This and That Thursday

Happy Thursday!

I hope everyone is well. I will be honest the heat and humidity has rather done me in this week so I haven’t moved much due to no energy and asthma. This has meant a lot of reading though which has been good.

Cat Instagram

Too much time on my hands ended up with me setting an instagram account up for our cats. Yes I have lost the plot but now even the husband has started posting pictures of the cats. If anybody would like to follow Lyra and Pan their instagram is lyraandpancatz.

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Sunday Service

On Sundays I am now going over to my parents’ house and watching our church service online which has been really nice to do. The church that I play the organ for has not had a service yet but when it does I will be back and hopefully so will my mom.

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Teaching

Teaching has still been going strong and everyone seems to be enjoying their lessons online so hopefully it continues.

So that is my week, as I warned very quiet but actually I’ve quite enjoyed all the reading I have managed and the cats’ instagram is proving rather fun although I think the cats officially think we have lost the plot.

Happy reading

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This and That Thursday

Happy Thursday!

This week has been a great week. I’ve had another student return and start online lessons and all my students have been working hard learning new pieces and preparing for exams. I am also loving my blog and reading everyone else’s blog and making new friends.

So here is what I have been up to this week…

Exercise

The exercise is still going strong, I have been using the app FitOn for some new workouts and I gave Zumba a go! I love dance workouts but I must admit Zumba is scarily fast. Also as I was attempting to dance and waving my arms around and trying not to fall over our neighbour walked past the window to post the village newsletter and saw me. I dread to think what she thought about me.

Belly Dancing

I’ve done my second Belly Dancing session and thankfully I wasn’t the only one in the class today. I learnt some new moves and another little routine and didn’t fall over! Always a plus sign. Eeyore is loving the Belly Dancing hip scarf.

 

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Dog Walking

This week I have managed to take my dog Coco for two walks. On Sunday I spent the morning with my mom watching our church service online and then I took Coco for a walk and today I also took her for a walk and had lots of cuddles. Coco is technically my dog but when I moved in with my husband Coco had to stay with my parents because my husband has cats. Also there is no way my dad would have let me take her. This means I have been missing Coco like mad during lockdown as I usually get to see her three times a week so it has been so nice to spend some time with her.

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Walking

We are still going for our daily walks and this week we drove to a new location for a walk and got horribly lost but it was still a lot of fun.

Finding new exciting ways to eat courgettes!

My dad always grows a lot of veg but this year he seems to have really gone overboard on the courgette front. So I have been researching recipes to use it in. I’ve done courgette chocolate brownies before and using it instead of spaghetti so wanted something different. This has lead to me discovering my new favourite courgette dish ‘Creamy courgette and bacon pasta’ it was amazing! I added sweetcorn because I add sweetcorn to all my food. Here is the recipe on BBC Goodfood

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So there is my week. I hope everyone has also had a good week so far.

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This and That Thursday

Hello!

This week has been a little different to other weeks. We have been planning some house and garden improvements and I hope that in August we can get loads done. I’m still teaching and studying and obviously reading.

Cryptic Crosswords

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This week I have been attempting cryptic crosswords with the help and guidance of my husband who has done loads. It is very fun but really makes you think in a different way. I will need a lot of practice before I can get any good.

Cross Stitch

I have spent more time on the cross stitch this week. It is still a very slow process but it is getting there slowly. I doubt I will get it finished this year sadly.

Belly Dancing

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This week I also started attending Belly Dancing classes again. The instructor is teaching through Zoom but it is really good fun. I haven’t done Belly Dancing for about 3 years so it was good to get back into it. Might ache a bit tomorrow though.

Films

We have finished watching the Lord of the Rings trilogy and also watched Ghostbusters.

So that is my week! I hope everyone is also having a good week.

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This and That Thursday

Happy Thursday!

I hope everyone is having a good week so far. I have been up to my usual activities this week.

Walking

This week we have been up to some more walks and we ventured to a National Trust walk for the first time since lockdown. It was really nice to go somewhere different this week and thankfully it wasn’t too busy. Also I am still playing Pokemon Go and hatching lots of eggs with all the walking.

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Gardening

This week we have been trying to fight the ever increasing battle with the weeds and we have also trimmed a few of the hedges. The weeds sadly are not taking the hint they are not welcome. Here are a few snaps from the garden.

Music

This week I have been working a lot on my ukulele playing and have really been enjoying learning Ziggy Stardust. 

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Cooking

We also tried a new recipe this week from Davina McCall’s Fakeaway recipes. I am still self shielding so we are trying some new recipes to simulate eating out. It was a very yummy recipe.

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Lord of the Rings

We have also started watching the Lord of the Rings trilogy and I am thoroughly enjoying it. I just love the films and they were what started my Tolkien obsession.

