What's Occurring Wednesday (4th September 2013)

Or, "What I have been up to recently...".

I try to write more personal stuff to share with you on this here blog but I never seem to get round to sharing what we've been up to. To rectify this I've decided to start doing a post each week called "What's Occurring Wednesday".  It's my plan to then share a few snippets of my week with you. That's if you're interested, you may well tell me you're not, but hell, I'm going to share anyway!

1. Wondering how to bath a cat. A question I actually posed on Twitter. It was met by a variety of responses which ranged from "with caution", "you don't" and "haaaaaaahhaaaaa". All very positive. I can report that I have not managed to even entertain the idea of bathing my cat yet but she so desperately needs it. She's very old, in fact I think she's reaching the end of her life which is terribly sad as she's a lovely cat but she seems to be sleeping somewhere dodgy, I suspect she's made a nest in an old tyre or something because she's black where she should be white and it's not coming off! Anyhow, someone pointed me in the direction of dry pet shampoos (who knew!) and I may be trying it soon....

The kitteh. Before she got all old, scraggy and covered in rubber.

2. We went to see Charlie & The Chocolate Factory. You know, the new Sam Mendes production at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. (You can't imagine how many times I asked the children if they knew the muffin man today...). It was extremely good and I can thoroughly recommend it. The first half was a bit slow going but the second half made up for it. Douglas Hodge who played Willy Wonka did so perfectly and even managed to successfully entertain the crowd when there was a technical hitch with the glass elevator. I really wasn't expecting the full theatre sing-along of "Pure Imagination" but it was a pretty special moment.

Douglas Hodge and some of the cast of Charlie & The Chocolate Factory.

3. There was a transient ischaemic attack in the house. Yes, father-in-law had a mini stroke. It was a bit worrying as it's not his first but all is well and good in the household again. He does however almost rattle when he walks due to the massive amount of tablets he's on!

4. I discovered single parenting was hard. I took the children out for dinner, just the three of us. What do you do when one of them needs a poo halfway through the meal but is too young to go on their own? I had three choices 1. Leave petrified 7yr old sitting alone in a large busy restaurant, 2. Take everyone to the toilet at once, leaving our dinners on the table, looking like we'd just jumped off the Marie Celeste or 3. Tell 6 yr old to get a grip and probably see him shit himself in a high street Italian restaurant chain. I went for option number one, whilst all the time shouting at my 6yr old "HURRY UP HURRY UP". Good job he can poop under pressure.

5. We went to the Sea Life Centre. I took the children for their first visit to the Sea Life Centre in Birmingham and they thoroughly enjoyed it. I hadn't been in about 7 years and it was a lot different to how I remember it. Sadly, much to DD's disappointment, we did not get to see the new rare baby turtles that were born last month as I think they were being cared for behind the scenes. Just means we'll have to have a return visit!

Picture by Andrew Fox for The Times 2013

6. There was a small incident where my husband nearly died choking. Turns out Mexican food is really very dangerous. Especially when you get steak stuck in your throat. Also turns out that I am no good at showing concern or offering the Heimlich when I too am almost dying - of laughter. I obviously feel bad about it now but it was pretty hilarious.

There it is highlights of my week in a nutshell. Two near death experiences (for other people), two trips out and one serious conundrum. I've also been working on a new blog which has seen my completely grapple with and kind of master Wordpress so I feel a little like a genius right now.

Hope you're having a good week and I'll be back with more snippets next week!