A Little Bit of This, A Little Bit of That

Just a quick update!

2012-02-03T09:55:00.000Z

It was lovely to have Em with us over the Christmas period. She has returned to China now and has recently returned from a trip to her Chinese boyfriends parents. I am careful what I say when I feel cold now, as their home had neither air-conditioning or heating! She was so cold, I don't think she took any clothes off for sleeping and covered up in one of their quilted suits that the Chinese use as housecoats!

Erin is now 8 weeks old and when she was weighed this week she was 11lb 1oz! Quality food you're giving her dear daughter!

These were all pictures taken while we were chatting over the net. There will be more soon hopefully of Em in her Chinese flat too! What would we do without our modern ways of communicating with our scattereds offspring?

I'm a Grandma!

2012-01-07T21:24:00.001Z

We are Grandparents! Erin was born on Dec 8th 2011! She's adorable!

First picture with Mum!

With Dad

Grandma Me!

Grandad (Steve)

All the Grandparents!

In her Christmas Cardi! yarn and dye from DT Craft Studio.

Been in such a whirl!

2011-12-05T20:37:00.000Z

Well, the business is under way! Yesterday we took Em to Minehead and took some pics of her modelling some of my knitwear for the shop. We are now officially trading under the name, 'Country Quality' and trying to promote British products. Pics are on another computer, so they are to follow. But I have been knitting like a mad thing, which is why m blog has been a bit (!) neglected!

You can see us on Facebook at our page, Country Quality from this link...................
http://en-gb.facebook.com/pages/Country-Quality/139142576190502

On anther tack..............
I was listening to a podcast the other day that provoked me into thinking about things I do to inspire others. It's difficult sometimes to think of how others perceive us isn't it? A few people who have seen me knitting at the bike shop have mentioned how nostalgic it makes them feel, how it is a dieing art. One lady who came in the other day is having problems making a pair of socks and wants help working on the heel. Maybe I have spurred her on to getting to the place she feels she needs help with?
Then I got to thinking about the way I spend my weekends. I remember moving here and thinking that I don't get many opportunities to met people where I live; my children don't need meeting from the school gate any more and I work half an hour's drive away, so both those shared experiences are lost with regard to getting to know people. What else do I have to offer? I looked online for a group of knitters who I could share life with. I went to www.ravelry.com and discovered a wealth of like minded crafters from all over the world. There were so many groups, both of crafty interests, but some who were quite diverse, apart from their interest in fibre related likes.I discovered that some had listed groups in my location! Knit In Public Day was coming up and I found that there was a group meeting just 10 or so minutes away from my front door! There were a lovely group, from all walks of life, but all with an interest in craft. The weather was perfect and we all met in a park, shared food and ideas. I want more of this I thought.

So I went home and wrote out an invitation for people to come and join a new group of crafters with a special interest in crochet and knitting. Be began by meeting ounce a month in a local church, but then when the cafe there closed, I decided that my home was big enough for us to meet in. So as of about three years ago we have met here once a month. We have a great time, we compare notes on our projects, spend time putting the world to rights and generally chatting about things that some of us wouldn't even feel totally comfortable sharing with our partners. These ladies (we have had one gentleman visit us once, so far, oh apart from a very handsome 8 month little boy!) have become some of my best friends! We number a singer, two teaching assistants, two stay at home mums, a librarian and a warehouse worker. We are from several different countries. But we all inspire one another!
My tip to any lonely people out there is................Look at your talents! What do you enjoy doing? What is your passion? Sometimes you don't have to look further than your own doorstep to make a difference to other people in your community! Don't just sit around saying, 'But I don't know anyone!' or, 'I could never lead anything like that!' I always used to think that, but actually, it's easy! The rewards are so great! Next Saturday one of the ladies and I are going to share a table at a local craft fair, it's great to have friends to share with!

Bradford on Avon

2011-09-19T21:17:00.000+01:00

During the last week of my summer holidays, I visited Bradford Upon Avon with the idea of giving my knitting friend a surprise. I went to Jumble Jelly's Knit n Natter Day only to discover that Misselle of the Misselle Knits Podcast, had, that morning fallen down the stairs! So she was unable to move from home that day! I hope you are feeling better now Misselle!

However, I made a new friend, Maplegirl, on Ravelry. We had a lovely chat. I have said it before and will say it again, there is something special about crafters. It doesn't take long before they get chatting together as if they have known each other all their lives.

Please check out Jumble Jelly's website and their activities. Misselle will also be running some workshops there in the near future.

I also took Misselle's podcast with me on my visit to the town. It was great to be guided round some of the old buildings 'in my ear' while actually seeing what was being spoken about. I also went to the parish church where the Millenium Embroideries were on display. This was a work of several panels made by the community for the year 2000 and Elle talked me through the history portrayed in them. Thank you, Misselle! You may not have been there in person, but I really enjoyed my visit and it felt as though you were there! Please take a listen to Misselle's episode entitled 'My Town', it really is so interesting, especially if you are interested in textiles.
Here is the link to her Blog.............
http://www.misselleknits.blogspot.com/

Also to Bradford Upon Avon...........
http://www.cotswolds.info/places/bradford-on-avon.shtml

Here is a selection of the photos I took while I was there.

This is the parish church where the embroidered panels were on display.

This is the very ancient chapel, believed to be around 2000 years old. I think there was probably a place of worship there even before that!

Below is the plaque from the side of this wonderful old taxtile mill. What must the town have been like in the textile trade hayday? I should imagine the air would not have been so clean back then. But there would not have been so many folk without work as there are today. This was a time when we in Britain had a fine industrial labour force.

Please feel free to go and have a look and maybe even join the Misselle Podcast Group at http://www.ravelry.com/, a site for crocheters, knitters and spinners.

Please feel free to comment on anything you see here, I love hearing from readers!

A Little Bit of........................a Holiday

2011-08-15T23:46:00.001+01:00

Saturday August 6th

Our ride took us along the canal for some of the route and we came across a family of swans, who, it appeared, were being given an exercise class, by their mother. It takes a lot of effort for a swan to take off from the water and these youngsters were being told to flap their wings as hard as they could and skate their way along the surface of the canal. Scaring as many of the ducks as they could along the way, they gathered quite a crowd of people who were all giggling at their antics. Sorry, I did have pictures, but I lost them. We rode on a short way and had lunch at Olio and Farina’s.

The meal was wonderful, the first folded pizza I have tasted. Steve and I both had the same, Mozzarella, green pesto and olives.

We left home at about 9am and rode to Lower Maunsel, where there is a good tea stop, where we often stop for a snack on a Sunday afternoon. From there, we journeyed on to Taunton

After our break for lunch, we carried on to Wellington, trying not to hit any more main roads than we had to. At one point, we touched a roundabout on an A road, we pushed the bikes round the busiest part and were very surprised to see sweet-peas growing on the verge! But even more surprising were the blue butterflies! You can see more of these here:
http://www.ukbutterflies.co.uk/species.php?species=icarus
After a little shopping, we made our way to The Blue Mantle Guest House in Wellington. Wellington was once famous for making cloth and shoes. There is still a cloth business here, thanks firstly to The Fox Brothers, but more recently, to Deborah Meaden of the TV series Dragons Den and also to the expertise of cloth expert, Douglas Cordeaux. We saw many things of note on the way here, but unfortunately, I managed to delete them off my camera.

We arrived at our destination, The Blue Mantle Guest House at 3pm. There was plenty of space to leave our bikes inside.
This meant that we were able to use the bus, or even go for a walk and know that they were safe.

We spent the evening in the park. The park was given by Mr Fox. It became rather derelict a few years ago, but is now a thriving community project. The locals have made it look really beautiful! Just take a look.................

Sunday August 7th
Today was the reason Steve had booked the guest house, rather than the original idea of the camp site! I was a bit concerned as we were right on the main road, very close to town. I thought there might be some noise issues. Here at home we have double glazing and although we are on a very busy road, now we are used to it, it hardly bothers us, unless something really heavy passes by. But apart from a few young people who were rather the worse for drink, little disturbed us. The traffic was much lighter than at home.

Anyway, back to the reason for the guest house. Steve had heard the weather forecast. They had given rain for Sunday. We caught the bus to Taunton, just to be on the safe side. We were later to be VERY glad that we had! We had done some shopping, called at Olivio's again for lunch, this time Steve had lasagne and I had Mozzerella and sundried tomato salad, yum! But then were about to go for a walk when.....................DOWN CAME THE RAIN!!! It wasn't just gentle rain, no, it was heavy, bouncing rain, with a bit of thunder mixed in for good measure! I knew then, that although we hadn't chatted about it at the time he booked, that he had made the right choice! We walked round to the bus station and discovered that we had an hour to wait for a bus. We had noticed a Miles Tea Room when walking to the bus stop, so we went back there and had a cuppa.

Monday August 8^th

The weather was better today. We set off just after breakfast for a place well known to any readers who are knitters and familiar with the South West of England, Coldharbour Mill, in Uffcombe. I have mentioned the mill before on this blog. We have been known just to call in for Sunday lunch. Today we rode the bikes there, which was a first, the other first was a visit to their knitting group. Steve was quite insistent that we should go, when we discovered a sign outside the shop saying that the meetings were on a Monday. We both really enjoyed the company of the ladies, although we were sorry to have missed our friend Shani (Dyeverse).

Whoever does the gardening at the mill, does a great job!

Tues 9^th
Once again, the weather looked unpredictable. I had wanted to visit the yarn shop in Honiton. I had been told by the gentleman at The Natural Dye Studio, that the shop was worth a visit. So we caught the bus there. The yarn shop was indeed very well stocked and the lady was very helpful.

We then found a lovely place to eat, by this time it was raining quite hard.

The Cafe, also a deli, was called Champers.
We tried their salad with homemade fishcakes, they were delicious! We were told by some locals that this is the best place to eat in Honiton! They also have a fine selection of local cheeses, Tom's Pies and other goodies. We shall be back!

We spent over an hour in Honiton's Museum. I was interested to know more about the special lace that used to be made there. We were privileged to meet Pat Perryman. You will have seen her if you watched the BBC series, Edwardian Farm, she was showing Ruth Goodwin how to make Honiton Lace.

Honiton lace is special, worked by hand from the back the motifs are appliquéd to the background, usually net, and, historically, also worked by hand. Pat has been making lace for over 40 years! She said it is a skill that has taken her all over the world. She showed us the cuffs and jabot (collar and frill), that she made for The Speaker of The House of Commons. She said that she was very disappointed when the present speaker refused to wear them! Click below to see the Speaker's lace:
http://www.honitonmuseum.org/index.php?page=nicol-gallery

Also amongst the present lace collection, is a neglegee, once belonging to Mrs Wallace Simpson. The lace on it was made in Honiton and is much older than the nightdress. Here is a link where you should be able to see a picture:
http://www.midweekherald.co.uk/news/museum_buys_wallis_simpson_s_nightie_for_5_000_1_839829

Wednesday August 10^th
We set off on the bikes to find a nature reserve that Steve had found on the map at a place called Holywell Lake. When we got there, it looked as though someone had bought the land and it was no longer available to the public. Feeling a little frustrated, we went back to Wellington, where we had lunch at Café Licious.
http://www.cafelicious.net/our-menu

We were aiming to have tea in The Strand Stores, as we noticed when we were on the bus, a sign saying ‘Heavenly Cream Teas’. The opening hours told us that they closed at 7pm, so being rather early for a meal, we went for a walk along the river. We found the site of the old railway line that ran through the villages we had ridden through, from Wellington.

