Saturday, 22 November 2014

Experimenting in the kitchen.

(Twiggy's first ever attempt at pastry).

Well hello there, long time no see.  

I blame flippin Facebook and the fact I can't blog on my Kindle.  

Anyway I've fired up our ancient laptop and here I am. 

 So how have you been?

Not a lot to report from Twiggy Towers, still here despite new estate agent brochure, I think we are going to change agents soon as they are pretty ineffectual.

Still working at Twiglet's school, he's due to move up to middle school next September, I did sigh a lot while I was completing his transfer form, where on earth has the time gone?

Now here is something very lovely and exciting, my gorgeous niece's baby boy decided to appear 3 weeks early and what a total poppet he his.  

He is a lucky little boy to have such fantastic parents and Grandparents.  I can't believe old Twiggy is now a Great Auntie - blimey.
Here we are, having a snuggle!!

I am desperately searching for my crafting mojo, so if you find it post it back to me will you?
(I bought a baby sampler kit and haven't even started it yet!!)

My pal came over the other day and we got out our cross stitch that we haven't touched for ahem about a year, however, I'm hoping a bit of blog hopping and new interest in Pinterest might give me some inspiration.  Do you think I'll just look at pretty pictures and do nothing :)

With a view to motivating myself, I thought I might start doing more craft projects and blog them, so I have to finish them off !!

I have been playing in the kitchen recently and at my ripe old age made pastry for the first time, I've tweaked the recipe a bit as I used lard and marge initially and all I could taste was lard - urgh!  Today I've made some mince pies and jam tarts and some pastry for Mr Twigs to make a pie, but only used marge, so will let you know how that goes.

What are your tips for good pastry?  Any suggestions greatly appreciated.

I also roused myself enough to make 2 Christmas cakes last week.  They smell lush, I am feeding them with brandy every week as I do like a boozy cake!!

The slow cooker is back in use again, we had this scrummy lamb hotpot the other night, I blimmin love Winter a great excuse to have warming, comfort food.

Coming home from work to this was nearly as good as living at home when my lovely Mum used to always have something tasty waiting for us for dinner. (Notice I said nearly as good, our lovely Mums can never be bettered can they?)
Oooo crikey more baking, carrot cake and home made hob nobs anyone?
I promise this is the last food photo, hand made wholemeal loaf, super yummy!!
We had lovely half term hols at the back end of October, wasn't the weather brilliant?

We didn't manage a bumper crop of pumpkins like last year, but as you can see, we didn't do too badly.

Here are our Halloween efforts, traditional, Minecraft, Psycho (yes that pumpkin really does have a knife sticking out of it's head) , can you guess which of us, made which???
Here's the inevitable vomiting pumpkin :)  It's the first time I can remember sitting in the October sun in t.shirts to carve our pumpkins.
We caught up with our old mates, I love this bench our crazy boys are resting on!!
Took Twiglet and another pal to Kirklees Light Railway, top fun.

In fact we crammed an awful lot of fun into a week, it was great.

We even took Twiglet to Blackpool for the first time ever to see the illuminations, he loved it.
It amazed me that I was last there in 1982 and I swear apart from new lights and some lovely artworks it's just how I remembered it - tee hee !!
Here's a pic of the lovely old north Pier, I really want a Ventian double carousel like the one Twiglet had a ride on there, totally gorgeous.

Righto, that's me for now, I have a poorly boy full of cold on the sofa :( so off to tend to him and get ready for Strictly. 

I won't leave it so long next time, so my post won't be soooooo long :)

 I do like dark Winters evenings, any excuse to have our jimjams on, we managed it by 4.40pm lst night ;)

Take care

Twiggy x


Saturday, 20 September 2014

Hello strangers

Hi everybody.

Apologies for the absence the problem I have at the moment is I usually use my Kindle not the laptop and I can't use Blogger on there.

Also, I have tended to start using Facebook.

So here's a link if you want to come over there.  Facebook
Holiday cottage

Feel free to send me a friend request if you want to.

So what have we been up to, well we had a super holiday in Scotland, staying just across the road from the beach which was deserted all week.

The weather was very kind too, so Twiglet spent most of the week in the  sea.
Evening walk




 And a bit of cub fun this morning !!

We also recently went to Knight - Con - we are going to Geeks con tomorrow at the unearthly time of 9am.

Calling in at Grandmas for lunch, then Dinner at Nana's.

Mr Twigs and I are going to  poetry reading by the very lovely Simon Armitage tomorrow evening as part of the Wakefield Literary Festival. 

Flippin heck back to work on Monday for a rest I think.

Bye for now

Twiggy x

Saturday, 9 August 2014

This holidays we have mostly been........


Well not exactly what we had planned as my back went the second weekend of the hols, too much treecutting and allotment fettling I think.

 Honestly I should know better by now.  However, even though we've been home based for a couple of weeks, it's been so lovely and Twiglet is really enjoying chilling.

He has been in his pool everyday.  



We managed a trip out with friends to Pugneys and a very hot walk up to Sandal Castle, even the dog was knackered !!!

We've made bread, cake and a mountain of Smartie cookies.  

