Hello and a happy day of love to you!

A friend sent a lovely photo of the Valentine’s Day breakfast that she cooked for her kids this morning. It feels like a lovely way to mark the day.

I made and sent parcels for the eldest two earlier in the week, one is stuffed with vegan goodies, the other a cheeseboard. Inside I wrote a note telling them each what I love about them. A lil’ boost in a box! My middle daughter sent me a note saying it made her cry and that "to be loved is to be seen." Ahhh.

Iris and I have had a social week filled with playdates and fun. It’s also been a week of birthdays, with mine at the beginning and two of my nieces in the middle.

I’ll share the recipe for the delicious courgette and lime cake that my partner made for me inside today’s newsletter.

(Since it's my birthday week I've chosen a pic of goats to illustrate today's newsletter - this is from NY Goat Yoga, who organise regular classes and retreats in Gilbertsville in the US.)

Here’s What We’ve Been Up To

Playing Games

My partner bought me the Pantheon expansion pack for 7 Wonders Duel and we’ve played that this week. The pack includes deities from several civilisations including Greek and Egyptian. Each god/goddess has the power to help you, or hinder your opponent. It certainly adds a new complexity, and a bit more depth to the core game. I also liked the dramatic effect it had on the final score. I felt fairly certain that I had it nailed, and was set to win. I’d focused on collecting the deities, and working their powers. But then my partner ended up wiping the floor with a points win. Looking forward to playing it more.

We’ve recently cleared a bookshelf in the living room to store all our board games and it makes a real difference to have them all accessible and easy to see. It looks really pleasing. Iris has made a sign that reads: “If you get out a game, please put it away!”, which has worked so far as motivation to keep it tidy.

Having our games displayed like this has meant that we’ve played some that were buried before. 

For example, we got out Block and Key the other day and had a fun game with this clever 3D game. You open the box to create a sort of ruined, 2-tier temple. Then you have to use the  pleasingly-solid, Tetris-style pieces to make specific patterns on the board in front of you. It was fun and interesting; different from the games we usually play. We started out playing with Iris, but then she lost interest halfway through.

One game does hold her attention at the moment is Eye Found It by Ravensburger. It features 12 scenes from Disney movies and each player has a set of five cards in their hand. You then have to try and spot simple, everyday items like a bucket or an oar in your picture. The first one to spot the item gets to release their card. The object is to get rid of all of your cards as quickly as possible. It’s a fast and furious game that we’d definitely take on holiday or on a train journey, as it’s very easy to transport, and enjoyable for all ages to play.