Food on my clothes

The Butchering

2012-02-13T05:38:00.000-08:00

Once the excitement of the new pigs wore off, it was time to go to the butcher and watch the piggies of yesteryear get butchered.
The normal process is, we take the pigs to the abattoir and he then delivers them to our butcher. Normally we would then pick up our pigs, that have been butchered per our instructions, wrapped and boxed, a couple of days later. As this was our first time however, and because the butcher said we could come watch, we went a few days later and got to see the whole butchering process.

Husband and I were both a little bit nervous about how we would react to seeing our boys dead on a table, being cut up by a stranger with blood on his apron. Husband expected to get sick and I expected to cry.

Neither of those things happened! We were greeted by Bob Edwards, who was recommended to us by the people we did the course with. It was a little bit of a drive to get to him, but as this was our first time we wanted to go with someone we knew we could trust. First thing Bob did was take our piggie out of the freezer and compliment us. "One fine pig!" Apparently, we had done it allllll right. Our pigs were just the right weight, 45kg, and had just the right amount of fat layer, 11mm. High five team Partners!

After that they got to work. They divided the pig into two halves and then cut them into joints for our customers and wrapped them up individually. They explained to us which were the choice joints, where the sausages would be made from and let us ask any stupid question we had. (several) It didn't feel weird or sad or gruesome. Our pigs were brought up in the best possible conditions, and they were being butchered with similar respect. We then got to see our sausages being made, and we can be proud to say they are 100% meat. No nasty parts! They were so nice to us at Bob's that we would drive that extra distance just to know our pigs would be treated well and a product we can be proud to sell would be returned to us. It was very educational and I am very glad we did it!

So that it is, the whole process done. Yesterday we had our first "Pork Party" where we invite our customers over for a pork lunch. This allows them to taste what they are taking home and us to thank them for supporting us. Not all of our customers could make it however, so we had a couple of stand ins come join us.

Oh My Goodness

2012-02-11T10:28:00.000-08:00

Thursday, to keep poor Rosey company and to keep the pork machine rolling, we got two new pigs...they are so tiny they fit into this card board box...

And so cute that we ended up leaving with three...

We initially separated Rosey from the new piggies, so they could check each other out...

And soon they were ready to meet face to face...

We try to keep the new pigs away from Rosey at feeding time...

As she has so qualms eating their food as well as her own...

The chickens wanted to see what was going on, but Rosey quickly escorted them out. "Nothing to see her chickens"...

But white chicken, nobody's fool, sneaked back in. "I disagree Rosey, there are clearly three new pigs to gawk out, there is plenty to see on this side of the fence!"

To say we love our new piggies would be a slight under statement. THEY ARE SO CUTE!!!

*sigh*

The Deed Has Been Done

2012-02-08T08:37:00.000-08:00

So, it is all over. We took our first two pigs to slaughter. I think I feel worse for poor Rosey, who is now all alone, than I do for the two boys we sent away.

As I said before, I was worried about the logistics, particularly getting them into the trailer. But once that was done, I felt much better. The whole experience was stressful, but mostly because it was new. We didn't know what to expect and didn't know how the animals would behave. But in the end, it was okay. The people at the abattoir were very nice, and didn't make too much fun of our attempts to back the trailer in. The pigs were relaxed, they weren't scared when we sent them off, and the people were gentle with them. Coming home we were quite, contemplating what we had just done. But overall, we are proud of ourselves. We are proud of the standard of living our piggies had, and proud of the way we sent them off.

I have tried thinking about being responsible for the death of life on a deeper level, but for some reason, I can't think too deep about it. I don't feel guilty, and I was really worried I would. Instead I have a firmer belief that I want to raise pork people can feel good about eating. And that is tasty too!

Tomorrow we pick up two new piggies and hopefully they will keep Rosey good company. I don't really have any pictures of yesterday, but here is a picture of some sheep that went running with me today...

In my head they are taunting me...catch us if you can pig lady...

Oh, AND I did try to give my first pig injection to Rosey today. It didn't go well. I got the needle in but she obviously felt it and ran away before I could depress the syringe. I don't want to say there was blood everywhere, but there definitely was some. Might need Martin for this one. She wouldn't let me try again. She did let me hand feed her carrots to make it up to her.

Tomorrow is the big day!

2012-02-06T06:31:00.000-08:00

That's right, tomorrow we send away two of our little piggies! We load them up first thing tomorrow morning and will pick them up from the butcher Saturday.

I have been trying to not think about tomorrow and instead have been stressing over the logistics of it all. I am mostly worried about getting the two boys in the trailer and keeping the lady pig, Rosey, in the pen. I think it will be doable, but right now, that is what I am most worried about. I have spent today getting everything ready, and I feel well prepared for the most part. Once we get the pigs in the trailer, I will feel much better. Until I come home with an empty trailer and have to face up to Rosey. I am hopeful she will be glad to see them gone. Lately they have been mounting her and she doesn't seem too pleased about it. As they are brothers and sister, that doesn't end well for anyone, and probably best they are on their way.

To keep Rosey company we have arranged to pick up two weaners on Thursday. They are of different breed but they should get along. Hopefully they won't mount her. I think she has had enough.

Snowing!

2012-01-30T08:57:00.000-08:00

Not that you can tell from this picture, but we had our first snowfall today. I took this from our guest bedroom and think it is a nice ariel shot of where our pigs hang out. There was also actual snow falling, from the sky, but it didn't show up. And it wasn't cold enough to stick. But it did snow.

FIVE Eggs!

2012-01-27T00:28:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I was going to write about how egg production has increased to FOUR eggs, yet there was still one lazy, although clever chicken who was yet to produce. I like to call her smartie pants chicken, (that isn't her official name of course, she isn't allowed to have one because of poopy pants Martin) as she is a tough one to catch and is a bit more switched on than the other chickens.

For instance, I typically whistle and throw food into their run when I want to lock them up, as they will typically run right in and I can close the door quickly. Well, smartie pants chicken knows this is what I am up to and won't come near the door and instead tries to drag the food with her beak from the holes on the outside to where she can get it. She won't let me pick her up so a chase usually ensues and I have to get Martin to help me so we can kind of herd her into the chicken coop. I have a very funny image in my head of Martin's dad having to do this one time, and how he has cursed smartie pants chicken ever since for making him look a fool, chasing her around the yard, trying to get her into the coop. (He thinks she was laughing at him all the while and I had to explain, she's a chicken, she can't laugh)

I was starting to get concerned she was never going to lay any eggs and I would have to have another sit down with her, but then I opened up the hen box and found FIVE EGGS!

I'm so proud of my little chickens. Well done ladies, you can all lay eggs. Martin won't have to have any of you for supper.

Pot of Gold

2012-01-25T02:09:00.000-08:00

Not so long ago Simon came to visit us and we went on a nice walk to the pub and back. On the way home, rain clouds closed in on us and produced the most magnificent rainbow ever. Better than the one that was over my house. It was so big you couldn't photograph it and we could see both ends. I mean just look at Simon and Martin in this picture, even they couldn't believe it!

AND THEN, we turned around and saw THE VERY PLACE where the rainbow ended. It was in some bushes and I KNOW there was a pot of gold waiting there for us. But Martin wouldn't look for me and neither would Simon (I think as a guest to the country he should have done whatever I demanded but he clearly did not agree)

Should Martin and I ever have money problems I will be sure to remind him that all of our troubles could have been avoided if he would have just gone and got the pot of gold like I asked him. And when he says, huh, what, what pot of gold? I can then refer him to this post for the photographic evidence.

Sunrise

2012-01-11T02:04:00.000-08:00

As much as I detest being woken up by an alarm clock, one perk of having to feed the pigs in the morning is being able to see the sky change from a dusty grey to a beautiful pink. It is quite magical and I love the few minutes of the morning watching the sky change colours.

Another amazing thing about the country is the moon. It is very bright out here, so much so Martin woke up confused one night about who put in the new street light outside, wishing they would turn it off. (there are no street lights out here and last night Janice laughed at me while I wound up my wind up torch light. It did make a funny sound) It was simply the moon shining in our room, lighting up the night sky. Here is a picture of it in the morning, when it was still large and bright, although this picture doesn't really capture it fully.

Three Eggs!

2012-01-06T08:10:00.001-08:00

Our chickens haven't been laying as much lately. It is said to be because the days are shorter and the lack of sunlight effects their laying patterns.

However, after a full month of one egg a day, ON A GOOD DAY, I have had enough so I had a little talk with the chickens.

"Look, chickens, if you don't start laying soon, heads are going to roll. I won't eat you, but Martin will. You are expendable."

And lo and behold, three eggs today!

You can tell who lays what egg by the colour and shape of the egg, and interestingly, these eggs come from ginger, white and grey chicken. Black chicken has gone off laying and hasn't been playing with the other chickens lately. I think she might be a little upset as ginger and white chicken have been spending more time together and perhaps she feels left out. I have tried to get her to hang out with grey chicken but so far no dice. Stay tuned.

Been a little windy lately...

2012-01-06T08:07:00.001-08:00

Pictures taken on my running trail after a big storm and on a very windy day. We didn't have power all day!

The Next Big Thing

2012-01-04T00:48:00.000-08:00

Last week Martin, Janice, Andy and I hopped onto a mini bus with some of our other neighbours and headed into South Hampton to see our local (and by local I mean I can see his house from mine) boy Ben Goddard and his band play in their last performance of the year.

Andy has been going on about Ben ever since they moved to Horsebridge. I saw him play at a party I went to, and he was good, so I was pretty excited about going. Some of this excitement faltered when Ben's mom asked me to hold loo roll in my purse cause the bathrooms were DISGUSTING where we were going and sometimes didn't have lights and the place was "a little bit rough".

Well, all those things were totally true but it didn't matter cause Ben and his band were AMAZING. When I saw Ben he and his band mate (whose name escapes me cause I am rubbish with names but he is very talented) they were doing cover songs, which were all very good. When we saw them, along with their drummer and base, they were playing original songs and they were awesome. I often get bored when I listen to new music, but not so with these guys. It was the most fun I have had in a long long time. So watch for Ben, and his bandmates, they are going places.

PS-I would also like to add that Ben is probably the nicest person I have ever met. (I had typed boy as that is what he seems to me, but Martin keeps reminding me he is 23 and not a boy anymore so I replaced boy with person ) You just want to give him a big cuddle for being so sweet.

Christopher and the New Years Day Parade

2012-01-04T00:26:00.000-08:00

One would think that having family living in Hawaii I might be limited in the number of times I could expect to see them. It would turn out that is nothing a high school marching band couldn't fix.

My nephew, and his high school marching band, were asked to come to London and perform in the London New Years Day Parade. My brother and his wife Wendy joined him and we spent a lovely few days together, although I only saw Christopher once. Apparently they take this marching band stuff very very seriously and he was holed up in conference rooms practicing the few days they had available before the parade. And all that practice certainly paid off!

Here is Christopher leading the pack into the stage area. He is the centre drum major.

We lucked out and were given grand stand tickets by a very kind woman at Christopher's school so we got the best seats in the house. Sadly this TV blocked most of our view, but it was cool seeing them walk in live and on TV, AT THE SAME TIME.

Here is Christopher conducting. Again, hard to see. I had to jump over a row of people and nudge my way over to even get this shot. But you get the idea.

The parade itself was pretty entertaining, although I am fairly positive the Americans were a bit disappointed. I think they were expecting something like the Rose Parade. What they got instead was the marching bands and dinky little floats made by the local boroughs, as well as donkeys, clowns and several bike clubs. Martin and I found the marching bands very entertaining, although Martin was a little embarrassed as an Englishman by the rest of it. As he should be.

Mary Barry is an asshole

2011-12-31T10:54:00.000-08:00

I know that is not a very nice word to use to describe someone but she totally ruined my day, and my biscuits, and I am seriously annoyed.

For those of you who don't know, Mary is somewhat of a legend in the UK for her baking knowledge and skills. She judges this great program on the BBC called the Great British Bake Off and for Christmas Martin gave me her cookbook. Today I attempted to make some biscuits from one of her recipes, which seemed relatively simple to make but looked impressive at the same time.

Well, let's just say Mary either has biceps of steel or she has neglected to include what are some much needed guidance and advice in her recipe. The biscuits are a simple butter dough and are to be shaped using a piping bag and a star tip. Having successfully made the dough I then filled my piping bag with star tip, as well as a line of food colouring in the bag for added effect and was ready for the magic to being. Well that bloody dough was so stiff it wouldn't squeeze out of the bag. Four bags and several curse words later I gave up and tried to shape the now hideous pink dough ( as that was the colour I was left with after trying to soften and pipe the dough) into perhaps a nice star or ginger bread shape. However now the dough was too soft and after a few attempts I binned the dough as it was too ugly to eat and I hated it, and Mary Barry too much to continue. I made whoopsie pies instead.

PS...Closer examination of the book cover reveals the recipe is not actually by Mary Berry and that she simply offers guidance for the recipes.. Sadly, not for this one.

Chickens contemplating escape...

