please do not bend

I miss my old postman. he would ride his bike up my drive and leave magazines lying flat on my doorstep. The current postman prefers to fold them in half and do his best to shove them through the slot in the mail box, leaving them sticking out half way, seemingly to be sure the crease in the magazine is firmly set. I like my magazines perfectly flat (at least those I intend to keep, like Donna Hay).
So the latest issue arrived today - and includes 25 soup recipes, so I guess my new soup ritual will continue nicely.
I can be easily bought. Well, I can easily give you money if you decide to publish a cookbook. I am sold by rustic looking photography - vintage dresses, wooden spoons, good food, fresh produce and a nice family story will do it.

I bought this cookbook for a bargain $19 today (for David of course!) But this one does have recipes I know I will use.
I feel terrible - it is almost the end of May and so much happened at the beginning of the month that I am yet to record. Least of which was David's birthday! I don't even have photographs. We had a wonderful afternoon tea with friends - one of whom took some photographs with his mobile phone, so when I see him on Saturday night I'll ask if he can download them and email them to me. David finally got the watch that I have been promising for years. We love him very much and are so glad he is in our lives - the kids LOVE celebrating a birthday!!
And of course it was Mother's Day. David has been very thoughtful in helping the kids make me feel special on Mother's Day over the years. I feel very spoilt as I tend to treat these events largely like commercial endeavours, but it is nice to know you are loved.
I have almost finished reading Jane Eyre, which I have really enjoyed. I love the way it is written in the first person, I love the descriptions of rooms, objects and clothing. I think that is why I have enjoyed the BBC adaptation (the most recent one) so much. The detail is beautiful. And what do you know, a new BBC adaptation of Emma is released next week.


Since this adaptation is by the same woman who wrote the screenplays for Jane Eyre and North and South, I am sure I'll enjoy it. I am certainly overdosing on 19th century literature at the moment - and loving it! (Although David doesn't know how I can watch the actress who played Briony Tallis in the film adaptation of Atonement playing Emma...)

A final clip for a marathon post - David and i took Nicholas to an open night at the local primary school last night. I love witnessing Nicholas' excitement as we embark on this new adventure.

When we came home and the kids were in bed David and I enjoyed watching an episode of Grand Designs Revisted with a cup of tea. Here is the last few minutes. It was an amazing episode to watch - the house was hand built and is gorgeous. It didn't surprise me that this was voted the most popular episode.