We suddenly realised that there was a bull in amongst this herd of Devon Reds, However, he was fine with people walking through his field, as the footpath ran through his patch, I guess he was used to human company.

Then back to the local pub, The Culm Valley, once the Railway Hotel (who were happy to serve us a drink, but said they were about to close), so we took our drink out into the hot sun and relaxed and I knitted, while we drank our ice-cold beverages.
After relaxing in the very warm sun for a while, we went back to The Strand and had some cake and tea. I had carrot cake which was lush! Steve had bakewell tart with fruit in the base rather than jam, he said it was excellant!

Here is a link to the shop: ( as soon as they have a site, I will add the link here!)

They not only do meals, but sell mostly local fruit and vegetables, items you would not necessarily find in your local deli as well as canned and packaged goods. They were very accommodating to us, as they had a table booked for a party of 6, and space is at a premium, but they managed to find an extra chair or two and squeeze us in.

Thurs 11^th

The weather once again, was a bit not looking settled, so we chose the bus again. We went to Seaton this time, not really for the destination, just for the ride. We saw some beautiful countryside to get there and went through some lovely little villages before arriving in Seaton. The weather was pretty bad by the time we arrived and so we spent the time in the Terrace Arts Cafe. Here is a link:

http://www.artannapola.com/

There is a basement which is under construction, where they hold poetry reading and art classes. I think there is also to be a beauty therapist as well. The walls are covered in art. The old tram rides there, were being used even though it was raining. People were so keen to ride, they were even sitting in the open topped trams! Here is a link to the trams:

All in all, this was a great holiday. Some have laughed when we told them how close to home we were staying, probably not more than 14 miles from our front door. However, we didn’t spend hours waiting for a flight, stuck in an airport, our accommodation was first class, we didn’t get stuck in traffic, or stressed over the length of time we took getting from a to b. Our holiday began as soon as we left home and didn’t finish until we put the bikes in the garage. Great memories of a great time! Thanks Steve!

http://www.tram.co.uk/

Once the bus was in, we travelled back to Honiton for lunch, once again in Champers. Once again we had the fishcakes. After lunch we chose some cheese to take with us, to eat in the evening, with some oatcakes. The staff was very helpful, offering us a taste before we bought. I think all the cheeses were local. There were also some locally made pies, Tom’s Pies, which we had earlier heard a couple of locals discussing, so we assume they are pretty good too!

Fri 12^th
Today we took a bike ride over to Hemyock Castle. We had seen it from the bus and thought it looked as if it warranted a visit. We had seen signs for the Castle, the Car Park, but unfortunately had missed the bit at the bottom of the notice that said ‘telephone for a viewing’. I tried the phone number, but only got an answering machine. So we took a couple of pictures from the outside.

The church stands right opposite the castle, we sat between the two while I tried to get an answer on the phone so that we could do a tour. Never mind, we don’t live far away, we will have to see if e can book a visit another time.

Then, just before we were into home territory, we came across these small animals.........

For Vintage British Bike Enthusiasts!

2011-08-05T20:02:00.000+01:00

During a car journey last Sunday, look who was filling up at the same garage.....................

Beautiful eh?

Of course, as Steve says," That's the trouble with British stuff, it just doesn't last!", (lol!) erm, yeah right!

A little bit of ..........all sorts!

2011-08-05T13:09:00.002+01:00

Cindy and the Red Barnies, this is especially for you! Last Saturday, was Craft Club Day! We met a week earlier than usual, because I would be away on holiday on the first Saturday of August. We had perhaps the youngest member ever in our meeting, but also perhaps, the oldest gentleman, my Dad who wishes his exact age to be kept from the world. Let's just say that he won't see 75 again!
Sorry, no movie clips as I almost forgot to take any! But here they are.......................

So here's our youngest member! This is second visit. Because his Mum's holding him up, he looks so much older, but he's just 3 months old. Little H, isn't he wonderul? Oh and Mum is a great crocheter! She creates her own patterns and sells her hand made goods at our LYS.

And here's my Dad! Handsome? He's great, he joins in with everything when he comes to stay. He doesn't knit, although he probably knows how.

Nita is a spinning whiz! She is working on some socks for her Dad made with a fleece we brought back for her from Shetland, while we were at Knit Camp, last year. She has spent many evenings here with Steve, helping him with his spinning.

Trisha is a crocheter and her work is beautiful! She makes and sells babywear from vintage patterns.

Penny is a lovely lady, but hasn't been too well lately, so she isn't working on a project here. She just loves Little H and was chatting to him while I snapped this. He was giggling back by the way

Here is Anne, this is her first visit for a while because she is a fantastic singer and has been involved in a couple of shows in the community where she lives. She is a beautiful knitter. She enjoys making toys but is trying her hand at larger projects

Here is a closer look at the lovely spinning Nita did. Those are going to be warm socks!

Our best wishes to all you who meet in that Little Red Barn at Jacob's Reward Farm! We love reading about you all and hearing all your news.

During Dad's stay, the weather was wonderful and we travelled, mostly by bus, allover the place!

We went over to the coast to meet up with daughter #3 several times, for lunch. After seeing her, we would then go for a walk. There is a walk that Dad enjoys, as there are plenty of rest stops.

I know this is a poor shot, but we were surprised to see this Great Crested Grebe in the park. They are usually veryshy birds, yet there were plenty of people around, some were fishing. He did his own bit of fishing, diving to the bottom for such a long time, we thought we'd lost him! Take a look at the link, as well as some better pictures,

there is a great little clip showing the courtship 'dance' these pretty little birds do, once they have chosen their mate.

http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/g/greatcrestedgrebe/videos.aspx

They are just the most delightful little birds and you can find out quite a bit about them on the same site.

As a trikcyclist, this was of great interest to me. I have a friend who lives close to where I work who has a similar machine. They are known as tadpoles. This gentleman, was eager for me to take a photograph. He said he can often be seen at steam fairs as he not only has this three wheeler, but a collection of trade bikes.

Those who are members of Ravelry (the online community of fibre crafters), will know that every year, during the summer, many people, especially spiners take part in an event called The Tour de Fleece. This takes place while the Tou de France is happening. Unlike the cyclists who ride over mountains finishing up on the Champs Elysées in Paris, France. I do not spin, as regular readers will know, I leave that to Steve! So I set myself the challenge to make as many shawls during the 3 weeks as I could. Here's what I managed to make...............

This is a Swallowtail Shawl from the pattern by Evlyn Clark.

This is

Celaeno, from Rosemary Hill's ebook, 7 Small Shawls to Knit.

Here's another swallowtail. I think I prefer the stripes.

At last.........................

2011-07-20T20:57:00.000+01:00

For a couple of weeks, since we took a diversion to get off the main road congested by Glastonbury Music festival traffic, as people returned home, we have been trying to get a photo of a little we noticed sitting on a ruined building at the side of the road. Whenever we would pass by with a camera at the ready, it was even more ready for us and would fly off before we had time to click. Tonight was different! Got you little owl!...............

We were quite a long way from this chimney. But as you can see, this is a well used perch!

You can find out more about Little Owls here..........

http://www.wildowl.co.uk/littleowls.html

Click for more information, to hear thecalls and to see a wonderful picture that really shows the scale of a Little Owl. A truely lovely bird!

Sorry..................

2011-07-19T21:46:00.001+01:00

Sorry, no pics today. The weather was awful! SO wet! So what did we do? Well there should have been photos of a vintage steam rally, but Steve didn't fancy getting the car stuck in a muddy field! So instead we went on our favourite steam railway. Steve bought a rover ticket for the day and we spent a lovely afternoon going up and down the line. I have never drunk so much Ginger Beer! Non alcoholic, of course!
Here's a link to the train site............
http://www.west-somerset-railway.co.uk/

From the train, you can see this castle, Dunster Castle.................
http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-vh/w-visits/w-findaplace/w-dunstercastle.htm
As you can see, it is now owned by The National Trust. For more information on its history and some more pics, you can click on the following link..............
http://exmoorencyclopedia.org.uk/contents-list/36-d/335-dunster-castle.html
One day we will go and have a proper look at the castle and I will be able to post my own photos.

Knitting........
I have taken up the Tour De Fleece challenge. This is predominantly a spinning activity. although many who don't spin, set themselves a knitting I have finished 3 shawls and a baby cardie since the bike race started. Shawl 3 still needs blocking (soaking, stretching out, and pinning and then left to dry naturally), but here are the first 2.

This pattern is called the Swallowtail and is designed by Evelyn A. Clark . Surprisingly. the shawl pictured below, is taken from the same pattern. The one above, is in silk yarn, the one below is a self striping sock yarn.

Clasical Mileend Alpaca Visit

2011-07-12T10:12:00.001+01:00

Sunday July 10th was a red letter day for me! We took a young friend down to Devon with us, a she has just finished her GCSE's and had an expressed a desire to meet some alpacas (I didn't need much persuasion!). Steve very kindly drove us there and we took great delight in meeting and photographing the animals.Thanks to Chas and Rachel for allowing us to wander through their farm.

Just some of the pics I took. If you have never been up close and personal to these animals, but have heard people say how peaceful they are, I can now speak from personal experience........they certainly are! Very inquisitive, they will stare at you for a while, allow you to stare back and then continue with their business. In the lowest of the fields, the gate was open and the largest female of the group became very concerned as some of the younger alpacas in her care were moved back into her field. It was her responsibility to ensure they got home safely and came to direct the traffic past a small group of visitors. As they returned this little one above was greeted with some special comfort.
Just a perfect day!

Very Brief Steam Train Ride

2011-07-04T20:38:00.001+01:00

This afternoon, on this very hot and sunny day we drove to our favourite cafe/ farm shop for lunch. Their ducks have recently had babies. The first picture was taken before lunch, the second, after. Well it was a very hot day and they had just eaten well!

After lunch, drove down to Watchet in Somerset and took the West Somerset Steam train to Washford., a which is about a 10 minute trip. From there, we walked down a couple of footpaths until we found what used to be an old mineral railway line. Small engines used to carry iron ore to the local harbour. The last engines were second hand trains from the London Metropoliton Line. So they were made to run in tunnels.

Why is it that when you want a decent pic of a butterfly, it folds up its wings and pretends to be drab? This was a painted lady, you wouldn't think she was proud of her colours though, would you?

You've known me take better pics of wild geraniums too! I tried for ages to eliminate the sun from these eye popping little beauties, but still, the sun has bleached their showiness! Sigh!

Now, I have shown you the wildlife here is the industry:

Here is a link, with a map of where we walked:
http://www.westsomersetmineralrailway.org.uk/welcome/sites-to-explore/watchet/ You can also find a link with more details about the steam railway there. Here is an interesting link for those of you interested in the local histoy of the area http://www.quantockonline.co.uk/quantocks/villages/watchet/watchet.html
What is Watchet Blue? Find out more here and also more about the paper mill-
http://www.watchetmuseum.co.uk/social_history.php.

