Monday!!!

We've had a nice peaceful weekend and got rid of some of the Christmas clutter. The cards have been taken down and put into a box with the few cards I had left from the ones we sent, the Christmas village has been dismantled, packed away and gone back upstairs.There is now just the tree which will come down at the weekend after DD's birthday and that will be it for another year.
I was ready for it all to go away on Boxing Day but I didn't want to seem like a killjoy.

Today I have had a little potter about doing housey things and when I had had enough of that I started kitting up some cross stitch projects. Fabric has been cut and zig zag stitched to stop it falling apart as I sew and threads have been chosen. If I get a chance I may start stitching tonight or I may have a sort out on one of my USB sticks and make some space to store my downloaded charts as last night I purchased a whole magazine in PDF format and it's quite a big file. I'll see what I feel like doing after tea.

We'll be having salad for our evening meal. I think I have gone off cooked meals for a while as yesterday I did pork chops with all the trimmings and I barely ate half of mine. I enjoyed the tuna sandwich we had at tea time much more....so light and simple for a few days now.
DD has a long shift to work on New Year's Day so I am just doing a buffet style tea....again with salad. I'll make some scotch eggs and vol au vents and put out a cheese board and that will do us.

Right....I had best go and do some chopping and slicing.
Hope you've all had it lovely day.....we've had bright sunshine and very blue skies.
Sheila-x-

So Long Turkey!!!

The last of the turkey has been sliced, wrapped and tucked away in the freezer for future meals and it may be a good while until it sees the light of day again. I certainly can't face any more of it for the foreseeable future.
Today we are having good old sausages and tomatoes with some crusty bread.

DD and I have been into the little town for a small top up shop and I was surprised at how quiet it was both on the roads and in the shops. Mind you we don't have any big stores really so I expect anyone sale shopping is out at the big retail parks in Stoke or Derby.....and they are welcome to that. There is nothing I want or need at the moment.

We are having another nice quiet evening and have no plans to go anywhere or do anything in particular tomorrow. We'll just take the day as it comes.
Have a lovely weekend.
Sheila-x-

Back To Normal Today!!!

It's just Andy and I at home today. DD is back at work and when she comes in it will just be a quick change and out again as she is going to spend the night at The Doodles while DDIL's sister is still here.
Andy has been out this morning and taken the rest of the stuff that needed going to the recycling centre from the old house. Tomorrow the keys will be handed back and it will be off their hands.
They are settling into their new house beautifully.

I am doing laundry....when am I not....lol.....and in between loads I am browsing Etsy shops for downloadable cross stitch charts to buy with the money DD gave me for Christmas. I'll get them printed off and then kitted up ready for stitching.
They will all be Christmas projects as they are my absolute favourites to stitch.

Having looked at the tv guide for tonight I think we may well have to dig around in our DVD's for something to watch while we have a simple tea of cheese, crackers and pickles.

To finish the day I will go up for a bath and use some of the gorgeous Sanctuary Spa goodies I got for Christmas.

I hope you are having a lovely day today.
Sheila-x-

I Must Have Blinked!!!

My word....that went by in a flash didn't it?

We have had a lovely couple of days.....Christmas Eve with our gorgeous Doodle family, breakfast cooked by DS and then the sheer joy of watching our girls open their gifts from us.
We also opened our gifts from them and everything was absolutely smashing.
By contrast yesterday was very quiet with Just Andy, DD and I at home. I was up very early to get the monster turkey fillet in the oven (it was gorgeous) and after lunch spent a good couple of hours on the sofa......they say I snored......I think they tell porkies.....lol.
Today is much the same....just us three and we have all just done our own thing. There is leftover ham and turkey, a bowl of salad and some crusty rolls for tea and I am really looking forward to that. It will be nice to just have the oven on for ten minutes for the rolls instead of the six hours it was on yesterday.

Thank you so much for the comments left over the last couple of posts.
I hope you are all enjoying a peaceful Boxing Day.
Sheila-x-

Merry!!!

Well....it's here.

Happy Christmas to you all.

I hope it is all you wish it to be.

Hugs

Sheila

-x-

Traumatised!!!

Oh my goodness....it was bedlam out there this morning. I had almost lost the will to live by the time I had been bashed by the fifth trolley of the morning.
I was there at quite a reasonable time and managed to get the salad stuff but T***o should hang their heads in shame at the state of the iceberg lettuce they were selling.....60p for something that looked like it should already be on the compost  heap. I opted for the Little Gem instead which looked far fresher.

The ham is now roasting away in the oven. Usually I would boil it before skinning it and roasting it for half an hour or so but it wouldn't fit in my big stock pan so it has to be completely roasted. I'm sure it will be fine.
The turkey fillet is resting in the fridge until Christmas morning when I shall have to be up at the crack of a sparrer's do dah to get it in the oven if we hope to eat at lunch time rather than tea time. I wasn't expecting it to be so big but it does mean lots of lovely leftovers for Boxing Day and sandwiches for the rest of the week. I'd rather have turkey cold.

DD has been at work since 5am and I don't know what time she will be finishing.....it could be 5pm or it could be 7pm but at least when she does finish she has three days off.
Tomorrow morning we will spend some time with The Doodles and then the rest of Christmas is just us three and the telly.....or a box set if there's nothing on we fancy.....and there may well be a box of Thornton's on top of the fridge which I shouldn't be eating but I am going to....lol.

Have a wonderful day.
Sheila-x-

Still Lots To Do!!!

Thank you all for your comments on Friday's post.

Golly I shall be glad to lock the doors on Christmas Eve night. Nobody will come in and nobody will be going out until it's all over and thank goodness for that.
There still seems to be an awful lot to do but I'll get a few things ticked off the list today once I have put a chilli on to cook for our meal tonight. I had planned a lighter meal but Andy threw a spanner in the works and requested the chilli but I think I'll pass on it and maybe have egg on toast or something.
There are still gifts to wrap so I'll try and finish that today and then tomorrow Andy will pick up the turkey and ham. The ham will need to be cooked for our traditional Christmas Eve meal and then I will need to go out and get the fresh stuff in.....I refuse to go into town on Tuesday.

Hope you are all having a good weekend.
Sheila-x-

I Wish It Would Stop Raining!!!

Another day of miserable rain.
At this time of year I would like sharp frosty mornings with a little sunshine but instead it is grey, murky, muddy and wet.
No wonder I am not feeling Christmassy in the slightest.
My plans for a nice relaxing weekend after jobs have been done are scuppered and tomorrow I will be having visitors that I hadn't planned on so I need to sort out a meal for them.
I wouldn't mind if he (BiL) had phoned earlier in the week to say he was coming but he dumped it on me about two minutes after I got out of bed this morning.
The gift wrapping I was going to do today won't all get done now as I will have to go out and do a bit of shopping for the meal and the cleaning I was going to do tomorrow will have to be done today.
Sorry.....moan over 😒

Andy is out this morning helping to move the last of the stuff from The Doodles old house to the new and taking things to the recycling centre. Once he gets back he will have to take me out and I think we may well treat ourselves to lunch or a coffee and take a bit of a breather.

