utterly shameful plug!

Me and my mum make lovely crocheted and knitted items; ponchos, hats, scarves, gloves, teddy bears and other small items such as jewellry and hair clips.

This is our web site, which also has links to our 'folksy' shop and our facebook page.

http://jazzitup.yolasite.com

We adore what we do and lots of love and care go into the things we make. Just look at our customer comments page.

We'd be tickled pink if you'd spread the word and tell all your friends about us and even better, buy something :0)

Thank you x

Wot, STILL no meat?

Tonight's (none meat) offering is some stuffed, sweet peppers!

I got some reduced (in price) microwave Thai chilli rice, so mixed it with some sliced onion, crumbled feta cheese, a few cashews, some garlic powder, some sweet chilli sauce and some red pepper humous.

I wasn't originally planning on using the humous but the mixture looked a bit dry and I didn't want to overload it with too much chilli sauce.

There was more mix than I needed to actually stuff the peppers so I've just spooned the extra into the dish to cook along with the peppers.

From what I licked off my fingers, it was yummy! How they are when cooked, I shall let you know later!

Orange is not the only colour...

I made the North African stew thing tonight. Well, I kind of made an amalgamated version; I took bits from the recipe in the River Cottage book and used bits from my usual tagine recipe...

OK yes, it is very orange but bye gum it was tasty!

Peel, de-seed and chop a butternut squash into 2cm-ish cubes. Saute them in olive oil until they start to go a little bit soft and sweet. Add 2 sliced, white onions, chopped sweet pepper (maybe don't use an orange one like I did, doh!), tin chick peas, tin of chopped toms, handful dried apricots chopped, good handful flaked almonds, a good tb...sp of ras al hanout, tbsp harissa, veg stock cube, few tsps sugar, some garlic (I just use garlic powder, so easy), some water and simmer for about 1.5 hours. I then added some orzo, let that cook and then serve up! Taste first in case you want to add more spices etc.

Best served with a cple of warmed flat breads......and a nice cold shandy ;0)

Watch this space for the next thrilling installment of the veggie diaries!

Vegetarians taste better. ~Author Unknown

I bought the River Cottage 'veg every day' book when it was on offer on amazon recently. The TV series made the recipes look delumptious. I made the kale and mushroom lasagne from it the other night and it was really tasty. I've also made a veggie curry recently; I basically made it as I would a meat one but just substituted the meat for chick peas. Apropos of chick peas, I've just demolished a tub of red pepper humous and some breadsticks. I like nothing better than dunking the sticks in the humous :0)

It's possible I may have a sausage buttie down at the allotment tomorrow on the BBQ, but I have to say, we are veering towards meals with less meat these days.

I'm making a veggie chilli tonight with nachos and cream cheese.

I'm doing the North African squash tagine/stew thing next week, from the cookbook. I make quite a lot of tagines with meat in so it shouldn't be too much of a switch.

Oh and apropos of North Africa, there looks to be an intriguing new place opened in Liverpool called 'Kasbah' on Bold Street...

http://www.liverpoolconfidential.co.uk/Food-and-Drink/First-Look-The-Kasbah-Bold-Street-liverpool-restaurants

I think we might have to go and try one of those electric sheesha pipes at least! :0)

Gratuitous shot of my homemade veggie curry! ;0)

EDIT/

Tonight's chilli....

I made the recipe up in my head, I'll share it with you but don't be passing it on to the veggies out there as they'll claim it as their own! ;0)

1 red and 1 green chilli finely chopped,
2 white onions finely sliced - saute in olive oil til soft but not coloured.
add a finely chopped sweet red pepper, saute til softened.
add tin of chopped toms, tin of baked beans, tin of kidney beans and a tin of brown lentils (I got the latter in poundstretcher for 35p a tin! I think they are the secret to making this so yummy.) add a tbsp garlic powder, a tbsp paprika, and 3 tsps sugar.

Let simer for about an hour or so then tweak your seasoning to taste, I found I needed to add...a tbsp chilli powder, a good splodge of brown sauce, a splash of soy sauce. This is how we will eat chilli from now on as it is SOOOO much nicer than mince!!!! And you heard that from a die hard carnivore!

A reel treat...

Well, we finally have a local cinema again. Our last local one was turned into a Tesco about 30 odd years ago so we've been hiking over the bridge to Runcorn whenever there is anything worth watching on. But a new complex has just gone up not too far away from us, very modern and no character but you can't have everything!

