Evening Baz.

A Baby Boy was born in our ealy hours of the morning, of course it was in Monday afternoon In Oz, 7 LB 6 Oz.

Glad you slept well anyway, you don't need to do too much in a day, glad your delivery came ok thats a bonus.

It was 11c today with sunny intervals and a moderate breeze.

Made a wrap filled with scrambled egg for brekkie as i wanted to get outside, cut some of the wood pieces and drilled them for fixing holes, didn't have time for making bread, did more tidying in the greenhouse as well.

The streetlamp got fixed today, notified them 26th August.

For tea i had hot n sour soup then did onions and had a Hotdog, oh so yummy, sorted out how you do it without the bun splitting, you hold it in a folded twice kitchen towel in one hand and fill with the other so the bun never opens fully up.

The voting of 9 and 10's is probably due to them being a judge down, also Anton is pretty lenient and if the scores where bad it would put a damper on the dancers and they are under enough stress as it is now.

I have frozen rolls in the garage freezer that i can use for brekkie to save making a loaf so i can stay outside.

Enjoy the evening, stay safe and sleep well.

both

Hicky

CONGRATULATIONS on the birth of your new grandson.    

How exciting for them all and for big sister too.

Won't be long until Big Sis is sorting them all out by the sound of it.

Prawns served in their shells is something you don't see very often.

Didn;t realise the Japanese fish was a special freeze fish, but makes sense.

They charged us £12 for a late payment last time we were late, but another card let us off when I pointed out we had been with them for years and I had just forgotten. So it might be worth asking them nicely if they can waive the charge.

Obviously the rest of the public don't like Maisie either, as she has been up twice, (and I see Baz doesn't either).  Bll is my fave so far. He is a great musician, so that must be helping him a lot with his dancing, and very fit for his age. My family are all fans of his and his concerts have always been sell outs.

I see you have been enjoying your fruit. I too have been enjoying kiwis, we bought some of the yellow ones from costco, they are delicous. I just slice the ends off, then eat it whole.

That certainly took them long enough to fix that lamp!

Baz  

that's good you slept ok and your M and S came.

Good idea, I will try "not on the high st", have heard of it but never used it.

Aaaw thanks for saying I was missed on Strictly. I will be back for the final of Bake Off tomorrow, as I know I have the right time/day for that thread. Yes a shame Caroline went, but as you say, she had peaked and I think she was genuinly not upset at it being her time to go. I too do not like Maisie at all, but looks like the judges, if not the public do! I find Craig an annoying judge all the time! I saw him once on stage in Annie, and I was not impressed at all at his performance compared to other actors I have seen in professional shows in the city.

I am loving IAC. What a sweeite Jordan is. I too have a few on my ggrr list, some of whom are on your list.   Was too late to join your IAC thread, never mind, will see you tomorrow for Bake Off. I am hoping for a Peter win, thnk he has been good all through the show, and got better.

Nice day today, so 5 washloads done and half dried on the line. doggie enjoyed her walk.

Goodnight both xxx

Evening Mollie.

Thank you, its going to be a tiring time for them all for a while, with 2 needing so much attention.

Prawns in shells in curry is unheard of really, the woman just didn't understand, the Chinese don't eat curry so she had no idea what she was doing, she just heard prawns in curry.

Yes, thats the only way you are allowed to eat raw fish, the preparation is everything, i had a lot of it when i was over there, its a really popular meal, sometimes we had a platter of slices of raw fish and you get a dipping bowl, usually soy sauce.

I'm not that bothered about a late payment, we don't need a credit reference as we don't have credit, apart from the bank and thats just for convenience really.

Yes, Maisie won't win as she is too good, the public back the underdog so she has no chance, and one of the guests on the bench said she won't win because she peaked too soon, so everyone is against her, i think she the best anyway.

It took them 90 days to come to fix the lamp and 10 minutes to get it working, i wouldn't mind but it was working untill they replaced the whole lot in August and it never worked since till today.

Enjoy your evening stay safe and sleep well.

Afternoon Mollie and Hicky Overcast and cold today , but I slept ok last night , so I’ve been quite productive Rescued the bins , fed birds, done a load of washing , hoovered upstairs and down , cleaned the kitchen , eaten my lunch ( poached salmon) , and now I’m slobbed out on the sofa watching Law and Order.   I hope you are all having a good day , whatever you are doing ....and congratulations on your new grandson Hicky

Mollie , Bake Off final tonight ....I just hope Laura doesn’t win My faves on Strictly are Clara and JJ I’ve just managed to get another M &S s deliver slot for next week ....and a slot for December 22nd for my main food shop , so I’m a happy bunny today See you in the Bake Off thread tonight ....and I saw that they are doing a special Xmas Sewing Bee too Hicky , once again congratulations on your new grandson ....I hope mother and baby are doing well . Regards Maisie , I don’t think she is that good ....HRvy, Ranvir and Bill are much better than her imo

Well it’s a full evenings viewing for me tonight , Bake Off , Masterchef, and Celeb Have a good evening ....and stay safe

By the way Mollie , do you like crafting programmes ? If so, Kirsty Allsops Xmas crafting show starts next Monday 5-6 . Four or five crafters compete each night .....there will be a thread if you fancy joining us

Good Evening Baz.

