Long Time... No Blog

I have been battling my inner demons of late and finally I seem to be winning again. My head is almost screwed back on, maybe not totally but a good 80% which is a passing grade me thinks!

The weather has taken a turn for the snow again, and apparently it's going to be as cold here as it is in Canada for the next two weeks, eep maybe we could host the winter olympics.

So what has happened since I last logged on? Well we had pancake day in which I made the LBs lots of the round floppy ones, this time with frankfurters sliced on top. My eldest thought it looked like pizza. So my thought is next time to make american style pancakes with pizza toppings mixed in.


I've also had a bit of time to work on my blanket as Littlest B has been potty training this last week so a bit of eagle eyedness has been required to say the least!



Tonight is Slimming World's Lets Beat It Campaign launch at my local group so I wonder what scrummy things people will bring for the taster table? I'm thinking it could be time to break out my Cheese and Onion pasty bake... mmm baked beans mmm. I'm a simple person with simple tastes!

Speaking of which I probably should go and make it... I'll post some pictures later!

Dark Happy Movie Days

It's not nice outside but it's all bright and summery inside the House of the Princess Garden. Tarzan is on telly, coffee is in my big pink spotty cup and my Minnie Mouse ears are on my head! Anything to brighten up a day.



It's day two of potty training Littlest B, so we are on house arrest of sorts, but this does mean that I get to spend some time with the kids in their home environment not worrying about other peoples things and generally being me. At the moment I'm getting squarely crafty with my last hurrah of my favourite wool, I can't find anymore anywhere - snob - I've loved the varigated wool in primary colours since junior school so bright and random you can't guarantee where each colour will fall. It's bliss.



Which is always good so it will be knitting all the way while chilling out before tonight's expedition to see just how far off track I fell this time as I turn up and face what nasty news the scales will hold for me. Fresh start I think! Must remember I am actually going on holiday this year and will be away with lots of normal sized people. At some point in my life I must fit in visually, must remember this and figure out just how far away it is, along with that 10k that is quickly getting closer. Eek, must get back to training next week.

So that's enough of maudlin me. Not good for me or for you lot out there either.

I'm sloping off to look at my Your Home magazine and to add more rows to my squares.

One Plus Two Equals... Half Term!

Today is the first day of 2 things... Half term and potty training the Littlest B! I must be asking for trouble! Everything started well I even managed to get out of bed, get dressed, put my contacts in and make up on - all before 7.30am - I know even I was impressed. Shame we weren't due to go anywhere until about 10am! Ooops now why can't I do that on a school day?

Who'd have believed it, it's February and it's been snowing, again! So all in all it's been a very grey day so I've been looking for a bit of colour to share with you all today, first I have my breakfast and then there is my crochet bag that I store my wool in and the first two rows of my up-and-coming blanket. It's coming along now, but it's a slow business.






I think tonight will be the night of chores. I didn't manage to get much done today due to the presence of 2 LBs and the unexpected shampooing of the front room carpet. At least it is almost time for some quiet at last, no matter how brightly coloured they are there is only so much The Beatles Yellow Submarine and Power Rangers Jungle Fury a girl can take.

Oh and of course I can play with my new toy!

Accident in a Spaghetti Factory

Today has been a bit of a mixed bag. Between reading the last rights to my car’s fuse box (so no heating for us!) and just sitting down to write this entry. I have managed to finally fit in some time to change the colour of my fingers from pinkish to green. However they were more of a definite brown when I had finished.

This is how it started today:




In just 90 minutes of graft I can definitely see some sort of difference starting to happen. I had to do a lot of digging out today and here in the Princess Garden we had or first casualty of war. While digging out some bramble roots there was a loud snap and off falls the blade of my spade! Oops - that will be another purchase I need to make tomorrow. How romantic!



Tomorrow is Valentines Day and for the first time in about three weeks we are all vaguely well give or take a few snuffles here and there. This means that we get to travel to the in laws just across the border in North Yorkshire. Also, and more importantly, lunch in a pub. That means I don’t have to cook and even better, wash up! It’s also the in law’s wedding anniversary too so all in all it’s a very special day.

C & I are not the most romantic of couples or the most conventional - you might have noticed this by now, but I think it would be rather boring if we were I could be wrong though.

So, back to the gardening. After a couple of days fighting my dark thoughts, that probably plague us all from time to time, but tend to take up squatter’s rights in my head, it was nice to be able to do something that cleared my mind. Usually that is a perk I normally find from my running. Once I dug out my edging spade, which is a really girly small bladed one that I’m not keen on, I started on the job in hand.


