2016..... where is the year going?

Helloooooooo!

Manic manic times and .......well.....just where exactly is the year going? Life just seems to be on the fast train at the moment and it's been in front of me the past few months and just out of reach.
Anyway, things are set to slow down. Suddenly it feels like the fast train has stopped at the station and I've got off the train....summer has arrived!!!

Miss P has been studying hard for the past year and has just completed three IGCSE's. I opted to have some amazing tutors to deliver the content and set the child on the right path and how flabby that has been. It hasn't reduced the stress levels at home all that much although things have been marginally easier than last year as I'm guessing we had a vague idea of what to expect. It has meant that from a totally selfish side, I have been able to say 'I'm afraid I have no idea, you'll have to ask your tutor'. Of course that has worked to some extent but I have still had to be on hand to listen to 30 odd physics formulae being learned by rote and a great number of 'rules of english' constantly being bombarded at me. One morning the teen even woke me up with her constant questioning....bleary eyed me sitting up in bed trying to work out where I.  It became dreadful towards the end, the teen would ask me seemly random questions of which I had no idea what-so-ever, only to be rewarded with 'I like that fact that I know more than you mum, it makes me feel clever!' Great!
Life has seen a lot of Miss P being escorted all around the county and myself and the others just killing time here and there, it's had its ups and downs but we've tried to make the best of our time at various different places.
Work has been tough too. Sqidging in the odd hour here and there to try and make ends meet, it's not been easy AT ALL.

All this work has had me question whether I really want to go down this route with the other two? The young man would rather dig holes and build dens than look at a book and the Little Lady has suddenly grown up and is quite resistant to work. I concluded that it has to be a no no and in my haste I registered her at school. I opted for a small local school thinking that it had to be the bast option and after all the effort I was offered my catchment school .....I didn't even list that one! To cut a very long story short, I decided to go to appeal. I have to point out that I had absolutely NO GROUNDS for appeal, I couldn't even fill out the appeal form, not because I am stupid but simply because I had NO case. So I decided to write a letter and send that. I researched the whole appeal thing and learnt very early on that my chances were virtually non existent. The school had adhered to the code of admissions and although I was going to the court of appeal (yes, it really is held in a court room), I would most certainly come out looking really rather stupid for appealing and not accepting the schools decision in the first instance. Well it didn't happen. For some strange, unknown reason the panel had absolutely no idea what they were doing and the schools representative had very limited information from the school, plus I seemed to totally have the upper hand and WON my appeal in the first round! Unbelievable!!
So now the reality of my actions has set in and the Little Lady is off to school in September. Still unsure if I've made the right choice but it will give me more time to work and to have one-on-one time with Small Boy who really could do with some undivided attention.
All this child centred mish mash has left very little time for the woman of a wildish disposition to do her own stuff. Creativity has virtually gone out of the window swamped by a world of work and commitment to others, but I have plans......

Today it feels truly like summer. I've had time to potter around the house and get some neglected jobs done and I'm almost on top of the ever increasing piles of work that seem to have taken over my little sewing room. I like it when I have moments of freedom, when I reach the end of the pile. Those are the times when I really live and appreciate life. Small Boy picked me some elderflowers today; a gentle reminder that it's that time of the year again. I seeped some in cold water and then this afternoon a second batch appeared. It was a relief that the scent was elderflower as I thought it was slightly reminiscent of cat pee! Those flowers are soaking overnight in what was boiling water and lemon juice. I'll add the sugar and citric acid tomorrow and enjoy the delicious flavour of elderflower cordial.

I've just booked my ferry crossing to France. We're heading off on a three week adventure with someone special this summer. It's out of my comfort zone travelling abroad but I'm excited about it; as are the children. I've also booked to go to a lovely family camp in Yorkshire. I am drawn to that area of the country; it's simple feel and beautiful rolling hills and sheep farms. So a summer of travelling and adventures ahead. Isn't that what life is all about?

Dead stick!

Ed note: Another post that's been hanging around waiting to be posted!

