Halloween

Evil exists.

Every time we read a newspaper or watch the news, we see the actions of evil in the world.

Paedophilia, murder, bombings, torture, kidnappings.

Every day we complain about the dreadful things that people do to each other.

See no evil; speak no evil; hear no evil.

Except for one day.

Tagging Tuesday - The Arts

Today I have two arty recommendations for you:

Firstly, a blog that I was recently introduced to by a friend - The Imagination Tree. It's full of fabulous arty, crafty ideas to do with children. There are activities for younger children too, so I can even try some out with B. Interesting and useful for parents, teachers and children & youth workers.

Secondly, a site with some beautiful photography: Anna Hornby Photography. I think the photographs are beautiful and incredibly well shot. I don't know a lot about photography, so I can't talk technically, but they're definitely worth looking at. Some are for sale too.

And finally, here's a bonus - a site that might just help you out:
99 Life Hacks to make your life easier!

Any blogs or sites to recommend this week?

Bible in a Year - Day 185

Day 179 - Job 10, 11 & 12; Acts 8:1-25
You gave me life and showed me kindness,and in your providence watched over my spirit. (Job 10:12)
In his hand is the life of every creature
and the breath of every human being. (Job 12:10)

Foody Friday - Ready, Steady, Bake!

My week has been full of baking. Coffee and walnut cake for my Dad's birthday. I had to make this twice as the first time I forgot to dissolve the coffee before mixing it into the batter! Result: an ok tasting sponge with flecks of coffee granules through - saved it for home consumption only!
I have also made our Christmas cake, giving plenty of time to feed it full of sherry. Christmas cake making time is one of my favourites. The house smells warm and spicy, and my hands take on a citrus scent from zesting the lemon and orange. I love to see the jewelled fruits shining as they get stirred into the batter. And this year I added two tablespoons of sloe gin at the end, due to being short of brandy - touch I hope will add an extra depth to the cake. And having made the cake, we're now on the countdown to Christmas - my favourite time of year.

Thankful Thursday - Mum's the Word!

This week I am super grateful for my Mum. The hubby was away for one night, and Mum came to stay over to keep me company and keep me sane. She took us out to Ikea too - always good for a fun day out. But there's so much more about my mum that makes me want to thank her.

Tagging Tuesday

I love reading other people's blogs. There are so many clever, funny and interesting people out there. Some of the blogs I read are really quite well known and popular; others have fewer readers and/or are just starting out. Most of them have entered my awareness through recommendations from others. So, it's about time I started recommending them to you...

Bible in a Year - Day 178

Day 172 - Nehemiah 12 & 13; Acts 4:23-37
With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all that there was no needy person among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need. (Acts 4:33-35)

Foody Friday

In a bid to save money, be healthier and eat a more varied menu each week, we decided to start getting an organic vegetable box delivered. So, last Friday we received our first box of Abel & Cole organic veg, and it was tasty! It's definitely saved us money, as there was no need to pop out to the supermarket for a couple of things, which always ends up with us buying a couple of bags worth and spending far too much. And we've enjoyed some really delicious meals this week. I always plan the menu for at least the week, though I did it for three weeks this month, and then I do an online shop for meat and long-lasting foods. Our dinners were starting to look a bit samey, so the injection of these scrummy vegetables - some of which I just wouldn't think to buy normally - has really livened up our meal times.

Romanesco Cauliflower - God's own vegetable!

What was in our box, I hear you asking.
Fennel
Kale
Onions
Carrots
Celery
Romanesco Cauliflower
Portobello Mushrooms
Cos Lettuce

Thankful Thursday

Before I was a mummy, I was a teacher. An English teacher, to be precise. My love of correct grammar and punctuation was actually important, and something I could inflict upon others and be paid to do so. I loved teaching. I especially loved teaching my lower ability classes. At the end of each day I felt I had achieved something. With one class it might be that they could all now use an apostrophe correctly; with another it could be that they were able to construct brilliant introductions to their essays and understand how to include quotations; with one class, it was a successful lesson if I had got them all sitting where I wanted them to, and been able to do the register without interruption! It's amazing how thankful those little things could make me. And I rarely felt that a day had gone by without anything to be thankful for. Even if the kids had been difficult all day, my colleagues were fabulous. (Note here - I'm not talking about working at that dreadful school in Yateley, but the wonderful one in Winchester.)

Bible in a Year - Day 171

Day 165 - Ezra 3, 4 & 5; John 20
Again Jesus said, ‘Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.’ And with that he breathed on them and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. (John 20:21-22) 


Day 166 - Ezra 6, 7 & 8; John 21
On the twelfth day of the first month we set out from the Ahava Canal to go to Jerusalem. The hand of our God was on us, and he protected us from enemies and bandits along the way. (Ezra 8:31)
When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?’
‘Yes, Lord,’ he said, ‘you know that I love you.’
Jesus said, ‘Feed my lambs.’
Again Jesus said, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’
He answered, ‘Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.’
Jesus said, ‘Take care of my sheep.’
The third time he said to him, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’
Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, ‘Do you love me?’ He said, ‘Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.’
Jesus said, ‘Feed my sheep. (John 21:15-17)

Bible in a Year - Day 164

Day 158 - 2 Chronicles 20, 21 & 22; John 16:1-15
He said: ‘Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the Lord says to you: “Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s. (2 Chronicles 20:15)
 

