Have you read Nurse Matilda?
Have you read it out loud? Because if you haven’t you really should get along to the library or favourite book store and nab yourself a copy and then make yourself a cup of tea (or even some of that insane butterbeer I linked to the other day, which I am still yet to make and actually feel a little dubious about that ever happening) and then open it up and clear your throat a little and get right into it.
Read it to your children, your friend’s children, your nephews and neices or your partner, cat, parent or friend… Here is a book with lots of scope for wonderful expression – funny voices, raising (and waggling) of eyebrows and suspense filled pauses… but then watch as their eyes light up around about page 19 or 20 when whoever you are reading it to gasps and then says “It’s Nanny McPhee!” and it is! But it isn’t – because Nurse Matilda is just that much different that you can read and it enjoy it as something completely new but with a lovely familiar feel. She still has an enormous protruding tooth and a big stick – and you can still do your best Nanny McPhee voice to read all her dialogue… but there are big differences so please don’t buy it expecting it to be the story of the movie.
Mrs Brown is alive and well, so while we have only completed chapter two, I am imagining that there will be no central love story between Mr Brown and Evangaline, and there are so many children that they seem to only get mentioned once or twice (and we have counted 15 of them so far) so perhaps we won’t get the chance to get attached to any of them and watch them blossom under the care of Nurse Matilda… but so far both my girls are well entertained and were begging for just one more chapter at lights out.
Written by Christinana Brand and illustrated by one of my favourites (her cousin!) Edward Ardizzone.
We have made this delicious chicken recipe from Jamie Oliver twice now on our BBQ – I am sure the deliciousness depends entirely on the quality of the bbq sauce… but it’s very easy and very yum. I am trying to think of some kind of adaptation of this for Thanksgiving (What hey? That’s right! We will have a house full of family for Thanksgiving come October 11 so it’s time to get up to speed).
I bought a sewing machine – The first ever time I have bought a machine as I inherited my last three from my Grandmothers. These I had to leave behind in Melbourne due to the merry wattage dance, so I seized this opportunity (and my Australian credit card) and bought a beauty. I got it seriously reduced but it still caused me to have a dizzying spell of buyer’s remorse in the sewing centre’s parking lot. I am about to open the box and break out the manual and learn to love it through the guilt.
<3 Happy Anniversary to my Phil. We’ve been married for 9 years today, and it just keeps on getting better.
by Marc Boutavant. Recently translated from the French is this fabulous children’s book which is totally hot in our house this week. Every page is a huge explosion of colour, activity and cute characters. Mouk travels from Lapland to Africa, from Australia (Kangaroo Island specifically) to Japan. The whimsical characters are a little Moomin-like (and spot the character reading a Moomin book in Lapland!) and the huge spreads with so much to explore remind me of some of 
from when I was a kid. According to the 
