Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Answers on a postcard please.....

OOOh, what to do?? I have just received an email from the Weyhill fairground craft and design centre, asking if I would be interested in doing their Garden Fair in May??

Linky thing, click here

What do you think?? I would need to come up with ideas of things to make that are more outdoorsy (is that a word)? Flowery, picnics? Bunting etc? Seed kits? Any ideas you crafty lot? What would you expect to see at a Garden fair?

I am really excited as they must like me to keep asking me back......I think. I would love to do this full time, but mortgage will not allow at present (or in the foreseeable future *wipes tear from eye*)

Please help!! Any suggestions, email me at Christianscottage@btinternet.com or leave a comment please.

Hope you can help!

C x x x

Happy Wednesday

Finally some time to write. I have no idea where my time goes, but, like my hairline, is just does!

Am off now until the beginning of February. My next roster is ok, not the destinations i requested, but all in all, not bad at all.

On Monday night, we drove over to Woking to see Hairspray at the theatre. I had no idea what it was about, just knew that Michael Ball had played a part in the West End show. I have to say it was fantastic! A really lively, feel good, show. It made me want to start singing again. Very much recommended (the show, not my singing).

Spent yesterday, scraping out the soiled muck from the chicken runs and topping up with nice fluffy bedding, that will be covered in poop in a matter of days. The girls seemed to be enjoying themselves, scratching around the veggie garden to stop them getting under my feet. Pru hasn't laid any eggs since the 3 at the beginning of the month. Bright red comb, but still no sign of eggs. Elsbeth crouched down in front of me yesterday, a sure sign that she is thinking of laying again soon. Fingers crossed.

I also managed to get a bit of gardening done. Nothing like getting your hands in fresh compost and planting some seeds. I have decided to plan my garden more carefully this year (time permitting)......We always end up with a glut of something or other, so successional planting is the term this year! Just remembering to plant a few seeds every few weeks. I went to the local garden centre to get a new broom and some netting (to stop the cat that has moved in behind our house) and couldn't resist some seeds!


Broad beans, pak choi, purple beans, swiss chard and curly kale - lots of which will be for the hens. I have to plant it early or by August I have forgotten. I am after large established plants that will survive the winter this year. Daft, but packets of seeds make me smile. Dried up little things, that burst into life and feed us. Amazing really.


I found my little wooden plant pot maker in the shed, dusted it off and got to work. I found The Independent makes superb pots, but any paper will do *wink*




Broad beans are now sown and in the green house.


The green house hasn't faired to well over winter and the zip is broken. It won't cost much to replace, but it annoys me as I only bought it last year. I still have the fleece cover, so might make do with that this year. I need to rebuild the cold frame (I say rebuild, it is only stacked up bricks), as I have used most of the bricks as supports for the hens' drinkers and a few other jobs.

After many hours of sewing (and unpicking)!!, the table runner is done! I really like it and think it brightens up the wooden coffee table. I think Jase is worried that the house will turn into a gingham patchwork nightmare, but it looks good where it is.


Been quite a good week so far. Apart from my newly discovered Ritz cracker addiction. To add to the other addictions......just something about them, They are so tempting. Especially with Waitrose crab pate......

Jase celebrated his birthday last week and got the Wagamama cookbook. I have been to the restaurant a couple of times and love it, so today I went shopping and bought all the ingredients for my favourite meal. Amai Udon noodles. Took minutes to prepare and was absolutely delish. I am not one for following recipe books, always adding a few bits and pieces, but it tasted exactly like the restaurant.


Loads of pak choi, mange tout, savoy cabbage (instead of the leeks as per the recipe), with tofu pieces and king prawns. Topped with a handful of dry roasted peanuts and a squeeze of lime.....mmmmm nom nom nom. Reasonably healthy too I think*.


*Not including the Ritz crackers I had as a starter.

The temperature has dropped again and we are due a ground frost overnight. Hens are locked up tight in their eglu and happy. I plan to start worming them tomorrow, as I haven't done it for nearly 4 months. They don't seem to be affected but that could explain the lack of eggs. A week of medicated pellets and they will be done for a while.

Fire is lit, The Day After Tomorrow on the dvd player, you can't beat a good disaster movie. A small bar of Green & Blacks extra dark chocolate consumed, for health reasons you understand.

A mega list of jobs to do this week, as always, but nothing too pressing. I want to start on my next patchwork quilt for the spare room, but am patchworked out. Something else will pop into my head no doubt and I'll crack on with that.

Time to get back to the dvd and the end of the world as we know it......

TTFN,

C x x x

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Lunatic asylum

You know you get that feeling sometimes that you should have stayed in bed? Today is one of those days. I popped to the post box with 2 letters in hand and as I dropped them through the slot, I saw my shopping list disappear too!! I do worry about my sanity sometimes. Like the time I couldn't find my wallet. Turned the house upside down and it was no where to be seen. Decided to chill for 5 minutes and make a cuppa. Lo and behold, wallet sitting in the fridge. Obvious really. Anyway, I disgress, so unlike me!!, shop from memory I thought. Bad move.

