15.04.10 - it's been long and slow

This week - this week has been long and slow, in fact so slow it's taken all week just to get to Thursday and there's Friday yet to do before the weekend.

We had Knit n Knatter (and 'K'nibble) last night, very pleasant evening.

Just a quick up date on WIPs and FOs.

Remember the pear from here, well I thought it was lonely.... see it wasn't a pair (pear) but a single

So, I crocheted a fruit friend for it....

Then, seeing it still wasn't a pair and felt just like a right lemon

(Sorry to all non English humoured readers - just poor puns here)

I made another fruity friend

So now a fruit salad was emerging, and I was inspired to make one more fruity friend

- only this one has created the most comments and reactions.................

I can't think why....?

I have even been asked if I could make one in PINK.....

Why??? - no don't go there, I don't, really don't want to know why!!

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On a less fruity note, I've just finished another guinea pig - this one is a birthday pressie, just needs wrapping up in time for tomorrow.  Then, to start another one as a commission - good thing I enjoy making them.

11.04.10 - weekend round up

Today - well today was 'an at home day', pottering around, planting out, weeding, cleaning, mowing the lawn and just generally enjoying the gentle spring warmth and quietly recovering from yesterday.

Yesterday?  - yesterday was brilliant. We took the bikes and set off for a ride along the Lune Estuary. Once again we parked at Glasson Dock which was heaving with day-trippers, icecream eaters and pram-pushers. We peddled out of the village as quickly as possible and soon we were flying along the cycleway with that wonderful clear coastal air all around.

The last few days of warmth has brought on the may blossom and the air was filled with it's gentle sweet scent.

We saw our first butterflies of the year, loads of ladybirds and bumblebees.

We rode on, up to some pools that have been created  from old clay pits and turned into a wild life area.

We stopped at the view point where the boys just had to have an emergency snack and their sandwiches were scoffed in record time.

We cycled on, into Lancaster and over the Millenium bridge - built at a cost of 1.8 million pounds on the site of a Roman then a Medieval bridge. Out of Lancaster and on and on, when suddenly we realised how late it was and how far we'd gone and how far we had to go back!

31.8km later, we returned to the car - saddle sore and creaky knee-d

.

Tired - but a good tired

Definately worth it.

08.04.10 - look what's growing in my greenhouse...

Annuals

Perennials

Strawberries

Vegetables

Cat

This particular variety is a purr-renial.

06.04.10 - my sort of normal

There are things that occur (on a regular basis) that appear quite normal in our household but I feel that in any one else's eyes look just plain rediculous.

• Youngest crawling around in his PJs claiming he is a hedgehog whilst squeaking to the tune of 'Stars and Stripes'
• Me, armed with a torch and wellies heading off to the chook pen to put Tatty-bird to bed. She stays out long after the others have snuggled down and tries to perch on the fence, I call to her and she croons back, shuffles over and allows me to pick her up and tuck her up with the rest of the hens
• Himself coming to collect me at the end of the day on his bike and bringing mine at the same time whilst a precious cargo of our hen's eggs are tucked safely into his panniers (oh dear - that sounds a bit odd in itself! I mean his bike's panniers!)
• Knowing which door the cat will use - despite there being 3 doors out of the house, she only uses the one - why?
• Opening the doors to hear the rain when all our neighbours shut them tightly. Where I come from - rain is a gift.
• Eldest proclaiming himself a vegetarian despite his obvious dislike for anything remotely vegetable-like.......
• Naming inanimate objects and giving them characters and traits - Evelyn, now there's a good example, but the list goes on - Garden tools called Keith Moon and Timmy Mallet or Eldest's GPS is affectionately known as Rupert, even the car has a name.....
• Regular hunting for the remote controls for the digibox or TV (usually last seen in the hands of Eldest)
• Finding the missing socks whilst looking for said lost remote control..........

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Latest update of: 52 things I have never cooked before .......

18. Chickpea cakes

19. Old Nicks Ginger and Apple cake and yes it really does have coriander and cumin in!

20. Sweet Potato and Lentil curry - delish!! I had made a fair bit, so next day, I whizzzzzed it up and added to more vegetables and made an extremely tasty soup

21. Orange Muesli muffins - these improved with keeping and are definitely going to be made again

Another sign that spring is here.

05.04.10 - weeds and seeds

In the days, when I gardened professionally, I booted and suited.
Company logo on chest and van.
Hair tied back and baseball cap on head.
And I worked hard.

Now, when the only person I garden for, is myself,
I garden in long skirts and camo wellies,
I constantly brush my hair out of my eyes, leaving soil dags on my fringe.
I have to tuck my scarves over my back when I am weeding.
Earings dangle, bracelets jangle.
And I just don't care!

It has been a successful day in the garden, I've planted out, weeded, divided, pruned and with the boys help - more seeds have been sown.

The greenhouse is filling up with pintsized micro crops - just wish they would get bigger and we can start eating them!

Back to work tomorrow - boo hiss.............