This month has marked the end of an era in our house. Our final Stick insect has passed peacefully over to the other side.
It's been a rather fun and slightly enchanting journey our 'Stick journey', which began back in 2011 when someone gave us a little pot of teeny tiny, pin head sized eggs. The funny thing back then was that we obtained them against Tim's will. He wasn't up for the idea of more pets! They sat dormant for several months (the incubation period is four months) and were almost forgotten, until one day we noticed that one had hatched. Unfortunately we hadn't realised early enough and it only survived for three days before popping its clogs - leaving one small child, at the time, in a deep state of upset.
Some months later we ordered five live insects from someone selling on Ebay. Once again my dearly beloved didn't have any knowledge of such goings on. Seven little darlings arrived in a small box cube and there our journey began.
Upon hatching, the little creatures are already an inch long although very spindly and delicate. They are fully mature and ready to reproduce by about six months (at which point they are around four inches in length). They are dual sex, so don't need a partner to reproduce - how handy!
It wasn't long of course (naturally for my family) that Miss P had plans of her own to have a fully fledged 'Stick insect breeding hospital'. As soon as our stock was mature and laying eggs, we began to save them for incubation. I recall that at the point we stopped counting we had some four hundred eggs! - Virtually all of them hatched!!

The type of Sticks that we owned feasted on privet and bramble leaves. As privet isn't something that I have yet found growing near to our house, they had to settle for bramble of which there is a substantial amount. Feeding one or two insects is not a problem but feeding four hundred was quite a different matter. It was not completely dis-similar to having a swarm of locusts! They munched through that bramble at a staggering rate and needed cleaning out every couple of days. Of course we couldn't sustain such large quantities and so after a few desperate plea's to friends, we re-homed a few, sold two, a couple accidentally dropped in their water container and masses were fortunately taken from us by the good folk at the local garden centre's pet department!
The life span of our particular type of Stick is roughly one year. For a couple of years now we've got down to one and thought that we'd be 'stick free' after the last one and then, somehow, as if by some strange 'have to keep the breed alive' phenomenon, we find one lurking with intent either on the outside bin or on the ceiling and not having the heart to dispatch of the poor creature, nor to liberate it to the outside elements, I reluctantly bring it in and home it.

So here we are some five years down the line of our Stick journey and the final stick has finally gone to meet his/her maker. We are 'Stick free!'
I do however have just a tiny pot of eggs reserved from  a couple of months ago for a friend to embark on a similar journey. Despite the shenanigans, they do make very easy to manage pets, are interesting to watch and relatively low maintenance.

Sugar free existence

I quit sugar.

'Why?' I hear you ask.......

For quite sometime now I have wondered about the long term effects of a diet high in sugar.
I am indeed an adult raised during the 'low fat' craze of the 80's and 90's, fat causes heart disease right? Well not exactly. If you read the bumf out there it does actually suggest that an idea was born, a seed planted and then the concept literally flew with the wind and now the low fat market is massive and still growing. What has happened as a result is that food companies have replaced their products with fillers and often sugars to entice us to eat them and to make them palatable. It's scary stuff!
I suppose my worries started way back in 2011 when I recognised real highs and lows in my husband; who literally fuelled his body on a diet of high sugar cereals, coke, biscuits - you name it. His highs and lows were very evident with periods of elation followed by moments of despair which he dealt with in his own way. I did a little research back then but didn't act upon my findings until the end of last year when I began to question just why we are becoming a nation of overweight people and why in particular the rate of diabetes, cancer and degenerative brain diseases have become so rife?
When my own mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease I realised that I really had to look further into matters of health to help me understand the condition.
I had also got to the stage when my own sweet tooth was getting the better of me and I too was beginning to gain weight. Cake had moved beyond the realms of a treat and had become the norm, sometimes being consumed several times a day!

Mixed bulgar wheat and quinoa with warmed vegetables and cheese

A good friend recommended a book called 'Grain Brain' by David Perlmutter. Wow! Interesting stuff! It basically shuns the healthy lifestyle that I thought I was living stating that grains and carbs are responsible for so many of our current epidemic health troubles. It suggests that grains cause inflammation in the brain but also in other parts of the body. Sugar of course is high in carbs, in fact the more you read and look at our Western diets, the more you realise that actually out diets are mainly based on carbs. We've been told for years now that carbs should make up the largest part of our daily food intake. Remember that food pyramid with the picture of bread, pasta and grains at the bottom? Which group is at the top? The fats and oils. No wonder our brains have been suffering as a result of low fat diets, our brains need fats to survive and function properly.
I for one have always feasted on a relatively low fat diet, thinking it to be the healthy and sensible option. No wonder all my life I have suffered with poor memory and the inability to retain information. During my formative school years especially, I recall this being a problem.
'Grain brain' suggests a diet based on fat and protein with vegetables (although not the high carb starchy ones). That is all good and well but not so easy if you are vegetarian! It also goes onto say that our bodies are not meant to be fuelled by a diet of sugar. Our early ancestors would have primarily consumed meat with the odd plants and berries here and there (only in season).
Apparently when we eat carbs our brain doesn't register that it is full. How true this is! When I have eaten a plate of pasta and momentarily felt full, within no time at all I would have rooted through the cupboards to find something sweet to follow. If you eat protein and fat your brain does actually register that is is full.

