The sunsets have been extraordinary recently.
Sunday, 12 December 2010
Monday, 6 December 2010
Sledging
We had a big thaw over the weekend (yay!) and the roads are mostly clear, and so with the prospect of the snow actually going and the fact that the roads in the countryside were navigable we thought we'd better get out there and enjoy it while it lasted! So we went out in search of a big hill to slide down.
It was fun, but since then the great freeze has descended upon us again. No fresh snow (which means that the roads are still clear and the schools are open again - do a little happy dance!) but it is Very Cold:
Last night
This morning
England isn't usually a country of extremes. We are moderate. Extremes are unseemly. This is Very UnBritish...
But I am happy with it as long as schools stay open!
Tuesday, 30 November 2010
Too Much Snow
It started snowing on Wednesday night. And it has continued snowing, on and off, since then. I like snow. I really like snow. What I don't like is when it means that I can't send my children to school. I love my children, but there really is too much of a good thing. I am not getting much done. Well, nothing that resembles work anyway. There has been a lot of snowman building, a lot of putting on snow clothes, a lot of taking off snow clothes, a fair bit of sledging, and walking to and fro in the snow... but... I would really like to get back to our regularly scheduled programming, thank you very much. Life needs to go on!
We had an unknown visitor to our snowman one night...
And lots of well known visitors too
And now for something completely different: Garden Boy has been making pickled chilis again.
The recipe, if you are interested is by Louisa Eades
Friday, 26 November 2010
Three things
It has been snowy.
The children have been excited.
(Taken at 7:15 am!)
I have been baking.
Cranberry cake
Tiger bread
Saturday, 13 November 2010
Playing Catch-up
It's been a while. I have no excuses, really. There's just been other things in my life taking priority. Either too much to say, or nothing to say. And nothing's going on in the garden. So there have been no 'Garden Adventures'.
But anyway. We had a really good weekend away at the end of October with a group of friends. We went to stay in a big Victorian house in Moffat. A hostel-type deal. And it was fantastic. Plenty of space for kids to play, an indoor sports hall/ basketball court and table tennis room, plus lots of room for grownups, and a big kitchen.
And the countryside around there is gorgeous:
Grey Mare's Tail Waterfall
St Mary's Loch
And today, while GardenBoy had to 'waste' a gorgeous sunny, warm November day at a conference we decided that these sort of days are to rare and precious to waste, so we went to the beach to hunt for fossils. We were lucky and the tide was WAY out so we walked along under the cliffs, fossil hunting, all the way to the end (nearly) before we got hungry and went back for our lunch.
View back towards Saltburn
After lunch we came back and made a Super Sandcastle, complete with a plastic bag flag we had found under the cliffs.
It was a Good Day.
But anyway. We had a really good weekend away at the end of October with a group of friends. We went to stay in a big Victorian house in Moffat. A hostel-type deal. And it was fantastic. Plenty of space for kids to play, an indoor sports hall/ basketball court and table tennis room, plus lots of room for grownups, and a big kitchen.
And the countryside around there is gorgeous:
Grey Mare's Tail Waterfall
St Mary's Loch
And today, while GardenBoy had to 'waste' a gorgeous sunny, warm November day at a conference we decided that these sort of days are to rare and precious to waste, so we went to the beach to hunt for fossils. We were lucky and the tide was WAY out so we walked along under the cliffs, fossil hunting, all the way to the end (nearly) before we got hungry and went back for our lunch.
View back towards Saltburn
After lunch we came back and made a Super Sandcastle, complete with a plastic bag flag we had found under the cliffs.
It was a Good Day.
Monday, 4 October 2010
Today
Here are today's activities:
I helped to organise and run a Funday for 7-11 yr olds over the weekend, and one of the things* we did was make bird-feeders out of old juice cartons. We have lots of left-over cartons, so I thought I would do one myself...
These are the ones that Pip and Dude made at the Funday... and the birds were using them yesterday! Love it!
