Where did 2017 go?

As I sit here vegetating on the settee I am thinking about Burns Night - January 20th in our case. We haven't even had our Christmas dinner and January is on my mind. I guess this is part of being an organised type of person - or a mad woman? We have had another successful year here in the village with the various activities, workshops, walks, fund-raisers and festivals. I have been involved with. We have made a healthy profit, secured a couple of grants and give-aways which mean the hall is being re-decorated as we speak and new carpets on order.
We will be planning 2018 in the New Year, developing what has worked and trying out new ideas we are toying with. As always, all we do is a team effort, each of us bringing some different aspect to the grand plan. I always say treat people as you would like to be treated - it's all down to how we are with others - and other people have helped us take our efforts to a level where we have received recognition.

As ever I have plans for the new year - will they work? will they happen? I'll know this time next year!

Watch this space.

Happy Christmas and best wishes for a healthy, happy 2018.

The Archers

I've been quite busy of late, what with this that and the other but before we know it, ABC Wednesday is back for another round....16 would you believe. Basically a group of us post a weekly contribution with a particular letter of the alphabet. The group is scattered all over the globe and has been going for 8 years. I am humbled to think I started it off all those years ago and it is still going strong to this day, now with Roger  at the helm and a great team. myself just being part of the team.  Friendships have come about this project as well as visits and meet ups. I sometimes have a theme for each round - last round was based on my garden this round however I am just going to see what pops up!

A then has to be The Archers. I listen to this programme every day. We don't watch any soaps on TV, this is the nearest to it I suspect. We live in a farming community and I can identify with some of the issues. I listen to Radio 4 most of the time - I don't  like a quiet house and some music stations have a lot of adverts between the songs. Definitely a Radio 4 fan and most certainly an Archer's fan!

This is how the BBC introduce the programme.

First of all, what exactly is The Archers? Well, it's a radio soap opera set in the fictional English village of Ambridge. It aims to provide essential drama from the heart of the country.
So what does that mean you'll be hearing? Ambridge is a twenty-first century village, with all the pressures of modern rural life. You'll become involved in the characters' personal and business struggles, their love affairs and all sorts of village activities from saving the local shop to the annual fete. There are plenty of lighter moments too.
These characters then... Several of the main families are farmers. At the heart of the programme are David and Ruth Archer at Brookfield Farm. David once had cause to regret employing a handsome cowman, but they're pretty stable nowadays.
Their cousins Pat and Tony Archer farm organically at Bridge Farm. That's a dairy farm as well, but they also keep pigs and grow vegetables. They sell their own yogurt, ice cream and cheese.
At the opposite end of the farming scale are well-off Brian and Jennifer Aldridge at Home Farm, which is the biggest in the village. That little boy who lives there is Brian's son from a torrid affair. When his mistress died, amazing Jennifer agreed to take Ruairi in.
The Archer family is related to the Aldridges, and to several other Ambridge families, including the Hebden Lloyds - she runs a riding school and he's a vet.
If that all sounds a bit posh, there are lots of less well-off characters too. Most of them live and work in and around Ambridge - on the farms, in the local pub The Bull, at the village shop, at Grey Gables hotel or St Stephen's church.
Those sons of the soil the Grundys are particularly good value, both for the scrapes they get in and the fact that Emma Grundy isn't Ed's wife, as you might think, but the ex-wife of Ed's brother Will.
You can look up all the current characters in the Who's Who section of the Archers website.
By now, I expect you're keen to know how you can hear the programme, and it's very easy to start, because the episodes are only thirteen minutes long. They're broadcast on BBC Radio Four every day, Sunday to Friday at seven p.m. And they're repeated the next day at two p.m. - except on Saturdays.
Or if you want to catch a whole week's worth in one go, there's an omnibus edition, on Sunday morning at ten a.m.

Over on Facebook there are a few Archer's groups, I am a moderator  of the Ambridge Addicts Group. We discuss current story lines etc. and all in all often the drama far surpasses anything which occurs in the programme.

Crafty matters.