Decided to go to Quilters dream first, as I needed some curved safely pins, as you do, and some red fabric for binding the table runner that I am yet to make. £24 later, I left and headed to Sainsburys. I am usually a Waitrose shopper, just because their fruit and veg is better quality and owing to the fact that I refuse to shop in Tesco due to their ever increasing greed to dominate the planet. Walked into Sainburys to be confronted with hundreds of Hot Cross buns! I am still getting over the excesses of Christmas, waistline wise as well as with the Mastercard. Do they think us stupid?? Packets upon packets of buns stacked up, next to Cadburys Creme eggs!! Easter is months away. I hate supermarkets and the way they program our minds into purchasing certain items. I won't stand for it. No way. In protest I only bought one packet of 4. *wink* Toasted two when I got home and smothered them in butter, the sort of thickness that you leave teeth marks when you take a bite. Delish.

Funny how everything really important on your list is forgotten the second you drop it into the post box. Will need to go out again tomorrow.

The big news this week is that Pru started laying again. Her comb has been looking rather red this week, but I didn't think for a second that she would lay until February. 2 eggs so far this week and whoopers too. She is a good girl. Hopefully the others will get the hint. The 6 eggs I bought today will have to last as I don't want to buy anymore. Even free range, pampered, naturally roaming in woodland, apple eating from organic orchard, hens' eggs cannot compare to our own.

Their run is decidedly filthy by my standards. I am sure they have no issue with it. Waiting for a dry day to shovel the soiled mess out and give it a hose down. Weather forecast doesn't look promising for the next week, so might have to wait until my week off.

Jase got the results of his latest MRI scan and it showed that his tumour is shrinking!! It really is the best news we could have hoped for and a wonderful start to the New Year.

I think it is veg planning time again! I love this time of year when it is dark outside, I can light the fire and sit with my seed catalogues, a Yankee candle burning and pour over pictures of vegetables. Strange that my veg never looks as good as the catalogues promise, but I still enjoy growing them.

I did plan to start off broad beans and sweetpeas in the autumn, but didn't get 'round to it. The mini plastic greenhouse has taken a battering over winter with one of the zips broken, will need to fix that before I start sowing. The hens were allowed another few hours in the veg garden to help dig over the beds. Please ignore the heaving breathing at the start!! I am not a pervert.



Am making bubble and squeak for dinner, as have loads of left over sprouts and tatties. Jase won't be back until late this evening, so cooking for one! Girls are tucked up in bed, fire is ready to light and 2 loads of washing are hanging up drying. A good day so far, with loads of jobs ticked off.

C x x

Sunday, January 02, 2011

Technology...

The New Year hasn't started off too well. Due to a blip with Iphone software, the alarms have stopped working worldwide. I found this out at 9.30 this morning when I woke up and was due to be at work at 9am!!! I called and the first thing that was said is "do you have an iphone"?? They knew, but I didn't.

That means that day one of my annual check (3 days total) is up the wall and I can't just turn up tomorrow, I have to have it re rostered, potentially screwing up my entire roster for January. It was a nice one too. Ho hum, such is life. No point dwelling on it, it is done now. I just hate being late for anything. It isn't me. Anyway, onwards and upwards so to speak. Just annoyed as I even polished my shoes. Properly, with polish, cloth and brush, not your shiny sponge thing!!

I spent most of New Years eve tidying the veggie garden with the hens. It is rare to let them out of their 'chicken corner' but every now and again I give in and let them run amok around the raised beds. They seemed to enjoy them selves and did a grand job at digging over the beds and exposing buried slug eggs (yuck) to feast on. 5 large tub trugs full on old veggie bits, raspberry canes, strawberry leaves and runner bean plants all loaded into the compost bins, which are now full to bursting.

I also raked up leaves from the lawn and filled the leaf mould bin too. My back was killing me and yesterday was a case of gently does it. Today I am fine! Weird. I can cope with that.

I have stacked the fire ready for tonight (or this afternoon if I can't get any warmer) and am thinking about dinner. Not sure what culinary delights I can whip up, but might just settle for a jacket potato loaded with butter. A healthy start to the New Year and all that??!!

Facebook is becoming addictive, mainly scrabble, but also looking at what everyone is up to. I must stop updating my status 4 times a day!! Who cares if I have just eaten a bar of chocolate?? As if it would be ONE bar?!

Right, time to check my roster to see what delights I have been given tomorrow. Fingers crossed it is something good......


C x x

Saturday, January 01, 2011

Happy New Year!!

Evening All!

Just a quick post to wish you all a wonderful 2011, I hope you are all happy and healthy for the coming year.

Off to bed now as have my Annual check at work. 3 days a year of jumping out of mock up planes, dealing with heart attacks, child birth and everything else cabin crew. Enough to rip almost all of your life force from your body. Wish me luck!

C x x