tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-56186859910392284642024-02-07T03:09:41.397+00:00The Gherkin JarGherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.comBlogger140125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-79380188344717595942015-06-05T00:49:00.002+01:002015-06-05T00:49:22.614+01:00Tax doesn't have to be taxing - BOOM!"Tax doesn't have to be taxing" that slogan makes me feel violent.<div>
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Words cannot express the frustration and annoyance I have when filling out tax returns. The thought of doing one brings me out in a cold sweat for weeks before it is due and the actual process for filling one in is excruciatingly painful and long-drawn out. Gah! I know I have to pay tax and I know it gets taken before I can give it, but COME ON TAX OFFICE! Take the right amount first time round please! Don't make me do this draining exercise just because you made a mistake!</div>
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I need wine.</div>
Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-43245903925329908762015-06-02T00:32:00.000+01:002015-06-02T00:32:01.043+01:00Sometimes there is no plan. There are no grand statements of intention. There is no focus at the start. Then, slowly things start to unfurl and become whole things that link with other things and become a structure. <div>
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I am here with ideas and am keen to see where those ideas take me. Hello world.</div>
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Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-85234227008963469522014-01-01T23:19:00.000+00:002014-01-01T23:19:43.330+00:00Happy New Year! I hope that 2014 brings health and happiness. I plan to read more and move more and make more. A resolution in four words!Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-58327179114561064232013-10-08T00:50:00.001+01:002013-10-08T00:50:05.884+01:00Three good thingsI played on the floor with my sweet baby girl, trying to get her to crawl. She can push herself backwards on her tummy with ease in the lounge and the kitchen is so close to moving forwards. Her dimples and giggles make my heart sing.<br />
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I miss the din of the school run as both boys had been invited to their friends' houses for tea. I felt redundant and listless.<br />
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Normal service resumed at 7 with a full house of noise, then bed, quiet and a lovely meal of spaghetti with prawn and chorizo and a glass of the last bottle of Virgin red and Mr Gherkin.<br />
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Happy day!Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-24148586268683609532013-01-25T18:11:00.001+00:002013-01-25T18:11:12.793+00:00I love being organised and planning my meals in advance, buying the correct ingredients, getting the best prices, preparing the ingredients, timing the cooking right for whoever is going to eat.<br />
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Tonight I ordered pizza online and am going to stuff my face with my family.<br />
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Whoop whoop!Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-85001605704257592032013-01-08T20:11:00.000+00:002013-01-08T20:11:29.512+00:00Feeling really pregnant<br />
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I have 6 weeks to go until the baby arrives and I have only now started to really feel the strain of pregnancy. I had two relatively easy pregnancies. On my first one I had SPD from 26 weeks to the end and it was hard but manageable. On my second I had it from 20 weeks and had a toddler to chase and carry around and the SPD carried on, on and off until my second was about 3. It was more off than on but it still cut me in half if I pushed it a bit when exercising. This time around I was expecting an even harder trip but to be honest, it has been a piece of cake. No SPD really apart from feeling like I wanted to tighten up the screws in my pelvis but really nothing that bad. <br />
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Now, in the home straight, I can feel how standing for an hour puts a strain on my back and these last couple of days the restless legs have 'kicked off'. Itchiness is annoying but reserved for my lower legs and is manageable with short nails and cream. I had to ask a friend to take my eldest to football tonight as I could not stand the thought of standing in the rain and the dark with my youngest after rushing to feed them and get to the pitch for 6pm. I guess I need to step back a bit and accept help and favours from all the people who have been offering.<br />
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Now can somebody just offer to do my ironing tonight please?Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-74184599338121872992013-01-02T23:46:00.000+00:002013-01-02T23:46:01.669+00:00I have spent this evening watching 3 episodes of <a href="http://lifebegins.channel4.com/" target="_blank">One Born Every Minute</a> whilst my sweet little girl squirmed and kicked and wiggled about. It was delicious! I can'r believe I am, what, 6.5 weeks off having a baby! I have lots to do on her room, lots to bring down from the loft and sort, wash and organise, I have not packed or thought about a hospital bag or really thought much about that time when I will be in hospital. I just think about having her lying asleep on my (enormous) chest and snuffling gently. I can't wait for her to complete our family of five.Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-92146705293406838602012-12-10T23:14:00.001+00:002012-12-10T23:14:30.635+00:00I have just ordered my supermarket shopping to be delivered tomorrow night and I am pleased with myself. I have not done a meal plan as normal for the week as I just did not have the brainpower to do it tonight but I do need bread before Wednesday morning or my children will go sandwichless in school. I am so tired I will probably be astounded at what I purchased tomorrow when the delivery arrives! I normally get a surprise or two in a supermarket shop which is lovely. Last time it was sponge cake flour. What on earth is that? I am so glad that somebody else ordered it and it was delivered to me in error! I shall make sponges that are lighter than air now (but could never justify ordering it myself)!<br />
