Happy St Andrew's Day.

G did his husbandly duty today, having avoided it since last Christmas.
He won't leave it that long again as it has taken most of the day & he got through six pairs of rubber gloves, added to that, the new wonder oven cleaner was nowhere near as good as the tried & tested one.
I did the only rational thing & went shopping, aiming to use all of my money off vouchers.
I started at Tesco in Knowle, using my £2 off voucher. I did not come out in an "anti- Tesco" rash & rediscovered a "real bakers" shop & bought real bread - we ate rosemary & raisin foccacia for dinner. It was delicious.
I used Telegraph vouchers in Lakeland & East, did M&S & used more vouchers in JS.
I had to return two bars of G&B butterscotch chocolate, which had a peculiar taste, to JS.
They refunded much more than I had paid as I only buy chocolate on special offer, & only eat it, in fact, if there is a "d" in the day.
I also shoplifted a silver polishing cloth, in error, as it had fallen between my shopping bags & I didn't find it until I unloaded tie shopping into the car.
I'm waiting for a knock at the door!

People were wittering on about the snow & getting home early. The shops were quite quiet.
Actually , there was hardly any snow, the roads were fine, apart from the lanes & the temperature was 0 degrees for most of the day.
People need to wear warm clothes, hats & gloves & get on with it, so there.
So many of our public buildings are too hot.
Why don't shops turn down the thermostat & put the staff in fleeces as the shoppers are wrapped up warmly & re too warm when in a shop.
Th kids were taking their blazers off in school on Tuesday when it was -2 degrees outside.
Ridiculous.
We must all give B thermal underwear for Christmas, or does he have some that he has overlooked?
I had coffee & cake in M&S today & made a nice rice pudding for dinner.
It's been a good day.
Spellcheck changes "foccacia" into "acacia". Strange. Is it misspelled?

Followed by a good Monday.

Last night was very cold again.
G came down & made a nice cup of tea, then we snuggled down to read for a while - I do wish that G wouldn't snore whilst reading!
School phoned at 8.10am, having sent a cover supervisor home, sick.
I got up quickly whilst G made some porridge & was there in time for the bell at 8.55am.
I had a good day - maths, english & IT. I really enjoy teaching maths, although the odd lesson with no opportunity to prepare materials is not ideal.
Add to this a very warm building, catching up on the news & a day's pay!
Great!!

Snow is forecast for tonight so visiting JR this week looks unlikely.
Yesterday's temperature readings, max/min were -1, -9 for Brum, 0, -8 for York, 1, -3 for Copenhagen.
I think we won that one.
Coleshill was in the news as one of the coldest places in the Midlands with -10 degrees.

Nordic fashions are very in, apparently - thick patterned tights & cardigans worn with chiffon skirts.
Not one for the well-built!

Take a leaf out of W's book & wear a hat - most of your body heat is lost through your head.

A pretty good Sunday.

Never think that prayers aren't answered.
An acre of leaves & a husband with a leaf clearing fetish.
Only one way out.
Snow.
A spattering on Friday night & ground frozen hard, leaves frozen to the ground.
Thank you, God.
The icing on the cake - heating failed at Shustoke church so the service was cancelled, hence a lie-in as only an 11 o'clock at Over Whitacre with both congregations together.
We went for a nice walk across the fields before lunch & then settled in front of a nice log fire to read the papers.
G cooked a chicken stir-fry for dinner, Strictly, Antiques Roadshow & Any Human Heart.

Last night was -6 degrees, today has been very cold & no doubt tonight will be equally cold - we shall leave the heating on low to save the house getting too cold. No doubt Denmark is - 60 degrees, so we shouldn't moan.

I really shan't mind if either of my readers chooses to comment.

Leave no leaves!

G cleared leaves this morning whilst I visited a friend in a warm house & visited Shustoke School, to sort out arrangements for Christmas.
I had intended to drive to Kenilworth to shop & look in Waitrose, but when the paper arrived it advertised a coupon in tomorrow's paper for a free box of Duchy mince pies, at Waitrose.
I was obviously intended to go tomorrow.
I came home, got some lunch on & cleared leaves for well over an hour, to earn a pass-out for tomorrow.
I have since ironed the two loads of washing that I did this morning, prepared Sunday's sermon, cooked the dinner & watched "Foyles War".
Joan Collins just appeared briefly, being interviewed by that awful Piers Morgan.
She is 76 & looks terrific.