 

I am full of good intentions.........so when I saw this new magazine I decided to take advantage of the introductory offer. I have a couple of sewing machines and thought this would be the gateway to great projects. After receiving 12 issues I decided to stop my subscription before the price rose....why you may ask? Because I hadn't opened the 12 issues I had received. So today I have opened them all and filed them away. Each issue contains instructions to:-

 

1. Make a square for a seaside themed quilt.

2. Make a home themed object for the house.

3. Make a gift.

4. Recycle something into a gift/product.

5.Sewing skills

6.Stitch school

7. Templates for the various projects.

 

As I have 12 issues it would seem I have enough sewing projects to see me through the year. Full instructions come with each of the projects so we'll see how I manage.

 

I also received various tools of the trade to help me along. The scissors I will keep for my sewing projects - all too often they end up in the general kitchen tat drawer never to be seen again!

I have a lovely sewing box my sister in law bought me years ago - I will dig it out and organise everything.

We wont be doing any further house decorating until after February as we have our holiday to pay for which will use a fair amount of our hard earned money - we only have two bedrooms to decorate which is quite a small project compared to some of the work we have done over the past couple of years. However I am going to beaver away with the de-cluttering and organising of the books and craft materials.....I definitely have sufficient materials to keep me going for the next year so I am setting myself a target of using everything in the house rather than buy anything new....so I am organising for Britain! I feel copious lists coming on!

I was lucky enough to win this book, kindly donated by Maria It is absolutely bursting with ideas which I am going to try. Again, making full use of what we have in the house......and that's quite a lot of stuff!

I am not one for making New Year promises but as the month is panning out I have my cookery challenge and now my organising project to keep me busy - ideal tasks for a wet day....
oh and did I mention I have enrolled on a pottery class?

Watch this space!

A is for Adventure.....Cooking Adventure.

ABC Wednesday - Round 14, how time has flown. For this round I am going on an adventure - A cooking adventure. Each week I will cook a recipe I have never cooked before. Conditions of the recipe must be no fancy ingredients I have to travel the globe for, must be healthy and tie in with my Slimming World programme, be the time of food both Jon and I like ie not arty farty and I must have the recipe in my collection of recipe books/slimmingworld magazines.

Over on facebook my longtime blogging pal Crystal Jigsaw has started a new group.
A small, friendly group where we share what we're having for tea (or lunch, brunch, breakfast, supper, and those snacks in between). Lighthearted, fun, informal and a place to dip in and out of whenever the mood takes us. Share recipes and suggestions, tips and advice, but strictly no lecturing on what's good for you and what's not.

So I have decided to link all together - everybody is welcome.
I will also have an independent reviewer - my neighbour Emma. I always pop in to her house when she's at work and let the dogs out for a run and leave her light on as it's dark when she gets in from work - so I will have her tea ready now each Tuesday night.

To kick start the first week then it is A for Analucian meatballs. I looked through a few of my recipe books and whilst there was countless renditions of Avocado(very high in calories) and  Aubergine recipes(Jon doesn't like it)  I found this recipe in the August/September issue of Slimmingworld magazine.


Analucian meatballs

 
 
600g pork mince
small handful fresh coriander finely chopped
1 tsp ground cumin,
1 tsp ground coriander,
1 tsp ground nutmeg,
1 tsp ground cinnamon,
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped,
salt and freshly ground black pepper,
frylight,
small handful fresh flat leaf parsley finely chopped for garnish. 

Note - M&S spice jars are big enough to fit a teaspoon inside to ensure accurate measurement of spices.

1. 

Put all except parsley in bowl, season and mix with fingers until well combined. chill for 1 hour. 

Roll into bite size balls and put in frying pan sprayed with fry light over medium heat and stir fry for 6-8 mins until browned all over and cooked through, 

I cooked off a sample and it tasted very nicely spiced.

 

 Whilst the recipe says to serve with tomato sauce. (Tomato Sauce = 400g passata, 1 tsp smoked paprika, 2 tblsp tomato puree and 1 deseeded finely chopped red pepper, place in pan and bring to boil, reduce heat to low and cook 12-15mins or until pepper has softened. Whizz until smooth and serve with fresh parsley.)

I will be serving mine with this

with lots of extra vegetables.