Mashed sweet potatoes with Quorn fillets, beetroot, feta and salad 

Hmmmm!
Intrigued, I felt I had to research these theories further and it seems that others have also adopted the same way of thinking. It makes sense. So before Christmas, I decided to give things a try. I cut sugar from the diets of myself and my children in a big way. We upped our fat intake (protein and good fats - coconut oil and olive oil) and ditched the carbs, big time!
The first week or so was really challenging but I was determined to give the theory a trying practice and see what effects it had on my body.
I wasn't prepared for the amazing results that became apparent.
As a vegetarian it was more of a challenge. I exchanged wheat flour for coconut flour and sugar for Stevia which is made from birch sap. We survived mainly on meatless alternatives, cheese, lentils and eggs; which are considered a super food.
Firstly I had more energy and I wasn't going through  the highs and lows that prior to 'no sugar' I was clearly experiencing. My body plateaued in a way I find difficult to explain. I had a very constant flow of energy and it felt good! I didn't feel periods of tiredness following meals; you know, those 3pm dips; and my muscles felt different. They felt stronger and and more able to endure work. Amazing! The most brilliant aspect of no sugar was no pre menstrual cramps, pains, boob pain or symptoms; not that I suffer much anyway, but all symptoms were completely non existent :-)
The other bonus is that my body became toned, wobbly bits from my arms and the tops of my legs, shrunk and tightened :-)

Warmed mushrooms, peppers, salad and haloumi cheese

A combination of too much coconut flour and Christmas scuppered my plans. Much as I did try very hard around the festive period to resist the carb laden treats, it was extremely challenging. Firstly I was bought a huge box of Thornton's chocolates which were really tough to resist and then there were all the pies, cakes etc etc One thing that I did notice having cut out sugar was the fact that when I now eat sugar it actually tastes poisonous. Genuinely it does and it's not good. It also makes my mouth taste horrid. I guess that I had become resilient to it over the years.
So here I am mid Feb and although I have the odd bit of sugar and some carbs, I'm perfectly happy without it :-) :-), the children have cut back but do have treats :-) :-) It's about getting the balance right!

Words from the mouth of a self confessed sugar addict. 

Asparagus, mixed salad and cauliflower cheese with a dressing

Sunshine loveliness

Valentine's week....another excuse to remind ourselves to wrap the world in LOVE....arrrr!
What better love can I ask for then to be in the company of my delightful children enveloped within the British countryside; sheer delight.
Last Wednesday the light was particularly brilliant for snapping away and it actually felt warm. Mmmmm warm sun rays are the perfect antidote to ward off the Winter blues reminding me that Spring is really just around the corner.

What a beautiful sight. I love the texture of the reeds.

It wasn't long before someone was hooking oysters out.......

Water is one of my favourite mediums to photograph. The reflections are truly enchanting.

Snowdrops have been out in flower since early January, they're so delicate and pretty.

Love these girlie's :-)

There's always one who fancies a dip regardless of the time of year!

Bull rushes 

So much love and life in this beautiful world. The sun's smile helps to highlight and magnify it :-)

January offerings

January....it's seemed quite a long month; the build up to Christmas and over indigence of rich foods now a distant memory.

I've not posted on here recently. Life has just meandered along at a rather relaxed pace, it's been so lovely that I haven't wanted to 'pop' my little bubble.

Small Boy and the Little Lady thought they'd embrace fitness for the New Year in pursuit of a six-pack. One sessions was enough!

Look closely. Can you spot him??

Rather sad really. Two beautiful big beech trees blown over in the wind. Great for climbing on though :-)

I haven't had any particularly wild adventures of late but what I  have been able to do is have time to think and do my own things - it's been lovely, truly it has. I've slept in when I've wanted, pottered about at home and enjoyed my immediate surroundings. The children and I have had time to sit and read and play games, plus I've actually had the opportunity to finish a few creative projects.