The other major project for today is to burrow through the mountains of laundry. It is a bright, sunny day, so I am taking a risk and putting washing on the line... perhaps for the last time this year?
Look who I found out there in the sunshine! Such a lovely day - must get out for a walk in it!
* If you are interested, the other things we did (theme St Francis of Assisi and caring for creation) were:
- planting bulbs in pots
- making prayer-flags with different coloured cloth representing different aspects of creation (like good Christians over the ages we pinched a good idea from another culture and adapted it to our own use!)
- learning to identify 12 common trees using the idial from the Woodland Trust's kid's club
- playing bird bingo, courtesy of images from the RSPB bird identifier pages
I helped to organise and run a Funday for 7-11 yr olds over the weekend, and one of the things* we did was make bird-feeders out of old juice cartons. We have lots of left-over cartons, so I thought I would do one myself...
These are the ones that Pip and Dude made at the Funday... and the birds were using them yesterday! Love it!
The other major project for today is to burrow through the mountains of laundry. It is a bright, sunny day, so I am taking a risk and putting washing on the line... perhaps for the last time this year?
Look who I found out there in the sunshine! Such a lovely day - must get out for a walk in it!
* If you are interested, the other things we did (theme St Francis of Assisi and caring for creation) were:
- planting bulbs in pots
- making prayer-flags with different coloured cloth representing different aspects of creation (like good Christians over the ages we pinched a good idea from another culture and adapted it to our own use!)
- learning to identify 12 common trees using the idial from the Woodland Trust's kid's club
- playing bird bingo, courtesy of images from the RSPB bird identifier pages
Tuesday, 28 September 2010
September
I have been busy.
And rather uninspired by the garden.
It is the end of things... It's cold out there. No frost, but distinctly chilly and damp. Not welcoming.
When I do go out it is usually to pick caterpillars off the romanesco broccoli that Dude insisted we plant. They start out as TINY seeds, and in one season look what happens! Hope we actually get something to eat from all that!
And yet, things are still happening. Our tomato plant has been great this year! Amazing, really. I grew it against a south-facing wall, so I guess it soaked up a lot of warmth that way. Which is good, since my attempt to give it a plastic version of a green-house did. not. work. Rather TOO windy. Oh well. It still managed to produce loads of tomatoes, which are ripening mostly outside, and then being brought in to sit in a brown paper bag with a friendly banana to finish ripening.
The chili pepper, which you can see next to the tomato plant in the grow-bag came up trumps too! Came back from holiday and it had 2 red ones and 10 green ones on it! After a sample Garden Boy decided that they were too hot to eat as they were, and so he pickled them... and after a month he has a verdict - very good! He is now planning to pickle chilis from the supermarket since his home-brew is just like the ones he can get 'back home' in Oklahoma... he's a happy boy now.
We have had two of our three apples. The Redsleeves was picked at the right time and was just right. Crunchy, sweet and appley. Not really enough tang for my taste, but a lovely texture and a good apple.
The Saturn got blown off or something. Anyway, it was on the ground and still too small. Which is a shame. A pretty little thing, but definitely not ripe.
The Crispin is still on the tree and is due off at the end of October.
I think it is quite interesting and surprising that I chose them because they all flowered at the same time, and so could cross-pollinate each other... and yet Redsleeves ripens end of August, Saturn end of September and Crispin end of October. I am quite pleased with this staggering since we won't be swamped with apples all at once, but it was certainly luck not planning!
We have been feeding the birds again, and you know what? I think they missed us. Or the food. Cupboard love... But look, here's a picture I took the other day (should have turned the flash off first - apologies!). I count around TWENTY goldfinches! That's excessive from anyone's point of view...
And rather uninspired by the garden.
It is the end of things... It's cold out there. No frost, but distinctly chilly and damp. Not welcoming.
When I do go out it is usually to pick caterpillars off the romanesco broccoli that Dude insisted we plant. They start out as TINY seeds, and in one season look what happens! Hope we actually get something to eat from all that!
