News & Updates from Christine Dixon · Page 4

I was walking along the Essex coast, through the beautiful salt marshes and was struck by the view of the old nuclear power station, currently being decommissioned.

It's silent now, no more thrumming up through the ground, something I always used to find unnerving.

And now it's being surrounded by wind turbines. So out with the old power generation and in with the new! Here are two of my new designs this week and all my designs are on sale until the end of the month.

Do I have a weird sense of humour? Out walking by the sea, along the sea wall in Tollesbury, Essex, I saw this boat precariously balanced in the mud.

It made me think - what kind of drunken sailor parked that?

When the tide came in, I hope it floated upright again, rather than filling with water and sinking! Here are two pretty designs for the ladies, a wavy side stacker and a rose decoupage.

I'm so glad to see my little granddaughter with a "boys" toy. Here she is, all of two years old, with her train set. She's far more interested in this than dolls, but she does still have a great love for soft toys and animals.

Here's two card from my MAGIC GARDEN range.

Isn't this just a sweet looking dog? And this little friend was so gentle. I was impressed to find out that this dog is trained to help a person with dementia. Fascinated, I looked up some information and found out the following.

Dogs love predictability and routine and this is the hook upon which much of the training of the dementia assistance dogs is based.

For example Alzheimer's disease can make people confuse day and night or forget basic things such as washing or drinking enough water.

The dogs are trained to help guide people through the day, encouraging them to open a cupboard which contains food for the dog and also a prominent note to the owner reminding him that he has to eat as well.

In the same way that dogs respond to a sound from their collar meaning "Go home", they are trained to respond to other sound triggers in the home.

For example an electronic timer can sound a tone that causes the dog to bring a bite-proof bag of medicine with a note inside reminding the patient to take it, while another tone prompts the dog to walk his owner to the bathroom where he will find a note indicating that he should wash himself and take a glass of water.

The dogs are also trained to trigger an alarm in the house should the patient fall and not get up within a reasonable amount of time or if they hear a choking sound.

Do you know girls studying for exams?

Use these "Sexy to be smart" cards for encouragement leading up to exams and for congratulations afterwards.

I'll be the first to admit that I'm chicken-centric! I have six girls at the moment, five laying and one little Lavender Pekin bantam with feathered feet who is over seven years old and gave up production years ago.

She just earns food based on her cuteness.

I've had to stop buying chicken paraphernalia and my friends are banned from buying me chicken gifts unless it's something useful.

Still plenty of choice though; mugs, tea towels, tins, dishes, plates... These chicks were on display in a market in Germany. I look at the photo and can imagine the clucking. Can you hear it too?

Here's a couple of my new designs - a wavy edged stacker dress design for the girls and sexy military chick for the boys.