I'm most proud of this one...

When it comes to following patterns, I'm not great - it's the same with recipes, I just like to find my own way and put my signature on my work. So when Lucy at attic 24 inspired the crochet nation with her harmony blanket, I decided it might be a rather 'jolly Winter project'.
I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed creating this blanket. It's made up of a total of 126 squares all in rather scrumptiously harmonising colours. The pack arrived from the Wool Warehouse in one large  see-through bag - how exciting to have a bag filled with beautiful colours and a new project to start.

I started way back in October when the children and I took off for a few days in Yorkshire. What was handy about this project was how easy it was to transport around. I worked just one colour at a time so at most I had to carry around nine little squares, a ball of yarn and my crochet hook.  I completed each square one teeny section at a time - so all the centres, all the second row and so forth. That way I didn't have to keep track of too many different stitch combinations and could literally whip my little squares out and hook them together at speed. When you're working on the larger stripy blankets, you have to carry the whole darn thing around. It's not too much of a problem in the early stages but later on, it does become pretty heavy!
So here it is, my finished blanket and mostly all completed according to the pattern. I did re-arrange the squares just a tad when I sewed them together :-) and I omitted the final row of the border - the final colour brings the blanket together and I rather fell for the sage green.
Unlike the ripple blanket I made last year, this one has turned out well and is symmetrical! :-)

We've spent quite a considerable amount of time messing around outdoors. Hasn't the weather been mild! The snowdrops are already in full bloom in the garden and a few daffodils are dancing in the wind too!

These guys were thrilled to have their remote controlled speed boat returned after dad had taken it off to 'check it out' some four years ago. Poor dad was rather fed up with the constant pestering in the finish so gave in and returned it. Small Boy was convinced he had taken it to play with it himself! (he probably had!)...anyway, despite being told he was too young for such a super powerful toy, Small Boy made it his mission to prove everyone wrong and like a duck to water sailed and controlled that boat perfectly both on the flood on the field and in the stream :-)

Early in January Miss P had to attend a workshop at the Science Museum in London. It's hard working going to London with three children in tow and it I'm being honest I didn't really look forwards to the journey. However, in true positive spirit I made it my mission to prepare for the event and enjoy it at all costs. We took the Oxford Tube up and leisurely strolled across Hyde park instead of using the city transport system. What a pleasant decision that was.

The Princess Diana memorial fountain

The mild temperatures have also seen us venture outside for some Spring garden clearing. Firstly the wood shed needed a little re-organising in order to get to the dry wood that was stacked at the back. Then it was all change and the wet stuff (that remains wet) was stacked at the back for next Winter. You have to think ahead when you live a simple life :-)

Small boy took it upon himself to chop up some kindling. He's quite capable in his use of axes and saws and happily told be (when I reminded him to be careful when using the bill hook), that he's fine and has been using one since his was in my belly! That explains a lot!

The water meadow in Wootton

Loving the light for taking photos.

Hope your January has been filled with love and laughter too XXX

Festive shenanigans....

Ed Note:
I just discovered this little post in my 'to go' box and realised that I never actually got around to posting it! Rather late now I suppose but for the record and to look back on how incredibly disorganised I can be, here it is!


Well that's it! The festive season has finally come to an end. I cannot believe the number of parties we've been to this year! There was a period when the kids were small when I didn't get invited out at all and now....I'm feeling like 'Little Miss Popular!'
I can actually say that this Christmas has been perfectly lovely. A success!

Yesterday, whilst my Small Boy was busy creating a whole fleet of paper aircraft, I discovered a copy of our Christmas news letter from 2007 in the pile of scrap paper. I don't send newsletters any longer as I simply don't seem to have the time. This one did make me chuckle though.....it's also funny (and a little sad too) to note how life has changed.

Here, I'll share a few snippets....

'.....I no longer look at hedges and bushes in the same light but find myself considering their 'hideout' potential'. (That was something that Poppy was very much interested in back then, of course now I look at them as food sources!)

'Ruby is almost three and is growing fast. She currently has a strong interest in anatomy, particularly 'willies', I guess promoted by the arrival of Fenton'. (Thankfully, Ruby is now disgusted by her brother's genitalia and any 'wiggling' is considered perverted!)

Fenton was just a baby back in 2007 having only arrived that year!

