Big words for little boys!

Yesterday afternoon my eldest son ran to tell me very excitedly that his younger brother had barricaded himself in the living room by pushing the sofa against the door.

He was more bothered by the fact that he couldn't get in.

I was most impressed by his use of the word barricaded!

He's only 6.

We could see through the glass panel that his three year old brother was just happily playing with all the toys, looking up at us in "gotcha" kind of way.

I could have pushed the door open, but we both agreed to wait patiently and eat some sweets in full view, on our side of the door.

The lessons in strategy worked...

...until the door opened, the little soldier came out and my eldest ran in to occupy the barricaded territory taking the sweets with him, and was quickly followed by his younger brother in an attempt to join him.

As for me, I saw the opportunity for some peace and quiet, safe in the knowledge that suppertime was just around the corner.

There's a Jedi in my garden

I can't resist a moment of glory. Here is my eldest, dressed as a Jedi for today's hero day at school.

When I told him I'd make his costume, his words were "Mummy, that'll be rubbish. Can't you just go and buy one instead!"

For a moment I wobbled.

After all I hadn't used a sewing machine in 26 years since my unfinished A-Line navy skirt project at secondary school. My penchant for needlework has remained trapped for many a year and when I inherited my late mother-in-law's sewing machine, I kept in in the loft untouched for two years.

So what I'm saying is that I've got no particular interest in sewing and it's not a skill in which I feel confident. So maybe my little one was just picking up on my vibes.

But suddenly my determination got the better of me and after an unsuccessful trawl around the charity shops for some suitable fabric, I ended up at the Haberdashery spending about £15 on some material for a cloak and a tunic.

Then I got busy, busy, busy, sewing by hand.

If I carried on like that it would have taken me until Christmas, so I decided that I should rescue the sewing machine from the loft and have a go!

Poised in front of the machine I felt like a novice driver, seeing something so familiar but not having a clue about the knobs, buttons and switches.

All I can say is thank goodness for the Internet, where I could find an online manual and work out how to thread the needle, wind the bobbin and determine the right stitch for the job. Apparently there's much more to it than that with things such as tension, backwards sewing and the like.

But phew, after three hours of working it out and with the added help of iron-on wonder web for the trickier situations, I managed to get by. I even coped with making a hood!

Much of it was guesswork, trying to use a dose of common sense, but with a growing sense of awe for the talents of both designers and machinists.

I am dead chuffed with the results.

AND SEW IS HE! (chuckle, please do excuse the pun, I just couldn't resist)

Indeed, if he could have eaten his words, he would have!

So as I sign off...all that's left to say is

MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU, MY FRIENDS!

After all, it must have been the force that helped me...or was it just sheer luck!

Who dressed these children?

In the words of Shaggy....It wasn't me! Indeed they chose their own clothes today, which is always entertaining.

The photo was taken at Wicken Fen nature reserve in Cambridgeshire. where today my eldest lied.

That's right, blatently lied and it was a true poker face moment.

It started when I heard a plop sound coming from the river while we were walking along the embankment. It went something like ..... pppppplopppppp!


I turned around and noticed that my eldest no longer had the branch that he had been holding.

I also noticed that there was a branch in the middle of the river, yes a branch that was surrounded by ripples, freshly made ripples, all rippling out in a rippling kind of fashion heading towards the river bank.

There was no one else near the river bank.

So.... members of the jury, I put it to you that this 'ere six year old lad had deliberately ejected the said branch from his hand and launched it into said river.

I posed the question...

"Did you just throw that branch into the river?"

He answered...

"No"

Hang on....Did he say no? It was so obvious that he had!

So I asked "If you didn't throw it in the river, what exactly did you do with the branch?"

He kept his straight face and replied "I threw it in the bushes".

Hmmm, he was 3ft from the river and 10ft from the bushes. He is only 6. He can't throw far and there were still ripples in the water.

Now, clever 21st C Dad was listening with a big frown on his face. He really should be in CID. He broke into the conversation and said...

"Well in that case can you go into the bushes and get the branch".

Haa haa. We got him. He went into the bushes and looked and looked and looked but couldn't find it...

...because it was....getting wet in the river of course!

Terrible thing is...the case would get thrown out of kiddie court on the basis there were no witnesses.

Even the eyes in the back of my head had failed.

But my ears were working and on the basis of the evidence, surely he is guilty as charged!

