2014: Week 8

2014: Week 8, a photo by MAStapleton on Flickr.

On our last morning of our half-term break, I got the teenager out of bed at stupid o'clock so we could have one final 18-mile cycle ride through the fields of Norfolk. We stopped at about 8:18 a.m. so I could take this picture.

Some questions that have arisen since the picture was published:
Q: "How did you get the teenager out of bed at the crack of dawn?"
A: I told him he could sleep in the car. He did. Quite happily.

Q: "Was the teenager grumpy?"
A: Amazingly enough, no. It must have been the promise of a nap later that did it.

Q: "What do you mean exactly by 'stupid o'clock'?
A: It was 7 a.m., so technically probably not stupid o'clock, but it felt like it because we were on holiday.

Q: "What was the highlight of the ride?"
A: The best part of the ride was doing it together. Now that he's 14, it's nice that we can do things together. The first highlight was I was in front of him on a particularly long hill and I keep thinking that I was too slow for him. When we reached the top and both of us stopped to get some water, he turned to me and said, "Wow. That was hard. I feel like I'm going to throw up." While I expressed some maternal concern, I thought to myself, "Yes! Not too slow!!" The second highlight was seeing what I think was a starling murmuration-- breathtakingly beautiful. I was enjoying the moment so much that I didn't even take a picture, but I will never forget it.

2014: Week 7

2014: Week 7, a photo by MAStapleton on Flickr.

Happy Valentine's Day!

These are the cards I got for my sons. I told them not to look at each other's card, but they didn't listen.

When the younger son opened his card and then looked over at his brother's card, he said, "I sense shenanigans!" Indeed.

2014: Week 6

2014: Week 6, a photo by MAStapleton on Flickr.

This winter's weather has been absolutely mad-- rain, winds, sunshine, sometimes all at once-- but it has created optimal rainbow spotting opportunities.

We spotted this hide and seek rainbow behind the trees while travelling on the DLR, while my son and I both furiously took loads of snaps trying to capture it. He even managed to capture the double rainbow.

2014: Week 5

2014: Week 5, a photo by MAStapleton on Flickr.

The moon in the morning sky, taken at 7:41 a.m.

Every weekday morning at about 7:35 a.m., I collect my coffee cup, put on my coat and walk across the street to wait with my teenage son for the bus that will take him to school. I do this because every day it gives us a chance to talk about plans for the day, plans for the future, make each other laugh or admire the sky. He definitely does not need me to do this, given that he's 14 and taller than me to boot. But he hasn't asked me stop yet, so I'm not going to until that sad day arrives.

In recent weeks, he's been happy because after two months of darkness, it's getting light here again in London at the time of morning when he leaves for school. On this particular morning, we both admired the moon in the morning sky. So after his bus arrived, I went back inside and got my camera so I could preserve the memory.