Thank you for your congratulations on new grandson, Mother and baby are fine, they wearnt in the hospital long, the video we got this morning shows the first meeting with his sister, so funny, she runs away every time he cried, he was in a cot, when his mum got him out his sister woudn't go near, they gave her a present from her brother, she took it and put it on a side table, his mum asked sister if baby should go back in cot, she said yes, then went and got her present and put it back in the cot with the baby, wow.

Glad you got more sleep thats great, you have been productive, you deserve a rest after that.

it was 12c here with drizzle and a moderate breeze, the rain never came, was going to make a loaf and the sun came out so went in the garden, fitted 2 of the cross braces at the ends of the raised bed.

Baked a couple of ready to bake roll  for brekkie and put bacon and egg on, for tea cut some chicken up, went halves with one Mrs H got from the shop ready cooked, made a portion of chip shop curry sauce and some rice and had one of those Tortilla Pockets: https://groceries.morrisons.co...la-pockets-537569011

You get a lot in them, more than i thought i would anyway.

Watching the darts, watched the Daily Drop, recorded Strictly it takes 2, can watch IAC tonight as the darts end at 8pm as its the final.

Stay safe and sleep well.

Baz

sounds like a busy day Chez Baz, glad you slept well too.

you did well getting those M and S deliveries. I am having Morrisons becasue I bought a midweek pass some time ago so get free deliveries. I did like M and S but struggled to get deliveries in advance.

Thanks for the Sewing Bee info, that will be lovely to see , its a great show.

I enjoy watching craft but am useless at it!  Thanks for the info and forum invite but I am always busy with family at 5pm with it being tea time and we always play a card game after, so I will have to record it.

On Bake Off, I agree Laura doesn't deserve to win. And I agree about Maisie, hope she goes next.

Hicky

hope that lady didn't need to make too many prawn currys.

Is the new mum home from hospital now?  Yes they are all going to be very busy getting used to the new arrival and all the extra work it entails. Looking after an excited toddler whilst seeing to a new baby is not going to be easy.

Did you manage to get into the garden today? Hope so, it was nice and dry here today.

Hope the forecast is right and we are due some dry/cold weather.

Lots of neighbours have their Christmas decs up now, so OH got some of ours out of garage today. So need to sort them now. A few lights don't work, so need some new ones.

Looking foward to Bake Off and IAC tonight.

Have a good evening both xxx

Evening Mollie.

We posted together so you didn't see my post.

I don't think the Chinese owner of the Restaurant had ever been asked for that dish before as they pick from a menu, we just fancied a change, not the best idea, i can't remember which country we were in really as we were in and out of so many.

Baby and Mum must came home the same day.

Yes, got in the garden, its in the post you didn't see.

The forecast changed and said it was drizzle and light rain, but it wasn't it was sunny.

I got all the timers out for the outdside/inside decs, all set to come on at 4pm till midnight.

Decs going up next week i think.

Have a good Evening, stay safe.

Evening All.

Hope everyone slept ok last night.

Not too bad today at 10c with cloud and sunny intervals and a gentle breeze.

Had 3 sausages in a Tortilla Pocket, for tea had a reaper burger thinned out with Haggis, chopped fried and put into 2 Tortilla Wraps.

Had a vid call this morning from Oz with all of them, his sister is getting more familiar with him now, he didn't even cry for the half hour we had the call.

Did some more work outside while it was nice, thats the four side bars fitted to the center 2 uprights, so the end uprights look like a |--| only standing up.

Didn't have time to make a loaf, no time just now while weather being ok.

Stay safe and enjoy your evening, sleep well.

both x

Baz

hope you are well and enjoying the tv, it is so good lately, isn't it?

so glad Peter won Bake Off.

Hicky

that's nice mum and baby came home from hospital the same day. I can see they will have so much to show you now with 2 little ones around.

Glad to see you are managing to get out in the garden. Let's hope this nice dry weather continues.

The dry weather is good for my endless washing as it is nearly drying on the line.

And the dog has been enjoying her walk too.

Son's 15 minute presentation is due on Friday, so he is working so hard. I read it over it and think it looks fine and should be ok for the 15 mins timing. He is extra nervous because he says it is like working in the dark not being able to talk in person to the other students, nor the lecturers. Luckily his lecturer emailed him this afternoon and said he has arranged an online meeting with him tomorrow morning.

Looking forward to IAC tonight.

Have a good evening both xxx

Evening Mollie.

I think they were so excited to show us the baby, he never even cried while we were having the vid call.

Yes, the weather is letting me get some work done on the cage, if i can get the woodwork done before the weather gets too bad i will be happy, the netting can be cut anytime and i have an auto stapler that can staple the netting to the wood frame.

Glad you were able to get on a walk with doggie, she will love that.

Doesn't your lad have the mobile number of the other students so he could have chatted with them about the course or whatever he wanted to find out about.

Glad he can have a metting with the lecturer in the morning.

I have recorded IAC as had to go to the loo, i record it anyway, will watch tomorrow or later.

