General Chat

Liz how much are you hoping to get out of your marmalade? Is it from scratch? with seville oranges as that always takes ages to prepare.

Have you tried the tin stuff you can buy? They are great and no prep but opening a tin and bags of sugar.

Morning All
Evening Kim

We have had a light flurry of snow this morning but nothing much to worry about at the moment.
OH off to Germany this morning and will not be back till Friday afternoon , it's going to be a long week till he's back. I hate this when he is away All week :-( :-(

Family will be down for dinner this afternoon so I will have some company and cuddles from the little ones
:-D :-D <3 <3

Yes Mel, I do do it from scratch with Sevilles and do enough for the year!! I do most of it in the pressure cooker which cuts down the time and work considerably. I've always done it like this as did my mother. My granny used to make it but the old fashioned way, straining through muslin, separating pith from peel and heaven knows what, a most awful fiddle, I don't think I could be bothered with that!!! I've got two more mixes to do then that's done for another year!
Lovely sunny day here, so am putting out some washing!

Cor Liz ,a whole supply of Marmalade for a year!.I just told Chris and he said Quite right too ,you better get cracking.I don't think so .I have never made Marmalade or Jam lol

Lots of sunshine here at the moment but the clouds that are about do look wintry to me.

Fiona ,it is good that you are so much better now .I'm sure your OH won't worry so much when he is away.

I have to clean the window that is right in front of me.I can't leave it another minute.It is just disgusting :-S :-S

I hope Frank hasn't been up in the night with his Tum

Morning all/Evening Kim

I will never have batter on fish again. went down well, and no indigestion. and no visits to my "white friend"

Got woken by the phone at 9.15 this morning, it was Carolyn, she got back from Teneriffe early hours of this morning. Ros has been phoning her thinking she was coming home last Friday.

Very cold morning here, frost still on roofs across the road.But the sun is out, and we don't expect the snow till this evening/tomorrow.

Ros made her own Marmalade the year before last. What a to do. squeezing all the juice, and slicing the peel to go into the jars. Never again. We just buy the big tin and add the sugar. We both like it, also Ros sells it on the Charity stall in the summer.

Nearly Noon, and I'm still in my dressing gown, and I haven't done the veg yet. What ever next. !!! Will get a shower and shave, then CHAIN myself to the kitchen unit, till all the jobs are done. We won't have dinner till late afternoon.

Jane, you are like Conrad and Jan, they love Mrs Browns boys. I can't give it the time of day. :-D :-D :-D Thet say it takes all sorts.

Morning all/Evening Kim

I will never have batter on fish again. went down well, and no indigestion. and no visits to my "white friend"

Got woken by the phone at 9.15 this morning, it was Carolyn, she got back from Teneriffe early hours of this morning. Ros has been phoning her thinking she was coming home last Friday.

Very cold morning here, frost still on roofs across the road.But the sun is out, and we don't expect the snow till this evening/tomorrow.

Ros made her own Marmalade the year before last. What a to do. squeezing all the juice, and slicing the peel to go into the jars. Never again. We just buy the big tin and add the sugar. We both like it, also Ros sells it on the Charity stall in the summer.

Nearly Noon, and I'm still in my dressing gown, and I haven't done the veg yet. What ever next. !!! Will get a shower and shave, then CHAIN myself to the kitchen unit, till all the jobs are done. We won't have dinner till late afternoon.

Jane, you are like Conrad and Jan, they love Mrs Browns boys. I can't give it the time of day. :-D :-D :-D Thet say it takes all sorts.

Guess what, My bulbs are showing!!!! only in the tubs though, not in the border!! There you go Frank, it's never too late fo what you fancy?!!!!
As you gathered, I've made marmalade for years and jam too (well not last year!!) My mother/Granny used to do that and bottle,Plums, Damsons, Blackcurrents, red and black and heaven knows what else in Kilner Jars, they also used to preserve eggs in water glass, apples in racks, eaters and cookers - what a performance it was. I don't do any of that!! Jane you must tell Chris that OH does help with all this carry on, sterilising and filling jars, chopping up the peel and washing up, so it is a joint effort!!

Very cold and grey here, have made a start on birthday cards now, lots of family birthdays from now until May.

Have to say the kitchen is my least favourite room, don't spend much time in there, never been very good at cooking or baking, thought it was a good idea to marry a chef but of course he was never here for mealtimes, he'd be cooking in the restaurant.

Must be the fried oil that upsets your tum Frank, I've found the batter quite oily.

Tan your hide was something I heard a lot when I was a child, but they were all empty threats, don't think I was ever smacked, mum tried and gave up because I would always hide behind my brother who took the smacks instead of me.

Thanks for that info Ann, might be able to follow Silent Witness a bit better now. Did anyone see the film on BBC2 last night, about a social worker who found out about the deportation of children to Australia in the 40's and 50's. I remember another film on the subject but that was from the children's perpective. You see Frank, life could have been worse for you, you might have been one of those children.