Jenny (our hound) was a year old and this is what I wrote about her.....'Our dog Jense whom we purchased as a puppy last year whom you may remember we reported as 'not being our best idea yet', continues to be so! Although she no longer mass shreds everything in her path, she is still challenging. We had to part with three of our newly covered cushions earlier this month as I felt I could no longer continue to tie the corners with rubber bands following her constant chewing episodes! A carpet of fluffy feathers is not too easy to clear up on a daily basis. Perhaps her fascination has come about as a result of gaining a taste for the local pheasants!'

Mr Keeper, you'll be glad to read that my now darling old lady no longer feasts on living local delights of the feathered kind but instead is rather partial to raiding the neighbours compost heap and sniffing out rodents! She's also the most loyal and obedient of creatures although not when it comes to greeting people in tights!

When talking about my life in said 'old' newsletter, I merely mentioned my craft circle and the small amount of charity work that I engaged in back then. We still coordinate the sponsoring of a child (that's been lost eight years!!) I would actually be way too embarrassed to talk about all the things I'm involved with now (I find it hard to remember myself!)....but the most dramatic changes are that 'Mildred - the Morris Minor Traveller' we purchased as a pre- 40th restoration project for Tim had to be sold in 2011, Tim is obviously no longer here and we no longer reside in Kiddington.

Such radical changes when you look back at life. When I look at the big picture like this is highlights the importance of truly LIVING.....walk away from negativity and relationships that aren't healthy and truly make every minute count.
This New Year my promise to myself was to 'remain true to myself' and of course LIVE (that means 'have fun!' :-) :-) :-))

I invited my family over for lunch yesterday; hospitality and friendship. We had a lovely afternoon of feasting and games. By nature my folks aren't into organising social gatherings, in fact, I have realised over the years that it's not just them. Many folk are happy to go along to the party of others but prefer not to entertain themselves, and that's fine. As a single parent with three dependants, getting time off is not easy. So this year, I'm going to make the events happen! Not to say that I don't do that anyway; I'm often seen to be hosting ad hock jaunts of the funniest nature :-)

Look at these guys snuggled my bed!

My dear sis and I cracked this bottle of champagne that I had been saving for a special occasion for years......it was off!

So wine it was.........just the one glass........

and then this......!!!

:-)

Happy New Year to you all my friends, make every moment count, 2016 has to be a good one!     
                          XXXXXXXXXXXX

Advent fun

24 days into advent and jee whizz what fun we're been having! Well actually, it's more MY fun, although of course the children have enjoy the period too. You see the problem is this....over the past decade or so (I guess since having children really) I have realised/woken up to the huge amount of commercialism that occurs over this festive period. The vast amount of unnecessary spending, waste, anxiety, boldness and pure selfishness that occurs at this time of the year. Some think I have a 'Barhumbug attitude' but that simply isn't it, I simply can see what is happening and am conscious of it and just don't want to be part of it. That doesn't mean that I don't like Christmas, in fact it is quite the opposite, I see Christmas as the perfect opportunity to make a difference to the world.....why do others not see that?
So back to this advent business......

What is advent? It's the count down to Christmas. Right? Where we all buy or are given a Cadbury's advent calendar with chocolates behind every door. Right? Unfortunately this has become the association. There is enough sugar-filled rich food around at this time of the year without the need for more and what about the waste that is generated by those plastic/cardboard voids??

This year thankfully nobody bought my children a calendar. Miss P made one for the Little Lady in the form of unwanted items that she wrapped and labelled for each of the 24 days of Advent and for Small Boy she made a calendar with colouring activities and quizzes for each of the days.

Back in early November, the children hassled me for some kind of Advent marking symbol. They get my dislike for the chocolate numbers and now share/are brainwashed into thinking the same, so they set about looking for an alternative :-)
Pinterest. If you haven't yet discovered Pinterest then google it, it's amazing and perfectly suited to the likes of us creative folk.
Miss P found a whole host of suitable 'things' that could mark the days of advent that were just a little different. Of course in my busy world I didn't actually get around to looking until the first of December! Pinterest provided vast amounts of inspiration, 'cook mince pies', 'sing carols' etc. I sifted through the suggestions and then.........and then......I came across '50 random acts of kindness for kids'. Perfect! Just what I wanted. The perfect opportunity to embrace the opportunity to make a difference whist marking the days of Advent and having a little fun at the same time.
In my chaotic state, I hadn't got around to making any form of calendar or housing for my ideas, besides, I very much like to act on impulse and flow in the direction that each and every day takes us. So it was decided that our blue and white stripy teapot was to become the 'magical Christmas teapot for Advent'. Pinterest has some lovely printable templates so that you could write your own ideas on little decorated squares, fold them up and hide them away to be discovered. For those with even less time, there are even ready printed slips available.

