Frances sings

Somewhere in between feeding the baby and trying to keep the house clean, I took the metro and the tram to the music academy to sing my exam. I started wonky. Grétry's Les deux avares isn't easy and I wasn't sure of my ability. But somewhere halfway through that first aria I waved the nerves goodbye and was able to find my voice. I nailed the subsequent a capella piece. It gave my confidence a great boost and I positively enjoyed myself on stage. My song, Le mariage des roses from César Franck, was a piece of cake. I did muck up "Tornami a vagheggiar" because I forgot to sing the last line. I was so convinced I had finished! But all in all I'm happy to have sung this well, taking into account I've got a two month old baby I still nurse and another kid who comes home from school every day at 3:15. I'm lucky with such a wonderful man though. P. does a lot around the house and takes care of the children when I'm off again to rehearse or have my classes. If it weren't for him I wouldn't even have a hobby.

My tweets

• Thu, 07:50: Woke up to jubilant cries about a first agreement between 8 parties trying to make a government. Now on to the next disagreement. #nogov