At one point my spade went in and what it brought up looked like an accident in a spaghetti factory. A whole new root system for another infestation of ground elder waiting to happen – just what I needed – not. There is only 2 ways to eradicate this problem a flamethrower (which would be fun but deadly for the fence) or constant attention to digging over the soil and picking out all of the thick white roots one by one. Easier that it sounds every time it snaps another root is enabled to make yet another weed systems. I have been fighting this particular weed for 3 years now and I’m still fighting the fact it seems to prefer my borders to my neighbour’s garden isn’t lost on me, but it’s ever so annoying as a lot of the roof mass is on their side of the fence so it just comes back season after season.



So there I am elbow deep in mud and leaves and bramble thorns and I hear a little shuffle in the background only to see Littlest B has broken free of the house and stormed the garden no coat no shoe no gloves and then refused to re-enter the house! So there I am attempting to get to the root of the problem (ooh that’s a bad one and I do apologise!) and Littlest B is shuffling around the patio on his trike and then attacks the border with a trowel. Very cute. But we are paying for it now as he is still up, an hour after his normal bedtime.

So here is my reveal of the day and the surprise flowers that I found in the process.

Thursdays come, Thursdays Go

This is the sight of a lone Jasmine Flower in my garden, it looks so forelorn.



This for me is the worst day of my little week. After a small shift in the office and there is very little time to re-coop before it's time to be on the go again with the Little B's.

But today is slightly different. For the first time in a long time I didn't wake up till 7am, and C was still there (at this point he's usually on a bus to York). Then the LB's were still in their room! Now to top it off they are both in pre-school for the first time in a week! The silence is deafening! Bliss.

Things being as they are, a slightly off kilter morning, for the most off kilter day of the week, I had chance to make the buns for LB's school bun day tomorrow. I'm certain we never did that sort of thing when I was there (he is at one of my old schools after all). I vaguely remember going with some games once, and without underwear several times - but the less I say about that the better probably! But still the office will be in for a good day tomorrow when they get the cast off baked goods!



My recipe is the usual sponge mix of 4oz butter, 4oz sugar, 4oz self raising flour with 2 eggs and a tsp of vanilla extract. The icing is made by heating up the ready roll icing in a glass jug in the microwave for a couple of minutes stirring in the colouring and then pouring the molten sugar onto the cupcakes. (this recipe made 24 cupcakes)

The weather is beginning to brighten up again, this makes my mind turn to the Princess Garden once more - and how do I tame those rambling brambles? Also, just how brave am I when the flat roof really needs some felt adding to stop the drips invading the side room on the house. My overriding fear is falling through the roof. Funny how I'm not keen on that idea! I believe that I have a healthy fear of landing after taking a long drop first.

The time to start sowing seeds is almost upon me, a great excuse to visit the garden centre and the builder's merchants. I need some sort of structure either a cold frame/poly tunnel or greenhouse affair. I'm rather liking some of the collapsible greenhouses currently on offer in the Argos catalogue - a decision needs to be made pretty sharpish and I am the world's best procrastinator which is how the Princess Garden got into this state in the first place.

Evenings at the House of Princess Garden are a random affair. Somehow, even though I'm only out 2 nights a week I seem to never have a real evening free. Apart from Thursdays which makes it a special night in my eyes (it even comes above Takeout Friday). Thursday is a nice quiet relaxing night a little bit of trash on telly - Leverage is a current love - knitting needles in hand and I can happily click away the evening like that and poof before you know it the time will have snuck up on me from bedtime. When no doubt I will lay there debating the pros and cons of decorating the bathroom. Do I want white? Do I want a colour hint - maybe aqua or green? Do I paint and varnish the shelves? Would it be difficult to make a bathroom cabinet with my meagre skills? I have all these grand ideas, but will I follow them through? Only time will tell.




This afternoon has been a bit indulgent drafting today's blog and drinking coffee and eating cake as Little B plays in the local cafe. This venue has been a godsend I can tell you. Anywhere I can sit, drink coffee and read a magazine (supplied by the cafe - even better!)is all good by me, especially as LB loves it too, mainly the Red Power Ranger Suit and mask!



It amazes me at how easily LB can make friends, he's a bit like a famous person on Twitter - he turns up and almost immediately has a large group of followers or in his LB speak his 'mates'. While we are on LB speak, today he asked me what do we do when we stop living - his answer is 'We Play!'. Well that could have saved Yvette and the rest of the Most Haunted team a whole lot of sleepless nights! But then they also wouldn't have made their millions either oh the swings and roundabouts of life.



