General Chat

Morning All
I have just opened the curtains and it is a horrible dark wet morning. I am watching a rather lovely programme on BBC2 Wild Tales from the Village. Its really very good.

Stirrups looks a lovely place for Pauls friend to have her wedding. I can imagine in the summer time the gardens would be lovely.

Merry Christmas to you too Ann(Glos :-) )

What a pity Franks team lost yesterday. He would have been disappointed but Im sure he enjoyed just being there.It will have been a day to remember :-D

My BIL Larry is 70 today.I must send him a message.

I think I might just go to Rushden Lakes in a bit ,and make sure I get there before the shops actually open.That way I will hopefully get a parking space right next to M&S.

Hope you find that book Ann and that it hasn't vanished like your stick did!!!
Chris is icing thw Xmas cake now ,so its probably a good idea that I do go out :-D

Back later.

Morning Jane and all,

Seems like the weather is the same here Jane wet and blowing in the wind and grey skies right the way around.

Ann in Glos a very Merry Christmas to you and a happy new year for 2019. x

Happy Birthday to Larry. I hope its a good one. <3

Now I wonder where you put that book Ann. I hope you find it unlike the stick........
You'll probably find it when you're looking for something else as thats what usually happens to me. Perhaps you'll find the stick instead!

Must cook my cake today as I have usually done it by now by the end of November. The rings took a lot of time this year.

I bet Frank will be pleased t get his pc back in proper working order with his keys. He's been having a lot of trouble with them for a long while now. Hope you had a good day yesterday Frank.

Afternoon All,

It's dull again here but I think they have forecast a bit of sun tomorrow in these parts.

Happy Birthday to Larry for his 70th! I hope you get a good parking spot Jane. I have to plan when I go now because of parking close to places because of my knees.Some car parks are so big it means most of the parking close to the store is reserved for the disabled and parents with children though. Does Chris do a different icing design on the cake each year? I used to enjoy that part. I did a little hill one year and put a plastic santa sledge on it and little fir trees. My first OH nearly broke his teeth trying to bite through the hill icing as it was so thick!! :-)

I watched that programme too in bed Jane, about the animals in a french village. I loved it! :-D :-D

We stayed in for lunch today as we didn't want to get up early enough to beat it being busy. We had something very easy.........fish fingers, mash and mushy peas!! lol. I haven't had fish fingers for ages and found some frozen mash in the freezer that I bought to try out and to keep for OH in emergencies. I try not to eat much potato myself, but it was really nice.

I found the book! :-D It was his Non League Football Directory, so it was a good job I found it as he has all of them going back 40 years since they started.

Mel, your kitchen will be smelling nice baking your Christmas Cake.

I'd better try and clear some more of the surfaces in here as I am still trying to make room to do some painting.

Cakes in and I just have to wash up the bits from that and then I am going to corn the chickens as its got so dark here. Then I may make some pastry and do some sausage rolls and a few mince pies. We have eaten the others I made the other day.

I have put new batteries in my sets of tiny lights but I can't get them to come on now. How did you do it Ann?

Afternoon all,

Dreary old day here i don't think it's stopped raining all day and we've needed the lights on because it's so dark .

Oh thanks Mel i'm sure the Elf would love a new hat ,i'll get the measurement round his head .
Today he moved all the baubles to the bottom of the tree :-D
He goes home on Christmas eve Santa picks him up and i think son and DIL will be quite pleased .

Anne the three little ones believe in Santa ,Jake is 13 so he knows now and Chelsea is 11 and i think she knows really but she's good and hasn't spoilt it for the others .
Do you feel better today ? hope that sore throat is better .

Did you manage to find a parking space Jane ? i bet the shops have been heaving today
Happy Birthday to Larry for his 70th i hope he's enjoyed his day.
Did the cake get iced ? i haven't made one this year we find it lays very heavy and gives us indigestion now .
Hows the cough today ?

Ann that's good you found the book as he's got quite a set of them over the years hasn't he .
I love fish fingers but they have to be the cod fish fingers not the ones with any sort of fish in them .
Have you felt ok since your bad night ?

