Biffsugar

Baking day

I had a moment the other day when I felt sad about the fact that we don't bake as much as we used to.  I remember before both of the children were at school we would spend lots of time at the kitchen table covered in flour. 

Time moves on and our activities change but we still like to bake...

 
Yay, it's the Delia Smith cheese bread which is really easy to make and very scrummy just like a giant cheesy scone really. 

 
Delicious. 

 
Someone is getting very excited about one of those pieces of cheese just accidentally ending up in his mouth!

 

 
The only complaint was that there wasn't enough of it! 

Evacuation day

Part of the half-term was spent in preparation for the upcoming evacuation day at school.  Firstly we needed an outfit:

 
We found the cardigan at a charity shop (I could have probably made one but the war would have been over by then!) and we chose some fabric to make a skirt (again using the free tutorial from here).

Then we had a visit to the Imperial War Museum:

 
Which was incredibly emotional.  We focused specifically on the Childhood exhibition which was superb.  From the moment I heard the music playing I started to cry.  Small boxes with childhood possessions - a pair of glasses from a boy who was evacuated here from Germany; a tattered dolly umbrella, letters to parents from evacuees.  I couldn't imagine being able to evacuate my children.  One boy's recollection was of being evacuated in the September thinking he would be back by Christmas - four years later he returned home. 

 
It was easy to imagine the conflict that parents must have felt when surrounded by posters telling them to evacuate their children and yet I'm sure this went against their instincts to keep the family together.

There would have been some things I think I could have done well during the war such as the "Make do and Mend" - but perhaps not the knitting of socks which is still an ambition of mine!

 
 
 
There were some beautiful items such as these brooches made for a little girl.  Her cape was made from an old blanket and her cardigan and dress were really beautiful.

 
Seeing my daughter in her evacuation outfit brings it all home to you.  It wasn't that long ago.  "Will you be home by Christmas?"  I asked her.  "Mum..." she replied tersely "I'll be home for tea!".

Thank goodness.

I'm celebrating the summer boy...

Why is it that with girls you can just buy a £1 sheet from a charity shop, come home and turn it into a skirt or some bunting or a hat for bunny and everyone's happy, but boys just don't dig that sort of thing?  Inspired by the Made website and the fact there just aren't enough things to make for boys, I started to think of my own boy and offered to make him a Nerf Vest (he wasn't impressed - I think it was a bit like when you wanted a Sooty off the Market for Christmas but your Nana just knit you one instead and it wasn't as good!). 

So instead I made him this!

 
I didn't even know what you called it but I think it's a Quiver?  I couldn't find another one to copy so I had to make up my own version.  Obviously this was a first go and I made my mistakes but overall it looks pretty good and he was impressed with it for about 2 seconds before he started to make suggestions (I'm being polite - they may have been demands!) that I actually made a wider one so he could carry his cross-bow as well.  So it could be back to the drawing board on this one but I was pleased to be able to make him something that was right up his street!

 
 

Dreaming of reading

 
When the children were small I used to daydream about sitting under a big tree reading for hours on end uninterrupted.  During the holidays I saw a window of opportunity to fulfil this dream!

 
The scene was set, the view was stunning, the weather perfect... surely this would be the day! 

Alas no, there were games that needed to be played and football to organise and snack administration and toilet trips and ice-creams to be purchased and all the other great stuff.  One day I will be able to sit under this tree and read all the day long, by then I'll probably wish I had someone to interrupt me!

This moment ...

++ this moment ++

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

Soule Mama

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A day in the forest

It was a wet Bank Holiday Monday and where better to spend it than the forest? 

 

 
Moors Valley Country Park to be exact.

 
The first time I stepped out of the car at Moors Valley I knew I was going to love it.  The smell of damp pine forest holds many happy memories for me of camping at Lowther Caravan Park near Penrith as a child and then of living and growing up in the lakes. 

 
By the end of our visit we were damp and tired but nothing that a hot chocolate and some cheesy chips in the cafe couldn't sort out!

