Amanda Prowse and Penny Dommett nattering around the kitchen table, chatting about all things random. Are we sitting comfortably... here we go!  Join us for a dollop of chatter! Reunited and it feels SOOOOOO GOOOOD!  A sunny chat today - and we do the whole podcast standing! Do we remember kneeling chairs and sitting on spacehoppers - anything other than sitting on a regular chair! Apparently you can now get a mini treadmill to go under your desk - okaaaay then. Mandy thinks she'd topple off a treadmill as she can't always walk straight. Penny has gone full Peleton! Whoop whoop! She's getting fit. Mandy talks about how hard her legs were working when she was very overweight. Mandy has lost the equivalent in weight of both of her dogs and she can't lift them up... seeing visual representation of the weight she has lost has really motivated her. We dip into Penny's competitive spirit. Go Pen! We discuss whether it's better to carry a bit of weight when it comes to illness? Penny is concerned that she is a bit of a scroller - and is trying to curb her habit. How much scrolling is too much? Is the answer leaving the phone outside of the bedroom? Do we remember the alarm clocks of our youth - the leather case travel clocks that were things of beauty! Mandy learns all about sleep modes on the phone - it's a revelation! Mandy is ashamed of how early she goes to bed! And we talk about Mandy's dyscalculia... it makes life tricky! Penny gives us a burst of latin.  And Mandy breaks into song!!! You have been warned. We share our views on Valentines Day... not fans. And Penny shares her passion for the right brush for every job. So, if you fancy it, pull up a chair and join us for a delightfully irreverent chit chat about life and all its random tangents - bring a cuppa. Cake optional...

Amanda Prowse and Penny Dommett nattering around the kitchen table, chatting about all things random. Are we sitting comfortably... here we go!  Join us for a dollop of chatter! A bit different this week as we are not actually around the table as we are in two different cities! Not sure we like it!!! We miss each other very much, but at least we have an episode!! Mandy is in London and we talk about how my city has changed! Lots of people seem to be cluttering up the streets to take selfies, how do they ever get anything done? School trips - how they have changed - and the poor teachers, a health and safety nightmare. Mandy tells a story about the time they, as a family, found an abandoned cub - the boy scout variety not the big cat kind. Can you microchip you kids? We think it might be a good idea. We talk about terrible, scary experiences and Mandy shares an awful tale that was a very lucky escape... 

We get Pen's usual gardening advice  - watch out for the cold snap! Our tv recommendation is The Cockfields, the most gentle comedy that is profoundly moving. And Pen's books recommendation is Northfields - it sounds lovely x

So, if you fancy it, pull up a chair and join us for a delightfully irreverent chit chat about life and all its random tangents - bring a cuppa. Cake optional...

Amanda Prowse and Penny Dommett nattering around the kitchen table, chatting about all things random. Are we sitting comfortably... here we go!  Join us for a dollop of chatter! Penny is known for her tardiness and this morning she found a new way to arrive - by sneaking in and hiding in my house and trying to hide! Yep! Penny shares a rare dream - a scary one and Mandy was mortified even though it was just a dream! Mandy shares details of a rare night out at Tom Hambleton's fancy pants restaurant - what an amazing treat! Mandy spent the whole night with her dress on inside out - don't think anyone noticed. Penny makes a very good point for self-care and she is so right! Enjoy your pamper session Pen. We are looking forward to the warmer weather which means swimming season - hurrah! We talk about the idea of wild swimming - dare we brave it? Penny has just read Mandy's book Waiting to Begin - and it made her cry - sorry not sorry! We talk about Mandy's next novel Ever After - out in August. Mandy admits to Pen that she doesn't particularly like the smell of flowers - I know! We dissect Jo Malone fragrances - delightful! We talk about people nicking your ideas - is it a compliment? And we share our love of Ian Wilfred and his books!
So, if you fancy it, pull up a chair and join us for a delightfully irreverent chit chat about life and all its random tangents - bring a cuppa. Cake optional...