So what ideas have I come up with so far?

Day1: Make bookmarks and send them to people without saying who they are from.
           When you do a good deed for someone you feel good in the knowledge that you've made a                                    
           difference to that persons life.

One Small Boy watched from a distance whilst engaging in a useful pastime!

Day 2: Clear up litter from the area surrounding our house and our neighbours.
           My children are human and you can imagine the reaction to that one! 'So who is that going to
           benefit?' Exactly! They armed themselves with a bin bag and rubber gloves and collected a
           whole bag of rubbish!

Day 3: Choose something nice for tea.
           What could be so difficult about this one? Nothing at all apart from possibly complimenting
            the choice of others. Amazingly everyone worked as a team and we shared lovely bread,
            olives, cheese to name just a few things.

Day 4: Sit next to someone at lunch whom you don't usually sit next to.
            It just so happened that on this particular day we were off to a Home Ed Christmas party at a
            group we are fairly new to. This task was potentially fairly daunting but a perfectly reasonable
            ask. It's brilliant stepping out of your comfort zone and each one of us (yes, even me)
            seemingly effortlessly managed it :-)

 Day 5:Take Santa out for tea and cake after work.
            Hehe! This was rather a fun task. Out village Santa hasn't been too well in the past year and
            needed two helpers to give him a hand at the annual bazaar. Miss P and the Little Lady were
            more than thrilled to be asked, especially when I suggested that I make them costumes for the
            occasion. The girls took to their roles like ducks to water and Santa himself was thrilled to be
            treated to refreshments following his busy afternoon.

Elfing around!

Day 6: Write a letter to Santa.
            We actually don't 'do' FC ( I've talked about this in previous blogs) so this was really a
            potentially silly creative writing opportunity. Nobody did it!

Day 7: Play a board game by the fire.
           There is something really warming on a deep soul level about this one. Stopping for a moment
           and actually genuinely tuning in to family life. The children love me playing with them
           especially when I'm free from distractions. Try it sometime :-)

Day 8: Buy something for the food bank.
            I myself am apparently living my daily life on the 'breadline' but I still manage to feed my
            family. For whatever reason, sometimes people find themselves in a financially desperate
            position and wonder where the next meal will come from. In Oxfordshire and many other
            counties too, local churches and charities operate a community food bank where people
            can turn in genuine times of need. The children each chose an item to donate.

Day 9: Movie night!
            We hired a film on DVD from the library but you could just as easily watch one that you
            already own or borrow one from a friend. We chose a Christmas film 'Magical Christmas'
            it was pretty old and actually not great but it was still a super activity to do together and made
            us appreciate better films!

Day 10: Give out free hugs
             Again not something that the children felt thrilled to be doing but  it just so happened
             to be the day of another Christmas party. Two out of three children reported back that they
             had hugged many friends!
             Some people never receive a hug.........

Day 11: 'Wendy and Peter Pan' at the RSC in Stratford.
              What a treat! We were fortunate enough to buy tickets for the understudy performance
              and what an absolutely fab show it was. If you get the opportunity do go :-)

Day 12: Put up the Christmas tree...
              Have you noticed how much earlier people have started to put up their decorations?
             When I was younger my Mother in Law put her deco's up by the 5th Dec and that was
             considered REALLY early. Now folk have adorned their homes in November!
             I finally got the hint after a week of the children commenting 'Oh look! They've got their
             tree up'...hehe, it's up!

Day 13: Learn to play a Christmas carol on an instrument.
             We have several musical instruments in our house yet no one really plays them, so this task
             was a bit of fun and had the whole family for one evening as 'budding musicians' :-)

Day 14: Make a movie
              There are apps available on phones and tablets these days that make putting a movie together
              relatively simple, you just need a bit of imagination and the desire to actually make the
              movie. I left the children to work this one out for themselves and if you saw my FB share
              you may well have witnessed the finished result. Give it a go, it's fun!

