General Chat

Frank some of the people weren't even looking at the items it was just grab, scoop and grab what ever they could........remember that programme Supermarket Sweep? It was just like that. OH reckons people who were cramming the sale goods in their trolleys would be putting them on eb*y next! lol.

Yes Jane I thought at the time that at her age I wouldn't have dreamt of behaving like that. I hate letting them think they are right, but you don't want to come back and find your car 'keyed' do you!

I find lamb can be very greasy in a stew as well and tend to pour off most of the gravy into one of those seperator jugs so you can pour most of the fat off before returning it to the stew. Failing that I have been known to use paper towels to soak up the fat loating on the top!! If you make it the day before to reheat you can scoop out most of the hardened lumps of fat before reheating. Fancy James deciding he likes it after all. lol.

We've put the scrabble away again now, equal wins each and 1 draw this Christmas. I always think of Steptoe's game of Scrabble when I get it out and all the rude words!!

It's good they delivered the tablets for you Frank. I bet you've been bare chested today, poor Ros probably wanted it nice and warm and you will have been busying yourself around administering to her. ;-)

Well I won't be cooking that again :-S..It wasn't bad ,but it wasn't great.What's left in the pan will be going in the bin in the morning....At least I gave it a go.There was something missing,but James and I couldn't think what.We just couldn't put our finger on it...it was very filling though.
I did try putting bread on top to try and soak up some of the grease.But I don't think seeded bread is the right one LOL .Is it white bread that is supposed to do the trick?
Anyway whatever ,it isn't going in my recipe book.

Not a lot on TV tonight ,so my Kindle it is :-D

Oh dear Jane! Still we all have things that disapoint at times. If you don't try different things you might miss out on something good. Mum used to do a lovely Irish Stew with lamb, vegetables, potatoes and barley in it. Yes spongy white bread might have been better for soaking the fat. The seeded stuff isn't the same! It would have been nice for the birds after though.

I've just been doing a 'live chat' with our energy provider. We changed provider last October and I had been checking everything was in order as I didn't have time running up to Christmas. NO it wasn't. The new provider has sorted things out, but the old provider is still debiting OH's account for gas and hasn't closed the gas account yet!! They've done the electric one though so why not the gas?? It looks like there will be some debit to pay off as well. I think OH was hoping there would be credit to be refunded. I haven't told him yet! :-S

Hi all who are still up !!!

Off to bed shortly, madam has eaten a reasonable amount tonight, I will get her a HOT milk before I go to bed.

The anti-biotics seem to be doing their job. She has been feeling a little better this evening, even though she is still coughing for England lol. She has been using her inhaler today. She hasn't needed it for many years. The doctor sent her a new one today, he said the old ones should be thrown away.

Our dinner was a disaster also Jane. Stuffed breast of lamb, with roasted vegetables. The stuffing was horrible and the lamb was very fatty and difficult to chew. The Veg was quite nice. !!!

My Mum could do a lovely Lamb stew also Ann, she would skim the fat off the top during cooking. The lamb somehow was a different quality to what we get today.

I have shin of beef out of the freezer for tomorrow. I will cook that nice and slowly with mash and veg. That should be easy for Ros to eat with her sore throat.

My eyes are starting to go, so I'm off to bed.

Good night all.

I'm glad Ros is feeling a bit better Frank and that the meds seem to be working. Another good nights sleep will make all the difference.

We had cold beef peas and chips tonight. Still enough beef left for sandwiches tomorrow. It was nice and moist too.

When I do a lamb stew I use neck fillet and cut all the fat off if there is any on it. I put barley in and celery, carrot and onion and a chicken stock. Add the pots later before serving. I fry off the veg first and then the meat add the stock and boil the barley seperately so it dos'nt stick. Salt and black pepper.

Going to watch a bit of telly now as I have been doing jigsaws on the pc.

Night all and I hope you all have a good sleep tonight.

