Peanuts and everyday talk

Nick went off to preach this morning, and I had some housework to catch up on. I didn’t feel too happy about doing it on a Sunday, but had two loads of washing to do and had to vacuum downstairs. Also did some weeding while the boys played outside. Made lunch of cottage pie and vegetables, and Nick brought home Paul the Prisoner for lunch, after he had attended the Knollcombe service. He’s still with us at the moment, Nick will take him back to prison at 16h00. Nick and Paul and the boys went off to the docks after lunch which was nice (for me), and Paul caught a little fish which he threw back. The boys seem to like him a lot, in fact he is very pleasant. They came back about half an hour ago, and now the boys are in bed. I did some reading while they were gone. Apart from my German book and another one I’m reading, I’m also about halfway with “Everyday Talk” which is about the everyday talk we engage in with our children and how we can talk to them naturally about God, and so on. It’s very interesting and convicting. The latest chapter was about teens – preparation for those years. I guess if we keep the channels of communication open, then the teen years won’t be so rocky. So I am making an effort now to let them know that I’m interested in what they say, and I try to understand what they are saying and meaning, and what makes them tick.

Yesterday afternoon we drove down to the docks to see what was happening at the pool as there had been a swimming gala, but it was all over. So we wandered through town – most shops were closed and it was quiet, and by 16h45 or so when we were there the sun had set behind the mountain, so it was lovely and cool and shady, very nice. We went into Thorpes and Nick browsed around because he had never taken a good look at what they stock (or even been in at all, I’m not sure). We found some Mild Curry Flavoured Battered Peanuts on special for 10p for a 200g packet, so we bought one to see if they were okay since they expired in April last year. Turns out they are delicious and still crispy. We also bought ice-creams, then walked back down to Castle Gardens and ate our ice-creams. Then on the way home I popped into Thorpes again and bought another five bags of peanuts. At that price, it would be silly to miss out!