Tynemouth Longsands

We had a fabulous couple of days up in the North East visiting family. Well it was really only a day and a bit, once we took travelling time into consideration. We all love visiting there so much- spending time with family and there is always plenty to do and lots of places to visit.

We invariably make a visit to Longsands which is just down from Tynemouth and this weekend was no exception. The beach is wide and has the most beautiful sand you could imagine! There were lots of families out as well as dog owners walking their furry friends. Its so heartening to see people out taking advantage of the dry weather and getting fresh air and exercise!

Isn't this just such a lovely view- from the top of the cliff before the descent down to the beach1

I love this sign so polite but self explanatory- It wasn't quite sun bathing weather so we didn't need to take the sunscreens this time!

This is our favourite cafe which is right down on the beach . It has seating both inside and out and serves no  nonsense food- from panini s - e.g. tuna melt with jalapenos_( yummy) to cheesy chips- all at a very good price and decent portions. The rule in our family is that we have to do the walk first. So after a quick look at the menu we headed out onto the beach

Lots of families and dogs all playing and enjoying the fresh air! Even my young people reverted to the child within and chased about with seaweed!

The views were lovely if a little dark and wintry

and once you start you can find lots of things to photo!

At last we claimed a table and even sat outside the cafe and enjoyed the view

Lots of hungry eaters and their coffees! and of course the cheesey chips!

On the way home the signs on the arches in Gateshead made us smile  as we have been watching episodes of Vicar of Dibley  this Christmas.! Good family viewing everyone was happy to watch ( and  that can be difficult ) for both those new to the programme and those that had seen it before!

Christmas and our trip up North have been  a lovely bonding time! and now sadly back to work, college , Uni and on with all that 2013 has to bring us!

We've been visiting the north east for a day or two!

Hi
 Just to say we have been up north for a day or two and have a a few photos to post - so look out for the next post!
 I have been thinking about new resolutions and what means the most to me. Santa was lovely and left me a Kitchen garden magazine and I used to be an  an avid reader but time got the better of me. Anyway suffice to say - my love for growing vegetables was always there- its just had an extra Christmas boost so watch this space. I hope to blog about my  plans my successes and and of course  my failures! I have an allotment but hope to keep that for longer growing vegetables and fruit. I  will grow some vegetables at  home as well for quick picking! I know I will miss the chickens but I think we really need to let the area rest for a year or so! The area will definitely be well fertilised!
I love growing our produce and finding ways of keeping it for the new year. I am so excited for 2013!   and hope to update you with my successes and failures with regard to preserving!
 First on the list will be the satsuma and cranberry relish which I will post in the next few days - this was described as sublime! so watch this space !

Wishing you a very happy new year !

We had a lovely Christmas with all the young ones back in the nest.

 We got our tree from a local farm and had great fun choosing which we should go for. 

Typically we all wanted a LARGE tree but had to remember that if the tree looked big in the shed then it was going to be humungous and too tall for home. Also we wouldn't be able to get it home! Whatever we bought had to fit in the car

 When unpacking the tree we found a birds nest near the bottom . I hope we didn't make any birds homeless for christmas. My son pointed out that in the cold they often hunker down in nests. I just hope this was a vacant one!

 Once the tree was decorated the cat was quick off the mark  and procured himself the best seat in the house-

I made hampers again filled with homemade goodies including a fun christmas apron and a variety of preserves including seville marmalade ( I started last January), apple and chilli jam  ( lovely a sweet with a delayed kick), autumn chutney ( made with some difficulty as at the time of making only one of the rings on the hob was working and that was the small one- It took some time to get the right consistency.) I also included a jar of luxury dried fruits soaked in Sherry- lovely with ice-cream and last but not least a jar of satsuma and cranberry relish which has been highly recommended!

I parcelled them all up in the brown bags as above. My daughter helped stencil them. The bags were saved from work- deliveries arrive in them and usually they are binned. I really wanted to reuse them and so came up with this idea. I  am really quite pleased with the outcome! and also very enviromentally friendly!

