A rambling Random today as I have a quiet time at home. Yesterday I was in London and, though it was not my day to look after Florence, I joined Felicity, the other grandmother for a day of doting. We took Florence to the park and she went on the swings and essayed the slide though she was a bit nervous, and she generally had a run around and kept us on the go until she let out what we both recognised as a tired yell, and in the buggy she went and slumbered all the way home.
It was a really lovely day and when she realised she had TWO adoring grandmas around, well, she shuttled backwards and forwards between the two of us, one working her way through all the books Florence piled in her lap and then when Felicity had done the lot, she picked them up and I had to do them all over again. She adores books which, as I am sure you will all understand, is a great joy to me and to have this small child on my lap while I read to her is an indescribable pleasure.
By the time I got home, I was very tired indeed as was Felicity when she left. One of the joys of being a grandmother is having a wonderful time with Florence but then handing her over to her parents when they get back. We both feel we have been there, done that and now we are garnering the joys of grandparents the world over and we both love it.
It is very chilly today so glad to be indoors and quiet, nice and warm and reading and generally relaxing. I have several reviews to do and am thinking quite hard about my post on the new biography of Charles Dickens by Claire Tomalin which was quite quite marvellous. Difficult to write about something like this as my thoughts and comments will make not one iota of difference to sales or to enhance an already stellar reputation as a biographer, but I will say now that I think Claire Tomalin is a fine writer and this book quite unputdownable and reduced me to tears at the end. If only Dickens had lived longer, he died far too young. Just think what else he might have done. Still, I will save my thoughts for the post.
Then I read the latest Simon Serrailer book by Susan Hill and, as always, read it in on gulp and yearned for another almost immediately. Brilliant. As we all know, she is a prolific writer, so I think the least she could do is to write two of these a year......
I have just finsihed my umpteenth re-read of Friday's Child by Georgette Heyer which, in the parlance of the Divine Miss Heyer, had me in 'whoops'. My post on the new biography has brought me loads of comments both on and off blog from Heyer fans and so pleased to receive them all. Jennifer Kloesters has also thanked me on Twitter for my review and is now following me which is great fun. After a shaky start, I now love Twitter and it can be huge fun. I don't Tweet all the time but every now and then dive in and it is like having a chat with friends. I was on Twitter for most of the day when I was watching the Royal Wedding earlier this year and that was tremendous - the outbreak of Tweets when Princess Beatrice appeared in THAT hat nearly crashed the whole site!
I am at the stage I am sure all bloggers will recognise when I Don't Know What to Read. I have about 50 books awaiting my attention and, hopefully, review but I just cannot settle to any of them so will probably revert to an old favourite which I do when I get like this. I may pick up an Anthony Trollope again - last time I read his Autobiography which had been waiting my attention for years, and by the end of it I felt so tremendously fond of him I was sorry I had not read it earlier.
Tomorrow my friend Rosemary and I are off to Aqua Springs, our local spa. She has a pedicure and manicure as her arthritis will not allow her to do it herself any more, and I have a full body massage during which I usually fall fast asleep and snore. We go every six weeks and it is pure indulgance but soooo sooooothing.
So tonight nothing on the horizon except Strictly - It Takes Too which I am enjoying much more now that Claudia Winkleman is no longer standing there with her toes turned in and trying to look winsome, but is now fronted by Zoe Ball who is great fun. Then this weekend I have nothing planned except a little gentle food shopping and watching and blogging about Strictly on Saturday.
It's a hard life but somebody has to do it.....
Au reservoir everyone.
