Octavia Lillywhite

@wabbey Was there an issue with the site this morning? Nothing happened at 9:30.

Attending a service at the Abbey is a special way to celebrate Christmas. Some of our most popular Advent and Christmas services require free tickets to be booked in advance. Booking will be open today and tomorrow at 9:30am and 2:00pm GMT via our website and you can find out more at: westminster-abbey.org/christmas

“Lucy Letby: victim’s mother tells killer you’ll never have the joy children give” thetimes.com/article/26728a… To be fair tho, a lot of us got that sentence, and I never killed anyone. ☹️

People saying the @alzheimerssoc advert is too dark - nah. It's not dark enough. Dementia is a fate worse than death. And that death does come over and over again. If you think that's too dark, hopefully you're setting up a regular donation to them right about now.

Just reading an article in @thetimes about the rise (and price rise) of poodle crosses: cockapoos, goldendoodles, labradoodles, jackapoos, schnoodles, poogles, maltipoos and cavapoos. I’d like to table a motion to refer to all of this breeding sub-set as “dog-poos”.

@CraigW30_07 @bbcsoutheast @kmfmofficial @setrafficnews Apparently a lorry fire 🔥

Current situation of the M20 Coastbound between junctions 8 & 9. Been here myself for around half hour. @bbcsoutheast @kmfmofficial @setrafficnews

@LinusEkenstam @Molson_Hart What a nice reply 😊

Hey buddy, dad of two girls here, 1.5 and 3.5 - first of, its a lovely little fella you have there, looks healthy and fine. I'm no parenting expert, so take whatever I write here as a kind word from one to another, maybe you already tried all these things, or not, its also really hard giving advice. But I'll try to share my own experience and observations. First, welcome to the terrible twos ❤️ >>The "terrible twos" refers to a normal stage in a child's development in which a toddler can regularly bounce between reliance on adults and a newly burgeoning desire for independence. The symptoms vary between children but can include frequent mood changes and temper tantrums<< That out of the way. Regarding the TV. I'd say just stop with it overall for a period, until he does not really care about it anymore (we've had to do this from time to time) you are the parent and set the constraints, the kids adapt. The toy your kiddo has at the dining table, try to get rid of that, try to make sure eating is about a shared experience with the family, along side getting food into the system, but don't force it. It seems like he is screaming for attention (back at the terrible twos) so maybe worth acknowledging him and trying to converse with him and letting him know its okey to be frustrated and that the feelings are normal. Help steward him forward through the emotions. He is 2+2 and needs guidance and a helping hand. It can be you or your partner. This is potentially the most important part, because if he screams until he passes out he is not getting the tools required to work his way through these feelings. Its like he is caught in a loop. Not sure what time this is recorded at, but he looks slightly tired, and that could add to his feeling of frustration. Be patient, acknowledge, steward and support. Put boundaries, remove TV if required (or hang a bed linnen over it and tell him its broken). Brave to post to twitter asking for parenting advice, I hope you find this message well, and if you ever want to talk about kids, DM's are open. PS. I feel you on this one, been there, made mistakes, and made some more mistakes, and then figured some things out, until things changed and new challenges arose. As long as you do more good than bad, you're a great parent, and you got this! #dadlife

Anyone got any parenting advice for me re my son (2 & 2 months)? He goes really hard. If he doesn’t get what he wants (in this case TV) he will scream nonstop. If you hold the line he will scream until he passes out and falls asleep then behavior repeats the next day.

@SJ_Murray My favourite thing I’ve seen today 😍 I went to the Son et Lumiere in Chartres a couple of years ago. There’s one part where they appear to build the cathedral, in light, in front of your eyes. It’s like time travel.

Chartres, rising up above the fields of crops. On the way into town, there’s a spot where you can still take in the cathedral as it appeared to medieval visitors, reaching for the sky! To walk our minds back through time is a gift of the imagination and yields great perspective.

@amolrajan @BBCTwo @BBCiPlayer I thought you were great! Quite a pace by the end - I can’t think that speedily 🤣 but it made the finish a nail biter!

Tonight’s the night. A new series, and a new era, for #UNIVERSITYCHALLENGE - and for me. Honoured if you might join us. 20.30 @BBCTwo / @BBCiPlayer

Summer when you’re over 40 and a woman is basically getting to work each day and thinking “Is it hot or is this the menopause?” 🥵

There is so much that is so, so sad about not being able to have kids, but then Centre Parcs season comes around and I think, well, at least I will never ever, ever, ever need to book a holiday there 👍 Silver linings.

@AirbnbPolicy Oh, let’s all cry salty tears for the second home owners and how hard they’re finding the #CostOfLivingCrisis 😒

Hosting on Airbnb helps pay the mortgage. #simpletruths #costofliving

Imagine being this egotistical tho 🫣

April is such an exciting month. Every time you leave the house you’re like, “Do I need a sun hat or a ski suit?” And sometimes the answer is “Both”.

Have dogs always needed jackets? I feel like when I was younger dogs just used to go the park maxi-naked; a collar for modesty. But walking around my park now, all the dogs have got these big coats on. And then some are in mega fleece onsies just looking slam-dunk redunkulous.

Stanley Johnson should get “only broke his wife’s nose once” put on his gravestone. But not the word “Sir”.

Excited to see all your kids dressed and their favourite film characters for World Book Day.

@SwordKira @Rainmaker1973 That’s so cool. Reminded me of this pic I took on Whitbarrow Scar. This is just from the strong wind obvs, but still awesome. Looks more like a flag than a tree.

@Rainmaker1973 In Saskatchewan, Canada we have the crooked trees. It's a small area where all the trees are growing unnaturally twisted. Even the saplings have this unusual oddity.

There's a forest in Poland where all the trees have this weird shape and nobody is sure about the reason [read more, hypotheses: bit.ly/2rbshcI]

@NoContextBrits If you’re buying your potato already mashed and packed in virgin plastic, you’ve definitely not understood the point of veganism.

Scientists at Asda have created mashed potato out of plants.

@SoVeryBritish The one I’m married to

Who’s the best ever David?

@bpickar @NoContextBrits If you can have a pride of lions, a conservative of moles doesn't seem that unlikely. Moles are quite conservative. They're creatures of habit, they always wear black velvet and I believe they regularly fiddle their taxes.

@NoContextBrits So the answer is Labour but "a tory of moles" doesn't sound completely implausible. Collective nouns are often ridiculous. To wit: A parliament of owls A murder of crows A gaggle of geese A pride of lions A sloth of bears That said, "a liberal democrat of moles" is just 🔥.