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My actual Christmas week shop is already waiting in its delivery slot to come just before Christmas and I am heartily pleased with my organisational powers and foresight to book a good slot nearly 3 weeks in advance! Get me! Goodness knows what we shall be eating for Christmas dinner but I do know that my 8 tins of chopped tomatoes will be delivered here in good time to make some tomato soup if I never get around to deciding on the meat for lunch.<br />
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Any ideas?Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-44563030340963001362012-10-24T19:36:00.002+01:002012-10-24T19:36:57.607+01:00Simple PleasuresCall me a fool but I spent an hour this morning unwrapping and wrapping up bobbins of embroider thread. I was in my element! I bought a box of threads from ebay that someone was clearing out and it go here in a it of a mess so I passed an hour undoing and re-wrapping the beautiful colours onto their bobbins and putting the bobbins in colour order. I was in heaven! This project will take a good few more hours until it is all tidy and my own threads have joined their new neighbours in the box, but sometimes you have t take pleasure in life's mundane little idiosyncrasies and see a rainbow in the middle of a mess!<br />
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<br />Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-8421622049957884002012-10-18T21:09:00.000+01:002012-10-18T21:09:03.363+01:00Christmas shopping for three?<br />
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I went Christmas shopping for the kids today and was very pleased with my purchases as I got some good bargains all round. The hardest thing, I found was not buying any presents for Baby Gherks! She is not due until February and certainly does not need any Christmas presents for another 14 months but I have this "3 children" idea in my mind now and it felt almost unfair to only buy for 2 of them! I didn't buy her anything anyway as it would be ridiculous. But a soft soft rabbit nearly made his way home with me!<br />
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<br />Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-35827186348912730452012-10-14T23:08:00.001+01:002012-10-18T20:36:20.137+01:00Pink in the House of Trouser!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Well I have had a couple of days to get used to the news but I have to say that it is still blowing my head off - we are expecting a little girl!<br />
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I was so 100% sure it was a boy and Mr G was sure we were having a girl but I pooh-poohed his idea (I mean a mother knows her body doesn't she?). I could not believe it when the sonographer said it was a girl! I actually said I don't believe her! We told the rest of the family who are all so pleased for us and surprised too as my 2 boys are the only grandchildren and nephews on both sides. Mr G and I are in shock (me especially - "I was ... Wrong?") and are finding it strange to use words like "daughter" and "she" and "her" as they have not really been in our daily vocabulary until now!<br />
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I am so thrilled. I have always wanted three children and now, knowing that I am having a girl, I am reflecting on the other option of three boys. I love having two boys now and I was looking forward to having three boys and just thought that that was the way it was going to be for me. A girl has really made me think about how the dynamic in our house is going to change. I love the idea of having another female in the house (even our cat is male) and I cannot wait to meet her!<br />
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I have to say, I am concerned with the amount of pink that everyone is telling me is going to hit my house. I am not a pink girl and after scaring myself to nausea in the baby clothes aisle of my local supermarket. Does it really have to explode all over the house when a girl arrives? There has been a girl living in my house for as long as I can remember and there is no pink anywhere - not even in the wardrobe! What will our new arrival bring with her? Will the House of Trouser go pink?<br />
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Whatever she brings she will be loved for it by us all.Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-7742772220459220682012-10-11T00:22:00.002+01:002012-10-11T00:22:43.892+01:00Girl or Boy? Boy or Girl?<br />
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Well tonight is the last night I will have not knowing if I am the mother of 3 boys or 2 boys and 1 girl. I have my 20 weeks scan tomorrow morning and we have decided to find out the sex of the baby. This is a weird thing for us as we did not want to find out with Cornichon and not with Little Pickle although towards the end of the second pregnancy I really wished we had found out for purely practical purposes (do I just wash the neutral stuff or all the boy things or buy new?). <br />