I cooked my Gammon today and also made a nice stock from veg and chicken thighs ready for my gravy ,the batter puds are all done and in the freezer and tomorrow i'm cooking the two turkey crowns then i can slice them so we'll have one on Christmas day and the other cold on boxing day ,i did that last year and it did help to have the oven clear for cooking the pigs in blankets ,the stuffing and the roast potatoes and parsnips .
I did two trays of roasties last year as the children love them ,so do i :-D

Oh I meant to add Happy Christmas and New Year to AnninGlos I had to post as the phone rang so sorry I didn't add it to the last post :-

We're having sausage ,beans and mash tonight nice and easy .

Homemade sausage rolls and mince pies don't last long with a man in the house do they Mel. They soon polish them off.

I didn't realise my lights retained their timing from the previous year and that I hadn't quite remembered the times, so they weren't coming on or going off when expected and so I'd switched them off again. Eventually I just left them switched on at the switch to see what happened. They did come on and go off on their own then, but 10 mins later than I expected which is why I thought they weren't working and switched them off at the switch!! Just put them on and leave them 24 hours Mel and see what happens. Hopefully they will be fine like mine.

Did you see we'll be able to watch Delphine and Mr Newbold tonight!

Mandy it's lovely when little ones still believe in Santa so hopefully Chelsea will keep it going for them. I had to do that with my brother and sister. I bet they are getting so excited now! That's a good idea to do the two Turkey crowns at once. Oven space is short as you say. Home cooked crunchy roasties are irresistible aren't they and I always have quite a few at Christmas. I'd love my parsnips to be crunchy too but they never are. I've read about rolling them in semolina and roasting them but haven't tried that yet. I always mean to try it a few months before Christmas and forget. :-S One of the carveries does them in honey this time of the year, but we hate the smell of them and don't have any. I shall do my Gammon tomorrow as OH has a tradition of having it with pickles on Xmas Eve. I like it while it's still warm in a sandwich. I do feel a lot better today thanks, but haven't fancied eating much since, just some lunch both days, so maybe it was a bug. There seem to be so many around at the moment.

Afternoon All
It is still horrible outside. Been like it all day. Yes I got a parkng space no bother.Normally M&S opens at 10.30 on a Sunday bit for some reason today no-one was allowed in until 10.45. We were all stood in the drizzle :-S I didn't get much just some bits and bobs food wise and 6 bottles of wine.

I have just sent another video from H&G.. I was wrong in thinking the last place was Tri,I think that was actually an airbnb. This place now is the posh place where they will be for Xmas. It looks flpping amazing.

So Elf will be getting his new hat :-D. If he is going home tomorrow Mandy you won't need to think of anything else naughty he can get up to :-D

I have cooked my Gammon too today.It is a very small one,but there seemed no point in getting the usual bigger one as it is just us 2 to eat it.

Thanks for Larry's birthday wishes :-D I just called him to wish him Happy Birthday and it is chaos there. 13 people and 2 dogs !!!. Janice also cooked her Gammon ,but when they cut it it turned out to be a Pork joint :-D :-D :-D She must have had a senior moment. Larry said it was very tasty and tender.
I have got the 3 of us M&S Moussakas for tonight. James will be off to Jess tomorrow late afternoon . He is working until after lunch. Gamon ,eggs and chips for us tomorrow night :-D

Glad y ou found the book Ann :-D. No stick still ;-) I wonder where on earth that is.
That Wild Tales in a Village was just lovely wasn't it. I thought it was done so well.I might see if I can find it and watch it again.
Chris and I have watched Christmas Carol this afternoon then Room on a Broom :-D.. I liked that . Have never heard of it before.

I am still hacking away :-S. My sides and sternum are so sore with all this coughing. I have to hold my sides now when I cough :-S It is so wearing especially having so many broken nights.I am quite pleased it is going to be a quiet Xmas here. At least with it just being Janice and Larry coming on Boxing day I dont need to go OTT. It will be the cooked lunch and then maybe a bit of Xmas Cake or mince pie later in the afternoon .They will not be leaving late as they will have ot get back for the dogs.I am going to make sure Janice does nothing when she is here. She can just relax and chill
:-D James is hunting for Xmas labels.. I need to and hunt them out as I have put all the wrapping paper and paraphernalia away.

Just had Face Time with H&G :-D :-D

Cakes cooked and sitting on top of the cooker at the moment.