They were made by Bayer Peacock's in Manchester. The rails have long since gone, but what is left is a footpath amidst shady trees, and signs of wildlife. Today because it was so hot, we saw many butterflies, including a painted lady, we heard a buzzard, but I think it could have been a chick calling to an adult from it's nest under the cover of the trees. We also saw a beautiful green and yellow striped dragonfly. I am sorry, it was to quick to photograph, but if anyone knows the name of this beauty, Steve and I would like to know!

I managed to do some knitting while we were there

and we got a photograph of a Hymec engine, Steve says that they are pretty rare these days, not many were made in the fist place. They were used for China Clay Trains, as well as passenger trains in Cornwall.

Couldn't Wait to share this with you!

2011-06-30T11:12:00.001+01:00

On Tuesday, we went for a walk after work because the weather was so good, warm and sunny. We set off from a car park in Glastonbury, for the Tor. However, to get there, we had to hit the High Street. We therefore, especially as it was more than time for tea, stopped off at The Hundred Monkeys for a ploughman's, which we both have to say, is the best we have ever tasted! All from local ingredients. Somerset Cheddar and Brie!

On leaving there, we ventured on, passing the Chalice Well Garden, a peaceful place which I have visited once before, then up the hill to the Tor.

This is the view from about halfway up the hill. Doesn't it look great in the sunshine? But then, as is England's way.............enticing you to do something outdoorsy and then................

Well.........................you can see how fast it changed! We could see the rain coming across, so as Steve didn't have a raincoat with him and had laughed at me for taking mine, we beat a hasty retreat! And then? Well you can guess...............by the time we arrived back at the car the sun had the audacity to come back out! That was our Tuesday evening!

This is just a taste of where I work.

These are our school gardens. Partly a memorial garden (the gravel garden), but I wanted you to be able to enjoy the wild flower garden with me. I believe it was planted by the children.

Just round the corner from here, there is also a raised bed kitchen garden,where the children grow crops such as potatoes, peas, onions and there is even a grape vine!

Wednesday night, we arrived home from work, having previously receiving a text from Bec reminding us that she was preparing tea with Lee's help. Well what a surprise! When we were allowed further than the living room, we were given a Pimms (yum!), then we were invited into the garden, where the very overgrown grass had been cut! The table had been placed out there, complete with cloth and a posy of flowers from the garden and the most delicious looking sandwiches and salad goodies placed on top of doilies ( I had forgotten I had made them!).

Thank you Bec and Lee! It was delicious! It made our evening!

I have also finished some knitting! Actually, I finished this a couple of weeks ago, but only just got round to having someone take the photo. I used the Tapan Zee pattern, which is available from the free online magazine, Knitty. Here is a link to the latest issue http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEff11/index.php

Here it is in the making...................

A Stroll in The Hot Hot Sun!

2011-06-26T21:37:00.002+01:00

Today, the rain has well and truelly left us for the day, at least! It feels like a proper summer's day! So we met up with Bec had a very good lunch and went for a walk in the woods. She and I had a rather large cheese salad with a huge bread roll, at the local farm cafe, attached to a cheese factory.

Look carefully for the grasshopper!

Cowparsley

Foxglove

We went to Greatwood where we parked the car next to two horse boxes. We kept meeting the horses and their riders as we walked.

This horse got a well deserved cool dip on a very hot day! I wished I had taken a pic of it when it left the stream.............it was gleaming!

A lovely, very hot day!

Catchup time!

2011-06-18T16:26:00.001+01:00

We are often to be found on a woodland walk on a sunny Sunday.

These were all taken in Greatwood, on the Quantocks on May 1st

The following day, we woke up and Steve said, 'I fancy another trip on the train. How about a walk along the canal n Bath?' It was a lovely day and we were once again childless, so only ourselves to worry about. So after a coffee and cookie at this little cafe just across from Bath Spa Station, we set off. The lady who served us was very pleasant, possibly Polish, but we weren't sure. The decor of the cafe was unusual, more like somone's living room diner. Here's me.........

and here's my man, wearing the apaca sealess vest I made him, from a pattern I created myself. He wears it a lot, so I am happy.

We dined from pretty plates,

these cupcakes were fake, but they added colour, they did sell real ones too and they looked really tasty!

My Mum used to have a frame like this in the kitchen, where she hung washing up to dry during rainy weather. With the smaller houses that most of us live in these days, I think someone may be missing a trick, how handy would one of these be up near the ceinling, while life goes on below? But now, we only seem to use them for posh kitchens and hang pots and pans for them. However, I thought this was a cute use.

These flowers on the long dining table next to ours were also a nice touch.

Enough about cafes! It wasn't long before we set off on our walk. I thought this was an interesting effect, looking under the bridges to where the lock gates were just closing.

Then we watched these holiday makers taking their narrow boat through the lock, along with another (closest to the camera), who I think may have been people who lve aboard their boat. We would have been termed by a 'live aboard' as 'gongoozlers', that is the name for people like us who like to stop and stare at narrow boaters, or just dream of retiring to life on the canal one day in the future!

I was amazed at how fast the water flowed into the lock and the boats were soon under way again.

Another thing that is lovely about a walk along the toe path of the Kennet and Avon canal, is the variety of scenary. For a while you pass through the outskirts of Bath, where you come across little scenes like the one on the left.

Every so often, there is a sign such as this. Notice the 5/- (5 shillings) reward.

This, we learned on a TV programme the other day, used to be the headquarters for the whole of the canal some years ago. There must have been so much trafic in the industrial heyday of coal and other goods that had to be carried by canal, before the coming of the railway.

There are many beautiful bridges on the canal on the outskirts of the city, from the information on the BBC programme we watched, this is because the landowners didn't really want the canal to interfere with their land!

O SO many bridges!

For a while the railway runs paralell to the canal. Here is Steve whistfully remembering the golden age of steam!
We also came across some art work,

The wheels on this sculpture were rotating with the wind. As you can see, it was called Recycle, and I wondered if it was connected to anything to utilise the power of the wind it was catching.

This boat, which was also featured on the BBC programme aboutthe area, was for sale. The whole of the cover, I think, was detatchable, below is the strange head, fitted to the stern.

This one is for you Bec!

AND then, suddenly, thanks to a pair of rather cheap traiers, our walk was over! Steve had developed a large blister on the back of his foot! So we hotfooted it back to the cantre of Bath and enjoyed an afternoon in a park, Parade Gardens.We were treated to a bout of nostalgia, by the Goognight Sweethearts. They sang all the old wartime favourites, which even the likes of us who were not around in those days know many of the words to.

The girls were dressed in charactor and between sets came round and met their audience. A truely lovely experience.

This duck thought so too................ or was he just after the remains of the sanwiches and picnics of the audience? It doesn't take birds long to catch on to a good source of food! In their world, there is such a thing as a free lunch! Ther was also a cafe there, so no one had to go without either a cup of tea or a cake!

Half Term Holiday

The weather during half term in April, was amazing! So warm and sunny, it was more like summer than summer itself! Every now and again, a friend who I met during the course of work, and I try to meet up for a day during school holidays. She now lives in Yeovil and we were able to walk through the beautiful Nine Springs Gardens.

We watched the heron for ages, while we ate our lunch. It is obvoiusly very used to people walking past all the time.

Anyone know what these are?

We had a lovely day together!

Days out with my Dad

We went to Weston Super Mare.

Another trip, was to the Cannington College Walled Garden

These oriental poppies were just wonderful!

Conference Pears are special to me. I have never made a secure link, but Conference Pears were developed byu a Thomas Rivers in Victorian times. When he featured on The BBC's Victorian Kitchen Garden years ago, I often thought we might be related,as my fathe's name is Rivers. He also resembled my Dad!

Steve and I found time....

To go on a couple of bike trips. In the time he has had his shop, he has hardly had time to ridehis bike at all.

We came upon this beautiful horse along the way. Hopefully we will get more time to do these recreational things together soon. Anyone who is in the retail trade will know what I mean!

One Sunday afternoon...

Steve said (you'll be used to this by now!) 'Let's take the train instead of going for a walk'. His foot was still sore at the time, so we took the lunchtime train to Cardiff.

It was to late to visit anywhere specific sowe had a stroll around the city.

Knit in Public Day in Bradford on Avon

2011-06-17T22:08:00.002+01:00

I have other posts to publish here and I have been working on them, a trip to Yeovil, another to Bath, another to the beautiful Walled Garden in Cannington.But they will all have to wait! I want to tell you about the wonderful day I spent with a group of friends, mostly people who I hadn't known before I arrived at Bradford On Avon last Saturday.

As most of my readers probably know, I am a knitter. I am a member of the online community of knitters, spinners and crotchers on Ravelry. You may have seen my post about Scotland last year. Steve and I met SO many lovely people while we were there. There is something special about people who create things with their hands.

So, today, June 11th, I left home just after 7.45am to catch my train and my adventure began! My first train was on time and a couple of hours later, I arruved at Bath Spa, where I caught a train that was travelling on to Portsmouth. I was only going as far as Bradford on Avon. I arrived on time, but early for the event that took place today. So I had time to look around the quaint little town.
I bought some lunch at a little takeaway/cafe, Maples, which seemed to specialise in organic and deli type foods. My sandwich was delicious!

Then, as this was a knitting day, I walked up the street to Jumble Jelly the towns new craft shop. Here I met Rox, who is lovely! Very friendly and I learned, already knew about me from Misselle! I felt famous for 15 seconds (!). I purchased some beautiful yarn from the shop. A skein of sock yarn, which is already a pair of socks, in Sweetpea colours and another, pale green silk, which is destined to become a little shawl!

Rox at Jumble Jelly.

I was one of the first to arrive at the gardens where the gazebo was to be errected and here I met the other half of Jumble Jelly, Deb, who is also a lovely lady! They both have SO many things planned for the shop! A string of workshops are planned. Some of them will be specifically with children in mind and will run during the summer holidays. Deb has a plan to get children using not only knitting needles, crocher hooks, but also sewing machines!

Here is an early picture, before everyone else arived. Left are mother and daughter team Carolyn and Victoria, and to the right is the lovely Deb. Sitting in te shade, towards the centre is my 'found online friend' Misselle. Now the wellkown podcaster

This young lady is a star! Aged 11, she has already learned to knit..........can you crochet too? She had made this great scarf and then chose afterwards to follow Misselle'sadvice and make it into a snake by sewing on a great face with black shiney eyes. I love it! You are a great advert for the shop! Your Mumshould be proud! But be careful or she'll have you teaching workshops!

Here is Peter being interviewed by Misselle. We were all in great admiration of his socks that he knitted as tubes, but somehow he made them flat on 2 needles, when finished, he opened the tube out for the first time! I said I thought he was a magician! He also had us all in awe at his method of casting off his work. A technique that he has taught himself and something that none of us had seen before. It was grat chatting to you Peter. I would love to know more of your knitting story! You had probably been knitting for longer than any of us ladies! Very impressive!

For more details and pictures of the day, please visit Miss Elle's Knitwear , Eleni Drinks Tea and
KnitCave - Ramblings of an Obsessive

SOOOOOO Much has happened since I was here last! Part !

