Release, poem, dog

1. I didn't realise that they had changed the free parking at the shopping centre from three hours down to two, and there was a queue behind me as I sat in my car rejected by the exit because I hadn't paid for my two and a half hours. A man jumped out of his car and trotted up. "Don't tell my boss," he said as he swiped his employee card over the machine.

2. I saw a lovely poem somewhere on the internet:
Charmander is red,
Squirtle is blue,
If you were a Pokemon,
I would choose you.

3. Joe brings his little dog Jemimah for the school pick up and the kindy kids crowd around. Jemimah is friendly enough and seems to enjoy the attention, but when she sees her little mistress Miah she leaps to her feet and strains on the leash to get to her.

Thyme, no photo, iPhone

1. The beef bourgignon is ready and I easily find the thyme stalks -- now deunuded of their tiny leaves.

2. They don't need to take my photo after all, which is a huge relief as my hair is unwashed, I have no make-up on, and I am recovering from the flu. It would not have been a good day to be immortalised on plastic.

3. My little boy loves my new iPhone game Tiny Monsters -- and so do I.

Orange, nap, book

1. I cut up a juicy orange for Aiden and it looks so good I have one for myself.

2. Dozing off for an afternoon nap with my sick little boy, warm under the covers.

3. An idea I have for a children's book.

Pantry, less tissues, hot bath

1. Reorganising the pantry, with the help of my little girl. We ended up with two garbage bags full of out-of-date stuff, and a beautiful tidy pantry. And four jars of garlic.

2. Only using a couple of dozen tissues today, not a couple of hundred. The cold is nearly over.

3. I'm thinking about having a hot bath to warm me down to my bones.

Sleep, Muppets, water

1. After a restless night with my headcold I am feeling very tired. Tim takes the kids out at 2pm and I fall into bed and sleep until 4.15.

2. Watching Season 3 of the Muppet Show on DVD. People probably think I bought it for the kids, but no.

3. Cool lemony water on a sore throat.

Bed, aloe vera, soup

1. I'm down with a tiresome headcold, so Tim organises the kids and walks them to school two days in a row while I stay snuggled down in bed surrounded by used tissues.

2. The softness of aloe vera tissues on a sore nose.

3. The hot salty goodness of chicken noodle soup.

Magpie, camembert, The Gathering Storm

1. The liquid warble of a magpie.

2. Creamy ripe camembert on salty crackers.

3. The Gathering Storm, book 12 of The Wheel of Time, is excellent. I am re-reading it in preparation for reading book 13. Brandon Sanderson has done a fantastic job picking up where Robert Jordon had to leave off.