2011-12-28T05:06:00.001-08:00

Luckily relations with black and ginger chicken have improved, and they returned to the homestead. Phew.

Landy

2011-12-27T07:30:00.000-08:00

Living out in the country there are a few must haves. One is a vegetable patch, another is welly boots, and the most important one is a Land Rover Defender.

And here is ours...

We could literally fit all the Mooney siblings in it!

We are officially outfitted for the country. We have arrived.

Christmas!

2011-12-27T07:10:00.000-08:00

Here are some holiday snaps from our Christmas this year. They all involve Henry and Camilla, as Christmas would be no fun without them.

This is the first year Henry really understood Christmas and who Santa is. After having negotiations with the neighbours about what they would be putting out for Santa, it was agreed Henry should put out a mince pie, class of sherry and a carrot for the reindeer. Camilla was in agreement.

Santa was happy. So was Janice who got to drink the sherry.

Here are Henry and Camilla about to pull a Christmas cracker. Note head phones on Henry. He is not keen on loud bangs.

For Christmas Martin and I got Henry a Cars jumpsuit, which he wore all day...

And Camilla a Jesse costume, which she wore for about two minutes. She isn't big on clothing at the moment...

We had a very lovely Christmas and are looking forward to a very happy new year!

Merry Christmas

2011-12-24T15:52:00.000-08:00

Kind of.

I got two Christmas cards from the States this year.

One from my sister.

One from my boss.

Is this your way of telling me you don't like me?

Loved ones living abroad appreciate Christmas cards more than anyone.

Sad smily face.

That Ottolenghi is a GENIUS

2011-12-21T00:22:00.000-08:00

This week when I got my veg box I sighed in disgust as I found another bag of brussell sprouts. What am I suppose to do with these? I thought as I threw them into our crisper to join the brussels sprouts I got in my last box. Maybe the chickens would want them.

Not one who likes to waste food I thought, well, if anyone can make brussels sprouts taste good, Ottolenghi can. I went to my Plenty cookbook to see if he happened to have a recipe calling for this hideous veg, and to my mild disappointment he did. (I was hoping to give them to the chickens) Tofu with Brussels Sprouts. Here are the results…

That man is a genius! I hate brussels sprouts but this dish was gorgeous! I would definitely make it again. I have given up trying to convince Martin tofu is good so I put a little of the sauce to the side, cooked some chicken with it and added to his portion. (he accidentally got some tofu in his dish and said, that tofu is no good is it? I thought it was delicious so of course corrected him) Was very simple to make and doesn’t use any weird ingredients that you don’t already have or wouldn’t want in your kitchen.

I love you Ottolenghi!

Do as I say

2011-12-08T02:07:00.000-08:00

Now that things have kind of calmed down, I have finally been able to properly look at our wedding photos. In one of my sister's albums I came across a series of photographs that made me laugh and I think perfectly captured the spirit of a Mooney girl.

We all have an opinion on how to do something...

But the results are usually spot on...

The Saga Continues

2011-11-27T07:50:00.000-08:00

Unable to take the abuse any longer, new chickens decided to try their luck with the pigs. White chickens went in to test the waters...

Sensing mild victory, gray chicken joined them...

This was all quite successful, until ginger chicken found her way into the pigs as well. She seems a little more mellow over there though. Perhaps the large snorting pink animals make her nervous.

Veg patch is coming along very nicely and two are ready for a load of manure so planting can begin. We will hopefully be able to dig up the others before the weather gets too poorly.

We also have a gate! Luxury. Three more are in the process of being made. Who knew one would define luxury as being able to use a gate instead of hoping over a fence, praying large snorting pigs don't knock one down.

Work on the barns has begun as well. Roundup- a very powerful weed killer-has been administered and some of the buildings will be painted next week. Next we will take all the growth down with a strimmer and see what can be done to the roofs.

Also got all my bulbs planted and I can't wait for spring to see all the daffodils and tulips. Fingers crossed it will look like a rainbow threw up all over our flower beds.

Where does the time go?

2011-11-24T00:58:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving first off! Didn't get it together in time so won't be celebrating here, but hopefully next year we will be doing it in grand style with our very own turkey, reared here on our little small holding.

In the meanwhile, this is what is happening here...

Pigs are getting fat...

In fact, I would really appreciate it if this year you could sing..."Christmas is coming, the PIGS are getting fat, please put a penny in the old mans hat..." etc. It would make me happy to know you are thinking about us and the pigs. We are selling them by the half pig and have already sold our three halves available. We are keeping a half for ourselves and the third pig we are going to keep for a while longer. They are loving all the apples we have been giving them and still make a right noise when it comes to feeding time. Luckily our neighbours have double glazing and can't hear them.

We have also gotten some new chickens...

They are beautiful and I love them. I asked Martin if we could name them and he said no. Meanie. The old chickens are not impressed...

Ginger chicken spends all day chasing the new chickens around pecking at them, and black chicken just follows her lead. It is rather sad. In the mornings the new chickens won't come out of their perch until we have open up the run and let the old chickens out. Martin spends a fair amount of time trying to give the new chickens pep talks. The speech commonly starts off with...:you are bigger than ginger chicken, stand up for yourself!" I look at ginger chicken totally different now...

In my head she is yelling..."THIS IS MY HOUSE!"

And finally, Autumn has finally arrived with a bang!

As has winter...

There was a very hard frost a couple of nights ago. I didn't like it!

A Sigh From Above!

2011-10-26T11:16:00.000-07:00

Three Little Pigs

2011-10-25T13:17:00.000-07:00

In what I am sure we will look back on as a milestone in our life, Martin and I picked up our three British Lop piglets on Sunday and brought them to their new home in Horsebridge.

It was a long journey to get here but probably happened a lot quicker than we imagined. We only moved into our new home in the Hampshire countryside two weeks ago. We have spent those two weeks, unpacking, digging up the garden, painting, decorating, erecting fences, building pig arks, commuting to London and back again, getting ready.

People told us it would be hard work. We knew to expect it to be hard work. It is physically, mentally and emotionally exhausting. But it is also fun and rewarding. There is an actual payoff for our hard work that we can see, and it makes all the blood, sweat and tears (literally!) worth it.

I don't think we have had a chance really to sit back and reflect on our transition. We have been so busy that we haven't spent any time to stop and think about what we have done. We are lucky in that we have been sheltered from the shock of leaving busy London filled with lots of our friends due to the very very very local support of our family. Having Janice, Andy, Henry, Camilla, Colin and Carol just up the road has been a massive benefit and their company and support has made the transition for us all the more easier.

Commuting into London once a week hasn't proven to be terrible. It has perhaps provided me with company that I haven't realised I miss and need and I have had a great time being a tourist in a city I once called home. But when I am in London, I can only think about getting back, anxious to keep going. Keen to start the next phase.

I am really proud of us. Martin called us do-ers the other day. I have always wanted to be a do-er! It feels good to take control of our lives and depend on our hard work and dedication to build our future. It seems very bright and full of possibilities.

So welcome little pigs! We like to think they are much happier here than where they were staying before. They dig around the garden, snorting up all the apples they can find and any other nutrients buried in the dirt. The first night they seemed too excited to sleep and didn't even make it into the nice home Martin and his dad built. But today they seem on track and are inside where it is nice and warm.

Chickens seems a little skeptical of the pigs. They are probably jealous. We still love them and lets be honest, they will be around for a lot longer. We want to get a couple more and maybe a cat. Best to try and keep the rats away, although our neighbour's cat, Elvis, does his part to get the job done. As do the beautiful barn owls that goes hunting at dusk.

Now all we need are visitors! Surely you find all these beautiful pictures tempting!

Nice to have you back chickens!

2011-10-19T03:31:00.001-07:00

Pictures from my morning runs

2011-10-16T01:01:00.000-07:00

Views taken across the street from our new house...

2011-10-03T06:22:00.000-07:00

Apple cupcakes

2011-09-30T06:26:00.001-07:00

One of the other exciting things about where we are moving to is our unlimited supply of apples! I actually find it difficult to find good recipes involving apples but there are several in a new dessert cook book Martin got me, and these cupcakes is one of them!

I actally didn't have high hopes for them when they came out of the oven. They didn't rise very well and then sunk a bit due to all the apples. They taste amazing however and hopefully will be a big hit. The apples themselves have a great flavour and are nice and crunchy!

Pigs and land

2011-09-27T06:25:00.000-07:00

Had a very good weekend and here are the pics to show it!

This is where our piggies will be living. The field is a very good size and there is plenty of room for the three pigs we will start out with. What you can't see is the gigantic apple tree behind us, which will also be great for our pigs. We will have to be careful though for if they eat too many they can get drunk!

On sunday we went on a one day pig course. We have actually done it before but thought we could use a refresher. We really enjoyed it! Kind of renewed our faith in being able to do this and that we can really make it happen. I can't wait to get our pigs! Not sure when we will get them but we move in October 8th so I am hopeful we won't have to wait too long. Just need to make sure everything is ready for them so they cab live happy, albeit short, lives.

London Fashion Week

2011-09-23T02:04:00.000-07:00

Last night my friend and I went to London Fashion week, which is held every year at Somerset House. I have been once before but this year I got to go to the catwalk which was super cool. You get to see beautiful fashion walk right by you and get to pass judegment on the models wearing it. It was great! The only thing that was mildly disappointing was I didn't purchase any of the fashion. I just didn't see anything I felt I needed to have. Pickings seemed slim. I was hopeful there would have been a coat or some shoes I felt I needed but there just wasn't! Oh well. I have a feeling fashion would be misunderstood in the country any how.

More Sewing and other bits and pieces

2011-09-21T23:50:00.000-07:00

Ta da! Project number three! Although this might be a bit boring for you it is great fun for me! This week we learned about finishing seams and I discovered going fast on the sewing machine is actually easier than going slow.

This week has been a bit stressful for us Partners. Unfortunately Martin's father had a mild heart attack a day before they were due to leave for holiday and has spent the week in hospital. They did some tests yesterday and found one blocked artery and another semi blocked artery. The good news is they were able to clear them and he is now back home. We are looking forward to seeing him! Very good news he is on the mend but leaves you wondering what caused it. And who will make our pig ark now?

The woman who is currently living in our house moves out Saturday and Martin and I are very excited to see the house empty! The last picture I posted does make it seem like a very large house, but we only have half of it. Everything to the left of the hedge row. Can't wait to get in there and start planting some bulbs! And getting my chickens back! (Sorry Henry). We will hopefully start moving our stuff next weekend and then officially move in the week after that. Will send address details soon.

My mom's comment about my address has to be the best one ever. After getting the details she exclaimed, in writing, “I LOVE your new address. It has the word horse in it twice!“

My Second Sewing Project!

2011-09-13T12:32:00.000-07:00

After my class last week I decided to sign up for a four week course. Class one, pillow covers! I am well pleased with my efforts. I really enjoyed the class and my teacher was excellent. I didn't want to leave!

Home Sweet Home

2011-09-12T06:45:00.000-07:00

Look, our new house! Martin and I are moving to the Hampshire countryside in four weeks time! Went for a visit this weekend and we can't wait. It is seriously beautiful. Makes me wonder why people wouldn't want to live there! We are moving down the road from Martins sister's family and have enough space to get started with three pigs and various other things, such as chickens and a proper vegi patch. Plan is to hopefully expand to some neighboring fields and build up our herd once we got the basics down. We have lots of ideas and we can't believe our good fortune. We decided to rent in the end (instead of buying) as it allows us to try it out, see how we like it, without investing everything we own. It is much less scary this way. The house itself is a little on the small side, but as we plan to spend most of our time outside it doesn't really matter. Not to mention Janice has a massive house and we can always hang out there. I can't wait to get everything out of storage! Some place new and beautiful for you all to visit :-)

My First Sewing Project

2011-09-08T14:16:00.001-07:00

This week I took my first sewing course and made this handy little bag. All my sisters and my mom sew but I never really got into it except to make scrunchies for my hair. Now as an adult I wish I had learned. Never mind. Next week I start a four week course aand then hopefully a soft furnishings course after that. So much fun!

testing

2011-09-07T06:17:00.001-07:00

And it works! Able to upload pictures onto my blog from my new blackberry. Genius! This is my desk at work. More exciting things to come, promise!

Cycling in Provence!

2011-09-04T10:00:00.000-07:00

Just got back from a weeks holiday cycling in the South of France. It was amazing! Martin and I went with our friends Upa and Becky and spent seven days toodling from one B&B to the next.

We took the Eurostar to Paris and then a train from Paris to Avignon. We paid to take our bikes on the Eurostar but unfortunately there was no room on the train from Paris to Avignon so we had to dismantle them and put them in make shift bike bags(think large ikea bags and some bin liners) to carry on the train. Although trains in France are very clean and overall very roomy, getting them on was a bit traumatic. And funny. We rushed on the train to make sure we were the first ones on and then as the train pulled away, I was trying to explain to a Frenchman he was in our seats, while Martin tried to tell me something in between the carriage door opening and closing. Upa was dripping sweat trying to manoeuvre the bikes in the luggage racks and Becky was trying not to fall over holding all of our bags. Eventually though, we got everything sorted (thank you other french man for letting us know there were no stops between Paris and Avignon) and laughed at ourselves for the spectacle we made. And then fell asleep. (5:00am start. Bluck)

We got to Avignon in the evening and after a short cycle to the B&B we headed straight for the pool. Some of the B&Bs we stayed at were half board, which meant dinner was included. Sadly this place was the only one where there really was no vegetarian meal. Even though the menu clearly says vegetarian option available. Being in France though, this was no big deal as what they did wrangle up for me was delish. After a three course meal and a couple of bottles of amazing red wine and we were off too bed.