So, A in my great Adventure is Analucian meatballs. Next week it may well be Baked sardines with potatoes!

Watch this space.
To join in the ABC fun follow the link in my sidebar and if you feel like sharing our fun group on facebook follow the details from Crystal's blog.

End of an era.

Back around  1990 we moved from a town to a village on the North York Moors, just 9 miles from Whitby. This magazine seemed appropriate.
I have had a subscription on and off for the best part of 20 years!!!!
For quite some time I feel that the magazine is really focussed on wealthy individuals who can :-

• spend £54 on a metre of fabric from which they will make bunting
• renovate a house with a massive budget
• have no clutter
• pay through the nose for a piece of tat
• spend on an outfit what we would spend  on food in a month

Whilst I always enjoy the arrival of the magazine last month when I read the October issue I realised, once I head through the entire magazine, it was in fact the 2012 issue which I had picked up by mistake from the piles I have in every room of the house! Yet nothing had really changed.......apple recipes, seasonal baking ideas, what was going on in the henhouse, a small holding report and an article from a celebrity who enjoys the countryside.

Reading Jo's blog here made me think. I vow every year to do more sewing. I never get round to it - but this magazine could be a good starting point.
This morning I stopped my Country Living subscription and started one for Stich and Sew. Now the nights are drawing in I will endeavour to learn a few more skills and make use of my sewing machines.

Watch this space!

B is for Bing!

 

 

Here he is.....this morning.

His brain is like a huge sponge absorbing new experiences and happenings

every minute of the day.

 

The name Bing is not as you may be thinking after Bing Crosby, but after a famous manufacturer. 

Bing is a German carburetor manufacturer now named BING Power Systems GmbH located in Nuremberg. The company was founded in 1866 and has a tradition of 75 years of carburetor development and production. Over the years BING took over companies like Erich und Grätz, Fischer-Amal, Pallas, Encarwi , FHN. In 2001 the company S.U. ( Skinner Union ) Birmingham was taken over by BING Power Systems GmbH.

 

Over the next few weeks my ABC Wednesday meme will be based on our little man.

My regular readers have grown to love this cute boy and I make no appologies for photographing him constantly - he is such a BEAUTY!

 

As if by encouragement and fate I have also discovered how to update photographs onto my blog straight from my new mobile phone........so the little man is constantly being captured on the hour every hour! lol......

wanna see some of today's session?

Oh go on then! lol!

 

 

 

 

For more ABC fun follow the link in my sidebar.



Meet Bing!

This is our new boy – we bring him home next Saturday. We decided to be pro-active rather than reactive with our thinking.
Both Elsie and Freida are not young anymore and whilst they have many years ahead of them we felt it would be good to introduce a puppy. We have always had rescued dogs but this time we decided we wanted to be part of the puppy’s development – both physically and emotionally.
We have been looking for a while and knew we would sense when the right one came along – and he did today.
We had planned to look at 3 pups in various places Northallerton, Bradford and Lincoln. We didn’t get past Northallerton. The parents of the litter showed great calmness and tranquillity and the pups were free to explore and play – which they did with confidence.
Freida LOVES other dogs and we feel she will be a great mother to Bing. We feel she will form a bond and will be a good companion.
We decided we had to find a German name for new boy on the block, so as we were having lunch Bing Crosby came on the radio singing “White Christmas”. I said the name “Bing” to Jon who said it was perfect as Bing are a German carburettor manufacturer! Well what do you expect from a precision engineer! lol!
I am warning you well in advance my blog will be displaying ENDLESS photo and stories of Bing the new Nesbitt German Shepherd boy – so watch this space and please don’t yawn too loudly! We don't want Bing’s sleeping sessions being interrupted!

Bing with his brothers and sisters (he is at the top – noticeable because of the little white patch on his nose.



Hot off the press - Bing tonight with his mum and brothers and sisters. (The large white dog is an older brother - mum's last litter, she is being speyed when the current litter leave for their new homes.

Quick!

Every morning when I let the hens out there is a quick run over to the breakfast, always first to the feeding dish is Eva, closely followed my May.






