Mousetrap and other bits and bobs

It’s been a busy few days since my last post. I did have my lazy day though, on Saturday, as planned.

My Sundays are generally busier than Saturdays anyway. I sort the family’s washing and feed the washing machine constantly until it’s all washed and dried. I don’t have a tumble dryer, so in this weather it is a bit of a challenge! Hubby and I managed to fit a gym session in. I had also taken an enormous leg of lamb out of the freezer, so our daughter, plus Bumble, came over for a roast.

On Monday, my friend and I met up and went to Newton Abbot. We stopped on the way, at one of our favourite ‘breakfasting’ places before resuming our journey. Newton Abbot is a market town in Devon and we have been visiting for years now. But in recent times, it’s started to look a bit ‘down at heel’. If it wasn’t for the independent department store, Austins and a Hobbycraft shop, just outside of Newton Abbot,  I don’t think we’d bother. There has been talk of a regeneration of the town, but as always is the case at the moment, the council is cash-strapped.

Tuesday was a very nice day (not weatherwise obviously, haha!) I went to the hairdressers, popped into The Range to look at crafting bits, returned home and  tackled some of the ironing mountain. Then late afternoon, hubby and I drove through the wind, rain and sleet to Plymouth to see......

As soon as we returned from London and Witness for the Prosecution, hubby searched to see if there still any tickets for Mousetrap. We were lucky to get some cancellation ones in the stalls!  We stopped by Mum’s for a short visit and then made our way into town and had a lovely meal at Bella Italia, just around the corner from the Theatre Royal. The play was absolutely brilliant and I definitely recommend going to see it! A twist at the end too, as always with Agatha Christie.

Yesterday was a day of chores, along with a gym session, Bodybalance-flexibility. Hubby came along too, so we were both tying ourselves up in knots! I had planned on what we were having for dinner,but our daughter rang to say, did we want to meet her at the Cranberry Farm pub for dinner. She wanted to tell us all about her and Bumble’s day with the Blue Cross media team. They’re doing a feature on Bumble and her bucket list! We had a lovely meal, while she told us everything they had been up to, Bumble lay down on the floor....snoring!

Today, I got the housework chores out of the way and enjoyed a rather energetic Aquafit session. The music used for Aqua is always varied, Elvis, Stormzy, Ed Sheeran, the Weather Girls, Queen, to name but a few. I treated myself to a cappucino (skinny and decaf) afterwards, while I wrote my shopping list.

Blue Cross baking today is a new recipe, Mocha Loaf cake. It was a recipe I tore out of a Waitrose weekend paper. So I shall have to wait for the critics tomorrow to see what they think of it (there will be cocoa sprinkled on one the icing is completely cool).....

We’ve had lovely weather today, but it’s not to last. But enjoy it while it’s here, eh? The Pulmonaria, or Soldiers and Sailors as I call them, are starting to make an appearance in the front garden. Soon it’ll be awash with pink and purple!...

Well I’d better be off now to prep dinner. We’re having Chicken and Leeks in Blue Cheese sauce from Pinch of Nom, which we were going to have yesterday. Another new recipe, so we’ll see how it goes! I’ll let you know next time, so thanks for popping in, cheerio for now, Ann x

Another bloomin’ dismal day!

Another grey, damp, dismal day! I’m so looking forward to a crisp, cold, sunny day.....one day.

The past two days have been pretty busy. Thursday, I met my friend for our weekly catch up. We had a breakfast at the Fisherman’s Cott, which is situated in Bickleigh,  right on the river Exe....

The Cott, serves lovely food and is extremely welcoming of dogs (gravy bones in a kilner jar on the bar).  After our rather delicious breakfast, we went back over the bridge in the photo, to Bickleigh Mill on the other side. We had a mooch around there, lots of local crafts/gifts as well as the more well known Wrendale, Emma Bridgwater etc. I was very restrained and didn’t buy anything, just nice to window shop! On the way back to Exeter, we popped into a little farm shop and I bought some enormous pork chops for our evening meal. Well, for my hubby and son. I was good and had salad, as I had a big breakfast.

When home, I baked an Orange and fruit cake for Blue Cross...

while Karma took advantage of a very temporary sunny windowsill....

Yesterday was a very windy Blue Cross day. Lovely puss cats to socialise with. I know you shouldn’t have favourites, but everyone has and mine is a gorgeous black cat called Colin. He’s large, gregarious and playful, but is so gentle with a huge purr! I also made up three empty pens, ready for whoever comes next. I like to make the beds and hidey boxes really comfy. They must be so confused and scared when they first arrive, so the least I can do is ensure that they have a lovely squishy bed to curl up in.

So after quite a busy week,  I’m not doing much today at all. Hubby left at 6.30 this morning for work and won’t be home until about 9pm and my son is at his girlfriend’s parents (it’s his girlfriend’s 21st birthday celebrations). My plan is to pop out to the shops in a mo and then have a nice relaxing day! Perhaps I’ll go through some recipes for next week.

