Duncan

6:30, and I'm in the kitchen, a frying pan in my hand. I squint as I attempt to read the recipe without my glasses. The frying pan hisses as I drop in some pancake batter, swirling it around with the back of my ladle. Little bubbles rise to the top. I flip the pancake over, yawning. I should be still in bed, like everyone else. But instead I'm up making a special breakfast for everyone. Why? Because it's Duncan's birthday.

Duncan is the quiet one of the family. At the dinner table, we're all talking and laughing together. He listens quietly, with a smile. However, ask him a question about a movie, TV show, or book, and he becomes quite animated, captivating you for hours as he recounts many of the strange facts he's learnt.

Duncan is the hard worker. The washing machine beeps to tell us that it's finished. No one reacts, except Duncan, who puts on his boots, and braves the cold wind to make sure we have clean, dry clothes to wear.

Duncan likes to surprise us. He comes home in the evening, and, with a huge grin on his face, whips movie out of his jumper, complete with sweets. Then he'll join us in front of the TV to watch it.

It's evening. We've eaten a lovely dinner and a birthday cake. Then we've watched a movie. Duncan looks happy. He's had a lovely day, with lots of good food, presents, and a trip to the go-kart track. I'm tired from cooking the birthday food. But it was all worth it to make Duncan's day special.

Happy Birthday Duncan!

Sister Time

We're all in holiday mode. Gone are the formal school books, Mum's record book. No more piano or singing practices for two weeks. Instead we have unlimited time to work on personal projects, time to sleep in, books to read, time to spend on our own, and time to spend with each other.

For the most part, I like to spend my holidays reading and writing, with the occasional craft project on the side. But yesterday, after an entire morning working on my own, I suddenly realised that I really wanted to do something with my sisters. So I took them to the park.

We raced out the back door, calling goodbye to Mum as we went. My camera swung on my wrist. Maybe I'd get some good shots at the park. We laughed and chatted as we skipped down the road. Look, there was a kookaburra!

Out came the camera. Click. The kookaburra flew away in indignation and we skipped on.

Oh look, pretty flowers. I just had to stop and take more photos. Gemma-Rose tugged on my arm, trying to get me moving. We were so close.

"Can we play tip?" Sophie asked.

I thought for a moment. Tip wasn't really my game. What if I proved to be too slow, or too quick? How embarrassing that would be! Could I really sacrifice my dignity for a game of tip? The little girls looked pleadingly at me. I gave in.

"Ok, we'll play tip. I'm in first."

The girls took off, with me running along behind them. Giggles echoed around the play equipment as we tipped each other. Charlotte sat on the swing as 'bar'. She cheated shamelessly as she helped the runners keep away from 'it' but we didn't care. We were having too much fun.

Finally the game ended with a spectacular swandive from Gemma-Rose as she dive to safe at 'bar'. One look at her skinned knee and I decided we should go home.

"Oh." Gemma-Rose's face fell. "I don't want to go home. I want to keep playing."

"I'll take you here again another day," I promised. Her face lit up again, and we hurried homewards to bandaids and afternoon tea.

I love spending time with my sisters. It's so easy to make them happy. Holidays are a good time to spend doing things for myself, but at the same time it great to spend some 'sister time' with the other girls.

Do you like to spend time doing special things with your siblings during the holidays? What do you like to do in your holidays?

The Wonderful Wilkie Collins

I absolutely love reading mystery stories. The great Sherlock Holmes, the humble but clever Fr Brown, and the teen detective Trixie Belden, are all old friends. I've stripped the library shelves bare of Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys books. But my favourite mystery books are by Wilkie Collins.

The Moonstone was recommended to me by my brother Callum. I picked the book up doubtfully. It looked dreadfully like Charles Dickens' huge books, which daunted me. How was I ever supposed to get through this book?

I started reading The Moonstone for school work, but the story soon drew me in. What had happened to the legendary stone, the Moonstone? Who took it? How? I was absorbed in the book. It may have been school work, but I couldn't put the story down. It held me captive until the few last page, when the mystery was finally cleared up.

I felt I had made a wonderful discovery in Wilkie Collins. Eagerly I picked up another of his books, The Law and the Lady, in the hopes that it might be as good as The Moonstone. It didn't fail me. It proved to be another riveting mystery. Wilkie Collins was cemented in my mind as a fantastic writer.

Soon I found yet another of his books, The Woman in White. I didn't worry about whether it was going to be a good book. It was by Wilkie Collins, of course it was good. And it was.

