Lunacat WILL be here for 2012 - Part 2

I've been doing a family project recently, which has involved looking through a lot of old photos. I haven't got copies of all the pictures I'd like, but these are a few of my favourites.

The first is from L to R, Grammie, my cousin Florence, me (yes, I do appear to be wearing just knickers and wellies!) and my dad.

The second is Grandie and me, as is the third. I adored Grandie, and can't remember ever being happier than when I was with him and my dad.

December

104. Ancient Rome: The Rise and Fall of an Empire by Simon Baker
105. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins


November

93. A Reluctant Widow by Georgette Heyer
94. Tigana by Guy Gavriel Kay
95. Pillar of the Sky by Cecelia Holland
96. River God by Wilbur Smith
97. The Seventh Scroll by Wilbur Smith
98. Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts
99. Daughter of the Empire by Janny Wurts & Raymond Feist
100. Servant of the Empire by Janny Wurts & Raymond Feist
101. Mistress of the Empire by Janny Wurts & Raymond Feist
102. Before I Die by Jenny Downham
103. The Long Ships by Frans G. Bengtsson

October

85. A Wayside Tavern by Norah Lofts
86. Life in a Tudor Palace by Christopher Gidlow
87. A Swift Pure Cry by Siobhan Dowd
88. Dune by Frank Herbert
89. Wool by Hugh Howey
90. All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque
91. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
92. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

September

74. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
75. Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clark
76. Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix
77. Feed by Mira Grant
78. Deadline by Mira Grant
79. Blackout by Mira Grant
80. Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver
81. Od Magic by Patricia A. McKillip
82. The Beekeeper's Apprentice by Laurie R. King
83. Ring Out Bow Bells by Cynthia Harnett
84. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

August

64. Feet of Clay by Terry Pratchett
65. A Town Like Alice by Nevil Shute
66. The Wilderness Family by Kobie Kruger
67. The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley
68. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
69. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
70. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
71. The Enchanted Forest by Violet Bradby
72. Among Others by Jo Walton
73. Divergent by Veronica Roth

July

58. Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson
59. The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson
60. The Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson
61. Pyramids by Terry Pratchett
62. Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett
63. Men at Arms by Terry Pratchett

May

34. Death in La Fenice
35. Death in a Strange Country
36. The Anonymous Venetian
37. A Venetian Reckoning
38. Acqua Alta
39. The Death of Faith
40. A Noble Radiance
41. Fatal Remedies
42. Friends in High Places
43. A Sea of Troubles
44. Wilful Behaviour
^ All by Donna Leon

45. Jill's Gymkhana
46. A Stable for Jill
47. Jill has Two Ponies
48. Jill Enjoys her Ponies
49. Jill's Riding Club
50. Rosettes for Jill
51. Jill and the Perfect Pony
^ All by Ruby Ferguson

52. First Term at Malory Towers
53. Second Form at Malory Towers
54. Third Year at Malory Towers
55. Upper Fourth at Malory Towers
56. In the Fifth at Malory Towers
57. Last Form at Malory Towers

April

25. The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N. K. Jemisin
26. The Broken Kingdoms by N. K. Jemisin
27. The Kingdom of Gods by N. K. Jemisin
28. The Reluctant Widow by Georgette Heyer
29. The Incredible Human Journey by Dr. Alice Roberts
30. Magician by Raymond E. Feist
31. Daughter of the Empire by Raymond E. Feist & Janny Wurts
32. Servant of the Empire by Raymond E. Feist & Janny Wurts
33. Mistress of the Empire by Raymond E. Feist & Janny Wurts

March
21. Sovereign by C.J. Sansom
22. Heartstone by C.J. Sansom
23. The Deed of Paksenarrion by Elizabeth Moon
24. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

February

13. Life in a Medieval Village by Frances and Joseph Gies
14. Solstice Wood by Patricia A. McKillip
15. Sunshine by Robin McKinley
16. The Lions of Al-Rassan by Guy Gavriel Kay
17. The Help by Kathryn Stockett
18. Life in a Medieval Castle by Frances and Joseph Gies
19. Dark Fire by C. J. Sansom
20. Revelation by C. J. Sansom

January

1. The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde
2. Restoration by Rose Tremain
3. When Christ and his Saints Slept by Sharon Kay Penman
4. The Bards of Bone Plain by Patricia A. McKillip
5. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
6. Queen's Own Fool by Jane Yolen
7. Bellwether by Connie Willis
8. Shards of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold
9. Barrayar by Lois McMaster Bujold
10. Beauty by Sheri S. Tepper
11. Packing For Mars by Mary Roach
12. Night by Elie Wiesel

Saved for something in case I need it. The obligatory horse picture can go here in the meantime!

Nice new thread Jenny - thanks for sharing the family pictures.

Hi Jenny! Just dropping by as I happened to be doing a guilty "I-haven't-been-here-in-ages" tune in to LT and spotted that you'd got a new thread. I probably won't catch up with your last one now, but love the photos - and woo for passing the 75 mark!

Jenny, those family pictures are absolutely precious! I never knew my grandparents, either side, so it brings a smile to my face to see my little one enjoying time with his.
Looking forward to seeing more pictures of Connie as well! :)

Wonderful photos, Jenny! Thanks for sharing them with us.

Hi, Jenny! Lovely new thread, with wonderful photos!

A belated congrats on getting to 75! It may take me all the way to Dec. 30th to get there!

I love the pictures. :)

I love the pictures, especially the 3rd one - sleeping child, sleeping grandfather. :)

Love the pictures too. I'm also sorting through old photos.

Oooh, gives me a great idea for pictures for my thread in 2013! Right now I'm doing local landmarks.

*waving* at Jenny

Great pictures! Thanks for sharing some of your family treasures with us.

The hammock photo is a classic Jenny. Congrats on your latest thread and wishing you the very best of weekends.

Great pictures! Made me think, though. All mine that are when I was that old are black and whites.

Calm, Fliss, Valerie, Darryl, Terri, Jennifer, Hibernator, Drachenbaut, Kerry, Morphy, Stasia and Paul thanks for stopping by my new thread.

From Maggie1944's thread:

It's international book week. The rules: Grab the closest book to you, turn to page 52, post the 5th sentence as your status. Don't mention the title. Copy the rules as part of your status.

My status: "How to summon a passing crow and give it a message, or ask it to keep an eye on something for you".

I want to go adventuring

See more gorgeous pics from the creator here

wow. preeeety

Wow, her pictures are stunning.

Can I go adventuring with you, Jenny?

Thanks guys. I need to escape right now. I've always loved autumn for some reason, even though it means winter is coming, and there are a whole load of anniversaries coming up. So I end up loving and hating it in equal measure.

Still, I'm a dark person, and I like the ending, and the days drawing in.

And I got new pretties today! Well, the cats got a new toy, and I took the excuse to get new books. So The Killing Moon and The Shadowed Sun arrived as well.

Great - I have got these "pretties" on my wishlist. I very much enjoyed her first Trilogy and this series sounds quite promising as well. Curious about your thoughts on them :-)

#22 Those pretties are also on my wishlist although I need to finish her Inheritance Trilogy first... Hope you and the cats enjoy your new things!

Love the family pictures at the top! Especially the one with the hammock...

Waving hello on my way to catch up on threads!

Her creations are quite eye-catching. Totally captures the whole "fantasy" feel for me.

Fall is my favourite season as well. I hope you are comforted during the times that comfort is needed and the season is filled with good memories to ease with those that aren't easy...*hugs*

Came to find your thread and leave a star, Jenny, since you have been such a lovely and welcome visitor to mine. I ADORE the photos up top - thanks for sharing them.

Great pictures, Jenny! Those are the best kind to have!

23. Bianca I'm very much looking forward to them as well, but my brain isn't quite in the right place today.

24. Heather the cats (or at least the one the toy was intended for) are enjoying the toy. The others will enjoy the special food I bought for some of them today, and Ralph (the guinea-pig) and Connie have already enjoyed the results of a large amount of money spent on treats and supplements for them!! Ah, pet ownership

25. Genny, thanks - the hammock one is my favourite as well, although I treasure every photo of my dad.

26. Ardene, thanks for dropping by.

27. Valerie, not so many happy memories, but I do my best to hold on anyway. As I said, I'm a pretty dark person so there is something about the ending of a year that feels right. But I hate it for so many other reasons. I've got a lot to look forward to this year but still....

28. Mamie thanks for stopping by :)

29. Terri I hadn't realised how lovely it would be to stop by my own thread and smile immediately because of the picture there. I will probably share more family photos on new threads in the future.

For all your insulting needs:

What a wonderful thread! I can't believe I haven't visited before. I love the pictures at the top, but more than that, I like the explanations that go with them. (I have similar ones to the hammock, where my child/ren & husband are fast asleep in almost identical poses)

Now how do you do coloured stars? I want!

>18 lunacat:: Stunning artwork.

Er... and thanks for the list.

Ah! So that's where you found the, um, terms of endearment you've given me in the past.

I've always wanted to know how you do the coloured stars as well!

That will come in handy next time the hubby and I get into a lover's spat. I'm sure he will be impressed when I whip out the rank onion-eyed maggot pie when the name calling starts! ;)

#31 Thanks for stopping by Nina visitors always welcoming, especially as I tend to lose regulars by dropping off the planet occasionally so people forget about me!

#32 Sadly not Darryl, I've only just discovered this, but I will do my best to add some colour to your threads with them from now on.

#34 Glad I could be of help Valerie!

For those wanting to do the coloured stars, you actually have TadAD to thank for them.

Simply put this code:

http://www.deffler.com/lt/stars_four.gif

as an image - eg:

img src="THE ABOVE CODE HERE"/

starting it and ending it with the usual triangles to open and close

and change the number to whatever stars you want. Half stars go: stars_four_half.gif

Hope that makes sense, I'm not terribly good at explaining these things as my brain is NOT logical at all.

