The Month of February

Warmth had the day off work to wait in for a new carpet to be laid. Now all we need for the front room is an over mantel mirror and some pictures.
The train to Canterbury to see Mother, a quiet and lovely weekend catching up and keeping warm.
Really enjoying going along to Pregnancy Pilates.
A quiet Friday evening mooching to the Tatty Devine shop to buy this and discovering it's in the online sale, wandering past MW Nails that I've read lots about, popping in on the off chance they had a space and having a lovely Friday night file and polish in their airport style salon. Still having time to pop to the MAC shop to buy a new eye shadow and then home. A very lovely Friday evening.
Meeting up with a dear friend to go to the Valentino exhibition at Somerset House followed by tea at Laduree. Perfect for a cold dreary Saturday.
Up early on Sunday as friends, with their four children, were coming to lunch and to very kindly drop off a whole load of baby bits and pieces.
A delicious Valentines Day meal cooked by Warmth of lamb shanks and chorizo.
Popping round to Mama and Papa Warmth expecting a cup of tea to be welcomed with afternoon tea of delicate sandwiches, scones, fruit loaf and lemon drizzle cake. Then off to meet Mother for a quick, and very light supper at Victoria, as she then went to meet Pops at the airport.
A wonderful family day on Sunday welcoming Pops back with a 'low key' turkey and trimmings. So lovely to see him, he to see bump, when he left three months ago there was nothing to see. Catching up on three months of our news and all he's experienced. Lovely to know that his stories will keep coming and being talked about.
Beginning the half term with my #bookswap delivery. I have so many wonderful books to read that I mustn't buy anymore.
Off to the Kings Road for a mooch and more importantly meet a dear friend for lunch, catch up and to learn more about babyhood at Pain Quotidian. It was almost like when we used to work together and would sometimes meet up there between visits.
Finally getting round to buying a food processor, so when I saw the latest Hummingbird Bakery book reduced in the shop it felt foolish to resist it.
Discovering a dainty patch of snowdrops, being able to hang out the washing and permanently having a vase of daffodils. Spring is coming and soon I'll be back out in the garden. I can't wait.
Then off to Poole Hotel du Vin for a few days rest. My it was cold. We wrapped up warm and the delicious soup at this deli warmed us. Gawping at the huge houses at Sandbanks, a brief and windy walk along the sandy shores, catching the chain ferry across the spit to Swanage for fish and chips, stopping off at a traditional sweet shop to buy iron rations for exploring Corfe Castle and each night being thankful that we were dining in the hotel's restaurant so we didn't need to venture out.
A lovely evening with Warmth's brother and wife at The Young Vic bar and supper at Ev.
Continuing with the Sunday bake, though the pear, raspberry and oat loaf was just too soggy, an apricot and marzipan loaf from The Great British Bake Off book and another lemon drizzle cake, with an extra lemon added for additional zing.
Reading The boy in striped pyjamas by John Boyne for my school course, finishing Diana Athill, Instead of a Book and really enjoying The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller. Finishing off the month with The Parasites by Daphne du Maurier, one of my Mr B's Reading spa recommendations.

The Month of August

Continued with watching the Olympics. A lot.
With the news that the window restorers were not starting meeting up with a dear friend for a mooch and then lunch at Cocomaya on the Kings Road.
Quiet, as in not doing much, noisy as in lots of banging, days around the house as the downstairs windows were restored.
Meeting dear print making friends for our annual visit to the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. This time we discussed the Olympics as well as art and life.
A weekend of Olympics. Watching it on television, going to Potters Field to watch it on a big screen and the next day cheering the Women's marathon in the rain.
A lovely week of friends to lunch, visiting school friends and university friends in Sevenoaks, meeting friends for lunch out on the Southbank, pottering in the house, reading all sandwiched in between watching the Olympics.
Meeting a friend for Monday night tapas and rose at Jose. Then the next day meeting a dear friend for lunch at Mishkins a mooch through Covent Garden including Kate Spade and the Chanel pop up then to Laduree for macarons and tea.
Off to France to stay chez Mama and Papa Warmth. Drinking delightful wine, a Sunday mooch at a local brocante, a return visit to La Borne a favourite pottery place, the book town of La Charite, a paddle in La Loire as it was so hot. On to Amboise to view the chateau and Clos Luce where Leonardo de Vinci lived. An anniversary drive back through France - that included sat nav taking us along the Boulevard Peripherique.
Productive days around the house. Destroying the bamboo, clearing the pond and stripping the wallpaper in the front room. Interspersed with drinks at The Railway, learning alot more about Edward Munch at the Tate Modern and meeting The Brothers Warmth, plus wives, at PropStore for drinks and Wahaca for much needed food.
The final days of school holidays going into school for the morning to prepare for September.
Really feeling that autumn is coming - socks on!
And we finish the month of August at the Olympic Park cheering on the ParaOlympics.