What IS good is that they have 2 days a week where any film at any time is only £3.10 per person (normal price is about £8!!!). So, we treated ourselves to a night at the flicks!

'The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel' is a charming story and visually stunning. What a refreshing change for something decent to be on at the cinema. Thoroughly enjoyed it.

There were only 5 people in the cinema (me, Ian and mum plus 2 middle aged ladies who we had a nice chat with). Now that's my kind of night at the movies! :0)

A special day...

Way back in 2007, I told you about 'The Liverpool Saga' and how some lines of my poetry had been selected to go into the saga...

Well, NML have finally got round to doing something with the poem. They initially said it would go on a special brass plaque in the museum, with all the names of the contributors, but that never happened.

The saga has now been published in book form and is in the 'The Museum of Liverpool' and was unveiled on the 24th February, only *ahem* 5 years after it was written.

When it was first published, my contribution was verse three! I was tickled pink to be so close to the start of the poem. But, now that they've published it in the book, my words have been moved. I was so disappointed, I didn't note down the new verse number but I think it was still pretty much near the beginning. Does that sound churlish? sorry but it is a bit gutting... but still an honour to be included ...but none of the contributors names have been mentioned.

The book has been specially bound by bookbinder Mark Cockram (his name is a palendrome!), but it looked really plain. As it had been hand bound, I expected something a bit more...unique.

We went to a private viewing of the exhibition, 'Liverpool Doors', conceived by Roger McGough (who was there) that included The Saga exhibit. Comprising some doors from around Liverpool, some famous and some not, with bits of poetry on them. My favourite was from The Everyman Bistro which had a chalk board on it saying "Today's special" and Roger had written "so is every day" underneath.

Yes, okay, a good way to look at life, I suppose! Even if things don't go the way you expect them to ;0)

You can never go back...

That's the saying isn't it? Generally, I abide by this and if I've had a fantastic time somewhere I am always loathed to go back because I always think that the next time I go, it can never be as good.

When my sister and I were little, mum and dad used to take us and the caravan down to Abersoch and we'd stay on a camp site right next to The Warren. The Warren is the main beach in Abersoch and it's lovely; golden sand, lovely views etc.

I've been thinking of 'going back' for years, to see if it's still the same as I remember. So, we had a little trip there back in September and no, it wasn't the same... but contrary to my belief, we did have a lovely time...

Sadly, The Warren, or at least the campsite leading to The Warren, has been bought by a private leisure company. They've populated it with expensive holiday homes and it's all gated now. No access to joe public. You could still get to the beach by a different route but as the weather wasn't that great while we were, we didn't bother.

I was surprised at how small Abersoch is and how relatively unspoilt it is. I wouldn't mind a little holiday home there myself, if I had a spare few thousand, and you need quite a few spare thousand!

We took mum and Molly and stayed in a lovely log cabin type chalet in someone's orchard. They called it 'The Orchard' but apparently the trees were cut down to make room for the cabin!

There were a couple of straggly apple trees left. So I pinched a couple to make an apple and blackberry crumble one night as we'd been out foraging for blackberries during the day.

The weather was glorious the dayof our arrival then rubbish for the resrt of the week but we still enjoyed the change of scenery and the R&R.....

Anyway, some photos....

If this link doesn't work, let me know...

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150362451051757.403832.568396756&type=3&l=935a7596ba

Inside out!

Went with mum to an al fresco music event on Sunday. A few local bands were playing inside St Luke's at the top of Bold Street, Liverpool. 'But how can they be inside if it's al fresco?' I hear you ask, well...

St Luke's is also known hereabouts as 'The Bombed Out Church'!

My mum actually remembers the blitz and the church being hit by the bomb that reduced it to the shell it is today. She lived in Liverpool at the time. Hard to imagine how frightening it must have been as she was only 9 years old.

We had to sign a waver absolving the organisers of the event of any responsibilty should a piece of loose masonry fall on our heads! If they were concerned then maybe having bands playing there might not have been the best idea in the circumstances! I'm sure it was just a bit of health and safety nonsense though. Hitler couldn't knock it down so a bit of folk music couldn't do much damage surely!?

We went to try and sell a few of my poetry cards as I hoped the St Luke's one might at least sell a few. We ended up selling 3, one each of the other 3 designs! Oh well, we had a nice time, sitting in the sun and listening to the music and we got in free because we were sellers. The entrance fee would have been £10 otherwise.

