The boys are fine aand I think you will find that Bothie is now quite definitely my boy. So there.

Lara will be back on Saturday - it is an 8 day trip. She should be in the Atlas mountains now I think.

I've nearly finished Lara's room will be heading back to yours soon!

I am lloking forward to all this Thai food you will be cooking for us. Marvellous

love Mum xxx

PS Lara's camera broke too so she needed a new one to go to Morrocco. She is busy but loves you!

Have you got the camera problem sorted out yet - it would be a shame not to have pictures of NEpal and Bangkok is such a good place to pick up a good cheap one?

Dad enjoyed the trip to London - he went to the cricket club with Tony and you know what that means!

All quiet here - tidying Lara's room

love

Mum xxx

PS Lara is thinking of you while she is in Morrocco

Well, it's quiet here now, Dad and Lara are on their way to Gatwick as Lara's expedition starts today! Morroco here she comes...

Dad is then going to stay at Tony and Fi's overnight and come back here tomorrow.

Didn't get the job - onwards and upwards.

Lara had a sixth form day yesterday which was really a waste of time except that Physics gave them cakes to eat and Art gave her loads of homework to do!

No other news really - going to tidy your room today

love

Mum xxx

PS Lara says she loves you and she's very excited about her expedition

The freeview box isn't working so no recording and the tv signal has been poor so nothing on the telly either!

Only investigating vague possibilitie of new jobs as Thornton won't last much longer.

We are trying to get out ecoschools status and have spent today designing environmentally friendly loos, doing toilet surveys (smelly) and writing to Yorkshire Water. It has been fab!

One of my class went to the cycling and she got two water bottles thrown to her - one was Millar's and she didn't know who owned the other one. Pleased as punch she was - cycling is great for freebies.

Peter Thompson is putting Lara under pressure to let the children (Y3) serve straight away - she doesn't think they're ready so she's going to ask him to delay until September when you can check them out.

lots of love

Mum xxx

PS Lara loves you

PPS Just keep the blogs coming - I like to know you're well

Well the excitement is rising - the tv is actually showing ITV4 at the moment and that channel is showing the tour de france from next week. Please cross fingers for continued luck with the tv as Dad will be grumpy unless he sees cycling.

Today was his first day back on the bike since le JOGLE - and Big D wore a co-ordinated cycling outfit! He is busy pouring through pictures of the JOGLE so he can order a disc of pictures.

Paul Irving has been flattering Lara again - desperate to keep her on the altar serving team for a while longer. What he doesn't know is that she is hoping to move straight to Gold Dof E and needs to keep up the service element.

I've got a job interview on Thursday but have just been offered a job by Mary Burton! What do you think of that?

lots of love

stay safe

Mum xxx

Coordinated cycling outfit? I'm sorry, but I didn't think the world was supposed to end quite yet...

Now you've got the record-y thing he won't have to miss a minute of coverage... and neither will you... apparently it's Armstrong's last tour this year.

I didn't realise you were looking for another job.... where is your interview?

It's your fault because you're the one who isn't here!

The cycling championshups were the road races which were held near Barrowford so Dad took the dogs and they sat outside a cafe watching all the bikes go by. There was an accident on the first circuit so the race was shortened and Dad was really pleased to see Emma Pooley win followed by Lizzie Armistead and then Nicole Cooke.

Lara took part in a fashion shoot yesterday - it was fantastic - the photographer got the best out of the girls I can't wait to see the pictures!

I tidied your bedroom....

lots of love

Mum xxx

ps Don't you have a British passport? I am so glad I am not teaching class 2 today, they will all need counselling after that football!

PPS Lara loves you

That is so unfair! And why was Loz in a fahion shoot? And why are you tidying my bedroom again when there is noone living in it???

I do have a British passport but I still happen to enjoy watching England lose at football because everyone seems to assume that we can actually win the world cup, when it's blatently untrue every single time

Now look young lady - it's all your fault, Dad is off to the British cycling championships tomoorow (Sunday) to meet up with his new buddy Sarah Storey and Nicole Cooke! I am a cycling widow - and worse still I'll be all alone, Lara is off to a sleepover and Dad is taking the puppies with him!

Altar serving training went well - apparently there's one really keen one who has studied the process and knows everything! Mr Thompson said hi!

