#aoife i have to rotate a bit more

[tallbluelady]

1. What memory would your OC rather just forget?

Okay okay. @hermits-hovel has an ancient OC of Mnemosyne who is in charge of memory crystals (such as the ones the Convocation ->Ascians keep). In his lore, the memory holder can no longer recall them as they are in the Crystal now.

Minthe, in general, is against doing this. She understands that Mnemosyne’s archive is useful and wouldn’t stop him from doing it, but part of what makes her and Ariadne’s relationship crumble is that Ari is asking him to take her memories away for safe keeping instead of actually facing them and ordering them in her mind. So you would never expect her to ask Mnemo to do this, right?

Weeeeeellllll… One night, Daedalus tells Minthe about Zodiark, far before the Final Days. Basically, who’s involved and what the summoning entails. And that it is inevitable. Minthe is brought to such a seething rage at Hades that she can hardly stand to think of him, while Daedalus is defending him. She tells Daedalus to "never speak of this conversation again" and storms out to get it removed by Mnemosyne. She returns calm but depressed with a handwritten note that tells Daedalus to not talk about Zodiark in any meaningful way so they can continue to speak to Hades (I wish I knew what that note says lol). He’s smart enough to do so and the three of them continue having a cordial relationship until the Convocation releases its plan for Zodiark.

Annnnd in a fun twist of events, Miranda gets a hold of this memory crystal and vows to kill Emet-Selch for pulling Daedalus into it!

Thanks for the ask!

[gadgetsrevv]

Women’s Football: Five questions for ‘frustrated’ England

Phil Neville has been head coach of the England women’s team since January 2018

Just 54 days after playing what Phil Neville called a “nonsense” third-place play-off at the World Cup, England face a new challenge as they begin their quest to conquer Euro 2021.

Hosting the European Championship for the first time since 2005 means the Lionesses qualify automatically and will instead play friendly matches in the build-up – starting in Belgium on Thursday and Norway next Tuesday.

The England manager is not a fan of non-competitive games, but says the 2020 Tokyo Olympics – for which he takes charge of the Great Britain team – will act as added motivation for his players.

So what are the key challenges facing Neville as he prepares for a huge two years?

Are England over their World Cup hangover?

Highlights: England 1-2 Sweden

For all the record TV audiences, the momentum gained and sceptics won over at the World Cup, England finished with a damp squib after missing out on a bronze medal to Sweden.

Thursday’s game against Belgium will be the first opportunity for the players to demonstrate that they are “braver and tougher” as Neville demanded in Brussels on Wednesday.

He also said his players are not at the required standard to win a gold medal – a change in tack, as during the tournament he indicated that they had the credentials to win a major tournament for the first time.

But the players will have no room for an ‘off season’ if they want to play at the Olympics, as Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish players will also be vying for places in his Great Britain squad.

That should ensure there is no post-World Cup complacency. With new and old faces in the squad, Neville says the players will use the “hurt and frustration” from the summer as “fuel”.

Does Williams signify a step forward?

Fara Williams is England’s record appearance holder with 170 caps but was not selected for this summer’s World Cup in France

The Lionesses squad has not seen wholesale changes from the World Cup, but those that have come in are intriguing nonetheless.

Chief among them is England’s record cap holder Fara Williams, not included when the squad was first announced, but called up once Chelsea forward Fran Kirby dropped out injured.

Williams was not picked for the World Cup either, but Neville said before the tournament that her England career was not over. Former Reading team-mate Becky Jane, now at Liverpool, says the 35-year-old midfielder has been eagerly awaiting a recall.

There is no doubt that Williams will bring her guile and experience to the squad, which lacked inventiveness in midfield at times during the World Cup. But she was not at her peak during her last major tournament at Euro 2017, not least in the semi-final defeat by hosts and eventual winners the Netherlands.

However, she showed with Reading last season that she is still one of the Women’s Super League’s top performers – and Neville said: “Fara wants to be picked for footballing ability and I will only pick her on that.”

Can the newcomers take their chances?

