Halloween weekend was full of dancing and heavy eye-makeup and a slightly painful left leg. All my Actionette-related leaping around has caused my sciatica to flare up again, and my leg is tingly and heavy and just feels a bit weird. I am hoping someone invents a pair of MBT go-go boots so that I can continue performing. Although as they'd be the ugliest footwear known to man, I'd sooner resign.

Since then, I've been spending lots of time with baby Leon, or Cuckoo-Ricoo as I sometimes call him, to his bemusement. (Just as Polish dogs say 'how' (try repeating it loudly), and cats say 'mru mru', the cry of the rooster is 'cuckoo-ricoo!' Which still doesn't explain why I have that nickname for L.) He still naps, but finds little ways to rebel. He's taken to removing whatever trousers my sister or her husband dressed him in that morning, and chewing on them. I think he's trying to say he prefers onesies, and after seeing him in the indigo velvet dungarees with an owl on the front, I have to say I agree. Chomp on, little flea!

In November the Actionettes went to Rome for a weekend of prosecco, pizza, other amazing Italian food (courgette flowers stuffed with mozarella and anchovies? I'll have five) and an appearance at club night Twiggy. It was all fun and games until bastard EasyJet lost the communal 'ette suitcase. (Contents: seven kitschy washbags filled with false eyelashes, hairspray and black eyeliner, and my dancing dress.) After an hour of watching the empty carousel at Ciampino airport, we admitted something might be wrong and reported the luggage lost. We left the address of our HQ for the weekend and were told the bag would be on the evening flight from Gatwick, and that we'd be happily reunited before the day was out. Long story short, that didn't happen. We spent the weekend toiletries-free (well not entrirely, come on - we bought some cheapy ones to share, oh and seven toothbrushes) and I didn't have a dancing dress. On the night we performed, this wasn't actually as big a ball-ache as it could have been. The lovely Miss Corvette lent me her dress for the first set, and then I handed it back, slightly damp, for her to wear in the second. The only downside was thatwhile all the other 'ettes got to prance around in pink dresses covered in giant pink and red discs, I looked like I'd come straight from the office. It was still an amazing night.