Day 15: Out for dinner at ASK Italian
              This little treat tied in very nicely with a trip to see a light show at the Physics
              department at the University. We are so lucky to have such amazing facilities
              right on our doorstep. Our little trip to ASK following the show proved to be the perfect
              'opportunity to make a difference'. On our way to the restaurant, Small Boy found himself
              a stick (as you do). It didn't seem appropriate to take said stick into the restaurant so I
              suggested we propped it up against the wall in the entrance porch. Whilst we were busily
              chomping away on our tasty dinner, a tramp cycled by; belongings on his back with a snood
              over his head. He passed the window and then turned around and passed again stopping near
              to the porch. Of course, he had taken the stick! Small Boy was furious and launched into
              'Scrappy Doo' mode of 'Let me get im'. We used the opportunity to think about the man
              and his situation and the possible reason behind his taking the stick. Once we'd finished up
              we headed back towards the bus stop and there outside Sainsbury's was the homeless man
              in question. He was clearly a little merry on Christmas spirit and was singing carols! We
              needed a few provisions so popped into the supermarket and in doing so purchased some
              Matchmakers to take to a friends house the following day. Once at the till I suggested
              perhaps giving one box of the Matchmakers to the chap. Well, you can imagine the response.
              Small boy was far more interested in giving him a fist and piece of his mind and the Little
              Lady refused to acknowledge the man due to his drunken state (thus prompting further
              discussions as to the possible reasons behind his intoxication), Miss P agreed. So
              leaving the two younger children at the bus stop (with a friend who we then met), Miss P
              and I hand delivered the treats.
              We were staggered and stunned by the number of people homeless in Oxford at this time of
              year. How can it be that so many people don't feel they have a place to call 'home' or family
              and friends to turn to in their time of need? I'd love to organise a 'pop up soup kitchen' or
              'friend at the table' set up where by these people could gain some love and encouragement
              to carry on.

Day 16: Phone someone and tell them you love them
             Not difficult but only two of us did this......

Day 17: Make a hamper for someone and deliver it.
             An 85 year old neighbour benefited here; having lost his wife earlier this year this will be his
             first Christmas alone. The children enjoyed choosing and giving thought to things that may
             bring a smile to his face and may be simple to prepare. So soup and finger foods were a good
             choice. Finding a suitable box, cutting it to shape, wrapping it and filling it were all
             thoughtful activities and brought joy to myself and the children and then delivering it too.
             Unbeknown to us all, the poor chap had just come out of hospital following a three week    
             stay. He was tired but obviously touched by out actions.

Day 18: Jump in the car and go out and see the Christmas lights.
              People seem to have toned down the 'cheesy' lights this year and gone for subtle delicate
              decorations instead. There were still a few out there though who had gone to town. It's great
              to see.

Day 19: Make pomanders with oranges and cloves.
              Miss P was taken off to London to see the Nutcracker and the younger two and I had a
              photo shoot today so no pomanders were made. Perhaps we'll combine them with
              tomorrow's task!

Day 20: Make a gingerbread house :-)
              We cheated and bought a ready baked house that just needed assembling and decorating.
              It's great that the children have finally reached that stage in life where they can read and
              and carry out instructions by themselves; whilst also working as a team. We'll share the
              finished house on Boxing Day.

Day 21: Bake cookies for friends and neighbours.
              We do this every year. It doesn't cost much and feels good. Baking, wrapping and giving :-)

Day 22: Meet at a cafe for hot chocolate with friends.
              There's a new cafe in Enstone called 'The Art Cafe'. It's run by a friends husband and is
              certain to become our new 'cool' place to go!

Day 23: Read a book together.
             My eldest is now 15 but still enjoyed sitting and listening to 'Father Christmas' by Raymond
             Briggs. It's a comic strip book with few words but perfect to animate in your own way.

Day 24: Christingle service and further Christmas stories.
              It's become a tradition to attend the local carol and Christingle service on Christmas eve.
              Once we returned home and had eaten, I read once again from a little book called 'Star of    
              Wonder'. It's a gem of a book that's been on my bookcase for years and is packed with lovely
              snippets of Christmas wonder (all the best bits) taken from a host of well known classic
              tales. The children happily listened for an hour or so before making their way up the wooden
              hill to the land of slumber.

The children and I have thoroughly enjoyed thinking beyond ourselves this advent, it's been a lot of fun and I know that our actions have made a difference to peoples lives.
Of course random acts don't have to be reserved just for Christmas.........:-)

Merry Christmas to you all :-)