Aoife Mannion has represented England from under-15 through to under-23 level

Neville’s selection of Chelsea forward Beth England and Manchester City defender Aoife Mannion is more of a nod to the future.

The head coach says they have been picked for their strength of character as much as for their football ability, which he says is increasingly important for England.

“They bring character, they never moan, train hard and do the extra bits,” Neville said.

Neville said England and Mannion, who has represented her country at every youth level, would have been “frustrated” by their lack of chances after a “fantastic 12 months”.

The Chelsea forward had a sterling end to last season, scoring 12 goals in 12 WSL starts. Her inclusion comes in place of the injured Ellen White, who was England’s top scorer at the World Cup.

Mannion’s path to a centre-back berth has been blocked by Steph Houghton, Millie Bright, Abbie McManus and Leah Williamson, and has not been helped by a manager willing to rotate his central defenders.

But after moving to Manchester City from Birmingham in July, she will be able to tap into the experience of new club-mate and England captain Houghton, while Chelsea’s England could take advantage of the fact that White is set to miss out on the next “two to three camps” according to Neville.

Will Neville’s tactics still work?

The World Cup was Phil Neville’s first major tournament in charge of the England women’s team

For the most part, Neville impressed at the World Cup, his first major tournament, but there were questions about some of his tactical decisions.

His desire to play stylish football out from the back is “non-negotiable” and while it brought in new fans, it also carried an element of risk.

At times, it did not suit England’s defenders, and their attempts to move the ball forward quickly with short, sharp passing looked like a work in progress.

Neville says he won’t change his methods but admitted “it might take 12 months” for his style to fully take shape. Fortunately, with only friendly games to come, he can fine-tune his tactics rather than worrying about results too much.

Are friendlies better than qualifying?

England have not lost a European Championship or World Cup qualifier since 2002 – when they were beaten by Germany and then in a play-off by France – denying them a place at the 2003 World Cup in China.

In more recent years, qualification has been almost inevitable with some particularly one-sided games against European minnows. This time, England have a chance to organise friendlies of a more testing nature. In the build-up to the 2019 World Cup, the Lionesses lost to New Zealand and Canada, which provided plenty of food for thought.

England drew and beat Belgium in qualifying for Euro 2017, while Norway will offer a stern test even if the Lionesses produced their best performance of the World Cup to beat them 3-0 in France.

They also have a November date against Germany in front of what is set to be a record Wembley crowd.

After that, England will hope to defend their SheBelieves Cup title next March, by which time the Olympics – and a massive 18 months for Neville and his players – will come firmly into view.

Source link . More news

via wordpress https://ift.tt/2LgnL4u

[hemcountry]

BACK ON YOUR MIND WITH 'BACK ON MY MIND'....AND A CUP OF TEA!

Hi Everybody,

Welcome to another installment of my country music diary! I know it’s been a while since I’ve posted an update, so let me apologise for that first of all. It’s been a hectic few months for me, to say the least. All in very good ways, though, I’m happy to say. But listen, before we even go any further here, can somebody please just answer me this: Where is the year going?!

I was walking through a well known department store the other week, an innocent with nothing only milk and biscuits on my mind so I could get home and have a cuppa, when I turned the corner and found myself face-to-face with a screeching skeleton! And I don’t mean a cranky customer! Or even an over-tired, over-worked, under-paid staff member, either! I mean an actual, full-size, screeching skeleton!! Not only does this summer seem like it’s slipped by in a flash, but Halloween has totally crept up on me, too! My heart! And if that wasn’t confusing enough for me, I turned the next corner and was met by a wall of selection boxes! Halloween and Christmas, almost side-by-side….in September?! Let me tell you, I really needed that cup of tea by the time I got home!

The good news, though, is I usually settle down once I have a cup of tea in my hand, and there’s one within easy reach right now as I write this, so let’s get on with our catching up : )

Click here to download my new single, ‘BACK ON MY MIND’, is out NOW.

