The girls and I went to the park today, but on the way after I shouted to A to mind the dog poo she swerved and fell straight in it. SO, YOU DOG LOVERS... EXPLAIN THAT! We were just round the corner so we ran home and put clothes straight in wash and started again. Should have taken the omen and stayed in, as A then hurt her nose and knees later on. We met a man with his children at the park who is Portuguese but left 25 years ago, and is not going back for 5 more years as he ran away from National Service and if he went back would have to do it. Once you are 45 you are excused. Well, there's a story! We walked down to the Range, which we had not checked out yet, but the fabulous foot/cycle access from Thornhill is locked, so you have to walk a bit further to get there. It seems to be a very successful business model - an enormous, out of town Woolies. Why didn't Woolies think of that? Bought a few craft things and let the girls have an early tea in KFC, not something they do very often, so very excited about eating chicken covered in spicy dust. Tennis this morning for the girls and I had a very deep conversation with a couple of tennis course mates who R and I have played a few times. We were talking about parents and step families and the difficulties of relating to people. All very thoughtful.

When we got home, mum and dad had already got here in a taxi from the cruise they have been on. It sounds amazing, I think I would love all the activities available to do on board and the sense of community that must somehow develop between 2000 guests and 1000 staff or whatever it is on such a huge ship. They had been to Rome, Monte Carlo, Corsica, Barcelona, Gibraltar and Palma and had great weather throughout. I meanwhile had benefited from driving dad's car to work which I really appreciated as the weather has been so cold and wild this week. His car is an Agila, the same as G Mary and, now, would you believe it, R's sister in law! I mean, fair enough to buy a car that makes you look like postman Pat if you are over 65, but not before then, Maria, really! Dad has the 1 litre version, which has you begging for another gear when you get to 50mph on the motorway and milk floats are overtaking you. It would be enough to get Jeremy Clarkson on a bike, driving one of those. Still MUSTN'T GRUMBLE as am on the insurance now for both the grandparently Agilas and it was very generous and I am very grateful to have had the freedom to get to work dry this week.

Have noticed more of those Gravel Pits posters with exclamation marks.