A busy day in the sun

Today has been glorious. My parents took DD out for the day to the local seaside to give hubby and me some peace and quiet. She returned covered in bracelets they'd won from the 2p machines in the arcade, full of ice cream and with a huge sun kissed smile. I am so please she'd had such a lovely day.
OH and I lounged around happily for a bit, then after a few hours found ourselves hopefully lost without DD getting into mischief. I ended up emptying my food cupboard and making a much needed list of things to use up. OH moved some furniture around and organised his Blu ray collection. Once we felt like we'd been a little bit productive we celebrated with another rest and while OH whiled away another hour on a video game, I got stuck into my current book.
At the moment I am reading Second Glance by Jodi Picoult. I am a huge fan of her books and have read the majority of them, this one seemed to have slipped past me as it is a few years old.
What are you all reading at the moment?
x x x

My return to the world of blogging

Well.... I think the picture above should tell you why I haven't been blogging for a while lol.
We are officially expecting bambino number 2 in August. And although the baby is happy and healthy and growing well, I am however suffering the joys of hyperemesis gravidarum. For those who haven't heard of it, HG is basically morning sickness on an industrial scale. Since Christmas I have pretty much been on bed rest and living on rich tea biscuits and banana milkshake (the only food and drink I could stomach). I have been lucky in that I have only been in hospital twice for dehydration which involved a night on a drip. But now as I have finally shaken off the worst of it I am feeling pretty low. My hair and skin is in a pitiful state after 3 months of poor nutrition and hydration, I am constantly catching colds (I swear I got one from watching someone sneeze on the TV at one point) and am finding it difficult to get back into eating.
But even through all this I am looking so forward to meeting our new arrival in August and now I am back on my feet I am desperate to start organising our home in preparation, so expect to see lots of organising posts on here in the coming weeks and months.
Today's task is making a food list of everything that is in our freezer and cupboards so I can work out we do and don't have in stock. Poor OH and DD have been living on microwave meals and processed junk so we all need some healthy nutritious foods to boost us up again.

I've missed you guys x x x

Blogging.

Apparently, just so you all know, laptops do not like cereal!!!
And helpful toddlers giving your laptop a drink when your not looking will result in more hassle than this poor blogger can handle. But Hooray I am now back!
I will be trying to catch up with your blogs as quickly as I am able so please bear with me.
x x x

On my mind/Declutter challenge

This post is a double whammy to get me back into blogging. Firstly it is my On my Mind post for Down to Earth's blog. And secondly its my weeks efforts for A Thifty Mrs's 30 Day Declutter Challenge.
So here is my first bag of items for the charity shop, including books I've read, clothes I don't wear, shoes that make you bleed after 3 steps and plenty more besides. The Thrifty Mrs challenges is only supposed to be 3 items per day in November, but once I started I just couldn't stop so I'm tweaking the rules to a minimum of 3 items decluttered a day.
Also on my mind is my brother Ian. He ran the Great South Run for the first time last weekend, 10 miles in 1hour 46 minutes. I am so proud of him, and he raised just over £500 for a local children's cancer ward.

x x x

I'm Back!

This seem to be calming down here thankfully. OH is feeling a bit better in himself and found some mojo again. So yesterday I had some free time for the first time in ages :)
And today I get some more. Whoop Whoop.
Last night DD went to bed early after a long busy day.


So I busted out 3 sheets of the vintage paper I brought in this post. And got to work cutting up into small squares and strips. Once I'd filled a mason jar with the scraps I was ready.


Meet chair makeover number two! I've ripped out the old saggy seat and cleaned off the frame.
I am now, as you can see, trying my hand at some decoupage. I've been watching the new Kirsty Allsop series and just knew I could do it better lol!
I really please with how it looks after its first layer but it definitely needs a second layer in a few spots.


So watch this space :)

My second home sweet home.

This is is indeed my second home at the moment. OH is a bit on the poorly side at the moment with a nasty bout of depression. So its Mummy to the rescue. I can feel myself stretching and stretching at the moment but I'm sure it will all settle into a routine soon.
So expect lots of shop based blogging in the future and my butcher book project taking a slow down.
The shop itself is in a bit of a state, I have mountains of paperwork to sort out and who knows what is lurking in the store room!!! It would seem issues have been mounting up against poor OH for a little while.
Prayers and good wishes are very welcome
x x x

Showing off me shopping

It's been a while since I brought anything worth showing you lovely blog readers. I don't think you'd be very interested in my food shop would you? Probably not.
So above is one of new blue and white cups. Isn't it pretty? I picked up a set of 5 of these for just £2!!!! The charity shop was closing down for the weekend so they could redecorate, everything was 40% off or better.
' I really like the way the pattern continues inside the cup as well. It's a new idea to me.
Close up of the saucers and side plates in the set. The set is called "Coaching scenes". And I am so in love with them it actually hurts lol.
I'm really hoping I can find a blue and white teapot soon and start serving tea to people when they come over. I love being a hostess :) I'm already looking out for pretty teaspoons to add to them.

And last but not lease, to make up for a few days non blogging, here is a whole host of tips!#

Tip 1; Texture Wise

I know that I have already warned you in an earlier leaflet, to use a really sharp knife when you trim the surplus pasty from a pie dish. It also helps if you hold the knife at an angle - the handle under the plate and the blade sticking away from the pastry. This gives a chamfered edge to the pastry and prevents it from shrinking during cooking.


Tip 2; Texture wise;

Many people tend to forget the importance of texture when they are planning a menu. How boring a meal becomes when all - or nearly all - of its textures are the same.
For instance the following menu is far to porridgey in consistency; Cream of chicken soup, rissoles, creamed potatoes, turnip puree, gooseberry fool. There is nothing in that meal that needs chewing. In fact it would be an ideal menu for someone who has just had all his teeth out!
A clear soup, followed by steak, chips and crisp salad followed in turn by a fruit pie, would give you a good selection of textures. But work some out for yourself.


Tip 3; Mexican Chocolate

Blend together a little black coffee and hot chocolate. Sweeten to taste, before topping each serving with a blob of whipped cream.