Is This Thing On....?!

IMAGE : THE MOTHER LOAD | Is This Thing On?

I know, I know. It's been three months. Three bloody months!! My creative well has been bone dry for THAT long and I fear I'm now tapping away here for the sole purpose of my own self-therapy once more, maybe devoid of any kind of audience at all. Are you even here? Is this thing on...???! *microphone squeals to life*.

I'm not going to meticulously fill you in on all the juicy details of the last three months; I'm not even going to do what they do in TV shows to catch you up by rolling a package of highlights. I'll just say that while 2014 and 2015 were especially shaky for a while there, things seemed to have turned the corner and I suspect the ship is once again heading in the right direction. Yay for that.  And now it's September. SEPTEMBER!!! When did that happen? Did we even have a July and August or did we totally skip them? I read that someone had finished their Christmas shopping the other day. Pfft. If that's you, please stop reading this, head to a mirror and take a good hard look at yourself. Then punch yourself in the face for being annoying.

On a lighter note, as you can see from the photos above and in response to my last post which was in *cough* June, I eventually got my fabulous holiday in the sun. Sure pays to have a goal and a little patience doesn't it? We've just returned from a blissful week filled with warm sun, hours of swimming, too much food and unlimited naps (I believe soaring body temps and a dash to the nearest doctor was in there too but let's not get bogged down in details). Heaven! Sand in the knickers and a bit of itchy sunburn aside, heaven!

Speaking of patience, aside from the kiddy fevers I also managed to acquire a truly magnificent engagement ring! Yes - after sixteen years together and two kids, he decided that perhaps I was indeed a keeper and he got down on one aged knee and popped the question! One would think that by now I would have either given up all hope or I would not be at all surprised by his move, however he totally stumped me. I always assumed if it was ever to happen, we would do the usual thing that people in a relationship spanning this many years do, where he simply suggests I go out and choose myself a nice ring to mark the occasion in the same way long-term couples tend to sort out each others' Christmas gifts. But no - he did it the sly, sneaky romantic way and weirdly it felt suddenly as though sixteen years together concertinaed down to about five like an old piano accordion, and it felt like it was exactly the right time for us to take that step. That's weird and maybe hard to understand, but that's the feeling I got. 

Announcing such spectacular news is very strange when you've been together for such a long time. Mostly, you're met with a bunch of people who look at you with a face that says, "but....I already thought....". You then need to explain that no, indeed we were both just waiting for a better option that never came (!) so we're taking the plunge! Then of course there are the friends knew it was yet to be, and who gave up asking when it was going to happen years ago. They're the ones who squeal with the most excitement at the news and give you the BEST reactions. (Then of course, there's my mum who hasn't stopped spilling tears of joy since I sent her the photo of the ring on my finger). 

So while I'm still an advocate for choosing to remain happily unmarried with kids for as long you both shall live, it also feels nice to be finally connected in this way especially when you can wake your kids up one morning, announce to them that mummy and daddy are finally getting married and bear witness to their sheer delight. It feels nice - it feels like a new and happy chapter, and it just feels right.