GREECE is the word

Halkidiki’s best-kept secret

Unlike its neighbouring peninsulars, far from a commercialised holiday destination, Athos, the third leg of Halkidiki, is home to very few hotels. And Eagles Palace is the only five-star in the area…

Landing in Thessaloniki, the onward journey took me by surprise. I had expected a dry landscape, not lush green hills dotted with bright flora and fauna. It’s a picturesque yet dramatic (I arrived to leaden skies) ninety minute ride to the five-star ‘Small Luxury Hotel of the World’ Eagles Palace Hotel & Spa, situated just outside the coastal village of Ouranopolis. 

Next morning, the every which way horizon dawned blue and I looked out to the private pool and the perfectly painted Aegean sea - with an espresso to help me drink it in. And wake up - I've never slept so well anywhere. 

First thing in the morning musings of a 5YO

So Fia stumbles in first thing and hugging her father says: "Dada, why do you smell so ponky?"
Made me smile.

3/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...



Esme stands still for a moment to sketch fruit

8.5 years and counting

It's happened. You stayed up later than Mummy and Daddy last night.

You were out and we were in.

You went to the Panto with Brownies, and from the sounds of it, had the time of your life.

By the time you got into bed it was nearly 11.

And my girl, you looked so happy - complete with dark shadows under your bright eyes.

8.5 years and counting.

Post hysterectomy

No longer do I have to explain it is not a pregnancy.

Mayfair Lady

Emma Oliver heads across town to taste the wares of the newly launched Low Tea at The Luggage Room - notably one of Mayfair’s best-kept secrets…

Imagine you’ve seen the latest exhibition at the Royal Academy and just (window) shopped Bond Street. Now you’re ready for something to eat, but have a dinner booking later. What could possibly fill the gap?

2/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...



Amongst triangles, circles, hearts and lines, Sofia Faith decides interestingly to split the page in two here. One wonders if she is covering symmetry and shape at school this first week back after the Christmas holidays? I really should read that topic letter that came through!

Dream catching

This morning I woke thinking about these two things: My Gran and money. Connecting them both I thought about how she used to give me pocket money - not only as a child, but as a mature student at university, handing me a tenner and saying spend it for me. Those handouts kept me afloat. But my visits to her kept me sane and secure.

Shortly I came down to breakfast - just as the postman delivered a cheque from my Uncle re my Grandma's affairs. It's been five years since she passed away so this was completely unexpected.

Enclosed was a comforting note saying that although not much was left, she had always thought she had the most talented grandchildren in the world, and the idea that she might be able to help them one day, was very important to her.

I wept for Gran. I wept for the fact that throughout her life Gran gave us so much more than money. I wept for the fact that only ten minutes earlier I had been thinking of her; and that even today we have a connection.

1/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...



The GraceFaith year long art project began at the end of 2013. Primarily I saw it as a chance to capture my children's art throughout their childhood and to watch how it developed over time. Indeed from toddlerdom's paint splodges to a seven year old's more intricate mask design, I've been able to collect it in this way and enjoy it all again and again. What parent can possibly hold onto every single colouring or junk model? One with a bowing loft. Photographing it all has been the perfect way of storing each one of those special designs. More than a record though, this project makes for my very favourite posts on this blog.
Happy New Year everyone!

Ring the bells... by Leonard Cohen

Ring the bells that still can ring,
Forget your perfect offering,
There's a crack - a crack in everything.
That's how the light gets in.

52/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...

FRAMED - our Father Christmas visit

51/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...

Shopping impulse control (aka a later look online)

Last week I took the girls to see Santa (amazingly, he had set up camp at a garden centre not far from us). I have to say, it was magical. There was a delightful woodland walk too, and all in all, it was a great experience. The girls were mesmerised.

PARTY SEASON – dealing with the day after the night before

Want to know how to help with your hangover? Life As It Is got in touch with nutritional therapist Shona Wilkinson for some expert advice in the run up to the party season…

Lots of us have experienced the discomfort and frustration of alcohol hangover at some time or other. But let’s face it, with Christmas and New Year knocking on our doors, and the party season soon to be in full swing, there’s potential for many sore heads looming. So why and how does a hangover occur and what can we do to help ourselves?    

50/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...

LUTON HOO HOTEL, GOLF & SPA - a travel review

Born of aristocracy, the luxury five-star Luton Hoo Hotel, Golf & Spa is a destination where you can revel in playing at Lady Grantham. Actually forget that, the Luton Hoo mansion house experience knocks Downton Abbey into a cocked hat. You see its rich history spans the 3rd Earl of Bute, Tsar Nicholas I and Winston Churchill. Royalty has been entertained here. And since it is now a charming hotel, you can be too. Live like a king (or queen for that matter); arrive conveniently by helicopter if it suits? Whatever your preference, this stately home appears to be able to accommodate every request, no matter how bespoke.

