September - Pine Lake, Teen Mums and Lunch with Friends

It's occurred to me that I do not have the time to write posts for all the stuff that has happened recently, which means that my promised holiday post has been given the boot. Instead, here is September in a nutshell.

We spent the first week of September at the Pine Lake Resort in the Lake District, thanks to Graeme's parents letting us use their holiday club. We had a 2-bedroom lodge all to ourselves and were able to forget about real life for a week. Having a small baby prevented us from taking full advantage of the local acttractions and resort activities, but we still had a lovely time. We visited Lancaster (like York, but nowhere near as pretty), Morecambe (THE place to go if you have a Motability scooter) and Kendal (which was beautiful, but I was far too tired to appreciate it). We even managed to have dinner in the bar a couple of times or just a coffee if we just fancied getting out of the lodge for an hour or so. Unfortunately, Francis chose this week to start waking three times a night for a feed, so I pretty much missed the mornings by catching up on sleep. It was by no means a restful break for me, but it was lovely to have a change of scene. I'd love to take Francis back there when he's older.

September also saw me being invited to a Teenage Mums group to chat to them about breastfeeding. They were a nice bunch, not at all what I'd been expecting. Only one of them resolutely said she won't breastfeed (which, quite frankly, baffles the hell out of me) but one girl was very interested and asked loads of questions. The rest were not very vocal. The midwife thought it was amazing that I was still breastfeeding after my unconventional start to motherhood. She also told me I'm only the third HELLP Syndrome case she's ever encountered. Let's hope I'm the last; I wouldn't wish my experience on my worst enemy.

Towards the end of the month I was delighted to receive a Facebook message from my friend Vicky, who lives down in Swindon. I first got to know Vicky a few years ago via a website and we met up in person last year, along with a few others from the same website. Vicky's message said that she and her husband Phil were coming to Liverpool for a party and did I fancy meeting up for lunch? Of course I said yes, having not seen her for ages and having no idea when I'll get another chance. So, on the last day of Spetember, Graeme, Francis and myself met up with Vicky and Phil in Wetherspoons pub in town for lunch and a chat. It was lovely to see Vicky again and to meet Phil for the first time after hearing so much about him.

Sorry to be so brief, but Francis is getting more demanding now so I don't have as much time on my hands. I'll do a recap of more recent events later in the week.

Lisa xxx