September
Posted: September 19, 2015 Filed under: birds, coast, countryside, dogs, flowers, food & drink, food for free, holidays, life style, miscellaneous, Uncategorized, we love, weather and wildlife | Tags: bird watching, brambles, burghley horse trials, dog, food fairs, fruit, fungi, harvest, indian summers, jam, ludlow food festival, Max, minimoon, orchard, sandringham game & country fair, september, walking, wedding Leave a commentSeptember is my favourite month for many, many reasons.
The end of September always makes me a little sad but but I am always looking forward very much to the next one.
It is filled with lovely things for us:-
It is the month we take our main annual holiday
It is the month of Burghley Horse Trials
It is the month of harvest
It is the month of Sandringham Game Fair
It is a month when we do most of our walking
It is the month when the best fungi appear.
It is the month of Food Festivals across the country. Ludlow being our favourite.
It is the month for Bramble picking & making Jam.
It is the month of Indian Summers when the heat has left the sun but the cold months are not showing themselves yet.
It is the month we got our hound and collected him when he was just 8 weeks old.
And it is the month we got married
tea total
Posted: July 6, 2015 Filed under: food & diet, food & drink, life style, miscellaneous, we hate, we like, we love | Tags: earl grey tea, green tea, hangover tea, herbal tea, jasmine tea, lemon & lime tea granules, lemon tea, M&S tea, mint tea, PG tips, sage tea, tea, Twinings tea 2 CommentsI love tea!
My husband thinks I’m addicted to it.
I don’t want poncey tea, I’m a PG/yorkshire tea girl and I like it made just like builders tea (but without the 4 sugars – half will do as I’m pretending I don’t take sugar!).
I am aware that a cup contains about half the caffeine (50 caffeine points – or whatever they are measured in) as coffee (100) and that I should really be on the green tea wagon with everyone else but the honest answer is that I can’t stand green tea and it is a waste of hot water and a clean mug in my book (quite apart from the fact that I keep trying it, it still goes cold in the mug and gets thrown away!!) so there is little point.
And whilst a score of 450 on the caffeine front is still very much within the safety limits, and means I can have 9 cups per day, no problem. Most days, though, I don’t come anywhere near that
BUT
In the interests of health and also because I am not short sighted enough not to realise that there might just be a green tea/tree hugger tea out there for me, I have been trying a few things.
So…………
I have a number of different boxed tea bags and leaf tea to try and decided to give each tea a score.
Twinings Green Jasmine Tea
I started with this one as I already know that I quick like jasmine tea (as served in good Chinese restaurants). I have discovered that the leaves need to be so few in number or they really only need to see the water for a few seconds before the leaves need to come out. Otherwise it becomes quite overpowering and has a stewed bitterness to the flavour.
Score 5/10
Whittards Hangover Tea Bags
I don’t buy this tea for hangovers but because it is THE nicest fruit tea on the market bar none. Hard to come by as they seem to run out on a terrifyingly frequent basis so I used to buy about 4 boxes each time I got the chance & have a little supply that will see me through a fair few cups.
I like it because it is fresh, fruity and not too sweet. You can pick out the fruitiness and it feels like a nice clean wholesome flavour. It contains Hibiscus Flower and I think that May well be where the lovely taste comes
AND
The colour is lovely
Score 9/10
Twinings Early Grey Tea
Earl Grey has been in the news recently for it’s heart healing properties all thanks to the wonderful Bergamot used to flavour it (smells pretty nice too and I love it in skincare products!). I hated Earl Grey when I first tried it as a teenager but it has become a store cupboard favourite. I think putting Earl Grey in makes this little test a bit of a cheat but I would definitely say it ranks up there with the herbal tea teas for it’s health properties..
Score 9.5/10
M&S Citrus Tea
I always have lemon tea of some kind in my cupboards as a few people who visit seem to drink it so it was quite readily on hand to try.
It’s OK and it is probably done better by others but there is still that slightly grassy taste about it which puts me off. I didn’t have it very strong (having learned my lesson on the Jasmine Tea) and that is definitely an advantage until your palate becomes accustomed.
I might persevere with this one as it’s ok but I do very much like a simple single slice of lemon in hot water. It is also a good way to wake up your liver I believe.
Score 6/10
Sage Tea
It is lovely and much less like drinking grass cuttings than most herb teas. It has such useful and powerful herbal and medicinal properties too that it is worth having in your garden for drinking even if it doesn’t get into your christmas stuffing:- it is cooling in the heat and also reduces menopausal hot flushes to name but a few.