Baking that Banana Bread again.
Reading Mrs Bridge by Evan S. Connell - oh the ending. Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie, The Report by Jessica Francis Kane, A World of Love by Elizabeth Bowen, A Favourite of the Gods by Sybille Bedford.

A World of Love by Elizabeth Bowen

As you know this blog has very few book reviews but having read a World of Love by Elizabeth Bowen my mind was a whirl of thoughts and so rather than keep these thoughts muddled in my mind I thought I'd scribble them here.

Picked up in a second hand bookshop, having heard Elizabeth Bowen's name mentioned on many blogs. From reading the back cover I thought I'd be reading letters of love, oh how wonderful a slim book of love letters. Nothing like it and probably one of the reasons why it took a second attempt to read it. The first time I was commuting and it was a slow forty page read until I decided this was a book to linger over, to let the words roll around inside me, a holiday book.
It is a holiday book, a summer holiday book. When the air around you is hot and stifling. It fits the claustrophobic feel of this book. Minutes, hours, days, months and years to fill. The scene with Lilia, Fred and the letters felt like the rain had come, the atmosphere calmed and all could begin again. But then as you hope a storm will clear the air - this one doesn't.
This book journeyed with me on holiday to rural France with temperatures of 37 degrees. I felt that my view was the French equivalent of this Irish landscape. Staying in a cool house with cool stone walls reminded me of Montefort. A place where everyone knows your movements, business and sometimes even thoughts yet somehow the walls are thick and hold secrets. I finished reading with the sound of two men manually transferring logs with a wheelbarrow in the strong late morning heat  seemed appropriate and fitting.

Throughout I kept beginning the thought 'This could be a lovely quote to store for the blog' but these words were never very long - so often punctured by chance, a sour note or observation.

I shall read another Elizabeth Bowen but feel a rest from her is needed, especially if written with as much unsaid emotion as this. If these are my thoughts on this Elizabeth Bowen what would you recommend as my next read?

a holiday

'In the radiance and the silence, she ran on the vast expanse of hard, smooth sand, beside herself with joy. Ah, when you only have a holiday once in a while, what a happiness it is! Each golden minute had to be held and perfected before it was let go.' Dorothy Whipple High Wages

journey

The bags are packed, the car is piled high and we're off to France for our summer holiday.

See you soon x

The Month of July

Mama and Papa Warmth to lunch, a walk around the garden and a lovely catch up.
Meeting a friend and having the opportunity of seeing the Olympic rings over Tower Bridge whilst eating a pizza at Strada.
Friday night mooching in Selfridges with a dear friend, exploring the beauty halls, the fashion, the home ware and then resting with a beautiful glass of rose and some snacks on the roof garden. Somehow it did stay dry though the blankets in buckets were most welcome by the end of the evening.
Celebrating Warmth's birthday with friends to stay. A BBQ with so much meat that the only pudding was Warmth's Birthday cake - all he wanted was a Gingernut loaf from his childhood.
Watching Murray in the Wimbledon final.
Meeting a friend on a soggy Thursday for drinks at The National Theatre at Propstore pop up bar. The Southbank is looking so wonderful it just needs dry weather for everyone to be able to stand out and enjoy.
A sad Saturday of meeting a dear friend for a farewell afternoon tea at Fortnum&Mason, then a slow mooch up Bond Street window gazing before going to leaving drinks for another friend. Both lovely times but I do wish they weren't leaving.
Hurrah the last day of term, an end of year social in the hall with huge vats of curry from a local restaurant.
My birthday gift to Warmth was a Eurostar trip to Paris.
An earlyish start the next day to cheer on the Olympic Torch as it went down both ends of our road. Then off to dear friends of Warmth's for a BBQ and catch up.
A lovely, lazy sunny Sunday ending with a BBQ in the garden.
First day of the summer holidays and the sun in all its glory shone. Popping into school and meeting a dear friend for her birthday. I'd suggested Inn the Park but alas Beach Volleyball scuppered those plans. So we found a great lunch deal at Maze where we had a cooling glass of fizz, a four course taster, coffee and then a tour of the kitchen. A delicious and lovely way to start the holidays.
Off to Kew to cheer on a friend who'd been nominated to for the Torch Relay. Oh it was hot but what fun it was. Spending a lazy day in Kew. Cooling lime and sodas in a shady pub garden and then to Ask pizza a whole group of us, plus the Olympic Torch.
Sitting in the shade by Blackheath pond meeting Rachel for lunch, book mooching and gentle chatting.
And then to watch the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games. It was amazing. The whole Olympics are amazing and in fact I felt like just writing this sentence for The Month of July as it surpasses everything else this month, yes even Paris.
A family party with fun games in the garden, lots of delicious food but not quite enough Olympic watching.
Sunday lunch with mama and papa Warmth the Olympics were on all the time.
The month finished with Mother coming up for a day of gardening.
Lots of cakes baked for school Fun Day and the cake stall. Lemon Drizzle and iced star biscuits were the biggest success. Lots of fairy cakes baked and a banana loaf. A different banana loaf with added seeds - hoping this one doesn't sink.
Books read Illyrian Spring by Ann Bridge, Lunch in Paris by Elizabeth Bard. The first of my new birthday Vogue subscription and The Mirador, dreamed memories of Irene Nemirovsky by her daughter, by Elisabeth Gille.

