Hoo’s Kids Book Fest

March 27, 2013 By in Guest Posts Tags: , , , , , , , , 13 Comments

I was really pleased to find out that there’s a children’s book festival – Hoo’s Kids Book Fest – taking place next month, just up the road from us.

Today’s guest post on the blog is from Guy Parker-Rees – a children’s writer who will be appearing at the festival. Guy’s post is an introduction to his latest book, Tom and Millie’s Whizzy Bizzy People and he writes about how he creates Tom and Millie’s world.

For the chance to win a family ticket to the festival, check out the competition at the end of the post. Continue reading →

Alternative Government: The Bloggers’ Cabinet

March 26, 2013 By in Blogging Tags: , , , , , 28 Comments

I have been trying for weeks to write a long and serious post about our current Government. Not a morning passes when I don’t turn on the computer, see the latest headlines and literally want to puke when I see the latest piece of havoc they are wreaking on the country. Having bulldozed their way the through the NHS, the education system and the welfare system, I can only wonder in fear what they’ll turn to next.

But this post isn’t going to be that long and serious examination of the issues. There are so many people far more knowledgeable and eloquent than me writing excellent, passionate and well-informed articles about current affairs, that mine can wait. (See the bottom of this post for a link or two)

Instead, I’m going to present you with an alternative Bloggers’ Cabinet. You tell me that these folk couldn’t do a better job than the shower of shites we’ve got at the moment…

Continue reading →

I Am Not A Poet

March 25, 2013 By in Poetry Tags: , , , 14 Comments

I used to collect poems, like some people collect postcards or glass paperweights.

I’d keep a notebook, and if I read or heard or found a poem I loved then I’d scribble it down, as though by writing the words out myself I could somehow own them.

Sometimes it wouldn’t be a whole poem, it would just be a phrase.

“a gossiping stream full of blethering pebbles”

“a shotgun sprinkle of freckles”

“I give you an onion.
It is a moon wrapped in brown paper.”

Good poetry – even a line or two – takes your breath away a little bit. Good poets make you feel like they have peeked inside your memory and plucked out an experience that you have lived, but then gone on to express your feeling or describe your scene better than you ever could yourself.

Continue reading →

Tuesday Treats

March 19, 2013 By in Blogging Tags: , , 15 Comments

Hello hello.

You remember a few weeks ago I wrote a post sharing some links to other blogs that I liked? Well the idea grew a bit, and it has turned into a ‘thing’. Chris from Thinly Spread, Becky from Baby Budgeting, and Lizzie from Missie Lizzie B have joined me, and the four of us going to take it in turns to run a post called Tuesday Treats.

It’s an excuse for you to take ten minutes out of your morning, sit down with a biscuit and a cuppa, and catch up with some good reads from around the blogosphere.

We’ve had a bit of a false start – for the last three weeks it has been called Friday Finds – but then we realised that the Tots 100 host something similar on a Friday called Fresh Five. So we have jiggled ourselves around a bit and we’re now settled on Tuesday Treats. By next week there *may* even be a badge.

Anyway, enough spraff from me. Here are some of the posts that I’ve loved recently. Continue reading →

Live in the Now: March

March 18, 2013 By in Family Tags: , , 18 Comments

I know I’m a little bit biased, but I do think that DorkySon is one of the loveliest boys in the world.

We walked past a shop window the other day that had a huge Victorian doll’s house on display.

“Ooh,” I said. “What a pity we don’t have room for that in our house.”

“I know,” said DorkySon. “It’s such a shame. But come here and let me give you cuddle to take your mind off it.” Continue reading →