Fresh has also got to be better though so this was straight from our garden.
Score 8/10
Mint Tea
Lovely and refreshing even in the heat, mint tea is so simple and easy. Again, fresh leaves straight from the Garden and into the pot.
Rosemary Tea
Like the mint tea, this has a freshness to it that makes it lovely to drink in the heat (Rosemary is part of the Mint family) and has great healing properties. Known to boost the immune system, it also improves blood circulation, is a great anti-inflammatory and is full of those lovely anti oxidants.
All round a great herb.
What you don’t drink or cook with is also great to use in handmade skincare.
Whittards Lemon & Lime Tea
Then of course there is the pretend tea……
The turkish do a wonderful apple tea, the principle of which a lot of the flavoured sugars that dissolve into an instant tea follow.
This Whittards Lemon & Lime Tea has too much sugar for my pallet but it is very refreshing, especially served ice cold.
Score 7/10
Builders tea still scores 10/10 compared to all these others but I’m getting there and drink a greater variety than just my PG now.
The next question is whether it tastes better made in the cup or in the pot? AND should the milk go in first or afterwards?
olloclip
Posted: January 3, 2015 Filed under: countryside, flowers, miscellaneous, photography, technology, Uncategorized, we love | Tags: 10x macro, 15x macro, fisheye lens, iphone, iphone 5, iphone camera, macro, olloclip, photography, wide angle lens Leave a commentI use an iPhone (5) and I love it.
I use it every day for emails, calls, texts, vibe, whatsapp, FB, instagram, twitter, maps, waze, evernote, pinterest, contacts, calendar….. you name it.
I didn’t think that the camera on the phone could be improved as it such good quality already. the iPhone 6 has probably managed to improve the camera further but until I have an iPhone 6, I will have to wait to see.
But I read somewhere ages and ages ago that there was a little attachable lens was available from a company called Olloclip to use with the phone as an attachment, providing more flexibility and giving you a tool that would truly explore the potential of the smashing lens in this little phone.
As an early christmas present to myself, I ordered the 4-in-1 combo. This provides you with a fish eye, wide angle and 2 strengths of macro lens.
I have a canon 6D that I use all the time and have a variety of different lenses for it. It provides such good quality shots that I use it for serious photography and pictures of my work but I have never really considered the iPhone to be a contender for serious shots. As good as it is, how could it possibly be used as a serious working camera?
The review were good but my true expectations for what the addition of the olloclip could do to the camera on the iPhone were limited, but the results have been amazing.
It is tiny attachment and a bit fiddly and would be very easy to lose but if you have the time and the patience along with helpful additions to your camera bag such as a gorilla pod and a clip for your phone, you can set it up to get great photos.
It is great fun and the results are very effective.
Olloclip has an instagram account where people share their images using the olloclip and some are truly incredible.
I need some time to get more interesting shots and I have not taken advantage of the wide angle fitting yet but I’m delighted with the macro results
See for yourself……… all taken with the phone hand held without the support or steadiness of a tripod, gorilla pod or surface
Fish Eye
10x Macro
15x Macro
coffee adventures
Posted: November 23, 2014 Filed under: food & diet, food & drink, friends and family, home, interiors and design, life style, miscellaneous, technology, Uncategorized, we love | Tags: aerocino, capuccino, Coffee, coffee machine, coffee maker, coffee pods, espresso, frothy coffee, latte, Nespresso, pixie Leave a commentAfter such excitement over our gorgeous new coffee machine, we have had some disappointments.
Our lovely machine blew something inside and was no longer safe to use with water and steam spewing out everywhere.
John Lewis were brilliant about it and because they had no De Longhi stock to replace it and it was dangerous, they refunded us in full and the pretty machine was condemned to the bin, unfortunately.
We were back to our traditional italian stove top coffee maker for a while and still loving our coffee.
But we missed the frothy milk and the espressos that JC likes. Coffee and hot milk done the old fashioned way just wasn’t hacking it.
After all it is still a bit of a faff using the stove top and a milk pan and even a wonderful morning coffee we can get from our wonderfully seasoned old campaigner hasn’t hacked it really.
We are busy and things need to be as easy as possible really
So!!!!
Having taken full advantage of our lovely friends thorough research, we are now the proud owners of a Nespresso Pixie with aerochino!