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I love love love being a mum of 2 boys. I am not a girly girl and I think that boys have MUCH better toys than girls. (Most of these toys live in the cupboard under my stairs and will be a treasure trove for the baby as soon as he/she is old enough to put things in his/her mouth but I will just have to worry about that a bit further down the line.) That said, a girl would change the balance of the house and possibly bring out the girliness in me too - if it is there!<br />
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I am pretty sure it is a boy. I feel the same now as I did when pregnant with the boys, however Mr Gherkin is sure it is a girl, saying I have been different this time around (huh?). I am very excited about tomorrow and as soon as I know I will tell the whole world. I have bets on Facebook and a whole £1 riding on it with Mr Gherkin. I am sure it is a boy. I will tell all tomorrow.<br />
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Any guesses?Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-32419994641142525002012-10-08T21:39:00.001+01:002012-10-08T21:40:20.112+01:00What time is dinner?For a long time now, I have pondered on when the meal called dinner should take place. Should it be in the middle of the day or is that lunch? Should it be in the evening or is that tea?<br />
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I have always been brought up to have dinner in the middle of the day and tea in the evening. I think that is a working class 'thing' and that is what we ate at home when I lived with my parents. Since moving out (almost 20 years ago) I have vascillated between lunch and dinner and tea and dinner, not really feeling comfortable with anything. I think dinner in the evening is when you go out for a meal (out for dinner) well into the evening but tea is eaten with the children earlier on at 5.30-6.00. I don't feel right having tea at 8. Similarly going out for dinner in the middle of the day sounds wrong but it is fine to go out for lunch, Do I stay in and have dinner at home in the middle of the day? Not really. I think it is going to have to be lunch in the middle of the day and tea early or dinner later on in the evening.<br />
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I think that makes sense in my steam-rollered mind (crazy day). It is just the whole middle-classedness of the whole thing that irks me. Maybe that is just what it is. I am a working class snob who has moved into middle class but is clinging to her roots, and remembering what Mum used to do. <br />
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What time do you have dinner?Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-41289678703588142432012-10-06T22:47:00.000+01:002012-10-06T22:55:35.168+01:00Not Right<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I sit here, on pins, waiting for this first "Mummmmmyyyyyyy?" of what I think could be a very long night. Both little gherkins are asleep but they are neither of them 'right' I would not be surprised if Little Pickle is up puking all night and Cornichon has started going complaining about this, that and the other but nothing specific after 'lights out'. Tonight's one was "I feel funny". Little Pickle was sick this afternoon after drinking too much squash and also had a nap for half an hour at 5 which he <i>never </i>normally does unless he is ill.<br />
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I do so hate to see my little ones poorly but I am lucky that a night of not being 'right' is the worst of my worries, knowing that there are so many parents out there who have much bigger worries on a daily basis to contend with. Poor little April Jones's parents - what on earth are they going through tonight? My heart breaks for them. Sleep well little April.<br />
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When I hear the "Mummmmmmmmmyyyyy?" tonight I will be glad to go in and cuddle them better even more so if the first "Mummmmmmyyyyy?" comes at 0650 tomorrow.Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-55101686099154488072012-05-28T23:12:00.000+01:002012-05-28T23:12:04.708+01:00BleurggingThis blog is a chore sometimes. This is why I don't blog very often. I wish I was one of those people who could blog about nothing and still make it interesting but this is not the case. I will settle for at least blogging something and being happy with the fact that a post has been published and that i have not forgotten this forgotten art. I will thing about the next post and make it interesting. Promise.Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-49121792881779513242012-05-25T23:09:00.002+01:002012-05-25T23:09:47.880+01:00Progress - onwards and upwards!Things are looking up this week as I get things moving in various areas of my life. Running is in full swing and I have signed up for a half marathon in Cardiff. The allotment has spuds and beads in it and a gate into it. Little Pickle has a birthday party tomorrow and food is all ready and waiting to be destroyed. I made a quilt for a friend's little girl out of some scraps that I picked up a couple of years ago and promised myself I would make into a pink girly quilt -well I did and it looks great! Wish I had taken a pic of it though! The <a href="http://www.folksy.com/shops/chestnutgirl" target="_blank">website</a> is looking populated now!<br />
