Memory Keeping

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Have you ever heard of these books? I had never seen them until I was browsing in my favourite book shop here a couple of years ago.

The one above translates roughly as 'Mummy, tell me!'. You give it to your mum and she writes answers to the questions about her past and her opinions.

There's a whole range. Nico bought them for his parents a while ago and I found an English grandmother version that my gran is slowly working her way through.

Recently, I had the chance to fill one in for Isabella. Nico has the daddy version and we bought my parents the grandma and grandad books.

It's such a lovely way to find out more about your parents and grandparents and there are questions you might otherwise not think of. It really personalises the family history for future generations. Highly recommended!

Reading Review

Since it's the only thing I can do during the long feeds, I've been flying through some good books lately. I already wrote about Atonement but here are three more.

The Fault in our Stars

This was a purchase I made after reading all the hype around the book and film. It was a really good read but I'd expected a little more after reading so much.

The story follows a terminally ill teenager's romance and as you might expect is a tearjerker. I think the novel is aimed more at teenagers. I actually read another review lately where the reviewer identified the most with the girl's parents and I have to agree. I'd still recommend it though.

The Lincoln Myth

The latest Steve Berry book sees Cotton Malone return to the US to work on a case involving President Lincoln and the Church of the Latter Day Saints. I have always preferred the Euopean adventures but having studied American history, I found this one interesting too. 

I never normally read the authors notes but I usually have to read Berry's to seperate truth from fiction, so good is his writing. If you like Dan Brown, you'd probably like this.

Mercy

Nico recently read this book in German and bought the English translation for our anniversary. Now we are both hooked on Scandanavian writer, Adler-Olsen. 

The novel follows detective Carl Morck in his first investigation heading his own unsolved crimes department. It has many of the usual dark aspects we've come to expect from Scandanavian writers with a bit of humour from interesting characters. I'll be ordering some more soon.

Avocado Update!

So the avocado pit is hatching! I'm not sure it looks like it should but at least it's doing something. I'm still changing out the water every two days and fingers crossed, it's working.

 Also, the lemon plants are still developing slowly.

 Nico's chilli's are looking amazing.

The tomatoes are turning red too! We've already tasted some and they are delicious.

Blasts from the past

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Recently we have been getting into some series' on DVD. First of all, Nico got Lovejoy for his birthday and we are nearly through them already. I was a bit young to remember Lovejoy but we have enjoyed watching them. It's amazing how dated they seem sometimes. It makes me wonder how new series will look in thirty years' time.

It's also fun to see so many familiar faces in their youth. The first was Dalziel of Dalziel and Pascoe fame. We bought and watched series 1 and while I still enjoyed Dalziel's brash Yorkshire style and one liners, the narratives weren't as good as I remembered.

A couple of weeks later, another familiar face popped up in Lovejoy. Sam Ryan from Silent Witness. I started watching this one a few series in when it was originally broadcast so I've now ordered series one and am hoping it is as good as I remember.

Meanwhile, we'll be finishing up Lovejoy and looking out for any other viewing ideas.

Weekly Wisdom

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The Saturday Update

We've had a brilliant week here. Monday and Tuesday were fairly quiet days getting little jobs done and working on that dress for my friend's little girl.

On Wednesday, Isabella and I had a morning out - she finally passed her hearing test and then we went shopping together.

Mum arrived on Thursday for a flying visit. She and Isabella loved each other to bits. We went to school on Friday for brunch with my class before a bit of shopping in town and a lovely lunch at Dean and David.

Today Mum flew home and we had a drive out to see some houses. The hunt goes on.

Next week will be quiet. No appointments for Isabella but I have my check up. Hoping to start a new project and fly through my latest read. Will keep you posted.

Spot the Cat

 Above you can discover Pete's latest hiding place if you look close enough.

 These two are previous favourites. He's so tricky!