Right.....I am off to put me big girl pants on and get cracking....lol.
Have a wonderful day.
Sheila-x-

Two Proud Grandmas!!!

I am so glad I got to go and see Marlowe in her first nativity play yesterday. It was absolutely lovely. 
I take my hat off to the teachers who must have worked so hard to co-ordinate a large group of three to five year old's into such a wonderful performance.
Marlowe knew all the words and actions to the songs and looked extremely cute in her little sheep costume.
Two very proud Grandmas left with not very dry eyes.

Afterwards I walked down into town to meet up with DD and after a much needed coffee we smashed the last of the shopping list. We didn't get home until well after 6pm but at least it's done now until I go and pick up the fresh stuff at the weekend.

Today I need to repack all of the large storage boxes I emptied to loan to The Doodles for moving. All of the stuff is piled on the landing so it really needs tidying away.
Then I need to sort out and launder the small quilts I am donating to a collection at DD's work for the dogs home.
There are other jobs on the list so I will be keeping busy for the day.

Hope you are all enjoying your Christmas preparations.
Have a lovely day.
Sheila-x-

A Misty, Murky Morning!!!

It's proper 'orrible outside this morning....damp, misty and cold.
I really didn't fancy going out so Andy has been dispatched to pick up some fresh salad for tea tonight. There is a small list of things I need to get for Christmas but I will tackle that this afternoon.

When we dropped Ruby off last night I got a lovely surprise invitation to go and see Marlowe in her first nativity play this afternoon.
I didn't think I would be able to go as only two tickets are allowed. Luckily they are doing two performances so Mummy and Daddy will go this morning and London Grandma and I get to go to the second one. We are both very happy about that.
Once we are finished I'll call DD to come and pick me up and we'll go and kill this shopping list.

This morning I need to find and wrap the London gifts so that they can be handed over today and this evening DD and I will make a start on the rest.

Have a lovely day whatever you are doing.
Sheila-x-

Lovely!!!

.....and they are in 😀

I paid a quick visit last night to drop off tea and had a quick tour of the new house. It is really lovely and on first sight there is so much more room than at their old house.....even with all the boxes piled in the lounge/diner.
Andy has gone back this morning to help move the rest of their belongings from the old house and then they can get on with the business of settling in.

Meanwhile....here at Tea Towel Mansion I am having a bit of a declutter of the dresser cupboards as there is way to much stuff in them.
I'll more than likely find a few more jobs to do to keep me occupied until Ruby gets here for tea later.

Hope you all have a lovely day.
Sheila-x-

Moving Day!!!

Well the keys to the new house should have been picked up by now and the first load of furniture will be going into the moving van shortly.
I feel a little guilty that I am not down there helping but to be honest with the state of my back I would be more of a liability than a help. I have to be honest though and say that I am going to enjoy Andy being out of the house for a while as I never have any time on my own since he retired and I miss it badly.
I shall enjoy some time in the kitchen this morning then this afternoon I may treat myself to a nice bath and some gift wrapping until it's time to feed everyone.
I can't wait to see the new house....it looked stunning on the estate agents website.

We had a fabulous time with Marlowe over Saturday and part of Sunday. She was as good as gold.
Her new decoration....a very glittery gingerbread man.....has been hung on the tree and is twinkling beautifully.
She says she would like to come again but would like to stay.....forever.....lol.

Anyhoo....onions to chop and meat to brown so I'll go and get that done first befoe I tackle my least favourite job of peeling potatoes.

Have a wonderful day.
Sheila-x-

Off It!!!

I've had an odd couple of days feeling not quite myself....not ill but just that flopsadopsical feeling again but I seem to be getting over it now.
A good job too as we have our little Miss Firecracker here with us for the night tomorrow through until mid morning Sunday. We are taking her out to Trentham Gardens to see the lights and decorations and to let her choose a decoration to put on our tree. We'll treat her to lunch out and let her choose a little pre-Christmas gift just as we do with Ruby.
If we had been able to have her last weekend she would have been able to stay longer but Sunday she will be off out on a surprise trip with the rest of The Doodles before they move house on Monday.

Andy will be going down to help load up the moving van on Monday morning and I will be staying home to cook for them so that they don't even have to think about it. I shall make a cottage pie with some veg that can be reheated and a jug of gravy. Hopefully it will hit the spot after a busy day.

The job list is getting a bit shorter.
One quilt finished and ready for wrapping and all of the cards have been written and most have been delivered.
The kitchen is still waiting for it's good scrub down but plenty of time for that after Tuesday when Ruby will be here for her tea for the last time this year.

Right I had best get to bed as I shall need my strength tomorrow.

Have a fabulous weekend.
Sheila-x-

A Mixed Bag Of A Day Today!!!

I seem to have got a little behind with my jobs this week so today I will be doing lots of little things to try and catch up.

First up I need to sew around the quilt and clip the edges to make a rag finish, wash and dry it to fluff the edges up and then it can be packed ready to give.
Andy is just picking me up some colour catcher as the quilt has a lot of red in it which is notorious for running and I don't want any mishaps at this late stage.

Laundry....there is always laundry to be done.

A quick clean round in the kitchen. I'll do the deep clean in there next week.

Squirrel some stuff away upstairs as Ruby will be here today and I don't want her seeing anything she shouldn't.
While I am up there I need to empty a couple more of our big storage boxes so that The Doodles can borrow them for packing.

Tonight I will get the few cards written on that we send. Most are hand delivered so that can be Andy's job for tomorrow.

One lot of drying has just finished so I'll go and sort that out and put another lot in and another wash on and then I think it might be time for coffee.

Have a happy day.
Sheila-x-

Spoiled Mums!!!

Well....I am still absolutely flabbergasted that DDIL spoiled her Mum and me so much last night.
I thought we would do the same as last year and go to Wetherspoon's in the little town so I was a little puzzled when she headed the car in a completely different direction and completely shocked when she turned the car into the drive of Weston Hall  near Stafford. 
We have traveled past there many times and I have always wondered what it was like and now I know that it is absolutely the most beautiful place I have ever eaten in my life. It must be lovely there any time of year but visiting when it was decked out for Christmas....wow what a treat.
The food was beautiful, the staff were wonderful and I could have sat in the lounge drinking coffee for a week...it was so cosy and comfortable.
A lovely evening I shall remember for a long time.

Out in the rain and wind with DD this morning to do a bit of shopping.....trying to gather the last few bits needed for gifts and a couple of festive food items for the store cupboard.
I think we're good for everything but the fresh stuff now so I should only need a top up shop or two between now and Christmas.....thank goodness.

