Se7en’s Fabulous Fun #296

We have a new neighbour, I find myself sitting outside on the deck in the middle of the day hoping to catch a glimpse…

Otherwise we have been busier than usual, plotting and planning and preparing some cool posts… good times ahead. Not to mention looming summer!!!

1. The Guardian asked Michael Morpurgo, Cerrie Burnell, Lemn Sissay, Jacqueline Wilson and Laura Dockrill: “What is an Ideal Childhood?”
2. Ten Truths Middle Schoolers Should Know… on For Every Mom.
3. Living Lightly with the One Bag Lifestyle on Zen Habits… this is so me!!!
4. Babyccino’s Holiday Gift Guides… because I love them!!!
5. How sweet is this series, My Teenage Bedroom, on Design Sponge. I think what I love about it is it wasn’t staged just pics of a kids room – so much of what we see is prepared!!!
6. How Green is your Office? This post has some food for thought: A Tree-Mendous Step in the Right Direction…

And the se7en + 1th link:

7. A Blast From the Past:
   
   • 2008: Clearly Christmas: Se7en Gift Crafting Tips…
   • 2009: Sunday Snippet: You are your Brother’s Keeper…
   • 2010: Se7en Million Teeny Tiny Bird Houses… This Post became a Feature Post in Family Fun Magazine.
   • 2011: Saturday Spot: Morocco’s Magnificent Markets…
   • 2012: Sunday Snippet: Remembering Remembrance Day…
   • 2013: Sunday Snippet: Let my Yes Really be Yes…
   • 2014: Se7en + 1 Things My Kids Need to Learn Before They Leave Home…

Diary of a Wimpy Kids 10: Old School by Jeff Kinney and published by Penguin Random House, South Africa. This has to be the book of the week… launched and read on the same day, because the Wimpy Kid is that popular over here. These are great first chapter books for readers who are ready to launch into “real books” but need a little confidence boost to get to chapter books. They are witty, well hilarious if you are in the ten to twelve age range… I have to say, over here everyone age ten and up inhale these. They are packed with cartoon style illustrations and despite being his own worst enemy, our hero is very likeable. Silly as he is, he never gives up and comes up with great and industrious plots and plans… they all lead to nought… but you can’t help loving him anyway. His parents try… really try to keep him on the straight and narrow, and like most parents, they are exactly clued up to their child’s every move. I will say it again… they do try. In this book, his mum makes every effort to have a screen free, actually electricity free weekend, just like the good old days. You can imagine this did not go down well in the eyes of our hero, though he does try to make the best of it with a lemon aid stand. He didn’t necessarily succeed. I have to say that there are a quite a few series in this category, of heaps of pictures, easy font, easy reading for just beyond beginner readers… that I read to my smaller kids, but these I keep till they are able to read them themselves. My middle schoolers have really enjoyed them, but my younger kids won’t always see the funny side of his jokes and they probably wouldn’t keep up with the quick and relentless wit of Greg Heffley. The Wimpy Kid has a website packed with funky stuff… youtube videos, extracts, activities, news and well, check it out… because it is packed with goodies.

We were given a copy of Diary of a Wimpy Kid, by Jeff Kinney for review purposes. We were not paid for our review, this is not a sponsored post and the opinions expressed are as usual our own.

That’s us… Hope you all have a fabulous week!!!