Bathed the pigs, much to their disgust.

Watched lots of films, especially Christmas movies for some reason.
Been for lots of walks.
Fed the ducks,  obviously.
Hmmmm Smartie Cookies.
We also had a visitor for a week Sammy the very cute guinea pig.



Visited Greenhead Park where Twiglet had a go at zorbing and tried out a few different bikes - top fun !!

I've learnt how to make very basic loom band bracelets and finished half  my cross stitch !!

We've read a lot and my good boy has been working hard at his writing practice.

My evening treat has been watching Vikings on Amazon Prime which I'm enjoying, I must be very blood thirsty, crikey it's gory, so I stitch at the same time and look away a lot.

So all in all a really nice few weeks.

Take care

Twiggy x

Monday, 21 July 2014

Schools out - pools out!!!


 The new pool is filled to the very deep brim, the gazebo is up and sun cream at the ready - hooray for the Summer hols !!!

6 weeks with my boy and 1 week with both of them when we go up to the beautiful Mull of Kintyre in August - yippee !!

As ever Twiglet is going to do the library reading challenge, I intend to read at least one book a week, I'm currently reading the Wrong Boy by Willy Russell and can't recommend it enough.

We've spent a fair bit of time at the lottie and will need to spend many hours there as the weeds are HUGE, I still have sore thighs from crouching and weeding on Sunday.

We've scoffed some lovely stuff that we've grown, gooseberries, strawberries, beans, peas, beetroot and potatoes so far!!

We have a lovely programme planned this week, including our first Summer hols car booty sale, trip around the chazza shops, visit to my lovely Mums and a morning out with my good pal C and her lovely boys who we haven't seen for ages.  I also intend to finish my cross stitch,  Twiglet and I have ordered a loom band kit and we are going o learn how to make some groovy bracelets.

Here' a photo of one of the pizzas Twiglet made for tea - yummy !!
Top fun, whatever you get up to enjoy !!

love

Twiggy x

Wednesday, 9 July 2014

Crikey, doesn't time fly?

Hello peeps

I didn't mean to leave it this long between blogs......

So what have we been up to, get yourself a drink and make yourselves comfortable.

Well you might have heard that Le Tour had a couple of stages in Yorkshire :) and I do believe the whole of Yorkshire turned out to watch it - yay !!

Festivities started on Friday night when the Emley Moor mast was lit up for two nights - awesome.  You could tweet and request colour combinations, I asked for bright pink and got it - fab !!!

Our photos don't do it justice, so have borrowed a couple too.

We had a lovely day on Saturday with my family celebrating my

lovely Mums birthday and Sunday saw us in the busy and most lovely Holmfirth.

Nice selfie!!
Here they come.

GIANT MIFFYS - I nearly fainted.
 Gorgeous homemade bunting and displays EVERYWHERE !!
 Ahh finally the cyclists.


Look at the crowds on Holme Moss, this is where we go to sledge in the snow!!!

                        Check out the official Grand Depart song, it really is lovely.

                             http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hilxQHMfJ-w

                  Friday night saw us at a Classic Car Show in Thornes Park, Wakefield.



 Hello, the lilies are looking good in the garden this year.
 The allotment is looking good, although we haven't had chance to go for a week and I'm told it's bursting with life and weeds !!!


We're off to lovely Filey for the weekend on Friday night, so busy busy.

I can smell the Summer holidays and can't flippin wait.  Will have lots of time to blog then.

Take care

Twiggy x

Saturday, 7 June 2014

What to do on a rainy Saturday??



( Look at this cheeky little gardening snail Mr Twigs found next to our front door this morning !!)

Make chilli jam - or in this case chilli dipping sauce, I changed the recipe slightly and it is quite runny !!

Anyway tastes great and the combo of garlic, chillies and ginger has really cleared my sinuses.

Went over to Huddersfield and bought this little lot for £3.50 from the market!! the peaches are called UFO or doughnut peaches and taste divine.

The tomatoes are 3kg bags at £1 each - blimey !!

Popped into here for some fish sauce, if I'd not been in a rush would definitely has a good look round as it is ace and sooooo cheap, 4 huge chillies for 34p, that massive bottle of fish sauce was £1.68 !!  love the fact it's called SQUID.
We had to get off for Twiglet's swimming lesson though, so a mad dash round.

What have you been up to today?

Twiggy x

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Well I"ve finally taken the plunge...................

After drooling over many blogs for months now I've decided to finally take the plunge, so here is my new dawn.
Hence the beautiful sunrise above as photographed by Mr Twiggy through our bedroom window. (I'm sure I'll be including a lot of his pics, hope he doesn't expect commision).

I love crafting and have ever since I was a little girl and spent hours playing with my mums button tin (which I've inherited) and amused my self by making dresses for my dollies - even though I'd cut their hair and given them green felt tip highlights. Punk Tiny Tears - I should have marketed this idea !!

Hope you enjoy my work as much as I've enjoyed others who are a daily inspiration to me.

I hope to share favourite blogs, books and anything and everything with you, so enough off my blithering on and watch this space...............................................