Tree House Fun

This wet, dull & dreary weather is making me think of holidays again!  Whilst doing a spot of browsing I discovered this really cool looking place to stay on this great site.

Image - Green Traveller

I've added it to my Hazy Days & Holidays page too.  Don't forget to let me know of any other great places you might find so I can add them to the list.

I also thought this book is a good one for the wish list!




In the meantime I'm imagining all the fun my kids would have staying in a tree house like this, tucked up in their beds reading The Faraway Tree stories!

Licking Lemons!

After my decision in January for a 'greener clean' I have been madly cleaning my house to use up all those nasty chemical cleaning solutions.  We're almost there.

Finally the spray can of polish has run out, so last night I decided to make up a natural furniture polish for all the wooden furniture & doors in the house.  My little jar of liquid polish smells gorgeous & it must taste good too, as today I have found the dog licking my doors!!!

Image - Natural Wood Furniture Polish

I'm afraid if you're one of those people that sprays polish on every dusty surface going, this probably won't be what you're after.  This smeared across your tv screen would be a natural disaster - leave that job to your feather duster.  But so far my wood has been only too happy to drink up this lemony solution.

Recipe for 'Natural Wood Furniture Polish':

1/4 cup olive oil
4 tbsp distilled white vinegar
2 tsp lemon juice or 20-30 drops lemon essential oil

note - (if you use lemon juice you will need to refrigerate your polish)

Pour ingredients into a spray bottle or jar & shake well before using.

The olive oil will add moisture to your wood while the vinegar will clean it, drawing out the dirt.

Happy cleaning.......

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

Ingredients for our fun day out:

1. Bake a cake.

2. Pack loads of drinks, waterproofs & wellies.

3. Grab some friends.

4. Head for the hills - in our case Avebury stone circle.


We walked around here....

and here....

and here.....

We stopped to eat our picnic.  The National Trust employees locked up & went home.  We ran round some more!

Oh, & this charming little cottage was for sale.

Popcorn & Sticky Seats

Oh, this weather.  I love seasons, I don't mind the cold & the damp & the grey but I do wish for a bit of sunshine this half term!

The kids had Daddy home for half a day today so we decided to make today our half term trip to the cinema.  I find this whole adventure getting more & more costly with most kids films being 3D, which they charge more for & then charge again for the glasses!

So today we went 2D.  I snuck in a flask of coffee for us & water for the kids.  I popped some popcorn at home & raided the treats tin!

I then got cosy in my rather sticky seat with my youngest on my lap (with paid for vacant seat next to me!) where we all enjoyed Yogi Bear.  Yogi was a favourite of mine as a child.  Our three loved the movie.  I'm now hunting down old Yogi Bear cartoons on YouTube.

Image - IMDb

My youngest & I are also very excited by one of the trailers & we are already planning our next cinema trip.  Winnie the Pooh is coming to the screens very soon!

Image - IMDb

We love watching movies together.  I seem to recall Emma Bradshaw enjoying a movie for her birthday last year outside in her garden.  I need to think of an imaginative way to do this in the cold!!!

We also still need to see Where The Wild Things Are - any suggestions for unique ways to home view this on a cold, damp evening?  Or suggestions for other favourite childhood films of your own?

Image - IMDb

The Shopping Trip

Saturday morning my hubby had to work so the kids came with me on a shopping trip!

My kids are not great shoppers so I thought we'd better start the day off on a high note as well as ending on one!  And steer clear of butchers, bakers, etc.  I needed to get through the day with minimum whining.

First stop was the Oxfam Book Shop - a favourite haunt.  The children we're allowed to choose one book each and one red nose each!







I also chose a book.  I couldn't believe my luck, an unused copy of Bazaar Style.



We followed this with a trip to the library, where between 5 library cards we took out as many books as we could carry.  I'm looking forward to trying a few recipes from Fork to Fork by Monty & Sarah Don.



Laden down with books & a promise to start reading them before we went home I managed to drag the children into my favourite shop - Wild Thymes.  It's a tiny Health Food & Cheese Shop.  They sell the most amazing flaked almonds & coconut which I put on my porridge every day!

Daily Porridge

2 large scoops of porridge oats
1 small scoop of raisins or sultanas
cover in ecomil almond milk
microwave for 1 minute, stir
microwave for 1 more minute
top with almond flakes & coconut flakes & whatever fresh fruit comes to hand (usually berries in my case)


Finally a rather expensive trip into the local stationery shop for fountain pens, coloured pencils, sharpeners & other requirements for school pencil cases.

At last, we ended up in The Food Gallery for the most delicious coffee & children's hot chocolates.  The kids happily flicked through their books whilst I read the paper!!!

Fair Maids of February

Snowdrops @ Welford Park

Friday I went out with a friend for a child free visit to our local snowdrops.  They we're amazing.  It was a very misty day, so unfortunately my photo doesn't do them justice.  I have to say I did feel a little guilty as usually I take the children, who have great fun running around & we always end the day in the Old Laundry Room for tea & cake! We must have looked like we were lacking 'something' as instead of our children we adopted a lovely old man who walked around with us sharing all of his knowledge about the park & the snowdrops, which he informed us had been growing there for 600 years!

We still managed to end our visit with a good gossip over tea & a lovely slice of victoria sponge in the Old Laundry Room.

I'm now looking forward to the Bluebells which grow around us in abundance but they are not for a while.  Does anyone know of any good daffodil displays in the Wiltshire/Gloucestershire area to keep me going?

Love is ........

Loving Ellie to pieces!

Cooking dinner for old friends

Hearing your kids squeal with delight when they find their favourite sweets on Valentine's Day - Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans!!!!

Snuggling up with your bestest friend - even if you don't quite fit!