21 April

Sun and serenity in Suffolk this afternoon. What a contrast to yesterday's choppy waters - anger all day, followed by sulks and whining at being left out of the party. I made it in the end though, and now I feel like I'm stationed at the door, welcoming everyone in with a gracious wave and thrusting a glass of red at them, as if I've been here all along. The children have been ignored again, although they don't seem to care; I've been fiddling with my new page, proud as a new Mum, and R, never content to let the day pass by in a relaxing fashion, has decided to create a window seat in the kitchen. Very much pro the window seat - I've always missed the one we had in our last house - but slightly startled to see one wall of the kitchen demolished and gaping. We're going out tonight, and I feel quite sorry for the babysitter who will no doubt be taken aback by spending her evening in half a house - the tarpaulin flapping, the owls hooting, and the chill winds blowing ..... it's spooky in Suffolk, you know. I'll leave the fridge well stocked as penance.