It might not have been the task we were expecting last night, but it was certainly a job that tested our creativity and helped cheer up an important local resource - so it was gold stars all round!

It was also excellent to welcome Aman to his first GoodGym session - lovely to meet you Aman and thanks for your amazing paint mixing skills!

St Vincent's Family Project is a centre which provides support for vulnerable families. They have several projects that give priority to those most in need, including offering a family space, therapies and courses including creative art, support groups, parenting courses and healthy living courses.

We definitely leveled up our skills when we were asked to create an Autumn display for the kids area! At first there was a little trepidation - after all, this was slightly more challenging than washing the ball pit balls, which we thought we'd be doing. It didn't hold us back for long though. With Becca acting as art director, Susan taking on creating the tree, Aman mixing colours for the paints, and Dan acting as chief stapler engineer, we soon created the vision that the centre had given us.

Check out the award winning (we like to think!) design that we ended up with! It was great to get something up on the wall for the kids to enjoy - we hope!

Next week we have a more physical task helping transform an abandoned corner of an estate into a community garden. You can find out all the details and sign up right here.

Hope to see you there!

The list that Mrs S dictates to me (and which I take down in my best handwriting...) are always clear and precise, but it's the additional level of detail that makes shopping for her such an enjoyable experience (and occasional challenge)...today it was essential that the broccoli was English, the Beef Burgers Scottish, the Cheese Spanish, and that I try to find the "greenest of the bananas" (for which she did compliment me on my selection upon my return). I thought I knew my way the world's politest supermarket, but shopping for Mrs S takes it a whole new level!

Midway through getting Ms D's items scanned and bagged, I noticed the attention of the friendly checkout lady turn to whatever was happening outside, followed quickly by a rather loud "wow"...the heavens had truly opened and the equivalent of an Edgware Road torrential monsoon was flooding the pavement outside. A few brave souls were risking it and getting very wet in the process, but everyone else was now congregating near the exit, like an audience watching something unusual slowly unfold in front of their eyes.

At some point I had to make a run for it - and so judging that it had "eased off a little", and with umbrella in one hand and Ms D's shopping in my arms to try and avoid it getting drenched, I made the long dash for her front door...drowned rat doesn't even come close.

A change of day to shop for Ms D as she was "up to her eyes in appointments" yesterday (her words). She'd also just been out for a walk with her physio, so was feeling a little jaded but pleased with her progress, and had the list and money all prepared, and the usual instruction of "get what you can" - thankfully it wasn't raining, and so it proved a straightforward tour around the familiar aisles to fill the bag with what she needed this week.

A soggy start to a Friday morning, even with umbrella in hand, and I felt a little guilty as I left damp footprints on Mrs M's stairs - however it was good to catch up, and her list this week was its usual combination of left field items that I've never hunted for before (Ottolenghi cooking sauces, a particular brand of chutney), and her Friday regulars of fish, fruit and cereal (various). Fortunately it all fitted into one bag, as I needed the other hand to hold the umbrella on the way home...

A bed mission that was exactly as described, which was a welcome relief. Having been warmly greeted by Mr P's daughter, she showed us the bed that needed dismantling and removing, and where the best spot was to leave it outside for the council pickup, and we quickly got to work.

Armed with sets of allen keys, Anne and I soon had the mattress base removed, and the sides unscrewed so that we had a series of flat pieces ready to move out, along with a remarkably manoeuvarable mattress, and it was then just a short walk to the designated disposal point where we leant everything against a conveniently placed wall. We declined the kind offer of pasta that Mr P's daughter had bubbling away, and refreshed with a glass of water we bid our farewells - another bed mission successfully ticked.