Thanks so much for all of the suggestions on grated cheese removal – it definitely looks like getting a dog would be the best solution! I shall have to start buttering up my husband! Still there will be a lot less hoovering going on now Toby is back at school and a lot more knitting and blog reading!

One of the things I am most grateful about these days is that having a blog has led to contact with some of the world’s nicest people. I am regularly amazed at the warmth and generosity of people. Recently I received a wonderful story written about the adventures of the missing little cotton rabbit. Reading it for the first time left me teary (in a good way) and it is now a bedtime institution in our house – with Amy tightly cuddling the bunny that the story is about.

Jill, the autor and illustrator of this story has very kindly agreed to let me tell the story here on the blog and so over the next 3 days I will post it in installments. I’m sure, like Amy and me you will find it beautifully written, wonderfully illustrated and completely enchanting, so if you’re sitting comfortably then we’ll begin…

A little Cotton Rabbit Story.
Written and illustrated by Jill Westgarth

Little Cotton rabbit was waiting. "Knit me! Knit me" she thought.
All the rabbits, bears, pandas and foxes hiding in the wool were excited.

"Pick
me! Pick me!" Little Cotton Rabbit wished so hard her nose began to
twitch (which isn’t easy in the middle of a ball of wool!)

Julie
began to knit. She knitted and knitted. Very, very soon Little Cotton
Rabbit had ears, eyes, a nose and a very happy smile.

"Pink
shoes! Pink shoes!" Little Cotton Rabbit wished so hard her toes began
to tap (which isn’t easy when your shoes are being knitted!)

Julie put her clever fingers into the bag of wool.

"Dots! Dots! Polka dots!" wished Little Cotton Rabbit.

Very, very soon Little Cotton Rabbit dreams of pink shoes and a dotty dress came true!

Little Cotton Rabbit sat with all the friends Julie had knitted. They waited. It was such a special day.

"Pick
me! Pick me!" Little Cotton Rabbit thought. She sat very, very still
(which isn’t easy when an adventure is about to begin!)

Julie looked for a rabbit to send to America.

"Pick
pink polka dots!" thought Little Cotton Rabbit, "with pink shoes!" She
wished so hard her nose twitched and her toes tapped (which isn’t easy
when you’re trying to sit still!)

Julie
wrapped Little Cotton Rabbit up in crinkly tissue paper and tied a
beautiful bow with ribbons to keep Little Cotton Rabbit safe. Very,
very carefully Little Cotton Rabbit was put into a white comfy parcel.

Little
Cotton Rabbit snuggled down in her crinkly package. She tried to be
brave (which isn’t easy when your comfy parcel is being squashed with
things called labels!)

All
the little cotton friends were ready for their adventures. Little
woolly giggles snuffled from the parcels as Julie left them in the Post
Office. Julie felt sad. So did all the little cotton friends. "Bye"
said Julie and went home. Her fingers were itching to start knitting
more Little Cotton friends.

Very,
very soon, little woolly snores could be heard as the friends fell
asleep. The Post Office worked hard to send all the parcels on their
way.

Little Cotton Rabbit wasn’t asleep. What was America? What would it be like? Little Cotton Rabbit was very, very excited.

"Bye Julie" she said in a little
woolly voice. Pink shoes, dotty dress, how happy Little Cotton Rabbit
was (which is easy when you’ve been knitted with love!)

(to be continued tomorrow…)

Although I love my children deeply I do get a lot of pleasure from the peace that reigns when they are happily back at school! I know I’m lucky that both of them really enjoy going and I’d certainly not be at all content if I thought they were unhappy to be there. But having them back at school means more time for lots of lovely knitting which in itself makes for a good week. This week in particular has been transformed into a great one mainly through some genuine and deeply thoughtful acts of kindness. The first of these came from the lovely Maddy who sent such a sweet parcel for Mum and included some wonderful books for the children and me

I got a lovely, lovely card from Esme (Rose’s Mum) thanking me for auctioning the bunny

And then yesterday this wonderful cornucopia of treats arrived from Pat and Doug. Everything they sent has been so thoughtfully and perfectly chosen and I couldn’t wait to get my mitts on the wool (I wonder what it says about me that I started on the wool 15 minutes before I started on the chocolate – and I do love chocolate?!)

To top off a perfect week I spotted Herbert Sherbert rooting around the garden 2 nights ago. He’s been eating his food every night and pulling in more of the hay that I’ve left scattered around outside his house but because we keep very different waking hours I’ve not actually seen him since his release. This is his little house now, all covered in leaves and snuggly.

So if you add all of this up you get a very happy me indeed. Wishing some smiles and good times to come your way this weekend

It’s now been 3 weeks since my Mum’s accident. The time that that she spent in hospital was the hardest and most traumatic and I’m so impressed that she came through it with such good humour. I know that the kindnesses of family, friends and all of you who left comments here on the blog have been a great source of comfort and strength to her and kept her going. That’s why she’d like to make a special appearance here in person to thank you all for your good wishes.

"I can’t tell you all how touched I am by all of the kind messages that were sent my way following my accident. The early days in hospital were very hard but knowing that so many people were wishing me well really did help. I’m also thankful for the many wonderful gifts that came from family and friends. Listening to music made the sleepless nights more bearable and helped me to ‘escape’ what was a pretty grim reality.

It’s such a relief to be home again and I’m feeling really positive. I’m looking forward to getting on with my recovery and getting things back to normal. I’m really grateful for all of the warm support I’ve had – thank you all so much for taking the time to wish me well".

I know that Mum will be working hard at her physiotherapy and that Dad will be at her side every step of the way. And although it might seem like a long haul while she’s recovering, it won’t be long before she’s conquering mountains with Dad again!