How are you getting on with your preparations?
Hope it's all going well.
Sheila-x-

The Best Laid Plans!!!

This morning I had planned to go and do a shop at Iceland to take advantage of a £10 off a £40 shop and have them deliver it so that I could go and work through the rest of my shopping list before going home to await the delivery. 
That didn't happen as they only had an early slot 12pm-2pm so we had to get home, wait for the delivery which came about twenty minutes after we got in then back out again to do the rest of the shopping and use a T***o voucher for £3 off a £20 shop. 
We have just made it home before DD arrived back from work.

I am out tonight for a meal with DDIL and her Mum. It should have been next week but they will be in the middle of moving. It will be lovely to be able to just sit and chat as there isn't that much time when we deliver Ruby home on Wednesday's due to bath time and bed time.
There's not been much time for cooking today so Andy and DD will fend for themselves with something quick and easy out of the freezer while I go and have a nice bath and get ready.

Hope you have all had a lovely day.
Sheila-x-

Up And Running!!!

As of 7pm last night Tea Towel Towers is warm and has hot running water.
I could have cried with relief when the boiler actually kicked in when it was switched on.

So....today I am going to finish the quilt I am gifting. DD is at work until 5pm so I have a few hours before I have to be in the kitchen and I should get it done.
Tomorrow I'll start on a big clean up and get the house looking smart again so that I can put out the last few Christmas bits.

Not long now until The Doodles move into their new house. Andy and I will be making ourselves available for packing duties, looking after the girls and anything else that needs doing to help things go smoothly for them.

Right....if I can tear myself away from watching all the birds in the garden I'll go and crank up the sewing machine.

Have a lovely day.
Sheila-x-

A Cautious....Finally!!!

For some unknown reason the boiler manufacturer insisted on sending the much needed part directly to us rather than have the engineer pick it up from his supplier.
It has finally arrived this morning, the engineer has been informed and he should be here with us in a couple of hours or so to fit it so all being well we should have heat and hot water by tea time.
This has been the longest and most miserable three weeks I have ever known and I shan't be sorry to see the back of it.

We moved Marlowe's overnight stay to next weekend as we weren't sure if we would be sorted so I have a week now to do a good deep clean of the house so that it's all sparkling and twinkly for when she comes.

Today I am trying to create some order in the sewing room ready to turn it into the wrapping room for the Christmas gifts. I just need to finish off a quilt which is being gifted before I fetch all the wrapping paraphernalia down.

I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend and I thank you all so much for the lovely comments while we have been working our way through this problem.
Sheila-x-

Swear Words!!!

Does anyone know any new satisfying swear words?
I've just about run the gamut of the ones I know and they just ain't working anymore.

From that you will guess that the boiler is still kaput but it's not the engineer at fault. The place that got him the spare part got the wrong one and he has had to go back and stand over them while they ordered another one.
It should be here tomorrow and and soon as he has his hands on it he will come over and fit it.

Despite all that I have had a lovely afternoon. Andy ordered me the rest of the threads I need to complete my DMC collection so I have sat winding those onto their bobbins and filling up my storage boxes. He let me have them even though they are part of my Christmas present.
I've been nice and warm as the engineer left us a small fan heater to borrow until he comes back.

I hope you have all had a good day too.
Sheila-x-

Another Waiting Game!!!

So.....he didn't show up yesterday. The catalogue of excuses was just ridiculous so I won't bore you with them   
Andy has managed to get hold of him this morning and he is definitely coming today. So we'll see.

To while away the time I am making cranberry sauce and bread sauce to put in the freezer ready for Christmas and the house smells divine.
I had no bread suitable for making the bread sauce so nipped to Waitrose last night to take advantage of their end of day reductions.....you can get a Farmhouse loaf for 25p if you hit them at the right time. I also picked up a few other bits for today's cooking and thought the bill was a bit expensive. Got back to the car and checked my receipt.....they had charged me £17.25 for my loaf of reduced bread...good job I checked.
The money is now back in my purse.

After that I spent hours trying to get to sleep and ended up having to keep getting up with an upset stomach. I'm beginning to think somebody up there doesn't like me very much. Oh well while he's picking on me he's leaving somebody else alone.

Hope you are all having a good day.
Sheila-x-

Still Waiting!!!

We are still waiting for the engineer to arrive and fit the new part to the boiler.
I am beyond p'd off now,  just want to sit and cry and have reached the point where I just can't get warm anymore.
If I have another night like last night I think it may just tip me over the edge.

Sheila-x-

Frozen!!!

We have survived a very cold weekend although at times I could have cried.
By tomorrow afternoon we should be fixed and I may well tape myself to a radiator for the foreseeable future.

When we have not been out and about with Ruby we have snuggled on the sofa under a pile of fluffy blankets.
Friday night we went to see Frozen 2. It was a nice film but I didn't like it as much as the original film.
Saturday the tree was decorated and the outdoor lights were all put up. DD took Ruby out for lunch and then a little shopping trip and after tea we watched the Home Alone films, drank hot chocolate and ate popcorn.
Sunday was lunch at the pub and a walk around the garden centre for Ruby to see all the decorations and the Lemax village then home for more snuggles and tea for her before we had to take her home.
So it has been a lovely weekend.....and next weekend we have Miss Marlowe coming for the night on Saturday and a good part of the day on Sunday.

For now I am looking forward to having some hot water on tap instead of having to boil kettles so that I can have a good deep clean of everywhere and get the house in order before Christmas.

Hope you have all had a fabulous weekend and have a good week this week.
Sheila-x-

Cautiously Optimistic!!!

At last we have had a proper engineer turn up to look at the boiler.
It isn't fixed yet as he is having to order a part so we will probably be without the heating and hot water for another weekend which is a bit of a bummer as we have Ruby here...... but as there is light now at the end of the tunnel I think we will cope.

Have a lovely day.
Sheila-x-

Not Quite Done!!!

DD and I had a good go at trying to finish the Christmas shopping yesterday but we didn't quite manage it.
It was very busy in Derby for a Tuesday so I definitely won't be revisiting on a Saturday. Local and online will have to do for the rest.
I was exhausted by the time we got home so nothing much got done in the house. I shall have to get myself into gear and get things done today as I have a basket full of laundry and I need to cook a nice meal as Ruby is here for tea tonight.
She will be back on Friday for her Christmas sleepover weekend and we have a very packed weekend for her including a cinema trip and Sunday lunch out. Hopefully she will have a good time.

Right I will go and crack on with some chores.
Have a lovely day.
Sheila-x-

Sick To Death Of The Whole Thing!!!

