General Chat

Morning all,

Yes got the pics Liz, thank you. Was that solid ice on your windows Liz?

Still loads of snow about here this morning but the wind dos'nt feel quite so cold. Its all been blowing off the trees. We hav'nt seen the deer today yet. We have had a load of starlings on the bit of grass under the box hedge where the snow has blown away. We don't usually get them as they spend most of their time up at the farm up the road.

Glad you seem to be on the mend at last Gill. Keep warm and don't overtax yourself. Poor Sandra not being able to make a snowman when there is so much snow out there. Give her my love please. <3 I hav'nt made a snowman either. As you say too cold to stay out longer than nessisary.

Well I must fill the birds feeders up as they are eating us out of house and home.

Frank we have all we need for a week at least by which time the snow shoud have gone I hope. I only do a weekly shop as you know and anything I did'nt get I got at the local shop before the snow arrived. Be sure to tell Ros she is NOT to go out in this weather. We can't have her getting stuck anywhere.

Em emailed me the recipe for those biscuits she made me for my birthday. If anyone wants it here it is. It makes 20 and they are delish.

Anzac biscuits. ( Made for the Australian and New England Army Corps)


3 Oz porridge oats
3 oz desicated coconut
4 oz plain flour
4 oz caster sugar
4 oz butter melted
1 tbsp golden syrup
1 tsp bicarb of soda
Takes 35 min. makes 20

Preheat fan oven to 160
Put the oats coconut and flour and sugar in a bowl .
Melt butter in a small pan or micro and stir in the golden syrup.

Add the bicarb to 2 tablespoons of boiling water then stir into the syrup and butter mixture.
Make a well in the middle of the dry ingedients and pour in the butter and syrup mixture.
Stir gently to incorperate the dry ingredients.
Put dessertspoonfulls of the mixture on to buttered baking sheets, about 1 inch apart to alow for spreading.
Bake in batches for 8 to 10 minuets until golden.
Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

They are quite sweet and like a hard flapjack and very morish. Mandy the kids would love them.

All ok here this morning! We've got outside water thank goodness, so we've filled all our big containers that we had left over from our camping/sailing years! Good job we didn't chuck them out!!
Very slippery here so apart from going down to Merlin and taking Cas a very little way we won't be going anywhere. I'm making fish pie for supper and having home made soup for lunch!
Cas went in the field after breakfast with OH and he said she jumped into some deep snow and didn't seem to know how to get out! Apparently it was up to her chest!! mind you, she is quite little!!
Talked to E again this morning as he is off school for the duration! He told me that its too cold to make a snowman so he's helping his Mummy today :-S.
OH is looking very pleased with himself after all his running repairs in icy conditions!! I think he thinks that he'll somehow be in for a commendation!! He'll have to think again! ;-)
Glad you're feet my better Gill, you sound as if you have been 'proper poorly'. Hope everyone got the pics I sent!

MORNING ALL, I won't say GOOD.

What a bitter cold wind we have, every now and again it gusts and the bush in the front garden almost gets blown over.

Martine and Simon rang. DON'T you dare try to go out anywhere today. !! That's told us lol. Jonathan rang last night. He has offered to go and get any shopping we want. Nicola his wife is a head cabin crew with Virgin Airways. She is stuck in New York, as they can't land in the U.K. So don't know when she will be home.

You are getting your share down there Mel, Have you got plenty of grocers in ?? I would hate you to get stuck going out in this lot.

Martine rang the solicitors this morning. Answer phone message "Due to the weather conditions, the office is closed until further notice" What an excuse from a professional body. !!!

Did James manage to get to work today Jane. ?? regarding the pipes in the cavity wall. Could you not get someone to fill it with WALL INSULATION (FOAM) ??

All fed and watered. Ros is having her breakfast now. I will find some more food for the birds, then get back to my book, that is almost finished.

STAY SAFE AND WARM xxx

Morning all

I'm still full of cold but starting to feel a little more human now.

Yes, we have snow Mel, but unfortunately it's far to cold for Sandra to build any snowmen. She would freeze in a matter of minutes. To be honest most of the snow has turn to ice now apart from the snow drifts by our back door.

I see some of you had power cuts and frozen pipes. I hope all is okay now and that your plan works today Liz so you have your water back soon.

Nothing to report from here, I've been sleeping pretty much all day and night lately. I've been so bad with what ever I've got. OH thinks it's a virus with it taking so long to go, so I'm just keeping as warm as I can and taking paracetamol, plus keeping my fluids up. Like I said I'm finally starting to feel a bit better so hopefully will be okay soon.

The living room wallpapering has been put on hold, but there is only the two alcoves to do in the pretty cream and red paper I bought, so that can wait a little longer.

Going to get a warm drink and a tissue as my nose is running again.
Hope everyone is okay. I'll try and pop back on here later.

Yes I have been thinking of the homeless. I hope you little man is ok Jane and Niko if he is still out on the streets.

I have just had a pic sent to me from Em next door of the boys out in the garden with the sledge I gave them. It was my sons and we had great fun with it so I hope they will put it to good use tomorrow.

Still blowing like mad here. My bedroom window is covered in snow on the west side. I took a pic.

In bed now watching a bit of TV then snuggling down! Yes Jane, a lick and a promise it was. Hopefully tomorrow we can get straight again!! As you say, 4X4 mode is a godsend. We have a big hill going into our village and I think getting there would have been a real challenge in an ordinary car.
It's still blowing hard and freezing sleet - very unpleasant. These poor homeless people, I do feel for them. There but for the grace of God!!

