Blogmas Days Seventeen and Eighteen - Arse over Tit ... and Christmas is Done

 

Day seventeen of my Advent calendars saw me with a little jar of marmalade, a pack of Spinach seeds, and from the decorations calendar from last year a little empty sack, very cute but I can't think why I saved it really!

The candy canes are a real necessity, all you regular readers know how much I love a candy cane ... at any time of year.  Remember the ten boxes at ten pence a box that I bought from Wyevale a few years ago, they kept me in cinema sweeties for months. 😄

And today's little stash another pack of Rocket seeds, I think a mistake has been made there.  I also got a little jam ... and an empty box.  Another little mistake, but this time on my part.

Sorry for missing yesterday, but I had an accident on Friday and slipped on ice.  We had gone to pick up Alan's suits from the seamstress, and while we were in her house it had rained slightly and then immediately iced over.  The first person to step out of her back door was always going to go 'arse over tit' (a real Mancunian saying) and unfortunately that person was me.  I ended up with a badly wacked ankle and a twisted knee, I can now look back and see the funny side as neither Sue or Alan could help me up as they were sliding all over the place, it was like something out of a comedy film.  But not even slightly funny at the time, and still extremely painful.

It's been a good few days though, both my sons have been with their partners to pick up the Christmas hampers that we had delivered to our house for them ... they all work strange hours and it was easier this way, and of course it meant that we got to see them all.  

So with that complete now our Christmas is all sorted, the kids, grandkids and great grandkids have all got their Christmas money or gifts, all that's left to buy is a fourth birthday card for my great grandson ready for the 31st, and one final food shop for us and the Foodbank ... and then that is it Christmas is done and my spending this year is complete.

Sue xx

Blogmas Day Sixteen - Searching for Doors, Old Nightlights and Greying Dogs

 

Today's little Advent calendar goodies,  jam and a pack of Rocket seeds. It took me ages to find the little door on the Bonne Maman Advent calendar ... I mean, how hard can it be, there's only 24 of the little blighters!!   

In the recycled calendar from last year instead of decorations there were two of the jumbo nightlights that I bought as part of a £10 splurge on my Challenge blog back in February 2019 during my 'Shopping Hauls' Challenge.  These berry scented nightlights seem to have lasted well.

See the post HERE if you're interested.  

We were at Mum's yesterday, instead of taking sandwiches for lunch for the three of us, we took some soup and crusty rolls.  We also took two very clean and spruced up doggies as we had just picked them up from the groomers before we set off for Manchester.  

They were exhausted by the time we got home at teatime last night.  A bath and trim at 8am, a trip to Grannies for the day and then home, they totally zonked out once we sat down to have our tea and that was them fast asleep for the night.  Now she's clean again Mavis looks even greyer on her ears, they are truly two little old ladies ... but clean ones and all ready for Christmas.

Sue xx

Blogmas Day Fifteen - Memories and Mince Pies

 

I'm really enjoying the Jacquie Lawson online Advent Calendar this year and every single day when I flash it up I see this image on my screen, and it reminds me of the little street that my shop was on.  This is a Christmas card that was brought out one year and sold in town, and that I kept as a reminder of my pride and joy.

And yes it was a street, rather than a lane, even though it was barely wide enough for the delivery van that brought the potatoes to the Chippy Bank on the corner every other day.  I worked in the shop and we lived at the top of the street, just off The Gill car park.

My shop, which was just past the black bin on the righthand side of the photograph on the Christmas card, with my lights on ready for a days trading, and with a festoon of the town lights that lit up our little street during the festive season.  It all used to be so pretty around town throughout December, worthy of being on an Advent calendar of it's own in fact.

Today's offerings from my Advent calendars are the Bonne Maman Christmas bauble from my calendar two years ago, this years jam and a packet of basil seeds.  Shown with the last two little mince pies from this box, these are gorgeous and I'm glad I bought another box to save for Christmas ... in fact I might even buy one more box to ensure that I don't run out!!

Sue xx

Blogmas Day Fourteen - Snowball Girl, Llama Lad and Fruit Pastilles

 

So, that's where Snowball Girl went to!!

She was lurking in drawer number fourteen of my recycled calendar from last year.  From this years I got dark marmalade and some fennel seeds.  Now I don't really like fennel as a herb or seasoning, but they will be sown and put at the back of the beds in the garden as the birds and insects LOVE the tiny flowers.

Why is there a jar of fruit pastilles in the photo you might be asking yourself ... well they were on offer at just one pound a bag when I ordered some Christmas sweeties from the Conscious Candy Company so I treated myself to four bags and tipped the contents into an empty jar.

This was one of the last of my ordered things to arrive and now it's time to wind all purchases down ready for next year.  It's nice to have a splurge every now and then if you are able but it's even better to know when enough is enough

Bought at the same time as Snowball Girl and from the same shop was Llama Lad, seen here peeking out behind one of the nightlight holders.  He's lucky that he was too tall to fit into the drawers!!

Sue xx

Blogmas Day Thirteen - Jugs, Radishes and a Pasta Bake

 

Today's Advent calendar offerings are my little Emma Bridgewater jug, a packet of radish seeds and some lovely dark jam.

My gorgeous little jug will go near the top of the tree in pride of place.

It's been so cold that I've not been fancying salad at all , so two whole packs of tomatoes were still in the fridge from a couple of weeks ago.  Last night I decided to roast them along with the oldest of the onions and a couple of garlic cloves from the freezer and make myself a nice warming pasta bake for my tea.

After forty minutes in the oven I tipped them into my Nutribullet cup and whizzed the lovely tomatoey, garlicky mixture up and poured it over some dry pasta along with some frozen spinach pellets and another cup of water

Half an hour later I had a gorgeous pasta bake and some garlic bread, with enough over to be able to repeat the meal tomorrow.  So garlicky and so tasty.

Sue xx

Blogmas Day Twelve - Health and Safety for Santa

 

Photographing my Advent calendar goodies in a different place for a change.  

This feels like it's getting too samey ... anyone fed up yet?

Today seeds as you can see are Kale and the jam is marmalade, and in the Christmas tree recycled decorations calendar I have some little acorn type things, I can't remember what sort of tree these come from but they are real.

The little tree is starting to fill up nicely.

Meanwhile, outside the lodge the pavements are sheer ice, although the roads, once you are off our little cul-de-sac, have been gritted.  It was the Santa Run in town yesterday, downscaled to a Santa Walk for health and safety reasons.

We can't have two hundred Santa's breaking their legs now can we. 🎅

Sue xx

Blogmas Day Eleven - Oscar Wilde, Ballerina Mouse ... and an Overflowing Trolley

 

Day eleven of the Advent calendars, and I now have Tarragon seeds, another mini jar of jam and my little wooden stocking bought from the gift shop in Llanrwst when we lived in Wales.  I always like the tree to be decked with things that bring back memories.

To quote  Oscar Wilde ... 'I can resist everything except temptation.'

Wandering around Aldi, getting the few bits and pieces that I needed and buying some more treat type shopping for the Foodbank trolley I spied the Ballerina Mouse, one of Kevin the Carrot's friends and decided to treat myself.

I know, I'm just a big kid ... but a happy one.  😁

And I was even happier when I took my purchases to add to the Foodbank trolley and found it overflowing.  I went and got a cardboard box and piled my things into it and left it alongside the trolley.  People in our town are so kind-hearted.

Sue xx