Another weekend without proper heating and hot water.
We have given up with the engineer they kept sending from the insurance company. He was a lovely man but I don't think he knew anything about our boiler and he was coming at ridiculous hours of the night, poking about by torchlight, getting it going in about ten minutes flat and it he couldn't have even got to the end of the road before the boiler went again. The last time he came we found he had turned the boiler up so high that the water coming out of the taps was almost boiling and we thought the radiators were going to burst.
The next engineer can't fit us in until Thursday and if that doesn't work out then I will contact the makers of our boiler to see if they can help. It is just out of warranty but less than three years old.

This morning DD and I have had a good turf out on the landing and there are several bags for burning, charity shop, and the recycling centre.
All the Christmas boxes will be bought down from the attic ready for Ruby coming to decorate the tree this weekend.

Tomorrow we are going out to finish the Christmas shopping and if I can find Santa anywhere I shall be sitting on his knee and telling him that all I want for Christmas is a warm house and some hot water.

Have a wonderful day.
Sheila-x-

A Little Bit Of Sunshine On A Rainy Day!!!

The Doodles have found a beautiful house and they move in on December 16th. Big sighs of relief all round with that sorted out.
They are having to move out of the little town to a village but they are fine with that.
There is a possibility that Ruby could move to the school there but that is something they will have to talk to her about.

The boiler saga continues although we did manage to have a bath last night. I could have stayed in there for a week...lol.
We are back to no heating or hot water this morning and the engineer has been called yet again.....sigh!!!

We are so fed up that we are treating ourselves to fish and chips from the chip shop for tea tonight.

Hope you all have a lovely day.
Sheila-x-

Back To Square One!!!

Thank you all so much for your very lovely comments on our heating predicament.

Well an engineer finally appeared last night at around 11pm.....diagnosed low pressure.....bought the pressure up and lo and behold hot water and heating.
Got up this morning and it had gone again but luckily he had shown Andy what to do. Heating for all of ten minutes and then off again so Andy redid it and hot water shot up from the back of the boiler like a geyser.
We have now switched everything off and once again wait for a visit from the engineer but only between 4pm and midnight.
Why the hell they can't come in the day time I don't know.
I think we'll have to ask DS if we can nip down in turns and have a bath at their house.
I hope we don't end up having to buy a new boiler.

Things just don't seem to be very nice at the moment what with The Doodles having to move house unexpectedly, our boiler problems and then Ruby coming home from school in a right state about one of her lessons. She is terrified of the teacher so I think DS will try and have a word with someone today.

They say things can only get better so I will hold on to that.

A bit late....but I am off to have some breakfast and then I think I'll make a good old beef stew for tea to warm us up.

Hope you're all having a fabulous day.
Sheila-x-

Getting Really P****d Off Now!!!

Andy had forgotten that we have an emergency household policy with his bank but remembered it when the plumber let us down on Monday.
We phoned them and they told us to go out and buy a heater of some kind immediately and they would reimburse us and they arranged for a heating engineer to come yesterday between 4pm and midnight. 8pm he phoned to say that he wouldn't be able to make it and would rearrange for today between the same hours.
I've really had enough now. No heating I can just about cope with although we do now have a little electric fire for the living room....it's the lack of hot water that is getting me down. Carrying kettles of water up to the bathroom for strip washes doesn't in any way compare to being able to run a hot bath.

The house DS and DDIL went to look at on Monday was a disappointment. In fact DDIL said it was disgusting.
They have another one to look at tomorrow so fingers crossed for that one.

Hope you are all having a lovely day.
Sheila-x-

Colder Than A Witches Doo Dah!!!

Thank you all so much for your comments and sympathy on the loss of our heating and hot water over the weekend.
It has been a fairly uncomfortable couple of days especially the lack of hot water for baths.
I had made plans to do a bit of crafting but my hands have been so cold that I couldn't actually do any fine work so that was scuppered.
We have mostly watched DVD's buried under piles of blankets and been drinking hot drinks.
Someone is supposed to be coming this afternoon to sort out the boiler. He fitted the boiler originally but was the first plumber to let us down when we needed our first year service so I am not holding my breath. Andy had contacted him before I had a chance to persuade him not to so we'll see.

I avoided doing a roast dinner yesterday as I couldn't bear the thought of boiling all the kettles of water to wash up after it so I made a lovely cottage pie instead. We really enjoyed it for a change and as it won't be long now before we are having Christmas dinner I probably won't do any more roast dinners between now and then.

While I am waiting for this man to turn up I am going to make myself yet another hot drink and watch the pair of Coal Tits that have been frequent visitors to our garden over the last couple of weeks. They are so tiny and very cute.

Hope you all have a good week.
Sheila-x-

History Repeats Itself!!!

Almost exactly thirteen months ago I wrote a post titled....The Weekend and it started like this..........

......can be summed up in very few words......it rained, I cooked, we ate and the heating packed up.
How boring is that?

Today I could write that exact same opening. The heating has packed up again but this time we have also lost the hot water and I am beyond annoyed. The damn thing was only just serviced a few months ago.
I'm beginning to wish we had never had it put in and I feel like taking a hammer to it.
I think it's going to be a long week 😞

Hope you are all having a good weekend.
Sheila-x-

Just Another Day!!!

What started out as a dry a fairly sunny day has now turned into another wet one.
I shouldn't moan about the rain as we are very lucky that there isn't much chance of us getting flooded at home although the roads can be a little challenging at times.
Watching the news last night there were some dreadful stories of people affected by the floods.
My heart goes out to them.

Today I am home alone for a while as Andy has gone out to meet some ex work colleagues for a drink at the pub. I had all sorts of ideas for this precious time and what am I doing.....absolutely bugger all apart from sitting here typing and enjoying the fact that the tv is not on.
I will have to make a start on some veg prep for tea and whip up some Yorkshire pudding batter but for now just listening to the quiet is awesome.

No firm plans for going out this weekend although I may nip out and do a freezer shop at I*****d tomorrow afternoon as I have almost run out of frozen peas and chicken breasts.....which is a crime in this house......lol.

There is no news from DS as to how the house search is going. I am hoping that means that no news is good news.

Have a wonderful weekend.
Sheila-x-

Meeting Myself Coming Back!!!

For saying I had nothing in particular planned for yesterday it turned out to be a really busy day.
Lots of time in the kitchen preparing the chicken fajitas that Ruby had requested for tea so slicing up chicken for marinating, chopping peppers and onions and making Ruby's favourite coleslaw of red cabbage and shredded carrot in lime juice.....plus I cooked a small ham for our tea today to have with some salad.
Tidying and organising in the sewing room, tidying the rest of downstairs and running the hoover through. By the time we got back from dropping Ruby off I was ready to collapse in a heap.

Today has been a little gentler and despite the foul weather Andy and I have been for a ride into the big town for a quick visit to Dunelm to have a look at their Christmas displays which turned out to be very disappointing although I did pick up some more Christmas foliage for my collection.
We then swung by Morrisons to buy a Pyrex bowl to replace mine that Andy broke yesterday....such an exciting life we lead.....lol.