That is my week so far. I hope everyone is having a good week.

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This and That Thursday

Another Thursday has arrived and so it is time for me to do my This and That Thursday post.

So this week hasn’t been that busy and I haven’t touched my new jigsaw sadly but I’ve still tried to keep busy.

Music

I’ve started getting into my piano practice again. The piano is my nemesis, no matter how hard I try I just can’t progress and get my grade 6 complete. This leads to me getting frustrated and ceasing to practice. So I’m aiming for 30mins a day but not just grade stuff I’m playing fun stuff that will still push my playing in the hope I don’t abandon the instrument again. I have also started working on grade 2 ukulele which is proving to be a good challenge, I’m currently working on Ziggy Stardust which is really fun trying to play on a ukulele.

 

Wedding Anniversary

Yesterday was our wedding anniversary and to celebrate we went for a walk by the church where we got married and then had a lovely meal which involved pizza and champagne. It was a lovely quiet day and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

 

Tudors

I have started a Tudor course on Future Learn and I love it so far. It is mainly done by Dr Suzannah Lipscomb and it is very informative. Should keep me busy for a few weeks. I highly recommend Future Lear. The courses are excellently done and massively enjoyable to do.

So that is my week. Hopefully the piano playing will continue to get better.

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This and That Thursday

Happy Thursday!

I can’t believe tomorrow is Friday! The weeks seem to be flying by.

This week has been rather quiet but this has meant I’ve done more reading.

Studying

I’ve got back into my Future Learn courses and have finally completed the one I was asked to do before I start the second year of my Masters.

Walking and Exercise

Exercise and walking is still going well although all this rain has been causing problems regarding the walking.

New Recipes

This week I made a lemon mouse which I’ve never attempted before and it proved to be very yummy. Sadly I didn’t make the lemon biscuit that went so well with the moose.

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Jigsaw

I have started a new jigsaw today but it isn’t going too well. Yet again I have chosen a jigsaw that doesn’t fit on my jigsaw board so this will now have to be moved to the dining room table.

Well that is my week so far. Very quiet but a good week.

Happy Reading!

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This and That Thursday

Good Evening!

The post is a bit delayed today so apologies. I’m still trying to get my head around the fact it is now July! Here is what I have been up to which is non-book related.

Baking

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I tried a new recipe this week which was for ginger oat biscuits. The recipe was rather flawed as the ingredients wouldn’t stick together so I had to add a little bit more golden syrup, but you can never have enough of golden syrup. I then put the mixture as stated in the recipe on the baking tray and they came out of the oven like rock cakes rather than biscuits. Oh well, they are still yummy but could have done with a little less time in the oven.

Walking

We have been doing a lot walking recently and my best friend and myself have set ourselves the challenge of walking at least 2 miles everyday. This has led to us meeting a lovely horse and enjoying some wonderful views on our evening walks. I must admit I have always loved walking in the evening, the peacefulness is just wonderful.

Paint by Numbers

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The picture is almost finished! I just have a few numbers left and the bits that are peach to finish. Hopefully next week it will be finished and maybe even hung on the wall. I can’t even begin to calculate how many hours I have put into this painting.

Swimming

We were also very lucky to go for a swim this week. My in-laws have a lovely outdoor pool so with the hot weather we took the opportunity for a nice swim. Hopefully we will be able to have a few more swims this year before it is closed up for the winter.

So that is my week.

Happy Reading!

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This and That Thursday

Hello!

It is time for another weekly update!

Cats

Yesterday was Lyra and Pan’s 12th birthday. We tried to celebrate but the cats weren’t really that bothered. We had a BBQ to celebrate, Lyra was about but Pan was obviously hiding somewhere cool. Anyway they had some special cat milk as a birthday treat.

 

Paint by Numbers

The paint by numbers continues. I’m hoping to get it finished one day but I’m now on the really small fiddly bits which are a bit off putting. Although you can see more of what the picture is meant to be now.

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Walks and Exercise

This week we have gone on some different local walks which has been a nice change of scene. I particularly liked the yellow flowers we saw at our local nature reserve. Exercise continues but I have been doing more exercise using my Nintendo Switch and the Ring Fit Adventure Game.

 

Cupboard sorting

I attacked my clothes cupboard this week and learnt a few things. Firstly, I have way too many tights. Secondly, 45 pairs of socks plus odd socks is probably not healthy. Thirdly, I won’t have to buy black leggings for a good ten years. In the end I realised that I really don’t need any new clothes for a very long time but that doesn’t include Tikiboo leggings or shorts because I can never have enough of those. I should probably sort out all my sheet music next but that usually takes several days but it needs to be done as I usually try to do it twice a year and it is very overdue.

