Lydia Leaves Liverpool

This week we are sadly saying goodbye to the legend that is Lydia Palmer, but the good news is she's not dead she's just moving to Newcastle.

We've known each other for nearly 10 years we are soooo old now! We first met in september 2005 when I came to Liverpool as a student and she came for a job. Back then I felt slightly intimidated by her, she was a very responsible Occupational Therapist and I was a very irresponsible student. For a few years we were friends but not that close, like maybe she was my 23rd closest friend, and now she's in the top 5.

The good old days in Delamere forest to play wide games. 

The pivotal moment in our friendship was in 2009 when I turned up on her doorstep in tears, I was round to see her housemate my good friend Rachel who has been in the top 5 since approx. 2007. But when you're upset sometimes you're a bit irrational and don't think to check someone is in before knocking on their door to cry at them. Luckily the wonderful Lydia stepped in and preformed the role of councillor that day.

I soon learned that Lydia is not as normal as she first appears. After she joined in with the game 'lets draw on each other's faces with chalk' I knew we could be friends. and I quickly learned that Lydia is a machine. She's not one of those people who post on Facebook "I just run 4 miles and here's a map to prove it" She one of those people who will cycle 30 miles to work and back in a hail storm just because she feels like it.

My Where's Wally hen night.

If I was writing a reference for Lydia's potential future friends this is what I would write: Lydia Palmer will go the extra mile in her position as friend. She has demonstrated this on a number of occasions. For example cleaning up your house when you have been away for two months even when the mess wasn't made by her, holding a crying baby for an hour while you sleep, and wearing spot stickers on her face just because you want to celebrate the 84th birthday of a famous Japanese artist (whose artwork is characterised by spots). She will be a strong asset to any friendship circle.

So she's moving to Newcastle because of a boy... I know, the worst possible reason to do anything! I would insert a rant here but actually that would be a bit hypocritical because I first came to Liverpool nearly 10 years ago because of a boy.

Farewell good friend.

P.S. Lydia leaving has been a catalyst for a midlife crisis, but that's a whole other blog post.

The bad, the good and the awkwardly funny.

The Bad: The Moon and Pea

I've just got back from a trip to the 'moon and pea' a cafe that Percy has both mooned and pee'd in. And poo'ed... So. much. poo. I would never take a baby there again. I realise they're only a small independent business and probably aren't trying to attract mums, (babies kind of take up space and cause a bit of havoc and don't result in any extra spending) I do get that, but they should really invest in a changing table.

They currently have a very low down really tiny chest of drawers, that says 'you can change your baby here at your own risk'. Whoever thought it would work as a baby changing table has never had a baby or even seen a baby. So after seeing that Katie said to the lady "Is it ok if we change him on the sofa?" to which she did an awkward face and so we did it anyway. I was half an hours walk from home, I wasn't going to just leave him in his own poo and there really was no alternative.

It was the kind of poo that goes everywhere and takes a long time to change, but I managed thanks to Katie. We even did it without getting poo on the sofa. Thanks also to Rachel and Erinne who put up with a lot more poo and sick and crying from the Joneses than they previously did.

The Good: The World Museum

To counteract the negative review above, I would just like to say that the World Museum is a great free place to go with kids. We went with Percy and our Godson Benedict who is two and a half and it was a super fun day out. We got to see real snakes and sea creatures and not real dinosaurs and we got to see a show at the planetarium, and they had a good changing table.

Here's Dan and Ben playing jump on the snakes.

and Percy chilling out, not really bothered by them.

The awkwardly funny: Netflix

So here's something that amused me a bit at 5.33am this morning.

High school is tough but it's not the holocaust! Nazis and mean girls aren't really the same thing.