DS and DDIL have been dropped an awful bombshell. Their landlord has decide to sell the house they rent and they need to find a new rental property quickly.....within the next couple of months. They need to stay in the area they live now and looking at the rental lists online....there isn't much available in their price range. I do hope they can find somewhere soon.

Well....I am off for a cuppa and five minutes with my feet up before I have to sort the evening meal out.

I hope your weather has been better than ours today.
Sheila-x-

Another Filthy Day!!!

It is absolutely foul outside today. Heavy rain, a strong wind and cold.
My usual t shirt has been swapped for a long sleeved top and a rib sticker meal is being made for tea......homemade meatballs in an onion gravy to have with some steamed cabbage and a swede and carrot mash. That should warm us up.

Andy and I didn't go far yesterday. A quick trip to Derby for a visit to Hobbycraft and TK Maxx/Home Sense. On the way back we called in at Aldi. I have not been to Aldi for years as we don't have one in the little town where I do most of my shopping. I was very impressed and I will be going back as it's not too far away.
For the first time ever I walked out of Hobbycraft with a no spend as they didn't have what I wanted but I did have a bit of a splurge in Home Sense on Christmas ribbons and foliage for some of my cross stitch finishes.
The magnets they didn't have at Hobbycraft have been ordered online this morning and Andy has just gone to buy me some metal washers so by the end of the day I shall be all kitted up.
Before I can start on anything though I need to have a good tidy up and put away all the stuff from making the rag garlands so I am glad it's a day for staying home.

Hope you are all having a lovely day.
Sheila-x-

A Good Weekend!!!

It's been a lovely peaceful weekend.
The weather was foul on Saturday so we didn't go out Christmas shopping as such.......a few clicks on the computer to reserve some items for the girls and a quick nip into the little town to pick them up. A good amount of money saved with a discount code and the Christmas list is a good halfway ticked off.
Just a couple of gift cards to pick up and a few bits and bobs now and I will have it all done by the end of November as I promised myself I would.

Today I have had an invitation to a Christmas meal out with DIL and her Mum in December. We did it last year and it was lovely so I am looking forward to that.

I'm still tying away on the rag garland. I have to do a few sections and then leave it for half an hour as it makes my hands ache something wicked but I am enjoying it.
I'm thinking I might cut some extra strips when I have done and let Ruby make one for her bedroom when she comes for her sleepover at the end of the month.

Andy and I are going out for a wander tomorrow. I don't know where but I'm sure it will be somewhere nice.

Hope you have all had a lovely weekend.
Sheila-x-

A Happy Day!!!

Thanks for the comments yesterday.

I had a happy start to the day today....a visit to the doctor for results of my blood test and my blood sugars are down. My hard work is paying off now.

We went into town after my appointment as I needed a light bulb and it was quite pleasant walking up the high street....a little windy and chilly but nice enough. Almost as soon as we got home it started raining and it's been dark and dreary all afternoon. I have cheered things up a bit by cutting more strips of fabric and ribbon for another rag garland.....and now the tying begins. Could be here for a while as it will be a lot longer than the mini one.

No specific plans for the weekend but I am thinking that if DD hasn't got anything on I may go out and make a proper start on the gift shopping for Christmas. It will depend on the weather as I don't fancy trudging about in the rain.

As it's turned into such a miserable day I have put potatoes to bake in the oven and pulled out a pot of chilli from the freezer for a nice tasty and warming tea.

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend.
Sheila-x-

A Little Bit Of Crafty Shopping!!!

Well it was a bit miserable yesterday when Andy and I went out for a while but at least we got out.
A quick visit to the garden centre. Andy waited in the car while I nipped in as I only wanted a couple of things and we had decided we wouldn't have lunch there. Instead we went to Morrison's....a sandwich and a tea each which cost what it would have done for one sandwich at the garden centre and it was really nice.
Then we went to The Range as Andy loves Christmas lights and all the novelty musical, light up whirly things. Gosh there is some tacky stuff out there....lol.
I had a little crafty spend..........

The tinsel garland is huge and was only £5.99 from the garden centre.
Gorgeous ribbons from The Range....£2.39 each for 3 meters.
The Little box of decorations was just over £2....also from The Range.
Then last night from Asda I picked up three of the bottle brush trees after seeing them on someone's blog. They are for my Winter village scene on the dresser and were only £1 each.
I came back a very happy bunny and have lots of Christmas craft ideas......just need the time to get crafting now.

It's another miserable and murky day here. I'm waiting in for a parcel so we won't be going out in it.

I hope you have a lovely day.
Sheila-x-

Mini Rag Garland!!!

Good morning 😁

Crikey it's chilly here this morning. I've only just been brave enough to take my dressing gown off which I was wearing over my clothes.

Yesterday I actually got to do some crafting....yay!!!
I wanted to make something which I could start and finish in one day so decided on a mini rag garland for kitchen dresser.

From loop to loop it is twenty two inches long and is made from a mixture of 5"x 1" fabric strips and narrow ribbon.

It will go here at Christmas.....

Clicking on the pics will bring up a larger version if you want to take a closer look.

I decided to cut the fabric with my rotary cutter instead of tearing it as I remember too well the horrendous mess when I tore fabric for Ruby's fairy skirt. With cutting it first you get just the right amount of fraying without having huge piles of loose threads to cut off.
It does make your fingers ache but I really enjoyed doing it and I will be making another longer one to hang on the bookcase in the living room.

Today I just have a little laundry to finish  and tea is already made.....a huge pan of veggie soup which I shall serve with cheese croutons.....so Andy and I can go for a ride out this afternoon if we feel like it. Probably only a walk round the garden centre and a pot of tea in the tea room but when I think that for a long time I couldn't get out in the daytime I am quite content with that.

It's just started raining and is looking quite murky outside and I am so glad that DD isn't out in it. 
She is loving her new job in her nice cosy office.

Hope you all manage to stay warm and dry today.
Sheila-x-

Ruby's Pie!!!

Lovely evening with Ruby and she thought her pie was hilarious........

I had to take this very quickly when it came out of the oven as my lot were doing all but bang their knives and forks on the table....lol.

I did extra veg which I am going to make into a pan of soup today for our tea tomorrow. Tonight will be salad after that very hearty pie last night....have to keep a sense of balance ya know.....lol.

Laundry to tackle today and in between loads I'll be making a start on my rag garland....or at least choosing and tearing fabric ready for it. It will be good to whittle down the Christmas fabric stash.

Well I had best go and crank up the washing machine.

Hope you have a wonderful day.
Sheila-x-

Monday's Doings!!!

I was up early and into the little town this morning.
The 20p's have all gone into the bank.
Remembered to get an anniversary card for DS and DDIL.
Top up shop done.
Outdoor lights bought ready for the end of the month.
Crafty bits bought from Poundland.