2011-06-12T00:41:00.001+01:00

Hi everyone,
You may have been wondering why I haven't posted here for ages, well, there have been family things going on, which aren't quite sorted yet, but hopefully we're getting there!
We haven't been able to carry out many of the 2011 resolution walks, because daughter No 3 got a waitressing job and wasn't around on a Sunday any more. I have a feeling with another change of workplace that may change again! However, we have spent some time walking and exploring our local area.

Dad has been visiting us fairly often lately and although very sprightly for his age, he cannot manage the more strenuous walks that we choose to do when he is not with us.
So some more leasurely exercise....

This was a return visit to Sellworthy. Hubby to the left, my Dad on the right. THis was back during the hot spell back in April.

Suddenly everywhere looks SO green and the light is changing, there is real warmth in that sun!

There were flowers everywhere!

Speedwell

Dandylion

Violet

Perriwinkle

Wild geranium

Wells on Market Day, but we escape to walk by the mote of the Bishop's Palace Mote.

Where we observed a female mallard, seen here with 16 of her 18 brood!

This is a mosaic made by the people mentioned above, the after effects of the Chernobyl deaster have been brought home to me as a school paired to the one where I work is still feeling the after effects.

Same mosaic, slightly different view.

Billy enjoyed a very hot day at Glastonbury Abbey, such a poser!

So did Dad!

I always try to imagine how imposing the Abbey must have been with its giant arches and tower intact.

Dad then went home for a while and we did a couple of trips on our own. One was to Bath, where we walked along the canal. The idea was to walk to Bradford on Avon.

Train watching with the canal behind.

The City of Bath

Train track in the foreground and the motorway raised up and cutting across the countryside.
There are various works of art on the canal. The following boat was for sale at the time I caught it on camera:

Two views of the same boat

This sculpture was across the other side of the water. The wheels act as windmills and I wondered if anyone was making use of the wind's power when the spun.

Wanted to include this for family reasons.... you know who you are!

There are also some beautiful gardens along the way....

We also managed a couple of bike rides.

I made a friend along the way. Heavy horses are so calm and happy to stand for hours. This one enjoyed a tickle behind the ears.

Time for a shopping trip and a lovely visit from a one of my beautiful daughters............love you!

I also spent time with a friend who I used to work with before her family moved away. We walked to the top of Wyndham Hill. Stopped off at the bottom for something to eat and walked through Ninesprings Park. It was a super hot day and really enjoyable.

This heron, in the park seemed so tame, but I think he was really conserned with catching his lunch.The pool was alive with fish so I don't think he had to try too hard.
In amongst all the outdoor activity, I have also found time to knit. On our last visit to The Spinning Wheal in Clevedon, I met a lady wearing a Tapan Zee. It was designed by Amy King and here is the link:
http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEss10/KSPATTtappanzee.php
I did not use handspun yarn, but some Sirdar Luxury Soft Cotton, part of some yarn that I won in a designing competition. I still need to work on it slightly. I made the sleeves and body longer and built in a little extra space round the middle! Here is just a taste:

He just made me laugh!

2011-04-13T09:18:00.001+01:00

Billy has a blanket in his little bed which he uses to make a kind of cocoon. I think as he is getting older he feels the cold more. This morning it looked as though he forced himself to get up, but diguised himself as Dougal from The Magic Roundabout. Anyone remember that kids' show? Grown men (I have it on good authority) used to rush home from work to see it!

Billy's disguise!

Here's a link for you in case you don't know what I'm on about:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3DcChXNyYQ&playnext=1&list=PL997275202830977D
I'd forgotten it contained anything remotely satiristic (is there such a word?)

Have a great day everyone :)

Sorry!

2011-04-13T01:37:00.001+01:00

Sorry this post is late! I promised you pics a few days ago and some were supposed to appear after Sunday. Hmm.............slight problem there..........................I managed to delete them all! We had a lovely day, the weather I think was possibly the warmest it has been so far this year. The pics I took of Steve were some of the best ever!

So yesterday, I repeated the trip. But as Steve was not with me, it was not the same! The weather was not the same... it was cold, windy and at one point there was rain in the air, but fortunately it never came to much. I did have a couple of chats to some of the people I met along the way. One lady is in the process of trying to move and told me a brief story about how her Dad was torpedoed in the war. Another group of people on the next table to me in a cafe, turned out to be from Brighton, where I worked before I was married, it's a small world and SO interesting.

So, first, here are some images from yesterday (you'll have to imagine DH was there, and the sun was firstly present, secondly warm!)

Watchet

They tried for ages to get this boat into the water, but I think the tide was too low. I don't have a picture, but they did succeed.

This museum is only one tiny room, but so interesting, we visited last month when it hammered down with rain! The building also comprises a chapel, upstairs and an old police cell, which can be seen from the other end.

Don't you just love the natural yarn-like colours in this sea scape?

Not the best picture, but the subject is very dear to the family's heart! We are all lovers of steam! This is the West Somerset Railway.

Another change in the weather and this was today . One of Dad's favourite local places. I know I have covered this in a previous post, but I have tried to show you some other angles today.

Glastonbury Abbey

The herb garden, where all the plants are clearly marked with their names and what their use was during the time when the medieval monks were here. This site was their cider house.

Two pictures of the Abbot's kitchen. Designed with the tower at the top to suck the smoke from the fires, one at each of the four corners, out of the kitchen.

The monks source of cider apples. They had their own orchard.

It is still spring here and there are many beautiful flowers still in bloom. Some are cultivated, some are wild, but there are no weeds here, they are all doing their own thing!

Celandine

Primrose

Apple Blossom

Daisies

One Dad and his dog Billy

Just a couple more images, the first one of the main arches, the second looking out to Glastonbury Parish Church.

Happy Weekend everyone!

2011-04-09T21:34:00.000+01:00

Tomorrow's mini adventure will be a little different to the usual walks.
Last week we took a bus to a fairly local tourist destination. The weather was pretty dire, hense the lack of photos. However, during the journey, the driver told us that the Sunday service was due to end on April 10th! We could not believe it, but the local council have cut the money for public transport, so they have decided that the only way they can operate is to cut Sunday buses. The buses in the evenings are to be cut too. I feel very sorry for people who do not have access to a car, or for whatever reason, do not drive and who have relatives in hospital. They will not be able to visit in the evenings any more. There are also many people in Somerset who have been using the bus to get to and from work. I know of at least one person who will now be looking for a new job as he is now unable to travel to the village where he works in time for the beginning of his day.

I have not been idle this week, This is a picture of the bag I am knitting. As you will see, the body of it is made in one piece. You then pick up and knit stitches from the edges and from them, form the sides. These stiches then form the handle. I won the Noro Yarn a couple of years ago when I went to a Knit In Public Day.
I have now felted the bag, which has become incredibly soft and just need to line it with the fabric from the denim skirt I bought from a charity shop (cunning eh?). Hopefully I will be able to make use of the ready-made pockets.

The colours are really bright! I love it!
I have also made one and a half Baby Surprise Cardies, once again, more pictures when the sun gets up!

Spinners

2011-03-28T01:02:00.002+01:00

I thought it was about time I posted some video of Steve spinning!

Fixing the drive band

Practicing treadling

Spinning

He also gave Em a spinning lesson when she was last home from China.

Now she's gone back and we all miss her like crazy! But we know our children have to spread their wings and at getting on for 30, she needs to see the world! Most people would go to France or somewhere else for their first trip abroad, not Em! After meeting her first Chinese boyfriend while at college, China was her first choice of foreign soil!

This week, the south west of England has jumped a season, going from winter straight to summer!

We took a trip further west this weekend.....................for a very special lady

During this last weekend, my Mother-in-law turned 81! She deserved a something special, so we paid her a special visit!

I took these for fun, on the way down. Not far from Jamaica Inn. Yes the one named in the classic!

She celebrated our visit with an icecream. I think she's saying 'cheers'!

Can't remember what they were all looking at!

It was great to have DD#1 and our Son-in-law with us too! We had a great time looking at the tall ship in the harbour.

I was great to be back by the seaside!

It was a great day! Great food, great company, a great reaction to a great surprise!

Because we had a few hours in the car and for the majority of the day, we sat and chatted, I was able to get a substanual amount of knitting done. I am making the Stripey Noro Messenger Bag by Deborah Cooke. I am knitting with some Noro I won in a raffle a couple of years ago. But I am not doing the stripes, I wanted it to be completely Noro! I only started it yesterday afternoon. I just have the flap to finish and then the sides and strap to do. Then I shall felt and line it. I know it's mostly stockig stitch, but it meant that I could chat and knit.

Just a quick note...

2011-03-24T21:10:00.000Z

There was a heavy dew last night and by the time we were out for a walk, the mist was rising. I love these bright, not too cold mornings! Today we donned our walking boots and wandered across the fields. Here are some of the images from this morning's walk. Hope you enjoy them! The venue was the same as yeasterday. The route, just a little different.

Spring is here indeed!

Happy Wednesday

2011-03-23T09:36:00.001Z

Just lately, due to lack of time to walk together during the week, Steve and I have taken to getting up earlier and walking before work. This morning was just lovely (but not long enough!).

This was part of a walk I did with a friend yesterday. We walked through the fields to get to the same point, but today time was precious. For those fibery people amongst you, I thought you would apreciate the following group of pictures, taken just feet from one another. We also saw a fox bounding across a field, but I just wasn't quick enough with the camera!

There is a great history to the farm where the alpaca were.

We didn't really go far enough for you to see the oldest part of the buildings properly, but the tallest gable, which you can see behind the conservatory is from a more ancient time. It is a private home and farm, so I am not going to name the property this time.Having researched the history of the site, I have discovered that it has quite a past! For anyone living in Somerset, you might even be able to guess where it is!

The first written evidence for the place goes back to 579! In 1539-1707, it was owned by The Duke of Somerset, Sir Edward Seymour, brother of the famous Jane Seymour, who of course married King Henry VIII. Sir Edward Dwyer, and Elizabethan poet also owned the estate at one point, as did the Thynne family of Longleat (famouse for it's free ranging lions, and now a thenme park). For those of you who enjoy classical novels, Henry Fielding, the author of Tom Jones, was born here in 1707. From the late 1700's it passed into the hands of several gentleman farmers including Thomas Hawkins, the palaeontologist who discovered fossils of the ichthyosaurus.

In the 1830's a large part of the main buildings including the chapel, were demolished, but by 1830 it was looked upon as the best farm in Somerset and employed over 40 labourers, growing wheat, dairy and beef cattle, and sheep.

SPRING!!!

2011-03-15T12:03:00.001Z

Last Sunday was such a beautiful day weatherwise!
We took a drive over to Selworthy Village. You may remember, I wrote about this a while ago. It is not far from Dunster (which, if you are a fan of Agatha Christie's Hurcule Poirot, theTV series, you will have seen, I'll take some photos the next time I'm there).

The village is beautiful and owned by The National Trust. It is right on the edge of Exmoor National Park. Some of the scenes you can see on here this time, you would think you were miles from civilization, but actually, this is not the case! We were always within a mile from the nearest house.

You may remember that I have posted pics of these lovely cottages before.

This was the woods at the start of our walk.

Land uses change. For the past 18 months, volunteers have been working to restore the walls and hedges that have marked boundries and have allowed nature to flourish in their cracks. We hadn't walked very far before we noticed this bracket fungus on one of the trees

Then we looked up and saw this!

