A new 'tougher' thread... and so it continues

stiltwalker

anakat wrote: »

Delurking to ask if this the book?
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Gammage-Carol-Kendalls-Tales-Minnipins/dp/015202493X/ref=sr_1_sc_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1340472158&sr=1-1-spell
and before you ask, I don't make tea even my kids wont drink it if i do.

Oh yay - right author, it's the original I remember - didn't even know there were any more will have to get them!

2 n's, that's why I wasn't getting anywhere. Thanks so much.

ETA - just had to buy the original and the other 2 now!

Byatt

GQ, forgot to ask, but do you despatch the little bu$$ers with one blow? The slugs that is, and is it quick and painless?

MMLS

Byatt wrote: »

Hi MMLS, could you post the link for the napkin site please? http://www.napkins-wimmel.co.uk/en/napkins.html I think it's a German website but it's in English and they ship here. Be warned though - there's literally hundreds of beautiful napkins and it's hard to choose.

I have decoupaged the top of a pine chest with old music sheets and it looks ok...so I have some mod podge but need a bigger pot!

I shall have a look at the vids and will take some before and after pics to post. Look forward to seeing them

I think with the napkins you can choose so many lovely ones and although I love fabric, this is the next best thing. I agree

Off to watch the vids now.

Edit: just watched the vid and isn't that napkin the cutest thing! I am very excited about this, but really, really need to be patient. I have a bad habit of rushing through things rather than taking it slow and enjoying the whole process. I had a look at the link she posted with that video and I think it's a Canadian site and, if I remember rightly, you can order that particular napkin and they do ship here. She really made it special though didn't she? I have a little set of drawers like that and I'd never thought of covering it in that way ie using a craft knife to cut between the drawers. It's extremely inspiring. I have a different problem to you though. I don't rush through but procrastinate like hell then move on to something else

Just wanted to add that many years ago the Malory Towers/St Clare's books made me nag my parents to send me to boarding school. We weren't wealthy btw. Dad was in the RAF and they paid for it I don't think they do that nowadays. Turned out that boarding was nothing like Enid Blyton led me to believe - I hated it Apart from EB my main reason for going was having to change schools every year or two and the resulting lack of confidence that came with that. I left 6 years later more shy than when I started!

Does anyone remember 'The Bobbsey Twins'? My aunt lent me a set of the books when I was quite young and I'm the only one I know - apart from her - that's even heard of them. I have a feeling that they were probably American though and from what I remember they were kind of Famous Five-ish.

greenbee

GQ - the seagulls are coming inland because the weather out at sea is too horrid for them!

SpikyHedgehog

Byatt wrote: »

Spiky, I admire your restraint using the word "errant". At 15 months out, a post about my ex would be full of these !!!!!!! and !!!!!!!!

Definitely set boundaries. Was he always that way with children or is it since he left? You don't have to answer.

I woke up this morning feeling like I have the whole world on my shoulders, very, very down. Kind of know why, but doesn't help somehow. Also aching all over, with ulcers on my tongue and niggly pains over kidneys. Trying to read a book to distract myself, but I read several pages and then realise it hasn't sunk in, so have to start again.

I hate it when I have that with books, but I try to put that particular book aside and go for something so comfortable and familiar that I could pick it off the shelf & open it anywhere and instantly know where I was in the book...

It's ok to ask :-) there was never anything abusive when he was with us. I think he's channelling a lot of his feelings about the girlfriend's elder children onto DS1... He told me the other day Girlfriend said to him DS1 hasn't lost a dad, it's just that dad doesn't live with him any more. To which I said she had a cheek projecting feelings onto my son and that of course DS1 feels he's lost his dad since his dad doesn't live in our house to see everyday and isn't here at bedtime if DS2 is playing up, and isn't here to help DS2 with homework while DS1 talks to me about a problem at school or vice versa.

I pointed out that the boys know someone who's dad is dead and cannot be seen at all, and DS1 has no contact with his biological dad (who moved away when DS1 was 5 and chose to leave no details of how we could contact him), so yes, DS1 has not so completely lost his dad as my friend's son has or he has lost bio dad, but that since Errant Husband has been DS's dad since he was 4, or for the past 13 years, he jolly well is entitled to feel he has lost his dad. (Particularly since the Girlfriend appears to actively obstruct the relationship and any time Errant Husband is going to take the boys out ie for a walk in the woods, insists on coming as well.)

I took DS1 to our local Child and Adolescent Mental Health Unit the other day and the Educational Psychiatrist we saw there was very happy with DS1's mental state (since he's been improving a lot since seeing the counsellor for children in divorce & separation) but asked if Errant Husband had been assessed for having an Autistic Spectrum Disorder? He does not get nuances of conversation any more than DS2 (who is being assessed for ASD...).