I have just had a Jane and Ann moment, I am so so hot. I did'nt need a coat on to go and shut the chickens in but its still raining that horrid very fine mizzle that get everywhere. I have just one cotton top on and am just about cooling down now. We have no heating on so its only the oven thats been on. I have the hall door open and thats the first time I have ever done that as I always say I get a draft when oh leaves it open.

I was so hot I could'nt face doing the sausage rolls and had to turn the oven off.

Good evening all

I am pleased I'm not the only one who has felt hot today, I had to get out of bed in the night and change my winter PJs and put some summer ones on Cooking the Sunday roast today I had the kitchen door open all the time, I've had both ovens on which didn't help.

The wedding went really well Paul left about 11.30pm and had a lift from a teetotal friend otherwise he could have stayed overnight or get a taxi.

The place where Hannah and Gareth are looks wonderful Jane, how long are they away for?

Good that you found the missing book Ann nothing more annoying when something gets lost in the house

Paul and Richard have gone to ice hockey so it's just me and Becky plus Ruby of course, Becky is staying until Boxing Day and Paul will stay from tomorrow until well after the New Year. Richard has 2 weeks off and Paul has booked a weeks holiday the week after Christmas so nearly a full house again. Mark would be more than welcome but for some reason prefers to stay in Hastings it's all down to him having Aspergers but he does know we would like him here with us.

When the Sainsbury delivery driver came this morning it had taken him 15mins to drive here because of the amount of cars going in it's on a mini roundabout hence the problem it only takes 10 minutes to walk there

Still have the cough Becky also has it so no germs to pass on to her.

Richard has recorded the programmes he doesn't want to miss so haven't watched Still Open All Hours yet or Hold the Sun Set. I'm watching Dragon's Den, Becky has her earphones on and is watching stuff on her I pad.

Tomorrow I'm cooking the Gammon and I will do something easy to have for meals, plenty of choice. I will be doing all the veg for Christmas. That was a good idea Mandy having 2 turkey crowns, the one I got today feeds 10 to12 people so there will be some over for sandwiches etc.

Good morning to you all. Not exactly a childhood memory, far from it. 1995 I had not long returned to working night shift following a RTA. In the small hours two Policemen were walking back to the Police station. Saw me, asked if everything was OK. It was. I was just about to make myself a cup of tea so I invited them in to join me.Got talking, where did I live one asked. I told him.Primary school at the end of the street next to the shops. They said the car that was always parked outside the school was being watched. Why I asked innocently. Apparently the occupant was giving drugs to school pupils until they were addicted, then he was selling them. I never knew that, yards from my front door !! Have changed address twice since.

Morning all,

Another really dark and dull day here today. I have to go out and get sosme chicken food. I thought I would get away with it but I don't think I will and I would rather be safe than sorry. I have plenty of corn and could give them that but I hav'nt been out on Christmas Eve for years.

Morning All,

Hello David. It's amazing the things that go on around us without us knowing. OH visited a friend who lives at the edge of the city last week and unbeknown to his friend a cannabis factory had been discovered in the house next door. It's quite a nice area too, mostly detached houses and bungalows. I hope you and Ellen have a nice Christmas.

It was misty with a sharp frost here this morning but it is clear and sunny now. We collected the Turkey crown which cost £20 more than the Turkeys we get from the farm, but then a crown is all breast meat! It also looks bigger than we need but that will mean more to slice for the freezer for slimming soups and salads in the new year!! lol. :-) We were amazed at how few people were at the farm shop. We collected milk on the way back so now we are all set and I can get on with cooking the gammon while OH does the brussels and other veg.

I got a glimpse of the new puppy as they carried it outside last night. Pure white and fluffy!!

OH has just gone in the loft to check the mousetraps and shouted that if I hear a scream he has got something caught in a trap. :-0

Morning/ Afternoon
David and Mel. David if the police knew what was happening with the car and drug dealers ,I wonder why they were still watching and not already arrested them!

Mel , have you been and got the Chicken food now.? Its been quite a nice morning here . A really cold start with a lovely must over the fields at the front. It seeems to be clouding up now though. I have got my last bits and Bird food. Chris has been right through the house with the hoover and dusted and polished he lounge. Good man :-D

I shall do the bathroom and downstairs loo this afternoon,and get all the splashes of water off the insides of the kitchen windows. They are a right old mess :-S

Dreadful night again last night with all the coughing. Good job I have Hannahs room to use and I can shut the door and cough away without disturbing James and Chris too much.
I am really looking forward to the Ham egg and chips tonight :-D :-D

Am I the only one who prefers the dark meat? Not really a lover of breast meat so a crown wouldn’t do us at all.

