up to her. It was great to get a bit further than we had before with her little legs, as it felt more like a proper walk for me too. By the end of the summer, we might be getting up a little further. I feel very lucky that we have this walk and many others right at our doorstep. As a non-car household, it's quite a luxury to have such easy access to the countryside and one of the reasons we moved here (*starts political rant about buses and Thatcherism, feels old, deletes*).
Also on Wednesday we heard from F's 'Aunties' Glo and Shula that they have been accepted to adopt and may even be parents by August! This is the culmination of 85,000 words of report on them, about 8 months of regular close interaction with a social worker, a year of general preparation, a short course, interviews, 6 references, and final close questioning by a panel of 12 people looking into their relationship, psychological health, their past lives, sociopolitical attitudes, their finances, future aspirations, etc. I'm so glad for them, and they may even be parents by August! They will be great parents, have excellent complementary characters and I think they're also very realistic about the process.
Yesterday I took F over to Brighton to see my friend Anya (due to give birth in about 4 weeks) and Louis, who's about 6 months younger than F. The children didn't really get on this time, kind of warily played alongside each other with a train set, with constant low-level irritation, but no really major upsets, so not too bad. I really enjoyed the time chatting with Anya, not to mention the yummy veg. kebabs with houmous, salad and chilli sauce that she and I are addicted to. The kebab shop man has 2 children, one is F's age and they are both HEd, in fact he said they were at HESFES and were having to sleep in the car due to mudbath situation. Anya is looking forward to getting her birth pool in 2 weeks time and to being able to bend over sometime in late June! Louis is really speaking loads now (he's bilingual so has had to process twice as much data) and is a lovely little boy. I hope he and F will become friends as they get older.
Today we should be going to the Bluebell Railway with Grandpa Clive. It's grey and wet but I think that's OK for that kind of trip really.
Monday was swallowed by work for me, I have finished 2 jobs ahead of deadline on my lovely speedy laptop and feel very smug about it! Tuesday I can't remember at all, except for quite a long playground visit on way to and back from shop.
This weekend, we have no plans, looks like the weather is going to be foul, so just as well. J is on 3rd day of giving up smoking again, so really hoping that lasts as he is already loads better company and much more patient. Can't believe what control nicotine takes of people's brains, not just the health risks. J is absolutely different when he's a smoker and I know which I prefer.
Right that's it, I'm all caught up, hope to not leave it another week this time.
Big wave to anyone coming back from HESFES, hope you all had a lovely time even with rain/mud!