29th October - 4th November

This week I have been

Enjoying - the flame red colour of the leaves on the trees. There is a line of half a dozen of these trees in the car park near my place of work and they are a delight to see.

Loving - the fact our bathroom is another stage nearer completion. The lino was laid on Tuesday which means it's an awful lot warmer in there now. I really love the differing shades of grey and silver.

Having the floor down also meant that the new to us piece of furniture which has been sat in the dining room for the past couple of weeks could be put into place.
We found this pine child's size wardrobe on Gumtree for £35. The seller very kindly agreed to deliver to us for an extra £5. G painted it a shade called Stormy Blue and it's now home to our towels, bathroom cleaning products, loo roll and other odds and ends. Perfect.

Celebrating -Halloween with friends. This year we invited our friends G and M over with their two children J and G. S was in charge of helping them dish out the sweets to our treat or treat callers. It was a slow start to the evening but in the end I think we had somewhere between 70 and 80. 
S made these gruesome looking eyeballs for us all to eat

and whilst she did those I used a tube of black icing to paint faces onto marshmallows which I took in to work so we could have a sweet treat there too.

Trying - out a couple of new recipes for breakfast time. During the week it's always two Weetabix but come the weekend I want to have something a bit different. With G on the Slimming World regime I have been looking at ideas on various websites and baked oats is a firm favourite. I made these on Saturday morning, they are flavoured with lemon fat free Greek yogurt. I served them with a blob of jam and natural flavoured Greek yogurt. Warm from the oven they were lovely.

Then on Sunday I made this jammy dodger french toast inspired by sarah_sw_recipes on Instagram. I didn't put in enough cinnamon so I know to increase that the next time I do these. This really filled me up.

Going - out in our, new to us, car.
Yes we are car owners once again. I detest the whole looking for cars thing. Both G and I have zero knowledge when it comes to cars. We have been half heartedly looking for a few weeks but the time had come to make more of an effort. 
The result is that we are now KA owners.
We are in the incredibly lucky position of not needing a car to get us to work. With it just being the three of us these days we now don't need a larger family size car.
Most of the things we need to do can be accomplished (with a bit of forward planning) on foot, with public transport and online shopping, so it is a bit of a luxury having a car sat outside for the convenience of being able to pop out and get us from A to B when we need to do just that.
Considering all of these things we wanted to buy something small and cheap to run and fingers crossed this will fit the bill just nicely.

22nd - 28th October

This week I have been

Dancing - to the Bay City Rollers.

Well these days the only original Roller in the band is lead singer Les McKeown.

I went to see them on S A T U R D A Y night (if you know their songs you'll know why I spelled it that way!) with my sisters, it was part of their birthday gift to me.

I had an amazing time.

To be dancing away to all my favourite songs whilst Les McKeown was on stage singing them was just the best.

I was lucky enough to find this fabulous transfer on E-bay which made just the most perfect t-shirt.

Making - a new necklace. This was an illustration from the front of a vintage sewing pattern. I just love her hairstyle.

Wearing - it was Pumpkin Day on Friday and so there was only one choice of brooch.

Eating - to carry on with the pumpkin theme I made us pumpkin pancakes for breakfast. S wasn't keen but G and I enjoyed ours with yogurt, fruit and a drizzle of maple syrup. Delicious and really filling.

Reading - a Christmas book. Saturday afternoon I was in the mood for something festive. I had a few books on my shelf to choose from and went for this one as it looked like a short read. It certainly was as I finished it on Sunday afternoon. By this time I had been out and bought myself another new Christmas mug, it was only 50p from a charity shop so how could I have resisted?

Watching - The Bishop's Wife. It was Elsa Lanchester's birthday on 28th October which provided us with the perfect opportunity for another viewing of this superb movie.


Celebrating - my sister's birthday on 24th. She knew about two of the items of clothing as she had chosen those herself but everything else was a surprise. As you probably remember we spend £10 and all items must come from a car boot or charity shop.
All of these items come to £9.97 in total.
The mug, Gisela Graham mini heart dish and the cupcake decoration were all £1 each. The coaster, cushion cover and paper decorations were 50p each.

