meet Arthur and Audrey...
Saturday, 24 August 2013
summing up....
gave up the allotment at the beginning of the year and turned more of the garden to veg and fruit growing.This has been a huge success.being able to spend 10 minutes a couple of times a day to weed and harvest has made for a much more productive plot.
just 3 ex batt chucks at the mo but need to expand the flock as only one laying at the moment.one a bit skinny and elderly and another broody!!
plans for the autumn,make use of the wild larder(didn't gather a single blackberry last year!)and turn even more garden over to food.grew beetroots and leeks in flower borders this year and rather liked the effect!
In Cardiff in the camper van this weekend doing Dr who stuff with lovely son as a reward for actually gaining some gcse's,but back to some hard slog come Tuesday :)
just 3 ex batt chucks at the mo but need to expand the flock as only one laying at the moment.one a bit skinny and elderly and another broody!!
plans for the autumn,make use of the wild larder(didn't gather a single blackberry last year!)and turn even more garden over to food.grew beetroots and leeks in flower borders this year and rather liked the effect!
In Cardiff in the camper van this weekend doing Dr who stuff with lovely son as a reward for actually gaining some gcse's,but back to some hard slog come Tuesday :)
Friday, 22 March 2013
spring?
Usually we miss the worst of the weather on the Wirral,I think the welsh mountains protect us from some and we live near the Dee marshes so are quite low down which also saves us from a lot,but this latest lot of snow and wind has more than made up for it!Chickens refused to come out of their coop today so comforted them with warm porridge and apple.The cats have run out to attend to their toilet needs and bolted back in,and Poppy the terrier has been content near the fire.Lily the whippet however is entranced by it and has run round the garden in sweeping circles scooping up snow to eat,finally being persuaded in each time shivering with cold!truly a dog of very little brain!
Heres to the thaw!!
Alfresco dining anyone?
Heres to the thaw!!
Alfresco dining anyone?
Wednesday, 13 February 2013
Cake!
My turn to host coffee for a group of friends tomorrow morning and we have friends stopping off on their way to the ferry in the evening so I've been having a bit of a bake-a-thon.perfect for such a miserable grey day.
Have soaked fruit for a tea loaf which I'll bake in the morning along with some scones,and have made a carrot cake and some chocolate and walnut brownies-never made these before, they're from a Mary Berry book so fingers crossed!
Just got to stop the rabble from scoffing them!
Have soaked fruit for a tea loaf which I'll bake in the morning along with some scones,and have made a carrot cake and some chocolate and walnut brownies-never made these before, they're from a Mary Berry book so fingers crossed!
Just got to stop the rabble from scoffing them!
Tuesday, 22 January 2013
Brrrr!
Snow beginning to thaw now and a lovely sunny day on the Wirral :)
still a bit chilly thought so have made a massive pan of veg chilli for tonights meal which has also used up the wrinkly bits of veg lurking in the fridge!
Basically I chop everything up small and fry slowley in a dollop of olive oil with cumin seeds chilli flakes and lots of garlic.Once its softened I add a tin of kidney beans,a tin of tomatoes and a tin of baked beans and leave to simmer away.We'll have it with baked potatoes and there should be some left for tomorrow and we'll have it with tortillas and bits sort of like fajitas.
Mabel braving the frozen wastes!!
still a bit chilly thought so have made a massive pan of veg chilli for tonights meal which has also used up the wrinkly bits of veg lurking in the fridge!
Basically I chop everything up small and fry slowley in a dollop of olive oil with cumin seeds chilli flakes and lots of garlic.Once its softened I add a tin of kidney beans,a tin of tomatoes and a tin of baked beans and leave to simmer away.We'll have it with baked potatoes and there should be some left for tomorrow and we'll have it with tortillas and bits sort of like fajitas.
Wednesday, 9 January 2013
New year,new rules!
found out today that the hubbie is having to take a pay cut of £7,000 a year!
His job is changing slightly and in many ways its good as his hours will be more predictable,he's often working 2 to 3 hours extra at the end of a day for no extra pay(he's a gas engineer and doesn't leave a breakdown till it's fixed)and it will be less stressful so less risk of him having a stroke or heart attack!
My job at M and S is over now and whilst I'd like to find something else our son takes his GCSE's this year and I feel I need to be about for him,he has autism and I think I need to be about for the next 6 months.
So........
Lots of penny pinching!We have a nasty overdraft to clear of about £1/000 and a credit card of about the same,the heatings been turned off,showers rationed and baths banned!Eating from the freezer till its empty,and my huge stockpiled pantry.Luckily the hens are laying again,hopefully we won;t get egg bound!We both enjoy a glass of wine but thats off the menu too!
So I'm guessing we'll be a lot healthier in 2013,especially as I'll also be cycling everywhere!!
His job is changing slightly and in many ways its good as his hours will be more predictable,he's often working 2 to 3 hours extra at the end of a day for no extra pay(he's a gas engineer and doesn't leave a breakdown till it's fixed)and it will be less stressful so less risk of him having a stroke or heart attack!
My job at M and S is over now and whilst I'd like to find something else our son takes his GCSE's this year and I feel I need to be about for him,he has autism and I think I need to be about for the next 6 months.
So........
Lots of penny pinching!We have a nasty overdraft to clear of about £1/000 and a credit card of about the same,the heatings been turned off,showers rationed and baths banned!Eating from the freezer till its empty,and my huge stockpiled pantry.Luckily the hens are laying again,hopefully we won;t get egg bound!We both enjoy a glass of wine but thats off the menu too!
So I'm guessing we'll be a lot healthier in 2013,especially as I'll also be cycling everywhere!!
Saturday, 15 December 2012
crazy!
I've been doing the christmas job stint at m and s,and am truly shocked at how much money people throw at the festive season!Hundreds of people spending hundreds of pounds on nonsense such as ready prepared veg you microwave in individual portions!I know the stuff is good quality and I wouldn't have a job if people didn't shop there but it seems slightly immoral when we live near some of the most deprived areas in the country.The town the shop is in is in an affluent little town full of footballers wives who probably don't know how to peel a sprout or roast a potato,it just seems so wasteful!
We'll be having 9 for Christmas dinner and it will be home grown veg(some frozen earlier in the year plus cabbage and sprouts from the garden and potatoes grown in sacks on the patio)my mother in law provides a turkey crown for the meat eaters and my sis in law is doing the nut roast this year,all in all probably costing what the folk I've met recently spend on a starter!
(m and s are great employers btw!!!)
(don't want to be sacked just yet!!)
We'll be having 9 for Christmas dinner and it will be home grown veg(some frozen earlier in the year plus cabbage and sprouts from the garden and potatoes grown in sacks on the patio)my mother in law provides a turkey crown for the meat eaters and my sis in law is doing the nut roast this year,all in all probably costing what the folk I've met recently spend on a starter!
(m and s are great employers btw!!!)
(don't want to be sacked just yet!!)
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