Did i tell you about the Captain who was in charge of the Bunker in the Signals centre in Singapore, there was 5 of us who worked in the Bunker who had the combination, at 10 minutes to 8am, i think, all the signals staff lined up in groups for the morning roll call, meanwhile because there was noone to let him in the Bunker he had to let himself in, well, this combination on the vault door was very very difficult to gwt to open, the combination was changed every month and the Captain picked the numbers, it was 4 or 5 numbers ranging from 0 to 99 in a variety of clock/anti clock directions, if someone was by you the door would open, if you spoke to someone while turning the dial you would make a mistake, you didn't know untill you finished the sequence of numbers if the big lever that opened the vault would open it, the Captain could never get in, however many times he tried it failed, he had to wait till one of us was free to go over and open the Bunker, we could open the vault from the inside of course and it had spy glass inspection things so we could see who was at the door, noone was allowed in unless it was one of the 5 who worked inside.

Enjoy IAC stay safe and sleep well.

Afternoon Mollie and Hicky  Its sunny, but very chilly here ....overnight frost .....and I had another terrible nights sleep ! But gardener came today and gave the lawns one last cut , I’ve turned sheet , done some washing , cleaned  kitchen , and had a general tidy up ....so not a bad day . I’m in a Tier 2 area , not that it makes much difference to me.   I hope you are all having a good day , whatever you are doing

Mollie , yes it was great that Peter won ....mind you , David was good too ....but it emphasised that Laura ....nice as she was....didn’t deserve a place in the final .....I think Hermine and Marc were robbed I hope your sons presentation goes well tomorrow , I’ll keep everything crossed for himHicky , glad mum and baby are home ....and lovely that you got a video call ...ain’t the internet a wonderful thing Did I tell you that my dad was captured at the fall of Singapore during WW2

Well it’s Masterchef and Celeb for me tonight .....mind you Shane Ritchie is getting on my norksHave a good evening and stay safe

Good evening Baz.

Oh dear, sorry you didn't sleep well.

Yes, its fantastic shen you can have a vid call from Oz at any time that suits you, if only that had been possible many years ago.

Yes, you said your dad had been captured at the fall of Singapore, my Dad was being torpedoed as he was in the Merchant Navy, think he was in about 4 chips that went down, he was on the Empress Line, something like that.

You have been busy again, it was 10c today with sunny spells and a gentle breeze.

Had bacon sausage eggs and black pud for brekkie.

got more work done on the vine cage, all the wood sections are cut, all fixed bar 2 pieces still to be screwed in position.

For tea Mrs H came home with a couple of Puka pies so we had them with mash and onion gravy.

Enjoyed IAC, i sure wouldn't do it though.

Keep smiling and stay safe.

both x

Baz

sorry you did not sleep well. You certainly managed to keep busy though.

I don't really know what this tierd stuff is, as we don't have them here, but as you say, not to worry if it makes no difference to you. Think we here will have some sort of restriction top, but doesn't affect me either. The only planned outings we have is to a couple of socially distanced drive ins next month.

i agree Hermine should of been in the final instead of Laura, next to Peter, she had been my 2nd fave all the way though.... but it was a great series.

Its IAC for me too. Shaun can be annoying but sometimes he makes me laugh. But gosh, imagine living with him!

Hicky

That's a funny tale about the Captain and the bunker. Was the bunker like an underground hidden room?

Thank goodness you can have video calls, as I bet it helps with the family missing you and wanting you to share their excitement of the new family member.

That is good the weater was kind enough for you to get in the garden.

It was just beautiful here too. Wall to wall sunshine after a pretty morning frost.

It was so nice we went to the seafront. Lots of people there. (not crowded though as there is a wide seafront). We had chips on the seafront bench,  and I had a stripy lime ice cream.

Son doesn't have the phone numbers of fellow students because year 3 is in a different Uni to do the techy stuff and he had a year out, (to go to Japan, but covid stopped that), so he only briefly knows a couple of students. But luckily his meeting went well with the lecturer, and it seems he is on the right track with his assignment. He has managed to record it but had trouble sharing it on google drive, so had to use youtube as well. He was glad to come to the seafront to relax with all this studying though, and to have a break from helping cook tea tonight.

Have a good evening both xxx

Evening Mollie.

The Bunker wasn't underground, it had 2 of those bank vault doors, probably about a foot thick. probably had a time clock also so noone could even try to get in at night, the inside vault door kept the secret boxes of communication tapes for all the far east countries so they could communicate with London or wherever the communications centre was for the UK.

We jad an engineer who mended any faulty communication equipement, the teleprinters etc where the most clever piece of equipment i had seen out there, i will tell you a story about a shipment we had to get ready, another day.

Yes, it is so much better when you can keep in touch with family so far away.

I did more in the garden than i intended and when Mrs H said she would sort the tea out i went back outside again to do some more.

She got an email yesterday on her tablet, it said she had missed a parcel from DPD and would have to rearrange delivery and to click a lint to reschedule, she did that and just google came up, i told her to download the DPD app and she entered the number from the email, DPD response was Oops something went wrong try again later, i tried it on my mobile the same so i said forward the email to me, when i get an email i can see the url it comes from and if i mouse over any link i can see the url of that, anyway, she sent it me, omg, it was fake, it had come from Belgium and the link went to an advertising company and it had installed an app on here tablet and also 100 advertising sites and a strange google page. i have fount the way to clear it out, its a Google Chrome virus and will take 13 stages to get rid of it.

I got another phone call automated saying a warrant had been issued by HMRC for fraud or something and click number 1 to hear more, frightening isnt it.

That was nice being able to get to the seafront and have chips and ice cream, makes life more normal that.

Glad the meeting went well with the lecturer, wonder why he couldn't share his work on google drive, maybe people need permission etc.