Amanda Prowse and Penny Dommett nattering around the kitchen table, chatting about all things random. Are we sitting comfortably... here we go!  Join us for a dollop of chatter! We set up the recording all by ourselves and are feeling technically smug. We reminisce about the times when the TV used to end for the day and they played the National Anthem! - we are OLD! Do you remember that? Penny talks about Grapenuts - we think she might have made this up. Who's had a Grapenut? We talk about the loveliest day where we planted a tree - it really was magical, knowing that tree will flourish for decades and has started out as this lil fella! What a treat. We suffer all the usual interruptions from Mandy's family pinging their messages... and phoning oops! We announce our plans to video the podcast so you can see us too - not sure it's a good thing, but watch this space. Dishwashers - are they a necessity? How often do you use yours? Penny is horrified that Mandy puts dog bowls in the dishwasher - is it wrong? We take a dum dum look at AI - trying to figure it out, help! How long will we be in a job? Should we be afraid or should we embrace it? And can we trust it? There's a new mixer in the house - Sara's present for her to start her micro bakery! How exciting.
So, if you fancy it, pull up a chair and join us for a delightfully irreverent chit chat about life and all its random tangents - bring a cuppa. Cake optional...

Amanda Prowse and Penny Dommett nattering around the kitchen table, chatting about all things random. Are we sitting comfortably... here we go!  Join us for the usual shenanigans! We have our usual weather chat and Mandy is still bowled over as Penny bought her a tree!!! Yes! A tree! What a grand and beautiful present! We shall watch it bloom with excitement and talk about all things Cherry tree! We talk about our live event last weekend which was such a fabulous time for us all, so much fun and we met some wonderful people! And we are planning some more - would you like us to come to your town? Let us know! Northern Lights, have you been lucky enough to get a glimpse? We talk stargazing - when there's a clear enough sky! Just wish we knew what we were looking at. We get a bit giggly as Penny tries to make a point about history. Mandy has hurt her bum and Penny offers medical advice - thank goodness! We get in a tizz over sciatica and tapioca - much laughter! We go back to the bloody Shakti mat discussion. We talk TV and what we are watching. We are off to Lainston House for Simeon's birthday and can't wait!!! Fancy pants dinner here we come...
So, if you fancy it, pull up a chair and join us for a delightfully irreverent chit chat about life and all its random tangents - bring a cuppa. Cake optional...

Amanda Prowse and Penny Dommett nattering around the kitchen table, chatting about all things random. Are we sitting comfortably... here we go!  We start with a giggle - shock horror! And get straight into the weather - of course we do ! We talk about the lingering after effects of Christmas... Penny still has Christmas cake lurking in the kitchen! We lose it talking about our house guests and the joy of nightlights and candles... Mandy had a fright in the night and then swallowed some Deep Heat (not recommended!) - and Penny sounds like Aunt Josephine from A Series of Unfortunate Events - she's scared of everything!!!! How we laugh. Mandy had her own unfortunate incident in the night with a bowl of gummy bears - don't ask! Feeding the birds - what's best to give them? Penny's roof squirrel is back! We have a little insight into Penny's beautiful zoned garden and her bird life...  How many coats is it okay to own - Mandy has one, just one - whereas Penny's cloakroom looks like a rack at Go Outdoors!!!! Did you know many local libraries have a collect a coat scheme - check out to see if yours does - it's brilliant! We talk about the general brilliance of libraries... visit yours! We go large on outdoor picnics - what a treat on a cold day to have soup in a field ! And discuss the joy of a grazing board! Did you ever have a hot Bovril after swimming when you were at school? Ah... memories! We find out that Penny's dad had a governess - I knew she was posh! 
So, if you fancy it, pull up a chair and join us for a delightfully irreverent chit chat about life and all its random tangents - bring a cuppa. Cake optional...