The days that followed were all pretty much the same. Had breakfast around 9:00, which always consisted of bread, butter, home made jam, croissants, bad tea and sometimes some fruit. After our leisurely breakfast we would then pack up and then get on our bikes around 10:30. Each day we cycled between 25 and 30 km and made it to the next B&B around 4:30, when we would promptly head for the pool.

Our biggest meal was lunch, which was usually three courses and had between 12:00 and 2:00 and dinner usually consisted of more bread, cheese, olives, tomatoes, wine and whatever else we could find. One night we even had a BBQ. The French are only open for lunch between 12 and 2 (sometimes 1:30) and EVERYTHING ELSE closes between noon and 3:30 or 4:00.

Although we didn't cycle very many miles each day,that doesn't mean we weren't without our challenges. One day saw our trusty sat nav take us UP an unpaved road where we had to walk up a mountain (okay, large hill) in the heat of the day. There were actually lots of hills our two middle days and as we were carrying everything we needed for our trip on our bikes (or in my case on my back) these hills were most unwelcomed!

I actually would not have changed anything about our mileage. Because we knew we could get to our next destination quickly, we were really able to take our time and enjoy everything around us. There were many many many stops for pictures and our three course lunches could take us up to two hours. Every place we went was beautiful, and we were never in a hurry to leave.

Doing less miles also meant we got some time to walk around quaint French villages and admire the views and check out the markets.

And take alternate routes and get lost occasionally...

So overall, had an amazing time and would highly recommend every one do a similar trip in their life time. Some notes though...French are not friendly! Very rude! Any attempts we made to smile, make chit chat, wave to other riders was met with a frown. Don't waste your energy. Also, air conditioning in your room is a must! There were a couple of nights we went without and it was horrible. France is very hot this time of year (90s) and sleeping in a hot room is no good! Food is amazing, eat as much as you can. As is the wine, drink as much as you can! France is extremely bike friendly, so take advantage of the cycle routes, they take you through some beautiful country. But take a sat nav with you, makes navigation a lot easier. (Or make sure Martin is with you, that man is very handy with a map!)

Welcome to the world Ando!

2011-08-24T13:15:00.000-07:00

And many congratulations to Ginny and Matt! He looks beautiful and we can't wait to meet him!

(stupid iPad, can't paste his cute little picture here! although maybe you don't want non relative type people posting pictures of your child on the Internet for everyone to see?)

I would totally pay for these

2011-07-31T11:09:00.000-07:00

A very exciting weekend in that I got some individual tart tins and got to make these...

I was very impressed with myself. Much more fulfilling than pulling broker notes for interns...

I quite weekend for Martin and I. Stayed at "home" and went for a bike ride on Saturday and Sunday went to the farmers market. Has been nice and relaxing. Weather has finally gotten a little warmer, and I am hesitant to look at the forecast for the week ahead. Although I might as well as they never get it right.

Linseed

2011-07-28T10:20:00.000-07:00

Martin and I have officially moved out of Kew house and in with the Oliver's. The Oliver's have been amazing. They make us feel right at home and it has been really nice spending time with them. And they cook for us (well, we take turns) and I am really loving someone else cooking dinner. And they like dessert almost as much as we do!

Last weekend Martin and I went farm hunting. There isn't much out there but now that we have sold we are keen to hunt around. We saw two places. One was a wild card as it isn't really what we had in mind on paper. It already has a house on it, which puts it out of our comfortable price range, and only 40 acres, but it is only a 20 minute drive from Janice and Andy and seemed worth looking at since we were going to be down there anyway. And worth it it was...

The lot was on top of a hill and the views were amazing. I really liked how the fields were laid out and I would have made an offer right then and there I liked it so much. Martin was less keen. Where I saw potential he saw big lots of land without hedge rows and trees. It wasn't his ideal place and really, if we are going to do this, we need to LOVE what we are buying. Not just ho hum.

The second piece of land we saw was bigger and more in keeping with Martin had in mind. However, it was right on a major road and although this is a benefit in a lot of ways, the traffic noise was not. We plan to have some glamorous camping on our land and I am pretty sure people who pay a premium to come stay out in the country and get away from London would be pretty pissed if they could hear cars all night. Just a guess.

So the hunt continues.

While hunting we stayed here...

http://www.burcombemanor.co.uk/

It wasn't the world's best B&B but the host was really nice and I love staying in old houses. Plus the village was really sweet. Another benefit of hunting for land! It was so pretty out there I could have cried.

From our garden

2011-07-10T11:51:00.000-07:00

Although we will be leaving our garden soon, it has done well for us this summer. We have had raspberries, strawberries, courgettes, onions, purple leaf broccoli, herbs, french beans, peas and potatoes! Not bad. The peas were fantastic. This was the first time I have grown them and I found it very satisfying. We still have quite a few pods left on our vines and I plan to harvest them soon and pop them in the freezer.

We had to dig up our potatoes a little early as they are in bags and we won't be able to take them with us. We would have left them here along with the rest of our fruit and veg, but we wanted the bags there were in. And you know what, our harvest wasn't half bad!

I also tried another recipe from Plenty. Grilled fennel with goats cheese. It was pretty yummy...

We have sold the Kew house and have been pretty busy packing. The chickens are now with Janice and Andy and we had our last BBQ in Kew yesterday. We move out a week from today! To be honest, I am a bit sad to say goodbye to Kew, but I am excited for our next step and see what life has coming our way.

Lentils with Tomatoes and Gorgonzola

2011-06-20T12:20:00.001-07:00

Here is the newest from my now favourite cookbook Plenty...the subject of many posts past!

I used a soft goat cheese instead of Gorgonzola as neither of us are a fan. The dill is a fantastic flavour in this dish and the more I have dill the more I want to incorporate it into my cooking! Very easy to make, although I little time consuming as the tomatoes take about an hour and a half to get oven dried. Doesn't look particularly appetising in this picture but it really was yummy. Made a wonderful leftover lunch!

I'm Not Sad!

2011-06-20T11:24:00.000-07:00

I'm back! I had long break from my trust worthy blog as I was finding it hard enough to keep up to date with my wedding blog! But now that the wedding is over and things have settled down, I can re-focus my efforts and return to my trusty friend.

The wedding was amazing. I had such a good time. The whole week was so special. Many members of my family were able to come early, as well as some friends from San Francisco. It was so nice to have them all around me. They fit into my life so easily, and it reminded me my family and friends will always be a part of my life, even if we are thousands of miles away. I am amazed how easy it is to pick things up again, like no time at all has passed! This didn't make saying good-bye any easier though. There were a lot of tears, both happy and sad!

Lots of people warned me that I would have the post honeymoon blues. No blues here! We have so much to look forward to that I am not sad at all! Not to mention we had an amazing honeymoon and are constantly flabbergasted by our good fortune. We can't believe how generous everyone has been, and how much faith people have in us and our future. We can't wait to make you proud of us! So, nope, I'm not sad, just really, really excited!

Wedding Invites

2011-02-28T09:48:00.000-08:00

Just a little wedding planning update. We are very close to the invites being sent out and they should hopefully arrive in your mailboxes in just over two weeks! Martin designed them so be sure to be doubly impressed when you open them. We are quite attracted to Rob Ryan's artwork and have tried to create a theme with his artwork in our stationary. It began with the save the date cards and will continue with the wedding invites and onto things printed for the day. I really like them. A bit different. A lot of thought and effort went into them, which helps make them special. You know what is not fun about wedding invites though? Addressing them!

More cupcakes

2011-02-24T13:47:00.001-08:00

Today I practiced with different colours. I like the yellow. Less keen on the pink. I like the swirls! I tried to also make some flowers but I don't have the right tip so they didn't work out. Hopefully they taste good as well! These have pineapple on the bottom and the cake and frosting are made with coconut milk instead of regular milk. Pina colda cupcake style!

Cupcakes

2011-02-13T11:14:00.000-08:00

For the wedding I wanted to do cupcakes instead of a traditional wedding cake. I thought it would be fun to add the personal touch and a good way to spend time with people as they can help me decorate. I recently sent out a brief of what I wanted them to look like.

http://www.marthastewart.com/photogallery/decorating-ideas-for-cupcakes#slide_15

I have started practicing and tell you what-not as easy as old Martha makes it out to be! This time around I think a lot of my problems had to do with the thickness of the frosting and I have a feeling it will take me a while to get this right. Needs to be thick! But even though the finished product didn't really look like anything I wanted it to look like, I learned heaps. I spent a lot of time practicing on the back of a plate before I put anything on a cupcake and this helped me tons. I know my finished product won't look like Martha's, but the point is to do something fun with my ladies before the wedding, and not be so concerned with the perfect end product. Luckily I have some former professionals in the family and so far the advice has been very helpful!

Wedding plans are going well and as I type Martin is busy working away on the invites. He has been a real star-he has designed all the stationary for the wedding and the invites are really sweet. I am really excited about them. Not much longer now, just three and a half months. Super excited!

Last night Martin and I went to an event called Secret Cinema. The idea is you buy tickets to a movie, but you don't know what it is until you get there. They give you clues leading up to the event and you have to dress up however they tell you. (we had to dress up in the spirit of the late 40's). When you get there (and you don't know where you are going until a couple of days before the event)it is like you have stepped into the movie. They have various rooms designed to look like sets from the movie and people walking around as if they are the characters in the film. Our secret cinema was The Red Shoes. Made me think of my mom and remembering how I dreaded watching this film and then loving it once I had. Martin wasn't that keen on the actual film but the overall experience was great. Super creative and very well organised. Would definitely go again! Although it was rather cold. And we got separated at the start which was frustrating. But other than that, thumbs up!

Sunday

2011-01-23T12:01:00.001-08:00

As I have mentioned, one of my favourite English things to eat are cream teas. Lately I have been making my own scones and I have to say, they are delicious. With some fresh whipped cream and raspberry jam, you would be hard press to find anything as delightful. A perfect tea time snack on a gloomy Sunday afternoon.

The highlight of the garden at the moment is our broccoli. Our first! Who knows if this will actually grow big enough to eat but I love to see our broccoli giving it a good go. And it is nice to see something green in what is otherwise a very bare garden.

This is the bird table Martin's dad made us for Christmas. Who knew watching birds trying to get the food you put out for them could be so amusing? And the bird table has actually attracted not just your garden variety pigeon but blue tits and robins and black birds and a pesky squirrel as well. The birds arrive every morning waiting for our treats. Martin recently experience bird guilt when he was running late and was unable to put any seeds out. I think they have forgiven him though.

Chickens say hi.

Broccoli and Gorgonzola Pie

2011-01-10T12:05:00.000-08:00

Another successful dish from Plenty! With some modifications. The recipe calls for two heads of broccoli. I only had one so I added some mushrooms. Also, neither Martin or I like Gorgonzola so I used a smokey cheddar instead. I thought it was excellent. It had mustard in it which Martin is not a fan of so not sure he enjoyed it as much as I. He was also responsible for rolling out the dough for the top :-) I give it four stars.

Airfare Sale!

2011-01-04T13:13:00.001-08:00

Worth noting two major airlines are having sales right now...

Virgin Atlantic

http://www.virgin-atlantic.com/en/gb/index.jsp

And British Airlines

http://www.britishairways.com/travel/home/public/en_gb?DM1_Mkt=UK&DM1_Channel=PPC&DM1_Campaign=Masterbrand&gclid=CP7qt9K7oaYCFQJO4QodyUqrZw

Book now! :-)

Pasta!

2011-01-02T11:08:00.001-08:00

For Christmas Martin bought me the pasta maker attachment for my kitchen aid mixer. Is there anything this machine can't do? Above are the results from my first go at making pasta. It was fun! And easy! Had a slight problem with grease and the roller but hopefully that will sort it self out. Put some oil on it so hopefully that will solve the problem. Also made some bread and sugar cookies. I love my mixer!

We had a really nice Christmas and are both sad about having to go back to work on Tuesday. Had a nice long break though. Spent Christmas over at Martin's parents house and came back to London in time to ring in the New Year. Was nice to just spend time in London and not have any place we had to be or anything we had to do. Now the holidays over it will be full wedding mode. I will try and keep the blog updated. So far this year I haven't done anything, though Martin will pick up our wedding certificate next week. Lots to sort out but I am hoping being pro-active will rule out any chaos on the day. Not long now! How very exciting!

Our First Sausages!

2010-12-24T01:41:00.001-08:00

When Martin and I launch our new business one of the things we want is a blog to document our journey and give an insight into what we are doing and where we have come from. Because we don't have a website set up as of yet the first blog of our new adventure will be here!

