![\"\"](\"https:\/\/stories.qvcuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Wilfie-and-boz.jpg\")
\nIs it really only two weeks since I wrote my last blog? Maybe that\u2019s because I\u2019ve had a lot going on. Until Tuesday of this week, I was on annual leave and I must say it was lovely to do my first show back with the fabulous Glen Campbell. I love working with him, and I also love this photo taken of us a couple of years ago\u2026 to be honest, it seems longer, but then I can hardly believe that around this time last year I fell off my crutches and broke my wrist. That\u2019s all fine now, but still going for physio sessions for my ankle. In fact, I had my latest monthly visit with \u2018Brutal Brittany\u2019 on Wednesday and I\u2019ve yet more new exercises to try and build strength and flexibility in my calf and ankle. A work in progress, but definitely getting there!<\/p>\n
So, let\u2019s rewind a couple of weeks, shall we, starting with the Superbowl. I\u2019m not really a fan of American Football, but I am lucky enough to have seen the incredible Tom Brady play live when my son, Dan, and I went to New York a couple of years ago to see the New England Patriots v the New York Jets. Brady left the Patriots at the end of last season after twenty years with them and I think most people presumed he would retire as he\u2019s in his forties. Instead, he signed up with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and amazingly, his new team just won Superbowl 2021 \u2013 just goes to show it\u2019s never too late to try something new; a bit like me with my novel writing\u2026 more on that later.<\/p>\n
Dan and his girlfriend, Katie, decided to stay up and watch it live and Katie thought a few late-night snacks would be in order. She and my husband, Chris, made this snacks tray to resemble the pitch, complete with the \u2018video screen\u2019 at one end. Pretzels, popcorn and some homemade guacamole and houmous were just a few of the goodies on offer. All delicious for humans, but nothing suitable for cats, although Wilfie did check it out as you can see.<\/p>\n\n
Talking about Wilfie, we had his brother Milo to stay for the day earlier this week as our daughter, Sophie, and her partner, Reece, and his children moved into their new home on Wednesday. Like Wilfie, Milo is predominantly a house cat and \u2018escapes\u2019 if doors are left open, which of course they would be with the removal men carting furniture out. The two cats used to co-exist happily when Sophie lived with us, but that\u2019s a few years ago now. Although it might look as though they\u2019re kissing in this picture, it wasn\u2019t all sweetness and light! I\u2019m kind of glad I had my physio appointment and then the rest of the day at QVC!<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/stories.qvcuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Milo-and-Wilf.jpg\")
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It was a busy day all round actually, as I\u2019d taken Chris to get his Covid-19 jab first thing in the morning. He\u2019s a couple of years older than me at sixty-six, so in the age group currently being contacted for vaccination. However, I had my first jab a week ahead of him, as I\u2019m classified as slightly vulnerable due to my Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia. Just to reassure anyone who is nervous about having it, neither Chris nor I had a reaction other than a sore arm for him and tiredness for a couple of days for me. We\u2019re all different, of course, but my mum at ninety-four was more or less okay with it too if that helps you feel less nervous about having it.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/stories.qvcuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/1st-jab-done.jpg\")
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So, the day after the Superbowl, Jackie Kabler and I \u2018met up\u2019 for a chat on Jackie\u2019s Instagram. As you probably know, Jackie has been hosting a book club since the first lockdown and now does that every first Friday of the month, but she also does some additional author chats. It was really good to catch up with her purely to talk about books and writing, which we don\u2019t get time to do if we\u2019re in together at QVC. Incidentally, huge congratulations to Jackie for being at number 14 in the chart of the bestselling ebooks of 2020, sandwiched between Richard Osman and JK Rowling, with her most recent book, The Perfect Couple. Every author dreams of a \u2018breakthrough\u2019 book; sometimes it can be a debut, sometimes an eighth or ninth book and sometimes it doesn\u2019t come at all, but this was most certainly Jackie\u2019s breakthrough and I\u2019m delighted for her.<\/p>\n
