Half-term fun

It's been such a nice week. I love October half-term. A holiday during my favourite season and early enough in the school year that I can actually enjoy it, rather than spending most of it in an exhausted heap. The Beautiful Girl and I have spent time with friends and with family. We've been on some great days out - the pictures are from our trip to Kenilworth Castle, on Hallowe'en - but spent plenty of time on the sofa too. Cosy, comfy days, just how we like them. 

Simple pleasures

 I am not a high-maintenance kind of girl. Designer shoes and expensive jewellery mean little to me. However, I do love life's little luxuries and shopping for small treats - a new paperback, a box of macaroons, a bunch of flowers, brings me much joy.This week though I am unable to indulge. A "perfect storm" of financial demands leaves us with too much month at the end of the money. When I go to the bakers to buy the weekend loaf I manage to forgo the delicious - and expensive - little plum and ricotta cakes. I don't stop at the newsagents on the way home for the latest edition of "Country Living" magazine. Proud of my self-restraint I go home and bake a favourite autumnal cake, thriftily using up the last of the rather soft apples and pears. And when I take Beautiful Girl to the library I find a beautiful book to bring home and swoon over. Add a frothy coffee and my afternoon of frugal pleasures is complete.

An autumn weekend

Saturday morning and the farmers' market is teeming with autumnal bounty. I buy a quince, for the way it will perfume the kitchen first, then for stewing with sugar and lemon juice, to be eaten at breakfast. I also buy a crisp baguette, stinky cheese and slices of fancy cake. Mine will be saved until Downtown Abbey, although the rest of my family will devour theirs as soon as they walk through the front door. Best of all, I also bring home these beauties...

Sunday afternoon and, tummies full of roast beef and Yorkshire pud, the temptation to put the TV on and snooze the afternoon away is great. We decide instead to brave the drizzly afternoon and go for a walk in a favourite spot.

Home later, to tea and crumpets in front of the fire. A little crochet time too. What a lovely weekend.





Reading List - September 2013

"The Red House" by Mark Haddon.
"Chavs: The Demonization of the Working Class" by Owen Jones.
"Trying" by Mark Cossey.
"The Spare Room" by Helen Garner.
"The Fortnight in September" by R. C. Sherriff.
"Red Joan" by Jennie Rooney.

Reading List - August 2013

"The Homemaker" by Dorothy Canfield Fisher.
"Dare Me" by Megan Abbott.
"Breaking the Silence" by Diane Chamberlain.
"Italian Shoes" by Henning Mankell.
"Casual Vacancy" by J. K. Rowling.
"Kitchen Essays" by Agnes Jekyll.
"The New House" by Lettice Cooper.
"Summer Things" by Joseph Connolly.

Some really great reads this month. The three Persephones were wonderful, of course and I loved "Casual Vacancy". Looking forward to reading her next, now.

A Quietly Productive Day

Today I have.....
* weeded the front garden,
* pruned the jasmine that was threatening to keep us captive, Sleeping Beauty-style,
* cleaned all the spent pots, ready for autumn bulb planting,
* helped the Beautiful Girl build a frog habitat,
* weeded and scrubbed the patio,
* cleaned the airing cupboard, "rationalising" the towels and lining the shelf with scented, rose-sprigged liners,
* made salted caramel popcorn (and munched my way through it watching Toy Story 3),
* baked a batch of fork biscuits with the Beautiful Girl,
* made dahl, topped with crispy spiced onions,
* finally written a blog post, albeit a boring one,
* addressed all the invitations for Beautiful Girl's birthday party,
* supervised bath time and read a chapter of "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" aloud.

No wonder I'm tired. Bath, book and bed await....

Reading List - July 2013

"Instructions for a Heatwave" by Maggie O'Farrell.
"An Academic Question" by Barbara Pym.
"Moral Hazard" by Kate Jennings.
"The Gargoyle" by Andrew Davidson.
"The Twelve" by Justin Cronin.
"All the Beggars Riding" by Lucy Caldwell.