I've got a dilemma.

A letter came through saying I'm due a tax rebate. Yay. It's only a small one but I have several choices as to what to do with it.

-Put it into the bank, where it will get swallowed by boring things like bills and paying for food and fuel.

-Put it into savings so it goes a little way towards something bigger, like a holiday or a bigger purchase.

-Splurge a certain percent of it on books.

-Splurge ALL of it on books!

Really don't know whether I want to be a grown-up, sensible adult or not.

Hi lunacat (Jenny) if that's ok. :)

Since you published that list with For all your insulting needs: I have been pondering it. *Blush very fiercly*, unfortunately I can be very, very slow to recognize jokes at times. However, as I have got a son ,who might will become a comedian one day, he solved the puzzle for me. *laugh*



Ha, that worked. Thank you very much. You explained it very well.

Edited to add: we cross posted - to your list of choices - why always be a sensible adult? Maybe put 1/2 in the account for a super dooper holliday - and the other half BOOK BINCH. Hm, at least I think that's what I would do.

Well the responsible adult thing to do is save it.

The book loving part of me says SPEND IT ALL!

I'm the wrong person to ask since I'm buying more bookshelves so that I can buy more books.....

ha, thanks for the code on the stars! I'll have to try it out. :)

>36 lunacat:: Well, I'm a boring type person (accountant by training) (OK; my son's just read this and finds it hilarious. And crazy), so I'd put some in savings and splurge the rest on (of course) books.

>35 lunacat:: Thanks for the stars!

Just found your thread, after reading something on Crazymamie's thread about riding your horse in the ocean. Had to come looking immediately, of course! Connie is beautiful, and it looks like you have such fun together. Also love your little Tashi-cutie. Thanks for the smiles!

Love the insult list.

I can't help but think that your posting the rebate question on a forum full of book lovers was designed to slant the answer toward a book binge. . .

*waving* at Jenny

Hey, Jenny, nice problem to have!

I'll be back to reply to everyone when I'm not exhausted, but I just wanted to share Connie's latest competition pictures.

They're only low-quality watermarked from the web, but they give you the general idea of how awesome my horse is at the moment. So proud of her!

So GORGEOUS!! Is that you riding her? Is that a stupid question?

Yup, is indeed me.

Not necessarily a stupid question as occasionally someone else will compete the horse for an owner, especially at a lot higher levels than we are competing at! A friend of mine competes her sometimes as well, as she doesn't have a horse at the moment.

Then in that case I want to add that you also look awesome! You should be proud of you, too! It's just so beautiful - elegance in motion.

You are both gorgeous, Jenny!

Wow - you ARE both stunning. Your horse looks beautiful. Her colouring is .... well, she looks like chocolate, and she looks very elegant. :)

Beautiful!

Jenny - so happy that many seem to be discovering the delights of your thread! Find it patently unbelievable that Nina would consider herself boring (even on a tongue-in-cheek basis) when the opposite is obviously the case!
Tax rebate would go at least 25% on books if it was me but you maybe better off not following an old spendthrift like me.

Lovely photos, Jenny!

You and Connie are an awesome team!

#48 Thanks Mamie. Sometimes it's not beautiful or elegant! Pictures can be deceiving ;)

#49 Roni - I'll agree with you on Connie being gorgeous. Not so much me :P

#50 Bianca - her colour is called bay, which basically means she is brown with black legs, mane and tail. But the brown can vary between horses, and between the same horse dependent on the season! Her summer coat is changing to her winter one at the moment, so she looks a bit ropey up close. However, she'll be clipped next week, which makes her look all velvety instead :)

#51 Thanks Genny

#52 Undecided on the tax rebate money. Haven't even paid it into the bank yet!

#53 Thanks for dropping Darryl

#54 Thanks Carol. We're getting there. I've been amazed at her progress this summer, with the thanks of my awesome jumping instructor. She's expensive, but has made an incredible difference. I'm just hoping it's still there come February, after her winter holiday!

Lovely photos. VERY impressive!

You and Connie are a great team.

adding my wows to the horse jumping, that just looks like the scariest thing to me. But you certainly look like you know what you are doing.

Jenny, Love the pictures. Do horses get nervous if the bars are raised a little higher than they're used to and will they shy away, or will they just try and jump them? I'm assuming those poles will not injure the horse's legs if they were to clunk against them if they don't jump high enough?

I have to also say my favorite photo in this thread is the one of you and your Grandie asleep. That's just soooo precious.

Stopping in to wish you a lovely weekend.

#56 thanks Terri, we try. Don't think she agrees with being a team at times as she can be quite rude and not listen, but mostly we have good days :)

#57 Megan, it's not scary when you have a good horse, definitely is scary when the horse isn't joining in! I haven't often felt fear on horseback though, it's usually when I look back afterwards at something that happened that it can get alarming. Mostly it takes so much concentration that there isn't room for fear. You don't want to get distracted too much when piloting half a ton of rather fast animal, especially given they are scaredy-cats themselves!

#58 Caro, it depends entirely on the horse and how much experience it has. They don't get nervous as such, but if you put it too much higher the less talented or less experienced ones will start knocking the poles down. Some horses try their hearts out for you, and would give anything a go once, others take more persuading.

If they really feel uncomfortable/scared/unable to do what you ask, they make it pretty clear. Usually by stopping just in front of the jump, which can be an easy way to fall off your horse, or by rearing or bucking.

The poles are knock down poles, so they come down really easily, usually just a tap knocks them down. In a jumping competition its won on 'faults' and each knock down counts as 4 faults. Obviously you want a 'clear round' ie, none down. It's also timed, so you have to ride round under a time limit.

In the last photo she is jumping a crosscountry fence, which is a solid obstacle. These are more dangerous both for horse and rider, as if she hit it, it wouldn't fall. You can see in the picture we put protective books on their legs just in case. In extreme cases where the horse hits a cross country fence, it can flip over the fence as its front legs hit and it literally somersaults. The horse can land on the rider when this happens, and there have been several deaths at the top level of competition.

However, it's pretty safe for me as the stuff we are doing is only very small, not big enough for that kind of fall.

And now anyone reading this has learnt way more than they wanted to about the jumping side of what I do!

The pic of me and Grandie asleep is my favourite too. It's so completely 'him', always dressed in a proper shirt and trousers, and seeing those socks bring back such strong memories. I love the one with my dad in it because there are so few, but they all make me smile :)

#59 thanks for stopping by Mamie. I've got to work tomorrow which is rubbish, as I'm teaching (which I loathe) but I'll be taking Connie for a practice ride on Sunday so hoping she behaves!

... as the stuff we are doing is only very small ...

Piper and I would beg to differ on that. We'll pop over a log on the trail, but that's about it!

#61

Heh, well, it's taken a while! She's only six though so we're hoping to go up a couple of levels through our joint career :)

Jenny - wishing you a great weekend after teaching ordeals are over.

Hi Jenny wish you a lovely weekend as well - have you started already on the new books from N.K. Jemisin ?

#63 Thanks Paul

#64 Nope Bianca, haven't started on them yet. After the beginning of September when I was racing through the books and loving it, I've hit a lull again. Have been watching too much TV on my laptop until the wee hours. Must focus more!

Ugh. I really really REALLY don't want to go and teach wimpy kids who don't want to be there, and adults who are too scared to do anything I say, how to ride. Why did I agree to it?!

It's one of my pet hates. I get (okay, I don't, but I pretend to) that horses are big and scary and often don't do what you want them too. So here are my tips for NOT p*ssing me off.

a) If you're that scared and feeble, don't come riding. Go do knitting, or learn to play chess. Horses are big and powerful and need you to take charge.

b) If you are a parent, don't force your child into riding lessons just because YOU always wanted a pony. They will hate it, whine all the time, and annoy me.

c) Don't b*tch about the horses and say 'but he won't DO it'. The horse is perfectly capable of doing what I say, else I wouldn't be asking you to do it. Admit you can't do it, and I'll try and help. DON'T complain about the long-suffering horse who can't understand your useless signals.

d) Put some effort in. You don't get half a ton of quiet horse to move without being determined. These horses are riding school horses. They know ALL the tricks. Convince them, and they will be lovely. Don't, and they will play the fool.

e) Parents: Please don't give advice from the sidelines. I am the instructor, not you. That's why I am paid to do this. You giving encouragement to your kid just makes them worse! And wimpier! Go and have a coffee. We will get far more done without you hovering. And DON'T come in if your kid falls off. They will start to cry if you fuss. I will tell you if you need to scrape them up and take them away. Most of the time, they will bounce back up and get back on if you LEAVE ME TO IT!

Please can I just go back to bed?!

*wave* at Jenny - LOL - Fully agree on your points. My son waited "ONE" year for a placement to become riding lessons HE so wanted to have since he was a small child. *sigh* three month later he decided it wasn't that what he expected and stopped taking the lessons. However, the instructor could NEVER understand that I didn't WANT to stay and watch, and seriously asked me if I wasn't interested in what my son is doing. I actually gave her the exact arguments you pointed out, and told her that I rather have a coffee during that time and read a book. She was extremely buffled, but I didn't bother. *grin*

BTW: It is Bianca and not Nina.

Yes, and now you can go back to bed. *laugh*

Great photos of you and Connie. Sorry to hear about the stresses and frustrations of being a riding instructor (although they also made me giggle).

Very sorry Bianca!! No idea where I got Nina from. If it's any consolation I haven't known any names of riders today either. I know all the horses though. Gives you an idea of my priorities :p if you were a horse I'd have no problems.

Haha! Your list is funny. Re: point e) I've never understood why so many parents encourage their kids to be wimps like that. I always assumed that my nephew was made of rubber and laughed off all of his falls and bumps unless he really looked like he was hurt. If the parent/adult smiles, then the kid will smile too--unless he or she is really hurt.