Back home and I have made the filling for Ruby's chicken pie as she will be here today. Just need to make the pastry. I'm going to do the pumpkin face pie top she missed out on last week. 
I've cut Andy's hair.....he's been nagging me for a week so I thought I had best get it done.
A load of tea towels put in to wash as the drawer is nearly empty.

The quilt I am working on is going to be put away today for now. I have not felt like sewing since Andy retired and if I force myself to do it I know mistakes will be made and I will hate myself. I will clear the table and make room to do some Christmas crafting as I am now in the mood for that.
On my list is....a rag garland and some cross stitch finishes which I hope to start on tomorrow.

It's a fairly decent day here today. Not too cold and there is some blue sky and little peeks at the sun now and again.

Hope it's fine where you are.
Have a lovely day.
Sheila-x-

A Quiet Saturday!!!

The weather men were right and we sure do have some rain today. It's been thrashing down all morning but has now slowed to a miserable drizzle.
The heating is on, the house is all warm and cosy and we are all doing our own thing. Andy is still fiddling with his Mechano type Lancaster Bomber, DD is reading until she goes out later to pick up Ruby for a cinema trip with tea out afterwards and I am chalk painting some pieces I want to use for mounting cross stitch on. It's all very peaceful.

Andy has been up to the butchers for sausages this morning and we'll be having some as hot dogs for our tea with slow cooked onions. It's one of the things we love most.....hot dogs and a film.
Not a film as such tonight though as DD has managed at last to find part two of season five of Vikings. I can't wait to sit down and watch that.

The 20p tin has been opened this morning and yielded £157.20. The £150 will go in the bank and the £7.20 has gone into a new tin so that is a good start for next year.

I hope that you are all having a good weekend despite the weather.
Sheila-x-

Wet!!!

After a few nice days we are back to rain today and for the weekend. Looks like it's going to be pretty nasty. I've not made any plans to go anywhere but by the time I decide I do want to go out the roads will be flooded and I won't be able to.

Today I was going to be giving the cooker a good clean but I have done something to my knee so I am going to shift that job down the list a bit until it stops hurting.

The girls had great fun Trick or Treating last night.
We took them a little bucket down filled with goodies but the biggest hit were the little torches I found with interchangeable screens to go over the lights. Marlowe was absolutely enchanted with hers and had great fun shining spiders onto Ganma's feet......lol.

Didn't really enjoy part two of The Accident last night. Only two more to go so I will stick with it as I want to know what happens.

Any day now I will be emptying the 20p tin and Christmas shopping can start in earnest. It feels very heavy so hopefully it will give me enough to get most of the gifts I need to buy.
I'd like to be done by the end of this month if I can.

For now I am going to hobble around and get a few tidying jobs done and then I may go and snuggle on the sofa to rest my knee.

Have a good weekend.
Sheila-x-

Autumn Dresser!!!

The dresser actually got cleaned and decorated yesterday.
Just very simple as I forgot that I gave our huge box of Autumn and Halloween decs to DDIL last year and it had all my fall leaves and lights in it.........

My tin signs stayed because I love them and didn't want to put them away and who wouldn't love homemade apple pie and hot coffee on a cold Autumn day.
It looks much nicer at night when it's darkish at that end of the kitchen and the flickering tealights are on.

It's a bit of an in and out day today.
Andy and I have already been out to do a small top up shop and then DD and I will be off to visit DDIL tonight....it's her birthday today but she has a busy day so we'll pop down when she and the girls get back from Trick or Treating.
Hopefully we'll get back in time for part two of The Accident on Channel 4.

There is a lovely beef stew simmering away on the stove for tonight's meal. I just need to make some dumplings for Andy.
I make them as healthy as I can for him by dividing the mixture into balls and placing them on a plate sprinkled with a little water, covering them with a plate cover and cooking them for three to four minutes in the microwave. You would be shocked at how much fat drains out of them onto the plate. They then go into the stew for the last half hour and hopefully don't add much more fat to the stew.
Usually I would make the stew the day before we eat it but Andy requested it last night for today so no time for that this time.

Well today has flown by.....and I must get off and write on a birthday card and wrap a gift.

Hope you are all having a lovely day.
Sheila-x-

Another Blue Sky And Sunshine Day!!!

It's so beautiful outside again today....blue skies, sunshine and chilly.....just how I like it. The only trouble is that it makes me feel like cleaning......what is that all about....lol.
I will be sorting out the dresser in the kitchen and prettifying it a bit with some lovely miniature pumpkins and some battery tealights....not Halloweeny which I was going to do but as Ruby won't be here today I'll just go for Autumn. That will stay then until I do the village scene late November/early December for Christmas.

I did have plans to make chicken pie today and make the pastry top into a pumpkin face for Ruby but I've left the chicken in the freezer and we are having bacon, egg and tomatoes instead.

Nothing much to watch on tv at the moment so I am watching a box set on iPlayer. It's called Bodies and is a hospital drama. It's awfully gory but brilliant.

I think I'm going to have a coffee and read the papers before I start any more jobs.

Hope you are having a lovely sunny day.
Sheila-x-

Strange Days!!!

The last few days have felt a bit strange. I have had absolutely no energy whatsoever....not ill.....just totally flopsadopsical.
I think Andy cured me of it yesterday when he took me for a ride out to Dagfields in Cheshire and we walked around in beautiful sunshine, went for a gorgeous lunch and then topped it off with a walk around Bridgemere garden centre.
So....today I feel much better. I think I had just been suffering from a bit of cabin fever as I hadn't been out for a couple of days with the weather being so nasty.

Today is laundry day and I swear the neighbours have been posting theirs through the letterbox again as I seem to have mounds of it although some of it....DD's old uniform can be bagged up and burnt as she has new uniform for the new job she starts next week. It sounds a bit wasteful but there is nothing to be saved from it. All the tops are faded and the fabric wouldn't make good dusters. The trousers are ripped and very tatty so the burning bin is the only place for it.
That will reduce the piles a little bit.

Tea today is some lovely pork and apple sausages with mash and veg. All I have to do is cook it as Andy has prepped the veg for me.
Next thing is a quick nip into town for a birthday card for DDIL and some Halloween treats for the girls.

How is your week going so far?
Hope you are having a good one.
Sheila-x-

Filthy Friday!!!

We didn't go to the Christmas open evening last night as once DD had got in from work and had her tea she couldn't be bothered to get ready to go out again. Instead we snuggled down and watched the new drama on Channel 4....The Accident.....very good so far.

Andy and I have been up and had a wander round the displays this morning. I am not overly impressed to be honest. There are some nice things but lots of very odd things too.
Nothing bought for Christmas but Andy did treat me to a few more DMC threads for my collection and I purchased a tube of black chalk paint.

I was going to make a start on the laundry when I got back but the weather is so filthy that I can't face having to keep going across the yard to the dryer. There will be plenty of time to get it done over the weekend along with a job or two off the big job list.

