Christmas Bedtime Story Advent Calendar

This weekend I've been wrapping books!  Not because I'm a super-organised Mummy who's busy finishing up my present wrapping before December arrives - I think I'd miss the last minute wrapping frenzy playing that well-known Christmas Eve game "do we have enough wrap and tape?"!  No, I'm preparing for one of my favourite pre-Christmas activities.......

Silent Sunday: What's for Tea?

Recipes: Caramel Banana Tarts

 

These are about the simplest desserts we make - and we love to vary the toppings.

Recipes:Banudge Bread

 I have always loved Banoffee flavours and we regularly make banana bread to use up ripe bananas - so I couldn't resist this recipe by Cathryn Dresser of GBBO.

Recipes: Autumn Pork Tenderloin

This delicious and simple little roast got us feeling very Autumnal this week!

Recipe: Zesty Pork Chops

As my husband does not eat beef and isn't a fan of lamb I am always experimenting with new flavours to enhance plain old pork chops - it adds a little variety to the steady diet of chicken, turkey and fish.  This oh so simple flavour combination turned out great, 5 year old C ate 2 chops!

Silent Sunday: Looking to the Future

Monthly Menu - November 2014

So the Pumpkins are put away for another year, the nights are drawing in fast and there's definitely an Autumnal feel in the air today.  Time to break out some of our favourite Autumn/Winter flavours.  More soups, casseroles and oven baked meals will start to creep in this month, although the weather is still extremely mild - not sure if that's a bad omen for the winter to come!

Autumn Fun at Stowe Gardens

We spent a fabulous fall day out at Stowe Gardens in Buckingham.  We are National Trust members so we get out to explore as many lovely spaces as possible each year.  Our son really enjoys the outdoors and, no matter the season, always finds something fascinating to learn more about on a woodland walk.  Stowe is gorgeous - the house is not National Trust but is still open to visitors - but the gardens gave us the most beautiful setting for a fresh Autumn walk.  Around every twist and turn of the garden pathways you can find another fascinating statue, temple, monument or grotto. 

Return from the Dark Side

Argggghhhh!!!  So having finally got my blog up and running, and with a great plan to build it, nurture it and grow it.....life interfered.

I guess that's just part of the daily see-saw of a balancing act so many of us have to deal with, while things are going to schedule/plan you fit everything in, but one unexpected curve ball and the seesaw loses its balance.   We have had several curve balls over this Summer, maybe some of them will provide subject matter for future blog posts, but for now all I can say is I'm back, and still raring to go.   Watch this space for new posts this week.