I've moved classrooms twice this week - the children have been really funny about it all. I also went to Carleton for a day and all the children wanted to know was did I really own the dog that killed the gerbil!

Stay safe and stay in touch

love

Mum xxx

PS Lara loves you (she is currently chucking out all her GCSE stuff - apparently that's great fun)

How is it all my fault? and why is he taking the dogs to watch the cycling?

Bothie is now a legend at Carleton? That's cool.

I'm having a great time in Bangkok, watching England get hammered last night was brilliant, and I ended up in this awesome bar with live music and stuff.

So you beast - what habe you been up to? I met the deputy prime minister again today and was telling him that part of the immigration problem could be solved by lockong the borders to all students who have bobbied off on so called gap years - wasting time and taxpayers monies - he agree with me and is closing the borders on my birthday! So hurry up with my koala you must be near one one - make sure it gets home via the post before the borders shut.

Be good x

There are no koalas in Thailand either Clare... It's not happening, and how exactly am I wasting taxpayer monies? If anything I'm saving them by not using any UK services like roads or hospitals

Will you please stop encouraging your Dad to undertake another marathon event?! You did not have to cope with training regimes, being eaten out of house and home (no cheese or bread seen in this house for several months) or the disappointment on the puppies faces whenever the bike appears...

Neither did you have to live with the smell of deep heat with which he lathers his swollen feet every evening.

Lara's exams are all over. Hurrah! She is off to St Stephen's to train altar servers tomorrow. Apparently there are 6 awaiting her tender mercies!

Nanny Mo's puppies were eating the wallpaper so she painted it with mustard. The naughty one was very cross and barked at her for doing such a mean trick!

lots of love

Mum

Hi,

She has borrowed a thick fleece and a microfleece, your sleeping bag, your karrimore day rucksack, your sleeping mat and a pair of trousers. Do not worry she'll look after them.

She did look very pale - perhaps she actually revised when on exam leave?!

Bobby is awaiting his Daddy as Bobby came home with the rest of the Bradley 5 and MArk is about 2 hours from home on the train.

Take care

love

Mum xxx

PS Lara says I check your blog too often even though she loves you!

And thank you for your compliment

Cool, will she be warm enough in my sleeping bag? And revising on exam leave? What's that about? It's obviously about taking the dogs on lost of long walks in the fields (just ask Bothie)

He's finished!!!!!

He is exhausted but triumphant - and he even has a medal to show for all his pedalling. He has requested lifts to work this week because his bottom is a bit sore and he's lost feeling in his hands. (He feel's sorry for any of Andy Hutchinson's dental patients who might be having work done this week)

Lara did look great and we bought a trekking hat, a head torch, insect repellent etc. Lots of stuff we simply nicked from your bedroom.

The chocolate egg was actually a choclate orange which you had 'hidden' in your room along with half-finished packets of biscuits, bottles of lemondade, cola and so on. Still tidying...

Buzz has given up keeping an eye out but the school now has a chicken shed beside our garden wall. It is driving Bothie and therefore us absolutely bonkers.

love

Mum xxx

PS Lara says thanks for lending her the camping stuff.

I've just seen pictures of Lara on facebook at prom, shje looked lovely, but have ytou been keeping her ion a darkened room? she was pale!

Dad want's lifts to work? Won't Bobby feel abandoned? And he got a medal? That's sweet

What stuff has Lara borrowed? She's welcome to everything except my 66 degrees north backpack, even my sleeping bag, I'm just interested

Well, just 98 miles to go now - he can smell the sea and see the finish line! Dad thought today was hard and long and is hoping to enjoy tomorrow more!

Lara is now completely kitted out for her trip and she thoroghly enjoyed the ball - and the sleepover even more I think.

Bothie and Buzz don't seem to have miseed the big D too much - but I have been getting up before 6 evry day to walk them. Now officially more exhausted than Dad.

love Mum xxx

PS Lara loves you

Glad Lara had a good time at prom, bet she looked great, what's she had to buy for her morocco trip?

Has Dad got a new cycling challenge in mind yet? He's going to get really bad withdrawl symptoms if not, we might start to miss his coffee-free self...

I know what you mean about being exhausted with the boys- when you lot went to Portugal they nearly killed me, with all the early mornings and Buzz's insistance on keeping a lookout for you lot to get back