I am pleased that I later got a confession and an apology. He had learned a big lesson from the experience in that it is better to tell the truth than to continue to lie and get into deeper trouble.

I've also learned that I need to work on my questioning technique. Perhaps I should have said.

"Wow, that was a good throw, where did you learn that?"

Now that would have got the result within seconds!

But while I enjoy the results of my very own lie detector test, I hope you enjoy some of the photos from our otherwise lovely day out.

First seaside trip of the year

It was bitterly cold, thanks to the brisk breeze. We were wearing hats, scarves and gloves but it was still blimming freezing, so cold my legs were numb. Strangely it's always cold whenever we visit Aldeburgh and yesterday's first visit of the year was no different.

The colour of the sea reflected the grey sky, giving the North Sea the reputation that has long been in existence.

Yet, the beach maintained its appeal.

It was easy to forget the cold with millions of pebbles to hand and a huge sea to welcome them and much fun was had throwing them back into the grey water.

It was a great way to spend Valentine's Day, en famille, doing something that was really nothing. However it was the nothingness that made it a great afternoon out.

While browsing in the Aldeburgh Market shop, I came across the unusual sight of Octopus and Squid, which were available from the deli counter. I'm not sure whether I bought them out of love or wickedness, but I thought it would be an interesting treat for 21st C Dad's dinner, not mine I must add as I am too squeamish. Too squeamish to even take a photo, but I am sure you can find plenty on Flickr.

In memorium...regretful changes

Photo by Flickr's Vsz

Circumstances can change so easily, whether it's at a moment's notice or through the long passage of time.

Take the arrangements this week. Last Friday I had a call from my family telling me that my aunt had died. She was my dad's only sister. We weren't that close because after my dad's sudden death, which occurred 35 years ago, our family ties began to revolve more around my mum's relatives.

Since moving away from my childhood home 22 years ago, I have seen less and less of my dad's side of the family. If he hadn't had died when I was so young, who knows where fate may have led. With 10 cousins on the loose with an average of two kids each, many of whom have now children of their own, that's one huge family to keep up with, which is in complete contrast to our small immediate family.

However, despite the distance between us, I was still upset to hear the news about my aunt and today I should be here,

Photo by Flickr's Trelewis

or at least in a little terraced house overlooking this beautiful parkland, in the small village of Trelewis in South Wales.

Yes, this morning I should be paying my respects at my aunt's funeral and passing my condolences to my cousins, some of whom I haven't seen for several years and others whose paths have not crossed mine in two decades.

So, with the necessary childcare arranged for me to make the trip on my own from Suffolk to South Wales, all that was left to organise was the coach and the hotel, which I did with great efficiency. Under no circumstances was I going to miss my aunt's funeral.

Whether I was driven by guilt at not having seen my aunt for several years or a natural bond connected to childhood memories, one thing was certain, I just wanted to be there even though we weren't that close. I wanted to see the rest of my family again, even if it was in unfortunate circumstances.

With this sense of drive nothing could stop me, not even the heavy downpours or localised flooding in that part of Wales. Even though the funeral was arranged for today, amidst existing plans for us to fly to Scotland tomorrow, I wasn't going to miss it for anything...

...not anything....except...

the needs of a young child, my youngest, who woke at 4pm yesterday morning shouting for "Mummy" and who coughed and coughed for the next three hours while I was making the final preparations to leave for a couple of days.

Then there was the fever, with a temperature of 38 degrees.

He needed cuddles and only Mummy would do and it was only when he had been comforted could he then sleep.

Even though I wanted to go to my aunt's funeral, I could not leave my little boy.

He was too ill.

So I stayed...

...and he slept and coughed and sweated, slept and coughed and sweated.

He didn't want to leave my arms and just wanted to be cuddled and I wanted to cuddle him.

I should have left yesterday morning and I would have arrived in Wales last night. Instead I cancelled all my bookings and stayed.

I've never missed a family funeral before but sometimes, just sometimes, you just have to.

So to my aunt......I regret I couldn't make it...and I am sorry...sorry for the passing years and sorry for today..