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Wish me luck with some more progress this weekend!Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-36036022107804465272012-04-30T00:33:00.002+01:002012-04-30T00:33:33.177+01:00Creative update<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCcUe9hjjQqRff_nRnZZzcunlZX7fthJhjwnCr_acayfr3H0W2XSui_De5xXaqTbYkd2E_Dta5LkBB40uMau7rlsSphpox3d0SbZC0s0RewFTxZ-LQhWQz4r-RO8yMLKZlw7rlyNh759A/s1600/DSC03802.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCcUe9hjjQqRff_nRnZZzcunlZX7fthJhjwnCr_acayfr3H0W2XSui_De5xXaqTbYkd2E_Dta5LkBB40uMau7rlsSphpox3d0SbZC0s0RewFTxZ-LQhWQz4r-RO8yMLKZlw7rlyNh759A/s320/DSC03802.JPG" width="320" /></a>I am endeavouring to put some more products on my online accessory shop <a href="http://www.folksy.com/shops/chestnutgirl" target="_blank">here</a>. Tonight I managed to take the time to sort out my records of all the stock I have made, write descriptors and put it all into a nice organised spreadsheet which will make it much easier for me to upload to the site. At least that is the intention. Hopefully uploading tomorrow! Watch <a href="http://www.folksy.com/shops/chestnutgirl" target="_blank">this space</a>!<br />
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<br />Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-87364858326346050642012-04-23T21:55:00.001+01:002012-04-23T21:57:54.931+01:00To Be Read Challenge 2012 - Book Review 1OK so my <a href="http://thegherkinjar.blogspot.co.uk/2011/12/to-be-read-2012.html">To Be Read pile</a> is actually reducing now! I am pleased with this as some of the books we have have been hanging around for so long with perfect shiny spines just waiting to be cracked and broken. Enter the TBR challenge!<br />
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I have finished 2 and a half books out of my 12 and for the end of April I guess I am about 1 book behind but I am doing a lot better than I thought I would do!<br />
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Here is the review of the first one<br />
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<a href="http://www.thebookpeople.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/qs_product_tbp?storeId=10001&catalogId=10051&langId=100&productId=188170&searchTerm=Bill%20Bryson" target="_blank">Shakespeare by Bill Bryson</a><br />
I bought this book a few years ago as it was super cheap at <a href="http://www.thebookpeople.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/qs_home_tbp?storeId=10001&catalogId=10051&langId=100" target="_blank">The Book People</a> (I am sure it was cheaper than £6.39!). I have read <a href="http://www.thebookpeople.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/qs_product_tbp?storeId=10001&catalogId=10051&langId=100&productId=190535&searchTerm=Bill%20Bryson" target="_blank">A Walk in the Woods</a> and enjoyed Bryson's writing style of humorous and informative and I developed a love for Shakespeare when I studied King Lear for 'A' Level English Literature 20 years ago so I thought this would be a nice gentle lesson about the playwright.<br />
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I found it an enjoyable book and It did indeed teach me about Mr S, however the reason for the book only being 200 pages cover to cover is because very little is known about him in the first place! I was surprised in this finding given the volume of work that he is known for but Bryson's easy-going amiable informative style makes no apology for the lack of facts in this factual read.<br />
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It is a book I would recommend to anyone who has even a slight interest in Shakespeare and it is so easy and quick to read, it is an interesting eye-opener into the paucity of information that this country has for it's best-known writer.<br />
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A good 7 out of 10Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-77555377699345389262012-03-11T20:45:00.002+00:002012-03-11T20:46:50.030+00:00Time is ticking on by. I sit here, waiting for my hair dye to take and I realise that I have not blogged for ages. I am still here. I am still plugging away at the little things I love. My reading list is 1 and 2 halves down, 10 to go. My garden is getting gardened gradually. My running is up and down. My weight is up and down. My crafting is getting ... somewhere but I have signed up for a fayre so things will have to go up a gear. My family is gorgeous and funsome. My hair is done. I will return tomorrow.Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-5918001050285713292012-01-01T22:34:00.002+00:002012-01-01T22:34:54.635+00:00Well 2012 is here and with it brings hopes and plans and resolutions. I have my fair share of them. They are currently nestled in my head, yet to be typed but they are there and they are good. I plan to blog about them for the month of January. With a bit of luck I will have kept them up to the end of January which I no mean feat for me!<br />
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I made plans for my online shop for my crafty things. They are currently sitting nicely but I am not ready to ship any orders yet. Link coming when it is all ship-shape!<br />
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I feel very organised today and accomplished stuff and I am pleased with myself for this. I am having an early night tonight as the kids are away and I plan on getting some good sleep and doing good stuff tomorrow. Wish me luck!<br />
