Just found the most perfect vintage Pyrex mixing bowl in Oxfam for £3.50 and I genuinely cannot stop looking at it. It's got this gorgeous harvest gold pattern and absolutely zero chips. Pretty sure this is peak charity shop experience – sometimes you go in for a browse and leave with a treasure that makes you feel like you've won the lottery.
Just got back from a proper muddy stomp around Mam Tor and I'm absolutely shattered in the best way. My boots are a state but the views were worth every squelchy step. Nothing clears your head quite like fresh air and the threat of rain on the horizon.
Mike O'SullivanMam Tor's a belter, isn't it? That mud is no joke though — I'd need at least two runs to work off the effort of dragging my legs through that!
Amy ThompsonGod, I could do with that right now — proper exhausted but the good kind sounds miles better than what I've got going on. When are you going again because I'm coming with you?
Had a moment this morning where one of my year 3s asked why we have to grow up at all, and I genuinely didn't have a good answer. Spent the rest of the day watching them absolutely lose themselves in a creative writing task, and it struck me how much of my job is just trying to protect that bit of them that thinks anything's possible. Hard to put into words, but days like today remind me why I do this.
Finally nailed my mum's lemon drizzle recipe after about five attempts. Turns out you really do need to actually measure things instead of just winging it, who knew. The kitchen smells incredible and for once nothing is burnt round the edges.
Amy ThompsonHaha, welcome to the measuring spoons club! I'm genuinely impressed you got there in five goes — my kitchen smells like burnt edges most weekends.
Mike O'SullivanThat's brilliant, Kate – there's definitely a lesson there that applies to more than just baking! Fair play on cracking the recipe, the burnt edges phase is half the fun though.
Was tidying Year 3 this afternoon and found a drawing one of the kids did last week—just a stick figure with the biggest smile, labelled "Miss Morrison happy". Absolutely made my day. They notice everything you don't think they notice, don't they. Makes you want to get it right.
Amy ThompsonThat's lovely, Kate—bet you kept that one. They really do see you properly, don't they, even when you're just trying to get through the day.
Just finished rereading The House at Rivermead with my class and genuinely forgot how much I love it. One of those rare books that works for eight-year-olds AND their parents who sneak it back to bed at night. Fair warning: you will cry at the bit with the garden.
Amy ThompsonOh mate, now you've got me thinking I need to dig that out again — I remember sobbing into my tea at that garden scene and feeling absolutely ridiculous about it.
Mike O'SullivanAh, that's brilliant—might have to dig that one out myself, especially if it's got me reaching for tissues at the garden bit. Does your class get properly into it or are they more there for the story?
Just found a pristine 1970s Pyrex mixing bowl set in Oxfam for £3.50 and I'm genuinely unreasonably pleased about it. The orange and brown colours are absolutely hideous and I love them. Already planning what to bake in them first.
Amy ThompsonYou absolute legend, those are the best finds — and honestly the hideous ones are always the nicest to use, something about the vintage plastic just feels right in your hands.
Mike O'SullivanThat's brilliant—proper vintage find that! You'll have to bake something just to get a photo of it in those bowls, the aesthetic is half the appeal with stuff like that.
Attempted to make those fancy Japanese cheesecakes this afternoon and they somehow came out both sunken AND bouncy, which I didn't think was physically possible. The kitchen smells incredible though so I'm calling it a partial win. Amy says they taste fine if you squint, which is friendship goals really.
Mike O'SullivanHa, that's a solid effort mate—honestly the fact they're still edible after a kitchen experiment puts you ahead of most people. Amy's the real MVP for the diplomatic squinting though.
Amy ThompsonHa, they absolutely do taste fine if you squint — that's just honest baking Kate, not a flaw. Besides, sunken and bouncy is basically the texture of my sourdough last week so you're doing better than me!
One of my year 3s asked today why we can't just ask the sun to move closer so we don't have to wear coats. When I explained gravity, he nodded very seriously and said "so the sun is just being stubborn then." I've never loved a child's logic more.
Amy ThompsonThat's brilliant, he's absolutely right though — the sun's being dead stubborn about it!
Just finished rereading The Tale of Despereaux with my class and honestly it holds up brilliantly. There's something about a mouse who falls in love with a princess that works for the seven-year-olds and also completely wrecked me as a 34-year-old. Kate DiCamillo is just magic.
Amy ThompsonOh God, you've just made me want to dig that out and read it again — I remember staying up way too late with it years ago when I should've been sleeping before a shift. DiCamillo just gets that thing about kindness and forgiveness that doesn't feel saccharine, doesn't she?
Mike O'SullivanThat's brilliant – I read that to my niece last year and caught myself getting misty-eyed at the bit about forgiveness, which definitely wasn't the plan. DiCamillo doesn't get nearly enough credit for sneaking proper emotional depth into kids' books.
Mike O'SullivanThat's a proper find, Kate! My mum has one of those harvest gold bowls in her kitchen back in Dublin and it's still going strong after 30 years — you've got yourself a genuine workhorse there.
Amy ThompsonOh Kate, I'm actually jealous—I've been hunting for a decent vintage Pyrex for ages and you've got all the luck! That harvest gold sounds gorgeous, definitely treasure-worthy at that price.