It was the first time either me or mum had ever been inside the church. I think she really appreciated the experience, it must have brought back some memories for her.

It was pretty overgrown and unkempt inside, but there were some lovely red poppies amongst the weeds. I wondered if someone had scattered the seeds there on purpose...

What also struck me (no, not falling gargoyles thank goodness) was how everyone seemed to know everyone else. They were all greeting each other with hugs and kisses and the atmosphere was lovely. Have we British finally embraced (scuse the pun) the idea of the European greeting? Or, do I not get out enough? I felt like I was missing out so, when Ian came to pick us up a few hours later, I gave him a big hug and a kiss!

It felt nice that there was so much love in a place that so much hate had once tried to destroy.

The Mind is willing...

...but the flesh is weak!

Never was a saying more apposite than applied to Marfan Syndrome. Just google 'Marfan Syndrome and high IQ' and you'll see I'm not just idly boasting.

I have a VERY active mind, I can achieve so much in my head, it's just getting my body to follow through on those plans that I find impossible.

Someone of no consequence at all said about me recently "...it still amazes me how someone can be so active and still be signed off sick". I didn't realise I was supposed to switch my brain off when I became too affected by my Marfan's to work. But, I'm flattered that they give my health so much consideration :0)

One of my favourite quotes, by TH White from The Once and Future King, really sums up my attitude to life...

“The best thing for being sad,” replied Merlin, beginning to puff and blow, “is to learn something. That’s the only thing that never fails. You may grow old and trembling in your anatomies, you may lie awake at night listening to the disorder of your veins, you may miss your only love, you may see the world about you devastated by evil lunatics, or know your honour trampled in the sewers of baser minds. There is only one thing for it then — to learn. Learn why the world wags and what wags it. That is the only thing which the mind can never exhaust, never alienate, never be tortured by, never fear or distrust, and never dream of regretting. Learning is the only thing for you. Look what a lot of things there are to learn.”

I've recently learnt something new, it's something I can do sitting down (I have to sit down a lot!), I can do it whenever and wherever I like (not that!!!) and pick it up and put it down when I get tired. I've learned to crochet! :0)

Now, not satisfied with just making things for myself and my family, I felt inspired to try and make some 'pocket money' from this newfound hobby. Being on a restricted income, it's not often we can treat ourselves these days. I've got my mum involved too, she's 79 and widowed so it gives her a focus and a purpose too and she enjoys it.

We made a few pieces and did a craft fair and I set up a web site. We didn't make any money at the craft fair and, so far, our outlay has exceeded our income but we enjoy it and hopefully it might lead to a few pennies so that we can treat ourselves to the odd fish and chip supper! :0)

Now, you'd think people would be happy for me? Maybe even applaud my efforts. Well, most are and do I think, but there's always going to be someone who wants to piss on your parade.

Some spiteful person reported me to the benefits office for running my own business. They asked me to come in for a chat, it turns out that not only is what I'm doing perfectly acceptable to them, they also advised me that I'm allowed to earn up to £96 per week under the category of "permitted work".
I had to laugh because not only has this malevolent presence in my life been frustrated in their attempt to bring unhappiness into my world, but they've also facilitated the passing of this little nugget of info!

Now, as much as I'd love to have an extra £96 a week in the coffers, unless I suddenly start to crochet at the speed of light (which is unlikely given my joint problems, and I don't mean marijuana!) then I can't see that ever happening. But I really must thank the anonymous arsehole out there for bringing this to my attention! Never has the phrase 'pissing myself laughing' been more appropriate! :0)

I'm reminded of a verse from 'Desiderata' by Max Ehrmann, which is another piece of writng I derive great comfort and inspiration from...

Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism. Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love, for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment, it is as perennial as the grass.

So, I shall continue to be myself and strive for my ideals and, though this may not be worthy of someone with a high IQ (tongue firmly in cheek there!), I dedicate the following to the knobber who trampled my honour in the sewer of their baser mind! :0)

My little secret...

I love food but I can't stand all the snobbery that can go with it. I much prefer substance over style, I'd rather eat excellent fish and chips sitting on a park bench than have a mediocre meal in some flashy restaurant. So, I wracked my brains about where to go for my birthday this year and then remembered a lovely little place we'd been to once before.


