Quiet Times and Louder Moments

Recently I have been neglecting my growing magazine pile. So now it is the turn of the knitting to take a back seat and to catch up with my ever growing pile of Primas, Good Homes and Look magazines.

But still I'm missing that to sit here and strike a few keys. In the last few weeks I have become what can only be described as the queen of procrastination. Right now that means drinking coffee, eating blueberries and watching Glee. What I can I say I'm not only procrastinating but also multi-tasking!



On the darker side my roof still leaks and no sign of the man due to fix it!

I started running outside again last weekend, which more or less set my lungs on fire! This weekend I'm going to do my 1st 10k with my friend's husband. It could be interesting... but at least he should push me to go a bit quicker and further (I have a horrid competitive streak that needs to be reeled in). So beware some random posts and pictures may occur soon. Especially as the days get longer. I can't wait.

On the garden front, not a lot has happened as again Mother Nature has seen fit to bless us with snow again! That and my littlest B decided that the best course of action was to uproot all of the crocuses thinking that they were onions! Bless but still grrr. I also attempted to make up the green house (but alas it wasn't to be as part of the casing snapped on construction! That'll be going back to the shop next time I'm in Selby.)

Now I'm going to buzz off to the kitchen and check on my 1st wholemeal loaf. Look at that I'm using my breadmaker for good and not for evil!

This weekend was a bit of a bake-a-thon, and thanks to my step-mother J I made a corned beef and potato pie. I had the inlaws over for a visit and it was a roaring success so I thought I'd share a picture of it for you to see! I also made a sausage plait (with my own sausage meat!) and a pineapple upside down sponge with coconut and jungle juice to serve mmmm. Couldn't move afterwards, so what did I do? Went for a drizzly 2 mile run!

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.