Have a good evening, stay safe and sleep well.

Evening Everyone.

6c today with light cloud and wind.

Had one of those pockets filled with bacon egg and black pud, it was unusual, don't think i'd bother again mind.

Finished the wood frame for the vine cage in between watching the F1 practice, just looked into the nights tv and noticed the darts had just started, so lucky, thats on channel 25 ITV4 till 11pm, record IAC anyway, have got the F1 2 shows tomorrow as well.

Had one of those Fray Bentos Steak & Kidney pies, wow, 33% more meat, the gravy and everything is 100%.

Just having a slice of coffee and walnut cake, so yummy.

Have a good evening, stay safe and sleep well.

both

Hicky

Gosh these scams are such a worry as they are all so convinging. Good job you fixed it. Very difficult for those who aren't in the know to sort though.

Glad to see you got a nice day so you could stay out in the garden.

I like your tales from overseas. You could write a book of memwoirs.

Lovely and sunny all day, with a pretty frost first thing.

So a great day to get our Christmas tree from the farm we usually go to.

They have a new system because of covid. You have to prebook a slot instead of just turning up which was good as it was not busy. We chose a lovely full tree. MrM sawed the buttom off, then we put it in the garden in a bucket of water. I saw on tv it is best to leave it outdoors a couple of days in a bucket.

We had Gregs pasties for tea with mash, carrot, mash and gravy. So nice to have a hot meal after being outdoors in the cool. I made some oatmeal crunch for afters.

Looking forward to IAC tonight.

Hope Baz is ok.

Goodnight both xxx

Evening Mollie.

Scams galore, i get a fake phone call once a day saying they are from the internet supplier and that i had a missed call and if i don't get in touch i will be cut off, its usually an automated recording, it says i should press 1 to talk to an engineer, another says theres a warrant out for my arrest for HMRC on fraud charges, they don't give up.

Yes, we used to get out of doing parades on Saturday morning by pretending we needed to work on a communications cable, it was a 10ft diameter reel of cable, the drum was about 5ft wide, the cable was about 4" thick and was lead covered and filled with hundreds of coloured pairs of telephone wires, so on a Friday we drilled a tiny hole in the lead so when we tested the cable it showed damp, then on saturday we opened the end of the cable and dried it and retested it then resealed the lead casing

I would say it was a good idea to put the tree in a bucket of water, i also think it would be ok to have the tree in water in the house, not sure how mind, pretty sure it would stay nice a lot longer as it can suck up water the same as cut flowers do.

Love pasties as well, the oatmeal crunch is lovely.

I'm recording IAC, just found out the darts was on this afternoon as well, missed that.

I meant to bring a pack of kippers in from the garage freezer, will get in the morning.

Enjoy your evening, stay safe and sleep well.

Mrs H has bought me an Advent Calendar but you have to keep it in the fridge as its all cheese. 🧀🧀🧀

Afternoon Mollie and Hicky  Very dank, damp and dismal here today....going to have to put the light on soon ! I slept a bit better last night , so caught up on some housework today ....bathroom , kitchen , washing , sorted out a couple of presents Apart from that , I had lamb chops for my lunch, and am now watching an old Midsomer.   Hope you are both having a good Saturday

Mollie , how did your sons get on yesterday ? Are you going to watch Strictly tonight ? If so , we will be in the thread What did you think about last nights I’m a Celeb eviction ? I thought it would be them , but I thought it was such a shame ....and the person was so upset I’m sick to death of Shane though Hicky , glad you managed to sort out the scam stuff I also get at least one call most days purporting to be Amazon, an internet provider , or other such things ......usually I just put the phone down ....but if it’s an actual person , and I’m bored , I have been known to keep them hanging on the line pretending to be deaf , or taking my  time to turn on an imaginary computer .....by the time I come back to the phone they’ve usually hung up I’ve even put them on imaginary hold and played music , very loudly , down the phone at them ......at which point their language gets very ripe

Well , it’s another full evenings viewing for me . Have a good evening , and stay safe

Evening Baz.

Glad you slept better, you do so much work in a day, you really do.

You can't beat lamb chops, i used to eat a lot of them but i have so much food they have gone off the radar.

Pretty miserable here wit 8c and light rain, more like drizzle and a gentle breeze.

Didn't do anything outside today, apart from going to the garage for some food for brekkie etc, for brekkie had kippers and bacon and eggs with crumpets, for tea just going to fry a piece of fillet steak.

Been watching F1 shows, Darts Shows, at another one as well, switching between 3 channels isn't fun, but 2 of the shows were 4 hrs so didn't want to record them as i need so much time to watch them.

Yes, if any of the scam calls are humans i do go along with them, when they say are you at your computer, i say yes, they say do you see on the screen the Recycle Bin, i say yes, they say, well open it and i'll show you how persons have got access to your computer, i said, wow, isn't that clever, he hung up.

Just going to cook my tea before tonights darts start again.

Enjoy yur weekend and tv, stay safe  and sleep well.

both

Baz

dull and dark here too today. Glad you slept ok.

My son managed to get his presentation done and off to the tutor on time, so fingers crossed he passed now.

Yes no surprise who was up for eviction on IAC. I don't think Hollie will be missed much by the public beause we didn't see much of her. Shane is rather irritating, and has seemed to have taken over the show!

I had to at your handling of the scammers, very clever of them and serves them right.