This long length grey and pink cardi which originally came from New Look was £1 and was one of the things C has picked out.

The hand made top on the left was one of my favourite buys for her, it reminded me of a gingerbread house! This was £1.

The plain grey jumper was the second item she had chosen and was 50p.

The red glass dish was 50p.

The snowflake jumper was £1, the book was 10p, the jug was 50p and the white deer brooch was new and 87p.

17th - 23rd September

This week I have been 

Listening -  to Second Thoughts on Radio 4 extra as I walk to and from work. I loved the series which ITV made although I have no recollection of the series Faith in the Future which followed on from it. 

Cooking - more new recipes. The syn free carbonara was a hit with all of us.
Yes I can confirm the rare occurrence of us all eating and enjoying the same meal did happen once this week.
On Thursday I cooked Chinese lemon chicken and left Asian BBQ chicken marinading in the fridge on Friday morning for G to cook for him and S. You can tell he dished up this meal, look at the amount of chicken on his plate!
Both were given the thumbs up and will definitely appear on the new menus. All can be found on the slimming eats website which I thoroughly recommend.

Thinking - about organising a family outing just before Christmas to see the new Mary Poppins movie. I love Mary Poppins and am so excited about seeing the new movie. 

Wearing - lots more scarves this week due to the change in the weather. Plus the one which was called into action to help us with our latest sleeveface creation for country music day last Monday.

Feeling - so pleased for working my way through a huge to do list this weekend. With G working, the weather being rubbish and S full of cold and staying in her PJs I had no choice but to be indoors and so used the time to get lots of little bits and pieces done.

Watching - the return of Strictly. I'm ready for this year's competition to commence and once again become immersed in all the glitter and sequins.

1st-9th September

This week I have been 

Reading - a Lidl magazine which was posted through the door. Liking the look of these cookie based bats for Halloween.

Cooking - a couple of new things. This turkey chilli was a huge hit and will definitely be made again. G has joined Slimming World and has lost 5lb in his first week. I'm in the process of working out weekly menu plans.

Feeling - proud and anxious on S's first day of the new academic year.

That first morning S was up before me and had a big smile on her face.

She wasn't quite as happy to be called out of bed the rest of the week!

Due to the problems she has had over the past year I was feeling more than a little anxious as the week progressed but I'm thrilled to say all went well.

Drinking - tea from my new teapot and cup.

T rang me on his way home from work. He is back working for a charity and is busy driving to different shops covering for staff holidays in other local branches.

He said he had bought me something he thought I would like. 

'I think you'll like it, it's a bit odd, but I think it's your kind of thing,' he said.

I like it very much and was really very touched that he thought of buying it for me.

Wondering - if it's too early to add the pumpkins to the mantle along with the toadstools.

Loving - my bargain Emma Bridgewater bat mug. Found in a local sale for 50p.

Watching - Strictly Come Dancing to see who got paired up with who and how they all performed in that first team dance. 

Visiting - a windmill for Open Heritage weekend.

This windmill is just a 5 minute drive away from us and yet we've never taken S here. When we got there they were conducting tours but we had just missed the start of one so we wandered off to a stroll in the woods. When we got back the sails were turning and the tours had ended so we sat and enjoyed watching the windmill in motion whilst sipping hot chocolate.

Enjoying - crossing a couple of jobs off the long to do list. I painted the skirting board in the bathroom so now we are one step closer to getting the flooring down and having a room finished. Such a good feeling.

August

So here we are at the end of August. 
Just another couple of days left before that first day of school feeling hits and S stands by our front door for the traditional photo shoot and heads off on the start of a new academic year.

The weather has been good during the summer break. S has been out and about meeting up with friends at local parks, she's been to the cinema a couple of times, mooched around town, been trampolining, met my mum for lunch, had friends to stay and gone on a sleepover.
Plus in the middle of the holidays we had our own holiday when we took the Eurostar to Belgium.