And yet, things are still happening. Our tomato plant has been great this year! Amazing, really. I grew it against a south-facing wall, so I guess it soaked up a lot of warmth that way. Which is good, since my attempt to give it a plastic version of a green-house did. not. work. Rather TOO windy. Oh well. It still managed to produce loads of tomatoes, which are ripening mostly outside, and then being brought in to sit in a brown paper bag with a friendly banana to finish ripening.
The chili pepper, which you can see next to the tomato plant in the grow-bag came up trumps too! Came back from holiday and it had 2 red ones and 10 green ones on it! After a sample Garden Boy decided that they were too hot to eat as they were, and so he pickled them... and after a month he has a verdict - very good! He is now planning to pickle chilis from the supermarket since his home-brew is just like the ones he can get 'back home' in Oklahoma... he's a happy boy now.
We have had two of our three apples. The Redsleeves was picked at the right time and was just right. Crunchy, sweet and appley. Not really enough tang for my taste, but a lovely texture and a good apple.
The Saturn got blown off or something. Anyway, it was on the ground and still too small. Which is a shame. A pretty little thing, but definitely not ripe.
The Crispin is still on the tree and is due off at the end of October.
I think it is quite interesting and surprising that I chose them because they all flowered at the same time, and so could cross-pollinate each other... and yet Redsleeves ripens end of August, Saturn end of September and Crispin end of October. I am quite pleased with this staggering since we won't be swamped with apples all at once, but it was certainly luck not planning!
We have been feeding the birds again, and you know what? I think they missed us. Or the food. Cupboard love... But look, here's a picture I took the other day (should have turned the flash off first - apologies!). I count around TWENTY goldfinches! That's excessive from anyone's point of view...
Friday, 3 September 2010
Hi honey...
.... we're hooooome!
The garden is overgrown and so many things need a serious prune, but there have been no deaths, thank goodness.
The broccoli is huge, but all leaves. Holey leaves, but small holes, thanks to sustained caterpillar massacre from my stand-in gardener-friend.
The tomatoes have LOTS of tomatoes on them. All green, but a good size, and hopefully they'll ripen!
The strawberry plants have sent runners everywhere, but are looking lush and happy and will no doubt produce well next year (I hope!).
The apples have one very pretty apple each. Can't wait to taste! How can you tell when an apple is ripe??
I don't dare take pictures to show you though, because my computer will have a breakdown. I have overloaded it with so many pictures that it doesn't even have enough space to defrag itself... I have ordered an external drive to free up some space, but until that arrives... no extra pictures to stress it out!
The garden is overgrown and so many things need a serious prune, but there have been no deaths, thank goodness.
The broccoli is huge, but all leaves. Holey leaves, but small holes, thanks to sustained caterpillar massacre from my stand-in gardener-friend.
The tomatoes have LOTS of tomatoes on them. All green, but a good size, and hopefully they'll ripen!
The strawberry plants have sent runners everywhere, but are looking lush and happy and will no doubt produce well next year (I hope!).
The apples have one very pretty apple each. Can't wait to taste! How can you tell when an apple is ripe??
I don't dare take pictures to show you though, because my computer will have a breakdown. I have overloaded it with so many pictures that it doesn't even have enough space to defrag itself... I have ordered an external drive to free up some space, but until that arrives... no extra pictures to stress it out!
Wednesday, 4 August 2010
Intermission
We are on holiday. Or as they say over here, vacation. We are visiting the grandparents in Oklahoma and having a lovely time filled with sunshine and good food... and a lot of HOT.
It is consistently at or near 100F (37C) so we are spending a lot of time in the swimming pool or inside in the airconditioning. I just wanted to give you some pictures to give you an idea, and then leave you alone until September.
It is consistently at or near 100F (37C) so we are spending a lot of time in the swimming pool or inside in the airconditioning. I just wanted to give you some pictures to give you an idea, and then leave you alone until September.
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