I hope you all have a lovely weekend, cheerio for now, Ann x

Saying goodbye to a fellow volunteer

Yesterday, about 14 of us from the Blue Cross paid our last respects to a wonderful volunteer. S was a Friday volunteer, who worked on reception and took phone calls. He had an amazing dry sense of humour and everyone loved him. It was a great shock to hear he had passed away, as no one knew he was ill, but by all accounts, his illness escalated very quickly. The funeral was held in the village where S lived and reminded me of the one in Vicar of Dibley. The small church was packed to the rafters with mourners, including his two beloved dogs. There were several eulogies read, including one from my daughter and her Blue Cross colleague. They both did so well, as it is a difficult thing to do, especially being two young ladies. I was so proud that they dug deep and managed to read their piece so well.  The wake was in the Parish Village hall and we were made very welcome.

Other things that have been going on in the last couple of days. I made a trip down to Plymouth to visit my mum, who hasn’t been so well. She was bright enough in herself and is waiting for various test results to come back and for some more appointments to come through.

I’ve been to Aqua two days running and I’m now feeling a bit achy! Still no pain no gain, haha!

Today is a morning of ironing while I wait for the window cleaner to come and then a trip into town. I haven’t been in for a couple of weeks and need to get my son’s girlfriend a 21st birthday present. A slow cooker of all things! I might treat myself to coffee while I’m in there.

This evening I just relaxing. The last two evenings I have been out to skittles and Aqua, so I’m putting my feet up tonight! Hubby and I will probably catch up on a Silent Witness.

 Well, my ironing board is calling me, so cheerio for now, Ann x

A big catch-up!

I can’t believe it’s been so long since my last post! But life just got in the way. I haven’t even had time to read your lovely blogs, let alone comment on them, so that will be something to do while Storm Dennis is doing his thing this weekend.

So what has been going on during the last three weeks? Well, apart from ordinary chores, there has been chiropractor, chiropody, sports massage and docs appointments. Nothing bad, just maintenance on my body. I was laid low with a fluey cold thing for a short time, a few days before my birthday. I slept for two days. I felt so much better for the rest, just in time for birthday celebrations,  which lasted several days.

Also my Mum isn’t well at the moment, which is a worry. She was taken into A&E on Tuesday evening and ended up spending the whole night in a corridor (with a load of others) as there were no beds. Fortunately my brother stays at Mum’s during the week, as most of the sites he works at are in the West Country, so he was with her for a lot of the time. She came home the following afternoon. She’s still not well at all, but has to wait for various test now.

But it hasn’t all been doom and gloom or mundane chores. So I’ll close with the nice things that have gone on.

Bumble’s birthday party/daughter’s housewarming went well. I made some vegan brownies to take, as some guests were vegan or dairy-free....

 Bumble was spoilt with lots of presents. She loves people and had a fab time. We bought her an antler to gnaw on. Someone gave her a lion mane as a joke present. She looked brilliant, as it was the exact colour of her fur! She so good too, you can put any hat etc on her and she doesn’t bat an eyelid!....

I made a Dorset Apple cake for Blue Cross. I should’ve taken the photo a bit later. I had only just put the sugar on the hot cake.....

My birthday celebrations started a bit before the actual day with my friend taking me out for lunch on the thursday. The following day, I went out for dinner with hubby, daughter (&Bumble), son and his girlfriend. We tried the pub by my daughter’s and it was lovely! Delicious food and they’re very welcoming of dogs. Definitely a place to eat again.

Hubby’s birthday present to me was a stay in London, to see Agatha Christie’s Witness for the Prosecution on the Sunday. Storm Ciara nearly scuppered our trip. Our trains were cancelled, so hubby ended up driving and as it was right in the middle of London, congestion charges were incurred as well as parking for 24 hours.

The play wasn’t held in a normal theatre, it was in County Hall, an actual court! You could book your seats to be in the jury, but I declined the chance of that! We’ve never gone to see a play and thoroughly enjoyed it. The end had quite a twist to it too.  County Hall is quite a spectacular courtroom and our seats were only two rows away from the stage.....

After the performance we had a lovely meal at an Italian restaurant, just across from County Hall. Beautiful food,  a couple of Witness for the Prosecution cocktails and a wander by the London Eye to walk off our meal.....

The following day, we visited the Imperial War museum. I hadn’t been there before and it was so interesting! Then it was back home, with Ciara still blowing a hooley. A hairy drive at times!
Once home, I opened my presents etc. I was thoroughly spoilt and my house looks wonderful with several surprise bunches of flowers.....

As for Valentine’s Day, we don’t go mad, we just give each other a card and hubby normally cooks a meal. This year he surpassed himself! Mushrooms stuffed with ricotta, mozzarella, Parmesan and tarragon, followed by pasta with chorizo, roasted peppers and parsley, finished off with homemade tiramisu....

(Back to healthy eating today and plenty of gym visits!)

So that’s me done! Storm Dennis has well and truly arrived. Apart from popping over to my daughter’s this morning (she only a 7 min car drive away) I’m not going anywhere. Hope you all keep safe during the storms, cheerio for now, Ann x

A bit of a bargain

I’d like to say that the last few days have been riveting, with lots of exciting news! But I would be telling porky pies, haha!

