We’re back in big jumper season again and honestly, I’m thrilled. Much as I love the feel of sun on skin give me a polo neck, roaring fire and a glass of red any day. Or rather, evening. And when it comes to what’s in my glass I want something properly interesting and delicious. Step …
Okay, not exactly a watermelon. It was a jackfruit. No, me neither but apparently they’re the ‘meat’ of the vegetable world and you can make curries and stews out of them and it feels a bit like eating pulled pork. Anyway, I got to carry one this weekend on Saturday Kitchen before heading to the …
I had lunch with Rob Lowe last week. OK, ‘had lunch with’ might be pushing it. I was in a restaurant and he was on the next door table. Still, close enough to see that he looked pretty much as he did in St Elmo’s Fire but with slightly better hair. And to think I …
We’re off to a festival this weekend. And it’s my favourite kind of festival because it’s local, meaning I get to soak up the atmosphere and still collapse into my own bed at the end of it. (It’s the Curious Arts Festival and you can find out more about it here). Anyway, this made me …
I was away working in London all last week and after two rain-sodden weeks of school holidays, it felt like something of a mini-break. Admittedly quite a weird one; I spent much of it spitting out wine. Not because they were horrible but because I was judging at a wine competition. One night I sat at …
So, as I write this, everywhere is blanketed in the white stuff. But like a foot sticking out from the edge of the duvet, where we live (in the New Forest) is cold but uncovered. And I’ve got serious snow envy because unless we get some, it means we’ve got to do World Book Day …
After spending last week in London tasting around 100 wines a day (I was judging at the International Wine Challenge, not just really thirsty), I’m back and trying to get on top of things. It’s not going that well. The house is a tip, the laundry basket needs a room of its own, work has …
Good TV is like buses. Nothing, then two arrive at once. I’m talking about Wimbledon and Love Island, obviously. I love both, equally. I mean I know Love Island is ridiculous but I just can’t. Stop. Watching. As for Wimbledon, I love that it gives us an excuse to watch telly in the afternoon, even when …
There’s one thing better than a perfect glass of wine – and that’s a perfect glass of wine with exactly the right kind of food. Seriously, when you get the flavour combination right, everything tastes better. A simple omelette is anything but when put with a glass of chilled Chablis. Fish and chips and a …
So that’s January almost over and done with. Thank goodness; it’s been exhausting. But I have JUST the thing for anyone in need of a little r&r. Lime Wood, in the New Forest, is one of the most gorgeous hotels I know and their Herb House Spa is positively d-r-e-a-m-y. There’s a spa day for two up for grabs …
Recovering from a mad week. I was judging at the International Wine Challenge for most of it but what really did me in was a last-minute (rare) eyebrow thread. Seriously. Well, it was the free 30-second neck massage at the end to be precise. Lovely at the time but I woke up the next day with a …
I posted this picture of Wonder Woman on Instagram to celebrate this year’s International Women’s Day. I’m the one in the red t-shirt and blue dungarees. I was six years old, on holiday in Florida. And as you can see, I was in complete awe of Wonder Woman’s fabulousness. I loved that she could fly, had a …
You already know about my granola habit. Tonight – I blame Bake Off – I decided to move on to bread. Now, I love my carbs (how can you not love carbs?) and so when I saw the recipe for protein bread in Jamie Oliver’s new cookbook Super Food (a recent birthday present), I thought …
This is me, at the Knackered Mother’s Wine Club tasting at Camp Bestival last Saturday. We had a brilliant crowd, including a gorgeous lady who’d got married that day at Camp Bestival’s inflatable church (not making this up) and another on her hen night. There was a performance by the brilliant Scummy Mummies, Ellie & …
Last Friday, I went to the Bath Literary Festival and my session was at 7.30pm. Turned out so was Kazuo Ishiguro’s, in the room next door. He might have won the Booker Prize but I had free wine (very kindly donated by wine merchant Averys of Bristol – thank you, Mimi). And afterwards, as I …