I have well and truly fallen out of the blogging habit this month which is a shame as it meant I have missed the 10th anniversary of when I started recording our lives here at Jumble and Jelly. Although I don't post as regularly now as I did when the children were younger I can't imagine stopping because it's so lovely having a record of us and the things we do.

I am borrowing an idea I have seen on Pinterest and decided to write a round up of August using a series of prompts. An idea I can see me taking forward into the next decade of blogging.

This month I have been

Reading 

A French Affair by Katie Fforde. I took this away with me and read most of it on the train journey to and from Brussels. I wanted something which would be light and easy to read and I thought the title was very apt seeing as we had to travel through France.

How did it take me until I was 50 to read this book. I loved it. L-O-V-E-D it.

Watching


Serendipity, a fluffy rom com with John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale as 18th August was Serendipity Day.

and Forgetting Sarah Marshall as it was Mila Kunis' birthday on 14th August.

Trying

To make a jelly in a seaside sandcastle bucket for Sandcastle Day. 
But the darn thing didn't fully set and ended up a quivering heap on the plate!

Cooking

I made lemon rice pudding meringue as a nod to Lemon Juice Day.
I made S some macaroni cheese and bacon sandwiches.
I also made honeycomb lasagne and ham and mustard hash. The lasagne will be making another appearance but the hash won't as although G liked this S didn't.

Eating

We made sure we included raspberries in our picnic lunch in Antwerp as this was the closest we could get for Raspberries and Cream Day.

Belgian fries. G liked them, S and I weren't that fussed. But the waffles. Well what can I say, we all loved those.

Drinking

Watermelon Day was on 3rd August and so I made sure to have some in to make a smoothie with it. I know this should probably be obvious because of it's name but I didn't enjoy it in a smoothie as it made it too, well, watery!

Doing

Silly things with my lovely daughter. It may not look it in this photo but she was laughing as much as me and G whilst we were posing for this!

Going

To Belgium. We stayed in Brussels and had day trips to Antwerp, Ghent and Bruges. We had a great time and I would thoroughly recommend a trip to Belgium to anyone considering it. 

One evening a couple of weeks ago we met up with some with friends and we took ourselves off to a local green where we enjoyed fish and chips for our tea. Their younger children played with S and we sat around chatting about this and that. A perfect way to unwind after a day at work and spend a relaxing summers evening.

On a great clue solving day out to Lymington. The treasure trail took us around the town as we worked our way through the puzzles. We got the answer wrong, but we didn't care as we had great fun trying to solve the mystery.

Loving

Rocky.

Let me introduce you to the latest member of our family.
He's 18 months old and needed a new home. How could we resist?
He was already named Rocky and of course we had to keep it but within a day or so we were calling him Rocky Road. Due to the fact he is always around your feet, especially when you are trying to walk down the stairs he is now being called Rocky Road Trip Hazard.

Feeling

Annoyed is how I was feeling a week or so ago after I discovered that now S's school will only allow girls to wear on of two 'official' style skirts I am expected to pay out £22.50 to purchase one.
The reason this new school uniform rule is being introduced is because other girls were wearing skirts which were too short and didn't comply with the rules. So now the school have decided that all girls have to wear one of the skirts they deem as acceptable. Never mind that many girls did wear skirts which were within the uniform guidelines. It makes me so cross.

Wearing

A dress which matched S's drink

and a bottle green scarf in homage of Word Scout Scarf Day.

Thankful.

This month marked the 10th anniversary of when we lost our dearest Dad. It feels utterly impossible that so long has passed since then. I still miss his dreadfully but will ever be thankful that he was my Dad.


Wondering

If I would find a lion suitable to photograph on World Lion Day and then finding this smiling face on a door not far from the apartment we were staying in.

Listening

I bought this Shaky album for 1 Euro whilst we were in Ghent. Bargain I'd say.
We used the cover for this year's take on Vinyl Record Day.
And in case you are wondering, yes that's me knelt against the washing line support in our back garden.