Morning all,
Just a quick one as we are only just home from sons ,DIL went into labour yesterday at tea time ,they had to make a quick dash to hospital as she has to have a c section .
Well she had contractions for a while then they stopped so they sent her home at four o'clock this morning but we couldn't come home in case she started again anyway we're now home as she was ok and they are bringing the children in a while ,she now has to have c section some time today .
We're having the children for the day and then we'll see what happens

We both feel like zombies as we didn't sleep much ,i kept listening out for the children.

Morning all

Blue Skies and sunshine today, I guess we won't be getting the snow after all.

I love lamb but don't put it straight into a stew because of all the fat. I cut off as much of the fat as I can then wrap it up in tin foil and pop it in the oven to roast for a few hours to make it nice and tender, any fat left then goes into the tin foil which I throw away leaving just the lamb. I then cut it into piece and put that into the stew after all the veg etc... has been cooked, that way it's not so fatty. It works for me and doesn't leave a film of grease in your mouth. Takes a bit longer but worth it.

There you go Jane, there's a good idea for not having a puzzle on your table, do them online like Mel. One of the Victoria sponges I made yesterday has already gone. You're right Jane my family can eat my baking quicker than I can make it, which is why I do a lot, but at least none of it goes to waste, which is good.

Glad to hear Ros is feeling a bit better, lets hope she's fully recovered soon. The hot milk would of helped her sleep Frank and mash potato is a good idea while she still has a sore throat. Did she manage to get a better night's sleep last night.

Well, my freezer is unplugged and de-frosting, I think it's going to take a few hours. I meant to de-frost it before Christmas but had so much food in there, we couldn't eat it all in time. I'm visiting my mum this afternoon so I hope it's all de-frosted before then.

I've got yet more washing to do today, so I'd better go and put another load on.
Be Back Later

Just noticed your post Mandy, hope everything goes well for your DIL, I bet everyone's excited. Was it a boy you said she was having, sorry I can't remember if it was you or someone else who said that. How long are you having the children for, are they staying overnight tonight. I'm sure you'll catch up on your sleep soon.

BBL

Morning all and evening Kim,

O Mandy how exciting, a new grandchild coming today. Hope everything goes off smoothly with the C section. WE shall all be waiting to hear about the event sometime today. Love and wishes to the whole family. <3

Wet with rain hail and sunshine. Blue sky with clouds and a little breeze but last night the wind was really strong and gusty and blowing a gale.

Shopping today for me as we seem to have run out of lots of things.

Gill an empty freezer at last! clever girl. I never seem to be able to empty our out completely but it is a big chest freezer and being out in the middle of knowhere it helps to keep it full of essentials.

Hope Ros is feeling a bit better this morning and that she had a good nights sleep.

Must get the washing out before I go out.

See you all later.

Morning/Evening All

Ooh exciting day then Mandy..A little Brother on the way.I hope all goes well today <3 <3

Gill I didn't know you could do puzzles on line.I might have a look and see.I never thought about cooking the lamb first .That sounds a good idea,but if it isn't cooked in with the veg does the stew not lack some of the lamb flavour?

I really can't see me doing another Lamb one.I love Roast Lamb and Lamb Steaks :-D

My wasn't is windy in the night.It woke us up once.This morning is bright and breezy.No washing to hang out today though...It is ironing :-S

Chris has been for a haircut and tells me he has 'product' on it .....Don't think he likes it lol.
He will be brushing it out soon I reckon.He's just having a coffee and then he's off to Waitr***

Let us know when baby arrives Mandy......We want to know the name too :-D :-D

No Jane, if you put the lamb in the stew and leave it for a while the juices off the lamb go into the stew, by roasting it first it takes away the fat, most of the juices of the lamb are still there which then flavours the stew. If you're like me and make enough for two days, the flavour intensifies so even more flavour the following day. ;-) ;-).

So I was right in thinking your DIL is having a boy Mandy. Hope everything goes to plan and I look forward to hearing your good news, with baby's name later. <3

Maybe I will try once more Gill,doing it your way.It's worth a try.I am just tipping out last nights leftovers !!!!