Hicky

those scam calls reasons are just off the scale!  Warrant out for your arrest! lol...

Good for you getting out of doing parades. Ridiculously boring thing to have to do.

The tree is still outside as MrM still trying to sort the lights and decs out. We bought a special thing a couple of years ago to keep the tree in, it holds a lot of water, so it should be fine when we bring it in. All we have to do then is to remember to keep topping the water up.

Good job you have the F1 and darts to keep you busy when the weather is not so good.

at you leading the scam people on. We bought a phone blocker so anyone who does't leave a message, I just block them.   I have been known to block a few legit people, but they shoudl speak to our answer phone, then I will answer.

I had cottage pie, chips and peas for tea. Bit boring I thought, so won't bother again, I am just trying to empty the freezer of some food and I had this veggie mince left.

Managed to take dog walkies inbetween the drizzle.

Looked for Christmas pressies online for family.

Enjoyng tv now,

Goodnight both xxx

Evening Mollie.

Those ohone scammers must call up thousands of people, scary really, no wonder people are taken in.

We used to have a metal stand that you could put a tree in, thats if the tree diameter was narrow enough to fit, but i thiink if you have a pot stable enough to put some water in, i think if you wrap kitchen towel or newspaper under and around the trunk it will only need very little water, just enough to keep the paper moist would probably do.

I usually try to block scammers but its a waste of time as they just change numbers, also the number they us are probably fake, not the real number, if i remember correct you can pick the number you want other to see.

which is very dangerous, no idea why that was ever made possible.

Mrs H ordered a 500 pack of foil sheets as she likes them, they came direct from a company, ordered on Amazon, the package arrived, its a roll of parchment paper, she got in touch with Amazon to send it back, the company says they don't understand as the picker said it was correct, anyway, its gone back.

Veggie mince, what next.

Glad you got a little walk in for doggie.

Enjoy the tv, stay safe and sleep well. 

evening All, hope you all slep well and had a good day.

Only 9c today with thick cloud and light wind.

Didn't do any work outside as had the darts and F1 all afternoon and darts again tonight.

Make Brisket roast dinner, it takes 3 hours to cook the meat, chopped up the carrots and onions, put the chopped up spuds in with half an hour to go, sliced up the meat and put back in the roasting dish, made a concoction of chili, onion, mustard powder and some ground black pepper into the stock with some gravy granules, very tasty.

Had 1 portion, should be able to freeze another 1 or 2.

Had a couple of videos from Oz, one is the baby being kissed by his older soster, the other one is /sister putting Baubals on the tree. 

Hope you had a good day, stay safe and sleep well.

both x

Hicky

I had to about you saying tree trunk diameter needs to be narrow enough to get in the water holder because today MrM  bought the tree in and guess what, the trunk is too wide to fit in it. So now, it will be out with the good old chainsaw again tomororw before we can put the tree up. It took him ages to saw the bottom off the trunk originally as it had quite a few knots in it. Never mind, this tree will be up eventually and decorated. (hopefully).

Yes these scammers use some weird numbers I have noticed. I see the number on my phone then if they don't speak to the answer I just press a button and it blocks it, but as you say they just try a new number next time.

That is a bit odd how they got that order wrong for MrsH, its unusual for them I think.

Aaaww those latest videos from Oz sound so cute. 1st Christmas to come with a new baby and a toddler, so nice. Are you sitll hoping to go away with them next year.?

Didn't do much today, just went walkies, watched a bit of tv, did only 1 washload and watched son and MrM put outdoor lights up.

Your tea took awhile to cook today, but worth it if you enjoy it and can freeze some of it.

Had cooked brekkie again today, then oven rolls and camambert for tea.

Watching IAC now.

Hope Baz had a good day.

Have a good evening both. xxx

Evening Mollie. :

Yes, havent had live trees for many years, probably since the lads left, easier to store and open up a folding one, don't really see the point in a live one, its not that easy to make the trunk thinner either.

I think the numbers that come up on the phone display are fake, they aren't going to use a real number are they.

The wrong items on the order didn't come from Amazon, the seller was using Amazon to advertise it, the seller posted it by Royal Mail, Mrs H sent them a photo of the package received, it wasn't in Amazon wrapping, it was in the original shop box so it showed what was inside, they wrore back and said sorry.

We still have hopes of going away, it could depend on the Covid crisis, we might need the Covid Jab, will have to see how 2021 pans out.

Yes, the Brisket takes 3 hours to cook, i have put some in 3 takeaway tubs to freeze, i was going to use the rest of the meat for curry but i forgot and put it all in the casserole pot, aftere the 3 hours the meat was so tender, perfect.

With making a meal for tea i thought i would just have Frosties for brekkie, i usually run late Sunday.

Glad you managed to get out for a walk with doggie, we will probably put the decs up from Monday.

I recorded Strictly & IAC, watched Strictly results, still watching the darts final.

Enjoy your evening stay safe and sleep well. 