04.04.10 - chocolate eggs and saddle sores

Hooray!
The easter bunny visited over night, and being the clever bunny that he is, he put out the chocolate treats just before he went off to bed (because he very nearly forgot) and even more clever, he hid them inside the house (coz due to the lateness of the hour - it was very very dark - besides the weatherman had promised yet more rain.....) Clever easter bun!

So, yes you guessed, it was chocolate for breakfast - yumm.....

Inspired by our ride out yesterday, and not completely put off by what the weatherman did say, we decided to go out again. Only this time not on the coast as heavy showers had been forecast but inland, in the Dales for a change.

The day has the same format as yesterday. We set off when it was fine, and when we arrived at our start point - the rain lashed down with vengeance.

Only this time we did sit in the car and eat our lunch....and our mid afternoon snacks....and drank tea.....and the orange meusli muffins....and the chocolates that survived the breakfast nibbling.....but we chose to leave the apples for later......!

We had parked outside a little rural church, quiet and sleepy, thinking that there would be no service in the afternoon and we would be not interferring with any congregational parking - alas we were wrong.

Shortly after we had consumed the last crumbs of our lunch (except the apples which were just too darned healthy) various warmly wrapped up good souls appeared from nowhere to this apparently isolated church - for an afternoon's service.

A very polite vicar confirmed that we had indeed taken church parking and equally politely suggested we parked.....Over there, by the telegraph pole

Which we did, and promptly sunk into boggy mud and almost lost our boots. Hmmmm.

We wrapped up warmly with Himself grinding his back teeth at the weather and set off. 

After a while, the icy wind eased off, the rain became less stinging and then stopped and the views began to delight.

I must admit, I am used to riding a mountain bike and being able to power up hills and whizzzzzz down them again, landing in pot holes, splashing through puddles and surviving, however, Evelyn doesn't do things like that, so we genteely navigated along the lanes at an elegant pace, occasionally having to be pushed up the hills, as despite me changing gears down to the lowest, and despite me puffing and panting, Evelyn DOES NOT DO HILLS..... She also doesn't race downhills either, no we have to gracefully glide down, avoiding potholes and gravel that her road-thin-wheels tremble at. Despite all her fuss - we had a lovely ride - just a little slower and a lot more girly than I am used to!

Ingleborough in the background

Evelyn in the foreground

Just in case you didn't notice...........

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A stone stack - For S, who's sister Di died this morning at 7.30am

S - we are very sorry xx

03.04.10 - In which Evelyn and I go exploring...and take the boys and the dog too....

We were all off on Friday, but with one thing and another, we didn't get out as planned. So on Saturday - despite the promised foul weather - we jumped into the bicycle laden car and headed off to Glasson Dock for a bike ride on the cycleways (converted from disused railway tracks)

Himself Just open the road atlas, I'm not too sure which junction off the motor way we need..
Me err, where is it?
Himself - ho ho! I've left it in the landrover, not to worry, use the OS map...
Me err, where is that?
Himself, Ho ho (bugger) um, left that on the table, never mind, I sort of know where were are going....


45 minutes later, several turns, changes of direction and scenic routes through nameless villages we found the road we needed and turned on to it, when the heavens opened. Great big lashing down wet rain.

Grumbles began to eminate from the back.

Youngest Move up - you are on my side
Eldest Nowhere near you
Youngest Mu-u-uuu-u-um he's leaning on me
Eldest Not..... Are we there yet?
Youngest You are...Mu-uu-uum he is, are we there yet?
Me Stop it both of you, we're nearly there.
Silence.....rain....more turns, more lanes, rain, rain......subversive grumbles from the back.

Me (to Himself) Are we nearly there yet?

Himself (more to himself than to me) Nearly there - Ah here it is!

We damply drove through a soggy grey miserable litte village, peering through a drenched windscreen for parking.

Himself ( brightly)  I think we find parking first, then have our lunch in the car and see if it picks up

More subversive grumbles in the back with the occasional clear word... hungry, starving...

Me Ok ok! we get the message, Just park there!

Himself  Oh, missed it, will try this one...

Me ok

Himself Oh, can't, won't fit under the barrier with the bikes on the carrier, will stop at the next one

Me - sigh

EVENTUALLY!

We parked.

AND THE SUN CAME OUT!

What a difference it makes when THE SUN COMES OUT. The sad little grey seaside village suddenly had colours and charm, it suddenly had appeal and charisma.


We rode down to the cycleway and stopped to breathe the sea air.

We trundled down the cycleway......

We stopped for picnics and basked in the sun, whilst just absorbing the view and leaving behind all the stress and all the grumbles and we suddenly remembered that life is good (but it's even better when the sun shines!)

Evelyn

Mud

More mud

Then it was time to leave and get back in time for a family meal with my Mom and Dad, only, we still didn't have a map, we still had very muddy children and had to get them clean and presentable and we had less than an hour to do it!!

Sorry Mum! Dinner still tasted delicious - despite it having to be kept :)