And the first post is all about our first sausages. We bought a meat grinder and sausage making attachment for my kitchen aid mixer which attaches to the front of the machine. It isn't a very industrial device but for our purposes it gets the job done. We bought some natural casings from a sausage making company and first duty was to soak them to get all the salt out. Phewy does it smell! We had to eat dinner in the other room as the smell was a little too over powering. Fortunately though you get over it.

Next was to grind the meat. We decided to use pork belly as it has a nice blend of fat and meat to it. In the future I would probably use a combination of lean and fatty meat. The fat is important for the taste of the sausage but I think just pork belly was a little over kill. I cut it all up into square sized chunks and fed it through the grinder. It worked! I thought it would be kind of gross grinding the meat but it was actually okay. It was relatively easy and could be done by one person, no problem.

Once the meat had been grounded and everything cleaned thoroughly we got around to seasoning the meat. I had a recipe I was following but I don' have a scale to measure such small measurements and have really no idea how much 10 grams of salt is or 5 grams of pepper. I just winged it. Also threw in there some breadcrumbs and water to blend it all together.

Next we had to wash the casings out. This was surprisingly fun. As the water rinses through them it creates water sausages which for some reason was very amusing to me. We then slid the casings onto the funnel that will attach to the kitchen aid mixer. Took a little fiddling but it was easy enough.

Up to this point I did everything myself. Martin sat near by giving me "helpful" tips. However, actually stuffing the sausages takes two people. While I fed the meat down through the funnel Martin held onto the casings as they filled with meat, leading them into the bowl placed under the mixer. I was a little nervous the first time we did this we would end up with some wonky looking sausages but as you can see, they look pretty uniform in size. After the casings are filled you twist the long sausage you have into smaller sausages, resulting with what you see in the bowl. All done!

I really enjoyed our sausage making. I think it will be fun to experiment with different flavours and cuts of meat and see what people like. These sausages are currently resting to ensure we get maximum flavour before eating. We are taking them to the Partners and no doubt the next blog will be the results of the taste test. Wish me and my little sausages luck!

And Merry Christmas! xoxoxoxoxo

Christmas Treats and More Snow

2010-12-21T03:19:00.001-08:00

We recently had some friends over for dinner and instead of Christmas cards I made them these tasty treats...

I wrapped them up in little boxes and tied a ribbon around it. Very cute! And easy to make as well. It was actually really fun rolling them in the different coatings. Would def make again. In fact, if you work in my office and read my blog, don't be surprised if you see some of these come your way!

The weather has been very very snowy. I like it! I think it is pretty and if it has to be cold and miserable out at least it is doing something interesting and turning everything white.

Can you spot the lake in this picture?

Chickens in Snow!

2010-12-02T04:20:00.001-08:00

I know there are much more exciting things to post about, like our awesome trip to California, but I am working from home today and took a little break to take some pictures of my girls. In the snow! They are a little freaked out by it, but they are managing.

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T11:37:00.001-07:00

Now that I am officially going to be staying in the UK indefinitely, there are two American holidays I am making an effort to keep in the UK. Halloween and Thanksgiving. So in the spirit of Halloween, I carved my pumpkin, roasted the seeds and bought candy for any lucky little fellow that should knock on my door. And I've been rewarded with two tricky treaters of my very own. And Martin said no one would come by! Once we move out into the country and have our own children to torture(these kids had a look on their faces like they were being forced by their American parents to participate and were dying from embarrassment)I aim to have Halloween parties similar to those hosted by my sister that are always a day filled with fun and laughter. Hopefully we'll have enough land to have our own pumpkin patch from which people can choose the winning jack o lantern and a day enjoyed by children and adults alike. I can't wait!

One of the many benefits of living in the UK is watching the seasons change, and autumn is definitely upon us. All the trees have turned beautiful shades of red, yellow and orange, and for about a week, you are treated to sidewalks and fields filled with the falling leaves. They literally fall from the sky like large pieces of snow. I know this happens in America as well, but not once did it happen in San Francisco. It is really rather special and is a nice way to enter the cold and dark nights.

And in other news one of our chickens has been very naughty! We have two very cute door mouses (I don't like the connotation that comes with the word mice) who run around in our garden. I know the word mouse is synonymous with disease and the ick factor, but seriously, they are really cute. Think Stewart Little. Anyway, one of the poor mouses fell victim to our ginger chicken! Martin went to put them in the coop for the night and was horrified to see the back end of the mouse in the chickens mouth! A chase ensued with Martin chasing the ginger chicken and the black chicken chasing Martin. Needless to say our little friend didn't make it, and we are now a little concerned about what kind of chicken we've got running around back there! I wonder what else she has been eating?!

Made scones today for the first time. They didn't look great but they tasted great! Just need to get a proper pastry cutter and master the skill of applying the egg to the top and I will have a tasty and good looking treat on my hands. Nothing like a cream tea on a cold Autumn day.

Bread and Butter Pudding

2010-10-21T12:57:00.000-07:00

Bread and Butter pudding is a traditional English dessert that I had never ever heard of before moving here. It is Martin's dads birthday tomorrow and he requested I make him one and here it is. It looks burned but it isn't. It is just the marmalade cooked on top. In real life it looks really good. I used Jamie Oliver's recipe which isn't a very traditional version but Martin thought his dad would like it. A traditional recipe would be a cinnamon and eggy batter poured over stale bread and baked in the oven. After you take it out and let it set a little while then you serve with cream or ice cream. My favourite version is made with chocolate. This recipe took EIGHT egg yolks-lucky my ladies are good layers!-so I used the left over egg whites to make some meringues, which are cooking nicely in the oven as we speak. I will let you know how they turn out. Pretty good I should imagine with some fresh English berries :-)

Royal Park Half Marathon

2010-10-11T12:48:00.000-07:00

Ran the Royal Parks Half Marathon yesterday. It was great! Sometimes during the race it didn't feel so great but I am always so proud of myself after I cross the finish line that the pain I suffered during the race seems well worth it. The pain I am experiencing now seems less worth it. I don't understand how I can basically run the same distance on the weekends but be so sore after a race! I did it with a friend-Martin's best man's wife actually-and she did a great job as well. We decided not to run together but it was great to know she was out there. My plan is to keep up the running, but perhaps limit long runs to 8 miles. Anything more just seems overly excessive. The eight mile route by my house is lovely and it is a wonderful way to spend some time outside. That I can manage.

More Plenty

2010-10-09T07:02:00.000-07:00

Another successful recipe from Plenty, or in my eyes at least. I still haven't sold Martin on tofu. I can get away with it in some dishes but I think he needs to be able to put lots of other things in his mouth along with the tofu to tolerate it. A dish just of tofu and rice didn't work. And this is a very spicey dish, also not popular with Martin. I however loved it and will make it again for sure. I love love love fried tofu and not ever knowing how to do it properly, this recipe showed me how. Yum!

Half marathon is tomorrow. I feel well prepared. Today is fun cause I just get to eat all day. Chocolate oats have been made and tasted and now I just need to relax unti tomorrow. Wish me luck!

We have cleaned up our veg boxes and the chicks once more have full range of the garden. Before they only had half of it, and probably the less interesting half. They seem very happy. Hopefully happy enough to lay throughout winter.

The Good Life

2010-09-28T13:13:00.000-07:00

This past weekend Martin and I went to Devon to look at some farms. We couldn't really afford any of the ones we saw but it was really helpful to see what is out there and learn what other people are doing. Devon is on the south coast of England and to say the views were amazing would be some what of an understatement...

We have come back to London more determined and more inspired to make it happen and it is really exiting to think about and plan. It makes going to my office job a little more difficult, but at least I have something nice to day dream about

Wedding planning is going very well. We have chosen a caterer and a photographer. Next is music and flowers. It has all been rather easy so far. I know it will eventually get stressful but hopefully we can handle it with the same ease. I think once we get the big things out of the way we can start thinking about the fun things, like honeymoon! Also had my measurements taken for my dress but now I don't hear from them until three weeks before the wedding! That doesn't give me very many days to walk around the house dressed up before the big day. I am really excited about my dress. We have been hooked on four weddings and I have not once seena dress like mine! Granted though, I have seen some REAL originals on that show. Shocking. Only 8 months away!

Plenty

2010-08-23T11:58:00.000-07:00

Tonight I made this soup from my new cook book Plenty

It was delicious. And uses a lot our garden stock. Fennel (from farmers market), tomatoes, beans, carrots, onion and herbs. Highly recommend. And didn't take that long to make!

Not much going on really. We are in the process of trying to meet with caterers and tasting their food before we choose one. Work is the same. The rain has started but it is still fairly warm. Looking forward to the bank holiday coming up and a day off work.

Martin's birthday was last week as was our engagement party. The party was a lot of fun except for the rain. We had a BBQ during the day so friends with babies could come, and then went to the pub for the evening. Probably the most rain we have had in about three months. But, that's England. For his birthday I am taking Martin to a spa over night and hopefully he will enjoy the pampering!

Oh, and I bought a dress! I am very happy with it and think it will be perfect for the day. Now I just need shoes and a veil! Although I think I will borrow Martin's sister's veil. A veil is veil after all.

Victoria Sponge

2010-08-07T02:20:00.001-07:00

If you are looking for a simple and quick cake to make that never fails to impress a Victoria Sponge is an excellent solution. Popular for tea time this English classic always gets me compliments and it is probably the worlds easiest cake to make.

One note about the recipe, the butter really does need to be soft, otherwise the ingredients don't mix properly. This is always a problem in winter as the house never gets warm enough for the butter to soften enough. I decorated this cake with mint but that was mostly because I was a little bored and we had a lot laying around. Also, the ingredients are in weight-I don't know what the cup conversions are.

Ingredients
6oz self raising flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 large eggs
6oz caster sugar
6oz butter, room temp
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Sift floor and baking powder into a large mixing bowl holding the sieve high to give a good airing. Break eggs into flour and add remaining ingredients. Whisk together until you have a smooth well combined mixture. If it seems stiff add 1-2 tsp water. Divide between greased 8 inch cake tins and bake at 170c (325f) for 30-35 minutes. Leave to cool briefly in tins and then take cakes out of tins to cool on a wire rack.

The middle is layers of strawberry jam, whipped cream and fresh strawberries. I then put fresh strawberries on top. Yum!

An Update

2010-08-05T13:38:00.001-07:00

Things have been so busy lately I haven't had a moment to sit down with my old friend blog and catch up. My sister Pamela and nephew Declan were just here for a much too short visit. It was great to have them here and it was sad when they went. It was great to have Pamela here to go dress shopping with!

We went to three places, the first being very posh with made to measure dresses. The other two were not as nice but who cares once you have those dresses on. Martins Mum and sister also joined us for a day out to two of them and it was fun girly day. One of the shops did let us take pictures however I am hesitant to show them to anyone. Even though I felt great in most of the dresses they put me in, I sure don't like the way I look in them in the pictures. I seem to have a grumpy grin on my face in most of them which fails to capture the pure joy I felt putting on dress after dress. A whole day of wearing beautiful dresses and people telling you look pretty, what could really be better?

We have decided on Kew Gardens as the venue and the wedding will be on a Friday in May. Both Martin and I are very happy wth the venue choice as it is close to our home and some place we go often. Neither of us was attracted to getting married some place we had only been to once. It will be a civil ceremony with a country garden theme. I am really looking forward to it, I think it will be really lovely. Even if it rains.

We are having an engagement party in a couple weeks time and have started to meet with the caterers to get that all sorted. We are keen to pay for as much as we can before Jan 1 as VAT goes up another 2.5% and we would rather not pay it. Not sure about too many of the other details except that we are really looking forward to the day and spending lots of time with family and friends!

I'll try to keep better touch with blog. I am also on Skype and do try to log on as much as I can so you can always catch me there!

In other news I made my first black berry pie today. Delicious. We picked the berries off bushes that grow near the river and had enough for a pie. I am so going back and picking as many as I can and freezing the ones I don't manage to use. The pie was excellent. Brings back lots of memories. I forgot how painful picking black berries can be! We also have a freezer full of green beans. Tomatoes should be coming in soon and we have spied our first cucumber. We planted late strawberres and should get a crop come September. Carrots are probably ready for munching and we have more salad and basil than we know what to do with. Just waiting for the potatoes to tell us how good we are at growing those and then planting out the brocolli for next year. Were given some courgettes from Martin's dad and I see zucchini bread in our future. I'll be sad when winter comes and we will be starving for fruit and veg. Best not to think about it and freeze as much as I can!

ENGAGED!

2010-07-13T12:17:00.001-07:00

In case everyone I know doesn't know yet, I'm engaged! Yippee! Above is a picture of us just moments after the event. The story is this...

Martin decided a while back to climb Mont Blanc, Europe's tallest mountain. The only time for him to go however was the week of my birthday so as compensation, he flew me to Chamonix meet him the day he summited. I arrived on Friday evening-the same day Martin had woken at 1:00am and made his way to the top.

That evening we caught up and had dinner with his mate James and his fellow climbers. That night we stayed with James with plans to do our owning climbing the following day.