Then I made another brilliant discovery. The free ebook site Manybooks had his books as ebooks. I recognised The Moonstone, The Woman in White, and The Law and the Lady, but there were so many more I'd never heard over. Eagerly I downloaded some to my ebook reader and prepared for more discoveries.

I'm currently enjoying his book No Name. As ever, I'm sure that it's going to turn out as a mystery. And I know I'll love it as I loved the rest of his books. I've created another enthusiast. Just as Callum recommended his books to me, now I've introduces my sister Charlotte to the wonders of Wilkie Collins. She loves his books as much as I do. We now have yet another author to share.

Have you ever read any of Wilkie Collins' books? Do you enjoy mystery stories? What mystery writers do you like?

Gilbert and Sullivan Girls

It's 11 o'clock on a Thursday morning. From a nearby park drifts the strains of opera music and laughter. Is it the residents of the local loony bin? No, it's just us spending a refreshing morning at the park.

We're perched on the see-saw, bouncing gently as we fumble our way through our favourite Gilbert and Sullivan pieces.

"I'm called Little Buttercup," we sing gaily, before suddenly switching to, "For I am a pirate king!"This is hardly the music you would expect a normal seven year old to be singing. But then, most seven year olds haven't been introduced to the delights of Gilbert and Sullivan's comical operettas.

From men disguised as women in a lady's academy, to pirates, to ancient Japan, their operas seem to cover everything under the sun. The music is catchy, and the words amusing. We love to sit down of a night to watch a production.

"What shall we watch? Princess Ida?"

"I want to watch The Mikado."

"How about The Pirates of Penzance?"

Eventually we decide on a movie and settle down to watch it, humming the music, and laughing at familiar jokes.

We love these operas so much that we even borrowed a book of their music from the library. Even Charlotte the shy singer can be persuaded to take on one of the male parts. The little girls revel in the songs of their favourite characters, while I glory in the showy soprano parts.

We're Gilbert and Sullivan girls, and proud to be so. Our song matter, our conversations, the movies on our shelves all proclaim this fact. And we'll be Gilbert and Sullivan girls for a long time more.

Have you seen any of Gilbert and Sullivan's amazing operas? Do you like to sing random songs from your favourite musicals?

Sharing Books Meme

Recently Charlotte and I have been sharing our favourite books with Sophie and Gemma-Rose. We searched the bookshelves for books suitable for a ten and seven year old. Soon each of the girls had a wicker basket filled to the brim with unread books. All of them are old favourites of mine, which then gave me another idea. Why not share some of my other favourites with Charlotte?

Fifteen minutes and much bookshelf raiding later and Charlotte too had a basket of books to be read. Her eyes lit up as she contemplated reading all those books, many of which I had told her about quite often.

It was so much fun sharing my favourite books with my sisters that I had yet another idea. What about a book meme? I'd love to share my favourite books with all of you, and I'd love to see what books you like to read too. So, without further ado, here is my book meme.

Novels I am currently reading

Villette by Charlotte Bronte

The Book of the Sword by A.J. Lake (part of The Darkest Age Trilogy)

Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens

Bleak House by Charles Dickens

Novels I have enjoyed recently:

A True Princess by Diane Zahler

The Paradise Trap by Catherine Jinks

The Ivory Rose by Belinda Murrell

The Horse Who Bit a Bushranger by Jackie French

Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine

Novels I’d like to read

Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe

Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte

The Three Musketeers by Alexander Dumas

More of Wilke Collins’ books

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

North and South by Elizabeth Gaskill

My Favourite Genres

Mystery, Fantasy, and Historical Fiction

My Favourite Authors

Wilke Collins, Rick Riordan, Jane Austen, Noel Streatfield, Jackie French and Michael Morpurgo

My Favourite Series

The Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan

The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis

The Lord of The Rings Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien

My Favourite Novels

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

The Law and the Lady by Wilke Collins

The Moonstone by Wilke Collins

The Seer and the Sword by Victoria Hanley

The Dragon Whisperer by Lucinda Hare

And now I'd like to pass this meme onto:

Charlotte at Charlotte's Web

JT at The Window on the West

Jessica at Safirewriter

Katie at Whisperings of the Pen

Autumn at Storygirl

And anyone else who feels like joining in.

I can't wait to see what you people like to read!

I Am The Teacher

I never wanted to be a teacher ever. The very idea of planning lessons, preparing resources, and dealing with unruly students, seemed too much like hard work. Besides, I wasn't the most patient of people, and teachers have to be patient. No, whatever I wanted to do in life, it wasn't teaching.

My first experience of real teaching was when I help to prepare my sister Charlotte for her very first piano exam. Lesson after lesson went by, ending with me in my grumpiest mood, and Charlotte generally in tears. We were both glad once the exam was over and I could stop interfering with her playing.

