sunday night / monday morning

I was determined to get everyone to bed early, as I knew that my early start would feel better if they felt better. Aat the English bookstore I had bought 3 books which I said would be a surprise..so last night shortly after 7 we were all upstairs.. one of the books had a great title.. Tell me something happy, then in smaller print..before I go to bed.. It was charming and the narrator was a bunny, Ciaras favourite thing. This little book was so charming that they read it several times over Ciara read it out loud, Gemma came and listened as well. The book I bought for Naomi was called Captain Cat, about an old sailor who tho a trader who would give away treasure for a cat. This brought him ridicule but eventually fortune. Naomi read that out loud to all of us. This settled everyone down nicely by shortly after 8. For Gemma I bought a book by that author which I always find delightful., Eve Ibbotson.. about a boy and a dog.. that she read to herself. On the whole it worked and at least there was peace and quiet fairly early. Then at 0300 the dog began to bark and bark. waking everyone.. I sleep on the ground floor , the others upstairs, but even so.. a loud barking dog in a sleeping house is very noisy. I got up, of course, checking doors etc and then finally let the dog out. who just stood by the front door.. did not venture any further than the length of her body , it was very windy and rainy, I think something must have blown around, but whatever , there was not way she was going out.. so in she came, back to bed we all went and then the 0600 alarm forGemma. It has already been a long day. A friend came to walk Anna up the mountain with her 8 month old sammie.. but Anna did not want to venture without me. so we had the usual abandon and hide routine until she gave me up. I can walk to the beginning of the mountain path b ut not up it, as it is very rough and I do not have hiking boots with me.