29 Days to go

I won't be going to the top!! But to reach Base Camp at Mount Everest will be a lifetime achievement for both Keith and I.

We fly to Kathmandu at the beginning of October and start walking on the 10th. It will take 14 days to do the walk, this allows for rest days along the way. We don't know how we are going to react to the altitude but hopefully we'll cope and have lots of great photos to share afterwards.

We're starting to get really excited about it now. The flights are booked, we've had the shots and have plenty of 'just in case' medications to take with us. I've been trying to exercise regularly and feel a lot stronger for it. Keith, who's permanently fit, hasn't had to worry too much and will no doubt take it all in his stride.

Our group includes 2 people who have done this exact walk before, they live in Nepal and have done most of the organising for us. This is an incredible bonus for us and was what made us decide to do it now.

The children will be staying with my parents in Sydney while we are away, this is also such a wonderful gift to us, as we know they will be looked after with love and kindness. It makes it possible for me to leave them for such a long time. I will miss them terribly, we've talked with them a great deal about the trip and they are excited for us. Caley in particular keeps reminding us that we have to take them both there when they are older.

Apparently, we will need to have lots of resting time, because of the altitude, and have been told to take lots of books to read. We thought we'd put a book order in soon, so I thought I'd ask for some suggestions of great reads. I know there are lots of enthusiastic readers out there so any suggestions will be greatly appreciated!

The Worry Tree

My 8 year old daughter, Keira has been coming home from school lately quite sad about the goings on with her friends. She can't understand why they are friends one day but not the next and I tell you it quite breaks my heart to hear about some of the stuff being said. But we always try to keep the talk about solutions, so when I read about this book in the paper on the weekend I couldn't wait to get it for her.

Being a constant reader, Keira devoured it in one sitting and then sat down to tell me all about it. The main character, Juliet, worries about a lot of things going on in her life and it stops her from getting to sleep at night. Then she discovers an old painting of a special tree behind the wallpaper in her bedroom. Each night, Juliet imagines wrapping her worries up like christmas decorations and then hanging them on the tree.


Each animal on the tree has different areas to look after. Wolfgang the Wombat looks after friend worries, Petronella the Pig looks after school worries and Gwyneth the Goat makes you feel better when your sick. Dimitri the Dog looks after family worries, Piers the Peacock is in charge of minding worries about things that are lost and Delia the Duck knows it's hard to get used to change, changing houses, changing schools, even changing bedrooms. The Hole in the Trunk is for those worries that you can't quite describe.

It might sound kind of far fetched, but Keira really took to the idea. When we bought the book, the lady in the shop kindly offered me one of the posters they had, so we've put that up in her room. She says she's going to write down her worries and put them in a box by her bed, but imagine that she has handed them over to the animals on the tree.

I'm all for using whatever tools help, and if using her imagination in this way helps her to relax and fall asleep, then I'm all for it.

Surprise Mail

Well actually I knew it was coming - but I wasn't expecting it to arrive so quickly! A little while ago Nina at kirjakahvila - book cafe offered to send me some Scandinavian magazines as a little surprise gift - very generous of her and perfect for me (being a magazine-addict).

I usually can get my hands on lots of English and American home/lifestyle magazines and if I'm lucky I also manage my favourite Cote Sud from France, all in the name of research, of course (ie. for our new house). But I've not come across any magazines from Scandinavia before. I've had a quick glance through and they look wonderful, full of lovely homes and gardens, so I'm just waiting for a moment of quiet and a cup of tea . . .

Thank you Nina!