The tree is pretty dead, although it did look as though new spindly shoots were sprouting form it.

The woodland, known as Holinocote (once spelt and pronounced Hunecot) was mentioned in The Doomsday Book.

There are a number of interesting stone features as the spring runs its course down the hill. One is a bridge that marks a junction in the paths. It has a cutout at either side. So presumably the water comes down as a torrent during inclement weather. There is another pool higher up which directs the water in a certain course.

It is a pretty long, but not too steep a rise up to meet the coastal path. On the way, you pass through a memorial garden where clumps of daffodils were beginning to flower and a hut (although no in our photos, we did see it) stands as part of the memorial.

Carrying on up the hill, Steve made me stop and took the following!

While stopped at this point we heard the distant yaffel of a woodpecker, we saw some evidence of its drilling on some of the trees nearby, but the holes were not good enough to show you and the tree was very dead!
On and upwards again and we could feel the breeze coming over the top. It had been so peaceful and still in the woodland. There were just the occaisional bluetit or greattit calling, whilst hiding away from us.

Selworthy Beacon

Then suddenly, we were at the top! Some of the tracks up here had, it is said been used by Canadian tanks during WWll, I could imagine some of the terrain being a battlefield up on the moor.
Selworthy's Beacon has exsisted since the sixteenth centuary wars with Frane and Spain.

Just a few more views from the beacon. If you zoom in, you can see South Wales and Weston-Super-Mare acoss the other side of the estuary, depending on the direction of the photo.

Unless you know, this just looks like any other country track. However, as we turned the corner and began the downhill stretch, we could hear (and Steve could see...) two skylarks! They have become quite rare in the UK now, mostly dueto modern farm practices. It was just great to hear them!

Next week, there may not be a walk report, as my Dad, once again is coming to stay. But now the weather is getting warmer and we have seen more of the sun, hopefully it won't be long before we are able to get out on the tracks again!

More Yarn Please!

2011-03-08T09:53:00.000Z

Signs of Spring? Well, there are suddenly plenty growing in neighbours' gardens, but these were a surprise from a friend. I only wish you could smell them! I left them shut in the kitchen, as it's cooler there during the day and when I came home, the scent almost knocked me over! Enjoy the sunshine in the flowers! We are told to stare at yellow for a while if we are feeling depressed during the low light levels of winter.

Better late than never....

I had a present from my daughter for my birthday (last November), a luxury manicure. I wanted to save it for a school holiday as when I am working, nail polish wouldn't last 5 minutes. SoI thought Christmas would be a good time. The first day of the holidays arrived and my appointment, hm, but so did the snow! So all was cancelled! Then spring half term arrived! Hooray! No snow! So I had my lovely hand treatment! The best bits were the massage and wax treatments! The hardest (for any knitter, I would think) was to sit for 20 minutes and not do anything with my hands! The results were and are (I'm trying to keep up the good work with hand creams) amazing! Thanks Jin and Jim (her DH)!

Lovely hands!

Today, DH and I came back from work to find the following on our kitchen table!

What a great surprise! We were served English muffins with burgers inside. Meat for DH, a veggie burger with egg on top, for me! Then My favourite chocolate covered ice lolly for desert!

----------

Coldharbour Mill

Yesterday, DH and I went to our favourite yarn mill. The objects of the visit was to buy more yarn, have lunch and go for a walk. However, the yarn purchase will have to wait :(

At Christmas time, the leat for the water wheel froze as did the pipes in the mill building. So on the weekend when there should have been a steam up and we were meeting an old friend there for lunch, the whole complex was closed! They couldn't even open the cafe as there had been a burst pipe in that building too!

To show you the mill's setting (wouldn't mind living there!)

Today when we visited, the cafe had been reopened after the ceiling that the water from the burst pipe had brought down had been fixed. Today in the lovely sunshine, the mill race was flowing beautifully, but the yarn shop is still empty and being dried with dehumidifyers! All the lovely yarn has been ruined because a toilet pipe two floors up had burst! It ran through the cafe, but ended up in the shop on the floor below!

Uffcombe Village. Water from here was diverted into the mill race to power the water wheel, before the days of steam power.

The walk was a great sucess! The weather as I said earlier was just wonderful! Bright sunshine, but fresh feeling. Many spring flowers were blooming, such as snowdrops an chrocuses and tiny daffodils.

New camera and The Levels

2011-02-22T00:17:00.003Z

These are the pics that I promised last time, but they wouldn't upload! I just went for a stroll locally and experimented. I am quite pleased with the sharpness of the results and hope you agree.

Sunday, we did our usual afternoon walk. We have been trying to get down to the levels all winter to witness the starling murmeations. Yet again, we got it wrong! Em was on her way back from London, so we had a deadline to be home for. Had we been able to stay just a few minutes more, we would have seen them, they were just flying in as we drove onto the main road home! However, I did take some photos.

The history of the levels, as the Somerset wetlands and reed beds are known, is anceint. There is a walkway, built by neolithic man, some 6 000 years ago that was found close to where we walked. The Romans harvested peat, this practice was carried on until very recently/ Origionally, the black material was cut and laid in the air to dry, before being used as fuel.

At present, you can see the reconstruction of a couple of Celtic round houses next to the car park. These would have been a great teaching resource for local school visits, had the site not been closed by the council. (I will climb off mt soapbox now)

The peat was laterly gathered for compost. However, now it is deemed to be detrimental to the ecology of the wetlands. Certain areas look as though the peat has been harvested, but on a much smaller scale. Most people now use more ecofriendly compost, such as that made from shoddy (otherwise known as dags, or the skirt of the fleece which id often the dirtiest, containing plenty of 'vegetable matter' as I heard one pocaster call sheep droppings lately.

There are bits of machinery all over the place, ready to dig out the black peat to mantain the ditches!

The levels is a super area for wildlife. This swan was finding so much food, it nearly toppled over!

All the way along our walk were tranquil pools where the rain had filled the man-made peat voids.

The reed beds attract many rare birds, such as bitterns (11 pairs bred here last year), there was even a single pair of Little Bitterns recorded last year, the only pair to breed in the whole of the UK! We also get several types of warbler nesting in the reeds. Each winter, the reeds have to be cleared to a certain extent to keep the pools from filling with vegetation. This also improves the habitat for rare moths found on the site.

The path through the reserve is the site of a disused railway.

New Camera!

2011-02-19T13:44:00.003Z

Sorry I haven't posted here as often as I would have liked recently.

This is mainly due to the fact that I've had my Dad staying for a couple of weeks. There are problems, but much too much to mention here! He is home for the moment and I am on half term! So I am enjoying a bit of me time for a couple of days!

We still plan to walk on Sunday afternoons. So I should have a report for you on Monday. Especially as I now have a new little camera of my own, thanks to Dad!

Steve had a birthday last Tuesday and he now has a new library! I gave him a book on one of his favourite subjects, railway history. My Dad gave him a whole set of HD Westercott's walking guides. They were written back in the 1960's or so, but he had already owned the walker's handbook, written byu the same person, but used until it fell to bits! So now we have many other places to explore! It will be a bit like Micheal Portillo's BBC series where he takes the train and uses a rather ancient Bradshaw Guide, written back in the day when Sherlock Holms and Dr Watson were solving crimes! So as you can imagine, a few things have changed!

Firstly, the camera, I have tried it out, here are a few of my results:
Having trouble loading............. I will post asap

Rained off!

2011-01-19T22:31:00.000Z

Sorry to everyone who was expecting to see some pics of our Sunday walk this week, rain stopped play! Next week will be slightly different because my Dad is coming to stay. We are collecting him the day after his birthday, but he has invited us out for a birthday meal. You never know, there might be some pictures of a meal out with the birthday boy/father!

As you know, another of my passions is knitting. I have been using alpaca blended with BFL (blue faced Liecester) and marino, just lately. I had no idea of its history in Great Britian! I thought you might be interested in this..................

I have just been watching a TV programme, here in UK. It is called Great British Railway Journeys ( shown on BBC 2, series 2 episode 3).(this programme will beavailable at www.bbc.co.uk/iPlayer for the next 7 days from the date of this post! The presenter, ex MP Michael Portillo, took a trip round Yorkshire, stopping off at Saltaire. There he visited a mill where flax was origionally produced. This was until the owner, a Sir Titus Salt discovered the alpaca! Take a look at this letter:
http://www.saltairevillage.info/news-00004-thewinningpost...

When you have read that, take a look at these pics!
The last 2 of the mill, contain alpacas!
http://www.eriding.net/media/saltaire.shtml

We were not the first to see the importance of apaca fleece! I was very excited by this find!

Another Hill Walk

2011-01-09T19:56:00.000Z

Today's walk was slightly different, in that Brean is a big tourist area. Our other walks so far, may be visited by holiday-makers, but are slightly off the beaten track. Brean Down is the last of the Mendip Hills before you reach the Bristol Channel Our path today was well worn and defined without being way marked. From the summit Bristol can be seen in the distance, along with the Severn Bridge, which is a gateway to Wales.Looking inland,you can see right over the Levels.

Looking towards the beginning of our walk

If you look between the two larger buildings, you can just see the steps that have been cut into the rock for walkers. You can also see the zig-zag path where the steps continue almost to the top of hill. Once you reach the top, there is a walk of about 2 miles.
Looking inland, both Brent Knoll and Crook Peak are visible. Below, in the centre is Brent Knoll. In the distance to the left, is Glastonbury Tor.

Looking inland towards the Levels

We visited towards late afternoon, otherwise we would have taken a shot of the fort, right at the end of the headland. The fort was built back in the 1850's under the rule of Napoleon 111. It is one of four forts built to protect the Bristol Channel from invasion from the French. Although well armoured, no shots were ever fired from the fort. However, at 5am on July 6th, 1900, there was a huge explosion . Gunner Haines had fired his rifle into the ventilator of the magazine of the large No. 3 gun,resulting his death. One wonders what led him to do such a rather stupid thing!

Looking towards Weston-Super-Mare

If you zoom in on the picture above, you can see Weston-Super-Mare. You can clearly see the old pier, to the left. In the centre is the new pier, the old one burnt down just over 2 years ago, follow the coastline along to the right and you will see the the wheel. It is owned by the same company as the new pier and was built as an extra attraction while the pier was being rebuilt. My Dad was staying with us just before the fire and we visited the pier the day after. Dad had become very excited when he realized how close Weston was by train, he said he remembered as a boy, rollerskating down the prom and visiting the pier! The reason for the fire was given as a fault in the fish and chip bar on the board walk. The smoke from the fire could be seen as far away as Bridgwater and even further afield!

Looking across the Bristol Channel to Wales. Zoom in and you can see The Millennium Stadium (rugby)in Cardiff.

The sunsetting over Brean Sands

Then we had a quick dash back to the car park which closes at 5pm. If you don't get back before closing, there is a £75 fine to retrieve your car!
Where to next week?

A New Year's Resolution

2011-01-03T23:57:00.002Z

HAPPY 2011!!!

Brent Knoll

New Year's Resolution? Proposed by DD#3's boyfriend - that we walk a hill every Sunday afternoon during 2011 and accepted by all of us! You read it here, so you will be able to see if we kept to this!