49/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...

48/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...

LIFE AS IT MAYBE for you my girls

Esme Grace and Sofia Faith, although you are but 8 & 5, as far as living your life my girls, here's a glimpse into what I hope your future holds... Remember at the end of the day, LOVE is the only thing that matters.


1. You find yourselves laughing. A lot. Out loud.

2. That you never take yourselves too seriously.

3. That if you want to, you can lasso the moon. And the stars.

4. That you always try to give everything a really good go and that you don't give up easily. And that if and when you do make a hash of it, you can resort to number one on this list.

5. That you continue to be honest and brave.

6. That you appreciate the beauty that surrounds you, the earth and all life on it.

7. That along with kind and generous you are humble and grateful too.

8. That you are always yourselves - and although you'll care about one another's opinion, you won't worry about other people's.

9. That you are able to express anger as and when you need to, but then can quickly let it go.

10. That you always appreciate one another. My goodness girls, you are so lucky to have eachother.

47/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...

Esme shows her true colours when it comes to colouring in a comic football strip
(Foolish girl)

2016 Top Ten Christmas Gifts from Laurence King

Over the course of the year I have worked with Laurence King. It's not the first time, indeed you may recall this Life As It Is post showcasing many of my faves from last year. However 2016 has seen some fabulous new releases. Let me update you with the current top ten LK gifts - just in case you were looking for any Christmas present shopping inspiration:

Transformed by freedom

...am no longer precious about them padding around parks, gardens, forests barefoot. I have been reintroduced to the purpose of play for play's sake; as a means to natural movement, to free up that sedentary spine. But the latter would not have been possible without the lifting and clearing of the old debris - the stuff that weighs us all down, and fools us into thinking that we can't, or shouldn't, or mustn't.
Somehow over the course of the next few weeks, I transform. It is slow going, but the dedication you give to the retreat stays with you. There is no other way now that these freer instincts feel so natural. The day after the retreat, flung straight back into work, I wake with the darkest circles under my eyes that I've ever had. Once the working day is done, I sleep and sleep and sleep, and meditate, and place crystals around my home, and read books, and feel as though my eyes are wide open for the first time since childhood. I see my children in a different light. I want to learn and grow and heal. I want to be a better mother and ensure my children live free of my own mistakes and misgivings. I stop blow-drying my hair. I donate half of my clothes. I clear out my cupboards. We collect wood from the forest and make bonfires and sing in the garden. We map the stars. We marvel at the moon. We retreat back to a place where the good things live... and vow never to lose sight of them again.

What an exquisitely inspirational excerpt from the Nov 2016 Psychologies magazine, 
written by Health + Wellness Director, Eminé Rushton 

46/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...

Fia draws bunkbeds

Lest we forget

Today I've been for my usual Friday walk taking in the National Trust café up top. Except of course it isn't a usual Friday.

Today is Armistice day, and although the café was full, it wasn't so busy that everyone didn't stop and share 11am.

We all managed to find a moment of stillness. Peaceful quiet, give or take a little one's mutterings, which somehow made it feel all the more poignant.

Peaceful quiet? When guns and bombs compose the rhythm of the soundtrack, and blood shed, tears cried, life lost; the score.

My peaceful quiet moved from loss to futility to hope. We all know that even though the war dead are glorious, war itself is certainly not.

Not a usual Friday then. November the 11th caught me unaware. I didn't expect to pause and remember those gone before, those leaving now, and those preparing to fall, when I set off on such a sunny morning. Nor for that matter, did I expect to share the moment with an entire café of strangers.

It was moving.

And more than death, it reminded me of life.



This post also appeared here

Oh neglected blog space, how are you?

Oh neglected blog space, how are you?
How is Life As It Is?

Bloody marvellous to be honest.
Didn't expect that now did you?

Work, health, family, all is well and I can't complain.

I can't write you either. It's hectic.

Work is busy and so, alas personal blog writing takes a backseat.

Health is healthier than ever (that kind of happens when you have a football removed from your insides).

Family, well I ought to always find the time to write about you - and I will. Girls you are my life. And your father is my all.

I'll check in again, but for now I'll keep posting the art every Sunday.

I cherish the art.

45/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...

44/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...



As Esme settled into a collage, her sister happened upon a garden snail. She eventually put it back again - complete with sticker.

FRAMED Autumn colour

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Whether you’re planning a party or heading over to someone else’s, these ideas are bound to inspire terrific tricks and treats for all the family to enjoy.

43/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...



Who lives in a house like this Fia?

42/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...

41/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...

40/52 The GraceFaith year long art project...