Well, hopefully nicely chilled for whites and room temperature for reds because we’re talking wine dates, and lots of them. I’m going to be out and about a bit this month and I wanted to let you know just in case you’re nearby and up for joining me for a glass of wine. This Friday …
Last week, when everyone went Fifty Shades of mad about a certain film, I tweeted that my abiding memory of the book was the wine descriptions. Specifically, how delicious they sounded (there was definitely a cool, crisp Chablis at some point; and I think there was a Sancerre and a Pouilly Fume too, always perfectly …
Every year, on or around the 25th January, we do Burns Night. I’m married to a sort-of-Scot (my father-in-law was born and brought up in Edinburgh; the Husband’s more of a Hampshire Highlander) so Burns is big in his family. One year, my sister-in-law and I took on the cooking with the help of Pippa …
Hooray for half term. Sort of. As we crawl towards it, I’m half-excited, half-panicking. Excited about not having to set the alarm quite so early. Panicking about fitting in some work. The children are most excited about Halloween, obviously. Which has turned into a monster (pun intended). They usually come back from Trick or Treating …
Last week, a reader emailed to ask if I could help with some wine recommendations for her wedding in June this year. Something lovely but not too pricey. And in return, being the beauty editor of a really famous women’s magazine, she offered tailor-made beauty tips. Genius. Kate’s top three tips for Knackered Mothers everywhere: …
Last Friday & Saturday I was at BritMums Live, an event that brings together 500 bloggers under one London roof to talk, listen, laugh, cry (well, you try listening to Katie Piper’s story and not end up in a sobbing heap on the floor). One of the best discussion groups I attended was run by …
No, not me, silly. Not that I would mind getting married again*, having gone to the most beautiful of second weddings last Friday. If ever there was a time to have a day of pure life-affirming joy with old friends, celebrating love, then early January is it. Most of us were in tears before the …
So I didn’t win the blogging award as mentioned last week but I did win a Wii at the same event, thereby making me the most popular parent in our house by quite some margin. The week’s other cheering news is that according to a new report, drinking wine (in moderation, of course) improves your …
It was my friend’s 40th on Saturday night and the theme was Caribbean. So I had a spray tan. The idea was to look slightly less knackered bronzed. As it turned out, I got caught on the eyebrow by an empty wine bottle being used as a microphone by a friend (old university habits die …
Two booze-free days a week, that’s what we’ve been told by a group of MPs. I think that’s a sensible idea, not least because it gives us time to plan – on the wine-free days – exactly what we are going to enjoy a glass of on the non-wine-free days. In fact, a friend asked …
Last night, as I shoved unsolicited advice about sparkling wines down your throats, Tara tweeted asking for some still wine recommendations, especially reds, for Christmas. So, since she asked, here’s what I’ve got in for next week: Whites in the fridge: Tesco Finest Argentinian Chardonnay 2010, £5 on offer, Tesco I shipped in some NZ …
Last week, I spoke at a wine industry seminar about how to make wine more engaging for people buying it. Ahead of the talk, I turned to you lot to save my little-larger-than-I’d-like backside. I emailed some of you and asked via the BritMums forum if anyone had any views they could share. The response …
I never did see the Kevin film. Turns out The Help started at the same time so we chose schmaltz over shootings. Cried on and off for two hours and loved it. What we do need to talk about, however, is how to broach the subject of booze with our children. How young is too …
Actually, I can’t talk about Kevin because I haven’t seen it yet but I am off to see it tonight, at the lovely cinema I told you about where you can take your wine glass in with you and the seats don’t make you feel like your head will be itching by the end of …
Fancy Dress parties and me do not have a happy history. There was the time Bearded Husband decided we should go as Derek & Clive to a New Year’s Eve party. As other girls glowed in beautiful dresses, I sweated profusely in a Mac, flat cap and men’s shoes. I even had a ham sandwich …
When I was six I stepped on Mickey Mouse’s tail accidentally (on purpose) to increase my fancy dress chances at the local village fete, only to come second. From that day, I resigned myself to the fact that I am just not one of those competition-winning type people. Until now, that is. Since I started …