I remember one time I was going on a flight with my nephew who had just learned to run. I was walking through the airport and he was in the stroller, but then he wanted to walk. So I let him walk. Then he wanted to sit in the stroller, so I let him sit and (against the better judgement of the safety instructions) didn't stop to strap him back in again. Soon enough, he decided he wanted to walk, and he stood up unexpectedly and went SPLAT! because I bumped into him with the stroller. I laughed and said "Well that's what happens when you stand up when the stroller is moving!" I knew from experience that Johnny would laugh too and happily continue walking. But, alas, a group of angry aunties descended upon me with angry eyes and started cooing at him about "are you alright? You poor little thing!" Of course he wanted to milk that. Grrrrr. Oh well. Maybe I'm heartless, as they angry eyes implied. :)

I adopted that minimal fuss approach with bumps and falls too, and then when he was about twenty months old my son fell over into a blackberry bush when we away visiting friends, and hurt his arm. This was on the Sunday morning and it was obviously still a bit painful by the evening, (but he was using the arm OK) so we decided to take him to the doctor Monday morning if it was still hurting. So next morning we trooped off to the G.P. who pronounced that he was pretty sure it was just a sprain, but we'd better take him to be x-rayed just in case. So we went to the hospital and they said pretty much the same thing. But when they looked at his x-rays they discovered that he had a displaced fracture of both bones in his lower arm. A few hours later he had to have a general anaesthetic to reposition the bones, as they tried and failed to do it while he was awake. After that, I was a bit more of a paranoid mother.

>71 SandDune: Wow! That is a bit extreme. And I can see why it made you paranoid! I guess my philosophy is that being paranoid doesn't stop disasters from happening. I mean, I wouldn't let a 2-year old handle a gigantic pair of garden shears, for instance. I don't consider that paranoia so much as common sense. ;)

I am one of the lurkers of your thread but I wanted to delurk to say that I love your tips list at post #65 and I voted yes on Daryll's poll -I am shocked that parents would enroll their children in an activity without even understanding what all it might entail and who the subject matter expert is!

*back to lurking*

#66 Bianca, a shame Alex didn't enjoy his riding, especially since he had to wait so long before learning. We get a LOT more girls than boys coming for lessons which is a big shame, as I think boys would get a lot from it, given that it's fairly dangerous and you have to be tough and non-wimpy!

#67 Heather, glad they put a smile on someone's face. More than they did for me :P

#68 Darryl - sadly I don't think I would be offered more teaching if I had given my list out to the parents. Thankfully I had very few interfering parents yesterday.

#70,71,72 I think children learn a lot from accidents and feeling pain, but definitely agree picking them up and brushing it off while laughing is the best approach.

It's certainly what my parents did for me, which might account for the numerous accidents I have had - I've become fairly fearless over the years, and well acquainted with the local hospital, and I consider myself tough enough to deal with a lot of situations.

Rhian, I can understand you being a bit more paranoid after that though. I cracked my elbow in May after I fell off and the horse ran on my arm, but didn't bother going to hospital until a week later because I didn't think it hurt enough to be broken!

Our usual criteria for injury is that if they are crying, they aren't badly hurt. If kids break bones, they generally go white, very quiet and still as shock sets in. In 99% of cases we are correct :)

#73 Thank you very much for delurking. You're right - I can't understand why parents do it to their kids either! If your child cries continually before, during AND after a 1/2hr lesson, then why keep persevering?!

Pleased to say I survived my days teaching, had no children fall off their horses, and hopefully everyone enjoyed themselves. Today I took Connie to a low-key practice competition type thing, and we had another good confidence giving session, so hopefully she'll go as well next weekend, and the weekend after, which are bigger deals. Then it's downhill till the end of the season, and winter sets in!

I suppose I should really get back to talking about books soon..........I am reading, honest.

Dropping by; just back from holiday. Stunning pictures of you and Connie. Makes me want to take up riding even more, after your previous suggestions, especially with summer coming on. But then I saw your list ;)

I say, Paul. You make me blush.

Oh - was about to say that drachenbraut is Bianca, but I see she's told you already.

Don't let the list put you off if you'd really like to give it a go! I happen to dislike teaching with a passion, which is a shame seeing as it's what I'm qualified to do, but most other instructors are lovely.

It's also extremely good exercise for weight loss and toning your stomach muscles. Although you do tend to ache for quite a while afterwards.

I could rave for a long time about the wonders of horses, but I think either you 'get' them, or you don't. So many people see them as either highly dangerous, or as big stupid animals, but they are neither. If you get how they think, and appreciate them, they're lovely. After all, they are a natural prey animal, is it any wonder that they get scared over daft things at times?!

Hi Jenny,

I think horse riding is beautiful and actually I was a little bit sad that Alex gave up so easily, but I think that his instructor wasn't that good. My boy can be a bit clumsy, as mentioned before in my thread, and I think that she had some issues with that and tended to be a bit impatient with him. I am still hoping that he will change his mind one day. I always wanted to learn horse riding and had some lessons myself when I was younger. However, due to a spinal problem I am not allowed :(. So, I have to be happy with admiring and cuddling horses, which is fine as well. I love that soft part in front of their muzzles? (is that the right term?) - and I love it when they nuzzle you with that big nose of theirs and blow at you. *blush* Sorry, but I really like them.

80. Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver



Sam is one of the popular girls at school. Part of the 'in crowd', she goes through the day in question with the shallow, and self-centered, thoughts of a teenage girl: assessing everyone else, bitching when she can, and wondering whether she is really going to lose her virginity to her boyfriend that night.

But after drama at a party in the evening, something bizarre happens. A car crash, a flash of light, and then she wakes up the next morning. However, it's not the next morning. It's the same day, all over again.

She seems cursed to repeat that day, acting differently, following different choices that she made, until she can find the one she is 'supposed' to make. As she does so, she learns more about the people around her than she thought possible.

This was a light, easy read, with a pretence of depth to it. What does the character have to realise? Can she bring herself to act as she should? Will it be enough to undo the damage she has done in the past?

Nothing amazing, and the ending was plain to guess from early in the book, but I was exhausted and yet couldn't sleep, so needed entertaining without having to think. This was ideal. I'm glad I didn't pay anything for it though.

Sounds like a reprise of "Groundhog Day" (the Bill Murray movie) from a female POV, and it sounds like the movie was better!

81. Od Magic by Patricia A. McKillip



Brenden has been hiding from the world since his mother died, and his brother left. Talking to the plants, listening to the winds, hearing the stories around him. Disconnected from everyone, he retreats.

Until he gets a visit. The woman before him, surrounded by stray and injured animals, seems as inhuman as he feels. But, despite it all, he follows her advice - to travel to the city, and enter the School of Magic, through a certain door.

But when he gets there, he finds himself wrapped up in a conspiracy against the magic and power he didn't know he had, hiding from those who would bend him to their will.

Written with the usual gorgeous, lyrical language that is McKillip's trademark, I love her books and crave more in the same instant. The atmosphere, the scenery, the sense of emotion are all exquisite, and yet I feel that a mist hangs between me and the story, one I never quite penetrate. I want to know the characters more, know the place and it's history, the meaning behind what happens and where it leads. What is there is stunning, but there is never enough.

My favourite quote, and one that really resonated:

Sorrow was like sleeping on stones, he decided. You had to settle all its bumps and sharp edges, come to terms against them, shift them around until they became bearable, and then carry your bed wherever you went.

82. The Beekeeper's Apprentice by Laurie R. King (reread)



Precocious and (for me anyway) slightly annoying orphaned teenage girl called Mary meets Sherlock Holmes, who decides she has brains nearly as good as his, and so trains her to think like him.

They start by her solving small mysteries, but by the time they have made it through WWI and she is at Oxford University, they uncover a plot to kill Mary and destroy Holmes. The plotter is ingenious, a complete match for the both of them, and the twists and turns are good fun. There is also a lot of humour which makes up for the manically breakneck speed and necessity to remove skepticism about the plot.

At times I found myself skim reading and not taking in all the details, as I simply didn't have the brain power required to follow the tiny clues. But it is a decent read for an afternoon or a sleepless night, and the reader certainly can't claim they are not entertained.

#79 Roni, I've never seen Groundhog Day, but having looked up the plot, it seems like it is very similar!! But wikipedia says the film was added to the United States National Film Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" and the book certainly is not that.

Love your parental tips sheet. Poor parents they do worry about their babies! If it was me Id get outa there and have a coffee liek you suggest as it will then be a lot easier for me not to worry !

I have a fear of horses though, from when I was little and a neighbour had a horse. She never stopped telling me that I must never go around the back of the horse as it will kick me. Now I am convinced that every horse is just waiting to turn around and aim its hooves at my kneecaps.

>80 lunacat:: Love McKillip; another book bullet for me, as I haven't read Od Magic yet. Agree with you that there always seems to be more, if I can just penetrate that veil.

>81 lunacat:: The Beekeeper's Apprentice also sounds worth looking into.

>82 lunacat:: Probably 'Groundhog Day' is culturally significant because it's about Groundhog day; I certainly had never heard of it before (or otherwise).

Hi Jenny! I LOVE your rules for parents!! Also love all the interesting things I am learning over here about horses because I know basically nothing except that they are gorgeous animals.

We watch 'Groundhogday Hog' every year because my middle daughter was born on Groundhog Day - until then I hadn't realized that is always on February 2nd. I wouldn't define the film as culturally significant, though - but it is funny.

I have The Beekeeper's Apprentice in my TBR - okay, actually it is in a box right now along with a great deal of everything else that I own! I do want to get to it eventually, so thanks for your review which helped to nudge it up the stack a bit.

Od Magic is my favorite later McKillip book--I'm so glad you enjoyed it as well.