In order to get to the start of the walk, we had to take two lifts up the mountain. The first lift was high but doable. The second lift went over a deep gorge with a very sharp incline at the end. I took one look at it, and said no way! I felt a little silly, as I knew it was perfectly safe, but I felt sick looking at it and I just didn't want to do it. Disappointed Martin relented and we decided to have lunch on a grassy knoll instead, with Mont Blanc and the Alps in front of us.

Confronted with this beautiful scenery I couldn't help comment what a beautiful place it would be to get married. And to my shock and surprise Martin got down on his knees, pulled out a ring and said how about second best instead-will you marry me? I said I'd think about it. NOT. I of course said yes and waited for the news to settle in, which I think I am still waiting for!

We finished our lunch, bought some champagne and called our folks. Now we are searching for a venue so we can set a date to allow as much time for people to plan to come as possible. Spring, 2011, UK. I thought about having it in Cali but trying to plan a wedding and choosing a venue from so far away just would not be fun at all. But I am hopeful that all my loved ones will be there-what better reason to come to London??? AND it is a great city. YAY

USA USA

2010-06-13T09:28:00.001-07:00

World Cup time, which is a big deal here in England. I was rather nervous about the USA as their first match was up against England. Well I was being a silly girl-our guys did a pretty good job I think! I sadly was not allowed to watch the game in public as you never know what people will do to a USA supporter at an English pub showing an English game. I did do my fair bit of hooping and hollaring at home though. Watching it at home made me so thankful for having gone in the US when I had the chance. It was such a special experience and I totally understand why people want to be there. The energy, the colours, the national pride of the people supporting their home, it is great experience. And even though I am not at home, it is USA all the way for me!

Turkey!

2010-06-08T12:50:00.000-07:00

In short Turkey was brilliant. We had such a nice holiday and it went by too quickly. I tried to keep a diary while away but was less than successful. Hopefully this blog will suffice and still be around in 20 years time.

We left London on a Saturday morning and it was an all day adventure to arrive at our villa’s doorstep. Painless enough and part of the fun. We arrived at about 9 in the evening Turkey time and were impressed right from the start. We had several people there to greet us, take our luggage and make us feel welcome. We entered through a grand staircase and I was bombarded with the scent of jasmine. It was such a familiar smell of holidays past and immediately made me think of a prior trip to Spain with Laura and the aroma that greeted us in all of Spain’s gardens. We were given a tour by the owner himself, who also gave us some insight into Turkish culture and his future building ambitions. All I can say is this tour literally made me laugh out loud I was so impressed. The photos we had seen before did not do this place justice, as I am sure our photos here don’t do it as well.

We had arranged to have dinner waiting for us when we arrived and after the tour we sat down to our first of many feasts. Sadly aubergine, one of my least favorite foods, is a popular dish in Turkey, but there was so much more to enjoy I could easily skip it and still leave the table full. We stuffed our faces, marvelled at our good fortune and went off to bed, excited to wake up and see what a daylight view could add to an already impressive picture.

We were so excited Martin and I woke up and got out of bed at 7:30. In the morning! We made our way down to the gym to burn last nights calories away and then made ourselves presentable for breakfast, running into various family members along the way, also too excited to sleep. Every morning we gathered down by the sea in the dining area designated as our breakfast hub. There is about a hundred steps to descend to the area and there is a kitchen at the bottom to save one’s self from having to march back and forth. We had a staff who prepared us a lovely spread every morning and cooked our eggs to our liking and to perfection.

Our house boy was a man by the name of Bayrham who was delightful and friendly. As with most of the Turkish people we met, he took an instant liking, and dare I say love, to the children present and would often sweep them away and keep them entertained while we finished our morning meal. He was assisted by two women, Segif and Usima (spellings are a total guess), equally friendly and charming.

After breakfast every day was mostly the same. The big variance would be, do I sun bathe down here by the sea or upstairs by the pool? Or do I just lounge in the shade with my book and good company? Or shall I go kayaking over to the beach and go for a little dip in the sea? We spent most mornings doing what we like, either together or not. There were some trips into town but we were so utterly content with where we were that we wanted to make sure we enjoyed it to the fullest. Lunch was usually bread and cheese and olives and other bits and pieces. Afternoons were spent either by or in the pool, with a nap thrown in sometime in between. There was some use of the running machine in the gym, but not much. Evenings were just as relaxed as the afternoons. Some evening meals we ate out in town (except for two special evenings) but many were at home. It was all very chilled out.

That said, we did have some adventures away from the villa. Martin’s parents arranged for us to go on a speedboat one day to explore the region and other Turkish Delights. We went into two hidden caves and marvelled at how blue and clear the sea was. We went snorkelling in a cove and marvelled at how relaxing it Is just to float. We had lunch at a small family restaurant and presented them with a photo of their family, taken by the senior Partners the year before. They seemed delighted. We took Henry for a swim in the sea and onto a pebble beach, where we spent some time throwing rocks and trying to convince Henry that we needed to go back. We saw an ancient city long since deserted and destroyed by several earthquakes, yet still intact enough to make out buildings and structures. The captain of the boat even very bravely allowed Henry to steer his vessel! It was a lovely day spent with lovely people.

Another adventure had was just by Martin and I. We decided to do a day kayaking trip to the sunken city of Kesava. Now up to this point we had been enjoying quite a bit of luxury. The speed boat experience being one, where you are greeted on board with champagne and given water all day long and tea and cake at the appropriate time. As we arranged the kayaking through the same company, we were expecting the same amount of comfort, but decided to go prepared with our own water and snacks, just in case. Good thing! The trip we went on was excellent and completely adequate to anyone’s need. It just didn’t include any kind of luxury. No water waiting for us. No snacks to keep us going. No towels. Nothing. Once we got over these simple facts though, and got in the water, we had a great time.

We had sea kayaks which meant we had rudders on the end of our boats and had to steer it with our feet. Immensely easier than trying to steer with a paddle. We took off and headed across the harbour to a bay called the shipyard. I think because in ancient times it use to be just that. Although our guide was lovely, he was hard to understand, and I wasn’t never really clear on what we should be doing or what we were looking at. After having a swim here we got into single file and went to see the sunken city. Sadly, there wasn’t a lot to see. Most of it is under water. This city use to reside on the hill but due to a series of earthquakes it began its descent into the waters below and has been preserved much in the manner it use to stand. This was hard to tell from our kayaks but some of the pictures give this impression.

After that we went to a very small village that was home to a castle of some sort. This is where we were suppose to I think spend some of our British pounds and help the local economy. The village was very rustic and every where you looked you saw women hard at work and men lounging around playing cards. This was a theme repeated throughout the region, even in our own home! After that we went back to home base and had some lunch, spending about three hours on the sea in total. We then were driven back to our home by our instructor as our bus driver had to wait for another couple not yet returned from their diving expedition. Nothing was too much effort for anyone we met. Everyone was so hospitable and wanted to do all they could to make you happy and content.

There was an afternoon when we took a drive up into the hills and visited another rural town, which apparently was popular with tourists in the evenings. (above is a picture of a woman in a tree picking what we think were walnuts) As perfect as our trip was, I think another reason we liked staying in the villa is we didn’t want to see any other English people! This is a very big tourist destination and in town the majority of people are white. This is a sad reminder that this isn’t the secret hidden gem no one else knows about that you think it being while laying on your sea side sun bed. This village town however was deserted of white people during the day and it was a good glimpse into local life.

We had many special dinners but one was on the water side at a lovely hotel close by. It was just Martin, Janice, Andy and I and although there was four it was still very romantic. Another was had on a gutlet, this time us four joined by Aunty Lyn.We watched the sun go down over the hills and then pulled into a cove to enjoy our meal. The perfection was only disturbed by an intoxicated lady falling off her chair, but as you can imagine this brought more amusement than annoyance.

I would go back to Turkey in a heart beat, but I think only with a large group of loved ones in a similar situation in the one we found ourselves. There are a lot of things to remember and I have a sinking feeling I will need to add updates. Like right now I am thinking about how you get use to the daily calls to prayers and after a while they just blend into the scenery. The people are also very friendly, and their interest in you is genuine. We are so use to being suspicious of everyone where as there, it was perfectly normal to hand your baby over to complete strangers and let them have a giggle and a cuddle. I can't thank Martin's parents enough for including me and giving us a trip to remember.

PS-I wore a big floppy hat and sunscreen of factor FIFTY (that is 5.0.) the whole time. I still managed to come home with a tan. This made me happy.

Bye bye birdies

2010-06-06T07:36:00.001-07:00

Before I can write a post on our wonderful trip to Turkey (Kalkan Smadely) I must first pay homage to Laverne and Shirely, RIP. Sadly while we were away they had an unfortunate encounter with a fox from which they did not survive. Our dear neighbor who was watching our girls forgot to put the hatch back on after checking for eggs. A sly fox took the opportunity to have an over night feast and Laverne and Shirley are no more. Bless our neighbor, he felt awful, and promptly found us replacements who are now roaming our garden, getting use to their new home. As sad as I am, accidents do happen. Poor Martin actually found out before I did but kindly waited until we were on the way home before telling me. He pretended to get the text message at the airport in London and I proceeded to burst into tears. My first pets, gone. I am surprised at how sad I am-but I did love them. It has been a good lesson for me though-don't name the barn yard animals! These facts of life I will have to get use to before we move our lives to the country but we were oh so hopeful Laverne and Shirly would have overseen our flocks of hens, where-ever we end up. So long ladies-miss you already.

Turkey-Not so bad!

2010-06-02T08:16:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Turkey! Still on holiday but thought I would post a couple of pictures Martin took with his i phone. We are having a great time!DIV>

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This is the jetty that leads to a small rustic family owned resturant where we stopped to have lunch on a day we took a power boat out for some exploring. The surrounding area is beautiful. DIV>

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This is a view from one of the many levals of the villa we are staying at. Down at the bottom is where we have breakfast every morning and in the right hand corner is the jacuzzi. There is a diving platform for swimming in the sea in case we get bored of the pool.

The view walking into town. We are staying just outside of town and it is about a 10 minute walk into its center. Our villa is to the left of this view and the town is to the right. There are hundreds of places to eat although we often just eat at home.

Back to England on Saturday. Until then thinking of you in Turkey!

So long tooth

2010-05-10T05:29:00.000-07:00

Today I had a tooth pulled out. Someone told me it wasn't that bad but it was. The good thing was it was very quick. The bad thing was it was kind of horrible. And I have a good dentist and everything. Now I am sitting in bed 3 hours later waiting for the Novocain to finally wear off so I can have the potato and leek soup I made just for the occasion. This marks the end of my dental work which I was in need for the last several years so it feels good to have it all done. I only have to go back to have my teeth cleaned, which should be a walk in the park. And claim it all back to my insurance.

Turkey, one week, 5 days, and counting...

Election

2010-05-07T12:48:00.000-07:00

Today has been historic in Britain, but I feel absolutely no connection to it. All I can think is, dammit, there goes the pound! I think it is because I am not allowed to vote that I feel no connection to the election, but plenty of people here do. A hung Parliament-big news! It will be very interesting to see what happens. I think the problem here is people want change, they just aren't sure they want it to be conservative. How do you vote for change when you are not offered any viable alternatives. Do you vote for change or do you vote for same. Difficult. It is a little disappointing the Lib Dems didn't do better, but I think people didn't want to take votes away from Labor. I seem to remember some Bush elections where Americans were presented with the same opportunity and look what happened there-disaster! Hopefully whatever happens will result in something positive.

Want to feel inspired?

2010-04-12T12:46:00.000-07:00

First, in case you were worried, Laverne is FINE. We had a bit of a messy egg incident this morning, but she is in good working form and seems to be back to herself. Someone suggested she might have been spooked by something and this seems plausible. I am sad to suggest it might have been me picking her up and putting her in the run as she refused to go in herself. But don't fret, she is okay. Laverne is fine. Phew!

A while back my good friend recommended Animal Vegetable Miracle to me as a good read. And a good read it is! It was on my to read list for a long time and it finally arrived in the mail. Martin and I have recently been inspired to live like conscious consumers and so have begun a quest to eat only locally grown produce and meat (not for me! for martin!)(movie that inspired us...The Age of Stupid) It kills me to think I'll never have another avocado or pineapple again but I do think it is time people start consuming like the seasonal animals they are. This would be way easier to do in California, and way more enjoyable, but there you are. Anyway, just as we started this adventure I began the book above. The author, who is well known for numerous novels, many of which I have read, decides to do a year of sustainable living on the farm she lives on with her family. She takes my motto to eat local but takes it to the extreme. Something I can't quite yet do but hope to one day. The book goes through the months of her seasonal eating and gives good advice and information about why it is important people change the way they consume. It has truly inspired me. So much so that I think Martin worries about what new idea I will have next. Like today when I came home and told him I wanted to make my own cheese. If I only I had my own cow I might just be able to call home heaven! I really recommend it. I think people are afraid to admit that the change we need needs to start at home. If people stop eating all the crap that is being produced for us, that crap will eventually stop being produced. Think about it. Aren't you just a little bit worried about our planet and the way we live?