I think so Mel :-S Lick and a promise then for you tonight Liz(I think that is the saying)
I am off now .Thomas is on the range thinking he is going out... No chance there .
I can see he is going to be a blooming pain in the early hours :-S :-S

Night Night x

Pleased he is home safely Jane now you can relax. Is he going in tomorrow?

Glad he's home safe and sound .

James has just arrived after more than a 2 hour drive. (pretty good going in this weather ) .He did say that it was pretty hairy getting to work this morning and some wonderful snow sculptures where the wind had blown the snow.He was so glad though that he took Chris's car as it went into 4x4 mode.

Dishing up dinner now

We've had supper and I've washed up!! OH is relaxing after a 'busy' day!! Cas has had a quick walk by torchlight! I think it's an early night for us. Tomorrow we must organise a proper wash, but for tonight, it's hands and face, and an early night!!

I have left the frozen drinker in the big girls house and when I went to check them tonight it seemed as though it was thawing out a bit. Must be with the warmth of their bodies. The two old girls hav'nt been out of the house today at all. One came out yesterday but the other stayed indoors.

Yes Mandy it is still coming down but not as hard as it was. Oh said the temp has gone up a couple of degrees at the moment. They are saying we may have that freezing rain and then snow again.

Oh i see they are in the cavity ,not a lot you can do then ,just hope the temp warms up in the next few days to thaw them out.

Yes i saw on the weather your on red Mel, is it still coming down?

So OH has a plan for your pipes then Liz hope it solves your problem .

We are on a RED alert here in Devon.

Has James got home safely Jane? Please let us know.

Just a silly bit of info if you keep an 8 hour night light in your car and should you get stuck light it and it will keep the cold out of the car without running the engine.

Mandy the pipes are up inside the wall so no way we can lag anything :-S We will just have to keep everything crossed . At least we can run a bath . I had one this morning , Chris will have one in the morning and I will tell James to have one tonight .I am just wondering how far he has managed to get now.It must be an hour since he left work.
Chris is bringing more logs in from one of the baskets in the garage.He filled 2 this morning plus the one in the lounge.
I do feel for all these people who have been stuck in their cars, vans,lorries for hours and hours. I did see there have been some wonderful people taking out food and hot drinks in the early hours .There are some good hearted folk :-D :-D

Now I am going to ring my sister and see how they are coping . They have not been able to afford a new boiler now for ages so are relying on the gas fire in the lounge ,Oil Radiators and the emersion for hot water !!

It's finding out where the blockage is and then thawing it Mandy that's the problem! We got ours going but it's been so cold that no matter how much lagging was round it, it just froze up again. Tomorrow OH is going to put a plan of action into operation which should resolve it - hopefully!!! Meantime I'm just relieved to have some water even if it means ferrying it!
Hope James gets home safely Jane. It takes us about an hour to get to L and she's a exactly 48 miles away, so he its quite a way each day for him to travel.
Getting supper now, it's a frozen lasagne with jackets tonight!

Terrible here on the roads ,i don't think there's a road into town that hasn't got drifts ,people are getting stuck and having to wait for hours to be dug out ,with the wind the drifts soon form again ,lots of farmers with tractors helping out but it seems to be a loosing battle .

I hope James gets home safely Jane you'll be on edge until he gets home .
So do you think its frozen pipes to do with the shower not working , are the pipes in the garage lagged ? if not could you wrap something round them ,old blankets or bubble wrap any thing to keep them warm .

Our water is back again but only in the tap in the pump house! The pipe under the bungalow has frozen again so we are having to bring buckets into the house!! At least Merlin's bucket can be kept full, and we can boil kettles for washing up etc! It's a bit of a bore but not a disaster!!! Let's hope it gets warmer in a day or two!

Things going from bad to worse here now. Driving freezing rain !!!!!! It is blowing really hard and I am going be worrying myself stupid until James gets home. He has just said the road he usually takes is closed due to snow drifts.So it will be the long way home whichever way that is. I said to try and just get on a main rd and not to even try country roads.
Mel you asked how far he has to go. I'm not sure how many miles but on a good day it will take a good 45mins.
Chris keeps trying the showers but still nothing happening.I can tell he is getting stressed now :-S. We have put a fan heater on the sinkin the garage facing some pipework that we think might be to do with the shower in the ensuite. But I cant see it really having any effect at all.

The Chooks are are wrapped up well then Mel :-D Bubble wrap is brilliant stuff.

Oh I am not liking this. It is getting really bad now. Even Thomas must think it is not worth hanging about outside any longer .He flew in like he had a rocket up his bum and got straight on the settee on his blanket.

Hope you got to the Doctors ok Liz and also hope you dont freeze up again overnight.
Glad Ros is home to now . Northants Police are saying Do Not Drive if at all possible now.
Anne yesterday must have been a difficult one for you with the Anniversary of losing your dear Peter. <3
Kim I hope you are feeling a bit better today and are staying nice and warm.

I think we will get candles ,lamps and torches ready (just in case ) I am surprised we havent had a power cut yet. But now with this freezing rain anything could happen.

All the Pidgeons seem to be in a big flap .There are hordes of them probably trying to find shelter. No horses out in the field opposite today.They will all be going stir crazy in their stables. Oh well I will go and brave the garage to get the washing out of the drier.It is just frrrrrrrreeeeeezing in there :-S