 
Once back at home we had early showers and pyjamas and an evening of movies.  Great days!

Our first caravan trip - part 2

 
Part of the joy of caravanning is being able to take the dog with us.  Crumble had a marvellous time!  He constantly lay in the most obstructive places and we spent the whole weekend stepping over him.  He was also the worst behaved dog on the campsite as he's not used to being on the lead and tried to chew through his on several occassions.  Any chance he got he would run over to other people's caravans to meet their dogs - and there were a lot of dogs, but they were all small and well behaved and quite happy for a quick once around the campsite on a short lead.  Crumble has a lot to learn about doggy camsite ettiquette!

 

 
You can't beat a stable door!

 
Although we only stayed two nights we felt as if we'd been away all week.  The reality was we were only a couple of miles from home and yet with the weather so good we could have been in the South of France!

 

Our first caravan trip - part 1

After spending many years looking at campervans and then another couple looking at trailer tents we very impulsively went out and bought a caravan.

 
Aparently when buying a second hand caravan you're meant to tap things - "Did you do any tapping?" my friend asked.  Well no, we didn't know about the tapping.  Joe did get down on his knees and confidently looked underneath the caravan - I was very impressed and presumed this meant he knew what he was doing but I think maybe he'd read somewhere that's what you're meant to do.

We purchased the caravan in a moment of impulsiveness which is highly uncharacteristic for us.  We like to dither - a lot. 

After it arrived home we had a moment of panic when we thought perhaps we didn't get a good deal.  We found things we hadn't noticed or even known to look for.  We stripped it down and cleaned it out, we had our tea in it.  The kids played chess in it and then we had an Indian takeaway.  Eventually we spent a night in it, and it was good.  Our previous experience of camping has always been in a tent and always a dome tent where you can't stand up.  I've never understood this as I believe it's not too much to ask to be able to stand up whilst on holiday!  Camping for me always involved being cold and damp and lying awake all night shuffling around trying to avoid the rock that is digging into the back of your head.  By comparison the caravan is like a 5 star luxury hotel.

The next thing was to actually go somewhere - we had to tow it!  We got the towbar fitted and then had a little practice "off road".  I panicked and screamed "what are you doing?  Slow down!" - we were doing 4 miles per hour!

Eventually we plucked up the courage to go on the road :

 
I had no idea about caravan wear but apparently you have to have a special hat - only to be worn when caravanning :

 
I think it helps if the hat co-ordinates with your checked shirt.

This outfit can also be worn for sports :

 
and relaxing ...

 
And it was soooo relaxing.  At one point during the weekend Joe asked me what I wanted to do, I turned to him from my slouched position in the deck chair and replied "I'm thinking of putting the oven on". 

That was how relaxing it was.  I also found everything is so hilarious when you're camping.  Things that at home would drive you mad like hitting your head on the cupboard door or tripping over each other in the kitchen just seemed really funny!  I also enjoyed walking to the shower block in my pyjamas which is just an acceptable way to behave on a campsite.  Passing other people who you've never met in similar states of undress - spotty dressing gowns, big furry slippers and saying hello without the slightest hint of embarrasment.  It was fabulous!

 

This moment...

++ this moment ++

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

Soule Mama

. . . . . . . .

 

Caravan

 
There is a new member of the Biffsugar family.  Her name is Mavis : :

 
She's an old lady now but still - hopefully - has a bit of life still left in her.  After dithering around for only about five years wondering if we should buy a VW T25 Campervan (which is still an ambition of mine!) we eventually settled on old Mave here.

Of course you can't go caravanning without a bit of bunting so she has inspired this ::

 
And you can't really have your tea in the caravan without a fancy tablecloth can you?

 
There is a definate lack of curtains in the photo I know.  The curtains it came with are very plain but will do for now until I can find something bright and funky.  Hopefully Mavis and the Biffsugars will be having some summertime adventures pretty soon.