I totally agree with you on Before I Fall. It wasn't a bad book but it was just sort of "meh." You missed the Groundhog day rehash, I see. Actually, the ENTIRE book was a rehash of movies...mostly from the '80s but some from the '90s like Groundhog day. Like that incident with the tampons in which I thought "oh, she's remembering Carrie." The incidents were JUST recognizable from their source material, but slightly different as well. There wasn't a drop of truly original in the book. I was amused that Sam even mentioned a couple of times "I once saw a movie in which..." Oliver clearly was not trying to hide the fact that she was rehashing movie plots! On the flip-side, the age-group for whom this book is written probably have not seen a lot of the movies from the '80s and '90s that were being referenced.

Ugh. Today is shaping up to be one of 'those' days. Neither my personal car, or one that I own but is a shared 4x4, will start! I have places to be and things to do.

Grrrrrrr.

Oh dear! Sending good mojo, and hoping that things work out for you. I hate when things don't work the way they are supposed to!

Some great reviews Jenny; hope you get where you are hoping to go to and that you collect some of that mojo along the way.

Thanks you two.

I was supposed to be going to my second pottery class this evening, but with no transport, that won't be happening :( very disappointed

And there are things that I HAVE to do tomorrow, so rather stressed about not being able to get places. This is where living in the country is really really inconvenient.

I'm surprised that so many people haven't heard of Groundhog Day. It wasn't an amazing movie but there were a lot of fun moments. It's hardly an unusual device, though; it's been used in three tv shows that I can think of (Charmed, Stargate SG-1, and Blood Ties) and at least a couple other movies.

I'm not surprised the book wasn't great, though...it's hard enough to do that well on screen, it would take a skilled writer to make that an interesting read.

#77 Bianca, cuddling horses is nearly as good, though you do have to have the right kind of horse to do so with. Unfortunately, Connie isn't a cuddly or affectionate horse in the slightest, so I don't do much in the way of cuddles with her.

There is, however, a horse where I work occasionally that does all the loving things. Blowing in your ears, snuggling up to your neck with his muzzle, just for the love of it. Sometimes escaping for five minutes and 'talking' to him is amazing therapy.

#83 Megan, most horses are not planning to kick you. But the sad truth is a few will, especially when surprised, and the damage that can be done even by a 'soft' kick is pretty bad.

The thing to remember is that their vision is very different from ours, they can see a lot further back, but they also still greatly fear attacks from behind. And their back legs are their biggest form of defence. The safest place to be if you HAVE to go behind a horse is to get up close, as then you don't get the full force of the leg extending as it hits.

I have had a few kicks in my time. One glanced off my hip and left me significantly bruised for weeks, another was a very nervous and unpredictable horse who spun and 'double-barrelled' me (kicked with BOTH back legs) in her stable. Thankfully I instinctively spun round, so she got me firmly one on each cheek of my backside. I had beautiful horse shoe prints!

The third major one broke my left arm, but he had something caught under his hind shoe, so I had to try and get it out, and he caught me.

Now these stories have probably put you off even more! But they were all with horses the average person wouldn't be allowed anywhere near, and bearing in mind I've been associating with the animals for 13 years now, three kicks I can remember isn't bad :)

#84 Nina I think, once I've read all the McKillips I own, I'll be going back to them, and really trying to dig deep. I'd love to be able to penetrate.

I had heard of groundhog day, but didn't really know what it meant, so at least my education on the term has expanded.

#85 Mamie How nice that you have a particular tradition on your daughter's birthday. Is she sick of the film yet or does she still enjoy it? Hopefully you're not getting fed up of the detailed explanations of horses and their behaviour, it's just that once you get going, you have to go into depth about all different areas or I don't feel like people would understand.

#86 Roni as I said to Nina, I think I'll be rereading all McKillips at some point, and might well do so in publication order, so I'll be interested to see how I feel the early ones compare to the later.

#87 Rachel Agree with 'meh'. Okay for a quick read but nothing amazing. I've never seen 'Carrie' either because I'm not a fan of horror, and I think I probably missed a few references to other things, not being truly immersed in American culture. I do agree that on almost every page however, there seemed to be a scene/phrase/character that reminded me of another book or film.

#88 Blue, thanks for stopping by. Yes, certainly not a unique or new concept. I've encountered it before as well, but for the life of me I can't remember where! Not in any of those shows as I don't watch them, but perhaps it will come back to me in the middle of the night.

Thank you to everyone for stopping by. I like visitors, especially those that don't mind me spouting incessantly about horses ;)

Oh dear. I've been cheering myself up on Amazon.

So far I've downloaded:

Sentence of Marriage by Shayne Parkinson (free) historical fiction set in 1880's NZ

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller (99p) Winner of 2012 Orange Prize - an homage to The Iliad

Winter of the World by Ken Follett (20p) second in his latest trilogy - I own the first but haven't read it yet

The Anne Boleyn Collection: The Real Truth About the Tudors by Claire Ridgway (£2.05)

Life in a Tudor Palace by Christopher Gidlow (85p)

Imhotep by Jerry Dubs (77p)

The Lost Queen by Norah Lofts (£1.71)

Anglo-Saxon Britain by Grant Allen (free)

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle by Anon (free)

Experiences of a Dug-Out by C. E. Calwell (free)

Richard Wilde by Mary Fitzgerald (99p)

Must step away from Amazon now................

>93 lunacat: Now these stories have probably put you off even more!
I admit, I was reading them and thinking, WHAT? My neighbour was right, they are looking at my knee caps as a target! haha.
Good advice on keeping close, even if it does go against all my instincts. I can work with that. And talking to the horse to let them know where you are?

ps GREAT lot from Amazon. Dont leave now...go back for more! (is that helping? ) ;)

#95

Yup, talking to horses so they know where you are is one of the first things you learn about horse care. As long as you talk calmly. A nice natter with them can make all the difference. They are incredibly perceptive to tone and mood, and the reading of hormones etc, and can also read when you're cross with them!

My Connie can tell when I've reached my limit with her behaviour and she's really in trouble, and will stop doing it :)

#96 Noooooo, not terribly helpful! :p if my car fails to start tomorrow after being on charge all night, I may be back for more mood enhancing spending.

Jenny - my word downloading from amazon is cheap! I will have to look at getting one of those electronic thingys.

Nice haul, Jenny!! Way to go!

We don't watch the movie on her birthday every year, we just watch it every year in February sometime. She loves the movie, but I don't think she would want to use up her actual birthday watching it year after year. It's just a fun February activity for us.

Very late to the discussion here, but I had to laugh as I read your riding lesson rules. I grew up riding horses, but I would still be one of those hovering, annoying moms, I just know it, especially if Charlie fell off of the horse - ha!

Inspired by you, took my eldest to the nearest riding school; but as it's holidays, I slept through my alarm. He's a bit shy at starting off, so didn't join today, but might look into private lessons for all 3 of us as a group, just to start. He did suggest I teach him to ride (!), and then, when I explained I couldn't said that he knew how to ride, anyway (!!). He's been on a pony once in his life, that I can remember, and that was with me on board, too. (To climb Mt Taal near Manila; that was fun - we drove up the mountain, boated across the freshwater lake, rode a pony up the inner slopes to look down into a crater with a sulphur lake in it, with islands in the lake...).

This sums me up at the moment

#99 Paul a lot of the books aren't so cheap, and if I'm going to pay £5, I'd rather have a physical copy, even if it is second-hand. However, I went searching for bargains, and certainly succeeded this time. I'm amazed you haven't succumbed to an 'electronic' thingy - I thought I'd hate them but now cannot live without it. Will still always want hard copies of my favourites though.

#100 Thanks Mamie, I'm pretty proud of my haul myself :)

#101 Amber well, at least I'd know ahead of time if I were teaching Charlie ;)

#102 Nina Wow, can't believe I've inspired something! I really hope that you get to have lessons and that you all enjoy them. I've got all my fingers crossed for you. Make sure you let me know how things go!

And I love the sound of your trek :)

Pleased to say I finally have a functioning car, although it's not my 'main' car, but the shared 4x4. We (after about 10 hours of trying different things) managed to have a charged battery, and get the immobiliser to let us start the engine. It was looking bad for a while, but in searching through a load of paperwork we discovered the code we needed. Phew.

Now all I need is to hope my personal car doesn't cost too much to fix, when we can finally get it to a garage.

Jenny, I love all the horsey information. I had riding lessons when I was a kid, and fell off a spooked horse when one of the other kids' dog managed to escape from their car and ran up into the field, yapping and jumping up at the horses, and broke my collarbone. Not the horse's fault of course. Silly dog spooked a few other horses out there that day. I think horses are beautiful animals but I think I'll just keep approaching them from the front.

What lovely photos and information!

Hi Jenny - my favourite 'Groundhog day' style movie is a German film, Run, Lola Run.
Love your rules for the parents and that the horses 'know all the tricks!'

>103 lunacat: Dont worry Jenny, I heard today that nail biting is now in the DSM (the tome referred to in the diagnosis of mental illness), its under OCD. Great, yesterday I was mentally well, and today Im mentally ill!

LOVE the cartoon in post 103!! Hoping today is a good one for you full of things that work exactly the way that they are supposed to!

Hi Jenny,
looks like I have a lot of catching up to do in the few days, I was not on LT and I was in hibernation at work :).
Fully agree with you on Before I Fall. When I started to read it I wasn't quite sure what to make of it. I had very mixed feelings which went from being really annoyed, frustrated and at other times I needed tissues. This was definately not one of my favourite reads, but it was ok.

Congrats on your wonderful book haul at amazon. I have got a kindle as well, but I do prefer reading "dead trees", also I appreciate the practicallity of an e-book reader, especially if you travel.

*Love* the cartoon in post 103 as well.

Hi Jenny, I am delurking to say I liked your tips for parents! And also the amazon list...I already had the Shayne Parkinson one (really must read it) but I got the Jerry Dubs and the Mary Fitzgerald. I bought the Ken Follett one on Monday...Now I just need a new Kindle device to read them on.

Today's Kindle Daily Deal for the UK is a novel set in New Zealand, which rather alarmingly lists a "translator". I'm not sure what that's all about, but the reviews are awful so that's 99p saved :-)

Good luck on getting your car repaired, Jenny.

