Welcome back!

I think I may have phased things poorly in an effort not to share too much.......the poor kid is the child of one of my best friend’s who died recently. The kid needs a license like yesterday because of unforeseen circumstances. I am relieved the professional has been willing to be hired because I am afraid of not being good enough to get her to test standard which is pretty high in the UK. Many fail first time and I don’t know the routes where she is testing because they have added to the practical, now 40 minutes long.

That’s exactly what I plan to do first. 😉.

I just finished Tiamat’s Wrath https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28335698-tiamat-s-wrath which is the end of The Expanse series for now. Loved it......very satisfied with the “ending” at this point. I will probably go back and read the Butcher of Anderson Station before watching the show. I know @JennW in SoCal is reading the series and I think someone else is too.....if you have the chance to read the Strange Dogs novella before getting to Tiamat's Wrath it was worthwhile but certainly not mandatory.

Here’s a link to a tutorial I have saved in case I ever want to turn my son’s favorites into a quilt so you can see what’s involved. http://thermoweb.com/blog/sweet-memories-t-shirt-quilt/. Going to be honest and say I think that I would probably end up spending 75 on the project before I was done and I am a quilter with lots of stuff needed in the project already. 😉

Sounds like it’s going well. I was staying away from this thread because I thought I was going to have to be the licensed passenger so one of the kid's friends could practice and you guys were making me anxious!

@Negin Beautiful picture.......I frequently hang out at the beach with my kids but rarely go in. I should probably start swimming too......I do go on fairly long walks while wading in a foot or so of water while they swim so I am not idle. @Lady Florida. I hadn’t heard about Camilleri. I listened to and enjoyed an Inspector Montalbano a few years ago. It’s one of the series that eventually I want to finish also.

Robin, Thanks for another great “new to me” detective. I am not sure which book I am going to read in the series yet.....a later one is available on Overdrive and some earlier ones are in paper at the library. What a dilemma! 😂 I managed to complete a few of the letters in that very long detective name last week so will hopefully manage all of Jean Baptiste Adamsberg. I am currently reading my way through the last book, Tiamat’s Wrath, in the Leviathan Wakes series and enjoying it greatly. I have a huge virtual stack of other books so will hopefully manage several this week for the spelling challenge. I always hate to see them go unread. For audio I am giving Department Q and The Absent One another try. I would love to be able to finish it without rereading the start because I know I want to read the read of the series.

Thank you! I just ended up with 4 of these! 🤣 The Heir is a great historical romance to all who enjoy that genre, and first in a series that was good. I “bought” it for the collection!

One rainy day last week Dh and I went exploring and headed South where it only appeared to be damp. We ended up visiting a couple of places that we took the dc’s to frequently when little and I took lots of pictures for future Brit Tripping Saturday posts. As some of you know I just sold my beloved little Fiesta because I feared the recent changes in the MOT standards would mean that my car that was deemed one of the most Eco friendly when purchased would no longer pass the yearly service for licensing...it was a 2014. We replaced it for now with a much larger car on a short term lease while I figure out what I am comfortable parking and driving here. I love riding in the new car but driving it is stressful.............Now for the Brit Tripping part of this story, Dh and I finished our day near Derby and set the Sat Nav to come home. Neither of us really looked at the route because we had no idea there was anything we wished to avoid during the drive home. 🥺. We learned about the Swarkstone Bridge and Ancient Causeway the hard way, at 5pm on a weekday. So not fun......it felt unending at 3/4 of a mile. It was stressful and a really tight fit because the road width kept changing. Very grateful DH was driving. I only took one picture to show the kids but after I researched decided that it was really interesting. A good summary is here https://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/wiki/index.php?title=Swarkestone_Bridge This youtube shows a bus driving across. It appears to hit the curb a few times......The structure was really neat and you can see it in the first minute or so of the youtube. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Jp4UvqDbcfo Finally the view from our car as we were stopped and waiting.........not the most thrilling but appropriate for a British Road Trip!