...but here's a final farewell from afar... may you rest in peace.... and give my daddy a big hug should you see him...with much love...me xxx

The Christmas Tree Fairy et al

This morning, I awoke to squeals of excitement, announcing the most fabulous news that the Christmas Tree Fairy has visited our house and decorated the Christmas tree overnight. In my awakening slumber I could hear:

"Wow"

"Look at that one"

"There's a Father Christmas"

"That one's shiny"

"This one's red"

"Mummy, Daddy, QUICK! The Christmas Fairy's been!"

And behold, as I wandered into the living room, rubbing my eyes to overcome my tiredness, there in the corner was our tree, decorated with all our lovely decorations.



There are the ones that I had bought for our very first Christmas Tree, when 21st C Dad and I lived in Nottingham and we had a red and gold traditional colour scheme. Now, it's a fabulous eclectic mix including the old glass baubles from my grandmother's tree, the lovely wooden baubles that we bought during our adventures in the Lake District, the little wooden decorations that I collected when our eldest son was born and the handmade beaded hearts that I made for 21st C Dad a few years ago.

These days, it's a wonderful case of "anything goes" featuring all the oddities that we have collected each Christmas.

If the excitement of the Christmas Tree Fairy wasn't enough, we ventured into town to witness something very special. If ever you have wondered how Father Christmas delivers all the presents on Christmas Eve...I'll let you into a huge secret...it is because he has hundreds of helpers who help him on his way and they are not just elves.

For those not in the know, Bury St Edmunds is the highly classified location, where Father Christmas holds an annual competition to test the speed and dexterity of his team. So, we rushed into town this morning to witness the event and there they were, all running around the Abbey Gardens and the streets of Bury, giving new meaning to the phrase "The run-up to Christmas"


With a quick visit to Santa's Grotto and then a stop-off at Moyses Hall to pick up a silver threepenny bit for our Christmas pudding, we ventured home for what has become a new tradition in the 21st C household...the making of the nativity costume for the school play. This year, the eldest 21st C kid is a Wiseman, which is more advanced than last year's snowflake affair and has required a tad more creative thinking.

Despite about ten days notice, I'd completely forgotten about the costume until this weekend and panicked when I saw the reminder notice on Friday that the costumes must be in by Monday. So armed with some shopping time yesterday and some time on my hands this afternoon, I set about trying to make something from this pile of materials.

Not being a natural seamstress, I had thought that it would be just a case of cutting a hole in the middle of the beautiful fabric and just putting it over the little man's head and then tying some braid around his waist.

Oh um....if only I hadn't cut hole so big.

Instead, with a hole that was way too big, out came the needle and cotton, which then led into a complete afternoon of dressmaking. However, I am dead chuffed with the results that I can now see me competing for the Martha Stewart award. Here's the little man modelling the finished results...(note to self...must send my mum the photos to reassure her I am not a lost cause!)

So after a busy day of festive traditions, new and old, I think it's time to put my feet up and watch Cranford on BBC1, with a glass of the Drunken Monk's Christmas Mead. Not to be confused with Ruby's monk of course.

All across the land there will be mothers uniting in the taste of fortified wine and honey. To you all, here's a toast....

"To Christmas time and the joys of traditions, borrowing from the past and creating your own and setting great memories for your children to take into their future....Cheers".

This week I've been busy...

...waiting for the cake to appear.

Or perhaps I should clarify....trying my hand at my first ever Christmas Cake!

Every year, since throwing off my student garb, I have wanted to make our very own Christmas Cake, but have never found the time.

Before children I was too busy (I can't remember what I was busy doing, but I was)....

Then when I had children, I was far too busy that I couldn't find time to make a cake.

However, this year is the year of my inaugural efforts. Having been inspired by our local Nigella and Alasdair (Man about The House) I thought I'd give it a go and went to the supermarket to buy everything I needed. However, despite Alasdair's World's Best Christmas Cake recipe, I thought I'd stick with the real Nigella's, which might just turn out to be the second best Christmas Cake.

Not being one for following recipes or shopping lists, I had to firstly "get over myself". When I paid the bill at the checkout, I then "fell over myself" at the cost! How much! I think I'm going to have to make three to make it cost effective!

Having bought the ingredients on Monday, I arose with great vigour on Tuesday, ready to make the lovely cakey and opened up the recipe book...

hmm...so how did I miss the bit that said "soak dried fruit in alcohol overnight".

Please, I know I am a novice so give me a chance.

Not to be defeated, I decided to soak the fruit during the day, with great optimism that I might be able to get on with making the cake that evening.