Gah. Would this week like to continue to be nothing but awful, or would whoever is up there like to GIVE ME A BREAK!

The car that drove perfectly fine last night, is now not working again. And I had planned things on the assumption that it WOULD start. Nothing that we tried last night that succeeded, is working again today.

And, to top it off, the bill came through for Connie's veterinary treatment and hospital stay she had to have back in August. For more than I was expecting it to be.

I would so like to go back to bed and pull the covers over my head please.

Oh, no! One of those weeks. I'm sorry; hope everything looks up for you very soon.

Belatedly catching up with you Jenny!

It seems like a common theme around here were a bad day/week/month is usually offset by book retail therapy! The longer the slump, but the bigger the big haul. Nothing cheers me up more than getting one or multiple nice rectangle packages in the mailbox. :)

Sorry to hear this week has been a crapshoot. I hope you catch your break and the week picks up soon!

Just have to say thanks for the insults list way back at post 30 - I get so tired of all the swear words that say something derogatory about women, so now I have a fresh list to choose from!

ETA: Good luck with the car repair - you have to havea car in the country. I'm dealing with several big bills due now myself, and it's stressful.

Miracle of miracles, we got the car to start. So I drove it for a while to try and charge the battery, but after 30 miles or so, I was low on fuel. So I had to stop.

Now I am sitting at a petrol station waiting for the breakdown people to come and rescue me, and making use of free wi-fi here. I knew it was too good to be true.

Jenny, I know ..... I shouldn't..... and still ....... can't help it. Just imagine you sitting there and waiting to be rescued. :O LOL. I hope you will forgive me.
That is just one of those classic situations. But I do hope your car will be fixed soon.

Oh Jenny, hope you're not waiting too long!

*sigh* it's been a comedy of errors this week. Thankfully I didn't have too long to wait, about an hour. Then drove to meet my friend, and then drop the car off at the garage, as the breakdown man said it was unlikely to start again. We left a note with it as it was 10.30pm when we left it there, and will take the keys in tomorrow!

Hey

So, in an attempt to stop my thread from becoming misery and woe, I'm interested to see the answers to this question.

What made you join LT, and then what made you join the 75ers and make a thread?

Ok, I'll play. I joined LT because it seemed like a great way to catalogue my books - and that is what I concentrated on at first, ignoring the threads because I didn't get them. Then, as I got more familiar with LT, I started exploring more and just happened to come across a thread that resonated with me - so I checked out that person's library. I liked it and wanted to be able to find my way back to it again, so I marked it as an interesting library. I had no idea that when I did that LT sent a PM to the person whose library it was. That person then sent me a PM and we started up a conversation. She was a member of the 75 group and said that was where it was at, so I decided to join - she talked me through setting up my first thread, and was my very first visitor. Now look at all the greatness and fun I have found!!

I'll play as well :) - My sister is a librarian and IMO a computer wizard (which I am not) she showed me LT and told me what a great way it would be for me to catalogue my mountains of books. Which I have done (and I am still not finished with), after some time I started to explore the different features of LT and started to mark libraries from other people. I have been lurking around this group for over a year and only started a thread at the end of June, because Nathalie/Deern encouraged me. I met Nathalie on the German Library Thingers where I sat up a Reading Journal in the same way as they are done here. Unfortunately the German group is extremely quiet no more than a few posts a month:(. I am glad I finally was brave enough to join this group, because there are so many like-minded and friendly and people with such a good sense of humor here. Aside from book talks I enjoy the bantering and discussions about every day things and life. It's just sooo much fun.

I'll play! I discovered and then joined LT as a result of conducting work-related research into social media back in 2008. Basically, I read an article at a hyperlink provided to me in an email, proceeded to click on a related article link provided, read that article and proceeded to click on a further related article that in turn, low and behold, listed LT as one of the 10 social media sites the article was showcasing. I joined the 75 for the first time this year because of discussions I have encountered in other groups and because I thought, why not join one more Challenge ..... ;-)

Well - I was given an old computer and, as I am more or less housebound, started looking for like minded book loving people. After some very strange google results I discovered Librarything and liked what I saw. Stayed, started cataloguing (which meant I quickly went lifetime) and joined a few groups. Realised that some of the people I liked were in the 75ers and haven't looked back - most of my LT time is spent here:)

Thanks everyone for the replies, they've put a smile back on my face. I love finding out about people, and what brings them places.

Good news this morning - managed to get a courtesy car from the garage we took my 4x4 so I am mobile again. Still dreading the repair costs of both cars, but at least I don't have to fork out for a rental car as well!

What made you join LT, and then what made you join the 75ers and make a thread?

I joined LT in June 2006, after I read about it in a newspaper article (NYT? WSJ?). I began to participate in the What Are You Reading Now? group in 2007 or 2008, and I joined the 75 Books group on the invitation of akeela and deebee1 at the end of 2008. I joined Club Read in 2009, and began to branch out to other groups (Reading Globally, Author Theme Reads, Orange January/July, Booker Prize) in subsequent months.

Good news about your courtesy car, Jenny. BTW, what make and model of car do you own?

I joined way back in 2007 and basically ignored the site for a couple of years. Then I found the 75 challenge group and thought it would be a good idea to help motivate myself to read more books and actually keep track of the books I read. I actually scoped out the 50 challenge group, but it seemed really quiet there...so I decided on this group. We are definitely a much chattier group, but that is one of the reasons why I love it here so much. It's not just about books, we are actually sharing our lives and our love of books! (I almost wrote boobs..what the heck??)

I hope your car gets back to being reliable soon! Have a great STRESS-FREE weekend, or at least try. ;)

Valerie, if you want to spout about your love of boobs, go ahead. This is a free-thinking and accepting place to be ;)

Haha, I am always reminded of an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond (don't know if you know the show or not) where the wife is ranting about how her boobs are WORKING boobs. Having gone through nursing 3 kids, they aren't just for show you know??? Sadly, I've only had 1 child, and I wholeheartedly concur.... :/

delurking to say....haha HA
Great boob book talk

I joined LT in 2008 when I was in grad school. My aunt had been a member for years and kept telling me I should join. I told her I didn't have enough time for such things. But in 2008, I had my tonsils removed and was too high on narcotics to go to work. I had kept a list of books that I've read since I was in the 6th grade (though didn't keep track of the author until I was in high school), so I just cataloged all the books that I read and knew who the author was and remembered well enough to give a rating to...I only recently began to catalog books that I own but haven't read...that will probably take a long time.

I joined 75ers early this year when I was exploring the different groups. I wanted to start a book blog where I reviewed every book that I read (as I read them...not the OLD books!), and it seemed only fitting that I'd start a thread here, too!

Jenny - love the confessional aspect of why we are all in this forum! I joined LT early last year and became active in this group in the second half of last year. I find that I thrive on the mixture of book talk and camaraderie. I have a busy and full life which has been nicely added to here. I do feel that I have met and formed some firm friendships in the group that is genuinely enriching.
Have a lovely weekend and good luck with all things vehicular in the next week.

Heh, I've been loving it as well Paul, I'm really glad I asked now! It's been great, and has thoroughly cheered me up. Fascinating to see the different paths that brought people here.

Also, I was pleased to see I made it onto your stat list! Go me :P

#127 Darryl,

The car that has currently made it to the garage is an old Range Rover that we use for towing the horses in the trailer. Sadly the garage think it is a major electrical fault, and that the whole electrical unit will have to be replaced. Looking at repair bills of nearly £1000, which is also what Connie's hospital bills have nearly reached. Add to which my other car, a Citroen, also needs repairing, and it is turning into a very VERY expensive month :(

Jenny, I joined LT in October of 2007, having run across a mention of it somewhere online, in order to catalog my books. I thought that life membership was the best deal going! The next June, when school was out and I was playing around on the site, I found the groups and since there was no 100 Book Challenge group that year, I joined the 75ers. For the first time in my life, I had managed to track my reading for 2008 using the profile page, so I listed those 84 books when I created my thread for the group. I'm so glad there was no 100 book challenge group or I might not have found the great people here. Mind you, the group was much, much smaller then!!

My Thingaversary is coming up later this month--I think I might need to designate the Amazon order I made this week as my Thingaversary books.

>135 ronincats:: No, no, Roni; that's not how it's done. You've got to use your Thingaversary as an excuse to get more books!

Since I'm here (I was just intending to lurk), my story is I saw a newspaper article about LT, and as all I had to track books was an old spreadsheet that I rarely updated, and wanted to add more data to, I thought I'd join and catalogue my library properly. As to how I came to join the 75ers, I can't quite remember. I suspect that after doing all the cataloguing, and being delighted at the function, I started exploring LT. I believe I thought 'How hard can it be to read 75 books in a year? 12 months!' - but I've barely managed to read more than about 50 in each of the past couple of years. Hopefully this year!

Hi Jenny,
this was such a good idea, to see why people joined LT and I very much enjoy the various responses of everyone. It is very interesting to see how everyone seems to end up in this group. I definately can say that my reading has brodened already quite a bit over the last few month and I love the very personal and friendly touch about this group.

I don't remember how I found out about LT - I think my sister told me about it, but that's all I know. It was 6 years ago, after all. Come to that, I find most of my favorite websites through my sister...I do remember that I was most excited about the possibility of a function that still isn't available: the ability to list the stories in anthologies and connect what stories are in multiple books, what authors contributed to what books, etc. I used to have a big collection of sf anthologies and finding one story in all those books was hard. Ah, well.

I used to belong to the livejournal community 50bookchallenge, before I joined LT (before that community got too big to be fun) and I was a member of LT's 50bookchallenge since it was created. I joined 75books because it's more active (one might say too active, but that's what the red x is for), although I admit I never understood why another group was created in the first place.

Wait, you have a Citroen?! Jealous. Okay, not jealous of the repair bills, but definitely of the car!
Hope things start looking up for you soon!