Day 159 - 2 Chronicles 23, 24 & 25; John 16:16-33
‘I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.’ (John 16:33)

Bible in a Year - Day 157

Day 151 - 1 Chronicles 28 & 29; John 11:47-57
David also said to Solomon his son, ‘Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you until all the work for the service of the temple of the Lord is finished. (1 Chronicles 28:20)

Growing Up

When I think of the achievements in my life - graduating, paying council tax, getting married, buying a house, having a baby - not one of them has made me feel as much like a proper adult as finding myself on holiday, eating homemade egg and cress sandwiches and drinking coffee from a flask at a National Trust site! Oh yes! In that, I reached the summit of growing up, and all before turning 30. It's all about maturity from here on in.

The hubby, on the other hand, took being a grown up a little too far this week. He had a rant about the council and their poor recycling policy, and he found his first grey chest hair. It's like being married to Victor Meldrew!

Bible in a Year - Day 150

Day 144 - 1 Chronicles 8, 9 & 10; John 8:37-59


Day 145 - 1 Chronicles 11, 12 & 13; John 9:1-23
The ark of God remained with the family of Obed-Edom in his house for three months, and the Lord blessed his household and everything he had. (1 Chronicles 13:14)
As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’
‘Neither this man nor his parents sinned,’ said Jesus, ‘but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him. (John 9:1-3)
After saying this, he spat on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man’s eyes. ‘Go,’ he told him, ‘wash in the Pool of Siloam’ (this word means ‘Sent’). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing. (John 9:6-7)

Bible in a Year - Day 143

Day 137 - 2 Kings 15, 16 & 17; John 6:1-21
But he said to them, ‘It is I; don’t be afraid.’ (John 6:20)

Holiday?

They say a change is as good as a rest. Well, I'm about to put that to the test. You see, we're about to go on our first family holiday, just the three of us, not staying with friends or family. Only I'm not sure there is such a thing as a holiday when you have a baby.

Hubby gets time off work - he can sleep longer, leave his laptop and his Blackberry behind, and someone else will deal with the customers.

I will be doing what I normally do: being a mummy, with all that entails, including nighttime breastfeeds, waking when the baby wakes, keeping the three of us organised, watered and fed. I won't be resting.

He's going to be doing all the nappy changes though. That's our deal. And I'll be allowed to go to the toilet alone.

Now, if I can just wangle the odd relaxing bath, I can have a change AND a rest...

Bible in a Year - Day 136

Day 130 - 1 Kings 19 & 20; John 2
All at once an angel touched him and said, ‘Get up and eat.’ He looked around, and there by his head was some bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again. (1 Kings 19:5-6)
Jesus said to the servants, ‘Fill the jars with water’; so they filled them to the brim.
Then he told them, ‘Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.’
They did so, and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realise where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside and said, ‘Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.’ (John 2:7-10)

The Biggest Bed In The World by Lindsay Camp

For her birthday, B received many books. I am pleased - I'm an English teacher, remember - though I will have to start moving some of mine to our bedroom shelves to make room for hers in the lounge!
One of the best she got given was 'The Biggest Bed In The World' by Lindsay Camp and brilliantly illustrated by Jonathan Langley. If ever there was a story that supported our parenting choices, this is it. After seeing so many children's books where babies sleep alone in cots and drink from bottles, it was a pleasant surprise to see a picture of the mum breastfeeding her baby, and that co-sleeping was the premise of the book.
I was slightly discouraged when the dad made a fuss about the sleeping arrangements; such a stereotype, I thought. But, without ruining the story, I can tell you that I was very pleased by what I consider to be a happy ending!
I think this might become our family's biography.

What children's books have you discovered that support your parenting choices?

Bible in a Year - Day 129

Day 123 - 1 Kings 3, 4 & 5; Luke 23:1-26
When all Israel heard the verdict the king had given, they held the king in awe, because they saw that he had wisdom from God to administer justice. (1 Kings 3:28)
God gave Solomon wisdom and very great insight, and a breadth of understanding as measureless as the sand on the seashore. (1 Kings 4:29)

Day 124 - 1 Kings 6 & 7; Luke 23:27-38
Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” (Luke 23:34)

Day 125 - 1 Kings 8 & 9; Luke 23:39-56
You have kept your promise to your servant David my father; with your mouth you have promised and with your hand you have fulfilled it—as it is today. (1 Kings 8:24)
Praise be to the Lord, who has given rest to his people Israel just as he promised. Not one word has failed of all the good promises he gave through his servant Moses. (1 Kings 8:56)

Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43)

Baby Weigh-In Surprise

So, yesterday, I fully intended to put B in the sling and walk to Tiny Times at the Sure Start Centre to get her weighed. I haven't done this for several months, and the curiosity was getting the better of me. No matter that she has her 1 year review next week - I need to put her weight at 1 year old into her baby book, don't I?
Well, it looked like rain. We stayed at home. No walk for me, so I decided I'd better get on the Wii Fit and burn some calories. And then I had my genius idea! I would weigh B on the balance board, no probs.
I designed a Mii to look a bit like her. Short, big round head, large doe eyes, little rosebud mouth. Fine, but she looked like a grown up - that was a bit freaky.