The Garden Fence - proper Old Style support and chat!

monnagran

Polly, I will be very, very, very careful about what I say in future. I laboured under the misapprehension that people forgot my ramblings as soon as they switched off. You really do have a most inconvenient memory. In spite of that I am so pleased to see you back posting. I've missed you.

MMF, I think its called 'muddling through.' Times like this you can only do what is in front of you, and with the best will in the world no one can do it for you. We all worry about you and try to understand what it must be like to go through what you are going through just now, but all we can really do is to listen and support. It seems woefully inadequate when we would really love to lift some of your burdens from you. Just know that we care about you and admire you for the care you are taking of both your parents.

J amanda. about the vegan brownies, I've not actually made them yet. I googled for the recipe and elected to to the Genius Kitchen one because I had everything in my kitchen cupboards and all the reviews on it were good. If you can't find it, come back to me and I will type it out for you.
As for the coconut tarts, I'm no help there I'm afraid. I don't care for coconut much so wouldn't spoil a good jam tart with it. I would think that you'd need a bit of sugar and coconut and something to loosely bind it. An egg? I don't know really.

Well the Nativity was interesting. Pickle wasn't Mary at all, she was an angel. A bit of miscasting if ever there was one. Anyway, apparently being an angel is better because the costume is prettier. Her friend was a shepherd. I dont know if she chose to be a shepherd or if there was a dearth of boys in the class but it was certainly gender neutral. She danced. As her mother said, she was on a stage and when you are on a stage you dance. So we had a deceptively angelic looking angel and a dancing shepherd.

If I'm to finish this cushion cover before Monday I'd better get knitting

karcher

I was going to post a load of waffle, but deleted.

I'll just say 'hello' instead and really hope you are all having a restful evening...especially MMF & VJsmum x

MMF007

Fuddle and Monnagran you both say the most kind and thoughful things. Thank you, and thank you to everyone for your kind thoughts. It really does help, i want you to know that. xxxxxx

I did manage to get mum to stay at home and I visited. Dad was a bit topsy turvy on his pillows but the nurses soon put him right and he said how well they were all looking after him. I spent about 10 minutes with him then he asked for a bit more nursing attention so I nipped out. I went back for about another 15 minutes and we talked a bit. Most of his conversation was putting his affairs in order. He is also talking about xmas and he was disappointed that it is not tomorrow. He said he was glad I was staying for xmas. I think it is another weight off his mind, that I'll be able to look after mum.

So, we are having a mince pie and a g&t

Nargleblast

MMF007 - sounds like Dad’s waiting for the right moment, when he feels assured all is in order. Look after yourself and Mum.

Monnagran - bet you cried buckets at the Nativity play! I remember reading a piece by Jilly Cooper years ago about a Yorkshire village school play. The pupils had done the script themselves and the audience held their breath as the curtains opened to reveal Mary and Joseph in the stable.
Joseph - “ How’s our Jesus been, then?”
Mary - “ He’s been a reet little booger all day!”

How do you follow that?

monnagran

Nargleblast, I dont. Have you ever read, "A Wayne in a Manger," by Gervase Phinn? It's hilarious. Not that any Nativity that I organised was without incident. When I was a very young teacher I had to organise a Nativity in the local parish church. The church was very long and I had the shepherds at the back so that they could wander up the aisle slowly. We rehearsed this drifting, in a dazed and wondering fashion and I thought I'd cracked it. Stupidly, well I was very inexperienced, I made one little boy the leader and charged him with seeing that the shepherds set off at the right time. He took his responsibilities seriously. He must have drilled his shepherds every playtime for days. On the night, there was no dreamy wandering. Those shepherds marched briskly up the aisle in formation, left right, left right. straight backs, arms swinging. The Coldstream Guards would have been impressed. They arrived at their post in front of the pulpit, where, between the afternoon rehearsal and the evening performance, the ladies of the church had erected the largest flower arrangement I have ever seen.
There my shepherds arranged themselves, "all seated on the ground" and one of them managed to hook his crook around a flower or two.
Every time he fidgetted, which was often, the whole floral edifice swayed dangerously. The entire audience was transfixed waiting for the inevitable crash, which thankfully didnt happen.

By the next year I had learned a thing or two and, by golly, those shepherds wandered dreamily. So dreamily in fact that most of them disappeared and had to be returned from various corners of the church by amused parents and a very cross and embarrassed young teacher.

And then there was the Mary who walked on to the stage casually dangling the baby Jesus by one foot from her outstretched hand..........

I'm a loss to the acting profession.

Floss

One of my boys' nativity plays had an Innkeeper who welcomed everybody in, including the donkey, which completely flummoxed the teacher. Another had Mary with a real baby as Jesus (her brand new baby sister) who slept all the way through her moment of stardom!

Hard_Up_Hester

I had a very competitive neighbour who was devastated when her son was given the role of a rocking chair in a school play. She felt he shoud have had the starring role as he was so talented.
I was sat next to her throughout the play, she spent ten minutes reiterating all the reasons why he was so special.
Once the play started the 'rocking chair' began to rock violently and to creak loudly, in fact he creaked so loudly he drowned out all the dialogue from the other actors.
His poor mother twisted her self into mortified knots, whilst other parents either giggled or glared at her when their child's starring dialogue was drowned out.

monnagran

Morning all

Damp and dismal here today but I don't mind that, it seems more seaonal than sunshine.

I really wanted to finish off the cooking for gifts today, but this morning I'm not so sure. The tangerine marmalade I made yesterday, in spite of reaching setting point on the thermometer, and passing the wrinkle test on a cold plate, seems this morning to be very liquid in their beautifully decorated jars. Either I have to tip it out and boil it up again or I present each jar with a box of straws.
I wonder if the village shop stocks straws?
Then the carrot cake I made for DS2 from a new recipe, as its Christmas, does not ,look good.


I think it is too late for drastic changes so everything will have to stand. Anyway, today I'm tackling the vegan brownies, a chocolate fudge cake, cheese scones, mince pies and a massive pile of ironing as DS2 brought back my washing yesterday.

Courage and strength to our dear friends who are under such stress just now.

THOUGHT FOR TODAY

When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

greenbee

It's tangerine ice-cream topping Monna. No need for straws

ivyleaf

monna - I remember wiping my eyes at DD's school Nativity, and her teacher remarked drily that she used to cry at Nativity plays too... until she was a teacher