Just a quick post to say two things.

Firstly Happy Thanksgiving to all blogging friends across the pond. May you all be having a wonderful and peaceful day.

Second - I have discovered Tom Baxter! I was sitting in the car yesterday waiting for daughter 2 to get her stuff together before heading for school. This came on the radio and I was smitten. I had to search for the song as soon as I came home, it is soooo lovely. In fact it sums up how I feel about Ian. I'm sure most have experienced that heart thumping knee quaking kind of early love, I couldn't imagine as a young girl what being together for 25 years could possibly be like, I'm sure I thought it would be a little bit mudane actually. How wrong I was! Indulge me and press 'play'

Advent Calendar

This is a photo of my eldest when she was 4, with her Advent Calendar. I cross stitched 24 little pictures and then made bags which hang from brass curtain rings, each year these are filled with Quality Street or Roses, with a tiny present in the 24th. It is stretched over wood and is quite heavy. (Three years later I made another for daughter 2)



Anyway, she asked me how she was going to get it to uni and bring it back with her for the Christmas Hols. I decided that this was impractical, so it will be waiting for her when she gets back, I made her this mini one to take back with her this weekend.

A pretty box (I found a whole set of these - packed like a russian doll - all inside one another, at a Car Boot for £1!!)

24 red felt bags, with gold trim glued and pegged til dry

Cute choccy santas and father Christmasses

Bags decorated and filled, for some reason there was an extra father Christmas at this point, oh well!!

Packed into the box, the final touch was a liberal sprinkling of tiny glittery stars after this photo was taken. I hope she likes it.

Bread

We went to Worcester yesterday and I found these wonderful scales. I have wanted a new set for ages and these were in Cookmate - £25 reduced to £15. I like the big stainless steel bowl and the face is big enough to read really easily - I was one happy girl today when using them for the first time.

I make our bread on a weekly basis. I use 1/2 wholemeal 1/2 strong white and although I have a bread maker I always hand make. Bread is getting more expensive as I am sure alot of you will have noticed. Our local bread shop is on the market, the business has been there since the 1800's, I wonder if customers are going to the supermarkets instead. I get my flour from a local bakery, it comes in small paper sacks (about 15lbs) and the last lot cost me 33p 1lb. I keep my flour stockpile in a second fridge in the utility, wrapped in plastic bags it keeps for ages.



After I have kneaded it, it goes back in the bowl to rise. At this point I put a cereal box 'inner' bag over it. When a cereal box is emptied I take out the inner, pull it apart at the seams and wash it. Then it gets used for breadmaking (below), for wrapping things in the fridge, lining cake tins and wrapping our sandwiches for packed lunches. It can be used over and over again






As well as the weeks bread I also made a traybake, waiting to be iced, for packed lunches this week, and a Weetabix Cake to make the most of the electricity used to heat the oven. Weetabox Cake is really easy - and very very tasty. The receipe is below if you want to try it.





WEETABIX CAKE

2 weetabix

1 cup raisins or sultanas - whichever you have

1 cup sugar

2 cups self raising flour

1 cup milk



Mix all ingredients together, put in a loaf tin and cook! I told you it was easy!!

(Notice no fat or eggs in this one).



Well I am off to watch Top Gear with Ian - and wrap the last 1/2 dozen Christmas boxes. I told my friend that they were last, but she gave me a wicked grin and said - 'yeah - until next year!!'

Christmas Boxes

For a couple of weeks now my house been in a production line of Christmas boxes. You see after a very pleasant meal and a couple of glasses of wine I got into conversation with a dynamo of a woman who every year organises a local push for the Operation Christmas Child campaign. She was bemoaning the fact that this year she had lost one of her 'wrapping ladies.' Well feeling very mellow (after the aforesaid meal) I said - 'Oh I can wrap a few boxes for you' - AAArgh! This woman is wonderful but relentless! I have lost count of the boxes I have wrapped but I keep getting a bin liner of new ones to do every few days!! Even so I am sure I am not doing an adequate amount, there were 1090 filled last year!

