Breakthrough

Finally yesterday  I cleared one side of the Lottie,  right down to the front of the plot.  This was a biggie for me as I know it has to be done and the front 1/3 of the plot is still to be sorted.  This has really been getting me down for a while as it such a big job to doing on your own.   Yesterday I put my back into it and with my trusty Azada managed to clear a section of it.



Newly cleared section - to the right of the picture is the neighbouring plot

5 huge wheelbarrow loads of brambles, nettles, dock leaves, couch grass and other weeds were taken away.  I think my plot must have every type of unwanteds possible!   It is not all good though - it is still to be dug over.  The original plan was to make this into a raspberry bed with a long line of raspberry canes at one side of the plot.   I have been worrying about whether this is the right place to put them though.    This section is right next to the adjoining plot where the plot owner has not cleared this section and it has a lot of brambles growing.  In reality with the very best will in the world I do know that the brambles will spread and continue to grow on my plot along this side.

A monster bramble root - my flask in the picture to give an indication of how big this thing is!

So the dilemma - if permanent raspberry beds are put in here, the brambles would grow through and as this area won't be dug over twice annually I can just see a mess of brambles and raspberries within a very short space of time.   This area needs to have regular digging to at least try and tame the brambles.

As I was standing with my cup of tea looking at this patch contemplating what to do with it, one of the other plot holders wandered by - "You want to put potatoes in there" he said.  We then discussed this and my dilemma for a while.   Potatoes in newly dug ground for the first year helps to break the soil up apparently.  He also thought it would be a mistake to put the raspberry bed in this place.   So the decision was made.  I'm going to dig this bit over, cover with manure and compost and leave it until the spring - the new potato bed sorted!  (Well that sounded easy didn't it LOL!)

I have now decided that the raspberry bed will go in front of the water pump - no brambles have been seen in this area.  I don't think that this is  a particularly rich soil area as the turnips, suede and carrots in this bit currently haven't done to very well,  but this can all be enriched and it will be an easily managed area to cover to keep the birdies off my raspberries as they grow through.
 

The section with the sign will become the new raspberry bed.  
This is an old picture as swedes, carrots, spinach and turnips are currently growing here.


Just when I thought I was making progress - I have now given myself another job to do by the end of November  - sort out the new to be raspberry bed!   Oh well, I will just continue to plod along and tell myself it will all be done eventually!

Pumpkin Soup

I think we picked the wrong recipe - it was not good!  My Milly tackled the pumpkin and cooked the soup,   with lovely homemade bread to go with it.   We didn't like it!  I don't think it can be rescued or turned into anything else, so the remainder of the pot of soup will end up in the bin.   Oh well you win some and lose some I suppose.

It has been one of those days today  - this morning I was overcharged £7.00 in the Haberdashery shop,  I was mentally calculating what I had spent and really couldn't work out how I had spent £23.00, I checked the receipt and still couldn't work it out,  so I returned to the shop queried the bill and a refund promptly given.  On to the supermarket,  and now that I can make pastry - woo hoo!!  I wanted a loose bottom flan tin - the price on the shelf £6.50,  it went through the till at £7.25 - so I joined the queue at customer services and another refund given, this was double the difference so £1.50 was refunded.

Tonight the pumpkin soup was not good and to top the day off - I realised that one of the blankets I was making was no longer rectangular as it should be and was definitely narrowing at one end.  How very very annoying is that.   To be honest I had realised this 2 days ago and have spent the last couple of days trying to work out how I could rescue it - but here really was nothing to be done.  As the blanket has so many colours it would be impossible to unpick it,  so the only solution - work out where the narrowing had started and cut that bit off!!  I'm pretty gutted really as it has taken a couple of weeks to get to this point and I did think it would be finished this week - now it is about half the size it was and another couple of weeks work to be done.

I think I can salvage the cut piece and am working on a plan to use it in a different way - I'll let you know if that works out!.

Fortunately all was well at the Lottie today,  and I was delighted that the grass seed I had sown 2 weeks ago has sprouted and a previously muddy path now has a lovely spattering of green-ness on it.  It was a bit of a gamble sowing the seeds so late in the year and these particular seeds haven't given a good result when sown earlier in the year - but the gamble paid off and grass is growing, so that was a bit of a bonus today.



New grass being lovingly guarded by Lottie!