Although it hasn't happened as yet, in actual fact we're off to it tomorrow evening, G and I will be listening and warbling away when we go to Sing Along with Grease. Can't wait, what a way to end the month.

French Fry

Thank you all so much for the lovely messages you left about our beloved Malcolmcat.

Blogland is full of such supportive friends and each comment was so very much appreciated.

It really is about time I did this post about the week leading up to my birthday and the final daily round of daily activities.

Friday 13th July was French Fry Day and I went for (slightly) healthier option and had a bag of these with my lunch rather than skipping along to the nearest takeaway and snaffling my way through a portion of deep fried fries!

Sunday 15th was another weird and wonderful day. Who would have ever thought there'd be a Gummi Worm Day.
From Pinterest I found instructions for making 'dirt cups', which is just Angel Delight and crushed Oreos layered in a glass dish. Jelly worms were added to look like they were slithering out of the earth.

For Ginger Rogers' birthday on 16th July G and I watched Shall We Dance. The story line was ridiculously flimsy but the dancing was sublime, especially this roller skating scene.

Next up are three food based days. Tuesday 17th was Peach Ice Cream day. I made some ice cream and up until now I had completely forgotten it's the in freezer what with everything that's been going on. I guess we should try some soon!
Wednesday 18th was Hot Dog Day so this meant there was only one choice for our evening meal. 
Thursday 19th was Ice Cream Day. I knew what I wanted to do for this day and because I didn't want to run the risk of it being a cloud free day I made sure I got some photos a little ahead of time.
G and I were very pleased with our efforts.

The day before my birthday I had intended to mark by jumping.
I knew there had been a photographer called Phillippe Halsman who at the end of photography sessions would ask his subjects to jump and he would snap them as they did so.
He believed this act would reveal more of the genuine character of a person than the polished and styled one they may want to project to the public.
I think this is such an interesting idea.
I may not have found the time to physically jump but I spent all day metaphorically jumping for joy at all the surprises my work colleagues laid on for me.
I arrived at work to be greeted by colleagues singing Happy Birthday and my desk covered in banners and primary coloured paper decorations, cards and presents.
As the time ticked round to lunchtime they surprised me further when a table full of food suddenly appeared and we all enjoyed a buffet of party food. 
One of my colleagues is an extremely talented cake maker and she made me this vanilla sponge cake. I told her it was the prettiest cake anyone has ever made me ever.
What a lovely lot of colleagues I have.

Bikini

Bikini Day on 5th July is being marked with the consumption of these itsy bitsy teeny weeny sugar sprinkled biscuit bikini tops which S and I made together.
The inspiration came from this pin. How clever of someone to have seen a heart shaped cookie cutter and think 'I know what I can make with that'.

End of June

A round up of the final week from June.

Nothing sounds like more like the 1980s for me than Wham! so on what would have been George Michael's 55th birthday I made mini Careless Wispa chocolate cheesecakes.

This was followed by Chocolate Pudding Day on 26th. I have a ton of recipes I could have baked but I had no inclination to stand in a hot kitchen so cheated and went for the simple and cooler option in the form of this yogurt. It was very tasty and is something which will now be a regular feature in our shopping basket.

I have used my mini sunglasses brooch in my daily activities on a previous occasion but it is too cute not to have worn for Sunglasses Day.  Due to this I also marked Pineapple Day on 27th by switching my phone case to this new one which is suitably tropical for the day and the weather.

We stay with the accessories for the next two days.
Are You Being Served's John Inman was born on 28th June and his character was often seen sporting a tape machine around his neck, ready to whip off for a bit of inside leg measurement taking!

Camera Day was on Friday 29th. I still remember how excited I was to receive my very first camera as a birthday present. It was a Halina camera with a great big green button on the top to press when taking the photo and when you wanted to take a photo with a flash you had to attach the bulb separately.

G was away at a music festival this weekend and I had ordered this movie to settle down and watch on Saturday night to mark the birthday of Susan Hayward. It didn't arrive in time so maybe we'll end up watching it together at some point soon.