Yesterday we went for a walk that we have been promising ourselves we would do for more than 5 years! Not far from the motorway, is a hill called Brent Knoll. It appears to stick up in the middle of nowhere. It is 449ft high. It was known by the Romans as the Mount of Frogs. Knoll means 'a smooth mound'. The top of the hill has an indentation and I remember asking Steve, if he thought it could have been some sort of fort at some time. Having read up on the history, it seems that both Bronze Age and people of the Iron Age used it for its advantage of hight. There is a ridge around the edge of the summit and slight mounds towards the centre. Roman coins were found there, in an urn, in 1610.

The light changed as we were there mid afternoon. As the sun lowered the views became dimmer. I would like to go again as spring comes along, as I am sure the views in sunlight must be stunning! You can see across the Bristol Channel to Wales, Exmoor, the Mendips, the Poldens and the Quantock Hills.

Brent Knoll was used for Queen Victoria's Jubliees and all other jubilees since

Glatonbury Tor, about 20 miles from the Knoll

The motorway, with traffic nose to tail. A constant humming sound, from the summit of the Knoll, about the only sound to break the silence!

Crook Peak from Brent Knoll

The distant light houses at Burnham. The nearest one is built on the side of a house and is several yards from the water. It is now surrounded by other buildings and the sea is not visible when viewed from inland. Burnham has a total of three lighthouses, the two in the picture and a light on the church tower.

Crook Peak

Today, because it was New Year Bank Holiday Monday, we took another trip to the hills, this time in snow! This is the hill we saw yesterday. It was a very steep climb at the start, but worth it when we reached the top! We left the car at the bottom in slight drizzle, but as we reached the top it became obvious that it had been snowing for a while at the higher altitude and was still doing so.

Crook Peak dusted with snow

Looking towards Cheddar

Crook Peak is a limestone mound and is 628ft high.

Coming down, we found an easier, less slippery path to follow. We came across a cave, on further investigation online, I discovered that this cave was not found until 1994. There are numerous (although we didn't see any!) ochre pits nearby, as ochre was mined here as late as the 1920's.

Watch this space and see where we end up next weekend!

2011!

2011-01-01T22:31:00.000Z

Well it's arrived! Happy New Year everyone! I hope it's a good one for all of you!
I don't have any photos to share at this time. There should have been some of Coldharbour Mill today, but when we got there it was closed. O think the weather in some places further south than us have had worse weather. On the drive down we noticed piled up snow! Ours finally disappeared December 23rd. The mill had a few fundamental problems, there was a burst pipe in the cafe, rather unhelpful for making drinks and washing up! Also a frozen leat which means no water to power the waterwheel for driving the mill! So no mill trip!

However, there was a good lesson in how much people matter in all this. If we had met my friend at the mill,we would have walked round looking at machinery, watched the steam-powered engines working, but I don't think we would have chatted so much! We found a nearby pub, had a bite to eat and chatted for about four hours! It was a good time. I think that's what the phrase 'quality time' means!

Holidays!

2010-12-28T00:07:00.000Z

Its very rare for Steve and I to be able to just spend time around the house. Usually we have to dash around visting friends and family or are busy with church activities when not involved with the business. Well, this Christmas, we've done the visiting bit so now we are just enjoying some time together. We have both been enjoying some seasonal TV and radio together whilst pursuing our individual crafts.

I know............I have been promising everyone a pic of Steve spinning for ages! He is practicing the rythem of the treadle here, he has a couple of Shetland fleeces to spin when he's ready. They are LUSH!

If you have access to BBC Radio 7 on iPlayer where you are, I can recommend Jagged Prayer by Robert Smith, which is quite light listening. Also the Narnian Chronicles, which I think you will proberbly already know. Cover Her Face by PD James is also available. I haven't listened to Santa__ A Life, yet, but it sounds good!

We went for a short walk today, just to get some fresh air, but it was extreemly slippery still. I think it will be better tomorrow as we have had pretty heavy rain tonight and it doesn't feel cold enough to freeze.

We are childless for the while as our 'live at home most of the time' daughters are busy out in the world. We spoke to all 3 at various times during the day. It was great to get through to China at last to speak to DD#2! Thank goodness for the invention of video calls via the net!

I took this pic of her while we were chatting. She looks well and I love the new haircut!

I am in the process of making a scarf from a pattern I am creating as I go along (hope it works out!), not a very good one,but it gives some idea, oh yes and I have also had my hair cut!

I hope whatever you are doing, however you are spending the remains of the Christmas break and the New Year Holiday, that you have a really good time. A Happy New Year to all!

Bad Blogger!!!

2010-12-17T18:50:00.001Z

I am a bad blogger! Sorry I haven't posted for so long! I have been busy with knitting, Christmas gifts and other items!
However, today was the last day of term ans although there will be plenty going on, I won't have so many deadlines to keep to.

A couple of weeks ago now, we had our last craft meet up of the year which was complete with nibbles and prezzies............. special thanks to Secret Santa!

As you will see, there is a birthday cake amongst the plates of goodies! Here, below, is the birthday girl!

Thank you so much for bringing your beautiful cake to share with us!

Today as it was the last day of school God provided the children with a good amount of snow to play in! This is what the Somerset high street looked like, just before we left for home:

Happy Christmas from Somerset in the UK!

It's now December 18th......... and we still have snow! It's taken everyone by surprise, we hardly ever get snow (except this and last year!) We certainly haven't had any before Christmas for a very long time!

Not my snowmen, these! I wish they were! I passed them as I was walking back from a Christmas shopping trip.

A Sunny Saturday...........

2010-10-30T20:41:00.000+01:00

Actually that's a lie! It poured with rain this afternoon, but we were really too busy (and indoors) to notice.
Steve's Mum and Dad came up on a coach trip, for a visit. Great to see them! And only 3 weeks to wait til we see them again! Yay!!

This was a surprise I made for Mum-In-Law.

Autumn Sundays

2010-10-24T19:51:00.000+01:00

This afternoon we returned to the beautiful place we discovered last week!

We have actually been several times before, but were restricted to the outer limits of the RSPB reserve as we had Daisy with us. Daisy was our good friend the border collie cross, who came into our lives for 5 short years, from a rescue centre. She loved life and all of us, but seemed to have a soft spot for Steve, for whome she would lie down and watch at his shop all day, unless I came to visit and take her for a walk.

Daisy came with us on a Cornish holiday and enjoyed a windy walk in St Ives. That was back in 2008.

Back to today,

Here are some of the photos Steve took today.

The path running along the right side of the canal here, used to be the Somerset and Dorset Railway. It carried peat from what is now the wetlands and passengers, post etc., It was part of the mainline from Burnham to Evercreach Junction.

Light levels were very variable today.

At one point Steve said 'wait!' and clicked the camera. I wondered what he was doing, here is the result....................................

The Autumn Shawl!

Knit Club

2010-09-26T18:45:00.000+01:00

Knit Club is still meeting here every first Saturday of the month and September was no exception. As you may know, I am a follower of Jacob's Reward Farm. They meet in the farm's Little Red Barn to spin, knit and partake of crafts of all kinds. Cindy and I have linked our two groups and she has been just great at sending video clips and great pics to me. She even sent a special one across for Steve to welcome him to the spinning fold.

You're a great bunch of ladies! We have also been sent the lovely green project bags and pins with the Jacobs logo embellishment on them...............thank you for those too! You can see them on Cindy's blog
http://www.jacobsreward.blogspot.com/

Cindy, here are the photos I took the last time we met:

This final shot is my lovely daughter, who as I write this is on her way back from London where she has been helping a Uni friend to set up an exhibition on Canary Warf, London. Hard to believe she is 27 isn't it?

A Visit To Wales

2010-09-26T17:57:00.003+01:00

On September 23rd 2010, Steve and I celebrated our 32nd wedding anniversary! It doesn't seem all that long ago that I walked down the aisle with my Dad and then stood next to a man who had bee at the church for the previous hour and who had become so nervous, he couldn't lok at me until the minister said'you may now kiss the bride'! He could have been marrying anyone! I am glad it was me! We have had some great times together. As every other couple, we have shared our low times, as well as the good times and of course look forward to many more happy times.

As of today, Steve is all set to create some more happiness all by himself........... as a wedding anniversary gift, I bought him his own spinning wheel!

Isn't she beautiful? We took a trip to Wales to collect her. We paid a visit to Clive and Joan's workshop. It is a handmade wheel and was owned by a lady who was really reluctant to part with it, but thank you, we are very glad you did! We were there for a couple of hours while Steve tried out the wheel, while I made friends with their little dog Billy. I am adding a link to Clive and Joan's site.
http://www.woodland-turnery.co.uk/
We met them at Knit Camp,where their lovely daughter sat Steve down with a couple of their wheels and introduced him to spinning. We were particularly impressed, as they were both recovering from a heavy cold and this was the first time they had been at the workshop since. Just wanted to say how much we appeciated you coming out to meet us, and on a Sunday too!
Thanks to all of you for your help!

As we were leaving, Joan suggested a good place to stop for lunch. A garden centre called Secret Garden. Here's a link: http://www.secretgardenwales.co.uk/
We both recommend the Quiche and side salad!

We had a pretty uneventful journey home, but the good sunny weather and blue sky certainly helped to further the enjoyment of the day.

Keep spinning Steve!

A Fantastic Day!

2010-09-26T17:48:00.000+01:00

Isn't it great when you meet up for a day with a friend you haven't seen for months? Today was just such a day....... I met up with Leigh who I used to work with until she moved out of the area. We met at the bus station (we share the fact that neither of us drives) and then Dad suggested that we go to the local cafe for coffee. When Dad is staying we go there almost every day, but only when the weather's kind enough, as we invariably have his little Jack Russell, Billy, with us and of course, can only have a coffee if we sit outside.

Then after a few food purchases, we made our way home. After a light snack for lunch, Leigh said that she had been given a teacosy kit for Christmas, but that as she didn't knit she had shoved it out of the way and almost forgotten about it! So of course, as any friend would, I asked if she would like a knitting lesson. She said that she didn't think she would be able to learn, but I said, that there were few people who found they could really not do it. To cut this story short, she is one of the fastest students I have ever taught! She had it within about 10 mins! I think we were both amazed!

I think she has almost got it..................

.......................... Looking much more comfortable!

Later we had a tea which consisted of Cheese and Cucumber Flan (recipe to follow!) and salad with baked potatoes, followed by Strawberries and Clotted Cream. I provided the first course, Leigh provided the dessert......thank you, the strawbs and cream was wonderful and a real treat!
Then after sitting chatting for a while it was time to drop my lovely friend home. It is just as well Steve drives, as if we had been reliant on buses, we would have only had a couple of hours together! However, as we neared Leigh's home town, we were diverted a couple of times. After that, and a welcome stop for a very quick, qery strong coffee, we eventually arrived home at 11pm!

It was all worth it, I am thinking, as I get ready for bed. I have spent quality time with a great friend, who now has a new skill! Where will it take her? It has taken me to Scotland, Caused me to have the courage to set up my own craft group and through the crafts of both knitting and crochet,I have met and made yet more wonderful friends!