At the moment we can tell how cold the night is going to be by the time the hens go into the henhouse - currently we have a Rotation of sleeping places.

Initially Olwyn was settling down with Bev, Mabel and Ernest.

After a few minutes however she changed her mind and headed towards the other end of the henhouse to settle down with Eva and May.

Ernest had a ponder but settled back with his flame Mabel and Bev.

Notice their feathers are coming back.

Due to technological hitches I was unable to post last week, so this covers my Q and R in my ABC of life with the Nesbitt Chickens.

For more ABC fun follow the link in my sidebar.

Plans for Saturday!

Jon has had a few days off - whilst we have been sorting out the porch (nearly ready) he has been pottering in his shed with the motorbikes. The weather seems to be quite mild today so we are going out for a tootle. Pat has the kettle on so Yorkshire Dales here we come!

Watch this space!

Out and About......with an Ornithologist

DIY update..The kitchen is awaiting the last few pieces of granite to be cut and the floor tiles to be matched.....we heard our new fire will be in the store this week so we will be working on the hall and lounge very shortly......in the meantime.....the weather forecast seems to be pretty bleak for the future months - winter is going to be cold, very cold and snow is predicted. This doesn't really bother us as we are keen to put the Rayburn through its paces....and hopefully downstairs will be complet by Christmas...watch this space I'll keep you informed.

I don't think we'll  be going out much on the motorbike as the weather is not biker friendly but somewhere out there the weather will be suitable for a bike adventure and I discovered such the other day.
This is the blog of an artist and her new husband (indeed only married a few days ago) on their honeymoon - a bike adventure to Alice Springs. Bridget is an artist and her drawings are fantastic!
I will be following their adventure with great interest - I can certainly empathise with them, so why not pay them a visit and follow too!

By the look on Bridget's face I am sure we will be in for a fun ride!
For more ABC Adventures, visit the link on my sidebar.

E is for......electrical stuff!

Well, it is the 16th today - the kitchen is being delivered in 10 days time. The plasterer is booked for the week commencing 29th August - by which time all the electrical work needs to be completed, the current units removed, the door fitted and the sink moved. If I say the list quickly it doesn't sound so bad - but yes, there is still stuff to do, much is totally out of my control. However - one thing I can do is, once the units are removed I CAN remove the tiles........ (hmmmm !)
Jon has been really busy, but this afternoon we have been out looking for lights - and we have bought some, ready to be fitted. Jon, bless him, did explain about the transformers (I thought these were some sort of toy my nephews played with - robotic vans etc) and to be honest he may have well explained the operstions of robotic super power for all the good his explaining did. I don't know what it is about explanations - totally above my head, but with Jon being 5' 11" and me being 5' 1" this is to be expected, nay celebrated!
Having such fantastic blogging friends out there who have been through the kitchen experience, it is great to feel encouraged, nay inspired by such people, for instance Kath - you can read all about her fantastic transformation  Here .
So..........let the work continue and progress begin!
Watch this space!

Pottering!

A whole week since i last rambled here – but believe me we have been busy!
The Royal Wedding – I even put the flag out for the binmen! lol! (refuse collectors to our US friends!) The local council worked as normal so I gave them a couple of my sandwiches made specially for the day. Salmon & Cucumber and Roast Beef & Horseradish. Some neighbours popped in and we had Pimms & lemonade – how sophisticated I hear you comment! I thought the whole event was quite spectacular!

 
 
On Saturday we had the perfect excuse for a tootle over the Yorkshire Dales on the motorbike as we had to deliver an order to one of Jon’s customers. We travelled via Bedale, Leyburn, Hawes to Kirby Lonsdale and home via Harrogate. A great day!


On Sunday we tootled over to Grosmont Station. There is a gala on at the moment, so it was great to see some of the all time favourite steam trains – including Sir Nigel Gressley. Jon stood on the footplate when he was 10 years old so it brought back many memories.


We had been very busy in the garden that morning – the size of the bonfire indicates the amount of garden pruning we did!
 

Yesterday we spent more time in the garden but had another tootle out in the afternoon to buy a new radiator for the snug. It will be fit this week, along with the carpet.
Oh and guess what? I am off to see Take That on May 28th!
So that is what I have been pottering with – do you potter?
For more ABC fun – follow the link in my sidebar!

