1. Ice Cream
Our ice cream blog will be coming back with a bang this week as we've pretty much tried a new ice cream place every day we've been away! Highlights were the hot fudge sundae at Macari's in Worthing and Oreo and Toffee milkshakes at Starvin Marvins in Greenford. We also really enjoyed the ice cream cake from G & D's in Oxford.
2. The Story Museum, Oxford
We went to Oxford on a whim. We originally set off for Virginia Water but decided to keep going up the road as I'd never been to Oxford and Rhys not for years. A quick google of 'things to do with kids in Oxford revealed the Story Museum, an amazing space celebrating the different ways of telling stories. I'll be posting about this in full later in the week as it was incredible, but highlights were playing croquet Alice in Wonderland style with flamingoes and hedgehogs, and reading stories in a sailing boat.
3. The Zoo
We went to Marwell Zoo on Wednesday because the boys, particularly Ben, are really into zoos and wildlife parks at the moment and Rhys had fond memories of it from when he was younger and it absolutely didn't disappoint. We particularly enjoyed the children's trail where they had a booklet that the kids could collect embossed stamps from various animals. Personally the giraffes and the penguins were my favourites, I could have watched the giraffes all day.
4. OTSP Secret Sister
I've been seeing people tweet about #otspsecretsister (On the Same Page Secret Sister) but for the last two rounds it's been U.S only. Thankfully this time around they had enough international interest to open it up to some other countries as well and I'm really excited to be taking part! For those who don't know, the concept is like Ninja Swap but lasting for six months - you get an email containing all kinds of info about your secret sister and then you send them parcels based on their interests each month for six months. You don't know who you're receiving from and it's just generally awesome. People have been asking and answering questions for the benefit of their sisters (and brothers, it's not just for girls!) all week on twitter and it's super addictive and generally joy inspiring. It's organised by three amazing ladies, Brittany, Alyssa and Amy and having organised the (much smaller) Ninja Book Swap for the past three years I'm in awe of their ability to organise 250+ people for such an incredible event!
5. The Gracekeepers
* by Kirsty Logan
* by Kirsty Logan
I heard about Kirsty Logan on Jen's Youtube Channel a couple of weeks back and then came across The Gracekeepers on my sisters bookshelf while visiting this week so I snagged it and devoured it in a few days. It's beautiful, set in a fantasy world where there is more water than land and revolving around a circus and a displaced girl. Highly recommended for everyone!
*affiliate link
6. Re-Readathon #2
After discussion with Katie I decided to host another Re-Readathon during September! The one in May was a lot of fun - very informal and full of people's enthusiasm for re-reading their favourite books. We decided that a week wasn't long enough last time so this one will run from September 7th -20th and you can sign up here! Spread the word using #rereadathon on twitter and instagram and let me know if you're planning to take part in the comments!
There's a lot more than six things that have made me happy this week: time spent with family, watching The Iron Lady, hanging out with Rhys and being silly, Brighton (omg I love Brighton!), going to the Women's FA Cup Final at Wembley Stadium yesterday and being part of the biggest crowd to ever attend a womens' football match. The list goes on, but these are the major culprits.
What's making you happy this week? Link up your posts with Lit Nerd!
A story museum? That sounds great! Wish we had something like that around here. Your trip sounds like a lot of fun.
ReplyDeleteOreo and toffee milkshakes?! Get me there now :D
ReplyDeleteI passed the Story Museum when I was in Oxford a few months ago and thought it was such a brilliant idea. I may have to find myself some kids to babysit so I can go.
I think I may have to join in with the re-readathon this time. I keep finding books on my shelves that I don't remember at all. Plus, it's always a good time to reread Persuasion!
Your post reminds me that I need to write about that one time I went on an ice cream crawl (8 places in 7 hours!) I wonder how tastes/trends compare internationally!
ReplyDeleteThe story museum sounds AMAZING, and the zoo is always a classic happy place :)
I had fun during #rereadathon and I agree that it just wasn't enough time to revisit all my favorites. Glad that it's coming back!