 Elder daughter wanted the cat to have a Christmas outfit and so she made him a bow tie with a velcro fastening- Cute eh? He actually didn't mind - I think he just loves being fussed over!

 We had a trip down memory lane with plastic soldiers and little dolls-

 I think Tinkerbell and friend have had tooo much to drink !

We had scratch cards with our crackers on Christmas day- ( now that they are all old enough) and that apparently made my younger daughters day!_ even though she didn't win any money!

Ohh I nearly forgot I wore my apron on Christmas day from Mrs Thomasina Tittlemouse's giveaway earlier this year. Its soo pretty and is very much prized!

Cheers to you Mrs Tittlemouse - hoping you had a lovely Christmas! I  am soooo looking forward to catching up on all my blog reading and finding out about everyones festive time!

Thats just a brief snapshot of our Christmas- hoping you had a christmas full of memories too!!

Wishing you all a happy, healthy and prosperous new year!

I can't believe its been a month!

 

I really can't believe that its been a month since I last posted. We have been busy here as usual but I have been particularly caught with making things. It all started with a message via Facebook did I want to have a stall at a christmas fair? Did I ? Well the crafting has taken over rather and I did and do still need to move items- as my sewing room -well actually the spare room- is full of bags of cushions, lavender bags, bags , christmas stockings, aprons- mostly in a completed state. There is however the mountain of fabric that I seemed to have accrued. It has become quite obsessional.

 Needless to say I did say yes to the fair - as I really needed the prompting. My stuff wasn't going to sell sitting in my back bedroom.  I have long been following Christian from Christians blog and his stories of his craft stalls have inspired me to have ago too- so thank you Christian.
 The date of the fair grew closer and closer and the closer we got,the more things I felt I needed to make!

 I had a tablecloth ready, float, bags to put sales in  ( recycled brown paper bags from work- which my daughter and I stamped with a cream paint leaf design), spare sewing kit, lunch and of course all my goodies.

The morning came and off I set. I had planned my table sort of in my head. I didn't really know the size of the table so I knew I had to play with the arrangement once I arrived. I found the hall and parked and there was my table with my name on- it was very exciting. The adrenaline was flowing!

 My table was ready to go - all we needed was the customers! I don't know what happened but there were 36 stall holders and only 50 odd customers all day ! I did make a couple of sales which went towards the cost of the stall and I did manage to part with some money for some Christmas presents but  that was my day. It was a bit of an anticlimax but hey I did my first stall! And I met some lovely stallholders!

A friend also had a Christmas evening and I made far more sales then- so at least I can get into the back room now! I now have a few orders to make for people and I will be concentrating on these before thinking on what we need  and all that christmas shopping I need to do!

Ps sorry for the quality of some of the photos but I have dropped my phone and the back is cracked and its affecting the quality of the shots - sorry!

Halloween- Pumpkins, Biscuits and Spiders!

Mad spice

Halloween this year was spent away from home. Younger daughter went to visit Elder daughter at university and Younger Son and I went to visit my lovely Mum.

 The last two years  have been a very difficult time for the family . A serious mental illness crept into our household unnoticed and the last eighteen months  have been spent dealing with the effects this has had on us all. I am so delighted that our family relationships are re building and slowly step by step we are moving forward and in the right direction. Things have improved in ways I hadn't expected and even in the last three months things have proved so that family time has been far more enjoyable and seeing these pumpkins made by the girls makes me smile from my heart outwards!

Scary spice

 The girls  decorated my daughters flat kitchen with web type stuff and hung millions of these scarily lifelike spiders all over.

 They then had fun making and baking and decorating halloween themed biscuits

I loved the fact that although they burnt one lot of biscuits ( and they were burnt until they were black) they didnt waste them. They used the black bats to decorate the flat ! ( I'm glad I don't have to clean the walls after them!) I'm so glad they had fun and it just goes to show that you are never too old to enjoy  halloween!