It's been hard work to get him to accept that there will be changes in the household since he left. (He'd been having an affair & denying it till the girlfriend was ready for him to move in, at which point he told me he was leaving & when I asked where to said Girlfriend's house, I then said so you have been having an affair & he admitted it... :mad::() Any time we change furniture around, I get a lecture on why it was better the other way. If when I'm not there, DS1 says something to DS2 like 'Remember mum said for you to only have milk and an apple for snack as dinner will be early tonight so we can get to your school play', he tells DS1 off for telling DS2 things..

It's hard work. And I've been very close to saying 'You can only see the boys on the weekends - Saturday from 11am to 9am Sunday am so we can go to church'. He works shifts 2 day shifts, 2 night shifts, 4 days off but has to do overtime as the Girlfriend doesn't work so if I do have to say 'Only the weekends', it's really going to mean 'Only 3 weekends out of 8', which is why I've not yet said it.

I have to call them Errant Husband & his girlfriend or I'll end up saying something else in front of DS2! If he says 'Nanny/teacher/vicar/etc, mummy says daddy's an Errant Husband and that (Name) is his girlfriend', it's inarguable :-) If he says 'Mummy says daddy's an !!!!ing !!!!hole and that (Name) is a home wrecking !! who will take anything she takes a fancy to whether it is free to be taken or not and that Nanny should count the silver every time (Name)'s been round', it will come back and bite me, at the very least for the language I've used. The bad words have been used, I can assure you!

(Apologies for the italics! I copied & pasted the spelling of CAHMS from Google & it decided to put everything after that in italics...)

SpikyHedgehog

stiltwalker wrote: »

Oh yay - right author, it's the original I remember - didn't even know there were any more will have to get them!

2 n's, that's why I wasn't getting anywhere. Thanks so much.

ETA - just had to buy the original and the other 2 now!

I remember that book too! But wouldn't have even remembered the name Minnipins I remember Ltd and Etc though.

Pooky

Living on the coast, I can't comment on seagulls, they're a constant here, I love them, cheeky beggers that they are. When ever we've stayed further inland I've missed their wake up call.

Malory Towers was my dream scool and I couldn't understand why my parents wouldn't send me to boarding school. I read the books to my eldest daughter but she didn't like them much. DD2 refused to listen or read them. How mean! I really, really wanted to change my name to Darrell too.

Slugs have decimated my veg this year (new garden so wasnt sure what would grow anyway) but I shall be investing in a pond next year, the frogs do a fab job of keeping slugs down...not sure how many frogs our 6 cats will bring in but I'm sure the balance will work out. I've had the odd frog in the garden so I know once a pond is in, they will find it. Seems like a Nice natural way of pest control. Our kittens did find a hedgehog the other evening on the front lawn so I need to encourage them round to the back too.

SpikyHedgehog

MMLS wrote: »

Just wanted to add that many years ago the Malory Towers/St Clare's books made me nag my parents to send me to boarding school. We weren't wealthy btw. Dad was in the RAF and they paid for it I don't think they do that nowadays. Turned out that boarding was nothing like Enid Blyton led me to believe - I hated it Apart from EB my main reason for going was having to change schools every year or two and the resulting lack of confidence that came with that. I left 6 years later more shy than when I started!

Does anyone remember 'The Bobbsey Twins'? My aunt lent me a set of the books when I was quite young and I'm the only one I know - apart from her - that's even heard of them. I have a feeling that they were probably American though and from what I remember they were kind of Famous Five-ish.

There's some Bobbsey Twins books on amazon kindle for free download! I had some of the books, out of the library I think...

Cat501

Pooky wrote: »

Living on the coast, I can't comment on seagulls, they're a constant here, I love them, cheeky beggers that they are. When ever we've stayed further inland I've missed their wake up call.

Malory Towers was my dream scool and I couldn't understand why my parents wouldn't send me to boarding school. I read the books to my eldest daughter but she didn't like them much. DD2 refused to listen or read them. How mean! I really, really wanted to change my name to Darrell too.

There was a girl called Darrell at my first primary school, I was so jealous of her:rotfl:I wonder if she was actually named after Darrell Rivers? Have to confess I can remember writing my name as "Darrell" over and over again, in the same way people write "Mrs Jane Smith" is their name is Jane and they have a crush on a boy called Smith!!!:o:o

Where I used to live we had seagulls nesting on our roof, you took your life in your hands going outside when the chicks were young! I still like them though even if it was pretty hairy!

eta the Chalet School books - I only had one, and all I can remember is the Maynard triplets (Con, Len and...???) and somebody called Yseult (sp?), it used to drive me bananas that I had no idea how to pronounce it!

Uniscots97

mardatha wrote: »

Did anybody else read "Tom's Midnight Garden" ? I've still got it here

Yes I read it Mar.

Started reading the copy of the Wishing Chair I got, it's strange reading it again. Glad though they haven't censored it, i.e. the non-pc stuff. I was an avid Bunty reader (until they cancelled it) and noticed that when they reprinted a story I had read as a child they had censored a drawn picture of the baby-sitter spanking two very naughty children. They also put a caption underneath saying years ago it was acceptable to smack children and now it had been proved that it was unhealthy and didn't have any effect (It didn't do me any harm).