Are you enjoying the Olympics?

in the old-apple tree

Today is the last day of term, last day of our academic school year. I don't quite have three months off but this is how I'm feeling.

"Three months' vacation! how I shall enjoy it!" exclaimed Meg, coming home one warm day...
"What shall you do all your vacation?" asked Amy...
"I shall lie abed late, and do nothing," replied Meg, from the depths of the rocking chair. "...now I'm going to rest and revel to my heart's content."
"Hum!" said Jo; "that dozy way wouldn't suit me. I've laid in a heap of books, and I'm going to improve my shining hours reading on my perch in the old-apple tree..." Louise May Alcott Little Women

lie abed

I intend to be a bit of Meg and Jo - lying abed late reading.

Paris in July

One of the many lovely things about blogging are the annual events. Paris in July is one of them. This year I'm going to read Lunch in Paris by Elizabeth Bard and The Mirador, Dreamed memories of Irene Nemirovsky by her daughters, by Elisabeth Gille. Then on the 21st July we are actually going to Paris for the day.

Paris

Will you be journeying to Paris this July?

The Month of June

The month started with the last day of half term and a fish and chip supper with Mother and Pops before a very early start the next day for our family holiday in Mallorca.
Celebrating our birthday there with lovely gifts, two cakes, being twins there has to be two cakes, being transported out there and easy to pack gifts. Swimming in the pool and then Twin and I took everyone out for supper at Stay restaurant.
The rest of the week was glorious. Swimming, reading, sunbathing, a daily cafe con leche, a mooch in a town, a return to the villa for more swimming and sunbathing. Ending the day with beers, rose wine, communal meals, Scrabble and days filled with happy memories.
Returning to work but made more pleasurable by meeting a friend for Monday evening cocktails at Lounge Lover and then supper at Boundary.
Catching up with dear printmaking friends at Waterstones and deciding that our IRL bookclub has come to an end but long live meeting up for friendship.
Meeting a dear friend who is about to leave for Singapore for Friday night drinks at Dalla Terra  and then supper at Dishoom.
A much needed weekend around the house - somehow being in the garden doesn't feel like a chore. Is this how some people view house work
Party weekend... Pink lanterns hanging in the tree, fizz chilling, amazing cakes, home made lasagne, dear friends, including one friend coming over from New York for it. How wonderful friends are. Re wearing my wedding dress - red nails, barefoot. 
Wandering to Tudor Barn Art weekend on the Sunday, eating cake, left over lasagne, toast and crisps.
Cakes baked started off with ones to take into work for my birthday. Nigella's Lemon Drizzle, Bill Granger's Chocolate Brownie, though I forgot to add the chocolate but it was still delicious, Eat Me! Farmhouse biscuits and Hummingbird Orange and Almond cake.
Books read finally finished Jane Eyre, I'm back in love it on this third read. The Paris Wife a perfect holiday book, Florence Finds Book Club book this month. Cheerful weather for a Wedding in the most uncheerful weather. Starting to try and read some of Warmth's books - Evelyn Waugh Vile Bodies.
Book giftings Persephone Cheerful weather for a wedding by Julia Strachey, a gift voucher to be spent on Daunt Books Ilyrian Spring and a delightful book of photographs of me from birth to now from Mother and Pops. A delightful book London A History in Verse, a bibliotherapy session at Mr B's Emporium.