So trying to answer your questions..........My kids are grown so this is what we did. Sort of random but I think I answer most things. Yes, I agree drawing should be taught but preferred to wrap it into the overall curriculum starting at age 5 or so. When we started home ed I was following behind a lifelong friend whose children were older. Basically I did what had worked for her in all subjects that I didn’t feel opinionated about. Her children could draw really well, she had improved vastly (we were childhood neighbor’s) so I bought something her youngest loved doing, Draw Write Now. We used those books a whole lot, they fit well into different history and geography studies, but they weren’t a class. Frequently we used the pictures on notecards and wrote Grandma a note about pilgrims or frogs....... What they were was a springboard to drawing and an activity my kids enjoyed. We moved from there to a subscription to Nature Friend https://www.naturefriendmagazine.com/ and submitted the drawing each month for the contest, both were occasionally published which they loved. We actually continued this when we moved to England with my mom’s help because Dd loved it. (My mom was an amateur artist.) This method seemed to be perfect for us because of the variety of lessons which changed monthly because the lessons are designed by different people. The equipment list was clear and the photographs were perfect to practice from if Dd wanted to do more. We tried other art books etc but none really stuck. At one point I have owned pretty much everything mentioned upthread......I wasn’t very theoretical about art classes. We did, we did what looked right to our eyes. I remember being asked how I taught color to Dd by a professional because apparently Dd was really incredible🤣at it. Deer in headlights......we had just talked when we didn’t like how things looked. Both kids did have fun with and finish The Big Yellow Book https://www.amazon.com/Big-Yellow-Drawing-Book/dp/0967591902. Ed Emberley’s books were all hits at my house. Did several varied art days out but none stuck......animation was a couple of those. Not anyone’s interest. Eventually Dd started group painting lessons with a professional artist and teacher. The teacher still considers her to be one of her best ever at drawing animals and has used her work in several exhibits. Because of my personal interest in textiles both dc’s have done a lot of fiber arts over the years. Ds only turns out a project if he feels the need and they are small, which he hasn’t for a long time. Dd loves it all, currently finishing up a cross stitch. Ds no longer draws and hasn’t since he was 11 or 12. I allowed him to stop when he no longer enjoyed it and moved Dd into formal classes. Dd always did well in nature drawing contests and has been exhibited several times......enter all contests is my advice. It’s funny this thread made me realize Dd now 21 hasn’t had her paper and pencils out for awhile. Sort of sad...........I saw an incredible drawing at a local gallery the other day and I was thinking Dd could do similar for my wall, need to get her over to see it,

😂I agree about the sagas but this morning when I discovered that my Overdrive had made the new books available for hold’s I noticed that Joshilyn Jackson has a new release called Never Have I Ever which appears to be a bit more of a mystery/thriller https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36679186-never-have-i-ever?ac=1&from_search=true I put a hold on it but as I am number 50 it will be a rather long wait! Which brings me to my question for BaWer’s.........What new releases are you looking forward to? I discovered that a new Inspector Gamache being released very soon.....also David Baldacci has a new series with a new main character that I am looking forward to......and finally a new book in the Innkeeper Chronicles which I waiting impatiently for as I reread the series. Can’t wait!

We return to Amazon all the time. They have the return possibility so people feel comfortable ordering online I think. We almost always order extra sizes when shopping for clothing and returning the extras, sometimes all.

We keep a stack by the bin that we keep recyclables in. Anytime we are going near the recycling center we fill the bags and take our bottles etc along. Btw, we do have curbside recycling but I don’t have room anymore for the multiple bins that are newly required so it’s easier to carry my own away. I do this every couple of days.....from there they join the car stack! 😂 The rest go out to the back of the car. I normally just take three large freezer bags into the store and grab a box they are throwing away if I am buying something fragile like eggs. Next trip to the recycling I get rid of the box. I have seen some really pretty diy fabric boxes used as bag storage.