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year



And so the owl went camping on his third birthday!

Is it morning yet?

Even on those mornings when they could potentially lay in, there's often a mishap. Take this morning - "Mum, it's 7.10 and the clock's up."

It's 6.10 and frankly the clock needs throwing out. Fat lot of good it's ever done. The idea behind it is that when the sun comes up (i.e the smiley face turns from blue to yellow) the children are able to see it's time to wake too. Unfortunately, even on the days the clock hasn't been tampered with, they've always been wide-eyed way before the sunshine ever put in its appearance.

Such a shame I'm not.

AUTUMN PASTIMES

As the evenings draw in and the half term draws closer, LIFE AS IT IS gets inspired. Here are ten great things to do with the children throughout Autumn...

1) Totally Thames, London

The river comes to life with a month of free events, including open days, art, family fun, talks, walks and plenty of boats. 1-30 Sept

thamesfestival.org

39/52 The GraceFaith year long art project...

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year

Inspiring, allowing, providing our children the joy of reading

Educating our primary school children cannot be done by talking alone. It cannot be done by reading and writing alone. Teaching our children to be the best they can possibly be, is ultimately done by inspiring, allowing, providing. 

Schools testing kills joy of reading says War Horse author

War Horse author and former Children’s Laureate calls for schools to make time for stories by reinstating Storytime in primary schools

WarHorse author and former Children’s Laureate Michael Morpurgo will today criticisetesting in schools for killing the joy of reading, creating fear and anxiety,and bringing about a sense of worthlessness in children.

The former Children’s Laureate and President of BookTrust, speaking at the inaugural BookTrust Lecture this evening, will state that we are all as a society responsible “both for the successes and failures of our literacy and our society.” Morpurgo says that it is not just the fault of successive governments, “who corral schools and pressure teachers into teaching literacy fearfully, who insist that measurable outcomes and results are the be all and end all of the education process.”

38/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...



Fia sketches the telly

REST EASY - guide to a good night’s sleep

REST EASY - guide to a good night’s sleep

As September heralds in the autumn, in a sense the changing season brings forth a fresh start – a new year if you like. It’s the beginning of the academic calendar, and as such a return to routine. So how as a family can you help yourself with that routine? A good night’s sleep for all is essential. But often, that is easier said than done.

Feeling wistful - the end of an era (off to school)

So the summer holidays came and went, six weeks off school to relax and enjoy. Weeks that were so good this year. The weather saw to that. And the girls. They've grown up so much. This motherhood malarkey that I once thought sucked, has slowly morphed into pretty wonderful. I always used to dream about them reaching 7&4. Now they've arrived at 8&5, I actually want to press pause. Imagine that.

37/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...

KEEPING YOUR FAMILY SAFE ON THE ROAD

Recent surveys reveal that over 71% of parents in the UK are not aware that legally a child needs to be in a car seat/booster until they are 12 years old, and that SUVs are the choice of car for modern mums looking to keep their family safe…

36/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...

35/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...


Esme was born on her great grandmother's 90th birthday, and this year they turned 8 and 98. The cake was decorated by the GraceFaith girls, and is the art project that we have most enjoyed this week in August 2016.

34/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...

Princess Peppa's Carriage - A toy review

We stop to watch her if we catch her on TV. We've seen her on stage (cue the Bong Bing Boo song), and we would give anything to head back to her theme park once again... so just what is it about the pink phenomenon that is Peppa Pig? 

33/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...

BONDING WITH YOUR BABY

BONDING WITH YOUR BABY

Sometimes in life, things just don’t go as planned. But when your firstborn suddenly ends up in special care… well no one plans for that. Here, writer Emma Oliver remembers bonding with her baby and speaks to a baby wellness and childcare expert...

32/52 The GraceFaith year long art project

Choosing a favourite piece of art, each week of the year...

Fia designs (has designs) on a mobile



Esme designs (has designs) on a pair of shoes

The Olympics (then and now)

On the day that Rio held its 2016 opening ceremony, we are excited. In our house we love the Olympics. We love the chance to enjoy the world's greatest sporting extravaganza, and to settle back together in awe of the 10,500 athletes from 206 teams competing in sixteen days of world class sport.

FRAMED - This time four years ago

SISTERS

Vincent’s Starry Night and Other Stories - A book review

With featured artists including European greats like Michelangelo and Rembrandt, as well as global art visionaries such as Katsushika Hokusai and Frida Kahlo...

DETAILS:

Vincent’s Starry Night and Other Stories

Author: Michael Bird

Illustrated by: Kate Evans

For: children aged 9+

Published: August 2016 by Laurence King

Available from: All good bookshops 

Priced: £19.95

ISBN: 978-1-78067-614-2