Batman is in the house

My youngest is currently infatuated with his batman outfit. It was a hand-me-down from a relative and is a little faded and raggedy but he adores it. Yesterday morning he could be seen playing 'his version' of chess, full dressed as Batman, complete with shopping bag and crocs...and eye-catching combination to say the least. In fact my youngest is very particular about what he wears. He has never liked slogans or pictures on his clothing generally and from around the age of two he has often asserted what his choice of outfit for the day was to be. He took this to a new level a couple of days ago when, now 5, he insisted on selecting his entire outfit for the day without any assistance whatsoever. Well not sure if I have a little fashion diva (suppose it is divo for a boy!) but he came down in a completely co-ordinated look. Navy shorts, yellow and navy striped polo shirt and a pale yellow Ralph Lauren jumper to complete the look! He even went as far as to explain why he had selected each item and how it complimented the look! He fell somewhat short by then selecting his bright turquoise crocs as footwear, but hey you have to have practical footwear for the garden.

But yesterday, well it was a Batman day. He even insisted on putting the outfit back on after his shower - well it is the school holidays and I am in a lenient mood...what harm will it do for him to sleep in his Batman gear if that is what he wants? He slept until 8am this morning so he obviously wasn't uncomfortable - we did of course forego the cape and the mask for bed in case any of you are worrying - I also made him leave his Batmobile on the driveway!

Not sure how long batman will be around for this morning, but he is definitely 'in the house' at the moment. Have a feeling a pirate may visit or perhaps Spiderman (complete with foam six pack), he has been absent for a while!

Motherly Destruction....

Oh dear - I feel so guilty. In one fair swoop I managed to destroy the Ark of the Covenant and a digeridoo. Yes I know it sounds strange, it sounds even more bizarre when I tell you I did it with the roof of my mini! Rather easily explained though I am afraid...sunny day, convertible car, arms full of childrens things amidst school run....so put things on roof...hey presto! Amazingly neither myself or my two sons realised what had happenend until we reached Waitrose a while later...we found the remnants of the digeridoo on the ground by the rear of the car. The Ark of the Covenant and the digeridoo had been lovely made by my eldest son at school. I am obviously biased, but he is such a sweet and loving boy, when we realised what had happened I could tell he was very disappointed but he put his arm around me and said 'Don't worry Mama, you couldn't help it, it was an accident'. What a darling. Despite this I felt awful and desperately searched for fragments of each item in the hope that we could perhaps reconstruct them at home with some TLC and glue! Alas this was not possible. Somehow his kindness made me feel even more guilty, but I was so proud of his attitude, amazing for a seven year old. One of my friends is a teaching assistant in my son's class - I told her what happened and her comments made my guilt plunge to new depths. Not only had my boy had to make the Ark of the Covenant unaided, he had to draw it to scale and build it from plan - a fine feat for a child his age. So how bad do I feel? Off the scale. But my gorgeous little boy made me proud and realise that it is okay for mummies to make mistakes too!

1989

I read an article about 1989 in the Times Sunday Magazine. Now as a lady I don't want to give too much about my age away, but in 1989 I was in my early adult years and remember a lot of what they talk about in the article. It was also a key time in terms of relationships....whilst our friendship remained platonic for a number of years, it was in 1989 that I first met and became friends with my adorable husband. We were both working for a Japanese bank in the City - so the article's mention of Sushi having no equal in the City was very apt for us! There was not the conveyor belt service that you can get today, but with so many large Japanese banks in London and so many of their staff, great Japanese restaurants were not difficult to find. I particularly like Tatsuso in Broadgate, not sure if it is still there now?

I think sushi was one of the more upmarket elements of 1989....but I do remember watching the Simpsons when it was new and hip. I remember watching 'the scene' from 'When Harry Met Sally' and the dawning of the chick flick. I loved 'Love Shack' by the B52's and vaguely remember dancing to it with a group of friends apres ski in Austria - all a bit worse for wear - okay, off our faces dancing on a table, we were young! The sound of the Fine Young Cannibals singings She Drives Me Crazy also resonated in the background of many a night out. My father and brothers laughed out loud to Blackadder - I just didn't see what all the fuss was about it at the time - but now I too cry with laughter. A rare case of being thankful for the re-runs.

Bodies - yes those tops like a leotard with poppers underneath....nice smooth line, no riding up - yes I wore those too, but they were bloody uncomfortable! They do not feature in my current wardrobe...and haven't done since!

Dirty Den was killed off in Eastenders, sorry but I wish they had killed off the entire programme. Having been born in the East End of London I am afraid it bears no resemblence to my memories of living there until I was 10 years old, and I have never known a more miserable programme to grace our screens.

Finally we come to shell suits....the nemesis of many a photo album no doubt! I honestly did not wear one of these - at the time I thought they were somewhat of a fire hazard let alone a walking fashion disaster. However my then husband did sport a rather un-fetching purple and black one on occasion - perhaps that is one of the reasons I divorced him soon after!

So many memories!