Checking in on you, Jenny! I love the pictures of you and Connie earlier in the thread.

Great photos of the competition, Jenny! Thanks for clueing me in.

I like the old family photos at the top, too. Treasured memories, I can tell.

I agree with you and Rachel about Before I Fall - meh. I like reading YAs, and had her recommended as an author, so it was a bit disappointing. Not a bad book, but nothing to write home about.

I am a fan of Beekeeper's Apprentice. A great imagining of their relationship, and it evolves in the subsequent books.

Connie's latest excursion, in which she did extremely well. Can't believe this is the same horse I had 4 months ago, the progress she has made is unbelievable. Amazingly confident girly :)

Love the photos you post of you and Connie competing, Jenny. You make a great team!

Love the pictures of you and Connie! Thanks for sharing, Jenny. Maybe in my next life, I'll look as elegant as you on a horse..haha! :)

Hi Jenny,
I also love the pictures of you and Connie. AND, yes you do look very elegant on your horse. *grin* . I probably look like a sack of potatoes on a horse.

And you look so happy in the last shot! I bet you both had fun.

Connie looks good; you're not so bad looking yourself ;)

The two of you do make riding look exciting. The new school term has just started, and all after-school activities with it. If I can just get organised, I'll look into our riding lessons, or it might have to wait until after the play is over. But soon.

Great photos again!

#134 Oh no to all the repair expenses :-(

#142 Wow, you and Connie both look great!

I've really enjoyed all the stories of how people found LT. I think I found the site in autumn 2009 when I was looking for somewhere to catalogue our book collection online. A few weeks before we got married my husband (then fiance) had flooded our flat. Luckily nothing really got damaged but it made contents insurance seem more of a reality and I wanted somewhere to list the books we owned just in case...

I was going through a very stressful period at work and outside of work and I found cataloguing books in the evening to be very therapeutic (I am a geek). I lurked in lots of groups for a while then decided to try joining a challenge group; having no idea how many books I could read in a year I picked the 75 group because I thought that seemed doable and then proceeded to read over 200 books in my first year (although I had quite a bit of time off work that year). Now, of course, I'm thrilled I picked the 75 book group because it's the best place to be on LT :-)

How on earth have I not been to your thread before, Jenny? :O

1. You ride horses? *speechless happiness* That is wonderful! Connie is gorgeous, and I'm so happy she's making great progress! You look like you are an excellent rider. I wish I could learn how to ride a horse, but it's a bit above my family to pay for at the moment. It is one of my life goals, however! Oh, well, I think I'm a little too in awe of horses right now to be a good and forceful rider. Hopefully later in my life.

2. That list of insults is awesome, and I'm snagging that for my own, erm, personal use.

3. I love reading everyones tales of how they found LT! I first heard about LT two years ago through my library, and I joined to discuss books at their group. That group didn't really go anywhere, though, so after cataloguing a small portion of my books I stopped going on. Then one day the Writer's Digest magazine recommend LT, so I thought "eh, I'll go on again." I decided on a whim to get a different account, though, and so ErisofDiscord came to be! I joined Hogwarts Castle, which got me into the habit, and then early this year I joined the 75 group. I'm addicted to this place - the friendliness, the camarderie, and the books I've discovered have kept me coming back.

Love the photos, Jenny!

BTW, did you tell us how you came to find and join LT, or did I miss it somewhere?

Thank you everyone for stopping by, it makes me feel very loved.

#143 Lori sometimes it feels like we're a team, a lot of the time I can tell we aren't understanding each other. When we're at a competition is when we gel most!

#144 Valerie you should see us sometimes, we definitely don't look elegant!

#145 Bianca it's taken me a long time and a lot of lessons to not look like a sack. And I tend to look my best at competitions, not so good when I'm riding at home :P

#146 Megan Yup, I think it's the happiest moments of my life when I've just gone xc (cross country) with Connie. It's the most awesome adrenaline-filled feeling ever, and when I do it, I want more!

#147 Nina Can't wait to hear when you go for your lessons. And please PLEASE don't give up on it at first. It's something that does take a lot of time and patience to get the hang of. The awesome feeling you get when the horse does something YOU asked it to is fantastic though. Like bridging a barrier.

#148 Roni Thanks for stopping by. So nice to have you visit.

#149 Heather Great to read your story, and it's lovely to see you here.

#150 Eris fab to see you stopping by here, and glad you found lots to like. Yup, I do indeed ride horses - well, my own horse anyway, don't do riding of others very often any more. I'm not sure I count as an excellent rider, as I'm very amateur, but we try hard! We couldn't really afford me to have lessons as a kid either, but my grandparents paid for a lot of them (not sure if all of them) and it was the only 'paid' hobby I had. Then I went onto an apprenticeship so I worked for not very much, and learnt at the same time!

And yeah, no good to be in awe of horses. Well, be in awe of them because you have to be aware of their power, but don't be scared. Confident but not over-confident.

#151 Darryl Thanks for stopping by. Nope, I never told my own story, so I'll get on that now :)

Another competition, another good day! No rain (which was forecast), and a fairly happy pony. Still a decidedly dodgy first phase, but second and third phases were good, although I was disappointed.

We had one mistake in the second phase (show jumping) when Connie took a dislike to one of the jumps, which cost us eight 'faults'.

However, she FLEW round cross country and was the fastest one, only 1.6 time penalties (the time set was VERY fast) and she was lovely and confident. We came sixth overall, out of a field of about 20-25. But we would have been third if we hadn't had the mistake, and beaten my friend for the first time ever!

I have been reading, and will get round to reviewing a few things. One of these days.

HI Jenny, sorry that you didn't manage to beat your friend. However, coming 6th with so many people participating is a great achievement. AND the main thing - you obviously had a lot of fun.

AND why did you join LT? and how did you end up in the 75 group? *grin*

Lovely photos, Jenny!

I found LT via a link on our public library's home page. I explored it, and found it a great way to catalog my books. I think my first group was the 50-Something (age) group; I met a few 75-ers over there. I was looking at other groups, and wanted to do a challenge. 75 sounded like about the right amount of books. Right away, I was welcomed by a few people, and I've been here ever since.

Too bad about the faults in show jumping, Jenny. Maybe next time Connie will like all the jumps :)

You might be interested in this thread.

That is still pretty awesome to come in 6th overall. I'm sure you and Connie will continue to improve and climb up those standings. :)

Just stopping by to say hi...

Well done, Jenny and Connie!

Oops, just realised I never said how I came to join!

Simple story really. My mum and I have always shared an adoration of books (completely obsessed) and are never to be found without a book in our hands. Even in my worst teenage years (which were NOT easy for either of us) we still had that in common.

She found LT before me, and recommended it to me. A few days after I joined and got addicted, she paid for my life-time membership.

It took me a long time to venture into groups etc, as I am naturally a reserved person, and I have yet to complete a full year 75 thread as I tend to retreat into myself at certain parts of the year. But I, so far, have always come back.

#142: I've been away from the threads for a bit, but holy cow - you guys look great! You're both in balance, and look at the roundness over that fence - congrats; you've put a lot of work into her!

#68: As for the list - I voted no, don't show it to parents. Aside from putting your job in jeopardy, it's so much more fun to tell them your list to their faces. I think the worst I had to teach was a 30-month old girl. Yeah, that's right; she was only two and a half. It should have been enough to put her on a pony and lead her around for another few years, but her mother wanted her competent - like independent cantering and showing - and was mystified why she couldn't grasp things like diagonals or, this was funny, grooming a horse when she could have walked under the barrel of an 11 hh Shetland. Sweet girl, horrid mother.

And for everyone who is started riding - good luck and have fun! There is nothing more enjoyable; there is always something new to learn.

#121: LT survey: I was looking through Google for the Library of Congress call number for one of my books, so I could properly organize my horse book collection. One of the only results took me to LT. The site was down, but that only made me come back again and again. I joined, started cataloging, following interesting libraries, and posted in the general LT welcome thread. That directed me to the 75ers, and here we are, almost 4 years later.

I seem to keep forgetting to comment on this thread! Love the idea of how we joined LT. My then-boyfriend, now-husband first found this site as a way to catalog our respective ever-growing book collections. After cataloging all of the books we could on the free membership, we both thought the 50-book challenge sounded good. I quickly trumped that and the next year I joined the 75-book challenge thread. I love the people on here and the variety of reviews (though I'm a total shy lurker and don't often comment) and just a year or so ago paid for a lifetime membership. Btw, love the pics of you and Connie - you both look great!!

alsvidur - LOL about the two-year-old. I once taught a five-year-old (the minimum age for my stable at the time). Very quickly, her Dad decided to buy her three horses so she could have a choice over which one to take lessons/show on!! And, two of them needed lots of training!! I don't know why my trainer at the time allowed it!

Well Jenny , I for one think that your personality resonates splendidly on your thread and across those you grace with your presence. Your mum did us a favour when she paid for your membership!
Have a lovely weekend - any competitions coming up?

#162 Emilie,

I can't imagine why parents would think a two year old needs to ride! Be lead around maybe, but not be in control of a pony. Don't they realise how big even the littlest ponies are?!

Although I did see this in the spring.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2151512/The-world-s-smallest-cowboy-Two-...

And thanks for the compliments on Connie and I. I can't quite believe the progress we've made in a short time. Two years ago she'd never see a cross-country fence, had no idea of dressage, and was scared stiff of ditches and water. Even at the beginning of the summer, we couldn't do a SJ round without her hitting at least three poles down. So so proud of my girl.

#163 please don't forget me! Lol. Ahh, how parents can get it so wrong with their children. The number of people I have seen by inappropriate ponies for the kids, and for themselves for that matter. And then wonder why their kids end up terrified of horses and not enjoying it?!