The first big piece of news I have to share with you is that my brand NEW single, ‘BACK ON MY MIND’, is finally out NOW on all digital platforms for all of you to go and download if you like it (see link below). It’s another old country favourite, one made famous by Ronnie Milsap, and I love singing it. It’s been on my list to record for a long time and I’m so delighted that I’ve finally had the chance to take this great track into the studio. Hopefully you guys will think I’ve done it justice when you hear it. In fact, hopefully you’ll have heard it already because it’s been with radio for the past few weeks. And I have to give a huge shout-out to all the presenters who have been spinning it so far, and who have given me such wonderful support throughout my career and with every release, including ‘BACK ON MY MIND.’ The extent of my gratitude to everyone who plays it on their shows – and of course to everyone who requests it to be played – knows no bounds. I’d tip my hat to you all, but I’m a girlie girl when it comes to my hair, so…no hat! But I definitely send you all big hugs! THANK YOU SO MUCH. Like my last single, ‘Don’t Think Twice’, ‘BACK ON MY MIND’ is also going to feature on my brand new album. It feels a bit like forever since my first album, ‘Another Heartache’, because so much has happened since then. So I’m seriously excited about everyone getting to hear my new collection. Not to tease you guys or anything, but you’ll have to wait just another little while! But it’s getting closer all the time : )

There are two huge agricultural events which take place in Ireland every year. Well, I guess it’s more true to say that there are many big agricultural events which take place around the country each year. But there are two huge ones which are world-famous; the Tullamore Show, and the National Ploughing Championships. And like most events in Ireland, there’s music involved, more often than not a combination of country and Irish traditional. The Tullamore Show is a one-day event held in Tullamore every year, but people come from all over the country, and indeed the world, to attend. The National Ploughing Championships tends to rotate, moving to a different location every few years and staying there for a few years as well before moving on. This was the second year the National Ploughing Championships were held in Tullamore, and it was a record-breaking year in terms of attendance, with close on 300,000 people visiting the site over the course of the three-day event. I had the pleasure of performing at last year’s event and I was delighted to be invited back to the main stage once again this year. The site, if you’ve never seen it, is literally built from the ground up and is pretty much a mini city in a field! The amount of work that goes into it is unbelievable. And the amount of fun to be had is equally impressive. I also sang with a gentleman who’s been very good to me in my career, and is always mighty craic to be around, Seamus Moore, in Hugh Lynch’s tent. Even when the middle day of the championship was nearly washed away with torrential rain, spirits in Hugh Lynch’s with Seamus and the awesome Slim Attraction band never even showed the slightest signs of dampening. The show must go on, as they say, and it surely did!

Olivia at this year’s Tullamore Show.

This was also my second year in a row to be asked to perform at the Tullamore Show, an honour I was delighted to accept. There was a fantastic line-up of music on the day, with the legendary Declan Nerney headlining things and taking to the stage late in the afternoon. Before that, though, my good friends Stephen Rosney – with his band, The Back Axles -, Colin Kenny, and Simon Casey (who also has a gorgeous new single out, called ‘The Third Dance From The End’, check it out, folks) entertained a packed music tent.

Olivia with TG4’s Feilte show presenter Caitlin

Well, since I was talking to you all last, I’ve managed to end up on television a couple of times, too. And that’s always an experience! One of the national TV stations in Ireland is called TG4, and it’s an Irish language channel. But thankfully if you’re singing you can get away with doing it in English! I have a few words of Irish still, and would probably know enough to get myself out of trouble. But the other side of that, is I probably know just enough to get myself into trouble, too! One of the shows on TG4 is called Feilte, it’s been on for a few years now, and its concept is beautiful in its simplicity and in its execution. They show producers (Hi Stephen and gang!) and the lovely Aoife (the presenter) visit some of the most scenic and stunning locations around Ireland and this footage is interspersed with Aoife telling us a little bit about what we’re seeing, the location’s history and such, and some ‘live’ music. This year I was one of the performers who was presented with the privilege of performing ‘live’ on the show. Hopefully I’ll get to work with Stephen, Aoife, and the rest of the gang again somewhere down the line.