Last night something fantastic happened! Steve, who had attended Spin Night, when he accompanied me to Stirling, and been inspired by what he saw, expressed a wish to spin. So, when we arrived home, we checked out the price of wheels. We couldn't afford one right away. However, a friend, Anita, from the Group, when she heard of Steve's wish wanted to teach him. She later appeared with her daughter's wheel. That was Tuesday last week, last night everything clicked into place and Steve is now SPINNING! I am so excited as now we can manage all the processes, except sheering (and I guess that could be arranged!) towards producing our own scratch knitted garments! I am SO proud of him! Go Steve!!!

Home...........Back to Reality?

2010-09-26T17:47:00.001+01:00

Well not quite! There was still a lot of fibre and chat going on! But before I get on to that.........

We arrived home at about 11pm Saturday night. Sunday, we had to be up with the lark, as DD#2 had to be at work half an hour's drive away and needed her Dad to take her. So we saw her safely there and called into a garden centre fpr a quick bite to eat. We then set off for Heaven's Gate, where our dearly departed dog, Daisy came from. We watched the dogs who are waiting for homes go through their agility paces. Some were very talented! I fell in love with a couple of greyhounds, and somehow managed to resist (with Steve's help!).

.http://www.maunsellock.co.uk/

Here's the link above, to the place where we often spend a Sunday afternoon so now you can picture us there most lazy Sunday afternoons! I was surprised that we weren't in any of the photos on the video. It's such a peaceful place and the little movie clip does it real justice,

The canal will still be there next weekend, the dogs were well worth the visit!

Knit Camp update

2010-08-13T01:01:00.030+01:00

Monday
Today Steve and I did the Darn Walk again, this time with a lovely lady Tricotonrideau (Danielle), on Ravelry, from Ottowa, We were supposed to meet with Modeknit, (Annie), but my messages didn't reach her in time! Danielle took this picture of me while we were on the walk.

I was smelling the flowers and didn't even know I had been snapped!

During the afternoon, I sat and knitted and knitted in the part of the Uni called the Atrium. I tried to catch as many paople as possible to sign a card for Jo.

No pictures of the tea party, I'm sorry, but Jo didn't want anyone to take any. She had had so much pressure from so many quarters and all sorts of things that I don't want to mention here had not gone according to plan! Steve took a pic of me with Ewa Kuniczak, here is a link to her website

http://www.feltheadtotoe.com/ She is a lovely lady and SO full of fun!

Here is a picture of the finished lap throw for Jo, which was given to her at the Clapotea Party. Thank you to everyone who contributed! Jo was very touched by it.

I hope you all aprove of the way I finished it.

Tuesday

Today was the day I had enrolled to be with Liz Lovick all day for her Introduction to Fairisle workshop. What a lovely lady! If ever you get the chance to work with her...jump at it! She is a great teacher! She will put you at ease straight away! Whether she is teaching you a knitting or a spinning technique, she will teach you that it's ok to make mistakes, after all, as she says, with knitting, you can always put them right!
Here is the link to her website:

http://www.northernlace.co.uk/NIFA10.html

While we were busy having fun in a rather hot classroom, Steve took himself off on a train trip (such a chore for him!), to Perth. He spent the time having a look round. He said that Perth is a good shopping centre which still retains many of the smaller independant shops and has a brilliant toy shop!

Wednesday

Today began wet. We had planned to go up to Abbey Craig, but thought that the paths would be rather soggy. We therefore hopped on a train and went to Edinburgh. On arriving there, it was still raining, rather hard by that time and we weren't sure exactly what we wanted to do, so we hopped on a tour bus for a described ride all over the city. We learned where Robert Louis Stevenson had spent his time writing. How the streets of the city had got their names, and where the Irish had settled when they had migrated from their homes during the time of the Potato Famine, amongst many other facts. During the circuit, a Museum of Childhood was mentioned. I thought this might be interesting, with the added attraction of being free of charge. If ever you find yourself in Edinbourgh, do go! It amazing! There are four floors dedicated to toys! Unfortunately Edward Murray, although a collector of childhood items, seemed not to have liked children very much, but you can read more about that on your visit. Here is a link to the museum, with it's address:

http://www.gnws.co.uk/edinburgh/childhood.htm

We arrived back at Anam Cara where we stayed, after a tea of scampy and chips at Allan Water Cafe. Here's the link:
http://www.allanwatercafe.co.uk/
The yogurt icecream is very good too!

Thursday

Today we once again chickened out of doing the walk we have been promising ourselves all week! It was wet again over night, so once again we took a trip out on the train. This time, it was to see the Falkirk Wheel.
This was my first ever attempt at video on Steve's camera! Hope you think it's ok!

Friday
During the morning Steve andI had a date with a dye pot! We had a morning clss booked with Debbie Tomkies, Debbiet on Ravelry. We had so much fun playng with colour!

My yarn ready for the microwave

So many ways to add colour to the yarn. Sport lidded bottles are very good!

Aren't these colours fantastic? This is just a selection of colours produced by our class.

Have we been together too long We didn't discuss the colours we were going to use, but here is the result. Mine at the top, Steve's beautiful randon yarn at the bottom!

We knew we would need to conserve energy for the evening, I will come to that later! But there was a very local walk that we had been planning all week but never got round to. Up behind the university, which used to be a country estate complete with loch and castle, there is a wall, now falling down in places, with many gateways to the mountains out from the uni, take one of the pathways through a gateway and you find yourself clibing steeply! We didn't go right to the top, but through a lovely piece of woodland until we found a road. The road led us back down to Bridge of Allan. We then walked to the station where we took a train to Stirling where we knew our card for the savings account would work.

A long train journey means great knitting time!..............

2010-08-08T22:55:00.001+01:00

Steve and I caught the train out of Somerset at just after 9am and arrived in Bridge of Allan at 7pm. A long ride? Yes, but great for getting a good amount of knitting done! A bit more of Steve's hiking waistcoat mark2. One of the highlights of our journey was seeing a hare running across the fiedls shortly after leaving Edinburgh, the last time I saw one was when we first visited Mid Wales almost 30 years ago. What a privilage!

Last night we went for a walk round Stirling Uni campus. It really is as beautiful as the photos I have already seen! There was the added sound of the pipes, as there was a piping championship taking place somewhere. We also heard an owl which I think I have correctly identified as a Little Owl and saw many well fed rabbits. I'm not sure what the rabbits are fed with in Stirling, but I am sure it's more than just grass!

Today we did the Darn Walk, which starts at Allan Water and ends in Dunblaine. It was so peaceful! We heard several birds of prey, probably buzzards, and the tops of the trees were alive with long-tailed tits!
We walked to the end of the town of Bridge of Allan, towards the station and this is what we found:

Then we walked along by the river until we found the official beginning of the walk.

Any Craftlit podcast listeners might be interested. A little later we did indeed find the cave!

We continued to walk alongside the river until, suddenly, there was the cave.........

We couldn't help thinking of Ben Gunn! This was the view in the opposite direction..........

This sign was at the beginning of the walk, but later...........

All rather confusing really!

Along the waty, we smelt the various scents of the pines, all beautiful. Breathed the almost neat oxygen thrown up by the riverand saw several birds we didn't recognise, heard what we thought were buzzards, but couldn't see them for the trees and caught this butterfly on camera:

We also felt the bounce of this bridge.

The sign tells horse riders to dismount!

The river was just beautiful!

A Not So Lazy Sunday Afternoon.....

2010-08-01T21:31:00.003+01:00

This is a different type of entry to those I usually post here, but I thought you might like to see some of the things our church gets up to now and again. A Breezy day on Berrow Beach and Mr Goh is looking conserned because the Pastor has just loaded some lighter fuel under the cooking sausages, he is worried that they will catch fire! You can't see the flames in this photo, but I assure you that they were there! My man looks on from a distance!

Happy 65th John! I hope you had a wonderful day! Here is our choice for the remake of Last of The Summer Wine (actually it was their idea!)

Gradually as he other men in the group saw what was happening, they came along and joined in!

What a great line up!

Seriously, a great time was had by all, even the smallest members of the group. There were icecreams, sausages and pieces of chicken, not necessarily in that order. A beautiful lurcher called Jasmine (who I am in love with), kite flying (Katie was just the best at flying one! Hope you aren't too stiff tomorrow Katie!).

It was great to have Alvin and Eather and family with us, hope you are settling in at Bath.

I am sure there will be more to follow sometimes.

Home and enjoying it!

2010-07-29T22:51:00.004+01:00

Firstly I have to say here, at long last are the pics of the cooking I promised to post.

A friend sent me a little book of vegetarian recipes. Her Grandmother used to make Glamorgan sausages which she remembered being delicious. So they were the first things I made from the book.

They are relly easy, the breadcrumbs, Carphilly cheese, onion and egg I mixed in the food mixer. Then it was just a case of dipping them in egg and rolling in breadcrumbs before shallow frying them..........yum!

Here they are before cooking.

And here is the finished product, ready for eating!

We ate them with jacket potatoes and didn't need any snacks that evening!

Last weekend, we went to do some clothes shopping on Sunday. This is unheard of for Steve! He hates shopping with a passion! But needs must,and after all there is a holiday on the horizon! So off to Taunton we went.

You know the saying,'you never know what you're going to see when you're out'?
Well take a look at this; a Gamelan from Indonesia, outside The Brewhouse Theatre! I think the idea was for members of the public to have a go, but I would have loved to hear it being played!

Yesterday I made some six seed bread rolls and today I made cheesy carrot flan. I don't remember doing so much quality cooking since I started my present job! It is just so lovely to have the summer to my self and be around the home more.

Also yesterday, my friend Anita cmae over, she is Nita29 on Ravelry. She is a lovely lady. She spins and knits, but also machine knits. She very kindly brought her knitting machine over to give me a hand with something I needed in rather a hurry.

Today I have been with a new friend, who due to health problems which mean she cannot leave the house too often, I rode the trike over to visit. She is a lovely lady, Yarnspider1 on Ravelry, with a son who wasn't feeling too well (he had a bad cold),2 beautiful dogs and a husband who looks after them all. I am rather envious, as ahe has what many of us would put on their dream list, namely a craft cabin in the garden! Lovely! Full of looms, carders, a spinning wheel and all the other things you would expect to see in the presence of a finbry person! We only met today, yet it was as though we had known each other for ever by the time we said goodbye! Yarnspider is now an honorary member of Bridgy Craft Group! Other members of the group will be visiting you Yarnspider!

I am still working on The Crowprint Shawl that I want to take to Knit Camp. The days are going so fast, it won't be long before DH and I are on our way to Stirling! I am so excited!

We haven't been to look for the swans lately. The last time we went, it seemed they had disappeared. We think that they may have moved out into the more rural part of the canal. Maybe that would be a job for tomorrow or Saturday, to go and look for them again. I would love to know how many signets have survived.

More cooking! I have excelled myself lately, those who know me well will know what I'm saying, especially daughter #1! Here are some 6 Seed Bread Rolls I made on Wednesday.

They are yummy! I always freeze them so that they don't get eaten in one sitting!

A lazy Sunday afternoon!

2010-07-05T00:47:00.000+01:00

We live in a beautiful place! Today we visited Netherstowey for a walk. The weather was beautiful, with a bit of a breeze blowing, just right to keep a person cool while walking uphill! This was a walk I downloaded from the net. Here is a link:

http://www.quantockonline.co.uk/tourism_leisure/activities/walks/circularwalks/netherstowey01.pdf

This was the very walk!
We started out at Cricketers Farm Shop and Cafe, where we had lunch, we often stop off there on a Sunday. Then we set off to find the Old School which is now the Library. Outside the Library, is now a carpark. We left the car and headed off with our downloaded instructions.