Shortly after 12am this morning, at the International Wine Challenge Awards Dinner in London (click here for results), I was on the dance floor in high heels and Westwood. And I was actually Shakira. In bed by 2am, awake by 6am, back home from town by 8am ready for the school run. For just a little …
Actually, gone fishing, crabbing, shell-seeking, rock-pooling, sand-in-sandwiches picnicking and all that. We’ll send you a virtual postcard, but can’t promise to post it before we get home. In the meantime, here’s what I’ve just packed in the food box: Current white in the fridge: Maurel Vedeau Sauvignon Blanc/Grenache, £4.74, Tesco.com Uncomplicated Southern French blend of …
Watching the news this week has been shocking, depressing, awful. People’s lives and livelihoods have been wrecked. It felt just a little bit wrong but I was glued to the TV, distracted only by twitter. Last night found me bingeing on opinion pieces, with a Newsnight chaser. Tonight there is a Question Time Special. Cue …
So there I was, standing in the middle of an H&M clothes shop and all I could think was I’VE LOST IT. I just didn’t ‘get’ the clothes. Everything looked too small, too trendy, too….too…teenager-y. Still, I refused to give in graciously and picked up something to try on. Then I saw the escalator and …
Tonight, the 6yo Boy had his school disco. It was a 5.45pm drop off, £1 entry, all drinks & snacks included and an hour of wall to wall dance floor fillers. He really did dance like no-one was watching. He and his friends went BONKERS; they busted moves, laughed their heads off and generally had …
My sister and I found my mother’s latest boyfriend on the internet. Background: post first marriage, she’s not been a great picker. After a string of unsuitables, we decided to take action. Following a particularly jolly wedding (not hers), we got home and signed her up on a dating website. We added her profile, a picture (in retrospect, using …
Maybe it is the harsh jute-like feel of January compared with the velvet comfort of December, but I am struggling to get going. It might be the extra weight I’m carrying (booze/food, not baby for once) but I think it is just January. I’ll go straight to the wines, that’ll cheer me up. This week’s white in the …
I went out on Monday night. It doesn’t happen often so I made the most. I wore an adored emerald green dress (Ghost), nail varnish (Rouge Noir), matching underwear (old vintage Myla) and really high heels. On Tuesday, I wore track suit bottoms, couldn’t walk properly and had two mouth ulcers. My body has decided to slope about doing everything at half-speed ever since, leaving …
“Ohmigod, that’s a headache wine” said a friend the other day after sipping a Spanish white wine. Then Ladybird World Mother said that she too got wretched headaches when drinking wine and doesn’t even throw it back like the old days (her words, not mine). What might cause these headaches, other than having three too many? The usual suspect is sulphur, which …
A friend told me today that she is on a new regime, wine-free Monday to Friday (same friend who thought this site was called the Naked Mother’s Wine Club, told her to be careful when searching that one). Later, a Twitter humour-twin announced she was having a glass of Champagne tonight for no particular reason. In turn, I admire both the restraint and sybaritic …
Or so my mother used to say to me when hurrying me out of the door to get to school on time. But that is exactly what it was. The length of our skirts, the carefully picked holes in our jumpers…we might have all been in school uniform but there were ways to mark ourselves out, or rather blend in. Now I’m doing …
There are few things more dull than being stuck with the man who talks to your boobs rather than face at dinner but there is someone who trumps him in my experience: The Wine Bore. The WB uses wine knowledge like a weapon, beating those around him into submission with presumed superior wine powers. I’d be mortified to be labelled as such but if you ever catch …
All I had to do was make something for the middle son’s nursery charity cake stall on Saturday. Good people made glorious cakes, chutneys and jam. I, however, made my step-mother an offer she couldn’t refuse: a bottle of robust red wine for a pile of fairy cakes. Sometimes the work/life balance doesn’t work and …
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