It's a small pub with lovely decor, located next to a lake on the edge of a forest and, more importantly, the food is excellent and the staff are really welcoming and friendly. The kind of place you want to keep all to yourself...but also tell everyone about!


I asked for a cocktail as an aperitif, namely a 'Cosmopolitan' but, being a country pub, I guess they don't get asked for cocktails very often so they didn't know how to make it. They asked me what was in it but I didn't know either! I said "you know, that cocktail they drink all the time on 'Sex and The City'", as if that would make them suddenly know!


They went to look it up on the internet and then this arrived at the table...apparently they didn't have any cocktail glasses so they used the nearest fish bowl!

Less 'Sex and The City' and more 'Benidorm', it was crying out for a mini umbrella and a sparkler! Still, it gave us all a good giggle and we had a lovely meal and evening.

And this is the view from the restaurant, over the lake. I just realised I forgot to tell you the name of the pub... ;0)

quackers about the locals...

Had a very productive afternoon despite the rain! Bought some live mealworms for our OAP (old aged poultry), we have a raggedy little ex battery hen who we think is on her last legs so we're spoiling her with tasty grub, or should I say tasty grubs!

Collected 9 unopened copies (still with the wool in them) with a binder of 'the art of crochet' from a freecycle user, then headed into rural Cheshire. Passed several farms/farm shops and bought local asparagus and home grown Hereford rump steaks, mince and burgers.

Then on to a friend of ours, who runs her own cake-making business, and swapped some of her ducks' eggs and some of her yummy cake for 2 dozen of our quail eggs, and a spare egg skelter I had for some of her rhubarb plants.

On the way home we went to the Co-op for lottery tickets and a birthday card for my sis and Ian managed to get some lovely french bread reduced from 80p to 10p. Looking forward to steamed asparagus with poached duck eggs for tea :0)

steak, mince and burgers from 'Brosters beef' clay lane farm cw7 2qh
asparagus from 'cherry orchard farm' CW8 2HN
duck eggs from a friend's ducks

While driving around Cheshire today it was great to see so many producers selling direct from their farms.

and that, my friends, is un oeuf! :0)

there's no such thing as a free lunch...

...but there are other free things you can get if you keep your eyes and ears open!

Our local authority reward residents who recycle glass, paper and plastic via the 'recyclebank' scheme. Every time your special bin containing recycleable stuff is emptied you are awarded points, which you can exchange for vouchers to use locally.
I've just got 30 litres of peat free compost for free from the local garden centre. I've also got a voucher for a tea room in frodsham for a 'buy one get one free' cream tea and a voucher for a local cafe for a 'buy one get one free' breakfast. Mum and i will use those at some point during the week while Ian is at work, sorry Ian!

My mum also changed her bank to mine recently and as a reward the bank gave her and me (for recommending her) some 'airmiles'. I used some of my allocation to get 20 x 500ml bottles of speciality ales and bitters via virgin wines. They arrived today and if they are nice I'm going to use mum's allocation to get some more. You can also choose to exchange them for wine, amongst lots of other treats.

I've also started to use a web site called 'readitswapit' where you can exchange unwanted books with other readers. You choose a book from their list and if they like any of the books on your list, you just send them to each other and all you pay is the postage. As a voracious reader I find it very useful and have swapped several books so far.

Then there's the 'freecycle' network where people ask for things thry'd like and offer things they no longer need. Recently, for example, I've responded to someone offering lots of copies of a magazine called 'the art of crochet'. And, while i don't really agree with freecycle being used to give animals away, we did get 5 free quail from there too. We've also given away several items; a cast iron chimnea, an old set of garden furniture, a couple of guitars, a couple of bird cages, a dog kennel and even chicken poo from our chickens for fertiliser!

I've also recently been on the 'Twinings' web site to register for free tea samples.

And, the elderflowers are almost ready around here so we'll be helping ourselves to the local umbels to produce some lovely elderflower cordial in the near future!

Oh, I almost forgot, I got 2 free tickets to a comedy club in Liverpool recently just by keeping an eye on their facebook page and entering a competition! The tickets were worth about £30!

So, while I might not have been able to get a free lunch as yet, I've not done badly getting other free stuff!

If you'd like to share any other tips for garnering gratis goodies, feel free to leave a comment! :0)

To The Lighthouse...

A lovely Good Friday walk to Hale Lighthouse/beach. It nearly killed me and is taking 2 days to recover from but it was worth it!

Had a lovely medicinal drinkie at The Childe of Hale pub too before heading home...

