Man staring out of train window

A delightful escape from my domestic prison today. Lunch and TOP SECRET presentation of the new corporate identity of one of my clients, in the City of London. And of course I sketched on the train – didn’t quite have the nerve to do it in the presentation.

Tom catching up with art homework

Last night

More joint art

Thank goodness chicken-pox boy can go back to nursery tomorrow. I have six small sheets of Christmas wrapping paper and a kitchen covered in orange paint.

Joint art

How do you entertain a stir crazy child who can’t be sent to nursery? Well there’s ‘I’ll draw the face and you draw the chickenpox’ but that only takes up five minutes. I tried a long muddy walk as you can’t spread the lurgy that way and I thought it might wear him out. Well I’m worn out but he’s still full of beans at the moment busy being the ‘cushion monster’ (you unzip the settee cushions, place them over your head and arms and growl menacingly).

Flo doing her homework at the coffee table

A rather simian Flo – I must have confused her with the monkeys on ‘Planet Earth’. Anyway a good portrait of the general mess of our living room. That laundry still needs folding.

Hugo and Tom last night

More parent evening drawings

Parent evening

An evening at Tom’s school (with Tom) to be drilled on what we have to do as parents to get them through their GCSEs.

Xavier running

Pencil and muddytints in small watercolour moleskine

Change of masthead

I was getting a bit bored with this masthead, but was too short of time to create a new one so I thought I’d drag out last year’s to ring the changes.

Suburban tree

Ink pen and watercolour in small watercolour moleskine

Flo watching an elephant being attacked by a pride of lions

Remembrance

Remembrance Sunday, so Tom, Flo and Hugo were in the parade and attending the memorial service. Xavier wore his admiral outfit in solidarity with the others, but soon became bored with the service so I had to sneak away and entertain him with tasting food samples at the farmers’ market at the other end of town.

My own diminutive dictator

Xavier had the afternoon off from nursery. I suggested another muddy walk but he had other ideas. He wanted to play wih his toys at home and wear his admiral’s outfit (a pageboy outfit bought off e-Bay to amuse the relations on last year’s Oriana trip). I quickly tried to sketch him and as I did I was reminded of someone else – mouse over the picture to see

Falling leaves

240mm x 180mm watercolour and pen on Arches HP

Recuperating Rufus

We’re all so happy to have our darling doggie home that pillows have been dragged off beds to make him as comfortable as possible. Tom has been lecturing us all on the health benefits of having only one pillow, so that more can be donated to Rufus.

A Busy Bees Mummy

Only managed to catch one today – landscape sketchbooks are less subtle when trying not to be noticed drawing.