But ah..ah..in true 21st C Household fashion... that didn't quite happen. So pray tell, the dried fruit was actually left soaking for three days and three nights until today....

...when I found myself at home for long enough to get on with making the damn thing!

With the dried fruit duly soaked, thrice over. I mixed the butter, the sugar, the eggs then the flour and the spices and folded the intoxicated fruit into the mix, before popping it in the oven.

Oh if it was only that easy.

Those in the know will testify that it is actually very easy...

...except if you live in this 21st C Household and your cake making effort involves a major multi-tasking exercise of doing the washing up, some research on the computer, making fund-raising phone calls for our school's Christmas Fair (and getting very excited about news that we are going to receive a surprise donation from a production company), ordering flight tickets to Inverness for a family reunion, picking up youngest lad from nursery and then trying to temper his enthusiasm to pour whole bottle of Marsala (not recommended by Nigella) over the pre-baked and post-baked cake.

(I should clarify here that Nigella gives no such advice about how to handle pre-schoolers and Marsala....just the Marsala)

So, at last having started soaking on Tuesday and mixing at 10.30 this morning, it is a miracle that at 4.30pm this afternoon I pulled a Christmassy scented and wonderfully appealing cake from our oven.

The image you see is the cake tucked away in its foiled coat, soaking in the Marsala and retaining its moist texture.

So, please, I invite you to crack open a bottle of wine and share a toast with me...

"To.... er...erm......the Christmas Cake..."

and pray that after such efforts, it will actually last until Christmas Day.

In need of a 21st Century Fairy Godmother

ARGHH! SOMEONE HELP

21st C Dad's in London.
21st C Kids are having too much fun.
21st C House is in a mess
and is covered in spotty stickers.

and

21st C Grandmother is arriving tomorrow.

so

If this 21st CM does not clear up
21st C Grandmother will sit on the spotty stickers
and end up with a spotty bottom.

What makes it worse is

21st C Mummy will be out working all day tomorrow...
...and has to get all the prep done tonight!

...when she'd rather be cosying in with a glass of wine.

and if that's not bad...

...21st C kids want to watch Pudsey Bear.

(at least it's a good cause)

But now, I am rethinking that wine!

Busy in Bury St Edmunds

This week I have taken a gentle break from blogging. However, it hasn't been a quiet time. Instead I've been busy in Bury St Edmunds.


I'VE BEEN BUSY...

...ENJOYING AUTUMN...my favourite time of year.

...MAKING BREAD PUDDING, following a great wartime recipe from Marguerite Patten's "Feeding the Nation" book. Quite timely on Remembrance Day.

It's a fabulous recipe and is so easy that a toddler can make it...

...and so tasty that a toddler and his brother wanted second helpings.

...PLAYING "MUMMY'S TOY SHOP" and TODDLER'S CAFE... with a very imaginative 3 year old who insisted on using real money.

...GOING ON A BEAR HUNT at our local parent & toddler drama club.

(Image courtesy of Theatre Royal Website)

...ENJOYING NIGELLA'S COOKING. Not the real Nigella of course, but such a close match you can hardly tell the difference. Fab risotto and wonderful company!

...SETTING UP A WEBSITE/BLOG for a friend's business. Take a peek if you have time and let me know what you think...(and if you make a booking, let me know as I will get some commission).

...WRITING MATERIAL FOR A NEW PROJECT...more on that another time.

...ADMIRING ADAM CARTER IN SPOOKS... (now I admit to being a naughty mummy).


...CONVINCING 21st DAD to let me spend a lot of money on this wonderful print by Amanda Ross from the Crafts for Christmas exhibition at the Bury St Edmunds Art Gallery.


...DOING SOME MORE RESEARCH in Bury's eateries. This time, testing out The Lounge on Hatter Street, where access to its wi-fi service was free and easy, its lattes were smooth and its chilli paninis were tasty. (By the way, here's a big hello to the retired gentleman who wondered what I was doing and asked me to check out Greene King's share price).

...and last but not least...I've been busy enjoying the beautiful views offered by the Bury St Edmunds Abbey Gardens on a bright and sunny day.

I love being busy and it's easy being busy in Bury St Edmunds, as there's so much to do...

and...there's no better excuse for avoiding the housework.

Happy Halloween Everyone

So, I got on my broomstick yesterday and flew to Sainsburys...only to be met with major disappointment...everything for sale, except for the kitchen sink or pumpkins.

