In London with @nickisapiro and the kids! #GuysAndDolls @_bridgetheatre was incredible. Trumpeter Matt Yardley (@LeedsUniMusic grad) took us round the pit. Saw the amazing @CrazyForYouLDN this evening. Caught up with the fabulous @Sam_Harrison_ (@LeedsUniEnglish grad) afterwards.
Younger child wanted to see Big Ben so we wandered round Westminster in unexpected sunshine, before going to @newsies_uk @troubadourWPark. Mind-blowing dancing! @LeedsUniMusic alumnus Tom Coppin was in the band, giving us a ‘knowing someone in the show’ hat-trick. @nickisapiro
Back at work today and got two overdue tasks completed ✅✅. Got a good fruit crop from the garden at lunchtime. We were all at home this evening - a rarity. The kids had an early night, having been at a rehearsal, party or show almost every night in the last week. @nickisapiro
@nickisapiro On campus and continued pressing on with trying to clear the decks before the end of the month. Steady progress, but not sure it’s fast enough. Had a good #SchoolOfRock rehearsal with the kids this evening. Had them signing in their teams and what a sound they make! @nickisapiro
@nickisapiro Older child had a high school taster day, and younger a grandparents day. I had my last DSE/@MelaniePrideau2 catch up, my last CR-centred meeting, and good chats with @SilviuCobeanu and @BryanDWhite00. @nickisapiro and I met up with some other #SchoolOfRock parents this evening.
I did some RESEARCH today!! Good to remember what that is like before August starts. Also had a final catch-up with @DaveIreland5 before we finish in our roles - we ended up giving ourselves more worn to do 🤦♂️. @nickisapiro and I saw 42nd Street tonight. The dancing was amazing.
Graduation day @LeedsUniMusic, and wonderful to see our UG and PG graduates including Dr @tobyhuelin! Lovely atmosphere in the School and great to catch up with folk and find out what they plan to do next. Our kids had swimming this evening and younger did her 400m! @nickisapiro
Had to be quite organised today. Older child had a singing lesson late morning, after which we dashed home then straight out to see her best friend in Addams Family at City Varieties. From there we’ve come over to Liverpool ahead of a family celebration tomorrow. @nickisapiro
Spent the day with @nickisapiro’s family in Liverpool. Saw a cousin and family for breakfast and bumped into another cousin by chance! @robbracey, @emmaforster123 and the boys were over and we all had afternoon tea celebrating @PeterBracey4 and Helen’s golden wedding anniversary.
I finished as @LeedsUniMusic’s DSE today. In my 4 yrs I’ve seen strikes, MAB, a power cut, Covid, 3 HoSs & Curriculum Redefined but I’ve loved doing the role. Particular thanks to DDSE @DaveIreland5, SESM @nickisapiro & PDSE @MelaniePrideau2. Good luck in the role @BryanDWhite00!
On leave and on a family holiday with @nickisapiro, the girls and my parents (@DianeSapiro2). Flight to Jersey very straightforward and settled into our accommodation. Hasn’t stopped raining yet (and won’t!), but it’s very nice here and we’ll enjoy the week no matter the weather!
We got the bus round the bay to St Helier this morning and spent most of the day there. Had a wander round the shops and visited 16 New Street and the Jersey Museum. Both were fascinating and enjoyed by the girls as much as the adults. Avoided much of the rain too! @nickisapiro
Dodged the rain by deliberately getting wet this morning; we went for a family fun swim. @nickisapiro, the girls and I enjoyed the flume! Not sure my dad did 😂. It was almost sunny after lunch so we walked the causeway to St Aubin’s Fort at low tide. Played games this afternoon.
@nickisapiro Went to Gorey Castle this morning. Had a fantastic guided tour with @JerseyHeritage volunteer Geoffrey who kept us all (including the girls) thoroughly engaged for nearly 2 hrs. Outstanding. We could see France! Went to some lovely botanical gardens on the way home. @nickisapiro
Braved the rain to go the the War Tunnels this morning. Got wet waiting for buses but the tunnels were very interesting. Went swimming again this afternoon and did some more tortoise spotting. The girls and I had a paddle at the end of the slipway and got quite wet. @nickisapiro
@nickisapiro Jersey Zoo today. We saw sleeping gorillas 🦍, active orangutans🦧, colourful butterflies 🦋, feeding macaques, large tortoises 🐢, bickering flamingos 🦩, playful meerkats, flying bats 🦇, and humping geladas 🤣. Did a fantasy football draft this afternoon too ⚽️. @nickisapiro
@nickisapiro Got the bus to St Helier and hired some ‘bikes’ for a pedal along the prom. The kids did well, the older steering their bike very well. Went to the Maritime Museum after lunch and got Le Petit Train back to St Aubin for dinner. @nickisapiro and I enjoyed a brief evening walk too.