#164 Paul, I'm not sure about there being grace in my presence! I'm sure after the abuse I've heaped on Darryl over the years, he'd disagree ;)

Yes, I am competing this weekend, but thankfully don't have to do any of the stressful bits! Just charging round the country side over big jumps, my favourite bit :)

Hi Jenny,
how did your competition go this weekend Just charging round the country side over big jumps, my favourite bit :) Sounds great *laugh*

Just checking in on you, Jenny. Missing you on the threads and hoping all is well.

Just swinging by and saying hi! Hope things are well on your end, Jenny!

Love the pictures, Jenny. I came peeking in for news on the competition. ;-)

Hope all is well with you and your beautiful Connie? And the cars?

I came to LT in 2006, as a means to catalogue my books. I can't remember how I found the site, I think I must just have been searching for something about book cataloguing. I'd been intending, in pre-internet days, to produce my own database catalogue, to continue what I'd started years before then neglected, which was a hand-written acquisitions list. Anyway, I signed up for LT, and catalogued a handful of newly-acquired books, then forgot about it again. Repeated a few more times over the next four years. Finally, when I was off sick early in 2010, and looking at the great pile of books I'd read in the pat couple of years waiting to be listed in a notebook before being reshelved, I remembered LT again and began to enter my books more systematically. At the same time, being off work I had plenty of time to explore the other features of the site, including the groups. I joined lots of them, not knowing what to expect, and discovered that this group is alive and friendly - and it has been a life line ever since. I think what works well (and I know some of the other groups do a similar thing) is how each person has their own thread, and you could just use this, as some do, as your online record of your reading - or it can become a space for hosting conversation and a springing for visiting others and joining in their conversations. I don't think I was really expecting this aspect of visiting and being visited when I first joined, and it has been such a lovely thing to experience and be part of.

Hi, Jenny. Just checking in after getting back home.

Hiya

Thanks for all the comments everyone!

The weekend was good and Connie was extremely well behaved. However, since then it's all been a bit of a nightmare as I ended up with a stinking chest infection that has really taken it out of me. Still not feeling a hundred percent but at least managing to stay up for more than an hour at a time!

Oh so sorry to hear that, Jenny. Glad you are on the mend - so wonderful to see you back here. We missed you! Please feel better and don't push yourself too hard. Sending you healing mojo.

Oof, sorry about the chest infection, Jenny. Good to hear you're on the far side of it and improving. And that Miss Connie is doing so well and learning so much.

Hope you are feeling better soon, chest infection in this wet and cold weather is no fun at all. Look after yourself, keep warm, drink hot drinks, don't forget the hot water bottle, hm the scarf and yes - a nice book :).

Jenny, sorry to hear that you're feeling poorly. Chest infections just seem to drag on and on sometimes. Get better soon!

Glad to hear from you Jenny, but not so happy to hear about the health issues! Hope you feel better soon and are back on your feet!

Jenny, hope you are felling better soon!

I'm sorry that you're ill, Jenny. I hope that you feel better soon!

Hope you are feeling chipper again soon.

Good to hear from you, Jenny. Glad you're on the mend.

Sorry you're ill, Jenny. Hope you're all better soon!

Chest infection, begone! Jenny, come back!

Hope you are feeling a lot better soon.

Ugh. Some days I wonder what luck I've brought down on my head!

Not only have I had the chest infection, but I'm now on anti-seizure medication following a concussion and some 'episodes' a couple of weeks ago. Not only is this making me feel quite odd, but also means I can't drive for some time, probably six months.

Mainly the doctors can't work out why a insignificant knock to the face (I didn't even get a black eye which is what I was expecting to have) should have caused post-traumatic epilepsy.

However, I'm hopeful that it was just after-effects from my brain getting shaken around a bit. They're going to try and wean me off the drugs in the next couple of months and see what happens then.

Connie is being ridden by a friend of mine for the next month or so, and then she'll be on her winter holidays anyway, and she'll get up and going again back in the middle/end of January, so hopefully things will get back to normal soon! I miss her a lot.

Now I'm feeling better, I'm hoping to be back around soon. Just cursing my luck, as it seems like these things always happen to me! Then again, as my doctor says 'if you will do exciting and dangerous things like horse-riding, what do you expect?' But I wasn't even riding her, just getting her ready!!!!!!!!

Jenny, so sorry to hear about all your health problems at the moment. I hope things improve soon - not being able to drive must be a real pain. Can you get around on public transport where you are?

Unfortunately, not really! I live in a small village and the buses are irregular and don't go at 'useful' times.

And of course, the buses don't go to places like the yard to see Connie, or to the supermarket, so I'm going to be relying on other people.

Jenny, I'm so sorry to hear about your health problems - and the consequentdriving ban which must be very frustrating. I hope it is soon sorted out.

Oh, that really stinks! I'm sorry.

Oh, Jenny, what happened? So sorry to hear that. Hoping you recover quickly. At least Connie is sorted out.

Feel better soon!

*HUGS*, Jenny! Feel better soon!

More *HUGS* and hope you are feeling much better soon!

Hope life gets back to normal health-wise for you soon Jenny!

Thank you all for the well wishes.

The thing I'm finding most frustrating at the moment is apart from a certain amount of forgetfulness, and the side effects of the medication, I feel absolutely fine.

I think I'd be less frustrated if I'd had some huge fall off Connie, or a car accident, something severe like that that SHOULD cause lasting damage. Not a tiny little knock to the face that didn't even bruise!!

C'est la vie. Now my brain feels somewhat back to normal, I've been working on Christmas presents, and getting some reading in.

I've got a lift up to the yard this morning to see Connie as well, which will be nice :).

Does anyone know if the Santa gift thingy is up this year yet? Not sure what it's called, but I'd like to join in and haven't seen anything about it yet.

Jenny - I hope you are feeling better this weekend and that it is a great one for you.

Hi Jenny! Sorry to see you haven't been well! Hope you get back to normal soon!
Love the photos of you and Connie!

Oh Jenny - what a bummer! So sorry to hear about your health troubles. That must be so frustrating - not being able to drive would send me right over the edge. And I bet you are missing Connie so much - did you get to see her yesterday? Wishing you well and hoping that all your worries are behind you very soon.

Hi Jenny. Sorry to hear about the concussion and side effects. Living in a small town with limited public transport I know I take being able to drive for granted and would struggle without it. Hope you feel better soon.

#194 I don't think SantaThing has been announced yet. Last year it was announced later in November I think.

Hi Jenny! I hope that you're doing better today.

No sign of SantaThing yet, that I've seen anyway.

I hope you managed to see Connie, and that she and you are doing ok without each other.

Hope you're feeling better today, Jenny. Check in once in a while, so we know you're doing well? :-)

Really sorry to hear of your health problems, Jenny. How frustrating!

Hello Jenny, I am also very sorry to hear about your health problems and I DO understand why you are so frustrated. Hopefully things will get better for you soon, did they say how long it could take until you recover from this?
However, I wish you a good week and cross my fingers to speed your recovery :)

Thank you everyone for the outreach of love and support. It means a lot and certainly brightens my day! I would reply individually but I'm pretty exhausted after my first 'proper' days outing yesterday to a horse event - just watching of course- and so my brain isn't working so well today, in fact I'll write this and then go back to bed.

Physically I'm fairly sure I'm feeling fine, although the anti seizure mess have some annoying side effects. Mentally, I'm getting frustrated with not being able to drive, but I've got friends who are being very supportive and ferrying me around places. Still, I'm a very independent person and I hate being reliant on others.

I did go and see Connie the other day which was great. I didn't realise how much I would miss her! She's not missing me at all, as a friend is riding her, and as long as she gets her food, she doesn't care. Some horses get very attached to their owners but Connie isn't one of them, she'll love anyone with food :)

I am getting some reading done but mostly I'm just watching tv and playing scrabble on my iPad. I think I want to prove to myself that my brain still works fine! Doctor's appt next Monday and hopefully I can start the weaning off the drugs so we'll see what happens then.

Thank you again everyone, it makes my day when I come here and find visitors, and LT is certainly making this 'experience' much pleasanter.

Take it easy, Jenny. I know it's frustrating losing your independence, especially when you have limited other options for transport. But you do have good friends helping you out on that front, so relax. There's nothing you can do about it other than stress yourself out, which just slows down your recovery. (I'm very good at relaxing - certain people in my family are known for being so laid back, they're horizontal!).

And obviously you don't have to worry about that fickle lady, Connie ;-)

Glad you could get a visit in to see Connie even if she didn't miss you much. Hope the doctor has good news for you.

Glad to hear you got to see Connie for a bit, Jenny! Don't feel bad about her loving anybody with food. My child whom I carried for 9 months and gave life to will also go with anyone willing to bribe him with food without a backward glance. ;)

I'm glad to hear you're getting through this okay, though I can imagine how frustrating it is. I hope you can manage to get some good rest.

So sorry to hear about your health troubles!! Its so tough when you're not able to get around on your own! I hope that you can find ways to visit Connie as much as you can - I'm sure she'll help you feel better, quicker :)

Heh, it's good to know that it isn't just my horse that is fickle in her attentions, and that children are as well! I already knew about it in the cats and my guinea-pig, and many a time have we laughed ironically at the displays of 'cupboard love' being shown.

Interestingly, the only cat we have that doesn't particularly demonstrate it is Luna, whom we had to work very hard to tame when she was young. She is a greedy little piglet who does show it at dinner time, but at other times she is very much my cat and won't give out much affection to others, to the extent that when she was in labour with her kittens, she followed me round until I allowed her to curl up next to me on my bed, and actually gave birth pressed against my tummy. Thankfully, we had realised she wasn't to be convinced that giving birth on my bed wasn't the most ideal place, so had spread towels out underneath her.