I had been warned, having read Picklesmum's account about the lack of orange beauties this year.

Having left Sainsburys empty-handed, I sensibly rang Waitrose, to be told they only had 5 small ones left, but raising my hopes that they were expecting a delivery in the evening or this morning.

After a trek around some farm-shops and being met with only shakes of the head, I finally settled on a trip to Waitrose to search out a small pumpkin or two. The little pumpkins had all gone, but I was happy to see two large ones left, neatly packaged in boxes and being sold as a

Paint your own Pumpkin Kit

I looked at the price

£7.49

ummm....er....

I didn't want to paint my own pumpkin. I wanted to carve it. I didn't need the paints...I couldn't care about the box... I certainly didn't want to pay £7.49 but...

I needed a damn pumpkin.

So...I picked it up, paid, walked out, put it on the back of my broomstick and flew home!

I cut, scooped, carved.

I thought about the price.

£7.49, £7.49, £7.49

I was determined to get my money's worth.

So I cut some more, carving chunks this time.

I searched online for a recipe for pumpkin soup.

and found this

so made this




I fed it to the kids and the next thing that happened was this...




By now the kids looked quite scary...so the only thing for it was a party.

I decorated the house...the party was great fun...and the house looked good.

.But

....wouldn't it have been great if it looked like this...



(This house can be seen just opposite the Woolpack in Fornham St Martin)

Happy Halloween Everyone!
Hope you've had a great time too!

It's almost upon us...

...and even Postman Pat is getting excited.

...and so is the witch who works at our local cook shop.



I'm not quite sure about poor Frankie though. He's looking a bit glum...


However, I'm getting excited....and I can't quite contain it...I am looking forward to an evening of Halloween games and spooky stories tomorrow night...

...and some pumpkin carving tonight in preparation for the fun and games that will commence tomorrow!

Pumpkins?!!! Oh booger! I knew I'd forgotten something.

I'd better go off and get some....

Now where did I put my broomstick?

(Thanks to Toy Box 2 in Bury St Edmunds for letting me photograph Postman Pat in all his garb, and to the witch in Marchants for not casting a spell while I took her photo. Frankenstein looks like he needs a party to go to and can be found at the Dance & Party Crazy shop in St John's St, Bury St Edmunds.)

Giss a Kiss...

Further greetings from Somerset, where we have been visiting the family...erm not the humped- back kind...but my in-laws in Bristol. Some might ask what's the difference, but I am lucky that 21st C Dad is blessed with kindly relatives.

We've had a fabulous time meeting up with the family at Noah's Ark Zoo Farm, just off the M5, outside Bristol.

There was lots to do...

including this...

and this....

...plus a very bumpy tractor ride and lots of play in the the indoor barn, plus an animal show, with the opportunity to stroke a snake and an alligator.

See you again soon...21st Century Mummy xxx

P.S. Did I mention the alpacas in the field at the bottom of our garden....they are sooooooo cute. I will miss them when we leave.

Wookey Hole...Revisited

A Return to Childhood Memories

Today 21st C Dad and I took the children to Wookey Hole, a place which we had both visited during our childhood during the 1970s and 80s. Between us we recalled the memories of the network of showcaves, the witch that had been turned to stone, the paper mill and the collection of Madame Tussauds' waxwork heads!

We couldn't spend a week in Somerset without another visit to relive our childhood experiences.

Wookey Hole in the 21st Century is a whole new experience. Set in a village, a few miles out of Wells, Wookey Hole looked all too familiar upon our arrival. However, as soon as we got out of the car and trekked up to the entrance, the differences began to emerge.

We were initially met by a purple witch, advertising a range of in-house entertainment events that were taking place throughout the day. I certainly don't remember hosts of the witch variety in the 1970s...maybe they only come out for Halloween...

While queuing for our tickets I noticed that the ghastly Self-Service Restaurant, which served bland food in the 70s, has thankfully now closed and has been replaced by the Big Top restaurant in the centre of the complex.

Our tour began with a visit to the caves and was both entertaining and interesting, with a guide who had a wonderfully dry sense of humour. 21st Century tours now include more clever lighting than once was available in the past and enabled us to come face to face with the real witch of Wookey Hole.

