This week has been full of hustle and bustle. Picking up and dropping off children. Not festive related. Just run of the mill. The teens enjoy the full life and the extra interest it brings. I’ll admit to yearning for the light evenings, as I head off down narrow lanes to collect them again, but I know it will be worth it in the long run.

We’ve had volunteering, carol singing, camping trip planning and further academia. Shopping trip with friend. That is just one teen. Admittedly the busiest of the three, at the moment. When her piano lesson was cancelled, this week, it gave us an unexpected break.

I’m so glad she has all these opportunities. So thankful to the wonderful people who make it possible for to follow her interests. If I can say “yes” to her, I do. None of it breaks the bank.

Oh, and yes, the “icy roads ahead” warning flashed up, on my car dashboard, a couple of these evenings. I’ve stopped jumping, when the alarm goes off, which I guess is a silver lining.

The other upside is that when we do get home, we often stand and look up at the cloudless sky to spot the star constellations. Cold equals a clear night, on the whole. It may be nippy, but we stay long enough to name as many as we can. Enjoying the moment. Precious moments, which I wish I could bottle up and keep. Tie up with a ribbon.

I hate to look ahead, but I know that times like this have an expiry date, when it comes to being a parent. The clock is counting down to a day that I’m no longer needed to ferry her around. I’ll take the hustle and bustle.

It all feels like a contrast to the start of the week, when we stood quietly in the church and spotted little wooden mice and ceramic birds, among the nativity scenes on display. Part of the Nativity Crib Festival. There were over 200 on display. There are more photos from our visit in my Sunday Photo post, if you’d like to see.

Taking the calm with the storm. I’m more than happy to do.

(See how I avoided mentioning the UK election completely …opps! Oh well, in for a penny, in for a pound, here is our #dogsatpollingstations photo)

(#dogsatpollingstations – the hound was not impressed by the weather, but still executed his canine civic duty by accompanying us.)

Linking up with Anne’s Word of the week. My word(s) is “hustle and bustle”.

Sometimes, I outdo myself and get my act together. This week was one of those weeks. We’ve had a theatre trip, cinema and a lunch.

To set the scene, we live the best part of an hour’s drive away from the nearest action. Big venues such as theatres and cinemas. There is local village entertainment, of course, but I do miss the larger venues.

We could go by bus. Nearest bus stop is about a mile walk away, through unlit, narrow lane, so not exactly enticing on a dark, winter evening. As the years have gone by, staying home in an evening just seems the easiest option, rather than getting all five of us out of the door. Easier to flick through the TV channels, in front of the fire. What is not to like?

All change when it comes to the festive season. It calls for a teensy bit more effort, I always think. I remember going up to London for the big shows, when I was younger. Also seeing the shop windows lit up in the Oxford Street area, with all the Christmas displays. It left a big impression on me and I’m thankful my parents took me. I want the same kind of memories for my children.

(Christmas jumper 2017)

This week, we fitted in two events. First up we ventured out to see A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, at the Bristol Old Vic. It was fabulous. I’ve already written about going. So much to love about the evening. I knew it would be a success with all the family.

Middle teen had a drama exam(LAMDA) in the morning. The whole day seemed to be filled with theatre. (Especially when we had to switch cars, because the battery was flat in mine, but managed to get to the exam with ten minutes to spare. Phew!)

Second evening out was a little bit more uncertain. I knew I would love it. I was pretty sure no one else would, but I did believe that it was an acorn that needed to be planted. Just as I had been dragged off to sit in crumbling roman ruins in Italy, as a teenager, and watch classic music played on warm, summer evenings, I needed my children to be pushed out of their age related, comfort zones too. I grew to love classical music and now appreciate those memories.

(If you had asked me at the time, I’d have probably told you about the time the violin string broke for the soloist and we waited ages for it to be sorted out. Or watching a grasshopper walk over an Italian lady’s highly coiffured hair, in front of me, for the first half of another outdoor concert.)

So I took them all to see Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale at the cinema. It was a recording of a Live performance at the Garrick Theatre. Kenneth Branagh and Judi Dench. It was beautiful. I had tears in my eyes by the end. Eldest Teen loved it too. At seventeen, she’s already studied a bit of Shakespeare and has an ear for language, so I should have known she would enjoy it. She performed in her first Shakespeare school play at the age of seven. Another three after that, as the end of year school play. Shakespeare is firmly in her comfort zone.

The other two found it more difficult. The primary school had stopped teaching Shakespeare, when they reached that stage. At 15 and 12, they have studied less. It was difficult for them to follow the story and being 3 hours long, on a school night, I knew it wasn’t going to be easy. There was a tad bit of moaning.

The next day, they did surprise me. Both said that it wasn’t quite as bad as they thought. They enjoyed parts. Youngest told his English teacher all about it at school that day. Me thinks that particular acorn might be taking root…..

(exit, pursued by a bear)

Third outing was just for me. Oh yes. A rare weekday treat for me! I met up with a friend for lunch. Had to postpone the lunch twice, so it was good to finally meet up.

That was my week. I’m joining in with Anne’s word of the week again. Missed a couple of weeks, due to the blogging blues, but back now.

My word(s) is “going out”.