I enjoyed my day of crafting at my friend’s house on Thursday. No cardmaking for me, I was personalising some ‘pooch party bags’ for a birthday party my daughter is putting on (More of that on another post) But here is a sample of the finished bags. The Bumble bees representing her lovely dog.....

Blue Cross baking for Friday was an iced vanilla traybake, nothing fancy, but it disappeared very quickly nonetheless. It’s been very quiet in the cattery in the past few weeks, but we are expecting some in from another branch during this week. I love finding out what little characters we have in.

On Saturday, we had breakfast at our favourite farm shop and later went to Exeter City. It was a very uninspiring game 0-0 and I got so cold, the damp really ‘got into my bones’ even though I was wrapped up well.

Hubby left for work early on Sunday, so he saw to Karma and I had a bit of a lie-in! But not too much of one, I was at the gym by 8.20. It’s a nice feeling to have the day stretched out in front of you, knowing you’ve already been to the gym. I took a little trip to a country store to get some more bird food, as I wanted to lay on a fab feast for my feathered friends later in the afternoon for the RSPB Birdwatch. I walked in and was amazed by the amount of people in the store! It turns out they were having a flash sale on the clothing, amongst other things. Expensive brand clothing too. The flash sale was 50% off the last marked price. I saw a Barbour fairisle jumper I liked. Barbour is a make I never look at, as it is so expensive. However this jumper, originally £75(!!) had been marked down several times and I ended up paying £16.83 for it!......

Later in the afternoon, I sat down at my dining room table with a coffee and notepad, ready to count the birds for an hour. This year was a strange one. Although I have loads of sparrows in my garden, none ventured in yesterday. But for my hour, I did see starlings, blackbirds, goldfinches, collared doves, magpies, jackdaws, wood pigeons and a couple of herring gulls.

Today, I spent the morning in town with my friend and the afternoon doing my household chores. It’s still cold and damp here and the forecast is for snow on higher ground ie. Dartmoor and icy cold rain here... joy! Hubby won’t be home until about 1 am, so I’m hoping the weather holds off until he gets home.

So I’m off to get my jim jams on in a mo and settle down to watch Foyles War. Thanks for popping by, cheerio for now, Ann x

A dismal yesterday

What is it with this weather? Three days of lovely cold, frosty and sunny weather and now it’s foggy, cold, dismal and dank. There isn’t going to be any change for a few days either apparently and then the change is to rain!

Anyway, ignoring the weather, coming out of my house yesterday, I was greeted by a little patch of sunshine yellow in the front garden. It lifted my heart!....

I had already got 1 1/2 hours of ironing under my belt and I was now off to dog sit at my daughter’s for a little while. I was greeted with a waggy tail, made myself a cuppa and settled down on the sofa with my book. Bumble, my daughter’s dog, came up for a cuddle. I tried to get a selfie, but she’s a big dog and I’ve got short arms!.....

After my dog sitting duties were over, it was back home via the farm shop. I had a nice quiet evening, steak cooked by my son and a catch up of my magazines. Hubby arrived home from work well after I was in the land of nod.

Today, I’m meeting up with my friend, at her house and we’ll be doing some crafting, as well as putting the world to rights, haha! Oh, and did I mention cream cakes? There will some of those too :)

Hope you all have a great day, no matter the weather, cheerio for now, Ann x

This and that

A few pics of what has been going on in the last few days......

A vanilla sponge with chocolate filling for the peeps at Blue Cross. We had some sad news in the week, that one of the other Friday volunteers had passed away. The majority of the staff and some volunteers will be going to his funeral and my daughter & another colleague will speaking. He was a lovely man.

We’ve had some very cold icy weather, with a lot of fog on occasion. On Saturday morning, the ice on the windscreen took an age to melt away, even with the air con on. But the patterns of the ice were so pretty!

Sunday, we all did something a bit different, an escape room! Hubby had a voucher given to him for his birthday a couple of years ago! Fortunately it was still valid. We hadn’t done an escape room before, although hubby and I have watched the Crystal Maze many a time and it was very similar. It was great fun, but we were novices and didn’t do very well. We needed a lot of hints, but we worked well together and we all enjoyed ourselves which is the main thing. At one point, the clue was in a  small tunnel linking the rooms. Who went in the tunnel? Yours truly, the oldest member of the party, haha! We built up an appetite and had a lovely lunch at a restaurant on Exeter Quay. It was a fantastic day, lots of memories made.

The past couple of days have been spent doing the normal household chores, going to Aqua, skittles, going to the vet (Karma’s routine diabetic check) and spending an evening at my daughter’s. We do crosswords together, while her dog snoozes.

There are no recipe experiments this week, although I may try something different baking-wise for Blue Cross. Tomorrow, I’m hoping to go to the gym after spending a bit of time dog sitting at my daughter’s. The rest of my afternoon will be spent ironing.

I’m hoping the cold sunny weather will continue, we will see! Hope you all have a good day tomorrow, cheerio for now, Ann x