Amanda Prowse and Penny Dommett nattering around the kitchen table, chatting about all things random. Are we sitting comfortably... here we go!  We are the New Year Grinches!!! Both go to bed early without any fuss... neither of us are enamoured with the whole build up and it all feels a bit flat. Maybe we are old people!! Penny shares a terrible tale of New Year that went disastrously wrong many, many moons ago! We talk about our glorious trips to New York; cue snow! Romantic and wonderful, the great times we've had in that city that never sleeps... We compare Christmas presents - Mandy finally got her perfume - phew! We talk the weather, of course we do, and marvel at how little clothes the kids wear! We talk hypnotherapy and Mandy shares her surreal night out with Led Zeppelin - yes, really! Penny is afraid to get hypnotised incase they take over her brain!
We are still working our way through leftovers... bit of Brie anyone? Penny has a nocturnal plant muncher - she might be setting up a camera to catch the culprit! We think it might be a squirrel which leads us to discuss the Tufty Club, anyone else a member? 
Mandy has a new book out on January 7th!!! We are excited for This One Life to be born. Our launch event is going to be LIVE on January 11th - see Tea Leaves and Reads on Instagram tickets and details X
So, if you fancy it, pull up a chair and join us for a delightfully irreverent chit chat about life and all its random tangents - bring a cuppa. Cake optional...

Amanda Prowse and Penny Dommett nattering around the kitchen table, chatting about all things random. Are we sitting comfortably... here we go!  We are in our post Christmas fug and neither of us can look at a Quality Street or a bit of cheese! Do we eat cheese with Christmas cake? Weird! Did we all have a lovely time? Penny and I discover we both dislike Christmas pud and mincemeat - at LAST something in common!!! Who makes there own pastry? Who has time for that?! Penny, apparently. Penny's recommendation for watching is - Black Doves - Mandy watched and agreed it was epic! Little bit throat cutty at times, so peer from behind a cushion, but SO good - Keira Knightley - she's marvellous! We talk gifts - we both got everything we wanted - Mandy got perfume (finally) and Penny did very well too. Bulb planting - yep, more good planting advice! We talk the wisdom and joy of spending time with older people - so much to love and learn! We talk about Mandy's book An Ordinary Life - Molly is 94 and has a fantastic story to tell. We take a deep dive and sudden turn into WWII - and the importance of sharing those stories and experiences, lest we forget! Including our own family experience.  We talk about our hopes for the coming year and the horror of January birthdays!!! The joy that is Snowdrops - something that heralds new beginnings. The value of close friends as get older - how lucky are we! ...we share a moment when Penny makes me howl with laughter - so what's new! 
And don't forget - January 11th - OUR LIVE EVENT at Weyhill near Andover - tickets from @TeaLeavesandReads save the DATE!!! X
So, if you fancy it, pull up a chair and join us for a delightfully irreverent chit chat about life and all its random tangents - bring a cuppa. Cake optional...

Amanda Prowse and Penny Dommett nattering around the kitchen table, chatting about all things random. Are we sitting comfortably... here we go!  Have we noticed how Penny's voice gets higher when she gets excited - we love it! How lovely was it when we were read to as children, audiobooks are a lovely replica of that! We look at the process of reading and recording an audiobook - it's a lot! Mandy sings all the way to a recording to open up her pipes - it works! We get a ping from my dad, as usual and he's had a pasty - yay! We talk about the lovely people you meet in a waiting room - if you are brave enough to chat to them... Mandy met Norman and he was just wonderful! We think motion is the lotion and the more you move the younger you stay - right? Penny gives us good advice on bulb planting - now is the time apparently! We talk about being ready for Christmas and how we are both terrible at leaving things til the last minute for the festive season- let's hope there's still sprouts on the shelf. Penny hates coloured Christmas lights and anything too kitsch - Mandy is the opposite! We talk about the joy of houses decked in lights - it's wonderful that people do that for others. Neither of us are massive fans of Christmas and we are both asleep long before Midnight on New Year's Eve!!! Bah Humbug! Party animals we are not... Do we still send Christmas cards? Have we seen the price of postage?? We talk about the things you can do for free over the Festive season - and the starting of traditions - the lovely things we all remember! Penny had the joy of Monty's nativity - not a dry eye in the house! It reminds us of our own nativities of our childhood - which weren't always successful. Penny is flabbergasted by a Terry's chocolate orange - yes, really! Happy Christmas one and all, we send you love.
And don't forget - January 11th - OUR LIVE EVENT save the DATE!!! X
So, if you fancy it, pull up a chair and join us for a delightfully irreverent chit chat about life and all its random tangents - bring a cuppa. Cake optional...