Operation Christmas Child is a very worthwhile cause. My two daughters have for years filled one every year, just to reinforce the true spirit of Christmas. I am sure everyone has heard of it by now -http://www.samaritanspurse.uk.com/ there is a page on the site that takes you to knitting patterns for beanies and puppets. I think I will do a few throughout the year next year so that I have a 'stock' done in time. Goodness knows I have enough spare balls of wool and oddments.

The only other thing of note around here is that I have been painting the front lawn! Actually its the colour of our downstairs loo - but I only used it to mark out where we are going to make new beds. We have decided that the front lawn has to go. For one thing it is a pain getting the mower round to the front all the time, and also we are cutting down on electricity usage. There will be four corner beds, a central circle and gravel paths inbetween.

Thank you to those who kindly left encouraging comments about my eldest leaving home. I am pleased to say she is doing very well, cooking lots of nourishing and frugal meals and studying hard already. She is coming home for Armistice weekend, she said she couldn't not go to the memorial with her dad. Awwwww!

Hello, I have ventured back into my blog after a somewhat longer than anticipated absence.

Initially I had some computer issues, and then after eldest daughter departed for uni I threw myself into 'other things' to take my mind off her leaving. Well, busy though I am it didn't work and I am missing her very much!



Anyway, I shall be emailing one or two of you later to thank you for your concern, how nice the blogosphere is with women like you in it!!!!!



Just to show you I have been a little bit busy.... a few photos......




6lbs of blackberries picked on a beautiful summers afternoon. I mashed them and made them into a large demijohn of wine. This was busily fermenting away and we were looking forward to a glass or two at Christmas but it was not to be. Someone (not me!!!!!!) managed to smash the aforesaid demijohn and it took me ages to get a gallon of sticky liquid up off the laundry floor!


Then eldest daughter left for uni.... here are the two best friends come to say goodbye, they have been with her since the age of 5. They have been through thick and thin together but are now across the country from Southampton to Manchester. I sneaked this photo - one for the album I am keeping for her.




I have managed to get to one carboot - there is another this weekend which I hope to get to. I got a lovely mixing bowl and this cute pyrex to add to the collection!






A week last Sunday we went to Upton on Severn . Some of you might know that it was severely flooded back in the summer. They organized a 'Cheer Up Upton' weekend and we went to show our support. I think we definitely need a 'blue' in our side, don't you??

I hope to post regularly now, I can't wait to see what you are all doing for Christmas and I am sure there will be some glorious posts coming soon from you all about that.

Shrewsbury

The summer holidays will soon be at an end and already there is a hint of autumn in the air, especially in the mornings, yesterday was quite misty until the sun burnt through. Hopefully we will have an Indian Summer through September, I think we need one after the wet summer.

Finding time to blog is difficult ~ and I often find that I have forgotten to take the camera with me on our days out! On Thursday I went with daughter number 2 to Shrewsbury for a day out. We let the train take the strain - only a 1/2 hour journey - and spent a really enjoyable time together. She is getting serious one to one at the moment with daughter number one on holiday in Paris.

As you can see, Shrewsbury is well worth a visit, although too much to see in one day with a wonderful Abbey (do any of you remember the Cadfael series on TV?), Castle, Museums, a gorgeous park and some smashing shops.

The photo above is of Castle Street, the walk up into town from the station, it's only a couple of minutes.

This is Grope Lane (I think were the Butchers used to trade), there's a Fish Street as well - one can't imagine how smelly these places would have been in medieval days!

Above photos from http://www.pbase.com/
One of the main shopping areas. Just along from here was the cafe we went to for lunch. It was very 'Victorian' with flowery wallpaper, a dresser full of china knick knacks, lacy table cloths and pretty pictures. The food was not so dainty - a chicken tikka baguette for daughter and a BLT for me, together with a pint of coke each!!

