It feels more like spring, with snowdrops and crocuses in the garden, earlier mornings and longer days.
There is a new cafe in town, named simply No.14 Wesley Walk. There used to be a popular cafe before the lockdown, but it didn't survive. The building was empty for a long time, and about a month ago they opened the doors again.
Eddie and I went to check it out for a quick bite. I had a cup of chai, and Eddie fancied some blueberry pancakes with cream. A bit on the pricey side, but then again, a hot sandwich at M&S cafe is £6.50+.
We tried to go there yesterday with Sasha, but it was packed full, and there was a long queue to get seated. On the plus side, less people in his favourite place.
In the past few months, my husband and I have been watching the old seasons of Law and Order: SVU. There are 26 seasons altogether, and we're on season 24.
Rafael Barba is one of my favourite characters. He is so elegant, and his outfitss are always stylish and impeccable. After five seasons, they got rid of him by making do something totally stupid and out of character (I still haven't forgiven them for that).
He does an occasional guest appearance.
We watched one episode in the morning, as my husband was getting ready to travel later to Paris.
Sasha was out with his PAs for a couple of hours, and Eddie and I met after school to check out the Romanian store. They announced that they had Dubai chocolate. Looking at the price (£27.99), I said, Perhaps we don't really want to buy it. We got a box of Polish marshmallows in salted caramel instead (for the guys), and a bag of salted pickled green tomatoes (for me).
Our garden is beginning to wake up, with snowdrops poking out of soil here and there. Give it another week or two, and there will be a wild carpet of flowers.
Last month Eddie and I entered an Instagram competition with Bibigo and Squid Games (you might remember one of my previous posts with him posing with a Squid Game doll mask).
We were thrilled to be the winners. The prize arrived earlier this week, including the green hoodie, a cool bag, mini figurines and Bibigo Tteok Bokki dumplings. Have you tried this Korean food?
My weekly haul of books to take to the charity shop. I finished reading Victorian Workhouse from My Story series. It wasn't as gripping as Slave Girl, though it does make you think and count your blessings.
Another book I finished reading is City of Ghosts by Ben Creed. It's a psychological thriller set in Leningrad, 1951, just a few years after the siege. These were the last years of Stalinism, one of the darkest periods of the Russian/Soviet history. The reality was bleak, macabre and brutal enough, without an added gore of the plotline.
The authors (Ben Creed is a pseudonym of two writers) clearly know the Russian history well, and have created an authentic background, with the paranoid horror and fear written convincingly.
The main plot is rather convoluted, and you can guess the villain quite early on.
Saying that, I might read the next books in the series, just to find out what happens to the main protagonist.
It was Valentine's day on Friday, and I received a box of chocolates as a gift, a fancy Hotel Chocolat one, (didn't expect anything, to be honest). I did sample just one, but alas, the rest of the box was gobbled up by my lovely Sash, who always thinks that if a box of chocolates or biscuits is open, it's fair game. I should have hidden it better and shared with everyone. Oh well.
For the last few days I have been busy, getting ready for my Instagram collaboration with Penandinkchallenge. I could choose any theme and prompts.
I opted for Calligraphy because I wanted to challenge myself. I find drawing and painting much easier, and have always admired people who can do calligraphy.
As mentioned in my Insta posts, I am making lots of mistakes with spacing and placement. I found a few books in the charity shops which explain the basics of calligraphy fonts and techniques, and enjoy learning new skills.
My week started yesterday, and I'm excited to see how everyone interprets my suggested prompts.
School midterm break has begun. What are your plans?
.jpg "chai")
It is feeling like spring here today, the sun is shining and it is quite warm compared to what it has been.
ReplyDeleteThe new cafe sounds lovely and good that it's busy so there's less people in Sasha's favourite place.
I have heard of that Dubai chocolate, so far my girls have resisted buying it.
Well done with the competition win. x
Thank you, Kim! If your girls try it, let us know. :)
DeleteSpring is on it's way! how lovely to have snowdrops in your garden.
ReplyDeleteWell done on your prize win, their products look delicious.
Good luck with your collaboration, I saw your lovely photo on Insta today for it.
Thank you, Angela, my week went really well with the collab, very pleased with it.
ReplyDeleteLovely to see snowdrops at this time of year. Well done to you and Eddie on winning the Instagram competition. Lovely to get chocolates for Valentine’s Day even if Sasha did end up enjoying most of them instead! Good luck with improving your calligraphy skills and hope the Instagram collaboration went well. #project365
ReplyDeleteGood on Sasha for getting to the chocolates, fair game to him lol. I've started reading again, it's something I stopped when Stephanie died, preferring to just waste evenings scrolling through social media. I'm loving the pops of colour in the garden, no idea what I'm going to do in the garden this year.
ReplyDelete