Afternoon Mollie and Hicky Another cold , wet and miserable day here weather wise ...and sleet forecast later in the week I slept a little bit better last night , but I’ve not done a lot today.  ...just changed duvet cover ( with all that entails ) , done another load of washing , and anti bacd the M&S delivery Apart from that I had some poached salmon for lunch and,  apart from putting the bin out later , that’s exactly done for the day Hope you are all having a good day , and staying warm and dry

Mollie , hope you are keeping well .  Yes ,  , like Hicky , scamming the scammers can be fun Did you watch Strictly ? I was sad to see Clara go , but sadly I think she was worst on the night I’ll miss watching Bake Off this week , but the Great British Menu starts at 8 o’clock on Tuesday and Wednesday , if you fancy that I see they are closing pubs at 6 down your way now .....I wish they would do the same thing here tbh Hicky , I’ve not put  my tree up yet , but will probably do it this week. .. although we’ve had an artificial one for a few years now , as putting the real one up got a bit too much for Mr B . I need to write my cards too ....a neighbour has said he will take them the post box for me , as I still can’t walk that far . Who do you think will win I’m a Celeb ? I don’t mind , as long as it’s not Shane ....which it probably will be

Well enjoy your evening , and stay safe both

Evening Baz.

Glad you slep better, yes, similar here11c with light rain and a fresh breeze.

Made a loaf of bread to have some with 2 packets of shrimps, so good with butter and Mayo.

Did a machine load of washing, had to hang on the drying rack in the bathroom.

Didn't go out, weather too miserable, had 3 sausages and beans with 2 crumpets.

Been catching up with IAC recording from last night,

Have a good evening, stay safe and sleep tight.

both

Baz

cold dull and drizzly here too today. Oh well to be expected this time of year and I would prefer to the awful heat they have in Oz right now. Glad you slept ok and sounds like you have been fairly busy as usual.

I did manage to watch most of Strictly but didn't bother with results show, I just read the Spoiler.

It was a shame to see Clara go, but as you say she wasnt' that good on the night.

Yes pubs close at 6pm and can only serve meals in the day, no alcohol. The rates were going up here but this time with the young people, so this tightening up makes sense. Cardiff was getting packed with drinkers, police were having to stop them come in from the England lock down. They had fights and stabbings (very rare in Cardiff).

I agree real trees are hard work, we weren't going to bother this year, then the family said they wanted one. The arthritis in my feet has been bad after walking on the uneven surface of the tree farm. Son has enjoyed decorating it though and MrM sawed some more off, so it fits the water thing now. We are keeping the trunk bits for MrM and daughter to do craft things with them. The trunk sawn off is beautiful.

That is handy a neighbour can post your cards for you. I must start mine soon too.

I hope Shane doesn't win IAC. I like Jordan and the singing man. I thought that trial he had to do tonight looked horrible!

Hicky

Hope things do get sorted out so you can go away and see your family. My son is hoping to go away to Japan next year.

I too have had to dry the washing indoors today.  I saw that MrsMop woman on tv (can't remember her real name) and she advised to put the washing on an extra spin only after it finished as it gets a lot more water out, and it has worked a treat.   My washing is drying a lot quicker now.

Had small potatoes, veg and a slice of pizza I made for tea. Need to make something for desert though.

Been busy looking for online pressies for the family. Have posted some to aunts who we haven't seen for ages because of covid.

Managed to take dog a walk and it started to drizzle just as we got home.

Enjoyed IAC.

Goodnight both xxx

Evening Mollie.

It would be great to go away, but with the size of the airports no way could i walk with cases or hurry around, so would need help from the staff and business class to fly, we will have to see how things go for now, things should improve next year.

Yes, and your son would love Japan, they are so far advanced, quite an eye opener for him.

I don't know if i can get an extra spin on this machine, must look into it, yes it certainly would get more water out.

Mrs H ordered 3 special type of pens but one of the boxes was empty, she didn't think it was worth telling them as you can't prove something is missing can you, so she put a comment (review) on the page, she got a message very soon after saying she should have messaged them and will put one in the post straight away, wow, just shows.

They have people watching the reviews.

Glad you managed a walkies with doggie, if i get wet out i go down with a cold, no idea why but always did.

Enjoy your tv, stay safe and sleep tight.

Evening All.

Only 8c today with light cloud and winds, stayed in today apart from going to the garage freezer.

Mrs H was working till 1:30 and i was expecting an Amazon delivery so couldn't stay out.

Made a bacon sandwich, did the bacon on the BBQ early on and had my new loaf for toast, so good.

For tea i made 12 Vol-eu-vonts with shrimps, had to make the white sauce as my stock of white sauce packs must have ran out, we have 6 each, so lovely.

Had more pictures from Oz this morning, parents busy working from home, son has 2 weeks maternity leave now, his o/h gets 3 months off then son gets 3 months off.

Enjoy your evening, stay safe and sleep well.

both x

Hicky

yes airports are awful for walking round and queing.  When we went to Emptybox's funeral, I was so uncomfy going there that I asked for help in Edinburgh coming back as that was even busier than Cardiff and it had been a long day for my poor arthritis And the airport were very good. They gave me a sunflower lanyan and took us through a quick entrance/exit and wheeled me (and others) across the tarmac to the plane in a wheelchair and I just climbed the steps onto the plane. So you don't have to be fully immobile to get assistance and its free, even in economy. But as you say, things won't be clearer hols wise until next year now, probably late spring until it calms down with the weather improvement. I can't help but feel rather cynical about the vaccine, but hope this burns out by summer. Oz/New Zealand don't seem to have a problem now with it, but of course they have had stricter lockdowns and are in summer now.

That is good your son and wife have over 6 months work free between them, as I am sure they will need it with a toddler and baby.