Then Mum asked me to teach the two younger girls. I had the books and the piano and the students. I was set to go. We sat down for the very first lesson. Sophie chattered the whole way through about things besides piano. She played at top speed, like a 1000km/h hurricane. Then she began to sulk as I grimly pointed out every single mistake she'd made in the whole lesson.

Gemma-Rose wasn't much better. I explained things ten times, and she still couldn't tell me where we were in the piece, or what note was which. She eventually stormed off, leaving me sitting on the piano stool, wondering what to tell Mum.

After only a few weeks, the lessons died away, much to my secret relief. I was left in peace for months, free to enjoy my own lessons, play my own pieces, and do nothing else.

Then, "Mum, I'd really like to learn to play the piano properly. I want to be as good as Charlotte and Immy." Sophie gave Mum her best pleading eyes.

"Well, maybe Imogen will teach you after her exam."

Sophie didn't forget, and as soon as the exams were over, she was ready to be taught. I sat down for the first lesson, filled with dread. This was going to be awful. Sophie would have forgotten everything. She'd get grumpy the first time I tried to correct her. She would...

Half an hour whizzed by without my noticing. Only the appearance of Gemma-Rose stopped the lesson. Wow, that hadn't been so bad after all. I was in a good mood for Gemma-Rose's lesson, and she was in a good mood too. She bounced off after the lesson to tell Mum all the wonderful things she had learnt.

Meanwhile, I was buzzing with ideas for the next lessons. Gemma-Rose wasn't very good at recognising notes. Maybe I could make or find some cards with notes on them. And I could find extra pieces for her to learn. Sophie could learn scales. She was always asking when she could learn them.

A whole new world of teaching was laid out before me. Enthusiastically I made the note flashcards, downloaded the free sheet music, and taught lessons. The girls really enjoyed their piano lessons. After every lesson they ran off to tell Mum all the new things they'd learnt.

Today was their last lesson of the term. Sophie aced her note practice and played all her pieces perfectly. Gemma-Rose enjoyed using the cards too. And today I showed them the pieces they're going to play next term. They can hardly wait for the next term to begin! Not to say that I'm an amazing teacher, but that they're awesome students.

And what about me, the reluctant teacher? Well, I have to admit I'm enjoying the lessons too. Every week gives me new ideas as to how I can help my pupils learn better. I think I could keep on teaching them. And I think they've taught me things too, like how to be patient, and how to give correction without annoying people. I may be the teacher, but they are teaching me too!

Do you teach anyone? Do you like teaching them, or do you find it hard work? Do you have any tips I can use?

Time To Be Brave

Two days ago I sat down at the computer to write a blog post. I thought I was going to write a normal, family story post. Instead what came out was To Blend Or Not To Blend, a post on being myself instead of doing what everyone else does.

It was only after I hit Publish that I started to think, "What if I offend all those nice people out there who happen to like wearing jeans, high heels and make up? I'll have to write an apology note on the end." So I went back and added the apology note, then worried for the rest of the day. I needn't have. The responses were overwhelming. People I'd never met stopped to have their say. Comment after comment showed up on my dashboard from people who wore skirts and those who liked jeans. That was my first brave post.

Ever since I joined the blogosphere I've admired people who can write thought provoking posts with strong opinions. I read the posts, and the comments afterwards and tried to imagine posts like those. But I failed every time. I'm too scared to come out and say what I think. I can wear the clothes I like, be myself wherever I go, but I don't say what I think.

Subjects come up in conversation, subjects I know I have a different opinion on. As they come up I slid away from them, skirting neatly round the danger areas. No sense in getting into a debate. Or so I tell myself. And I never say what I feel about these subjects.

I should say what I think. I should say that I don't think something is right, instead of dodging the point, turning a blind eye. But I'm scared to. What if people think I'm too strange? What if they think I'm judging them? What if they decide not to talk to me again?

But on the other hand, why can't I say what I think? As long as I do it in a way that doesn't offend anyone, or try to force my opinions onto other people. If they can't accept what I think, they don't have to. But I can say what I feel too.

Maybe it's time to break away from 'safe' subjects, like what we did in a day. Maybe it's time for me to air my opinions a little. Who knows? Maybe one day I'll be one of those people with the thought provoking posts and one million comments after them. And that would be good, so long as I remember that other people think differently to me, and that they're entitled to have an opinion too

Will you join me as I attempt to be 'brave'?

Do you find it hard to come out and say what you think? Are you afraid of saying the wrong thing? Of people thinking your opinions are strange? Or are you one of those lucky people who always know how to say what they want to say?