Just greens at your church? That’s what we did I think before Christmas when Dd was doing the arranging. What they could do with just green was incredible! Most brides just use the church’s flowers.......many tussles over trying to make the arrangements match their colors without paying the fee which was reasonable... under 200. One bride got married Remembrance Day weekend and made us remove the poppy’s.......we originally thought she wanted the poppy’s(because she picked that weekend rather intentionally we had been told) so tried to do things up nicer than normal! This is my first post on this thread although I have been reading! So some thoughts that this thread has prompted. For us the first question probably will be the size of the family my kids marry in to and the country they decide they want to have the ceremony in. Our side is low on surviving family who can travel and I doubt that either of my kids would want to marry in my midwestern home town which would create the biggest our side attendance. So I think for us we will try and limit the guest list......to just dear friends that my Dd or Ds truly know well. If I am being honest the list who can travel is small. My kids have been very active in our UK village church’s wedding business (and other nearby churches) and know weddings inside and out in England. No matter which country, many casual friends who would normally be invited will not make the journey to the other side of the pond no matter where the other side is. Much is going to depend on the other family.........if we have a village wedding it is normal for casual friends to come and watch the ceremony but not the reception. The wedding is the event......if you know the audience will be large sometimes nibbles and a toast at the back of the church or.......See below on what my kids will pick! Because the guest list will be sparse my choice would probably be to go for a nicer meal and maybe not the typical location. I really really don’t want to be too involved with the food. I am willing to spend not to be so that is my splurge, catered definitely ! I dislike wedding favors so unless my brides have their hearts set......I think spending a great deal on a dress is silly and know Dd does too. I bought a really nice veil for myself and have hopes of it becoming an heirloom (Dd loves it). It requires a rather plain gown which is good for cost I hope, because after the wedding dress thread here I truly no longer think dresses get reused except by sisters occasionally! 😂 Dd loved the Steampunk wedding she rang for a few years ago so I wouldn’t be surprised if she doesn’t go for theme which could be the big surprise in terms of unusual expenses.....they had an ice cream truck outside the church to give everyone ice cream cones after the ceremony once which both kids thought was cool and a true celebration. Yes, they got ice cream too! Everyone (even passerby’s) were offered an ice cream in celebration. They definitely would both have that! I can’t imagine Dd and I not doing the flowers in either country for both kids. She is a very experienced amateur who has done many weddings and I am the faithful assistant who is great at planning......lol. We played around with artificial for a friend’s wedding in the states last fall because hydrangeas were completely out of season for the wedding and thus super expensive. Bride decided she had to have fresh flowers and went cheaper varieties. We came up with some attractive ideas so I wouldn’t say never to artificial. I think doing your own fresh flowers as the bride is going to require a good known storage area to keep things nice for a couple of days so that is sort of to be determined. I spent a lot on my flowers so I do value the floral aspect!

I have never tried to be on holiday for longer than 6 days since the back surgery. We are planning some longer trips next summer too but will most likely break them up into smaller chunks with a couple of weeks to recuperate in between because of mom’s back. Fwiw, here is what I have learned about my back and travels...... No more than two nights in any bed that is not my own is preferred. When we switch hotels we try to do brand of hotel also in case bed brands are the same. It doesn’t matter how posh, on that third or fourth night I am in pain. It sounds like you have that covered. Most of our distance travels have been in Europe in a very not luxurious car....a Ford Fiesta. 😂. I prefer to get the distance out of the way, so 4 or 5 hours in the morning and more casual drives between stops in the afternoon. I am happy to crash in the hotel room with first dibs on the shower after dinner. Frequently I take a couple of pain relievers and just don’t get out of bed until morning. I do read, watch tv etc.......I am not taking anything stronger than Tylenol or Alieve. Flat on my back is the best recovery position for me. No more exploring places at night for me. Just throwing this in here, we had planned a full day at the Grand Canyon but decided to move on to some other places that were not on the official list because of time. Keep things fluid and have a secondary list.....sometimes the things on the secondary turn out to be more fun. I think we added Sedona on the way to Flagstaff for the night. At some point we went to a national park with cave paintings and prairie dogs that trip. Dh and I really can be happy with a quick look and photos and are willing to admit it!🤣 I really can bike much further with less pain the next day than walking a similar distance. I can go at least 10 miles on a bike and feel fine for normal activity the next day after a good rest. I am useless for the rest of the bike ride day but I am useless if I walk 10 miles too. I would save your bike rentals for places you really want to go a distance. Btw, We do use bikes on a pretty regular basis so it isn’t a physically new activity. Trying to decide how to phrase this, if I am right about the type of company your Dh works for...... I am hoping you might get lucky with your assigned car when the time rolls around if your Dh makes it known very discretely that you have comfort issues for your trip. Someone really nice might give you something nicer then expected, never know. Hoping you get the heated seats.😉 Depends on how strict the current guidelines are. I worked for similar company and part of the purpose of employees driving the cars is to learn about things like comfort levels in different situations and you have a situation to test. In my day logs were filled out and handed in anytime we were given keys regarding handling etc.

