Pimms o’clock?

I have long wondered at the amazing, ingenious solutions mothers come up with in pressing situations. Think Michelle Pfieffer in One Fine Day with her dinosaur t-shirt, her son's toy cars recycled as scale model vehicles in her scale model carpark outside her scale model building, and the stream of useful items ('superhero day' costumes) extracted from the great depths of her mummy-bag. I always worried, how on earth would I acquire such resourcefulness if/when I have a Miss/Master?? Well, there are a few things I have learnt...

In a new-build house there is much to do. Window dressings, gardens, garage storage, loft boarding, wall decor, mastering the heating system and zones (yes, heating zones??) and so on. When you have a home-delivered baby within a week of a moving in, well, it does make things a little more challenging. I cannot speak for other mothers, but as I could barely decide if I was hungry or not, inspired interior decorating decisions were not coming easily to me.

Fast forward a few months and decisions are being made, action is being taken. Papa has annual leave to spend and we have a long, long list of to-do’s to tackle. It had been a busy and productive week (considering our young Miss and even younger Master, both required ‘constant’ supervision). Loft is boarded and an access ladder installed. Bringing me to that Wednesday night.

It had been a long and busy day. The paint was not drying but other jobs were being completed. It was 7pm, Miss is fed and in bed, Master is likewise fed and sleeping in his infant rocker. Our hands are finally free (at the same time) but there are no more to-do jobs for now as it is dinner time. Pizza sounds great; pizza is easy (yay), but mostly unhealthy (boo). It was still early so I decide to capitalise on the day’s momentum and make a homemade pizza using as many vegetables as possible, despite my not being the greatest of cooks. Out came the chopped vegetables (I keep a stash of chopped vegetables in the fridge and freezer). Carrots and cheese were grated. Dough was mixed, kneaded, rested, kneaded, rested (you get the gist) and needed rolling into shape. It was at this point I considered I should have run the pizza making process through my mind before I committed to it. But like I said, I am not the greatest of cooks. In my (limited) experience, when you discover there is a piece missing from the recipe puzzle, so long as you have a few bits and bobs in the larder, most problems are overcome. But an absent rolling pin? There are very few things in a (my) kitchen that offer the rounded symmetry of a rolling pin. Scouring my cupboards and drawers for a suitable item it wasnt long before I set my eyes on the perfect proxy roller. A remarkable match! At the time, my young Master was 5 months old and breastfed, but was also weaning. And at that precise moment, Master's belly was full and I had a great deal of time up my sleeve before he would require a top-up...

Pimm’s, anyone?