Five children and a baby

Yes, that's how many children I cooked tea for yesterday - which will explain why I took the boys out for pizza this teatime, and also partly explain why I felt like this for much of the day today!

Ben had two friends over for a sleepover last night. It's the halfterm holiday and Ben had been asking if David and Sam could sleep over for ages, so despite T leaving for the airport to fly to Spain for a few days Sunday afternoon and the sitting room being packed up so I can strip the wallpaper and generally prepare for the plasterer at the end of this week (yes, we're finally decorating!) the boys came over midafternoon. We made cakes, they made a den under Ben's cabin bed and lots of lego models, and it was lovely to hear them play. We also had my god-daughter Gracie over for tea as her mum phoned the night before to say that they'd be in the area, and then my friend across the road knocked on the door with her boy who was apparently desperate to see Ben after being away at his Grandma's for the weekend - as I was serving up and there was spare I thought he may as well find a seat at the table as well!

They did have a lovely time, and were very well behaved, but to be perfectly honest I could have done without the 4am wakeup this morning. Yes, 4am. Jamie thankfully slept through the boys getting up, Ben creeping (like an elephant) into my room to ask if they could go downstairs and watch a DVD. A stricter mum probably would have sent them back to bed - this realistic one realised that that would only lead to a stressed mummy going in every 10 minutes trying to get them to be quiet, so off they went. And bless them they were quiet, but there was no way I could get back to sleep! Oh well, at least Ben (and the other two apparently!) fell asleep almost as soon his head hit the pillow tonight!