I went to Bicester on Wednesday evening & spent yesterday with KP, which was fun.
We walked to Bicester Village for lunch & a little light shopping, then home for a nice cup of tea.
I went to St Peter's church in Hall Green for 6.30pm, 6.40pm actually, to renew my Reader's Licence. The drive along the Stratford road, when I was already late, was horrendous & the church was totally hidden up a long drive.
Even the SATNAV gave up on it.
The church was empty & in darkness, more panic, until I spotted a very small congregation in a side - chapel.
All legal & above board again!

Some fantastic deals on Travelzoo, for those who need a holiday.
I'm too busy, or is that poor?

Snow on the way -wrap up warm & wear a hat.

Back at the chalk face.

School phoned yesterday to cancel me for tomorrow - a little unprofessional as I had been booked weeks ago, to cover for Souter, on union business.
This was offset by a call at 7.30am today, asking me to go in today, to cover for Souter.
I had a good day, but talking to the kids, it seems that Souter had been off all week, the temp from last year had been booked to cover for him, hence my cancellation for Wednesday.
Today, this guy was off, so they needed me.
Cheek.
One advantage was that I could visit Ventura Park, on the way home, for an M&S fix, including a cup of coffee..

G had a Thomas day.
We went to the Alms Houses trustee meeting tonight, came home & had an M&S Indian meal.
The lazy day yesterday seems to have paid dividends as I haven't fallen asleep yet.
Lots to do tomorrow; part of me hopes that school has to get me in again. I could say "No".

Cold tomorrow.
Winter draws on.

The girl with the waterproof tatoo.

Having a lazy day.
We came down early, had breakfast in our dressing gowns, then I went to have a soak in the bath as I couldn't decide what to do next.
I nodded off whilst reading, so my book is now drying on the bathroom radiator - hang on to that other copy, W, as this one is borrowed!
I did clean the downstairs windows before the bath, so I don't feel too guilty & I now have a great view from the kitchen sink!

We had a busy weekend - to Bicester to see T in "Jack & the Beanstalk", along with parents & grandparents - six supporters in all.
T was great; they all were, very confident & professional.
We had a lovely lunch at B & E's, had a wobble of T's first loose tooth & eventually came home via Coventry, seeing "Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows"
It is rather long (21/2 hours) & a bit slow-moving, but excellent effects.

Yesterday, I went to church, then swept up leaves, using G's new trailer, which worked very well, cooked dinner. That doesn't sound much.
I wish I could say that I'd painted a picture or learnt a musical instrument or climbed Snowdon.
Perhaps I should re-evaluate.

Anticlimax.

I went to P & A's by 8.00am as P had a busy day at work, & walked J & T to school, then had a relaxing morning until it was time to collect Thomas at lunchtime.
I popped to M&S on the Stratford road to take advantage of their offer of champagne reduced from £30 to £10.
All 26 cases sold out shortly after opening, apparently.
Never mind.
Thomas was very tired after school, so we had a pretty relaxed afternoon as well.
G was off on the razzle overnight, so I was able to go to the M&S Cardholders event in Solihull, on the way home.
To say that the event was low-key, would be something of an understatement.
It was on the top floor, occupying a small area of the cafe.
On showing your invitation, you walked past a plate of broken biscuits, about five tables, with seating, to a buffet table with plates oh half mince pies, various other nibbles & plastic beakers containing about an inch of pink bubbly.
No expense spared there!
There were free make-up & manicures available - all booked up early on as there was only one girl doing each.
I feel a letter to M&S coming on.
G phoned while I was there. His event was cancelled as the airport was closed due to an accident on the runway, so his playmates were stranded somewhere 7 the whole region was clouded in thick fog.
We have enjoyed a quiet evening at home, watched another "Rebus" & are awaiting the adult bit of "Children in Need", particularly "Come dine with the Dragons".

Bicester tomorrow to see T in a starring role!