A bit flooded and a dirt bath

2010-04-11T09:22:00.001-07:00

One of my favourite things to do is to walk down the tow path along the Thames into Richmond. Richmond looks like an ideal English village and straight out of a Jane Austin novel. Last weekend Martin and I set off, and when we go to Richmond we were dismayed to find this...

Where I am standing is usually the concrete path and you can see a set of benches right behind me. There is also usually a grassy field to my left. Luckily we had our wellies, although we did have to wait a brief while for the tide to go out and the water level to drop enough for us to finish our walk. That aside Spring has finally arrived in England and the planting has begun. The boxes have been dug up and the trees are finally turning green. I won't get to see any of our tulips come up, the chicks dug them all out, but it is nice to see signs of spring around us.

I would like to say or chicks are well and happy but one of them has suddenly turn poorly! She was fine when we left for a walk this afternoon but when we got home she was definitely acting strange. She didn't bound out of the run when we opened it or run after the pile of greens I threw out. She is kind of just moping in her cage. Most distressful. I sat and stared at her for a long while hoping she would perk up but she just turned her back to me and turned into a statue. Is she mad we went for a walk? I am hoping she just ate something in the garden that didn't agree with her and will be back to her old self soon. Please don't die Laverne!

Below you can see her in happier times, taking a dirt bath with Shirley (the darker one) We have pretty much just given this area over to the chickens. They eat everything and the only remaining plant left is a heather plant which they have recently developed a taste for...

Martin is in the process of coming up with a way to keep the chicks out of the vegi garden. I think fencing the whole area off is the only solution. He is slowly coming around to this idea, but I don't think that solution is at esthetically pleasing as he would like.

A Baker's Dream Come True!

2010-03-28T12:58:00.000-07:00

As you may know, I really enjoy baking. However, baking is not so much fun when you own a crappy hand held mixer that claims to have several speeds but really only has one. This speed is so fast it cause flour, sugar and whatever else you might have in the bowl to fly everywhere. It is especially annoying when you are trying to blend together something with powdered sugar.

So as a Christmas present my mom said I could purchase myself a proper mixer. How exciting! However I haven't had a chance to go out and find one. Purchasing one on the Internet did not seem wise. This past week I was trying to make lemon bars and after swearing up a storm I told Martin this weekend would be a good weekend to go to the nice kitchen supply store by our house and get myself a mixer. Having to frequently witness my tantrums and frustration over baking him tasty treats he finally agreed that yes, I really DO need a kitchen aid mixer and very kindly agreed to put the rest of the money towards getting my very own as an early birthday present.

Not wanting to lose momentum we went to the shop and I am now the proud owner of this...

I LOVE IT!. Seriously, baking with this is a totally different experience. I have already made blueberry muffins and a carrot cake. It is so much easier to use and I don't have to struggle and things mix together like they should and I will have it for the rest of my life. I am a very happy girl!

I know it has been ages since I posted. I can't blog at work and when I get home I don't like to be on the computer. I have been trying to take video of the chickens but have been having issues with the camera so hopefully I can get that sorted soon.

Things are well in England. Spring has finally arrived and the weather is a bit warmer. The job is going pretty well and I am enjoying it for the most part. Not so keen not be able to look out a window all day but everyone is very nice and the work is interesting. Looking forward to Easter weekend as we get a four day weekend and I am really looking forward the time off. Then just a little over a month before we are off to Turkey for two weeks. I'll be hot for two whole weeks! Yay! AND THEN, our trip to America. We will be coming over in November in time for Thanksgiving. I can't wait! We have booked our tickets and although it seems a shame not to go when it will be warm I thought it would be nice to go when all the kids are out of school and people will be getting together. Can't wait to see you all!

Working Girl Reports

2010-02-21T13:16:00.000-08:00

The good thing about my new job is I am busy all day and have lots to do. The bad thing is I don't have access to fun things like facebook and my blog and so sick of being on a computer all day that I tend not to want to get on another one when I get home. Once I settle in more I am sure I will work this all out but this is my excuse for being MIA the last couple of weeks.

The new job is really good. Very similar to what I was doing at Credit Suisse and I like it alot. Every day is different and it is challenging and interesting. The people I work with are all very nice and so far I really like the company. I am working right in the City so I get to take in the London sites every day. When I go for a run during my lunch break I run towards the Houses of Parliament and towards the Tower of London on the way back. I never get tired of looking at either! The commute is long but easy and although I leave earlier and get home later so far it all seems worth it!

My girls are doing very well and Shirley has finally started laying so we get two eggs most day. This is a big motivator to bake and cook as I am not quite ready to start giving them away. I also like to have them for breakfast on the weekends. There is a very noticable difference in taste and the freshness is amazing. They also make great companions. They run run run when you open the door and then follow you around while you are outside. This weekend we moved them to the back of the garden and although it is more difficult to spy on them with them so far away it is better to have them there. The only problem is they eat everything-similar to a goat in my opinion-so we are going to have to devise a means to keep them out of the vegi patch. I think we might just have to restrict their access to this part of the garden completely as I don't think chicken wire will do much to detour these twos. Luckily we have a couple months before we have to decide.

Everything else in London is good. It is still cold which I am getting really tired of. I wear a scarf constantly. Looks like we will be coming to what I hope will be a sunny Cali in September and hope to spend most of the time in SF with a weekend trip down to LA. Any bad weeks in Sept for anyone? please let me know! And maybe a trip to Yosemite. We shall see.

You know something you can't get here that I had a strange craving for? Rootbeer. Every now and again there is something nice about rootbeer.

Our first egg

2010-01-26T01:43:00.000-08:00

Actually, counting today, Laverne has laid three eggs, but this morning was our first go at eating them. I have never had a soft boiled egg. It was yummy. Martin didn't eat his as it was too runny. Next time he can make his own!

PIGS!

2010-01-25T01:48:00.000-08:00

Here are some highlights from our pig farming course. These are very very big pigs! But not scary at all! Pigs are not aggressive, unless you get in the way between a boar and his lady.

The one below is a saddle back. So named for the white band around its middle.

These little pigs were only two days old! Not sure who is more uncomfortable, Martin or the pig.

Looking for some attention. They are very social. And make a lot of noise!

This is me trying to feed them. They aren't very patient so took me a little while to actually get the food in the trough.
The course was really really good and I had a great time. We learned how to give pigs injections when they are sick or need worming, take their temperature, tell how a sow is in heat how to artificial inseminate, how to tell if she is pregnant, how to tell if she is about to give birth, how to pick up and hold piglets, how to feed, how to make a profit, etc etc. We learned a ton! I think the most important thing I learned was that it is all possible. You just have to go out and do it. You won't make a ton of money, but you will make a profit. And if we try it, decide we don't like it, than at least after trying it out with three pigs we haven't lost any money but hopefully made a few pounds. It has turned into something we talk about and consider to something I actually want to do!

Now I know you are all at home thinking I'm crazy. Has she forgotten she is a vegetarian? Um no. I have not. But the thing is, people are not going to stop buying meat. So instead of just saying the status quo is not acceptable, why not provide an alternative that is? If I want people to start thinking about what they eat, why not provide them with something they can feel good about eating? I was very impressed with the farm we went to. So much so that even though I had the vegetarian meal, I did try the pork and sausage. (just a little bit) I did not like the pork. Not surprisingly, I liked the sausage. And the sausage was pure pork, not made out of the ears or cheeks or other nasty parts, but the actual meat parts of the pig. The woman who ran the farm was a vegetarian for 25 years and now she eats only products she makes or is locally grown. That could be me! It is something to think about but I went away feeling inspired. Something to think about for sure.

More on the Chickens!

2010-01-21T02:35:00.000-08:00

This is the nice man who brought us the chickens. He had to put together their coop for us in the rain.

A very wet day.

Once the coop was mostly assembled Martin laid down the bark for them to scratch around in. The bark is a bit of a mess and although we have now completely covered the coop to keep out the rain, it still gets wet. Alternatives will be explored.

This is Shirley. She was the last one out and kind of fell down the stairs. She is really pretty although we thought she would be all black. Maybe when she gets older.

This is Laverne. She is a bit aggressive. Today she pecked me as I opened the door. I think she thought my finger was a grape.

Here you can see the border Martin made just for them. This helps keep the bark from getting everywhere. He's handy.

They seem pretty well adjusted except they sleep where they are suppose to lay their eggs. I have covered the hole that allows access to this area. Hopefully they won't peck their way through. I am very anxious to get them out of that cage. They have plenty of room but I want them to roam. We have foxes in the area so unless we are at home, this is the safest place for them. It kills me.

A had a comment asking about the cold. I too was worried about this. Winter did not seem like a sensible time to get chickens! However, they're chickens! They will be fine I have been assured.

This weekend we go on our pig farming course so I will have to wait until Sunday to play with my girls. I look forward to summer when I can let them run around before I leave for work and when we get home. I have bought them a ball covered in seeds to help them beat the boredom. And I can't wait for my first egg!

They're Here!

2010-01-18T11:22:00.001-08:00

Ladies and Gentleman, may I proudly introduce the newest members to the Kew Household,

Laverne and Shirley

My long awaited Christmas present from Martin has finally arrived. They're surprisingly beautiful and I actually missed them today! They don't do very much at the moment. Eat and drink and peck around and poo. This cage might look a little sad but it is only for the first few days so they get use to their home, finding their food and where they should go to sleep and lay eggs. We can then let them out and give them full access to our garden. So far they haven't laid any eggs but they should start in a few weeks time. Laverne is the more aggressive and social of the two (she is the one on the left). She will willingly take food from your hand but might peck you along the way. Shirley won't get anywhere near you and wouldn't come down from the hutch the first day until I gave her a little nudge. Now she is okay. Yesterday we were so proud as they walked up the stairs and put themselves to bed. The first night we had to put a flashlight in their hutch as they are attracted by the light to get them to go up as they didn't seem have any interest in going up on their own. As these are my very first pets-except for the stray cat we named once-I am very very excited and don't even mind cleaning up their poo and waking up a little early to make sure they have everything they need. As far as chicken coops go theirs is very posh and these will be some spoiled chickens. I know some of you think we have gone a bit mad and wonder how this would all work but I assure you, it has all worked out very very well.

More pictures to come-promise! Instead of being one of those couples who only talk about their children, we now talk a lot about our chickens. Come and meet them for yourselves!

Knitting

2010-01-15T08:16:00.000-08:00

I find that when I am at work, all I can think about is knitting and all the pretty things I want to make. And then when I get home I never seem to get as much time as I want to actually knit all these pretty things. Perhaps it is because I am working evenings and have to spend free time checking work e-mails but I am looking forward to getting started on some new projects. I just finished some gloves and I am nearly done with a cardigan I have been working on and off for for about a year. I just need to sew it together but for some reason I can't be inspired to. I think it is because I know there are bigger and better projects just waiting to get started. Maybe that will be my friday night. Curling up on the couch (after I do some mundane house chores) with my knitting and music videos. What a crazy Friday night!

The Weather

2010-01-08T01:56:00.001-08:00

Need I say more...

Happy New Year

2010-01-01T10:21:00.000-08:00

2010-It is going to be a good year-I can feel it in my bones!

Here is a picture our our living room in its Christmas glory. Hard room to photograph. Perhaps I should consider taking down the decorations...

On the wall on the left you can see the pictures of San Francisco Martin gave me for Christmas. A bit of home at home! As for my other present of note you will have to wait for them to be delivered before I tell you what they are-for those of you who don't yet know! I am very eggcited!

Happy New Year!

I was beginning to wonder

2009-12-23T10:03:00.000-08:00

I was starting to get a little sad that we had received several Christmas Cards from Martin's family and friends and none from my own. But then today I received several cards and even a Christmas package! This made me very happy which is no small feat as I am lying in bed with the worst cold I think I have ever had. I thought earlier today I was feeling better but no, I am not. I hope it goes away soon! I have a fridge full of bon bons waiting to be coated in chocolate!

Today was also made better by a job offer! I have been offered a role at an investment bank and I am pleased to say I have accepted. It is very similar to the role I had at Credit Suisse and I am very excited. A wonderful way to start the new year. Now I have to tell the BL which makes me a little sad as they have also offered me a wonderful opportunity. I just think though this other role suits me better. We'll worry about that in the New Year.

It might not look like it...

2009-12-18T06:10:00.001-08:00

...but it is snowing!

This was last night taken from St Martin's in the Field. We went to a Christmas Carol concert there and when we left it was snowing!

And when we woke up it was snowing again! They said we were to get half a foot last night but this does not look like half a foot. More snow is predicted or the weekend and it could be my first white Christmas!

In other good news I had a second interview for a role at a investment bank and the BL this week offered me a job. So one way or another I will be employed in the New Year! Whoo hoo. Glad 2010 will not start out like 2009.

\it m

2009-12-18T06:09:00.001-08:00

If you need a laugh

2009-12-17T05:47:00.000-08:00

I love her enthusiasm!