Downshifting Week

We have had a hectic few days – Friday was quite a day in itself. Our very good friends Keith and Dorothy came for lunch and we had a wonderful time.
No sooner had they left we had a visit from another really good friend Tracey Smith, founder of National Downshifting Week.
We have known Tracey for many years, it was great to catch up.

Tracey has written an excellent book and has left me a copy – which I am going  to give away – I have read the book and feel the only thing to do is to share so somebody else benefits from the wealth of information and ideas. Just leave a comment and I will draw names

Memory Lane

 

 

When I was stripping away the wallpaper yesterday I came across this piece of wallpaper. It was the very first design we used in what was then, our new home - twenty years ago. The previous owners used our now snug as a dining room. The carpet was a navy blue and I used this on the lower part of the walls with a navy and claret floral design above.

 

I also came across this carpet - the very best that money could buy. Again, some twenty years ago. I bought this when I was "acting" deputy headteacher for a few terms - the rise in my pay was put away and this is what we bought with it. An accident from our border collie Tess stained the carpet and despite endless treatments and cleaning the stain remained. I vowed then I would never spend such a great amount on carpet again - or at least one which would not clean up!

 

Well as you can see the stripping of the walls has finally finished and my preparation work for the plasterer has now finished. Jon now needs to do some door furniture stuff, put some light switches in and remove the radiator. The plasterer came last night to size up the job and he will be coming towards the end of next week This gives us a week then! Wayhay!

 

The room seems much bigger without the cupboards – so we have decided not to put them back – we will find somewhere else for them to go. For now I am using a table from the lounge to stand the TV on.

I must say I am sleeping well – like a log  . Fortunately the amount of preparation in the snug is the most we will have to do downstairs as the remaining rooms have all been plastered since we moved here, nevertheless there is still plenty to do.

Following the problems I had loading pictures the other day I am now using Windows Livewriter – much more reliable!

K is for……………………………..

Kathryn yes our very own Chrystal Jigsaw!

Author of.....Discovery at Rosehill!

If you enjoy suspense, mystery and nail biting excitement (well you must do - you ARE reading my blog!) this is a must!

From opening the first page this book drew me into it's deep dark spell and kept me captivated right throughout to the final words on the final page..... and to think it was penned by someone I know!

Having read Kathryn's blog for quite a few years there were elements I recognised/associated with - the house, the setting, the border collies this set the scene for an amazing script....but nothing could have prepared me for the journey I, the reader was about to take!

Fancy a read?
Form a queue!

Post 200 - A giveaway and DIY Day 1!

We started on the first part of the Kitchen DIY today. As the building work must take place first we had to prepare the space for a doorway to the snug....so this

and this....

 

became this.

We started at 10 am and finished around 4pm! Needless to say we are very tired but enjoyed every minute!

As I have mentioned previously, all the wooden units will be utilised elsewhere in the house.

So post 200 eh? I had to set up this blog when my previous one developed problems on a big scale - I had about 900 + posts over there so I have been around quite a bit! lol!

To celebrate I am having a giveaway - I have a number of items - so if you would like to take part, just leave a comment. 

I wont be blogging a great deal over the next few days - but will be back with more pictures!

Watch this space!

Weekend wandering!

We were out on Aga business today. We thought we had it all sorted really.......we would trade in our current Aga for a reconditioned electric one! Then...................I was doodling about on the laptop and I came across an Aga dealer offering a brand new one at a competative price - so competative it was cheaper than a reconditioned one! We decided to have a drive to Catterick and have a close look at a reconditioned one.
Whilst we were out that way we popped in to see Pat and The Farmer for a coffee! What a lovely day we had. Jon and the Farmer were having a deep discussion about Agas - at one point Jon was on the floor with his head practically inside the Aga! Pat and I were enthusing about the joys of chicken keeping (see Pat's chickens above)

I have the feeling we will we popping in again! Pat and the farmer live so near to a popular biking road we use often and it always nice to know a place where we can stop and warm up!
Yes a great weekend!