Me on stage during the Irish Post Country Music Awards performance (pic. Sam Cairns)

My other television appearance was on the Irish Post Country Music Awards, where I was also lucky enough to be asked to perform. I was nominated in the Best Newcomer category, which came as a surprise. Maybe I just feel old these days!! But like I’ve always said about awards, they’re bonuses as far as I’m concerned, but they’re not the prime reason why I sing or play.That being said, of course, they’re always lovely to win, and I was very happy to accept a couple of big awards earlier this year, at the Sunday World Music and Entertainment Awards, and then at the Hot Country TV Awards Concert. As it turned out, I didn’t win this time but I was absolutely delighted for Lauren McCrory who did. Lauren is still at the beginning of her own career, and I’m sure picking up an award like this so soon after winning Glor Tire earlier this year will do her the power of good. Not only is Lauren an incredibly talented singer, but she’s a genuinely lovely person through and through as well. I know what a nice feeling it was for me when I picked up my first award, so I’m more than happy knowing that’s a feeling Lauren has been able to share, too.

Myself with Cliona Hagan and Lauren McCrory.

Speaking of amazing female singers, it’s time for me to sing the praises of Cliona Hagan’s fantastic band now! The lads and I had one heck of a night at The Well in Moate recently. I usually perform solo, except at shows where I’m doing a guest spot when there tends to be a band that backs every act. But generally speaking, I’m out there on my own. Except for my dad, of course, my regular one-man roadie and crew! One day, hopefully not too far away, taking my own band out on the road is definitely something that’s high-up on my to-do list. But until then, getting the opportunity to perform a whole show backed by talents like Aidan Quinn and his boys is something I’ll jump at every time the chance comes along. One reason why is that it’s just so much fun! Another is that it means all I have to worry about is singing!

David captured me in full flow on stage.

Somebody else I want to give a special mention to is David McCool. Many of you, especially if you come along to a lot of country events in Ireland, will probably be well aware of the sight of David and his trusty camera. I’ve said it before, and it bears repeating, there’s a lovely sense of community in the country music scene sometimes. And David is a perfect example of this. He’ll come along to whatever shows are on, take pictures the whole night long, and a few days later share them all with everyone on his Facebook page. And unlike me, David doesn’t just point, click, and hope for the best! Although I’m better than that when it comes to taking selfies at least! David is actually a very talented photographer, and I, like so many more artists on the country scene, owe him our thanks for what he contributes to what we all love to do. The memories that David’s work captures are wonderful to have. And on the subject of photos, another hugely gifted ‘lensman’ (not sure if that’s a term, but sounds like it should be!) I’ve had the pleasure of working with before, and you’ll see his work again in the photo from this year’s Ploughing Championship, is Farrell Quaid of Quaid Photography. Between David, Farrell,another real gentleman from Ballinasloe by the name of John Finnerty, and of course Dave Cooley, too, there’s so much talent out there. For anyone on the country scene, there’s no excuse for not having class shots, ‘live’ or in the studio. I also love it, and appreciate it, when fans at shows take photos and then tag me in them when they post them. I love it that people will actually take the time to go to all that trouble. It’s another lovely way for me to enjoy and remember shows even after they’re over. So thank you very much everybody, keep tagging and posting away! : )

Myself on stage at this year’s record breaking National Ploughing Championship (Quaid Photography)

And speaking of studios (I’m getting good at this links thing…kinda! Haha), there’s two great new albums I want to tell you about. One is out and doing the rounds now, and the second will be released later this month. So add them to your list for Santa or better still, get your hands on them even sooner. The first is from Andy Feery, and it’s called ‘Back Home To You’, and I was delighted to be one of Andy’s special guests on his launch night. And later this month I have the pleasure of joining Stuart Moyles for his album launch, too, in the McWilliam Park Hotel on October 16th. Robert Mizzell, Gerry Guthrie, are just some of the other guest artists who’ll be there on the night to wish Stuart well. And while I’m name-dropping, I don’t know how many times I’ve run into the brilliant Sabrina Fallon recently, but I love it when I do because she always makes me laugh. She’s such a brilliant singer, and such a natural on stage. Sabrina is definitely one of those people who was born to perform. It does your heart good to hear her sing, and to just be around her, too. Another singer whose voice I adore, and could listen to forever if I had to, is Patrick Feeney. Patrick, as you’ll probably know is one of The Three Amigos, and like Sabrina, a breath of fresh air to be around. I got to open for Patrick a couple of weeks back and it was a night I thoroughly enjoyed from start to finish.

