Today I've mostly bin...

[dramaticat]

... very VERY excited!

My adjustable-height sewing table has just been delivered! The nice delivery man Tony even brought it upstairs and assembled it for me.

Panto costumes, here I come!

[I am happy to explain this excess of excitement to all non-sewers if required, as you just won't understand ]

[giraffe]

I've done my share of costumes in my time. Warning: never let on to a dance teacher that you own a sewing machine. You will think you have volunteered to help make you daughter's costume and before you know it will be making 23 Maypole skirts and 8 flower fairy tutus unaided. I'm not a very good sew-er but my most challenging costume was a Joseph coat of many colours without a pattern.

[lally]

giraffe - you made those nice Aladdin costumes aswell didn't you? And I loved that maypole skirt!

[giraffe]

And I loved that maypole skirt!

What weird children I have.

[clvrlad]

nice to be appreciated though :-p

[giraffe]

Yes, and if you saw the maypole skirts you'd realise how easily pleased she is. The complications in making them were in the fact that they had to be in 11 different colours and used over a hundred metres of net between them.

[Bunnylump]

I got landed with making twenty six snowmen costumes once*. Again, no pattern so I had to make it up as I went along. Which is just how I like it. However, now my trusty Frister and Rossman sewing machine dated 1942 finally kicked the bucket so now I am sewingmachineless. But then I don't know how to use new sewing machines...

*Although the most challenging thing I made was actually a jester outfit.

...I've bin for a really long walk, at high speed, in the bucketing down rain. It did me a world of good.

[giraffe]

Glad to hear you cleared your head.

My first ever costume was a snowman, but just one. K looked very cute, even if she did spend the whole nativity rolling her scarf up and staring at the floor.

[clvrlad]

actually i remember wearing a snowman costume... only one problem my arms were trapped inside :-/

I made ...a jester outfit.

your dressing Scurra now??

[Bunnylump]

Blimey, if the thought of that doesn't scare Scurra off, nothing will.

[Bunnylump]

...Taking my husband to the hospital for an angiogram (he has a problem with a blood vessel behind his eye). I now have a husband with fluorescent yellow bodily fluids. Interesting.

[dramaticat]

I've done my share of costumes in my time. Warning: never let on to a dance teacher that you own a sewing machine. You will think you have volunteered to help make you daughter's costume and before you know it will be making 23 Maypole skirts and 8 flower fairy tutus unaided. I'm not a very good sew-er but my most challenging costume was a Joseph coat of many colours without a pattern.

This year I'm tackling a parrot, a mermaid and Long John Silver's wooden leg - not to mention all the 'normal' stuff

[Scurra]

Wouldn't the last one blunt your sewing machine needle?

[Bunnylump]

This year I'm tackling a parrot, a mermaid and Long John Silver's wooden leg

sounds like you need some martial arts training from MBH...

I am rubbish at sewing. But I do like making up fancy dress things. I've made a mermaid costume before now. That was interesting - I used an industrial glue gun to attach each metallic scale on the fish tail. Unfortunately nobody warned me to open a window when I did it and it took me about an hour to be scraped back off the ceiling!! However, the good news was that I won first prize. Although I suspect that was more to do with the fact that I'd had the bottle to go with a fish tail, wig, and two strategically placed scallop shells (which were attached with double sided tape). Great idea until I came to take them back off...

[MBH]

a fish tail, wig, and two strategically placed scallop shells (which were attached with double sided tape).

There MUST be photographic evidence of this one

[Bunnylump]

I don't think there is. Thank goodness. Mind you (for those of you who are feeling nauseous at the thought, that WAS when I was about 8 stone 12. As opposed to what I am now... )

[dramaticat]

This year I'm tackling a parrot, a mermaid and Long John Silver's wooden leg

sounds like you need some martial arts training from MBH...

Don't worry - I don't have to 'tackle' them all at the same time. Although it sounds a bit like a scene from Monty Python. I used to do karate anyway - only to the Inspector Clouseau standard, but it might be enough

two strategically placed scallop shells (which were attached with double sided tape). Great idea until I came to take them back off...

You can buy scallop shell bras on ebay now! Not to mention the coconut shell ones for the Hawaiian scene. Now, is that tempting anyone to come and see the panto ...

[Bunnylump]

Better not tell MBH, or he'll be there queuing...

[MBH]

I shall treat that comment with the contempt it deserves (and check the website for train ticket).

Today I'm wondering if the world has finally found the trick to trying to get me fit. I've had my 3rd evening in a row at the gym.

Wednesday was the "Deep Water Aquafit" with the float strapped on your back.

Thursday was a "Dance Aerobics" class with a different instructor who has some good routines put together (to good Latin music).

Then tonight TWO hours - "Latin Aerobics" followed by "Salsa-cise" with the Columbian guy I mentioned a couple of weeks ago. In the Salsa class he's including a bit of 'partner' work each week (dancing in a circle and changing partners after each sequence) - so I got to dance with 18 women tonight Result!

I sweat buckets - my body feels it's been working (especially going up stairs) - but I feel great afterwards. This is such a contrast to all 'exercise' I've done before. Perhaps this is the first step to reverse the fact that I'm clinically FAT [No - it doesn't bother me at all]

[Bunnylump]

Clinically fat!! (Snort)

Well, MBH. We have diametrically opposite tastes in food, and clearly you are the FIT half of the twin combo! Although I did have a nice walk today. That's a bit more my style of exercise! It was so beautifully sunny (even warmer than it was at the weekend).

And the good news is we have our house to ourselves for a couple of days - my son has gone to Bristol for his friend's birthday. 3/4 of an hour before he went, he was rushing about making himself a poncho... (something about needing a "halloween Mexican"... )