Martha's Marvellous Munchies

This month we have had to adjust to being parents of an actual school student!  The amount of new information has been almost as bewildering for us as for him, but we are starting to get our heads around the mysteries of phonics, online communication and what to take for show and tell. September sunflowers We've enjoyed plenty of warm sunny days, so the boys have been getting lots of outdoor play.  At this time of year you feel like you want to soak up every last minute of sunlight before the cold and dark close in.  I've been painting the fence. Toby - started primary school!  We've had some tears and fears, but gradually the worries are dying down and the enjoyment is creeping up.  He's already won a certificate for an excellent picture of his house. Walking to school, first day. OBE: Our Best Ever - got to sit in the driver's seat of a winning racecar at Donington racetrack -achieved a childhood rite of passage by falling off his bike

I was puzzled.  Why temples?  Temples to friendship, ancient virtue, concord and victory - all wonderful things, to be sure, but why fill your garden with temples to them?  Was it merely that ancient Greece happened to be in vogue?  Did they make useful places to sit down as you roamed the many landscaped acres?  Or was there some other reason? As I scanned the Wikipedia article , (which, by the way, has more information than you'll ever want to know about Stowe), this line caught my eye: "...below which is the Temple family motto TEMPLA QUAM DELECTA (How Beautiful are thy Temples)." The Temple family.  Aha.  Light dawned. We had stopped at Stowe Gardens on the way back from my parents' house.  It is only a short distance from our usual route, and moreover, owned by the National Trust, so our membership entitled us to free entry.  A quick lunch break on a sunny bench fueled us up for the half-mile walk to the gardens.  Toby and Theo raced each other on

On Friday 11 September, British Members of Parliament discussed an Assisted Dying Bill, which would enable doctors to prescribe a lethal dose of drugs to patients with less than six months to live, if the patient requested it. No one could blame you. Save six months of pricey meds. Free up one of those hospice beds. One less mouth that must be fed. No one could blame... No one could blame you. Save your family from the shame. Free them from the waiting game. You won't even know their name. No one could... No one could blame you. Save yourself from all the pain. Freedom from that endless strain. Wouldn't it be more humane? No one... No one could blame you. Save yourself with one small pill. Freedom comes when all is still. All it takes is your free will. No. The bill was rejected, with 118 in favour and 330 against.