My auntie had sort of pet names for us…I was always poor little Amanda, Robyn was Bin_a bin, Cynthia was …Cyn_ thi _ ah… their cat, charlotte, was ” Lot _a _pot”, yeah and my aunt did the tightest plaits known to man….gosh my head hurt after I undid my hair when auntie had plaited it!

Over the years we often had holidays together, and although my family moved every couple of years, as dad was in the air force, auntie’s was sort of home base.

My auntie Rita is my mums older sister, and from all accounts a bossy one at that. Unfortunately when my Dad died my mum found her sisters’s tactlessness more than she could bare and things culminated in my mother chasing her sister out of the house with a broom .

But despite all that mum has always said that if auntie Rita was in need, she would be there to support her….she just didn’t want her in her house trying to organise things …thankyou very much!

So…. now it is coming up for auntie Rita’s 80th birthday, and mum has taken on the task of organising a surprise party. She has been in touch with Robyn, who has been only too happy for mum to take charge of organising. Lately Rita has been expressing her wish to be in touch with family and to have us all together, so that is my mothers motivation.

My mother and her sister also have a brother, Uncle Fred, here in Canberra. so we are planning a pretty good get together…….Robyn has 3 children and 2 grandchildren, Cynthia has 1 daughter, I have 3 children, my sister has 3 and my brother also has 2 kids. Uncle Fred has 3 step children and many grands.

Anyway, on Wednesday I am meeting up with mum and Fred’s partner, Evalyn, to decide what we are going to do for lunch and how we are going to a). capture auntie before she takes off somewhere, and b.) surprise her at mums! My mother is really bad at allocating chores, she hints at this and that, so I will have to be a bit assertive .