A Lovely Coastal Walk

2009-12-13T11:54:00.000-08:00

Martin and I decided to make the most of the weather and went for a lovely seven mile walk along the Jurassic Coast.We started at Lulworth Cove and made our way along the cliff edge. The picture above gives a good view of where we started and the path we would take...

This is Durdle Door, a natural rock formation. It may look like a nice warm day but it was in fact very cold. We must return here in the summer when it is less cold and sitting on the beach with a picnic might be possible.

Even though it was cold we worked up quite a sweat climbing up, and down, these hills.

The views though were well worth it.

This is just a 30 minute drive from the flat. Come visit me and I will take you along!Although this walk was marked "strenuous" and I would have to agree with that description.

And back again to Lulworth Cove. A lovely day!

The Weather

2009-12-04T06:48:00.001-08:00

Here is a typical weather forecast in England...

"Outbreaks of light rain at first, followed by a band of heavy rain from the west later this evening. Later broken cloud and showers, sometimes heavy, will follow the rain. Minimum temperature 4 °C."

Another way to say it would be...

It is going to rain. Alot.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-26T05:46:00.000-08:00

I won’t be celebrating Thanksgiving until Saturday but I was given a dozen long stem pink roses to mark the day and will be spending time with some American (rather one American and one Jamaican) friends later in a not very American English pub. Saturday we go next door to our American and English neighbours who are kindly hosting a Thanksgiving lunch. The highlight of which will no doubt be the pumpkin cookies I plan to make from the one can of pumpkin I have left over from last year. Can’t wait! (although they won’t be able to rest the traditional one day after baking for optimal yummyness) It isn’t the same but it is something. I am thankful I have people around me who realise how important it is to celebrate American holidays, even though we aren't in America. Happy Thanksgiving and lots of love from London!

Strictly Come Dancing

2009-11-02T07:02:00.000-08:00

This past Saturday I got to sit in the BBC Strictly Come Dancing lounge/bar while just a few floors below me the show was being taped. I went with a couple of Martin’s colleagues who promised me that after the show all the stars and their professional dancing partners would come to the lounge and have a few drinks, as well as the celebrity audience. I was not disappointed. Initially, there was only one person I wanted to speak to. His name is Ricky Whittle and he is on a popular soap here called Hollyoaks. He is, in a word, hot. But also a very good dancer. As we had a mom at the table with us who had promised the babysitter to get autographs, I had the perfect reason to approach him. But he would be the only one-I didn’t want to bother these people. I would leave them alone and let other people bother them. Ummm, NOT. I was a maniac! I blame the wine. I don’t drink much and the couple of glasses I had went straight to my head. (okay, more than a couple-people kept buying me drinks-I’m poor-I had to accept them!) I approached almost everyone! Mostly to get autographs for the babysitter but some people I just said I was getting an autograph simply so I could go up to them and start chatting. Mark Foster was there and I had a really nice chat with him. Also hot. You may remember him from my posts last year as he was the hot ticket on last seasons show. He is a swimmer. He is also really tall. Before I realised who he was he was actually standing behind me at the bar and I almost turned around to say “wow, you are really tall!” It is possible I still did this but just don’t remember. Who knows. What I do know is I had a super good time and not only did I get to talk to Ricky and give him advice about moving to LA (don’t do it! Stay in England!) but lots and lots of other people as well. The way I look at it is I am never ever going to see these people again and enough with sitting in a corner letting life go by. No regrets I say, life is for living! And harassing good looking people on TV apparently. Hopefully they didn’t mind. I did eventually leave them alone. I sadly don’t have any pictures. I did take one with Ricky but the person who took it messed it up. I took lots of pictures of other people with the celebs-also a way to start a conversation-but none of myself. As is the way. Don’t worry, I still have the pictures in my head.

Burrito Friday

2009-10-30T08:00:00.000-07:00

One of the things I crave most from San Francisco is a burrito. I get off the plane and that is the first stop I make. I have tried Mexican food in London and it is a far stretch. Nachos are made with cheese Doritos and enchiladas with barbecue sauce. But, near the British Library, someone who has been to San Francisco has opened up a burrito shop and it ain’t bad folks. Not bad at all. I like going there not only for the tasty burritos (made with black beans which are finally being offered here on a somewhat easy basis. Before you had to buy the dried kind or have them shipped in!) but of the nice mural on the wall depicting all the GOOD burrito places in San Francisco. It is almost like I am back home. I find it comforting. The only bad thing is it is very popular with the many many many college students in the area and if you don’t get there early you have to wait in a very long time. That I don’t like. Makes me feel old. :-(

No news is good news?

2009-10-23T06:42:00.000-07:00

There has been some quite on the blog front, mostly because I am working all the time now and when I get home or stop working the last thing I want to do is look at a computer. I don’t even want to watch TV! Hence the sharp decline in posts. I will try to be better.

Things in Britain are moving a long. The job at the British Library is going well and is interesting for the most part however I still manage to feel okay about writing a blog post on a Friday afternoon instead of doing the work I am suppose to be doing. Why is this? We’ll call it my lunch break. I like working here and I think it is a great experience however lately I am noticing how much I don’t like working. I really resent having to spend a good chunk of my life inside an office doing things that in the grand scheme don’t really matter. I think I would much rather doing something that actually produced something. Like farming. We’re looking into. Don’t laugh, I am being serious. We’ll see but I like the idea of working hard and being able to look up and see what I am working hard for. I don’t like the idea of working hard and looking up and seeing four white walls. What is inspiring about that?

Off to see Martin’s new niece this evening to celebrate his dad’s b-day. We had the opportunity to meet her last week and she is a doll. I want to eat her up. I have since been on the prowl for cute baby girl sweaters I can knit her and I can’t wait to get paid so I can buy some wool to get started! The possibilities are endless!

What else…mmm, not sure. I have been missing running lately as it is difficult to fit in now and running in the dark-either in the evening or in the morning-is not appealing. Hopefully I will be able to fit in a couple this weekend. And with the clocks going back this weekend I might be able to start considering going in the morning. Hopefully Martin will be better about waking up and doing this than I have proven to be. I try not to wake up a minute earlier than I need to.

Oh, here is some exciting news-the pub two doors from our house caught fire! Obviously everything is fine however it was a bit scary. It was evening and we smelled smoke however didn’t think too much about it as we had used the fire place for the first time in months that evening and that it was just that. But then when Martin was getting ready for bed he saw smoke was coming from the wall dividing our neighbour’s yard to the pub’s yard. He called to make sure it wasn’t burnt fish cakes and upon learning it wasn’t he phoned the fire brigade. Apparently the fire was in the basement of the pub. It did not spread and there was no damage to our or our neighbour’s place, although it smelled strongly of smoke for several days. The pub is now closed and boarded up. It is being investigated. Seeing as how it has been shut for several months we have our suspicions about what might have started it but can’t say for sure. It was pretty exciting but also a very good lesson. Smell smoke? Take a look around. Don’t make assumptions. If we hadn’t seen the smoke who knows what could have happened. We are very lucky it wasn’t worse. I have pictures and will post them when I get a chance. The fire fighters were there all night!

Big news in Britain today is about the BNP leader being allowed on a popular question and answer program featuring British politicians. The BNP stands for the British National Party and basically wants Britain to be free of any foreigners. In the most racist sense imaginable. The party has managed to secure two seats however so the BBC had to put the leader on this show out of fairness as the BBC is suppose to be non-political. We watched it last night and he is an outrageous sort of man. Now he is complaining of being set up and bullied. Which he probably was but I don’t think people really care. He described the Klu Klux Klan as being “non-violent”. Oh dear.
Here is an article about the show...http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/8322322.stm

Royal Parks Half Marathon

2009-10-13T02:17:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday I woke up at 6:45 and went on to run the Royal Parks Half Marathon. Yay! I have to say, I thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience of running and training for a half marathon. The runs were just long enough to be challenging and make you feel like you have accomplished something but not so long that you didn’t want to do it. I lost a little bit of extra weight I was carrying around but got to increase my food intake at the same time. I got to run through the summer months which is a always a joy and I didn’t have to sacrifice a whole Sunday preparing for a long run, doing a long run and recovering from a long run like I did when training for the full marathon. I liked the training so much I have signed up for another half in February!

The event itself was a lot of fun. Basically 13 miles around the sites of London, with the last half looped around Hyde Park. There were 12000 runners which was both a good and bad thing. Good in the sense that you got carried away with the spirit and speed of the people around you and didn’t feel like you could stop, even if you wanted to. Bad in that it was hard to go your own pace and when you felt a surge of energy and wanted to speed up you often had to do so by dodging the people around you. This was especially annoying at the end when you didn’t want to waste any energy by trying to avoid people. But, I would highly highly highly recommend this run and think my sisters should come and join me next year. A whole year to train! Think about it. The weather was pretty ideal for running. It did rain a little bit on the way there but stopped for the most part and it was just cold enough to keep you the perfect temperature while you were running without a jacket. Martin came along with me and it was great as I got to see him three times along the way. A nice thing to look forward to! I can honestly say I gave this run everything I had and when I crossed the finish line I was exhausted. I ran as hard as I could and went as fast as my little legs would let me. And I crossed the finish line in 2 hours, 4 minutes and 18 seconds. I am very proud!

In other very exciting news Martin’s sister had a baby today! A little girl. They plan to call her Milly. I can’t wait to see her! 8lbs, 8oz. I love it when babies are born. A whole new person to love-how exciting! Congrats!

Beet root soup with orange and mint

2009-09-18T01:32:00.001-07:00

Mmmm, in a word, gross. The problem here is two fold. One, I don't like beetroot. The only reason this soup was made was because we thought we had beetroot in the garden and I thought a soup would be a good way to use them. It turned out we didn't have beetroot but very large radishes, which look a lot like beetroot in the ground. The other problem is this soup is a very bright red. I have a hard time with bright coloured food and this just did not look appetizing to me. Pretty, but not something I would want to eat. I got this recipe from my Deliah vegetarian cook book and usually the recipes in there are pretty good. So far I have been disappointed with all the soups I have made from this cook book and this one was the last straw. I am giving this 2 mooneys. I am not totally writing it off because initially the taste was quite nice. It had potential. I think things would have helped if I had grated the zest more finely. As it was I didn't and you would get a mouthful of soup with orange zest and it wasn't nice. Plus, not everyone will have the same aversion to bright coloured food like I do. It just seems weird to me.

Martin has taken the day off work so I am off to play in the garden. We are going to Poole for the weekend and Strictly Come Dancing starts tonight. (The UK version of dancing with the stars) Needless to say I am soooooooooooooo excited.

Recipe for Tofu w/ hot sour rhubarb sauce

2009-09-14T04:58:00.001-07:00

14/09/2009
Originally uploaded by amoonpie

My sister very kindly shared this recipe with me quite a long time ago. I had never made it because I didn't have a food processor. But when Martin's dad gave us some rhubarb fresh from the garden I decided to give the recipe a go and see how well a blender would work. A blender in this instance is just as good as a food processor.

Now, I am not sure how copyright works with a blog but however I have seen this recipe blogged on several sites so screw it, I am posting it on the bottom. I have left my sisters notes in as I found them handy and added a couple of my own. This being the UK I had to do a one substitution and left the sesame oil out.

I really liked this recipe however I think I would have liked it more if I wasn't the one who had to cook it. Sometimes when you are eating something you have made you can be a bit over critical and this definitely happened to me with this recipe. I loved the flavour and texture of the meal, and the kale was excellent with the brown rice, which was a nice surprise. But I think I put too much sauce on mine and it was a little over powering. Or I put too much ginger in the sauce and this is what was overpowering. Plus, when cooking the kale I didn't trim it properly and was left doing it at the end when it was really hot and still cooking. I would give this 4 mooneys but Martin was a big fan and probably would give it 5. I made his with chicken, mine with tofu. I had tons of sauce left over so I have frozen it and look forward to eating it in the future.

Recipe inspired by Jamie Oliver’s Pork with Hot and Sour rhubarb sauce from Jamie at Home. There are three different sources of chilli in this recipe, so do miss one out if you want to.
Serves 4

The tofu and marinade
1 Tbsp honey (vegans substitute with agave nectar)
1 tsp five spice powder ( AEM note: I used all spice)
Quarter tsp dried chilli flakes
1 Tbsp vegetable oil (plus a little extra for cooking)
1 Tbsp rice wine (AEM note: I substituted this with a dry sherry)
500g plain firm tofu, cut along the horizontal and then into thin 1 inch strips

The sauce
400g rhubarb, trimmed and roughly chopped
A big thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger, peeled
A red chilli [LMM Note: I used 1 whole jalapeno – one-half for the sauce and one-half for the topping]
3 cloves garlic
3 Tbsp honey
3 Tbsp soy sauce

The topping
1 red chilli, finely sliced
2 Tbsp cashew nuts, roughly chopped
4 spring onions, finely sliced
A small handful fresh coriander
2 limes, halved

The rice
Brown rice [LMM Note: I actually used brown rice – a basmati brown – and it is terrific in this recipe]
Kale, sliced (as much as you can fit in your pan as it will shrink down massively) (AEM Note: Not too much though-it doesn't shrink down that much!)
Sesame oil (AEM Note: I omitted this)

A couple of hours before you want to eat, marinade the tofu by mixing all of the marinade ingredients together and pouring the marinade over the tofu. Mix and leave aside in the fridge.