I'll be signing off now with LB's song of the day. Nee Naw Marjorie Daw... I'm an Alien! Bless him.

A New Dawn...

This morning was filled with promise and from the looks of it snow! I'm close to having both my LBs back to pre-school - just one more day yippee!

C left for work... then moments later (well about 15mins!) rang and came back. The snow you are about to see fell in 1 minute flat - and fell on top of black ice, as last night for the first time since Christmas ERYC didn't come a gritting.

















It does look exceedingly pretty though and covers a multitude of sins (like the grass for example... note to self get lawnmower serviced).

As pondered yesterday about the PrincessGarden's littlest patch the bush that was taking up so much space.



The decision was made and the shrub is now no more



And I think it makes a huge difference already. It was tougher to shift than I first expected, and after leaning back on it as if it was another chapter in the saga of The Giant Turnip, but alas I had to get some help from C which makes me feel ever the puny woman. Anyway jobs done bulbs are replanted. So it was time for something nice to celebrate and seeing as it was too early for a nice glass/bottle of rose I had a mugga hot chocolate.














While I was enjoying my chocolate, cream, marshmallows and sprinkles (mmm sprinkles!) I perused the inside of my neglected fridge and found some leeks on the way out so hey presto leek and potato soup is on the hob for dinner. Right now it smells divine - but then I have been on a diet of plain bread and pasta for a week!



Now I just need some fresh bread to eat with it, mmm the lure to get a breadmaker is rising within me once more.

From Little Acorns...

So it's been another sick day for the folk of Princess Garden. After a while boredom sets in. This morning my friend J was a lifesaver and took my Big B to pre-school so I had some time with Little B who has just this week decided that the time is right to potty train, which is no mean feet seeing as he refused point black to not wear pants and clothes. But hey not too many accidents today.

Anyway, lets get to the point of this post! Due to a bit of cabin fever (and the 2nd viewing in 2 days of Yellow Submarine) I decided to make a start with a bit of light weeding in the front garden; I say garden, I think I actually mean dirt patch with potential! It's not very big but is full of life (and what can only be described as a snail cemetery.




I have a big decision to make about this little plot to keep or not to keep its main inhabitant? What do you think? I'm thinking go... It's a shrub/bush that is far too big for such a little area. I'm thinking once the bulbs are through that some bedding plant should brighten the area up. As you may have noticed the trellis (in that colour how could you miss?) is in slight disrepair, but I'm loathe to replace it as I have a young passion flower climbing up it so I'm not sure how that is going to work right now. But so far I'm very pleased that I haven't killed it off yet. I planted those up last year after buying them from my sons' pre-school for a fundraiser. So the fact they are not dead is great! For both my ego and their school!

There are a couple of sick looking leaves, but I'm sure a bit of plant food should help (or possibly watering it as the area in which it lives is sheltered - generally it is doing well to have survived the winter alive!

So overall, my decision of the day is: This will be my first reveal! I'm almost excited to get started. I've even broke out my box o seeds!

Happy Tuesday everyone.

Snow Snow Go Away

So another non gardening weekend has passed. This time no fault of my lazing tendencies. More my lack of ability to be too far away from a certain room in my house (TMI Alert!).

But I have started planning, and I have even got some seeds in order for a bit of planting up which will soon take place (once I have been to the garden centre for some compost and plant pots!)

However, it is now time to share my first green fingered success of the year! Are you ready?



This is my beautiful amaryllis I am so proud of my wonderful indoor bloom which has pride of place on my kitchen/dining window sill and if you peek through the window you can see my bird table that I built all by myself!



I'm not the most practical of people so am amazed that this actually looks like a bird table, and is able to be used by birds as a table and everything. Most impressed with myself. My next building project is to be a wall for my brambley hedge to grow against in a hope to control the vast wildness that is rambling out to the extremities of my space.

Well it's not going well

As you can tell I haven't blogged much as of yet. That would be due to the lousy weather and therefore lack of gardening I have done!

If it's not raining it's snowing! I do wish I got a bit of support from my family in my ongoing endeavours but alas it's not to be! Ah well, slowly slowly catchy monkey! And all that jazz. The plans in my head are getting bigger, but I have no idea how to translate it into actual green garden stuff... could be fun attempting to do it though and at bargain basement prices!