We use prepaid debit cards that are not connected to our bank accounts Everyone in the family has one and dh looks at the balance frequently and adds money as needed. The kids carry about $20 but they text him and He can add quickly. I keep a running total in my head and know when I will need money. One got hacked earlier this year but it was far easier than having my credit card hacked because the exposure small and only the hacked debit card was affected so we still had three good cards between us. When my credit card was hacked it had huge repercussions because it was the family travel card because of free insurance and we needed to travel. We were reimbursed both times.......They actually made us pay the hacked amount and refunded us later which made us angry.

Praying

We stayed in Flagstaff too. Regarding aches from riding......Thanks to a recent car rental in Florida that had heated seats I am now a believer. I limp about after an hour in the car (major back surgery at 30) but with heated seats and a/c I can slide right out of a car and go after a couple of hours.

Now I have to read Anita & Me! This might be my most accidental book recommendation on this board by me ever......I had never even heard of it. 😂That said it sounds great........not sure if it will get into citizenship issues in that time period or not. Looking forward to it. I just went and read the blurbs on Goodreads and had to laugh at the Midlands verses Northern England descriptions. If you live in the South(London) the rest is the North for many but this book’s setting is definitely West Midlands being said by someone who sort of lives in the North! 😉 Please post when you finish prereading as I am curious to hear what you think of it......it will be at least a month before I am able to read it.

Praying for you!

I managed to lose a post last night and was too tired to start again! So here goes..... I just finished reading The Almost Sisters by Joshilyn Jackson and really enjoyed it. @JennW in SoCal recommended it a couple of weeks ago and I am glad I read it. It was a book that managed to really engage me even though on the surface I shouldn’t have enjoyed it nearly so much........I think Jenn decided it was a Saga of sorts and it was.....It did include finding bones in the attic! https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32600726-the-almost-sisters?ac=1&from_search=true Still chugging along reading The Mortal Word by Genevieve Cogman and the fifth book in the Invisible library series. Trying to decide how describe this book knowing several others follow this series......I like it much more than the fourth book but am not enjoying it as much I had hoped to. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/39169409-the-mortal-word At this point I am assuming there will be another book in this series and plan to do a reread before tackling book 6.😉 On that note there is a new book in Ilona Andrews Innkeeper series which is one of my favorites. In honor of the new book I am going to do a reread and just checked Clean Sweep out https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19090384-clean-sweep?ac=1&from_search=true. I have a large number of books that are about to be returned by Overdrive in read which is sad Things are busy and I keep falling asleep or am just tooo hot to read.....I slept through half of Patricia Brigg’s Storm Cursed https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25026912-storm-cursed?from_search=true the other day........grrr, I hate figuring out my place in audiobooks.

I think a pole my neighbor gave me which I would describe as a prop helps the clothing blow in the wind far better. When I don’t bother to set it up supporting the middle of the line it definitely takes longer.

Saturday’s Brit Tripping........a subject very near and dear to my heart .............Hedgehogs! An hour ago I had no idea what pictures I was going to put here but then the local hedgehog was spotted in the neighbors garden. I grabbed the iPad and ran out to visit......odd to see one in daylight but it appears perfectly healthy just hungry. After a week of record breaking temps (96 in Yorkshire...no a/c)it poured for the last 24 hours so it saw an opportunity to hunt slugs when the rain stopped.

I just placed a hold on As Long We Both Shall Live...........Glad the move went well! The weather has been in the 90’s and with no a/c not much has been happening beyond reading. I finished Layover yesterday because it was very hard to put down. Probably not the road trip book for Bingo I wanted it to be but a satisfying thriller......I also finished a romance called The Friend Zone https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41945163-the-friend-zone?ac=1&from_search=true. The main character is facing a hysterectomy at 24 because of fibroids and I thought that her emotions were very well done. It’s a book that might make someone somewhere a bit more understanding .........sad in places.