When you are ready to start, begin by getting the rice cooking (you can leave this part until a little later if you are using white rice or noodles).

Put all of the sauce ingredients into a food processor and blend until smooth. Pour the resulting puree into a saucepan and simmer for about 20 minutes (the sauce will happily keep warm while everything else falls into place).

Heat a tiny splash of oil in a non-stick pan and sauté the tofu slices until golden. Put aside somewhere warm.

Just before you are ready to serve, use the residual oil in the non-stick pan (add a little more if you need it) to cook the kale until it softens a little and turns a brilliant green. Add the cooked rice to the kale along with a scant few drops of sesame oil.

To serve, dish out the rice/kale mix into warmed bowls, followed by the tofu and topped with a good dollop of the sauce. Finish by sprinkling over the topping ingredients, giving each person half a lime to add to taste.

The British Library

2009-09-07T02:15:00.000-07:00

Last week I intended to go on two interviews. Sadly the BBC decided they were no longer recruiting for the role I applied for but would contact me in December should they decide to recruit then. Boo. But I did have my interview with the British Library. I didn't think it went all that well. I usually do really well in interviews but because I was so out of practice I was having a hard time choosing my words and found myself rambling. I thought at some points they stopped listening to me altogether.

I must have done alright though because they offered me the internship. Good news! It doesn't pay great and only lasts until the end of January but it will be a great learning experience and will look great on my CV, hopefully making me more attractive to future employers. I hope to keep my part time job while I do the internship so I am going from hardly working at all to working too much. But I am not complaining. I am very pleased. Yay!

So today I am enjoying the afternoon not having to work or look for a job. Feels good. Friday Martin and I are off to Amsterdam for the weekend. Martin for a work conference and me to take advantage of a free place to stay. Whoo hoo!

Apple Pie Cake

2009-09-02T04:43:00.000-07:00

I thought to make things interesting (for me) I would start posting about various recipes I am trying. I seem to bake and cook a lot and I know I am always looking for something yummy to make so maybe you are to! My first feature recipe is a cake given to me by super-baker Ginny in request for something to do with all those apples!

You can find it here...

Apple Pie Cake

The recipe calls for a springform pan. I am not really sure what that is but I know I don't have one so I used a cake tin instead. This worked fine. I liked this cake much better the second day after I had kept it in the fridge over night so I would recommend making way in advance to let it cool thoroughly before serving. This cake was yummy and simple to make, but a little time consuming. It took ages to peel and core all those apples and it has to cook for over an hour and then cool for several more. So I would recommend this recipe, but only if you are not in a hurry to eat it. I give it, out of 5, 4 mooneys.

From Kew to Poole and Back Again

2009-08-30T07:09:00.000-07:00

Last week Martin and I set off for our very own biking adventure of a miniature scale. Typically we drive down to Poole and I usually start conversations by asking Martin if he has been to any of the places we wiz by. The answer is always no. So we decided to ride our handy bicycles the 100 miles down to the coast and visit these places I am always pestering him about.

The first stop was only 25 miles from ours and had the added bonus of being the home of Martin's sister. The ride down was quite nice. Since we were only going to be riding a couple of hours we could take our time getting ready in the morning and make our way leisurely to our first stop in Guildford. The weather for once was behaving and in between scary roads where people drive way too fast we had country lanes that provided a relaxed environment to enable us to take in the beautiful English country side. We picked up some sandwiches and had a nice lunch in a field close to some picturesque English cottages and watched people as they picked the wild fruit growing near by. We arrived in Guildford and were treated to a lovely meal and some fun time with Henry, Martin's nephew. The next morning we had breakfast in the garden and then were on our way to Winchester, 45 miles away.

Although the longest day this was my favorite day of riding. It seems all the roads were country roads and although a little hilly, the scenery was stunning. Rolling hills with little villages tucked in. We stopped at a pub for lunch that was set in the middle of no where and although there was a road in front I don't recall a single car passing by. On just the other side was trees and grass as far as the eye could see. We saw cows and lots of wild horses and other friendly cyclers. The weather was glorious and although I was getting a little saddle sore, I was so happy to be on my bike and not to be in a hurry and having the opportunity to enjoy such scenery.

We stayed at a little b&b that night which in itself was an experience. If I had to give the person who owned the b&b any advice, it would be that a little goes a long way. The house did not have any signage to indicate that it was a B&B and we weren't sure it was until a very nice man came outside to let us know we were in the right place. Although we were paying guests, we really were just using someones spare room. This was in no sense of the word a business.The house was a mess, clutter everywhere and it had the smell of a place that holds old and dusty items-like a thrift shop. Our room was on the middle floor and the bathroom we were to us was a whole flight down. The room itself was ok except the bed. The linen had stains on it and the mattress was not one who had just ridden 45+ miles would want. The bathroom had carpet in it (who EVER thought that was a good idea) and had no working shower. The bath had not been cleaned recently, there was no shampoo and the only soap to be found had been used probably by a hundred people before us. Yuck. Breakfast in the morning was pretty horrible and the butter dish had mold on it. The only real saving grace was the man who ran it was an absolute joy and we enjoyed chatting with him. That said though, we were shocked to learn that we weren't the only people to be tricked into staying there as he had another paying guest that night. Good luck buddy!
The next morning we were more than keen to get back on our bikes, although a little worse for wear. I was sore and getting on that saddle was not nice. Lucky for me though we had the nice treat of walking around Winchester first. I went into the Cathedral which was ok and whose major claim to fame is that Jane Austen is buried there. We then went to an old ruin and that was pretty cool. I love old towns like this but again, for Martin it is a little less novel and I have to balance doing what I want ans not boring him so much he refuses to do something like this again. So after a couple of hours in the city centre we were back on our bikes into the New Forest.
Most of this ride was terrifying. Now that I am older I yearn less for adventure and riding on any road that has cars, never mind ones that are going fast, does not appeal to me. Martin did a wonderful job navigating but small country roads could only get us so far. This was all worth it however because eventually we got to the New Forest and it was glorious. I could totally live here. It was amazing. In some ways these places reminded me a lot of California, especially up in the wine country where my sister lives. I was more than once taken back to rides I had done with her and it was nice to be reminded of that. The thing about England though is there is far less people and cars. I loved riding through the New Forest and I hope someone comes to visit me so I can show them all of these places! That night we stayed at another B&B and this place was much better. The woman was tough and energetic and would probably live to be a hundred. We had her eggs and produce for breakfast the next morning and got to enjoy the local village pub. I am going to do my best to try and convince Martin's parents to retire to the New Forest.

The last day we rode the remaining miles to Poole. The first half was through the forest and the second half along the coast. How perfect could that be? We took a long walk along the beach front and although it was windy as hell, the sun was shining and we were happy to reach our destination. I loved our little adventure and would do it again in a heartbeat!

Now was are back in London and enjoying the fruit of our gardening labours. I made a delicious tomato soup today using the onions, basil and of course tomatoes from our garden. We have tomatoes up to our eyeballs so we will be having lots of red things in the coming weeks-including my dads pasta sauce recipe which I am sure will be even more excellent using our vine ripe produce. We were also given a bag full of apples from Martin's parents tree and I am having trouble finding an apple cake recipe, having already made an apple crumble. Any ideas? Next week I have been warned we will be getting plums but I don't think I will have a problem finding a recipe for those.

In other news I have two interviews next week. One with the BBC working in their archives and information centre, and the other is an internship with the British Library working on a digital preservation project. Wish me lots and lots of luck!

The joy of minature reese's peanut butter cups

2009-08-12T01:02:00.000-07:00

My neighbor just came back from San Francisco and I begged him to bring me some miniature Reeses peanut butter cups. Like the good neighbour he is, he brought back two HUGE bags of them. It is all I can do not to sit down with them right now, 9:00 in the morning, and proceed to watch trashy TV while I finish a baby blanket I am making. Alas, I have a job to look for and maybe today is the day I find it.

There is something about the English that makes them not like chocolate and peanut butter. I personally think it is one of the most brilliant combinations known to men, but they just aren't big on peanut butter here. In some ways this works to my advantage, as I know Martin won't touch my two large bags. But then when I want a peanut butter snack, it is hard to find. The closest you can get is peanut M&Ms, and that is just not the same at all!

I am in training for a half marathon right now and have to run 9 miles today. This is good as I can eat a fair few Reeses before I go and not feel too bad about it. And the weather is a lot cooler today so it should be a nice run. It was very hot and humid yesterday, which was nice, but today has gone back to normal English weather. Grey and cold. And if you haven't sponsored me yet-I am running to raise funds for Habitat for Humanity-why don't you do so now! Here you go, here's the link...

http://www.justgiving.com/Amber-Mooney/

I can't do it without you!

August in England

2009-08-04T05:37:00.000-07:00

Weather wise-this summer has been pants. We had a lovely Spring and a pretty warm June, and then July came along and with it the rain and grey skies and not so warm afternoons.

Last weekend we went to Poole for the weekend, and this is what it looked like...

This is myself with Martin's mum and dad. In case it isn't apparent-that isn't a blue sky you see but mist and fog. I thought I had left the fog in San Francisco but apparently not. It was too bad as the views were amazing as we walked along the cliffs on the sea and up this beautiful meadow. Well, I am assuming it was amazing. As you can see, we couldn't see too far ahead of ourselves. At the top we were awarded with spectacular views. and the fog lifted just enough for us to see them.

It was actually a lovely walk and I look forward to doing it again in nicer weather. Perhaps in November when it is freezing and the wind is at hurricane force but there won't be a cloud in the sky.

My Good Friend

2009-08-03T06:59:00.000-07:00

The Prince!

In case you can't tell, that is Prince Charles! Across the street where I have my little admin job is the Prince's Trust. Prince Charles comes to visit about once a month, and this is my first siting. So exciting. We knew he was coming because there were dogs sniffing the rubbish and police about all morning. I practically sat next to the window all day so I wouldn't miss him. Once he arrived I spied on him for a good hour. It was fun. And something that would never happen in San Francisco! Well, never say never I guess. Once the Dali Lama did drive past me. That was also exciting.

Bjorn Again

2009-07-09T04:29:00.000-07:00

Last night I volunteered at the Kew Gardens summer swing concert and whilst encouraging people to recycle I got to see/hear Bjorn Again, an Abba wanna be group. If you ever get the chance to see Bjorn Again, especially at an outdoor concert, do it. It seriously made me really happy. There were thousands of people of all ages dancing and singing along. It is only what I could call really good fun. Everyone was into it. I saw a granny being pushed in a wheelchair singing along while a woman in her 40s danced down the red carpert and teenagers belted their hearts out. Men were forming dancing circles and not one person was sitting down. I have never seen so many people have so much fun. And the great thing was how different everyone was and how everyone of all ages was joining in. It was really special. What was not special was trying to prevent the more intoxicated of these people from throwing their rubbish away in the recycling bin.

Our first carrot!

2009-07-06T10:53:00.000-07:00

I think it could have stayed in the ground a little longer....

Tasted like dirt.

Accepted!

2009-06-20T05:52:00.000-07:00

Today I got my visa. YAY! I am so relieved I can't even tell you. I got home yesterday afternoon and their was a slip from the post man saying sorry he missed me, there was a letter that needed to be signed for and I could pick it up at the post office the next day. As the letter was addressed to a Miss Amber Elizabeth Mooney I knew it had to be my letter from the home office about my visa. I spent most of the day really stressed out. I was so convinced it would be a rejection. Not to mention that Martin is away for the weekend and I had to decide when to tell him. Wait til he gets home, tell him the day before he gets home so he can think about it. In my head I was on my way home, even though my heart wanted to stay. So, I woke up and went down to the post office first thing. I don't think I have ever met a man who works as slowly as the gentleman helping people at the post office. And what do you know, it wasn't a rejection but the visa I have been waiting six months for. Yay.

Although this has all been quite traumatic and an emotional roller coaster, I think it has been good for me. I think about home all the time and I miss it every day, but when I was faced with the prospect of having to leave England, it made me really sad. I really like living here. It can be really hard and a tad lonely but I live in a beautiful place and with a beautiful person. And I'm not ready to leave. Which I would have to have done should this application been rejected. It has been a good test for me and I can now say that I really do want to be here, which is nice. It is also nice not to have to worry about it anymore. I feel so much lighter and free. And I can look for a job properly now. I almost feel like I have my independence back. And I am very happy to close this chapter of my life. Yay!

Polo

2009-06-17T09:53:00.000-07:00

Or as my mom would say, horseys! A rare beautiful weekend in England Martin and I joined some friends for polo on Sunday. I have never been before and it was a nice way to spend the afternoon. We took a blanket and a picnic and just walked up and set up camp. There is a polo club not too far from our house and although you can make it as posh as you like, you can also make it as common as you like as well. It was fun to watch but mostly just a good opportunity to enjoy the sunshine.