That Was May That Was

May has flown by and the start of June has taken me quite by surprise.  The last two weeks have been given over to illness with each and every one of us suffering with a rather nasty and lingering flu bug.  Poor Freddy was wiped out for over two weeks with a temperature, severe tiredness and a dose of throwing up.  Big sister Ella is still really poorly at a time when she is taking her AS exams.  She could really do without the horrible cough that keeps her up half the night and the aching rib cage that is refusing to shift.

In addition to all this, our lovely pet hamster Spinky died.  She was well over 2 years old, but she was a big part of our family life and we will all miss her very much.  Freddy was particularly devastated to lose her.  It was heartbreaking.  We gave her a little funeral, burying her in her cardboard tube, packed with some bedding, hay and her favourite chocolate treats.  We made a stone to mark her resting place. We have decided not to have any more pets...Spinky is irreplaceable.

At least the sunshine has eventually made an appearance for a few consecutive days.  The warm rays on my skin are infusing me with some positive energy and I'm hoping the unwelcome flu bug that has caused us all such grief for the last fortnight will finally pack up and leave. We have so much to do!

I've renewed my Merlin Annual Passes and can't wait to start making the most of it by visiting the attractions.  Alton Towers has its new ride The Smiler and my girls are really eager to ride it!

Freddy has got his place at the tiny village school that I wanted for him and is doing one afternoon a week for the next few weeks to get a taste of what September may bring.  I am so proud of how he is coming on.  My painfully and debilitatingly nervous child is now making friends wherever he goes.  It is a joy to see how far he has come in the past six months.  Now he is back to full health, I'm sure he'll cope with being a little school boy.

May hasn't been a complete write-off.  We had a wonderful weekend at Center Parcs Sherwood Forest.  It was lovely to have all five of our children together for a few days.  Times like this are really precious to me.  The sun was shining and we enjoyed all the facilities on offer in the great outdoors. I loved seeing my son Joe have fun with his sisters and his little brother.  We don't get to see him very often due to distance and commitments, but I treasure the moments when we do.

I also went to see the final ever UK concert in the Last at Bat Tour at the MEN where rock legend Meatloaf did his thing to the entire Bat Out of Hell repertoire.  Bat Out of Hell is the album that most reminds me of my youth.  It was the album I played on my stereo in my bedroom, pretending I was performing on stage.  Being Meatloaf's backing singer on Paradise by the Dashboard Light has been an ongoing secret dream of mine!  Sharing the experience with my two eldest daughters was just perfect.  We danced and sang along and basically had an awesome mummy/daughter date in Manchester.  Meatloaf is now a pensioner but he can still belt it out, bless him. I felt honoured to be there at this last ever live 'Bat' show.

I also had a bit of comping success winning the Silentnight Dream Bedroom competition.  A new bedroom makeover is on the cards.  It's long overdue and will really make a difference to our home!  It will also inspire us to crack on with the dining room that we keep trying to do, but never quite get round to!!

So, that was May.  June is now underway.  Let's hope it's a good'un!!

Listography...5 Bands I'd Like to See

 As Kate rocks out at Benicassim, she is leaving us to think of five bands we would love to have seen perform live.  I have been fortunate enough to see a lot of fabulous gigs...The Smiths, Placebo, Marillion, Bauhaus, Kasabian, The Prodigy...but there are glaring gaps in my concert history.  So without further ado, here is my choice of artists who would totally rock my socks!!

1:  Prince:  During the Purple Rain era I was going out with a guy who had bought us tickets to see the man himself.  Unfortunately he kept hold of the aforementioned tickets and just prior to the concert we split up. Consequently I was no longer his concert plus one.  I still have feelings of bitterness about the break up...not so much about losing the boy, but losing my chance to see the Purple One at his peak strutting his stuff to "When Doves Cry"!

2:  Meatloaf: Bat Out of Hell is my favourite album of all time.  I would have loved to see it performed live.  The over weight, sweaty super star would be a definite top choice back in the day!