I picked up some Jerusalem Artichokes from Freecycle today - these will be planted in the spring.  I'm not sure yet what to do with them once they have grown - but if you don't try these things how do you know  what they will be like.   The only one little worry I have with them - they are nick- named Fartichokes!

Peculiar looking Jerusalem Artichokes

One for you, One for me

I have decided this is how things are to be!   After making the Christmas Apron on this post Sleep I decided that I wanted one too.   I have been hunting for a design and pattern that I liked and couldn't find one.  Eventually I found inspiration on Etsy for a christmas apron I liked - this one though had no pattern.  So from the ones I have at home I sort of made one up!

This apron is going to be a one off and NEVER to be repeated,  it was really fiddly to do and did take ages to complete.  However I am really pleased with it - it's different!

With Christmas looming I'm starting with some new Christmas presents.   The first one finished today - it is a Slouchy Make-up bag.  I have counted up and it looks like I am going to have to make 12 of these - I have enough various bits of material to make them, it is the zips I don't have.  Locally the zips are 89p each,  today I have found somewhere selling them for 40p each - what a massive difference!  That will be a short trip out on Saturday to get them and even taking into account the petrol for the drive I will still save quite a bit on these.

Until the zips are here I'm a bit stuck - looks like a couple of evenings of cutting out and ironing interfacing,  not particularly interesting to be doing, but at least when the zips arrive I will be able to make the bags up pretty quickly.

Hours

Why is it that Saturday and Sunday has so many fewer hours than work days?  It does seem a little unfair!  OK I know oversleeping on one of those days doesn't help - but I was up early this morning 8.00am - on the new time and I still haven't been able to fit everything in!

The day started with a lovely Sunday breakfast sitting at the table with the pretty Cath Kidston bits and pieces - it has now become a bit of a habit and does eat into the day,  but it is worth it and a little thing to look forward to.   Then a quick trip to the local aviary for chicken food and bedding,  some parrot food and a treat for the dog.   Came home and made my flask of tea for the Lottie, gathered some bits and pieces and off to the lottie for a little while.

This weekend Freecycle has been kind,  an outdoor Terracotta clock was offered and also a spare baking tin and beater for our breadmachine.  I was really happy with both of these - the clock for the Lottie and a spare tin is always very  handy and they do need to be replaced occasionaly.  These were both collected today.


The collected clock now housed on the Lottie Shed

Then off to the Lottie for a couple of hours,  there is still so much to be done,  the front third of the plot is still to be cleared and continues to grow - I am finding this very frustrating and a little disheartening.  The plan today was to make a start cutting down and clearing along the side.  And like most best laid plans - it didn't happen!  I planted the gooseberry bushes,  planted the winter lettaces and covered them with a tunnel cloche for protection - it looks a bit like a giant white slug in the middle of the lottie, but if it does the job I'm not complaining!  After a quick cup of tea I decided to dig over the courgette bed - now this bed has been dug twice already and still it is full of bramble roots,  looks like that is going to be an ongoing battle FOREVER!

Lettuce cloche

New neat and tidy cabbage bed

After battling my way though the digging and another welcome cup of tea, Barney from across the way came for a visit and as always he came bearing gifts - spring cabbages and pumpkins!   He has an abundance of cabbage plants and said I could help myself.    The Courgette bed is now the new cabbage bed, all nicely planted, slug pellets are down and covered in netting for bird protection.   That was it for today - doesn't sound much but it was 3 hours work.    I came home bearing gifts of 2 big pumpkins for Mr Milly - both of them are at least double the size of the one we grew!

Now what to do with the pumpkins,  I have to confess that we have always bought them for the children to carve into Jack-O-Lanterns, but we haven't eaten them.  With the new waste not want not going on in our house they are for eating. 

2 firsts for us tonight - I made pastry!  That is a biggie for me as anytime I have tried to make pastry it has not been good  - hot hands I think!  Have you watched the Great British Bake Off - I did  I loved it!   They all make pastry in a food processor, so I thought I would give it a go and it worked!  Woo Hoo!- looks like I've cracked it and I really am delighted!

One of the pumpkins has been cut up,  Mr Milly has saved all the seeds and tomorrow they will be roasted to keep for a healthy FREE snack,  about half of it was cooked and mixed with some other ingrediants and pumpkin pie was made.   Neither of us have ever had pumpkin pie and we were a little nervous of it,  but  to our surprise it was yummy!  Lots more pumpkin still to be used - thank goodness for Google I am sure we can find some good recipes to try.