Apart from the indigestion and the occasional forgetful or wobbly moment, and some continuing tiredness, I'm doing well. My brain is enough in gear that I'm getting some reading done, though only rereads and nothing of any depth, so it's entertaining fluff at the moment! I even went to my pottery class, and brought home my first ever pots, though they are rather........interesting, so I won't be showing anyone ;)

I was supposed to be going to my patchwork class tonight where I am finally making progress, but instead I'm going out to a quiz night and dinner with some friends. They begged me as they said my bizarre amounts of general knowledge would be good, even with my dodgy memory. Most of them don't read much, and are the kind of people who are very knowledgeable in their areas but not much else, whereas I have very little in-depth knowledge and a huge spread of rather useless information! I can remember odd facts but not simple day to day things, like what I need from the supermarket.

I know it's a few days late, but I wanted to put down a few thoughts about Remembrance Day before it slipped past completely. I also wrote some of this on Nina's thread.

I lost a great-uncle in WWII, but he has always been a big part of our lives through talking and remembering him.

It makes me so sad to think of all those lost, and full of pride that so much is still done to honour those who have fallen in war.

I remember visiting a WWI museum in France, where I saw a fact that has stuck with me since then, and always will. WWI was supposed to be the Great War, the war to end all wars, and yet since November 11th 1918, there has not been a single day where war has not been occurring somewhere in the world. It seems to be a primitive nature of humans to fight with others, and yet you'd think that with all our technology and so-called progress, we could manage to talk instead of kill. I guess not.

Fascinating article here about the man described as 'The world's poorest president'.

He donates about 90% of his monthly income to charity, and lives on his wife's ramshackle farm.

A quote from him:

"I'm called 'the poorest president', but I don't feel poor. Poor people are those who only work to try to keep an expensive lifestyle, and always want more and more," he says.

"This is a matter of freedom. If you don't have many possessions then you don't need to work all your life like a slave to sustain them, and therefore you have more time for yourself," he says.

"I may appear to be an eccentric old man... But this is a free choice."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-20243493

What an incredible man. I wish he held more influence and power in the world, and his attitude could begin to change things. And that he continues to stick by his ideals.

Fascinating indeed - thanks for posting that article Jenny.

I am so glad today is nearly over.

Seventeen years ago today my dad passed away. He was forty-two, and I adored him. I was completely and very obviously a daddy's girl. For years I missed him as my dad, but as I've grown older, I've begun to miss what we could have had, and the changes in our relationship as I grew up.

Part of it is that I never got to know him as a person, instead of simply as my daddy. And that I have so few memories, especially clear ones. I was too young to have vivid recollections, so they are sparse and not fully formed.

A book about loss as a child that I dip into (I can't read it for very long) says that when we lose a parent as a child, our reactions towards that event will always remain the same: we will always react as if we are the same age as we were then. I certainly feel like that, and the grief and pain has never got any easier. Evolved maybe, changed and weathered, but never lessened.

One comfort to me is that my mum says as I have grown older, I have become more and more like him, both of us being reserved, quiet and thoughtful in our approach to life, and the need for solitude and space is strong.

Some of the books I now enjoy are the type he did as well, more intense and darker than anything my mum would read.

Still, I wonder what he would think of me, and I hope I would make him proud.

Jenny, I'm glad to hear that you're resuming your normal activities and having fun in the process. How was quiz night and dinner?

I didn't realize that Remembrance Day in the UK falls on the same day as Veterans Day in the US, although Memorial Day here more closely resembles Remembrance Day there. Your comments about your great-uncle were very touching, and it was surprising and tragic for me to learn that we have not had a day free of war since the Allies signed the armistice with Germany in 1918.

Thanks for posting the BBC article about the Uruguayan president. Despite the criticisms of him he appears to be a great man.

I was moved by your tribute to your father. From what little I know about you, I am certain that he is very proud of his grown up little girl, and of his beneficial influence on you.

xo

Jenny, what a moving, powerful, and beautiful tribute to your dad. I'm sure he would have been extremely proud of the young woman you are today and the fact that you carry a part of him with you always. *Hugs*.

#214 Jenny, I hope you got through the rest of yesterday OK and did remember some good memories as well. I'm sure that you would have made your Dad very proud

Jenny, I also hope you got through yesterday OK and I just needed a tissue, because your memories of your dad moved me soo much. I agree with everyone else that your dad would be very proud of you :)
*lots of Hugs* I also hope, that you will be fully recovered from your accident soon.

>214 lunacat:: Jenny, thanks for sharing your thoughts about your dad. It's very touching. I bet he'd love your riding. Hope everything is well with you.

Jenny - Sorry that I didn't make it over here yesterday. Hard day for you. As you know, I lost my Dad a year ago in September, and it was so bittersweet to remember him on that anniversary of his death - so very thankful for the time that I had with him, but wanting so badly for him to still be here. I cannot imagine what it must be like for you to have lost your Dad at such a young age. I am heartbroken for the time that you didn't get with him. I am sure he would be so touched by how much you love and miss him, so honored by your memory of him and by your sweet words above, and so very proud of the young woman that you have become. Please know that I am thinking of you today and wishing you joy.

I've been away for the weekend and so absolutely don't have the energy to really say anything, but wanted to share this:

http://www.hardscrabblefarm.com/ww2/britain.htm

It's a WW2 Guide for American Troops in Britain. And is very true, and very funny to see how our country was seen by the Americans :)

Thanks for posting that, Jenny, and especially thanks for your words about remembrance and about your father. I'm sure he would be very proud of you indeed.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading the Guide for American Troops in Britain, Jenny. It might be useful for American passengers traveling to the UK to receive a somewhat similar document along with a UK landing card during the flight.

Thanks for posting the link to the WWII guide Jenny. Very interesting reading! Your remembrance of your father is beautiful.

Oops! Went missing again. At least this is for a productive reason, as I am making most of my christmas presents and it's taking up a lot of time.

Also need advice for home made christmas presents I can make for the men in my family? The women are fine, loads of ideas, but I have no idea what to do about the blokes. All the ideas I have found are designed more for fathers or partners, and I need ideas for cousins and uncles. I'm doing food based things as part of it, port wine jelly, hot pepper jelly, and fudge. But would like non-food ideas.

Help anyone?!

>225 lunacat: White chocolate fudge works for me. TYIA.

Oh - was she making them for all of us? I'll have some, too, please :)

Scarves, hankies, mittens? Remote control holders, paperweights? What kind of thing is your speciality?

Hi, Jenny. Haven't seen you around for a while. Just checking in.

Checking in as well, Jenny!

That's very enterprising, making all your presents! I'm afraid I'm no use with suggestions for men - I struggle enough with what to get for my father, though thankfully he likes some of the same books as me so that helps. But the food ideas sound great!

Just dropping by to say hi, Jenny!

Hi Jenny! What did you end up making the guys?
I was going to suggest beef jerky and knitted socks ;)

Jenny - Missing you on the threads. Hope all is well with you, and that your presents are coming along nicely. I don't know what to suggest for men either - I think the socks or the paperweights are excellent ideas. And of course anything food!

I'm chiming in with everyone else on the "don't know what to suggest for the men"... though my father is always asking for more socks, and so is my husband... so maybe socks ARE the perfect gift for men! Who knew...

Hi everyone!

Haven't been either reading or posting at all, mostly because of Christmas but also because of a burst of real life productivity.

I'm doing a variety of little boxes for my family which all have made items in them. They include jars of homemade beer mustard, ornaments shaped as either snowmen, stars or Christmas trees with their initials on them, and noughts and crosses tiles with pieces made of air dry clay (tic tac toe for Americans). They also each have a mini bottle of wine, a chocolate item, and a bookmark, plus something personal. They all have a mix of the above things listed. I've made a patchwork rattle for my cousin's five month old son, with a cat ball plus bell sewn into the top, and a crisp wrapper into the handle so he has different noises there. His older sister who is three is going to get different coloured homemade play dough.

My mum's present is made but can't show you as she occasionally looks here, so I'll post a picture after Christmas. My best friend has her stocking of little bits and pieces as well.

All in all, busy but it feels good. Not sure what I'm going to do with myself after Christmas though!

Decided to go ahead and post pictures of things anyway!

Baby rattle for my cousin's baby:



Decorations (everyone has an initial and family groups have at least one 'patterned' one).









And if you scroll down, you'll see what I made for my mum. It's blurry and not sure why, but I wrapped it before I checked the photo!

Ooh, gorgeous quilt, Jenny! Everything is so creative!

Jenny, those look really lovely! You are a very talented lady. Hope you and yours have a good Christmas.

Wishing you a Happy Christmas Jenny.

Merry Christmas Jenny!!!

Hi Jenny, what wonderful things you made. I love the baby rattle especially, any chance that you could give me the instructions for that one? I also hope that you are fairly recovered from your fall. Do you still need to take the medication?

However, I am sure your family will roll out the red carpet for you after receiving soo many wonderful presents *grin*. I wish you and your family a magical and wonderful Christmas *smile*

Jenny, just stopping in to wish you a very Merry Christmas.

Glitterfy.com - Christmas Glitter Graphics

I want to wish you a glorious celebration of that time of year when we all try to unite around a desire for Peace on Earth and Good Will Toward All. Merry Christmas, Jenny!

Dear Jenny, sorry I haven't been around much if at all these past couple of months. Thought I'd drop by to wish all the best to you and your loved ones this holiday season. I look forward to continued exchanges in 2013.

What beautiful presents for your family! No wonder you've had no time for reading and posting... Have a very happy Christmas and hope to see you again in the group in 2013.

Merry Christmas, Jenny!


glitter-graphics.com

Merry Christmas Jenny!

Merry Christmas, Jenny! I'm sorry that I didn't see you this year, but hopefully we can meet up in 2013.

Merry Christmas, Jenny! What wonderful time and effort and thought you put into your Christmas gifts - just beautiful!

Thanks for all the christmas cheer everyone.

Have decided there is no point me a) trying to restart posting on this thread and b) trying to catch up with everyone else in the group, so I'm migrating over to 2013 early. You'll find me here:

http://www.librarything.com/topic/146834

Here's to a great new year ahead, Jenny!