And it is wonderful
And it is easy
And there is no mess
And it is cheaper than buying beans and ground.
And we have found a fantastic clever devise for storing our pods that can be fixed to the underside of the kitchen wall cupboard. Right on hand but not seen. Marvellous.
Or mounted on the wall like a piece of art.
Finding the flavours that are right for us but it is fun trying and we have had some very helpful tips.
I feel coffee love again!!!
doggy DNA
Posted: November 9, 2013 Filed under: dogs, friends and family, home, miscellaneous, we love | Tags: DNA, DNA profiling, dog, dog habits, dogs, Foxhound, jack russell, jack russell terrier, JRT, Kate Humble, pets, Steve Leonard, terriers Leave a commentWe have been enjoying the Kate Humble and Steve Leonard ‘The Wonder of Dogs’ programme on BBC2 Thursday nights which explores all the amazing things that a lot of us don’t know about our best friends.
Sadly it is now finished but it covered the science of breeding, intelligence, breed traits, how humans have ‘used’ dogs in history as well as how we have welcomed them into our homes.
It is done in hand with an open university course so it is scientific in it’s approach but it is executed with a huge sense of fun. If you have the slightest interest in dogs or our relationship with them, you will find it fascinating and it can’t do dog reputation any harm after some of the horrendous and tragic articles in the news about dogs lately.
We have taken quite a lot of stick from friends and family about the parentage of our JRT Max who was supposed to be 10″ long (the last coat we bout him was 20″ long). He displays traits that you’d find in other breeds and not JRTs (he points – sort of ha ha). He isn’t mad and yappy like a lot of terriers and he isn’t very terrier like in many other ways.
Fox Hound, Dalmation, labrador, beagle are to name but a few of the breeds that people have wondered what he really might be. Pretty much anything other than a Jack Russell!!
We did everything right when we got him, we met the parents, went to the home where he was born and all of the things that the sellers told us about the others that they had from the same parents was pretty true.
He is a great family dog, he loves kids and he does look like his mum and his dad.
Clearly there is something else going on somewhere though and the breed traits and DNA tests that were covered in the programme a couple of weeks ago got us thinking.
So JC sent for a home doggy DNA kit (is there ANYTHING that Amazon don’t sell?) and the results were emailed through to us this week.
So!! To all those doubters…….
He is in fact very much a Jack Russell Terrier but he also has a bit of Fox Terrier in him from grandparents and from his great grandparents there is…………………..
WHIPPET!!
Utility Boot Rooms
Posted: September 14, 2013 Filed under: countryside, dogs, home, life style, miscellaneous, Uncategorized, we like, we love, weather and wildlife | Tags: boot room, cloakroom, counter top, dishwasher, dog beds, Home, organised, storage, utility room, washing machine, work top Leave a commentI hate mess and things that are untidy need to be out of the way; behind a door or drawer front of some sort if remotely possible.
I love a well ordered, easy to manage spaces
These spaces in other peoples homes are inspiring and I’m very envious.
We have an odd shaped area off our lincolnshire kitchen which was used as a dining space by the previous owners.
It’s narrow and really doesn’t lend itself to anything other than somewhere to dump stuff. It houses the hoover, dishwasher, washing machine, ironing and has become somewhere to hang coats so it has become our Utility/Boot Room.
It is far from perfect but does a sterling job in providing hanging space for a rather large collection of green coats and long boots. It needs a few things adding such as a clothes dolly so we can dry the washing without calling on the radiators or having a clothes horse standing in the way somewhere on those wet days when it will be wetter if it was hung outside.
We have a clothes dolly; it is stored in the garage but that is as far as it has got so far.
The space also needs blocking off with a bit or wall and a dipped pine door (that we also have stored in our garage). The opening is already partly closed off and begs to be finished.
We have made some progress though……
It now boasts a worktop where there had previously been none.
It has transformed the space. It provides a valuable and incredibly useful surface for dumping things on such as the dog’s towels, shopping basket, dog leads, binoculars, cameras, wallets, keys and all those other things that we need handy pretty much all of the time.
I think the dogs feel safer having their beds underneath something when they have a sleep to so I think they like the change.
It has worked well so far and I can’t wait for the door and wall to be done so we can close it off from our coats smelling of our last meal and we won’t have to look at all the mess anymore. Just as it should be!!