Hope the weather won't ruin any of your plans for the weekend.
Sheila-x-

Needled!!!

The one day in October that I loathe most of all is the day I have to go to the eye clinic and have drops in my eyes so that photographs can be taken inside my eyes. I always end up with either a rotten headache or a migraine. So that was my day yesterday...tested and then spent the rest of the day with the headache and super sensitive eyes....yuck.
Today was blood test day and I also ended up having my flu jab which felt like it had been done with a horse needle.
Good news though....blood pressure was fine and I had lost another kilo.

Tea for today (chicken curry) was cooked yesterday so all I have to do is a pan of rice and then after tea we may all go to the Christmas open evening at the garden centre. I have already seen the Lemax village which is my most favourite thing but I expect there will be lots of pretty things to look at if they have managed to get all of the displays finished.

It's cold and mizzly here today so now the jobs are done Andy and I are relaxing for a while before I have to get the tea ready. I'm rather liking having him at home 😀

Hope you are having a lovely day.
Sheila-x-

Hugs And Kisses!!!

It was lovely to get a message from DDIL on Sunday night to ask if Ruby could come for tea yesterday. We hadn't seen her for nearly a fortnight and she had said that she was missing us....bless her.
I have missed her hugs and kisses but I got plenty to make up for it last night.
We had a naughty tea of egg and chips as I hadn't had time to make the chicken pie she had requested when I thought she would be here on Wednesday. She finished off with some chocolate mousse and was a very happy bunny.

Today Andy and I are pottering....well I am batch cooking a chilli and he is doing the washing up as I go along. Now we are just going to get ready and go for a ride out to the farm shop and have a coffee. While I am there I may look to see if there are any bits I can pick up for Christmas gifts.....I may as well make a start as it is coming no matter what....lol.

Hope you are all having a fabulous day.
Sheila-x-

I Fell In Love With A Mushroom!!!

Lovely trip to the cinema last night. Maleficent-Mistress Of Evil was really good and I fell head over heels in love with one of the little mushroom creatures....oh my word it was soooo cute.
We had thought about taking Ruby but I'm glad we didn't as it was quite a bit darker than the first film. We'll wait until it comes out on DVD and then she can watch it at home where it can be switched off if she doesn't like it.

It's a lovely morning here in Staffordshire. Sunny and bright and just a little bit chilly which I don't mind as the oven is on roasting a rather large piece of beef. We will have some for lunch today and then I will freeze the rest in gravy for another two or three meals.
It will be a later lunch today so there are no plans for going anywhere after it. I'll just finish off the laundry so that there is none to do tomorrow then Andy and I can go for a ride out if we want to.

Now that I have had a little holiday I need to take a look at the big job list which has been woefully neglected, get myself into gear and tackle some of it over the next couple of weeks.
I also need to work out a timetable for myself to get some crafting done as I have not touched anything since Andy retired. My quilt is still half finished and I have other things I want to do too.

.....and on that note I shall get off and go and whip up some batter for the Yorkshires and have a look at the beef.

Have a lovely day.
Sheila-x-

Home!!!

.....and we are home.
We had a nice time away and we absolutely loved our hotel at The King Arthur's Arms in Tintagel. The room we stayed in was huge and had everything in it you could have needed and even though it was a shower....and you know I love my bath....I was very taken with the wet room.
The bed was very comfortable but I had a slight issue with the way that it was facing and I couldn't settle very well at night.
Tintagel was as beautiful as I remember. Very busy during the day with people coming in to visit the castle and still at this time of year....lots of coaches. Night time was lovely though.....very quiet and peaceful.
We visited Boscastle a place we had last visited before the devastating flood 15 years ago and I was so happy to see it looking as lovely as it had then.
There was also a trip to Bude. What an absolutely beautiful place that was. I would like to go back and spend a bit more time there.
After breakfast on Thursday we decided we were ready for home although we should have been staying another night. With all the walking about I had had to resort to using my walking stick and my legs, back and shoulders were giving me such pain that I couldn't face walking anywhere else so home we came.
I am now catching up with laundry and later tonight we are off to the cinema to see the new Maleficent film.

Hope you are all having a lovely weekend.
Sheila-x-

Packed And Ready!!!

Well the case is packed and we are ready for off in the morning.
DD has just trimmed my hair and I am just about to go and have a good soak in a hot bath to see if I can chase away the lingering pain from the migraine that came out of nowhere yesterday.
I won't be able to blog while I am away so see you all when I get back on Friday.
Have a lovely week.
Sheila-x-

Rain, Rain, Rain!!!

Thank you all for your comments on my last post.

What a filthy day it is today.....absolutely thrashing it down with rain and quite windy.....I am having to put a coat on to nip across the yard to the tumble dryer. Luckily there is not much laundry to do as I am just washing some bits we need for our few days away.
Had to have a slight rethink on the packing because the weather forecast looks awful. The best day of the week will be the day we travel home...bloody marvelous. 
Perhaps we should have gone abroad....lol.

Hopefully DD won't starve while we are away as I have cooked all week and filled two shelves of the freezer with enough evening meals for her. All she will have to do is remember to take them out in a morning and just pop them in the microwave when she gets home.

I am so looking forward to this little break. The last time I went away for any length of time was when DD and I went to New York six years ago and Andy last went away in 2016 to visit his brothers grave in Johannesburg. The last time we went away together was I think 2004 when we went to The Lake District.

Just laughing at Andy who is at last attempting to put together a Meccano type kit of a Lancaster Bomber which I bought him two years ago. Lots of muttering and chuntering going on. He is just now putting it away before he takes a hammer to it he says....lol. He has absolutely zero patience.

Anyhoo I have a washing machine and a tumble dryer beeping at me so I'll go and sort them out.

Hope you are having a wonderful day.
Sheila-x-

Our New Routine!!!

It seems like Andy and I are already getting into a nice routine with our days together.
Monday is our day for a wander out and a bit of lunch or a coffee somewhere. We don't go far but it's lovely.
Today I am doing laundry and cooking a huge batch of chilli for tomorrow's tea and the freezer and he has done all the washing up for me and pottered around doing odd jobs like filling up the bird feeders and doing bits and bobs to the car....don't ask me what as the only interest I have in cars that they have four wheels and a cd player....lol.
If I can keep him busy I may not have to kill him after all....lol.
If we get a few nice dry days the garden path needs sorting out as with the heavy rains we keep getting it is now flooding regularly and if we don't want to paddle we have to walk on the lawn which is an absolute bog in wet weather. It's a job we can do together.
It's a pretty decent day today but with the odd shower of rain so I don't think we will be tackling it today.

I won't be seeing my Ruby now for a fortnight. She has dance practice and various other things going on. She's a busy girl.
I'll miss her so much. Roll on two weeks tomorrow.