Me and my Hot Country Award in RSVP magazine in Ireland.

Well folks, I think that’s our ‘little’ catch-up nearly caught-up at this stage! I’ve probably forgotten a couple of things, but I swear, I haven’t been the same at all since I ran into that skeleton! : ) Oh, I nearly forgot, I also had the very unreal experience of seeing myself in the pages of RSVP magazine (something like HELLO, for those who may never have seen a copy) in a feature on the Hot Country TV Awards Concert from earlier in the year. Thanks again to Kara and her crew at KODE, Tullamore for my lovely dress that night.

Now, my tea is gone cold from talking so much. Wouldn’t be the first time that’s happened, as some who know me might say! Time to put the kettle on, I think….

Take care everybody, until next time!

Love, Olivia XOXO

BACK ON YOUR MIND WITH ‘BACK ON MY MIND’….AND A CUP OF TEA! was originally published on HEM COUNTRY

[themomsandthecity]

2 Moms of Triplets and a Toddler Make Tandem Breastfeeding Look Easy

Cliona and Sue have four kids under 3 and are doing all they can to tag team on their family's personal breastfeeding journey. The wives, who live in Dublin, Ireland, had a 2-year-old toddler named Aoife who was still breastfeeding with Cliona when the triplets Sue was carrying arrived at 31 weeks. With the babies in the NICU and unable to latch, a difficult, round-the-clock pumping schedule for Sue began, and once the triplets began to take to breastfeeding with Sue, Cliona wanted to help however she could. In a post to Facebook on the Breastfeeding Twins and Triplets UK Page, Cliona described those early days in the couple's breastfeeding journey. "Once Sue had breastfeeding established, I started to help out with feeds," she wrote. "It was a bit earlier than planned, but after consultation with a lactation consultant we were happy to go ahead with it. Sue still does the bulk of the feeds - and with three babies that means constant rotations - but I help out when I can." Related These 35 Tandem Breastfeeding Photos Prove That Moms Are Badass The mom continued, touching on how amazing of an experience it has been to be able to feed all four children through breastfeeding, and how they make it all work. "I help out when all three want to be fed at once, or if I have to bring one baby to a hospital appointment it saves me having to bring a bottle. When our little boy had to spend three nights in hospital, Sue stayed in with him and I ended up tandem feeding his three sisters at home at night, which was a bit of a juggling act! Sue has also now nursed our toddler a few times when she (the toddler!) was feeling curious about it. The sight of all four children being simultaneously fed is not an uncommon one in our house! I feel so lucky to be able to connect with all my children in this way, and of course with triplets it's handy to have an extra set of boobs!! My wife does 99 percent of the hard work, but I feel so grateful that I am able to contribute that last 1 percent." Photographer Johanna King wanted to help this busy family spread their story even more, so she took some beautiful photos of them tandem feeding their children. The women shared why this session means so much to them on the photographer's blog. "We have very little time to reflect on our very quickly created and slightly mad, but wonderful, family," they said. "Breastfeeding and carrying our children in slings can be demanding, but allows us to spend lots of time with them and ensures they all get lots of cuddles. We want to be able to look back and remember how crazy it all was, but also that there were quiet moments in there too, and to capture some of the beauty in the madness." Scroll through to see Johanna's stunning photos of Cliona, Sue, Aoife, and the triplets. http://bit.ly/2q1K5DH

[tallbluelady]

Who gets up first in the morning? for Aoife and Hades :3

You know, Hades is probably prone bouts of insomnia during the Magi era, so he's probably going to be the one waking her. I'm currently imagining him trying to navigate a huge mattress with a bazillionty pillows on it to get Aoife up for something. 

Conversely, for a bit of tenderness between the two, she'll get him a blanket when he's pouring over his work. "I'm simply resting my eyes, my dear." "I know."

Thanks for the ask!