Se7en’s Fabulous Fun Post #321

It’s cold and the rain is pouring down outside… winter has definitely arrived and we are hunkering down with piles of books. And the father person was celebrated as the great dad he is on Father’s Day, he rescued us from being late for church and treated everyone to croissants for breakfast on the run. The perils of wintry days… and piles of late night reading in bed, we all over slept and nobody wanted to get up on such a rainy day…

1. I know half the world is getting ready for summer holidays… but we are settling in for a wintry read and The Read the World Summer Book Club… is going to be a winner!!!
2. While the father person could be the best storyteller in the world, I am possibly the worst… this post from Kara Fleck is pure inspiration: Storytelling Ideas and Story Starters…
3. I absolutely love these Infinity Tiles on Babble Dabble Do I think my gang will love making and playing with these!!!
4. Lonely Planet Activity Sheets… I have been leaving these lying around for my little guys, they have really enjoyed them.

5. We have been reading a fabulous introductory book to architecture and this project is just fabulous… Architecture Carnival on Krokatak.
6. And this is totally going onto my dream holiday list: A Week in St. Ives, Cornwall with Babyccino Kids.
7. And since it is rainy, rainy, rainy… it is definitely the season for audio books and free colouring pages from the inspiring Alisa Burke.

And a gift for you… last week we posted a review of The Rainbow’s Heart a beautifully illustrated book for readers of all ages… and here is a colouring page from it… rainy day treats!!!

• 2009: Se7en Ways to Encourage the Father Person.
• 2010: What Makes a Dad a Dad from the Se7en + 1 Gang.
2011: Contentment Crept Up on Me Unawares.
• 2012: Se7en Things a Father Can give His Children.
• 2013: How to Gift A Father on Father’s Day.
• 2014: Se7en + 1 Celebrate Sugar Cookie Day… Lemon and Double Chocolate Expresso Cookies for the Win…
• 2015: Se7en + 1 More HomeSchool Questions, Asked and Answered… a typical day, after school activities, all play and no work, nature journals, finding friends, 100 lessons, buying repeat books, keeping younger kids busy.

A Summer at Sea by Katie Fforde, Published by Penguin Random House South Africa: This was a nice easy weekend read that I fitted in between all the vitally important events of birthdays and party and father’s day… so quick and easy. In fact Katie Fforde is excellent for easy reading… just sweet rolling stories. The main players in this book are… Emily, a midwife who needs to get away from it all for a break and heads to her best friend in Scotland, to be the chef on a “working holiday puffer boat;” Alisdair a good looking local GP, is a widower and a devoted single father to the Kate; and Kate who the author claimed to be nine… but living with a number of kids I would say her behaviour and relationships were actually about six.

Interestingly enough, the Puffer is a real live vessel… you can take a look at it here… and that certainly gives the book a little depth. The story goes that Emily, is escaping from the endless difficulties of in-house politics, between being a midwife and delivering babies out of a hospital setting and the local medical fraternity who insist that all babies need medical care and should be born in a hospital. Emily desperately needs a break and heads to the country to help her best friend, who also happens to be pregnant. Emily is single and happily so, she has a job and a career and no need for a relationship at all. Alisdair is single and sought after, more than a few local lasses have their eye on him, but he is not interested in a relationship that will cause any division between him and his young daughter. It turns out Emily and little Kate become friends, over knitting for her teddy of all things.

There are no dramatic surprises, the story unfolds itself, you can see where it is going… there is always the lurking issue that Emily is only there on holiday and will be returning to the city, once her friend has had her baby and the holiday is over. The author waits until the very last couple of pages, to resolve a few of the issues. This book is a nice little break from the world at large and a fabulous easy weekend read.

We would like to thank the publishers Penguin Random House South Africa who supplied us with a copy of the book for review purposes. We were not paid for the review and the opinions expressed are as usual, entirely our own.

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