On our way to lunch I suggested I showed her the oldest building known as Bear Steps (1300's). It is now a little gallery and tea rooms. I was very pleased to discover that they had an exhibition taking place by the Shrewsbury Spinners and Weavers. Lunch was slightly delayed whilst I had a brief chat with the ladies, and purchased a drop spindle from them for £2.50.

Above is the Bear Steps front and back.

One place we did not have time to visit was the Dingle. The Dingle. set in the park is a 'quarry' which many years ago was turned into a spectacular floral garden. This is a picture taken in Spring but it is an amazing place year round

Alas on our way back to the train station I noticed a shop that stocks Cath Kidston, I think a return visit is necessary.

So anyway, today I got the drop spindle out and had a go, amazingly I managed to produce a passable yarn - finer than I can on my Ashford for sure! Daughter 2 took this 'action' shot.

O Dear, back to work today after a wonderful week off. We didn't go away, just days out, but what beautiful days they were. After Aberdovey we went to the Stiperstones to pick Whinberries.



Now you may have gathered that I do not like my photo being taken, but Ian managed to catch me with my bottom in the air! Click on the photo for a lovely view = ha! ha!



Whinberries (Bilberries) quite simply make the most delicious pie. They are small, fiddly and take an age to pick, but in this sort of surrounding that is ok.





Back home I sorted out all the little bits of twig and dried leaf, and found I had enough for 2 pies and one crumble. As a kiddie I loved to stick my tongue out after eating pie as it turns purple for a while!





I am soooo pleased to have been given this award by Gill at Lucy Locket.

Started by Bella-Enchanted, the award is to be "awarded to those that are just nice people , good blog friends and those that inspire good feelings and inspiration! Those that care about others that are there to lend support or those that are just a positive influence in our blogging world". Thank you so much Gill for thinking of me, and I agree with you in that I am also in awe of many blogs I have found in recent months, there really are some inspirational, kind and lovely ladies out there.

The following 7 blogs are being awarded the 'Nice Matters Award' by me. I only wish I could choose more!

Deb

Rhonda

Kelly

Ruth

Rowan

Rosevintage

and Rubyred

These ladies all have lovely blogs for different reasons, be they gardening, craft, thrift or interesting hobbies, but as well as this they are all nice people, I visit frequently!

Aberdovey Lovely

Our annual day on the beach. Aberdovey has a nice beach, some nice shops and some very nice Bora Brith!



Glorious views of the hills across the Dovey estuary



My girl is 15 on Sunday, but one is never too old to dig holes!



And her mum will never be too old to fly a kite!

I like to shop as locally as possible. This has not been as a result of the new trend in sustainable living, traceability, air miles, carbon footprints etc, it's just how I have always done it, as did my mother and hers before her.

My fruit and veg come from a small farmshop, Richard there stocks produce as locally as possible. Milk comes from our nearest farm (which is wonderful enough to do a whole post on!). Any groceries come from a small independent grocery store in Tenbury. I try to stay out of supermarkets as I do not generally like the way they operate (~of course I do understand that others do use them, each to their own).

Today I did my meat shopping and Clive kindly let me take some photos.......

Here is Heath Farm Meats in Bagginswood (sounds like something out of 'The Shire'!) . Clive and Clare own it, they produce all the beef, lamb and pork themselves, the chickens come from another local producer, and their dad provides the eggs. The 'shop' is in the farmyard and opens 4 days a week. Nothing is too much trouble for these lovely people and their meat is superb. They take their animals to the abbatoir one or two at a time and send them off with as little stress as possible, this improves the texture of the meat.

It's nice to pull up a chair and have a natter while they are preparing your meat, it makes an occasion out of shopping.

This is the rebatched soap (well some of it, I couldn't wait!) mentioned in my last post. It is very, very easy to make. I got the recipe from Rhonda at Down to Earth. I have been really impressed with this lady's blog, lots of sensible thinking going on over there! Anyway here is the post soap

They look a little 'rough' but I like them. I used lavender oil and next time I shall use more because the scent is not that strong. The hearts were cut using a biscuit cutter. I have some nice cellophane bags and ribbon so later in the year I will be making Christmas presents!