How did you make your vol au vonts? Did you use ready made cases or use the pastry sheets?

Now you know, it is always worth reporting it if you aren't happy with a delivery. I get an automatic refund if anything is wrong with my food delivery. Once I compained as the box from my chocs was heavy battered (it was meant as a pressie) and they told me to just keep it and enjoy the choocies. So I got the choccies for free. And just ordered a differnt pressie.

Not a bad day today, quite cool but at least it was dry.

Met a friend outside the shops when she dropped her hubby off for work and gave her kiddies some advent calendars. One with a little book for each day. We all enjoyed opening our advent calendars. I bought daughter a Cath Kidson one with hand creams, lip cream etc in it, and I had a choccy one. Son had a Pringles one.

Looking forward to enoying IAC .

Goodnight both xxx

Evening Mollie.

Yes, on one plane, they took me across the tarmac in a wheelchair and i went up in a lift to the plane door, i could have walked up the steps really.

Whats you problem with the vaccine, i'll get mine in a flash.

We bought the frozen vol ay vont cases, a pack of 18, you just put them in the oven for `3 minutes, fantastic, then when cooked i pushed down the center to make room for the shrimps then filled and put back in the oven on 100c for 5 minutes, heaven.

Didnt realised they made so many different advent calendars, so good, daughter will love that one i'm sure.

That was nice of letting you keep the chocies from the damaged box.

Hope you had a good evening, stay safe and sleep well.

Afternoon Mollie and Hicky  So, a really good nights sleep is followed by a darn awful one I was so tired that I went back to bed for a couple of hours this morning .....which is something I hardly ever do But it did me so much good that I got up , did a load of washing , ordered some Xmas presents and out the tree up....which meant rearranging the furniture a bit now I’ve still got the wheelchair down here  Now I’m firmly fixed to the sofa looking at the twinkly lights and with no intention of moving except to make a cuppa or have a bath ! I hope you are all having a good day k

Mollie , I think it’s  news about the vaccine , I will be grabbing mine as soon as it’s offered ....I have been virtually under house arrest since the beginning of March , and I just want my life back...boring though it might have been. I love the idea of a Cath Kidson advent calendar ....although the choccy one isn’t to be sniffed at Hicky , who do you think is going to win Celeb ? I wanted Russell , but now he’s gone I’m firmly in the anyone but Shane camp

Well it’s Great British Menu , Masterchef and Celeb for me tonight ....if I can stay awake I hope you both have a good evening ....stay safe , the end is in sight

Evening Baz.

Sorry to hear you didn't sleep well last night, at least you got a coupld of hours this morning, it all helps.

Its easy to watch teinkling lights, very comforting.

Only 8c here with light cloud, had a little sun and light wind.

Managed to do some more paper shredding in the manshed, did a bit of work on the vine support, took the steel strainers off and added more fixing points as i want to move the vine main supports next year and i need the strainers off to fit the wire mesh, when i cut it.

Had eggs 🥚🥚  on toast for brekkie and for tea made chicken 🍗 chop suey and rice 🍚.

I agree about the vaccine, wow, how fast has that got through the system, a lot of people have been working so hard, so exciting, i might walk around with my sleeve rolled up. ha ha.

No idea who will win IAC because it goes by the fans, all females left so far which tells me its all females voting and they always vote females out as they want to watch the males, login really.

But i don't really care who wins, i don't bet.

Enjoy your evening, stay safe and sleep well.  🛏

Evening All.

Only 5c today with light rain and light winds so did very little outside, had the window cleaners round.

Shredded a little more paper, did 5 minutes work on the vine bed, put 2 christmas decs up on the main gate to the back.

Had 3 Heck sausages for brekkie, a round of toast with Marmite at 3pm and a Hotdog with sliced pickled onions and mustart with loads of ketchup.

Mrs H been putting up decs in the house, outside, front, side, in the porch, in fact everywhere.

I just did the clocks, after they were all plugged into extention leads i had clocks all ready set to put the lights on 4pm to midnight, just had to set the actual time.

I've got F1 again this weekend, stay safe and sleep tight.

both xxx

Baz

sorry you had a bad nights sleep, the nap probably did you good. Hope you sleep better tonight.

I wonder about this particular vaccine because already today I heard them giving reasons why can't start with nursing homes, when they said yesterday it would be all systems go for them first.  Sounded complicated but something to do with the temperature of this particular vaccine, and its storage whilst keeping it cold, and they have to split it whilst still keeping it cold, as it comes in bulk. The Oxford one did not have such restrictions. But sounds like the Oxford one wil not be far behind? Yes very boring for you being housebound, especially as you are on your own. Even though I have family around, I too miss so many things. But as you say, I think the end is in sight, and by the time the summer comes, I think  the virus cases will have reduced vastly.

I too don't want Shane to win and thought Russell and Mo were lovely, a shame they went.

Hicky

I will have to get the pack of frozen vol au vonts, sounds so easy to use.

I know you had cheddar in day 1 of your calendar, what flavour did you get in days 2 and 3?

Probably best you did not stay in the garden too long with that cold weather. It was cold here too, the dog was shivering so we didn't go out for long. I wrote some of my Christmas cards.

I bet your bungalow looks pretty now the decs are up. I love to see them.