Just had a delivery.A very heavy package(new cupboard for the Bathroom.I signed for it and the chap just walked away leaving it propped against the door sill. :-S :-S
I had to call him back to lift it in as it was too heavy for me..You would have thought he might have realised that :-| :-|.Now it will be Chris that'll have to take it up the stairs when he gets back.

I better get the fire ready for later.As I think once the sun disappears it is going to get even chillier.Looking out now I can see it seems to be getting cloudy.

Morning all, evening Kim,

WET and WINDY here, The forecast isn't good is it ??? Batten down the hatches !!!

Mandy I hope everything goes well for your DIL. I am sure you will keep us posted.

Mel, I hope you didn't mind me sending you that 911 conversation. What a cute little thing that girl sounded ???

I think I am going to have to ask Tony to run me to Tesc# today. I am out of bread, butter is getting low, and I think I need more veg. You would think I am feeding the 5,000, the amount of food we get through. It's mainly VEG. We rarely buy cakes and biscuits. Ros likes them more than I do.

Gill with the amount of baking you do, your family must have sweet teeth. I was never bought up on sweet things, I think that is why I am more a meat and Veg man. I have the odd mince pie or hot cross bun, but that's about it.

The rain has stopped but the wind has increased..

I have prepared dinner, washed up, and cleaned the kitchen. I will get showered now, then hoover through, and walk round to our old neighbours. It's his birthday today. Ros has a card and a bottle of Red for him.

A man's work is never done is it William (WILL) ???

Wekk I am down to shorts again. The lounge is like a furnace to me, but JUST comfortable for Ros. She doesn't feel like eating so I have made her a HORLIC#S with milk.

Another heavy shower just now, and the wind seems to be getting up.

Conrad hopes to go back to Spain next Friday, provided he feels up to it. I have told him he would be stupid to go back, if he might need Doctors or Hospital. as it will add a lot of expense out there, and he might well have to come home anyway.

Just had one of those calls, that when you answer, the phone goes dead. Just checking the time when you are home, for some other idiot to call you, and try to flog you something. It's about time these people were stopped from making unsolicited calls. It must be hard for people who are disabled having to get to the phone only to find it goes DEAD. My Daily Moan over. I THINK.!!!

I think we can make do for shopping. What bread I have left I can toast. Regarding other things, they can wait. I can get a lift to Morriso#s with Tony on Saturday morning. The only trouble is he goes at 7.30 am far to early for me :-D :-D :-D

ANY NEWS MANDY ????? <3 <3 <3 <3 to all concerned.

No news yet,two others in front of DIL waiting for c sections so it will be late this afternoon .
Just Jake and Lacey here ,Chelsea and Katie gone to DILs parents.
I think they will all go home to bed tonight and son will take them to school tomorrow.
Seems a long day.

Afternoon all

Well, that's the freezer done and plugged back in, will go shopping on Saturday when OH is off work and stock it back up again.

I don't do many sweet things Frank, the only reason I've done so much this time is because I had to use all the frozen apples up and because OH doesn't like apple pie I made some cakes so he'd have something. I normally make lots of dinners and freeze those and I've also made quite a few sausage rolls and quiche's to lately. It's a mixture of both savoury and sweet. I tend to make more things in the winter as I'm normally working in the garden during the summer, if it isn't to hot, or just relaxing in the garden and I do a lot of DIY jobs in the summer too.

It's still blue skies and sunshine here but the wind is starting to pick up again. Because there isn't many clouds about it's still quite cold. Last night it poured down with rain and was quite windy, but still no snow for Sandra :-( :-(.

My mum's just rang to let me know she's back home so we're off to her's now, going to take some apple pie with me as I've still got quite a bit left and can't re-freeze the apples.

Sounds like you've been busy Frank, how is Ros today, did she sleep ok last night after the hot milk you made her.

I hope you enjoy the lamb stew next time you make it Jane, if it's just the fatty taste putting you off then doing it this way will help, did you put any Rosemary in it, you said something was missing but you couldn't put your finger on it.

