Based in Balham

The final bank holiday weekend in a long string of days off was spent based in Balham, where my sister Kate lives, with her husband Jim and baby Ella. Jim was away on a stag weekend, so I was hoping for some quiet time to catch up with Kate and get to know Ella again, having not had the chance to see her since Christmas. I did get that, after a delay.
The rest of the family heard of my plans, so we were joined on Sunday by Lucy and her boyfriend Andy; Mum and Dad; Pippa and Vinny, my nephew; and my best friend Vanessa. We had such a great time. On Saturday night, for the first time since any of us could remember, it was just the girls: Kate, Pippa, Claire and Lucy, aka the people I love most in the world and with whom I grew up.
On Sunday, we started at the Science Museum, which, to tell you the truth, holds not a huge amount of interest for me, as I am much more inclined towards the arts. However, Lucy and I paired off as we always would have done in childhood, and had a go at all the experiments, and it was great. Then we had lunch in Carluccio's, which was noisy and nice. Ella couldn't get enough of the bolognese! Then we headed to the South Bank, so that 4-year-old Vinny could see all the street performers, and he gave them a run for their money, dancing and doing impressions along with each artist he met! He was in his element! We went back to Balham for a roast and a wind down, Vinny wearing out Andy as he played on his skateboard and threw around the slinky he got at the museum, Ella opening and closing the garden gate a billion times.
On Monday I finally got Kate and Ella to myself, and we went to the Battersea Children's Zoo. It was a lovely sunny day, with a lovely chilled vibe, and we spent a few hours saying 'bye bye' to all the animals and playing in the park. Ella was gorgeous and contented throughout, and really good company.
I had such a wonderful weekend, with such great people, and left Balham feeling relaxed and inspired. Not only had I fed my soul with family love, but I'd also found the time to start teaching myself Italian! Che vita!