What do you get a man for his 60th, must have everything he could want by then ;-)

Final jar filled!! that's that for another year!! Actually I love cooking and OH is very good cook too (like you Frank) so I always get a lot of help! I'm not too keen on housework and OH isn't particularly hot on that either! and needs chasing over putting clothes away and TIDYING up!
I remember reading a book called 'Lost Children of the Empire', and that was about children being adopted abroad, apparently right up until 1967!!!! Not only could it have been those of us who are old enough, but also my son (born 1964!!) It was a totally awful policy as sometimes the children were told that their parents were dead (when they weren't) and often the parents hoped to get their children back only to discover that they had been sent away without their knowledge. Can't believe it went on for so long, unbelievable!

Daughter no 2 boyfriend is taking some photo's of Matteo for his passport photograph , Sofia has to sing twinkle twinkle to him he loves it.

It is unbelievable Liz to think that could happen, I thought they would have needed a parent's signature and those poor little mites were treated no better than slaves. We would get on very well living together, I like housework but dislike cooking :-D.

I knew this would happen, only came down for lunch ..... nearly two hours ago. Keep saying someone should put a block on EB*y and Ama**n on my computer keep buying things on there, I really should get back to the cards but can't seem to get any motivation.

It would be nice if I was going off somewhere exciting Frank but it's only to daughters to look after the kids or keep her company, not that I don't enjoy it. I clocked it last week, it's more than 80 miles round trip so I stay over. Daughter must love me being there as she threatened to chain me to the sofa when I said I had to go home.

That has just reminded me of my granddaughter Fiona, she's nearly 16 now but at about 3 or 4 she used to sing this song about a Buzzy Bee with all the actions including a little dance and wiggling her bottom. Where does the time go. Finley is more interested in the tool box with all the screw drivers and spanners than toys, gets a screwdriver and pretends to fix the wheels on his bike, wants to be just like his daddy.

I would have thought so too Maureen, but apparently not. Mind you on the ward in the hospital where I had our son there was a 'girl; who was having her second baby, and that was adopted a couple of days after she had her!! I remember a 'person' coming to see her and getting her to sign a form then the next morning she 'person' reappeared and took the baby away!! Girl didn't seem at all concerned! but it felt slightly sinister! Not only that! two babies were born with heart problems and stayed on the ward with their mothers until they died!!! the staff did draw the curtains around these poor ladies, but that was it!! one of them in particular sobbed her heart out it was so upsetting and I've never forgotten it and it was Xmas. I was 21 at the time, so it was welcome to the world of grownups!!!!-my mother would have been outraged, at the general treatment of all concerned/hospital policy and would undoubtely have lodged a complaint, so as we were living in Cornwall at the time and she was in Oxford,We didn't tell her!!!! I think people were pretty casual in tn those days, but even so adoption abroad without consent?!!!!!!!

Afternoon all.

Very dull here and cold...Had a snow flurry for about 5 mins this morning.It hasent risen above freezing here today..Had about 10 mins of sunshine this afternoon..You can see some bigs clouds comming across now with the sunrays shining though..Went to the park with Mocha was a brisk walk.Mocha enjoyed it..so did I really .It was nice to get some fresh air.

All this marmalade being made...I havent made any since school... You are all good cooks..

I have just spotted some bluebell bulbs comming thou at the moment..I shall have to do some gardening as soon as it is a bit warmer.

My grass is so long it mist a last cutting..Keep getting wet feet when trying to hang the washing out....
I bought a nice black padded coat at the charity shop Friday it has since been washed and worn..That was abargain lol

It was my soninlaws birthday the other day..My eldest sons birthday is the end of the month and also my grandsons..Must get some cards this week..

Your painted ones are very nice Maureen.bye for now

Hi Pat, yes it's nice to blow the cobwebs away. In a way it's a good thing I have to go out and get the ironing otherwise I could be in for a whole week and maybe not see anyone. Perhaps I should have a dog instead of cats, but I'm not sure I would know what to do if another dog came bounding up looking for a fight :-0

I would say things have changed for the better in hospitals now, even thirty odd years ago when I had my three I was only in a day and then home, unlike when I had my eldest 40 odd years ago where you had to stay in for a week. These days they try and keep mothers and babies together don't they, I'd say that was taking advantage of that poor girl when she was most vulnerable. Wonder if they were ever reunited.

Nice of you to say so Pat. Your like me then, lots of birthdays all at once.

I hope so Maureen, it's hard to believe that all this happened 48 years ago!! in those days you stayed in for 10 days! bit long really, It was the same when our daughter was born in 1968. When she had our grandson in 2007 she stayed in 1 night!! the two girls (2000 and 2003) she got 3 nights.
Merlin all tucked up. We're fed and watered, as is Millie, so it's batten down the hatches time and turn on the TV!!

I had to stay in 10 days for leigh..Lucky he was my first one..Clare I had at home...she came 16 days early..no sign of her on the way that morning at the clinic
and gareth less than a day..