Off for a cuppa and then I have to go back into the kitchen and do something with the huge cauliflower that's sitting in there. I'm thinking cauli in white sauce and then we can have some tonight with the lamb meatballs in gravy I made yesterday. The rest can go in the freezer.

Hope you are all having a lovely day.
Sheila-x-

A Bit Of Sun For Sunday!!!

For saying our weather forecast was for rain throughout the night....which we got....and rain right through until teatime today it's not a bad morning out there. It's quite windy but the sun keeps peeking through the clouds now and again to brighten things up.

We had a lovely time with The Doodles yesterday. It was lovely to catch up with DDIL as I don't actually see that much of her. Her work days are long and busy so when we drop Ruby off on Wednesday evenings at around 7pm she has probably only just arrived home and is ready to spend an hour with the girls before they go to bed.

I have finally persuaded Andy that 1pm is a good time for lunch on a Sunday. It's taken me forty odd years but I got there in the end....lol.

This afternoon I will read the papers and then I may well do some sewing as I haven't touched my quilt squares for a couple of weeks and I want to get on with it now.

Not much on tv that we would all enjoy watching so DD picked up two series of Happy Valley yesterday. Two episodes watched last night and so far so good. We'll watch some more later and then stop for Millionaire. I just love Jeremy Clarkson as host on it.

.....and that's about it for today.
I hope you are having a lovely weekend and doing some fun things.
Sheila-x-

Channeling My Inner Bisto Kid!!!

The smells coming from the kitchen today have got me sniffing the air like the proverbial Bisto kid.
I have pickled the red cabbage so there is still a faint smell of vinegar and there is also a beef stew simmering on the stove for our tea tonight......it smells gorgeous.
I decided to do the stew yesterday as it was just so cold.
Today it's not so bad but as the meat was out and defrosted we are going ahead with it.

DD had some wonderful news yesterday. She had applied for a new position within the place where she works and she has been offered the job. She will now be based in an office with occasional work outside rather than being out in all weathers.
She has loved the job she has been doing but with staff shortages it has become increasingly difficult to do her job as well as she would like.
She is looking forward to October 28th when she starts her new position.

I am looking forward to afternoon tea at the Doodle House tomorrow. I'll be baking some nice fresh scones to take with us as all of us Olivers are partial to a scone with some jam and clotted cream. Very naughty but very nice.....lol.

Not sure if there is anything planned for Sunday as yet. There is some beef in gravy that I can hot up to do a roast beef lunch which will make it a quick one this week so we will have time to go for a ride out if we feel like it. It will depend on the weather.....I've not looked at the forecast yet.

Hope you are all having a lovely day today.
Sheila-x-

A Productive Day!!!

Thank you very much for your comments yesterday. It was indeed a lovely day with my Miss Doodle.

I'm so happy to see that some of my favourite bloggers have taken to posting again.
Welcome back Jane and Suzanne.....you have both been missed.

I've had a good and productive day today starting off by pickling the bucket of onions Andy peeled for me and chopping up a huge red cabbage which has been salted and left to drain. That will be pickled tomorrow.
I really wish we ate more in the way of relishes and chutneys but we just don't any more so I don't get to have lovely cooking sessions making those now.

After that I was upstairs rooting out the old airing cupboard. A bag full of old towels has gone to the vets and one or two tatty duvet sets have been put by for covering car windscreens on frosty nights.
Duvet sets still in use have been folded neatly and put into one of their own pillowcases along with a matching sheet....much easier to pull one out now without disturbing everything else.
I still have the bottom of the cupboard to sort out and the sideboard on the landing but I feel like I have done enough for today....my back was starting to hurt and I didn't want to push it too far.

Can't remember if it's Channel 4 or 5 but there is a crafting programme on at 8pm tonight which I quite fancy watching.
Anybody else going to be taking a look?

Hope you have had a lovely day.
Sheila-x-

It's A Ruby Kind Of Day!!!

I do so love Wednesdays.
As usual Ruby will be here for her tea so there is a cottage pie in the making. I am just waiting for the potatoes to boil and it will be all ready to go into the oven when she gets here.
There is a lovely ritual when she gets home...racing up the path with a shout of...Ganma and straight into my arms for a huge hug then into the house to dump bags and coat, uniform off and into one of my t shirts before she even thinks of having a drink and telling me all of her news.
I love every teeny tiny second that she is here.

Andy has kept himself busy this morning going through mounds of paper work to sort out what needs keeping and what can be thrown away and he peeled the potatoes for me....I loathe peeling potatoes so I was very happy about that.
Tomorrow he will be cooking as I will be upstairs having a major sort out of towels, sheets and duvet covers etc and trying to restore some kind of order to the cupboard where they are kept.
There is also a sideboard on the landing which has become a dumping ground for anything that doesn't have a home of it's own so that needs sorting too. I'll enjoy that.
Once it is clear I will be mucking it all up again at the weekend when I want to fetch all of the seasonal decoration boxes down from the attic to have a good sort through those. Basically I just want to see what we are like for Christmas cards and wrapping paper so that I can gather new supplies if needed but if we have enough I won't be spending any money them unnecessarily.
I want to be totally organised this year.

Andy has gone to fetch Doodle out of school so I will go and mash potatoes, peel carrots and make some gravy.

Hope you are all having a wonderful day.
Sheila-x-

That Pie!!!

I just had to show you the pie I made for Andy's birthday.
It was a whopper and just hilarious with the bones sticking out of it.......

I have to say that it was very, very tasty. The recipe was followed to a 't' apart from the pastry which should have been ruff puff but Andy prefers suet crust.
If I ever made it again (which I doubt I will) there are some tweaks I would make such as replacing the haricot beans with extra veg as they just seemed a bit odd to me. The gravy in the pie as made to the recipe seemed a bit watery too so I thickened it with some lamb and mint gravy granules which worked a treat.
It was a great hit with the birthday boy and I am so glad I made the effort for him.

His first day of not having a working week to start yesterday and he dragged me all round the Wrekin.....farm shop, town and pub for a lunchtime pint and not a flippin' thing done in the house at all.
Day 2 and I have set him on peeling the sack of pickling onions I picked up yesterday. It's keeping him quiet....lol....apart from the sniffling as the onion fumes get at him.
I have only just started this week's laundry and am wishing the rain would go away as I have to keep dashing across the yard to fill and empty the dryer.
Andy went into town for papers this morning and says that the road has started to flood and it hasn't stopped raining since he got back so I can only imagine that they are getting worse now.

Starting to think a little bit now about starting some festive shopping so I must ask DDIL if there is anything the girls need or want. Ruby has told me a couple of things from her wish list but that is all I have at the moment to work on.

Well....that is another load finished drying so I will go and empty it out and put another load in.

Hope you are all having a good day despite the weather.
Those of you in areas predicted to have it really bad....stay safe.
Sheila-x-