We walked up the hill to the site of the old castle. This is an ariel photo copied from an information board. You can see what is left of the castle just right of centre, the moat and the baily are fairly easy to see. We walked right up to the top, the view was amazing! But my photos do not really do it justice!

You can see where the moat would have been here.

Bill's 80th!

2010-07-05T00:43:00.000+01:00

We were in Cornwall for the day today as it was my Father In Law's birthday. Arrived home pretty late tonight and am waiting on Janette's photos. So more when she has uploaded!

IAPM73: It’s about time

2010-06-26T15:21:00.000+01:00

IAPM73: It’s about time

This is a podcast that i enjpy very much! Try it.....you'll like it!

First trip out for Bridgy Crochet and Knitters' Group

2010-06-09T20:20:00.000+01:00

Saturday June 5th, was the first trip out for our group. We had a great time! The journey, and thank you Anita for driving, was smooth and comfortable! We arrived in style in the spacious people carrier. We were greeted at Get Knitted as soon as we arrived by Gail, shown where the important things were, like cake! We had a good look around, spent plenty of cash and then sat, knitted, crocheted and chatted!

We also want to welcome Mark to the group. He as been crocheting for about 6 months. He and Tequilla got on really well and they both spent time together comparing notes. We thought he was pretty brave to join all us ladies for the day! He has promised to come to next month's meeting and show us what he has made. We were sorry that there were some people who couldn't make Saturday, but we look forward to seeing everyone on Saturday July 3rd.For more details please email me:
carotrike@yahoo.com

Life Happens.............

2010-06-06T12:52:00.003+01:00

Sorry I haven't posted here for a while. We had some shocking news lately, telling us that an aunt and uncle, my Mum's sister and her hubby, died within a few days of one another. I am not proud of the fact that although they, as do I, live in UK and we heard via another branch of the family via Australia! We have drifted into a scattered family who only communicate rarely and hardly ever meet. That said, we do visit one another if we are in the local area. I feel very ashamed that this has happened and the information came to us in this way!

On to happier things..........

Easter was a happy time for us. Dad came to stay and we went to the donkey sanctuary where his adopted donkey lives with his friends. It was a rather cold day and I was surprised to see so many people with their dogs. There was a couple there with thier family of golden retrievers. wish I had taken a photo. The couple were having a snack in the yard and the dogs were obviously used to waiting for them. The ages ranges from about 15 years, to just a few weeks. All were excellantly behaved! They just lay cuddled up to one another.

A few weekends ago, we visited a little village on the outskirts of Exmoor. It fulfills the dream of those who would love to escape the rat race and exchange it for the peace and beauty of the countryside. It was so lovely that I recorded the birdsong and took some great spring colour photos. Here is the little church at the top of the carpark.

And this is the view from the church! Isn't it stunning?

We enjoyed ourselves so much that day; walking, looking at the natural world around us, eating cream tea and listening to the wonderful birdsongs, that we took DD#1 and her DH there just tow weeks later.

This is the small and much photographed bridge and ford in the village of Allerford. There are one or two cream tea shops in the village, a Reading Room Club and an old school room that has been tirned into a very interesting museum ith a blacksmith's behind. Only a very small place, but so much to see!I have noticed the following pic on several calendars of The West Country, or Somerset.

The little packhorse bridge and ford in the village apears on many calendars illustrating South West England. The road comes sharply down hill, and then divides into an ajoining footpath/bridal way over the bridge. Just before the bridge, walkers pass under the little porch of the cottage.

Yet another church. Not far from the bridge, I wanted to add this pictur specially for any knitters out there. From this angle, it looks as though there are sheep in the churchyard! Yes, it really is that rural! Right nest door, cream teas are served. As we sat indoors (the weather had cooled slightly and there was a cool breeze), we watched the parrots on their perches and wathced several hawks and owls been taken to their respective places as the place doubles as a falconry centre.

What does this tell you about the goodness of a well made cream tea? DD#2 and I thought it was pretty good! And we're pretty tough crittics!

This picture gives you some idea of how the two little villages look. Selworthy is mainly owned by the National Trust and many of the cottages have thatched rooves. They still have their village green with the cottages looking as though they have been 'planted' around it. Just beautiful! Note the tall chimneys, all thatched homes have these to prevent sparks catching the thatch alight. The walls are about 3ft thick, providing a cozy home during the cold British winters.

That was our first visit.

Two weeks later, much warmer weather and in the company of DD# and her DH. He took this photo.

Reading left to right:DD#1, DD#3,DD#2,me andDH.

Just to bring everything up to date, we are into June. It hardly seems possible! Dad came over again and spent a few days here with little dog Billy. It was my half term, so we were able once again to spend some time together. We didn't go very far this time, but it was just good once again to be together. Dad spent much of his time reading a book just out by a friend of ours

Mike is a good friend of ours. Such a hard worker, as his his wife Jenny. They worked very hard when he had Newquay Zoo in Cornwall. He and Jenny always had time for a chat. DH and I, often took a special needs lad with us while D#3 had her Zoo Club meeting. We used to look forward to taking him and no matter how busy, Mike and Jenny always made hime feel special! Since then, Mike has been involced with many ventures, such as running Canonteign Falls in Devon and the charity for children, which was stated at the zoo, Marc's Ark. His book is full of pictures of the animals and people he has been involved with over the years.

Speaking of anmals,we are now following a family of swans on the local canal. We are so fortunate to have such a great resource so close to home, within walking distance! It quite beatiful (once you get away from the rubbsh around the town).

Pictures of the swans to follow...

HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE!

2010-04-03T20:36:00.001+01:00

Here's a little present I knitted for a friend who keeps chickens! She needed cheering up so this little hen which she has named Bambam in honour of her son, who used to tap the top off his eggs and shout Bambam (he was a Flinstone fan!)

I thought she was a good way of wishing everyone a Happy Easter!

Dad comes to stay tomorrow with his little dog Billy, the Jack Russell. The older we get, the better Dad and I get along! It is a joy to have him stay!

Billy is a rescue dog.

He was very badly beaten with a golf club by a previous owner and his back leg was badly broken! How cruel some people can be! He is lovely and in his way loves yarny goodness! Here he is trying to climb into my knitting bag to have a nap on a previous visit!

And so to Cornwall...........

2010-03-21T22:15:00.000Z

Today we travelled to Cornwall to spend the day with Irene, my Mother-In-Law's 80th birthday. Steve, Em, Bec and her boyfriend Marcus, all travelled down, setting off at just before 8am From here in Somerset. We generally stop off near Oakhampton for a break and then travel on to St Austell.

Lunch was at 1pm at the Carclays. Usually there is a great view of the bay below, but today wasn't worth the photo! It was so hazy. Maybe next time!
Our Great Nephew was there today and as no one seemed in a rush to leave after the meal, he sat in hs high chair and entertained us during conversational lulls! He began by getting his Dad's attention (His Mum couldn't join us a she had to work...) but he knew exactly how to play to his audience! First he kept throwing his toy cars on the floor. He would then say a cute little 'uh oh' and then smile endearingly at his Dad. Then he made out he was trying to undo the strap on his chair and made us all laugh with the funny faces he was pulling! He was really a very well behaved little person as he sat there from 1-3pm! He's not even 2 years old yet!

Irene had some great presents, although she hasn't opened them all yet, her birthday isn't until Wednesday. We all had a great time with everyone. Once again we didn't come home empty handed. Irene has always given the girls orange juice to bring home, ever since they were babies, today was no exception. Then there were the local papers and also some home baked cakes, one a fruit cake, was for Steve, the other, a banana cake was for Em.

A grand day out!
Thanks, great parents!

MOTHER'S DAY!

2010-03-14T23:38:00.003Z

Today was a day of surprises! I was given a dear little basket of spring flowers, tiny daffodils, irises and hyacinths from my husband, a bunch of tulips and hyacinths from my eldest, a pair of earrings from daughter #2 and a bottle of wine from daughter #3! Thank you all so much! I love them all!

I think the greatest surprise of all, was a visit from Jan! She was hiding in the livingroom when we came back from church Great to see her again! I snapped this just as she was leaving.

We went to a local garden centre for lunch and she bought some veg seeds for her garden. She is holding, amongst other things, a copy of Hillier's Guide for the Ammature Gardener. This book was much prized by Steve, who was given it by someone who he use to garden for, back in his roundsman days.. He said wistfully that he misses the gardening on days such as today was. Spring feels as if it is really beginning to happen and the light is changing, no longer the weak sunny winter light, but the type of light that feels stronger adn has the promise of warmth about it..

Here are my lovely cards

My Beautiful flower basket from my husband

My lovely fowers from Jan.

There was also a bottle of Blossom Hill wine from my youngest. Thank you everyone! Thank you also for lunch and the great walk along the canal afterwards! I had a brilliant day.

FIRST DAY OF SPRING?

2010-03-13T19:29:00.001Z

Today has really felt like the first day of spring! The light here is changing,the sun is getting stronger and there was more warmth in the sun before the wind got up this afternoon. The greatest test? As I rushed into the town early this morning, I needed to take my coat off before I overheated!

Later, as I travelled to Wells by bus, I counted 11 mqgpies in a field, obviously they feel it is time to display and a green woodpecker flew right at the side of the bus as we travelled along a country road! I gasped, but I think I may have been the only person who really saw him! I think they are beautiful! Below is a link to the RSBP web page where you can see illustrations of the bird, listen to its call and watch a very short video (unfortunately it looks as though it's raining, but it gives you an idea.

http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/g/greenwoodpecker/index.aspx#

I visited Wells market again today and, wow! What a difference! Two weeks ago the weather was cold and there was hardly anyone around, today with the sunshine, you couldn't move for the crowds and there were queues (lines) for everything! I bought some black pudding for Steve from the Lancastrian stall. It tastes better if you don't know what goes into it! Some potato cakes, another Lancashire delicacy that I miss my mother-in-law making on our weekly Sunday visits!

http://thefoody.com/vegetable/potatocakes.html

Mother-in-law used to prepare them, place them in the fridge and then, when it was nearly teatime, she would put them in the AGA cooker. Then when they were ready, we would eat them lightly spread with butter. Yum!

At long last, actually last Saturday (I just didn't get round to taking the photos!) I have finished my Ravelympic attempt! Here is the result

I need to improve my photography skills, I know, but it gives you an idea. Although I finished after the Olympics had ended, I did manage to finish within 2 weeks. I just had SO many other things going on that I couldn't start on the correct date.

Tonight we are watching John Betjeman traveling by train within Norfolk. The intersting thing about it is that it was filmed in 1962. The title, should you not be able to find it on BBC iplayer, is John Betjeman Goes by Train. I am sure there must be a DVD. Just the social content is interesting, although I don't know the area at all.

This afternoon, Sue and Tess returned for another crochet lesson. They are the sisters who crocheted together on the sofa at out last club meeting. They are both lovely ladies and full of fun! They have now progressed from chain to double crochet. Both went away happy and ready to practise what they have learned.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY to all who are going to celebrate on Sunday March 14th!