It was quite funny that Jackie opted to wear her pink WULI:LUU<\/a> jumper, as I\u2019d been debating whether to wear mine. Incidentally, Fashion on Friday today is WULI:LUU<\/a>, Gok Wan\u2019s range for QVC. Instead, I chose to wear a yellow jumper as I thought it matched in better with the cover colours of my new book, My Mother\u2019s Secret \u2013 here I am at my writing desk, just before my chat with Jackie.<\/p>\n As you can see, my MacBook is open as I\u2019d been busy writing in the morning, but I have to own up and say I had to request an extension to my deadline as I just didn\u2019t feel creative after my \u2018jab\u2019!<\/p>\n By the Friday, though, I was back at my desk, after my physio\/aeropilates session, but still found time to make a cashew nut stir fry in black bean sauce, served up with egg fried rice, noodles, veggie spring rolls and crispy seaweed, to acknowledge the start of the Chinese New Year\u2026 Gung Hat Fat Choy. Excuse the Italian serving dishes, but we don\u2019t have any Chinese ones!<\/p>\n Funnily enough, I hadn\u2019t actually realised it was Chinese New Year until the previous day when I decided to do a Throwback Thursday post on Instagram \u2013 I\u2019m @juliagroberts, if you would like to follow me there. I chose a couple of photos from when I worked in Hong Kong in 1979 \u2013 this one, with fellow dancers Tricia and Suzanne, was our first day off after our show had opened. We were waiting at the taxi rank on Hong Island after travelling over from Kowloon side on the Star Ferry, to go and explore Stanley Market. Happy memories, but for those of you who watched \u2018The Serpent\u2019 television series there is something a little bit too familiar in those pictures.<\/p>\n And then, of course, it was Valentine\u2019s Day. It\u2019s a running joke in our house that Chris is not very good at loading the dishwasher, so this card was just perfect for him \u2013 I also included a free pass with his card permitting him to load the dishwasher exactly as he wanted for one day only!<\/p>\n Katie and Dan had decided on homemade pizza for dinner and very kindly made enough dough, using the KitchenAid<\/a> that they bought from QVC, for us to have one too. Chris did our topping as, once again, I\u2018d been at my writing desk, and I have to say he did a great job. Using the tomato sauce Katie and Dan had made from scratch, he added olives, capers, sundried tomatoes, onion, sweetcorn, peppers, mozzarella and cheddar\u2026 delicious! I\u2019d made a chocolate heart-shaped cake for afters, so a bit of a \u2018naughty\u2019 meal, but good as a treat.<\/p>\n Whilst on the subject of food, I\u2019ve mentioned before that we make our own bread \u2013 well, we put the ingredients in the bread maker, and it does the rest. Katie and Dan are hoping to move into a house of their own soon and just at the right moment, we have a bread-maker Today’s Special Value coming up on QVC next week. It\u2019s from Cook\u2019s Essentials<\/a> and launches on air on Wednesday night at 9pm \u2013 I\u2019m thinking a good housewarming gift, maybe?<\/p>\n Thinking of gifts for others, I\u2019m already looking ahead to the Liz Earle<\/a> Today’s Special Value a week on Sunday, with my mum in mind for Mother\u2019s Day, which is rapidly approaching. It features Cleanse & Polish and Instant Boost Skin Tonic in the limited-edition Rose & Lavender fragrance, plus a new hydrating skin mask among other things \u2013 do watch our website for details of when it will be available to pre-order. I have the 2pm show with Caroline Archer and I\u2019m really looking forward to it.<\/p>\n I\u2019m not in this weekend, but if you\u2019re looking for a new vacuum, we have the Dyson V10 Animal<\/a> as our Today’s Special Value<\/a> tomorrow. Then, on Sunday, it\u2019s a fabulous bundle from Richard Jackson<\/a> of 24 Garden-Ready Busy Lizzies and Cosmos plants with 475g of his iconic Flower Power \u2013 another purchase, methinks!<\/p>\n That\u2019s it from me for now. Is it really only two weeks since I wrote my last blog? Maybe that\u2019s because I\u2019ve had a lot going on. Until Tuesday of this week, I was on annual leave and I must say it was lovely to do my first show back with the fabulous Glen Campbell. I love working with him, and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":103714,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[247,21],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/stories.qvcuk.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/at-my-writing-desk-scaled.jpg\")
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<\/a>\n
\nMuch love,
\nJulia xx<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"