Tomorrow we're off to a wedding at The Horniman Museum. June has been a truly wonderful month.

Lazy Holidays

Today is the last day before the half term holidays and tomorrow we fly to Mallorca for a family holiday. Mother, Pops, Twin & husband, The Blessings and of course Warmth. We are hoping for sunshine, rest and creating more wonderful family memories.

holiday

See you soon x

Flimsiest of papers

I joyfully joined in with Venice in February partly as I knew we had a book I could read, without having to buy another one. It was Ian McEwan's The Comfort of Strangers. I had been forewarned about this book. My is it eerie. Read Bellezza's review and the comments to find out more. After finishing it I felt the need to return to Miss Pettigrew lives for the day to restore my faith in the comfort of strangers.
I shall just post on this passage, quite near the beginning, which made me smile.

'A variety of maps was on sale. The least significant were produced by commercial interests and, besides showing the more obvious tourist attractions, they gave great prominence to certain shops or restaurants. These maps were marked with the principal streets only. Another map was in the form of a badly printed booklet and it was easy, Mary and Colin had found, to get lost as they walked from one page to another. Yet another was the expensive, officially sanctioned map which showed the whole city and named even the narrowest of passageways. Unfolded, it measured four feet by three and, printed on the flimsiest of papers, was impossible to manage outdoors without a suitable table and special clips. Finally there was a series of maps, noticeable by their blue-and-white striped covers, which divided the city into five manageable sections, none of them unfortunately overlapping.' Ian McEwan The Comfort of Strangers

map 

How is your map of Venice?

.

Awakened

We're off to Berlin for a few nights. Here's Mrs Tim's thoughts on sleeping in a hotel bedroom.

"How many hundreds and thousands of people have awakened in this room; awakened to their sorrows and joys, their hopes and their fears? Strange that I should have slept so well, untroubled by the haunting of their thoughts!" D.E.Stevenson Mrs Tim and the regiment

Some day dream bedrooms to dream of lazing in...

bed

Through groves of orange

We're off to Seville. In preparation I re read As I walked out one midsummer's morning by Laurie Lee. Inscribed in the front cover 'A present to take with you to Spain love mum'

(That would be when I went on a school trip aged 13 years.)

'Ever since childhood I'd imagined myself walking down a white dusty road through groves of orange to a city called Seville....

In fact there was no white road, not even a gold-clustered orange tree, but Seville itself was dazzling - a creamy crustation of flower-banked houses fanning out from each bank of the river.' Laurie Lee As I walked out one midsummers morning.

Tiny white Daisies

See you soon x

A Room With A View Memories

As we walked, observed, felt and smelt our way around Florence glimpses of the book came back to me. So here are my A Room With A View Moments from our trip.

I think they were more Eleanor Lavish, than the Miss Allens, even though there were two of them. Two American women living in Florence at the bar in our hotel. Struck up conversation with a couple by saying
"Can you answer a bet - are you on honeymoon?" After that they proceeded to give travel and restaurant advice.

Said honeymoon couple in our hotel.

Discussing Postcards in Piazza Santa Croce - just where Lucy dropped her postcards....

Mr. Eager would have been the character to over hear this comment and retell it countless times.
A British school girl half way around The Uffizi, I think on an art trip as they all had sketch books, saying to her friend as she looked at a Madonna painting.
"Who is this Madonna? Is she our Madonna? The Madonna?"
(We think she meant Madonna Louise Ceccione)

A huge thunderstorm with great cracks of thunder and lightening. Thankfully we were safe in our hotel room and not out in a carriage.

Seeing a couple sitting on Mackintosh squares.

Lazing in bed on the last morning hearing Puccini's Oh Mio bambino caro

Being in Florence with the man I love.

Florence

Florence, what a lovely lovely time we had.

Here are some of my memories.

With our Luxe guide to help discover the gems.

O ur hotel

in

so we had to visit

And then Santa Maria Novella Pharmacia .

We marvelled at

and our favourite museum was

a welcome simplicity after the ornateness of The Uffizi.

We licked a

every day.

We had to eat a slice of

Every night we started with a

and then to some delicious restaurants.

We drank lots of lovely

And finally we queued for our

to take the


back to

The end of a wonderful wonderful holiday.

