Off to the Sealife Adventure centre in Southend today

Off to the Sealife Adventure centre in Southend today. They have a great bugs display, I haven't seen it yet but it must be great because they are mostly, if not all, my bugs. I'm really looking forward to it, my daughter is driving me, so even better. She works in aquatics and is looking forward to visiting the centre too. It's some years since I visited Southend-on-sea, it holds many happy memories of my childhood as my Nan, aunty and cousins lived there. We may even escape the rain as it is non-stop here but according to the weather forecast there won't be any rain further south today (seeing is believing).

The bugs are all going well. I was very pleased to see this week that my recently mated Trinidad Olive tarantula is carrying an egg sac around. I have been rearranging the bug house quite a bit as I need to get things organised for going away at the end of the month. My special offers have been a hit and I am cutting down slowly but surely on the amount of animals that I have to care for. I am only on holiday for a week but it isn't just about the time that I'm away. I need to feed and clean everything before I go and as soon as I return. I have learnt from past experience that if I don't cut down to a manageable number I end up so frazzled that I wish I hadn't booked a holiday at all! The biggest problem with my work is that I really don't have any back up. My family have very little to do with the bugs and wouldn't have a clue where to start when it comes to their care.

I hope everyone enjoyed the Jubilee weekend. Our family party went well on the Saturday and I'm very pleased that our street party on the Sunday was cancelled, it poured with rain all day. I spent the bank holiday Monday and Tuesday catching up on jobs and paperwork. My paperwork seems to be never ending, well I say paperwork but a lot of it is now on the computer rather than paper. I did sort out the 'Notes for Visitors' as promised. I just realised that I hadn't uploaded it but it's on there now in the information box, on the right hand side of the website. I hope it makes sense, I just cannot figure out how to put across that I welcome genuine customers but don't have the time for casual visitors.

I must just mention text messages. I am useless at sending texts, it takes me ages. You are welcome to send me a text but you will probably get my standard reply, which is 'ok'. You are far better off phoning me, it is much easier. When I get my iphone in August (contract renewal time) hopefully I will be far better at replying to text messages. My daughter is a little concerned how I will ever work it but she has good friends who run a mobile phone shop so I'm sure they will help. Especially since I have just won my daughter and these particular friends a camping trip to the V festival in August, they can't really refuse now! My competitions are going really well, I have won lots of nice things lately. Teddi has a pretty new collar thanks to a local magazine competition but when I came to send the company a photo of her wearing it, her fur completely covered the collar.

I had better get a move on now, I need to spray the bugs (a morning and evening job to keep up the humidity), walk Teddi and then collect my mother in-law who will be dog sitting for the day. I am also feeding my niece's cat while they are away so I will need to pop round there too. Hopefully we will get down to Southend around lunch time.