Our first ever Pumpkin Pie

Sleep

I over slept this morning - 10.30 before I woke up!  That is really really unusual for me and it really really annoys me because I then felt like I has wasted 1/4 of the weekend.  So no leisurely Saturday morning breakfast for us today.

Following my sneak peek of my 2 on the go projects, I felt inspired today and therefore a visit to the local Haberdashery seemed in order.   It is not Mr Milly's favorite shop,  probably cause I will spend so long in there - the selections do have to be perfect don't they!   These little goodies came home with me today....

Lovely Christmassy colours

A quick visit to the Lottie to have a tidy up,  then home to look at the goodies and then I made a start on thefirst project and a couple of hours sat at the sewing machine.   This one is going to be a gift,  but the recipient doesn't visit Blogland so I can share without worry.   The only problem I can now see - I really like the end result and am going to find it hard to part with it!

Sneak Peek

Today has been busy,  busy at work all day and like Picadilly Circus in the house!  The Portuguese Housekeeper has been here today then went out,  My Milly went out,  Mr Brother in Law arrived - he stayed a while and left,  My sister in law arrived with my two nephews,  Mr Milly came home,  sister-in-law left and the Portuguese Housekeeper came home!  Blimey - I'm worn out with all the tooing and frowing.

So nothing much to report today - I thought I would give you a little sneak peek of my 2 current projects.   I can't say very much about them not until 26th December!  But a little peek won't hurt!

Zingy and Bright

Pastel and Calm

Biscuits

We are on a bit of an economy drive at the moment - trying to save a little bit here and there, we have a long term aim in mind and this is the start of it.
Some of this thinking has definitely  been driven by my Lottie,  the recylcing/upcycling/freecyling is addictive and quite fun to see what can be found, reused or passed on with pennies and pounds being saved along the way.   Also with the Lottie we have become little squirrels and are storing things away for the winter.   As the Lottie was new this year I don't think I have quite managed to think about planting for harvesting the whole year - it was very much a case of dig a bit, plant a bit and see what happens!  We did end up though with much more than we ever imagined this year, which has been great.

As a consequence we now have the second little freezer in the shed and both freezers are pretty full.   Lots of frozen veggies and apples from the Lottie and some bargains from the supermarkets where they could be found.

With the chutneys and jams, mustard and sauces made this year the cupboards are pretty full too,  so much so we have definitely run out of space for storage and the little shed is being used more and more for storage where possible.

The storage cupboard

Although there is an ultimate aim - we actually are having fun!  It is a challenge to think differently about meals, what we are buying, what we are eating, if the oven is on for one thing can we cook anything else at the same time,  can we use one ring to cook dinner instead of 2 or 3 - that type of thing and generally how we can do things in a different way.

Cooking has become a bit of an obsession - for us both I think and a little bit of healthy competition has crept in between me and Mr Milly.   I'll give you an example - our bread machine is now in almost daily use, we haven't shop bought bread for 3 months now.   This domain always belonged to Mr Milly,  now we both make bread and always compare how each of us have prepared the mix, which loaf is the best colour, size and taste - whatever comparison we can think of really!  Today it was garlic bread,  I made the last batch and I have to say it was great!  Today it was Mr Milly's turn,  every step of the way we compared how the other would do it,  which pan was best to use, which way to add the garlic and butter was best,  what was the best oven temperature and on it went.  Of course I thought my way was best and Mr Milly was sure his way was better!!!  The result was good (mine was great!),  half of the result was had for tea and the other has now found a spare space in the freezer for another day.

Biscuits are my domain - again no bought biscuits have entered the house for the last 3 months.  I make batches at a time,  freeze some and have some in the biscuit tin, to be topped up from the freezer as we go along.   Today I made Anzac biscuits and shortbread.

In fact 2 batches of the Anzac biscuits were made - I completely mis read the recipe which was 1 teaspoon of bicarb into 2 tablespoons of boiling water.  I read it as 2 tablespoons of bicarb to 2 tablespoons of water and the result was absolutely VILE!  Straight into the bin for that lot with a second batch into the oven!  Mr Milly did gloat and has done so all afternoon.........  when I was looking for inspiration tonight for the blog....  His suggestion 'write about your disaster with the biscuits'.  So for my very competitive hubby -  Blog written as directed!



Anzac and Shortbread biscuits - I'll add the recipes for these to My Recipe page shortly.



Biscuit Barrel - The chocolate chip cookies are out of the freezer.