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Category Archives: family

Kite, Candle Snuffer and Chocolates

We’ve been sorting out lots of the toys kept for LiveWires and have been deciding where they are all to go now everyone has grown out of them. The kite has been claimed by our son for his twins, LiveWires 5 and 6. It came to us many years ago from family in America and was much loved and well used. I even have the original instructions that came to us in about 1983, such an unusual personalised present that the kids all loved and which gave the whole family lots of fun.

Our old silver candle snuffer is being used every day when the advent candle has burned the day’s date away.

We have an advent calendar that gives us two little truffles each day – a calendar for couples!

P.S. The big storm that is battering Cornwall and much of the UK today has been named Bram. In Cornish, Bram means ‘fart’ which has amused many of us as we hear the howling winds.

5 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on December 9, 2025 in Christmas, Cornwall, family, family history, Grandchildren, Happiness, Postaday2025, Uncategorized

Tags: The Natural High

On This Day……

19 Nov

On this day in 1937, two young students’ eyes met across a crowded cafeteria at Manchester University as my Mum noted in her diary. She was doing a special qualification in the teaching of deaf children and Dad was, that year, President of the Student Union and her diary records their meeting almost every day for months. They married on September 2nd 1939 and their four children had 12 children between them who have gone on to have another four, That’s twenty humans on this planet as a result of that chance meeting – love at first sight! The diary is, of course, a family treasure.

6 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on November 19, 2025 in family, family history, Postaday2025

A Letter, A Book Club and Threads

15 Oct

I wrote a letter to The Guardian yesterday in answer to someone belonging to a book club but who couldn’t read each book in only four weeks. They published it today, and I discovered this evening that 15 people have joined the ShelterBox book club as a result of reading my letter! I am delighted.

I needed some red thread to mend my red leather wallet so went to my Mum’s cotton collection and found one to match, of course! I have kept the drawers from the sewing cabinet my Grandpa made for her to her design when she was eighteen. That was in 1933 – I’ve never worked that out before. Almost every reel is wooden and one has the price on it, 23p.

4 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on October 15, 2025 in family, Postaday2025, sewing, Uncategorized

Tags: ShelterBox, ShelterBox book club, The Guardian

Reflections, National Poetry Day and A Flower

02 Oct

Before going in to sing this morning, this beautiful sight greeted us.

It being National Poetry Day, I’ve just spent a happy half hour reading poems and finding one for you, Dear Reader, to mark the day. I’ve chosen this one from the book, Being Human edited by Neil Astley, a wonderful collection.. It seems to me to be just right for the time we are in right now.

It’s October 2nd, a family date always remembered as it’s my older brother’s birthday, more poignant today as he died suddenly in July.

6 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on October 2, 2025 in Cornwall, environment, family, nature, Penryn, photography, poetry, Postaday2025, Uncategorized

Tags: Doris Kareva, Tüna Aleman

Dawn, Sweet Peas and Japanese Anemones

28 Aug

I haven’t been up to see the dawn for a very long time but the family were leaving early for their long drive home so I caught the gorgeous peachy clouds of the morning. The house is now too quiet.

Our Sweet Peas are still gorgeous. I’ve taken a photo today as Cornwall has a yellow weather warning for heavy rain overnight so they may not be as lovely tomorrow.

The Japanese Anemones are lovely too, today.

4 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on August 28, 2025 in environment, family, flowers, garden, nature, Postaday2025, sky, Uncategorized

Buttons, Knitting and Some Advice

20 Aug

I found both the patience and the time this afternoon to sew up another of the little jackets I am knitting for babies in Ukraine. I have three more knitted and all in pieces but so dislike sewing up that they’ve been waiting a while. Happily the truck going to Ukraine isn’t going for a while. I am using the mother-of-pearl buttons that were my Grandfather’s sample ones when he was a button salesman in the 1920s so they are 100 years old! It gives me enormous pleasure to handle them, to sew them on and to make every little jacket extra special.

Note to self from Sallie G – she’s right!

7 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on August 20, 2025 in antiques, family, family history, Postaday2025, sewing, Uncategorized

Tags: Slava Ukraine, Ukraine

Kindness Calendar, Coincidences and Sweetcorn

01 Aug

From Action for Happiness: “In a world that feels divided, kindness is a quiet but powerful act of hope. Whether you’re supporting a friend, helping a stranger, or simply listening with care, your actions matter. Every kind choice makes a difference.”

We went today to have the staples removed from my lovely Mr S’s new knee and had really interesting conversations with the two nurses who looked after him. They asked where we lived and when we said where, the older one said she’d been to St Euny Church just near us, to see a wonderful production in the churchyard in 2017. That was our Until the Day Break! She said she absolutely loved it and that now she views graveyards in a very different light and likes to think of the real stories behind each gravestone. If the production is new to you Dear Reader, check it out on the red links here.

The second coincidence was that when we were asked where we used to teach and said Doncaster, the younger Nurse said her father had been to Uni there at the old School for the Deaf as he is profoundly deaf. My Mum trained at that school in the 1930s but even more coincidental was the fact that when a youngster, her dad was taught at the special unit for deaf children at Roskear School in Camborne and it was my Mum who set up the unit and who would have taught him! Ellie, the nurse is going to ask him if he remembers Mrs Wiseman. One of her old pupils commented on my blog when I wrote about my Mum and her work here.

Our Sweetcorn is coming along well, flowers on almost every 5′ high plant and some tassels indicating a cob getting ready.

7 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on August 1, 2025 in environment, family, family history, garden, Kindness, Perthi Kov, Postaday2025, Uncategorized

Tags: action for happiness

Daughters, Sleeper and Supper

28 Jul

Last week our eldest Daughter came to look after us which was really lovely and this morning Daughter no 2 came in on the sleeper train and will be helping out this week.

Pulling into Redruth station

Aubergine Parmigiana

4 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on July 28, 2025 in Cornwall, family, Food, Postaday2025, Redruth

Tags: Cornish language

A Plaque, A Tree and The Bench

04 Jun

I was thinking about my Mum today as I do many days, today especially because it is 32 years since she died. We visited her and dad’s bench this afternoon and sat and listened to the stream behind as it chortled its way down the valley. Mum loved any stream so the bench is perfectly situated.

Loved this tree seen from the bench.

It really pleased me to see the mark of someone’s drink on the arm of the bench. We really wanted walkers around this lovely area to enjoy taking a rest with my lovely Mum and Dad.

I love this photo of me with my lovely Mum, taken in Carn Brea Castle in 1989 on the occasion of Mum and Dad’s Golden Wedding.

5 Comments

Posted by mybeautfulthings on June 4, 2025 in Cornwall, environment, family, Postaday2025

Tags: Gwennap

Mother’s Day

30 Mar

Cards, flowers, a Choose Love gift of ‘education and play for refugee children’ and – our daughter’s Maine Coon cat gave birth to five kittens! No pictures for you yet.

Remembering my lovely Mum as I use her Mum’s lovely green glass to display a Fritillary bloom that fell. More inherited stuff from Granny Hilda, she loved green glass.

And for all of you….