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Buffy the Vampire Slayer

We have been binge watching Buffy in the evenings this week as well. I had forgotten just how much fun it was to watch although Faith has appeared now and she never was my favourite character.

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The rest of the week has contained teaching online and studying so the usual antics. When I asked my husband what else we had been up to this week he said we had had a Cornetto which is very exciting as it’s probably the first ice cream we have had for nearly a year.

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That is my week! Please let me know how your week has been going in the comments. I love to chat and hear what everyone has been up to.

 

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Reading Habits Book Tag

Hello!

I wasn’t tagged in this book tag but I have seen it around on people’s blogs recently and really liked the idea of having a go. So here are my reading habits.

Bookmarks or Random Pieces of Paper

This an easy one, definitely bookmarks. I love buying bookmarks so I have loads so I always make sure I make use of them in my books. I will be honest I do tend to stick to a few favourites though.

 

Stop Reading Randomly or Stop After a Chapter/ Certain Amount of Pages

I like to stop at a chapter but most likely I will stop at a random point especially at night because it is usually where I start to fall asleep. I must admit sometimes I pick the book back up a little confused at where I left off.

 

Certain Place at Home for Reading?

I read in loads of places! The conservatory when the weather is nice, curled up the sofa with a blanket in lounge when it is cold, at night in bed before sleep. One of my favourite places though is rather a random one which my husband finds very strange, I love leaning over on the AGA and I lean on the simmering plate (lid down obviously) and read. But really I’m happy to read anywhere.

 

Eat or Drink while Reading?

During the day it is always with a cup of tea. I used to eat breakfast and read but I haven’t done that for a while. At one point I read The Art of War every morning whilst eating breakfast, read into that what you will.

 

Music or TV while Reading?

I generally always listen to music when I read, I love to have music on for everything and it doesn’t matter what I listen to either. I can also watch TV and read because generally I block it out. During Grand Prix season I get a lot more reading done because I read whilst it is on in the background.

 

One Book at a Time or Several?

I prefer one book at a time and maybe a dip in book on the side but sometimes I have a couple of books on the go, especially if I am reading a book for my course.

 

Reading at Home or Everywhere

Everywhere! I read in gaps between work, if I arrive at work early I sit in the car and read, I read whilst waiting for appointments, basically if I have a minute I read. So I always carry a book with me.

 

Reading Out Loud of Silently?

Silently, I just read in my head because I can read a lot faster than reading it out loud.

 

Do You Ever Read Ahead or Skip Pages?

Not really, I hate spoiling the ending and can never understand people who read the end first. My mom reads the end of the book first to see whether the book is worth reading in the first place which always baffles me. I also don’t skip pages, when I read a book I like to read it all.

 

Breaking the Spine or Keeping it Like New?

Like new. I prefer hardbacks to all formats but whatever book I have I like to keep pristine. However, when it is a book I have read many times I don’t mind if the spine eventually gives in because the book is now an old friend. My copy of The Three Musketeers is now in four pieces that is how much I have read it.

 

Do You Write in Books?

Never! Even when using a book for my studies I put little bits of paper inside or Post It notes instead but I never write in a book. For my English Literature A level my teacher made me write in my copies and I hated it.

 

So that is a glimpse into my reading habits. I hope you enjoyed it and please drop me a comment if you have also taken part in this book tag as I would love to see other people’s reading habits or if you just want to chat.

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This and That Thursday: 18/06/2020

Hello!

I can’t believe it is Thursday again! The weeks are just flying by. So here is what I have been up to other than reading.

 

Exercising

This week I have got back into my exercise and I was quite pleased to move from a 2KG kettlebell to a 4KG Kettlebell. I have also discovered a new type of workout which is called Fit Combat that combines combat moves and cardio to music. It is a super workout that I really enjoyed. I also tried my new Tikiboo shorts and love them so will be saving for another pair.

 

Baking

Yes, I have been baking again! The husband kept asking for another carrot cake so I spent Monday grating carrots and making the cake.

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Paint by Numbers

I’m still plodding along with this and I must admit I do get rather annoyed when I discover I’ve missed a number. I finished number 5 yesterday but also discovered I had missed a load of 2’s!

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Studying and Ukulele

I’m still busy studying and I have almost finished my FutureLearn course on The Health and Wellbeing in the Ancient World that we were recommended to do before we start year two of our Masters. I’ve also been practising the Ukulele loads and have now decided that I will attempt grade 2 in the Autumn instead of grade 1.

Tv

Will admit I am getting quite obsessed with Buffy the Vampire Slayer at the moment. Bringing back good memories of when I watched it when it first came out.

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So that is my week. I hope everyone else has had a good week so far. Drop me a comment if you want to chat.

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