Wookey Hole caves now also stores Cheddar Cheese for a range of supermarkets and is consequently sold as Cave Aged Cheddar. The cave tour now includes a walk past the Cheese Cellar, so non-enthusiasts of the smell of mature cheese should take note and remember a nose-peg for future tours.

After a walk through a concrete tunnel, which is now decorated with beautiful recreations of cave paintings...

...the tour leads into the familiar exit, with a view of the river flowing out from the caves.

Familiarity didn't stay with us for long, as we turned and followed a path into Dinosaur Valley, an exhibition of dinosaurs and other creatures, including my favourite...a huge woolly mammoth...

The tour then leads into the old Paper Mill building, which now plays host to exhibitions about the Wookey Hole caves as well as the history of making paper. Paper making demonstrations were available as well as other fun activities including, climbing frames and a Victorian arcade full of ha'penny machines. There was also a hall of mirrors and a mirrored maze, which was excellent.

Sadly, as a result of change in ownership the Madame Tussauds collection of heads no longer exists, which was a disappointment. However, one of the latest features that has been added to the attraction is a theatre, where Wookey Hole organisers are able to put on performances tailored to the seasons. Today, we were entertained by a fabulous troupe of young performers who showed off their acrobatics and circus talents focusing on a Halloween theme. The children were fantastic and put on a thoroughly entertaining performance, which is well worth a repeat visit.

Wookey Hole Revisited did give me plenty to think about, especially how the passage of time goes so quickly. When I visited as a child, I never once considered how I would be returning several decades later with my own children.

I remember my excitement then. However, it seems nothing compared with the excitement of my two children today. I initially complained at the price of a family ticket at £38 for a day's pass. However, tight-fisted old me has come around to the wonderful value that it represented, resulting in a very memorable family day out.

On the subject of money, here is something that I picked up at the Paper Mill exhibition....one last thing upon which to ponder no matter what century one might live in....

ADDENDUM - I have since discovered that Wookey Hole was once owned by Madame Tussauds, hence the connection with the Head exhibition. Its current owner is Gerry Cottle of Circus fame, which accounts for the development of the new theatre attraction. More information about the history of the caves can be found here.

Happy Anniversary 21st C Dad

Before 21st C Dad went off to work this morning, he gave me a beautiful present, a lovely silver bracelet with lots of purple hearts on it.

21st C Dad is rather romantic. On our first valentine's day together, he whisked me off to Loughborough... (okay I know that doesn't sound that romantic, but hang in there)...for a five course meal on a steam train. It was a wonderful atmosphere, in fact perfect. It's just a shame that we had to leg it back to the mainline train station before coffee, so that we could get the train back to Nottingham.

When he asked me to marry him, he took me around all the jewellers in Bern, the capital city of Switzerland, asking me what kind of engagement ring I liked. Then he proposed to me in the cathedral square, producing a ring for which he had personally selected the diamond and had already brought with him from the UK.

He even arranged for me to design our own wedding rings, which we had made in Hatton Gardens in London.

He is fantastic and the best man I could ever be lucky enough to meet, let alone marry and I love him to the moon and back. Excuse me for becoming all soppy but today is indeed our wedding anniversary, giving me a lovely excuse to reminisce about the day that we got married 9 years ago in Hertfordshire.

We held our small wedding ceremony in a beautiful register office, followed by a huge party at a rather unusual place...Whipsnade Zoo. Our guests had a great time, with a tour bus also laid on so that they could have a twilight tour of the animal park. We had also booked a photo opportunity with the elephants, but one of them had a hernia, so we thought better of it.

And as for the wedding songs, it had to be Angels by Robbie Williams (yes I know ... a popular choice), followed by Lucky Man, by The Verve (I don't know how I managed to get that past 21st C Dad), topped off by Robbie Williams again with Let Me Entertain You....(yes, even the DJ had said he'd never had that one before!).

So...back to the beautiful present that I received this morning...it hasn't passed me by that the hearts are purple, a lighter shade of the colour of the velvet suit that 21st C Dad wore on the day. Yes, we did the purple bit before Posh & Becks set the trend and what a great choice it was.

Thank you 21st C Dad...for marrying me and for everything else that's followed... and another thank you for letting me now get away with blogging.

If you go down to the woods today...

...just be careful what you might find!

After today's visit out with my 3 year old, I am beginning to think the trees are really alive...

...and are getting ready for Halloween!



"Oi - what are you looking at?"