Well, I'd better get off to my mum's now
BBL

As it's a CSection Mandy will DIL have to stay in hospital. I know these days they turf you out pretty quick. Hope all goes well and like the others will be waiting for the good news.

My ex used to make a lamb stew, it's the only stew I have ever liked, it was Spanish style with garlic, kidney beans and saffron among other things and it used to bubble away for hours.

I agree Frank, probably not a good idea for Conrad to go rushing off to Spain, I wonder he would be covered by insurance as he is not long out of hospital.

I have just finished another undercoat on my wardrobe doors, I laid them flat on the table but this time made sure the cats were not in the room, one of them, I suspect Coco, had walked all over one door last time leaving paw prints I tried to see if her paws were still wet but she was curled up on a chair, haven't seen any tale tale trails around the house though.

Off to my other daughters this weekend, making curtains for her bedroom, makes a change from decorating, I will leave that to her, she's such a perfectionist.

Ros is in bed at the moment, she just can't hold her head up. I have never seen her like this in 38 years. She must be feeling rotten for her to go back to bed. That's two days running.

Maureen, talking of paint and animals. When I was decorating the bedroom years ago, I was painting the skirting, when our BLACK POODLE decided to have a mad two minutes. She dashed around the bedroom, and knocked over the paint, walk in it, then jumped on a blue bedspread. You can imagine the mess. After that I made sure she was never around when painting.

Gill, I wasn't being funny about all your baking, it just seems that you do so much of it !!! If Sandra and OH enjoy it, good on them. lol ;-) ;-) ;-) Did you get my email ???

Mandy, will you keep the children with you tonight, or will they go back with your son ????

Jane I bet if you had smiled at the chap this morning and asked nicely, he would have carried the box upstairs for you. He must be use to humping these box's around, and seeing an "OLD LADY" at the door, I thought he would have offered. I HAVE JUST PUT MY TIN HAT ON <3 <3 <3 <3

I don't know if it's just me, but it seems lighter this afternoon and it's almost 4.00 pm.

What is "PRODUCT" Jane, hair spray or GEL. Did he smell nice ???

I suppose all the shopping is done by now Mel, All put away for another week. Did you buy anything exciting. ???

I can hear Ros about, so had better see if she wants a cuppa.

The beef is in the oven and smelling scrumptious, It will fall apart when I dish up about 6.00 pm. Fresh greens pea, carrots and creamy mash. Ros will have a MUG of the gravy on the side. She loves that and it will be nice for het throat.

Didn't hoover today, that's a job for the morning !!!

Lewis Oliver is here ,7lb 8 oz baby and mum both doing fine .

Frank.It almost sounds like the Flu with Ros.Hopefully a few days at home being looked after will soon see her on the mend.It might be an idea to turn the heating down a bit especially if she has a temperature.

Maureen ,cats are a nightmare when paint is involved lol .I remember my old cat Solo(she was black) having a long white streak all down one side after she had rubbed herself against a newly painted wall :-S..Then Chester ended up with stripey tail from paint off the edge of a door !!

Gill I didn't put Rosemary in the stew.It had Fresh Thyme and Bay Leaves..But yes I think a bit of Rosemary would have been a good idea.

The new bathroom (free standing )cupboard and drawers are up.But I am quite disappointed really.I thought the depth was going to be deeper so it is not going to hold as much as I hoped.But it looks ok .I might see if I can get different handles though to match up with the wall cupboard up above.

The sky is as clear as anything now and it looks very cold.I won't go out to check :-D
The logs arrive tomorrow morning.Good job too as we are right at the end now.In fact there are no more left to bring in.So I am on the last basket.

After our nice week on our own ,we will have a full house at the weekend.Jess arrives tomorrow eve and Hannah will be here on Saturday.So tomorrow I better get Hannahs room sorted.It is amazing how quickly it get cluttered up :-S..My ironing ,suitcases ,the upstairs hoover etc.
I have spent a good half hour this afternoon looking through the book we have on the Italian Lakes.I was looking at various places we might see from Lake Como.
Well I thought I was........I was only looking at the wrong Lake :-S :-S :-S