Connecting

It's been a bit of a week or so for it - in the last few weeks we've managed to see most of our family, including some fairly far-flung members. It's been great - Daisyfay has seen all of her various cousins, I love the relationship she has with them all.

We live quite a way from all our from all of our family, and I frequently feel guilty that we don't see them all enough. But life is what it is, often for them as much as us - it's not intentional. My sister-in-law and I have decided we need to plan dates that are set in stone, and then it will happen, otherwise the weekends will fill up. I'm a big fan of Facebook, it's great for keeping in touch. I've noticed that the most common criticism from people who don't is that people tell you what they're eating ... I don't! And that everyone can see ... that's  up to you, you choose who sees what. I love the fact that you can keep in touch so quickly, time is my most precious thing! 

We have my uncle and aunt over from New Zealand, which is great, and I felt quite sad when we left them yesterday. I would so love to go and see them, but I guess that's pretty unlikely ...

We also saw my baby cousin who has babies of her own ...

Connecting is good, but there's lots of ways to do it - and with the busyness of life for lots of us - the technology can be a boon - it keeps you on it! I need easy ways to keep on it!

Just because I didn't tell you lately family - I love you ...

Jezebel

My beautiful cat - our beautiful cat - died.

We got back today and she wasn't here, sitting on the window seat, waiting for us.

It was the 17th July, only nine days short of her 14th birthday. Just before we went away.

Makes you think - that little scrap of fur brought so much joy and laughter and love into our lives ( as well as driving us to distraction sometimes!).

Miss her ...

Milk

It's a bit in the news, isn't it? And rightly so. We try and buy local, and as unmessed with as possible, but, I have to admit, milk sometimes slips through the net. Thing is, it's so damned cheap - and, hey, that's the point. But where's my point of difference...?

Now, going back a bit, I got some Abel and Cole boxes - breathe deeply - it was frugal (though no one could claim local) and, obviously, organic ... I got a recommend your friend code plus fourth box free deal - would go with this if you get the chance, as it is surprisingly reasonable: it works out as four for the price of two ... and they give you free gifties! You have to remember to do the cancelling thing at the end though ... vigilance is the key!!! 

Anyway, one of the gifties was milk, organic, non-homogenised milk - it was gorgeous. And it wasn't just me, DaisyFay was bowled over, and ever since I've had, " Can we have the creamy milk.....?". And I looked ... I asked in all the farm shops for non-homogenised milk ... Nope! I remember milk on the doorstep as a child, with cream on the top. And, strangely(or not), no lactose intolerance. Apparently, homogenising spins it all around and breaks up all the fat, and makes it harder to digest ... oh, and easier to keep. I'm no scientist, but that makes sense.

We've been buying non-homogenised milk here in Cornwall, even better, made on the farm milk, their cows, their milk - the tiniest farm shop ever - Treleague Farm Dairy - if you're ever down this way ... They've not got a website/FB page (yet) - I'm sure it will come ... but, the milk - absolutely fabulous - and (this might sound odd) what convinced me was: it went off, there was a tiny bit of our litre left after 4 days, it should do that! What do they do to supermarket milk to make it last so long? Sorry, I may be veering into hippiedom, but I want my food as nature intended please.

I've, I think, found a dairy back home that will deliver me unhomogenised milk. I'm not sure how local though. Think I'd rather have less but better - and support dairy farmers - we may need them one day...

Hair Straighteners

I didn't buy any. I was all resolved to, but then - there's an awful lot of different kinds of straightener, you know ... so I wasn't sure which to buy. And then I thought: the only reason I really want them is to straighten my fringe, because how often do I actually "do" my hair really - and then I thought, if that's the case, is there any reason why the Rapunzel tongs won't work? The Rapunzel tongs were one of Father Christmas' better ideas - they have different attachments and are rather nifty. They aren't straighteners but, after some experimentation, they do straighten my fringe, more or less, albeit with a bit of a flick at the end! Frugality triumphs.

Anyway, now my fringe has grown, and is now summer streaked and salt softened, it is quite wavy, and not very controlled, and feels more me than when it is straight. Maybe what I need is just a longer fringe - the answers are sometimes very simple ...