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<br />Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-28927642196415748062011-12-26T00:43:00.001+00:002011-12-26T00:43:56.238+00:00It happens every year ...Every year around this time. I get introspective. I think about the year just gone and the year yet to come. I make lists. I make plans. I may start these lists and plans. I may carry them out for a week or two. I certainly lose focus on them. I certainly lose my grip. I definitely forget them, maybe for a moment, maybe for a month. I come back to them and bemoan my inability to follow things through. I hate myself for a while. I get introspective. I write another list. I hate this journey. I want to get off.Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-40561141487285984302011-12-18T20:17:00.000+00:002011-12-18T20:17:12.409+00:00Seven more sleeps!We track the countdown to Christmas through the number of sleeps that are left. My eldest, Cornichon has been counting (on and off) since 364 sleeps. There are now seven left and that magical night is all the more'touchable' now! We celebrated the countdown today by watching Christmas films. We went to the cinema to see <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1430607/">Arthur Christmas</a> and really enjoyed it. I love the way the whole Father Christmas story is depicted as a massive NASA-style operation! We then found a new episode of <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2069885/">Prep and Landing Naughty Vs Nice</a>. It was good but not quite as awesome as <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1474311/">the first one</a> which is a constant Christmas reminder all-year round in our house. My two boys were wide-eyed during the films and totally stoked for Christmas! 1 more day for Little Pickle and 2 more for Cornichon and then Christmas Holidays! Whoopee!Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-57931634577501273062011-12-14T20:51:00.005+00:002011-12-14T21:44:11.143+00:00So I'm being naughty but I just don't care4 weeks ago my friend gave me a Christmas present in 2 parts. One in a box and one to be kept in the fridge. Obviously I guessed they would be foodie gifts and tonight I opened them. <div><br /></div><div>I am looking after the kids whilst Mr Gherkin is out on a Christmas night out and I just had to open the box (posh black olive crackers, cornichons-she knows me well, chutney) and the packet (3 flavoured cheddars). Well the crackers ORDERED me to serve with white wine. So I did. I am smashing my way through all of the above and have given up on a shit Catherine Zeta Jones film after 19 mins and have put on the Royal Variety Performance. </div><div><br /></div><div>Get in! Be naughty!</div>Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-39056567208122773012011-12-05T23:22:00.002+00:002011-12-05T23:25:44.374+00:00Blog Clear OutJust had a clear out of 20 blogs that I don't read any more and have got my subs down to a more manageable 132. I will try to get to 100 in the new year. This cleaning lark is cathartic! Books to read lined up for next year, blogs reduced by 14%, lets see if I can use up my fabric stash some time soon too!Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5618685991039228464.post-21930517029622461782011-12-03T22:43:00.005+00:002012-04-23T22:00:21.007+01:00To Be Read 2012<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN9nmxeuG18bW29a-kFEGIqF1SVaI7T0nq8RyogQkZRW8sE0YsSc5vsocfpKecSfEAGxhPWJ_XjVZ7FaEmCQY9PCTWssaEzIFL-eJN-TiFHehjCLfsAhC73jB-e91bASCwGpUfDYzdbzA/s1600/IMG_1040.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5682044455706439090" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN9nmxeuG18bW29a-kFEGIqF1SVaI7T0nq8RyogQkZRW8sE0YsSc5vsocfpKecSfEAGxhPWJ_XjVZ7FaEmCQY9PCTWssaEzIFL-eJN-TiFHehjCLfsAhC73jB-e91bASCwGpUfDYzdbzA/s320/IMG_1040.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 320px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 240px;" /></a><br />
I have shelves full of books in my house many of which I have read but many of which I have had on my To Be Read list for years. I saw <a href="http://roofbeamreader.net/2011/11/14/the-2012-tbr-pile-challenge-sign-ups/?blogsub=confirming#subscribe-blog">this challenge</a> for 2012 and thought it was right up my street.<br />
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Here is my pile<br />
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31 Songs - Nick Hornby</div>
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Love in the Time of Cholera - Gabriel García Marquez</div>
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Paula - Isabel Allende</div>
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Big Stone Gap - Adriana Trigiani (oops picked up the wrong book for the pic)</div>
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The Resurrectionist - James Bradley</div>
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Birdsong - Sebastian Faulkes</div>
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Dylan Thomas - Andrew Lychett</div>
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Eating Children - Jill Tweedie</div>
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The Christmas Books - Charles Dickens</div>
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Birds Without Wings - Louis de Bernières</div>
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<a href="http://thegherkinjar.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/ok-so-my-to-be-read-pile-is-actually.html" target="_blank">Shakespeare - Bill Bryson</a></div>
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Quiet Moments in a War - The Letters of Jean-Paul Sartre to Simone de Beauvoir</div>
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1940-1963</div>
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Tess of the D'Urbevilles - Thomas Hardy</div>
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Insomnia - Stephen King</div>
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In no particular order I have to read 12 of the TBR pile in 2012 (with 2 spares in case 2 are no-goes). The challenge starts on 1st January 2012 and ends on 31st December 2012 by which time all the books will have been read and reviewed here. I think it is a fab challenge and hope it makes a big space on my groaning bookshelves in 2012!</div>
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<br /></div>Gherkinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14063234583650427535noreply@blogger.com2