Travels With My Aunt

I had a slight panic in the days leading up to Florence that I only had one book. As part of The Duty Free Shopping Experience we went to WHS Books. I found Graham Greene's Travels With My Aunt. It was perfect for this trip.

"I find it difficult myself to go away for a night without a rather heavy suitcase, for I am uneasy if I have not at least one change of suit and that entails also a change of shoes. A change of shirt, a change of underclothes and of socks are almost essential to me, and taking into consideration the vagaries of the English climate I like to take some woollens just in case." Graham Greene Travels With My Aunt

slightly overpacked

Florence

Woo hoo we're off for a short break - to Florence. Oh how Twin and I adored the book, the film, Freddie.... For some 'I Capture the Castle' is their teenage daydream book for us it was 'A Room with a View.' I'm reading my original copy with 1988 written in the inside in my school girl handwriting. I think this trip will be different to when Twin and I went. No pretending to be Lucy standing by the Arno. Warmth has already been warned, and was already aware, that there will be moments of "In A Room with a View this is where....."

"It was pleasant to wake up in Florence, to open the eyes upon a bright bare room, with a floor of red tiles which look clean though they are not; with a painted ceiling...It was pleasant, too, to fling wide the windows, pinching the fingers in unfamiliar fastenings , to lean out on the sunshine with beautiful hills and trees and marble churches opposite, and, close below, the Arno, gurgling against the embankment of the road." E.M. Forster A Room with a View.

A Room with a View

To revisiting cities in different stages in life.

The Month of August

A fantastic holiday in The Loire. Drinking Pouilly and Sancerre, bbq's, reading and chatting with friends. Visited La Borne for pottery.

Flirting with Twitter.

Testing which Annouck Goutal perfume to buy.... Tail end of sail bargains.... Cocinelle black leather bag, Jigsaw purple patent t-bar shoes. All Saints denim jacket. Discovered my sunglasses were broken right at the end - do I replace now or next year?

Finding a flat to rent before we become homeless after selling ours... Resting for two weeks at Warmth's parents whilst they're on holiday and we were homeless. Perfect timing.

Toes 'Lacquered Up', nails 'Coral Reef' Essie. Love Coral Reef toenail perfection... 'Mod-ern Gal' OPI on toes and fingers. Then two days back in the classroom sorting it out and my fingernails were wrecked!

Read 'We Need To Talk About Kevin' Lionel Shriver - absolutely loved it. Holiday and house packed brain can't remember what else.

A bbq where I wore hunter wellies rather than summer dress.
Friday night cocktails at The Leather Market and then The Woolpack London Bridge.
Tate Modern 'Exposed' and Francis Alys (strange but absolutely fantastic.)
Anniversary luch at The Oxo Tower, chosen as we bought our rings at a jewellers there.
A random twice in one week mooch along Northcote Road. My godson's sister was wearing a very pretty party dress. She came down stairs wearing it that morning saying
'I just felt I needed to be pretty today....'

Last Friday mooch around Portobello for a while but.... it really will be easy to catch a bus to Spitalfields for after work mooching.

Enjoying the last few days of the summer holidays....

Elizabeth and her German Garden

Somewhere I read a post about 'Elizabeth and her German Garden' and being a great fan of Elizabeth von Arnim I tucked it away in my memoryand then lo and behold there was a copy in a second hand bookshop. Thank you to whomever originally posted about it. It was perfect holiday reading.


' I lived in a world of dandelions and delights. The dandelions carpeted the three lawns... under and among the groups of leafless oaks... were blue hepaticas, white anemones, violets... And then, before I had a little got used to the joy of their flowers against the sky, came the lilacs - masses and masses of them...


the acacias all blossomed too, and four great clumps of pale, silvery-pink peonies flowered under the south windows, I felt so absolutely happy, and blest, and thankful, and grateful, that I really cannot describe it. My days seemed to melt away in a dream of pink and purple peace.' Elizabeth von Arnim Elizabeth and Her German Garden

My days on holiday really did melt away in a dream....

dandelions , anemomes, lilacs, peonies

Mighty Rivers

We've returned from our lovely holiday holidaying by the mighty Loire

'Human feeling is like the mighty rivers that bless the earth; it does not wait for beauty - it flows with restless force and brings beauty with it.' George Eliot Adam Bede

Holidays

So I am now beautifully in the mood for holidays. Having spent a month in the virtual world of France I am now off for a holiday in the real France. Great wine, great friends, good food, much laughter and hopefully some sunshine. My bags are packed.
@

See you soon x