Five things Friday

Happy Friday you gorgeous bunch! Not only is it Friday, but it’s Bank Holiday weekend! We will overlook the fact that this is the last bank holiday of 2018 until Christmas…

When I looked out of the window this morning, all down the side of the field, the hedgerow is full of berries! Literally feel like its happened overnight, so don’t forget to wax your Barbour jacket ready for the autumn. Also, Barbour are offering free delivery on everything this weekend, if you haven’t got your tin of wax.

The Wedding

So, the rents have taken the plunge after 34 years and have decided to get married. Nothing like dragging an engagement out, hey? It’s going to be a small affair; just Mum & Dad, me & the Handsome One, and my brother and his girlfriend. At the weekend I’m going to take my Mum to Shrewsbury to get her makeup done on the Dior counter in House of Fraser (whilst it’s still open), so she can feel like a princess on her big day.

I’ve not told her this, but just around the corner there is what looks to be a lovely fish restaurant called Loch Fyne Seafood & Grill , where we can sit have a glass of wine and hopefully some delectable seafood! My Mum really doesn’t want to make a fuss, but I’m going to try and make some memories with her in the run-up to her wedding.

Vegetable Garden

Well, it has gone absolutely crazy! You can barely see soil, the runner beans are attempting to take over the world and I’m still not over the size of the courgette leaves. I was having a chat with all my veggie plants (don’t we all?) and having a little rummage around and I found one of my ‘mini’ cucumbers…

I was a bit concerned that it was going to taste a bit funny or be tough, but it was bloody lovely. I’ve still got quite a few green tomatoes and plenty still developing, although I’m not sure I’ve got the hang of pruning the right branches on my tomatoes. I’ve had plenty of side shoots and some rather large plants, so I think I need to brush up on my tomato growing skills for next year.

I’ve grown four different varieties of tomatoes this year from seed, having never grown tomatoes in my life and I’ve had fruit from them all, so I’m pretty pleased with that as a first attempt though!

Seasons

You know what I’m going to say… Autumn is just around the corner – the sun is setting earlier, there’s a nip in the air early in the mornings, blackerries are ripe and ready to be eaten, BUT summer isn’t over yet.

Make the most of what’s left of summer; enjoy those sunny evenings, go for a walk and watch the sun set, marvel in the fruit & vegetables you’re still getting, as it won’t be long before the sun is setting just as you’re driving home from work.

Foraging and jammin’

The past couple of weeks, we’ve been cooking up a storm in the house! It’s probably because it’s been cool enough to have the oven on! We are extremely lucky as we have a south-west facing garden, so we get sun in the back garden all day and get to watch it set in the evenings. However, in the height of the summer, we had the doors open but when the sun was setting, we were getting the almighty heat blasted into our kitchen, meaning sitting at the table AND having the oven on was out of the question. We’ve talked about getting blinds, but I’m not keen on blocking any light coming in through those gorgeous bi-folds.

Anyway, with the change of season in the air and ripening of fruits, we’ve had the time this year to stop, take notice and get foraging. We’ve made Elderberry Jam, Rhubarb & Ginger Jam, Rhubarb Vodka and Pickled Onions (not foraged or grown unfortunately).

Its been amazing because this time last year we were in the middle of renovating our house – I don’t even think we had running water at this point in 2017!

House Renovation

The other morning, the Handsome One and I were in bed chatting about the house and it made pick up my phone and scroll back to last year to take a look. We’re constantly saying, we should have done this or that, but looking at how far we’ve come in just a year – I’d say we’re doing pretty well.

This picture was almost a year ago to the day. We (obviously) weren’t living here at this point – the old kitchen was still in, which means the wall was still up where the bi-folds now are, the chimney breast hadn’t been knocked through to make room for the double-sided stove I so desperately wanted and behind me was the only loo in the house! Privacy? Absolutely none.

Then…

By no means are we finished; I mean look at the walls, the flooring needs edging but the point is, we’re getting there. And with every final touch that we do, we get closer to completing our home and I’m making sure we enjoy every little part of it.

That means we won’t be worrying about renovation this weekend; we’ll be too busy wedding planning with my parents and getting wood to keep our tootsies warm this winter 🙂

A xx