There’s a man in the village who I have all my hopes pinned on!
it’s getting hot in here
Posted: July 21, 2013 Filed under: dogs, funny, miscellaneous, we love, weather and wildlife | Tags: dog, dog habits, dogs, Drinking water, Hamlet, heat wave, Ice cube, jack russell terrier, keeping cool, summer, sunshine, Water, weather Leave a commentThis recent hot weather is really tough on dogs and it is so sad to hear that there are still people leaving their dogs in cars to die or walking them on hot tarmac until their feet burn and blister.
Our old boy, Hamlet has always loved the sun and used to spend hours on the lawn lapping it up. (He may have been a lizard in a previous life).
He still enjoys it but he certainly gets hot and the heat that we have been getting have seen him struggling. He has a heart murmur too so we have to be quite vigilant and not let him get over hot. he has had odd little funny turns in the past which may be related to his ticker, heat and dehydration so we do as much as we can to try to prevent repeats of these.
In order to avoid the heat of the day I’m getting up at about 5.30 to walk them and JC has been hosing them down to cool them off when it is particularly bad. I’m not sure they actually like this ‘shower’ but it certainly makes them more comfortable as it evaporates out of their coats.
When faced with the prospect though, they don’t seem to appreciate the benefits and they have been known to hide. Max definitely does a runner when he sees the hoes or the tin bath.
They even hide after they have been drenched (although I’m not sure what they think that will achieve). Bless!
Ice cubes in their drinking water have helped and getting them to lick ice cubes instead of gulping lots of water is great for keeping them hydrated without the risk of them throwing it back up.
Max isn’t great at doing ice cubes and tolerates them in his water but Hamlet likes to have them thrown for him to catch and crunch.
He’s quite an enthusiastic little dog (read bonkers!!) whether it’s going out, chasing a ball or catching a treat so catching ice cubes brings a bit of a wild look in his old eye.
He would stand there waiting for them eternally I think.
As always, hugely entertaining and endlessly funny.
Horse Boarding
Posted: May 27, 2013 Filed under: countryside, holidays, life style, local interest, miscellaneous, we love | Tags: burghley, countryside, Equestrian, Grand National, Horse, Horse Boarding, Horse Boarding Championships 6 CommentsUnlike the title might suggest, Horse Boarding is NOT a form of torture.
It is an equestrian sport and it is tremendous fun!!
And what’s more, I can’t believe I have been in the dark about this fantastic sport for the 5 years since it was originated in the UK.
There is a horse boarding association.
They have a Facebook page.
There are national horse boarding championships.
There is membership, a magazine, courses and endless videos but I still didn’t know about it until yesterday!!
We went to Burghley Game and Country Fair which we have done for a couple of years now. It is a good opportunity to stock up on all things country and country sports. There is more camo and green clothing than you can shake a stick at but there are also great fun demonstrations and competitions.
We always watch whatever is on in the main ring as we shop, we always check out the dog agility and terrier classes, the birds of prey and we always check out the food village.
We went a lot earlier today than normal and I think that may be why we caught the fly fishing demonstration, bought some (more) green clothing and most importantly managed to catch the Horse Boarding spectacle!!
I love horses and spent a lot of time around them as a kid. I wasn’t always involved in the proceedings but I was an enthusiastic spectator and helper. As a result of my close dealings with them, I love them, their smell and a lot of horsey sports are of interest to me. I don’t ride anymore, if I could do it all the time, I would take it up again (I really don’t fancy walking like a gun toting cowboy every few months because my thigh muscles have ‘forgotten’ what they are for between times!!) but I don’t have enough time for less demanding things so taking up horses again would be impossible right now.
Anyway, yesterday was soooo much fun to watch. One of the team horses is Lord Atterbury whoh is a retired race horse who was one of only 13 finishers about 4 years ago in the Grand National.
Apart from Burghley being just lovely as a venue, we already enjoy the horse trials in september and will continue to go for years to come, this country fair and the sandringham one are a great way to get close to the country sports that both JC and I have been involved with since we were kids.
We live in the city now but our weekend jaunts to the countryside allow us to dip into these lovely pass times every now and again.
We didn’t stay for the 3pm final as the sun had brought a lot of visitors out and it was getting very crowded by lunchtime but we will be looking out for it again and the teams that entertained us so well yesterday.
Good luck in the championships Do or Die, The Dead Pigeons, Kauldren & Designated Drinkers!