Mandarin, good friends, and time flies.

1) With sponsorship from the Confucius Institute, M’s class have been learning to speak some Mandarin. They will also be performing a couple of songs at a concert in a couple of weeks time.

The other morning I discovered that M has obviously teaching A some of the words – as they got ready for school, I had the joy of listening to the pair of them singing together in Mandarin!

2) Friends came to visit last night. It was lovely to catch up and spend time together, but even more because they know us well, and love us anyway. Neither of us were feeling completely well and we both found ourselves struggling to concentrate, but it was all okay 🙂 .

3) I really wasn’t looking forward to going bag-packing today, but we needed all hands on deck and, as Chair of the committee, I felt compelled to lead by example. I was pleased to discover that the experience wasn’t as bad as I expected, and the time flew by!!

Weekend away, getting it done, and in time for tea.

1) We had a fun weekend, heading north to visit my sister and the family.  Both drives, north and south, were stunning – beautiful skies, amazing scenery, and excellent visibility.

2) K was kind enough to drive both ways, while I got some much needed knitting (more on this on Friday) out of the way.

3) We got home in time for Mum’s Sunday roast dinner – very welcome after the long drive south!

Tea? Impromptu, and celebrations.

1) I’ve been up at school a lot over the last few weeks – doing PA related things, or parent help related things. I happened to be doing a lot of photocopying last week and twice one of the helpers offered to make me a cup of tea!  I really must be becoming a part of the scenery!

2) An impromptu dinner with friends on Saturday.

3) Some of my friends took me out yesterday for Afternoon Tea, thus my birthday celebrations started a whole week early 🙂 . I feel very blessed to have such lovely friends! We all appreciated a child-free afternoon – and those who made said child-free afternoon possible!

Long walk, second run, and dinner.

1) A long walk in the autumn sunshine – all golds and greens, and clear blue skies.

2) A and I went for our second run – he was really keen to go, even though it was harder today – it was windy and cold. But it was good, and we’re both apreciating the time to chat.

3) A crisp toad-in-the-hole, made from left-over sausages barbequed in the summer and frozen.

Relief, no need to cook, and mincemeat.

1) The relief on my friend’s face when the news broke that the Ineos plant was no longer going to close…

2) An unexpected dinner invitation for this evening.

3) I’ve finally found time to make my Christmas mincemeat, and now the whole house is filled with the warm spicy aroma which reminds me of dark winter evenings, warm cosy houses, and family and friends.

 

Practise, drying, and buttermilk scones.

1) A has been practising his cycling diligently over the summer, and his practise sessions have definitely started to pay off – he was very happy with his performance at tonight’s cycling club race night!

2) The weather was warm and windy today, perfect for drying towels. So I washed them this morning.

3) When making scones, I’ve always used the recipe given to me by my Nana – it’s simple, easy and quick.  Tonight, when making cheese scones to top a mince cobbler for dinner, I substituted buttermilk for milk, and the result was awesome 🙂 . I think I’ll be using buttermilk where possible from here on…

Dinner, easier, and light.

1) Dinner – mince cobbler, with mature cheddar cheese scones on top, was a huge hit with the whole family.

2) To get back to some knitting that I can relax with and really enjoy, after lots of days spent knitting fiddly tiny stitches!

3) The quality of light just before a storm, then the cooling rain after so many days of warmth.

Holiday, video, and eating out.

1) The kids and I had a lovely relaxed start to the morning – holidays are good 🙂 .

2) I put a video (yes, you read that right – a video!) in the player and was impressed to find it just worked – the player hasn’t been used in a couple of years.  M was particularly confused by this strange object, and I had to explain about how fast-forward and rewind used to work in the past!  (We were watching Anne of Green Gables, in case you’re interested!)

3) To sit out on the deck and linger over dinner with a friend. When the evening light fades at last, we’re glad to head inside to the warmth.

Shopping, meeting up, and disappeared.

1) I spent a couple of hours browsing the shops this morning, and successfully got most things on my list. Everyone seemed very cheerful this morning – certainly all the shop assistants who helped me were. I wondering if it’s the approaching summer holidays?

2) The kids and I were invited round to visit some friends this afternoon. We haven’t seen them in nearly two months, and it was so nice to see them again,

3) I made fajitas for dinner (with some turkey that needed used up). Judging by the speed with which they disappeared, they were much enjoyed by all (despite the fire!).

New, out to play, and easy.

From Tuesday:

1) I went to a new hairdresser this morning – and feel like I’ve had a proper haircut for the first time in over a year 🙂 . Now I’m wondering why I stuck with the last one for so long given that, nice as she was, she really didn’t understand my hair.

2) “What time do I need to come home, Mummy?” . It’s lovely that the kids are so keen to get out and play with their friends, they’ve beeen having a lot of fun recently.

3) Our new system meant that this evening, when we tired and hungry, we were able to go to our List of Meals, and quickly find something to cook for dinner.