3:  Live Aid 1985:  Being of a certain age I remember watching the original Live Aid concert round my now husband's childhood home (I was wearing a PVC mini skirt...but that is not really relevant to this story!)  Anyhow, it was such a ground breaking concert that captured the imagination of a whole generation.  So many iconic artists performed, Bowie, Queen, U2 and Bob Geldoff (who I had a massive Boomtown Rats related crush on!)  Totally marvellous!  I wish I'd been there in person to see it.

4:  Madonna:  Back before the pointy boobs, the SEX book and the mutton dressed as lamb leotards, I was a huge (secret) Madonna fan.  I saw Desperately Seeking Susan at the cinema and coveted her Italians Do It Better T-Shirt.  Although I was a bit of a punk on the outside, I loved Get Into the Groove and Material Girl. I would have loved to see Madge back in her virginal hey day....but I would never had admitted to it!

                           

5:  Beethoven:  As this is my blog I reserve the right to say I would like to be transported back in time to witness the first public performance of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony in Vienna in 1808.  I mean, can you imagine it?  How utterly awesome would it have been to be a party to the first airing of this best known classical piece!  Over two centuries later it is still a hugely powerful and influential piece of music...they use it in Freddy's favourite episode of Little Einsteins and he sings along to the "Du-du-du-dum" while jumping around the room.  If I could go back in time I'd like to tell Ludwig that my 2 year old is a big fan!

Pop over to Kate's and link up your top 5 and check out some other Listography offerings!

Music I want my children to listen to...

Just found this lovely linky on Ghostwritermummy's blog.  The idea is to write a post about the music you would like your children to listen to.  I am in an interesting position on this.  Having older children who have already made their minds up on this subject, it's no longer a case of what I want them to listen to, it's a case of do I approve?

I've always had an eclectic musical taste, so most things go.  Thankfully my children have all made good choices...we are a Bieber-free zone!

As a teenager, I was lucky enough to be taken to Glastonbury and to gigs by my older sister.  Bauhaus was the first gig I went to and I was in the mosh pit with punks...quite a culture shock!  I loved it though, being close enough to touch Pete Murphy!  They were quite influential to 'teen me'...as I immersed myself in their  blend of obscure lyrics and black lipstick!

Marillion was my next big musical crush.  I tirelessly listened to their prog-rock albums, relishing the pseudo-intellectual wisdom of Fish!  I saw them at Hammersmith Odeon on the Fugazi Tour.  It was an amazing concert with lots of extended guitar solos.  I still adore the Script for a Jester's Tear album.  Everything down to the amazing artwork to the lyrics on the inner sleeve resonated with me.  I still sing along to it now!

Other music I'd cite as being influential to me includes David Bowie, The Smiths, Echo and the Bunnymen and The Cure.  I was a real child of my time loving all the alternative music and dressing accordingly!

Two of my very favourite albums though are not in this genre.  For some reason Prince's Purple Rain became the theme tune to my late teens.  I adored his mix of funk, pop, electronic and R&B.  The fact that his backing singer Wendy was credited on this album gave me a sense of pride in my name!  I would extensively quote:
"Wendy."
"Yes Lisa."
"Is the water warm enough?"
"Yes Lisa."
"Shall we begin?"
"Yes Lisa."
Suddenly my name (that I'd always hated) had an element of cool!

Meatloaf's Bat Out of Hell is my other favourite album.  I still can't get enough of the rocked out concept album and you will find me at karaoke parties thrashing out "Paradise by the Dashboard Light".  I adore the story and love belting out those songs!

These would be my recommendations to my children. Thankfully, their tastes have all proven to be good and they do not pigeon-hole themselves to one single genre.  Joe loves N-Dubz but also loves Eminem and Daughtry.  Megan thinks Brandon Flowers  "went inside my head, pulled out all my feelings and put them into song form." Our songstress Ella (named after Ella Fitzgerald) has taken her love of music to the next level, not only loving it but making it herself.  She is a guitarist, pianist, singer and songwriter with a talent that is developing before our eyes.  I am immensely proud of her :)