Another blog I have discovered recently is bean-sprouts, I like this girls attitude! One day I shall keep bees and her accounts of bee keeping have had me in stitches.

Have a lovely weekend everyone.

Well the floods have gone and poor old Tenbury is looking very drear. When the floods first happened it was all very surreal, and then when they went everyone seemed upbeat and energised about getting back to normal as quickly as possible. Two weeks later and more than 50% of the offices and shops are gutted, part of Market Street pavement has collapsed into the brook and people are looking fed up and a bit worn out. I shall be showing my support by doing as much shopping as I can in the town. This must be the scenario played out in several towns across the country.

On my way to and from work I often thank my lucky stars that my commute is so scenic. I thought I would share a few shots with you. The journey is 9 miles through agricultural countryside.



We went down my road this evening and Ian took these photos. This fine weather the last two days has caused the farmers to work madly trying to get hay and haylige cut. Ian loves taking photos of bales (?).





Most of the way the road is very narrow, and very bendy, with three narrow bridges, two woods, one hamlet and...



This gorgeous little church.



The road wends along its way, you can just see it on the right of this photo. At this point I am usually looking out for a large school bus coming down the hill in the morning.



On the crafting front very little has been done recently. Mum sent me loads of wool odds and ends so I have been knitting beanies for the Christmas Box appeal.

One thing I have discovered over the last week or so has been the number of 'green' blogs in blogland. This really interests me and I am looking at ways to 'simplify' my life so I shall post about them next I think. I used a rebatching soap recipe I found on one of them yesterday to make 8 bars of soap, they are on the drying rack now and they smell lovely - I used lavender oil.

Floods of 2007

Tenbury Wells, Worcestershire

21st July 2007

Teme Street (above photo)- 4ft deep. Third flood this summer. Extensive damage done to buildings in Market Street - Victorian (newly refurbished) toilet block swept away. Ancient bridge over the Teme River now has cracks in buttress. Similar stories throughout the UK.

A thank you from me

I was so touched that so many of you took the time comment on my last post and I do apologise for sounding quite sorry for myself! Anyway as I said I have already given myself a good talking to and those teddies will soon be finished! Thank you so much for your support.

To give myself a project I have signed up to Pay It Forward Exchange. Anna had said she was going to do it so I jumped at the chance of getting a present from her, she is a lovely lady and I love everything she makes. So here it is:-

I will send a handmade gift to the first 3 people who leave a comment on my blog requesting to join this PIF exchange. I don't know what that gift will be yet and you may not receive it tomorrow or next week... LOL... but you will receive it within 365 days, that is my promise! The only thing you have to do in return is pay it forward by making the same promise on your blog.


One of my favourite bloggers is Sue over at vintagetovictorian I have just bought some of the Perle Cotons she has available. I asked for 10 colours I could use for embroidering roses and look what she sent me! I was so pleased - they are perfect for what I had in mind. Thank you Sue! Here they are together with a couple of very pretty plates I got yesterday.

I had a bit of a scary time today, as I have said my daughter goes to school in Tenbury Wells and after more torrential rain at midday there was a flash flood. There was literally a river raging down one side road into the main street where there was about 3ft of water. I managed to park up and walk all the way round to get her, but there were fire engines rescuing people and police everywhere. The amazing thing was that in the 45 minutes it took me to get her the whole thing had receded, just leaving people standing in shock and bewilderment. I feel so dreadfully sorry for the shopkeepers who were flooded out a couple of weeks ago and were just getting back on their feet. I've just seen it on the 10 o'clock news.

When I got home the rain had stopped so I went into the garden for a breather and snapped my Lucifer which is in full bloom, my black Geum and my greengages growing bigger - just look at that sky!