Spent our last morning in Jersey doing a 4 miles walk from St Aubin to Corbiere on the railway walk. Stunning views, and glorious weather too. Back to Leeds this afternoon, and @nickisapiro and I did an escape room with @DaveIreland5 and Lizzy this evening. Finished it in 57:55!
Back at work and adjusting to not being DSE and being on research leave … except I had 350 emails to clear first. Made a very good start today - easier when they’re not arriving in such volumes! Had a good #SchoolOfRock rehearsal with the principal kids tonight. @nickisapiro
Did some research and got something off to @ElsaMarshall16 and @tobyhuelin. Hopefully we’re nearly there now. Took the cat to the vet this afternoon; the drive home wasn’t fun! Had dinner with @Steve_katongo and Claire. The girls enjoyed playing the organ with Luke. @nickisapiro
Filed and dealt with lots of emails today - inbox is now manageable though I still have some to deal with. Got a proposal sent off ✅. Made remarkably few changes to my @OfficialFPL team ahead of the deadline 🤣. Both girls completed stages in swimming this evening. @nickisapiro
Went shopping in Guiseley this morning and got soaked heading back to the car afterwards! The kids sorted their bedrooms out and I put up some pictures for each of them. Clive popped in for a cuppa this afternoon. I finished @SquaredleApp’s 499-word Got Salt puzzle. @nickisapiro
We drove to Liverpool through heavy showers, bright sunshine, a closed roundabout in Bradford, and both stationary traffic and a rolling 30mph zone on the M62. Family event this afternoon then came back to Leeds via a detour off the M62 owing to a crash. Fun trips. @nickisapiro
Ticked off two more tasks this morning, meaning that I *should* meet my target of the decks being cleared and the loose ends tied up by the end of tomorrow, ahead of going on annual leave. That will mean I can kick-start my research once we’re back from Aldeburgh! @nickisapiro
The girls and @nickisapiro went to the cinema while I worked on materials for my research project. Compatibility issues with my MacOS and Sibelius are more than a little annoying though. In-laws are now house/cat sitting and we’re in Grantham en route to @GillBracey in Aldeburgh!
Got to Aldeburgh for lunch with @GillBracey. We did ‘spot the window’ on the high street and the girls paddled in the sea. @nickisapiro and I saw @auroraorchestra play Rite of Spring standing and from memory @SnapeMaltings. Remarkable, intense, fabulous! Oh, and it’s my birthday.
@GillBracey @nickisapiro @auroraorchestra @SnapeMaltings Should have included a couple of photos with that tweet: the first is during the interval - all the music stands and (almost) all the chairs were removed as though the concert was over. The second is the full orchestral bow by @auroraorchestra at the end (to rapturous applause).
Went to @SnapeMaltings twice today: first for a singing workshop with @benparrymusic and later for @natyouthchoir, @LonYouthChoirs and @swinglesingers in concert. The workshop was fun (we’ve been singing the rounds all day) and the concert was excellent. @nickisapiro @GillBracey
Went to the beach this morning planning to swim but the wind and waves were up so we paddled instead (and got soaked!). Went rowing on Thorpeness Meare after lunch. I did 30 mins and the girls did the other 30 and did very well despite @GillBracey’s dodgy steering🤣. @nickisapiro
Went for a run 1st thing. We spent some time in town and I unexpectedly had to do a running dive on the beach to stop a huge ladybird display kite blowing away! The kids went on the bungee trampoline and the carousel. @nickisapiro and @GillBracey saw a play and we had dinner out.
@nickisapiro @GillBracey Went to Snape this morning to do some shopping and walk the boardwalk. More shopping in Aldeburgh after lunch and saw some kite flying. We went to Thorington Theatre to see @OperaAnywhere’s production of The Magic Flute. Lovely setting and lots of fun. @nickisapiro @GillBracey