I was so busy yesterday, trying to update my food order first (takes a lot of planning to make sure I get in enough for 5 people and 2 pets)...then son wanted me to proof read his assignment, and a few washloads inbetween to sort, and some more pressies ordered too as I am avoiding the shops.

Also had to contact family about my aunt as she has a fall and a nasty break to her arm so was in hospital for 3 days, and had to have an op. She also cut her face and broke her teeth, poor thing.

A bit quieter today, but not much, as the shopping arrived, so antibacked it, then took dog a walk. Son made chicken curry and I have cheese and potato pie from leftovers (still delicous though).

Enjoying the Elves on IAC tonight,   and them trying to translate the Welsh. (I can't translate it either but of course with it being MrM;s first language he knows what it is). I think the women went first this year as they were not so amusing or entertaining as the fellas this year. In the past women have often won but I don't think any of the women this year deserved a win. Can' t believe it ends soon. It has been a good series imo.

Just watching the water task now. They must be so cold but I think they have surfing suits on to help a little. I see surfers out in all weather here, so the suits must protect.

Have a good evening both xxx

Evening Mollie.

They can't give the nursing homes as this virus needs temperatures of -75c so they would need to take all the people to a hospital somwwhere to get it.

The cheese yesterday was applewood, very nice, forgot to open todays.

I can see you are very busy these days with all thats going on.

sorry to hear about your Aunt, thats very nasty.

The water Cyclone was so good, very difficult really, and freezing, they had surfing suits, it helps them a bit i hope.

Glad your shopping arrived ok, son is so good making these curries, cheese and potato leftovers, you got short changed there.

I thought Gio was going to win because if not why didn't they evict her, all the others have gone and i think only females vote really, men seldom vote for programs, will be surprised if a feller wins really, all the ones that left though Gio should win.

Mrs H wants us to out in the car after dark tomorrow to see all the decorations in the villages, and to get fish and chips on the way home.

Stay safe, sleep tight.

Afternoon Mollie and Hicky  Cold , wet and miserable today ....but like my mood I didn’t sleep too badly last night , but haven’t felt very energetic today So , just changed the sheet , done some  washing , and anti bac’d the shopping delivery . I had a bacon chop for lunch and now I’m curled up on the sofa.   I hope everyone else is having a more positive day .

Mollie , your poor aunt ....I hope she is recovering now I loved the elves too ....one of the FMs thought the Welsh were anagrams ...til we explained Im so glad Shane went  last night ...I can enjoy the final now cos I don’t mind which one of them wins Hicky , I bet your house looks lovely I haven’t  put many decorations up this year , but there are some family and friends ones that go on the tree every year ....and a couple of toilet roll father xmas that the kids made at playgroup . They  are pretty battered , but as both my kids are nearly 50 now , they’ve not done too badly .

Well it’s Celeb and last part of Gogglebox for me tonight I hope you both have a good evening and stay safe ... there is definitely a light at the end of the tunnel now

Evening Baz.

Glad you slept ok last night, a bacon chop sounds nice, i've had bacon ribs, mot sure i know what a chop is.

Only 6c with rain and a fresh breeze, didn't do anything outside, used food from in the house.

Had a bacon and black pu toasted sandwich, for tea i made a Reaper chili chop suey dish, wow, it was fantastic, i'll post what i did.

Just made the most delightful chop suey dish. 🍳
I used a veg oil, a reaper hot hot hot Iceland burger, a quarter of a small Haggis, a pack of mushroom stirfry, a beef stock cube, mustard powder and chili powder.
Chopped up the burger and haggis, fried in a little veg oil then added the mushroom stirfry pack, mixed the stock and mustard with chili and 200ml boiling water and poured over the veg, let it cook the veg a few minutes, wow, never made this before, but sure will again, I've ran out of reaper burgers but i have a bottle of reaper sauce so could use hagis with that, That is fantastic, must thank the cook, oh it was me.

Yes, the cyclone was very good, glad they did it, and a nice feed afterwards for them, they needed that, not sure who will win, i would put my money on Gio if i was a betting person.

Not sure if we have a tree up this year, we usually do, will have to take a look in the lounge.

Enjoy your evening tv, i'm watching F1 practice 2, then i can watch IAC, sleep well.

  both x

Baz 

Aaaww those decorations on your tree are so special with the fact your kiddies made them all those years ago.

Yes best you don't put up many decs this year, your ankle is still weak, so you don't want to be climbing around putting up decs.

Shame you feel a bit down today, hope the good tv cheers you up later.

I too will record Gogglebox tonight as I want to see the IAC final live.

Hicky

Glad you enjoyed your chop suey meal.   at you thanking the cook when its you... Sounds like it won't be long until you make that recipe again.

Did you postpone your fish and chips and ride to see the Christmas lights by you?

I think a ride round to look at them is a great idea. We will have to do that too.

Did some more of my Christmas cards and pegged a couple of washloads out, as they dried quite well in the wind. My hands were like ice when I fetched it in though!

Took doggie a walk, she snuggled down in her pram with just her nose sticking out of the 2 fuffy blankets we wrapped her in.   She does love to go out in her pram even if she doesn't walk, then MrM takes her out walking in the evenings. I am glad that at her age, she still likes the outdoors, even in winter.

we had pizza and chips for tea. And I had the last slice of my oatmeal crunch.

Watching the funny videos then Corrie, then IAC final.

Have  a good evening bothxxx