OOps I should have said afternoon! The place H&G are staying now looks really nice Jane and how lovely is that pool. Sorry you still have this awful cough. I can hear OH with the hoover now!! lol. He hasn't done any dusting like Chris though. :-S

I hope it isn't to busy where you get the chicken feed from Mel. I have just realised I have hardly any of my bread, but I will do without now.

I see you just nipped in there before me Ann :-D.. I always have a Turkey Crown (Not this year though) .I have one in the freezer for the big Christmas dinner mid January.I ued to get a whole turkey but there was always so much waste .No-one ever wanted the legs.So it has been Crowns now for years.

That little puppy sounds a little fluff ball :-D. Fingers crossed it will be a nice quiet little dog unlike the other side of you. I bet the barking one would have been fine if only its owner hadnt left it on its own for such long times and outside too !!. It just probably wanted company. I think I have said before that Casper the rough coated Lab who used to be next door to us was always shut out in the daytime and he would always scrabble either through or over the fence and appear in out garden.He was such a lovely dog. They should never have had him .One Xmas day he was with us until I saw light on next door and took him back .I said he had been with us for most of the day. I got no thanks or apology. Sadly not long after that he got run over and killed just out the front :-( :-(.. I am so so relieved that they never had another dog.

I am going to change into something loose and scruffy to do the Bathroom and Loos.I always seem to get wet standing in the bath with the shower doing the Screen and wall tiles. But there is no easy way of doing it.

See you later

AnninGlos, I have never had a crown before and I think the leg meat has more iron or something, so is probably better for you, but OH isn't keen and it is a messy job stripping the leg meat to freeze, so I'm looking for an easy life these days! :-) We like the leg meat on chicken though.

Jane I have my scruffs on too! I can't manage the ceiling above the shower end of the bath, so I have to pester OH to do it now. He usually gets in the bath and can reach, but I used to have to fetch a short plank to stand on and put it across the bath. I think we could do with bi fold doors on the bathroom to let the steam out. :-D We had a more powerful extractor pump put in, but it still gets too much condensation even with the window open.

The gammon's done and the Turkey is in it's foil so I'm having a relax now. OH has helped a lot this year and even cooked the sausage rolls. He still doesn't know how to switch the oven fan off though or where anything is kept!!

Thank you Annx and Jane and all the rest.
I don't know why the Police didn't tell me other than that which they did.
The only complaint I had with the cars outside the school was the school run.They'd have my garage door blocked twice a day.
Wishing you all a happy healthy prosperous 2019

Brrr! it s really cold outside. I am so glad we lit the fire earlier .Its looking lovely with candles lit on the mantlepiece and the lights on the tree. All quite festive. I wish I felt festive though. It just seems so strange with not having anyone here. James will be off in a minute. Hopefully most of the Xmas traffic will be done by now and he will have a clear run.

Hannah sent me a pic of a very large Monitor (Lizard). She said she jumped onto a boat to get out of its way LOL Gareth loved it !It was about 2 metres long!! I think I might have joined her on the boat too LOL

I bet Sandra is all excited now for tomorrow Gill :-D Does she wake early on Xmas day? I remember when the children were little sitting up waiting for them to finally go to sleep and then Chris would sneak in and leave the present filled Pillowcases at the bottom of their beds.. Sometimes it might have only been a short while after we had got to bed they bounded in with excitement showing us both all the gifts Father Xmas had left. Trying to be as excited as them was not so easy when all we wanted was to get some sleep :-D.
Mandy I bet the children will be doing the same in the early hours :-D :-D What time are they all coming to you?

Chris is watching Mary Poppins!!!!!!. I just can't face watching YET again.I have lost count of the times I have seen it. Loved it the early days but not now.
I was watching Britains Child Killers which I find interesting but as Chris said it is not really very Xmassy !!!
I shall go and slice the Ham for later. I might just have a slice to keep me going. I didnt have any lunch ....well 3 Quality Street :-D