John Middleton (1578–1623) was an English giant commonly known as the Childe of
Hale. Most of what is known about him is based on oral tradition and legends.
Legend tells that he slept with his feet out of the window of his small house.
Tales also credit him with great strength http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Middleton_(giant)




the long walk down to the beach....

there's just something mesmorising about sunlight on water....

the house next to the lighthouse is private and i assume they own the lighthouse too as it's all gated off. Their little outcrop would make a smashing spot for a tea room. I reckon they're missing a trick there! :0)


Frodsham hill in the background...

happy wind blown pooch...




gorgeous house in Hale village...

gorgeous cottage in Hale village...

Can't decide which I prefer...probably the cottage :0)


Click on the photos to make them bigger and get the full effect.

hooked!

I'm really getting into this crochet lark. Just finished a poncho and matching hat for myself. I'm rather pleased with it :0)

Capital show!

For Ian's birthday this year we got the train from Liverpool Lime St. to Euston and the whole trip only cost £20 booking with virgin trains via megabus.com. It would have only cost 50p by bus but we didn't fancy the 5 hour trip and you can't really complain at £20 return for 2 people!

We stayed at The MIC hotel http://www.micentre.com/ which was a stone's throw from Euston and opposite a really nice pub, and a plethora of eateries around the corner.

We dined at one of the plethora on the first night, The African Kitchen Gallery. We had the place to ourselves so had to make conversation with the owner. I wouldn't normally complain about a bit of banter but I was tired and just wanted to eat. Consequently, I ended up with terrible indigestion and couldn't sleep that night!

Still felt dodgy the next morning so couldn't do justice to the breakfast buffet and then Ian dragged me off to get the tube to the East end so he could walk in the footsteps of The Krays!

He wanted to see The Blind Beggar pub which apparently was made infamous by the dodgy twins!? Despite it saying it was open on t'internet, it was shut!

Very multicultural is The East end and there were several Sari shops, I wanted one of those pants and top ensembles but there mustn't be very many size 20, 6 foot 1" Asian ladies around cos none of them would go anywhere near fitting me!

So, we got the tube to South Kensington and had lunch at Harrods! £60 for 2 milkshakes, burgers and chips!!! Harrods, in my opinion, is totally overrated and I dooubt we'll be lunching there again any time soon!

not a $5 shake but an £8 one!!!!

The escalator at South Kensington was really steep and I have a bit of a phobia about escalators. I managed with great difficulty to go up it but there was no way I could go back down, so we had to get a taxi back to the hotel.

Back at the hotel we had a nap and then got ready to go to the West end this time! We went to see 'We Will Rock You' and it was awesome! £4 for a bucket of popcorn but we'd brought our own drinks and sweets and I'd recommend you do the same as a can of coke was about £2! After the show, we got a rickshaw back to the hotel, bloody freezing but a lot of fun!

Best part of the trip and if we go again I'd just want to see a show and come home, bugger the rest of it! :0)

Behold the turtle. He makes progress only when he sticks his neck out - James Bryant Conant

I've always wanted to be able to either knit, sew or crochet. It's always looked like such a satisfying thing to do and some of the things I've seen people create are just so much nicer than anything commercially available.

My mother has been knitting/crocheting/sewing for over 50 years and is an expert at all things to do with fabric and wool. She doesn't, however, possess a great deal of patience. I remember her trying to show me how to knit when I was little and because I'm left handed and she's not, coupled with the fact that she was going too fast, we both got frustrated and that was the end of that!

I don't think the way my brain works helps either. I tend to look at instructions as a whole, instead of breaking them down into manageable chunks, get freaked out by how complicated things can seem, and don't bother going any further! That and the fact I have a limited attention span has always been a big handicap. I also tend to think I can't do something if I fail at the first hurdle, 'practice makes perfect' never seemed to make sense to me. I could either do something first time round or I'd never be able to master it, or that's how my brain always used to work.


This time though I was determined!

I bought a mgazine earlier last year 'The Art of Crochet' which was on offer for 99p. I practiced with the sample of wool and hook that came with the magazine, found it tricky and put it in the cupboard where it stayed for a few months. then I discovered a friend of mine, who had also bought the mag at the same time, had actually perservered and managed to create some lovely items! That was it, I HAD to try again. Not only am I impatient BUT I am also competetive to some extent and yes, maybe I was a bit envious of her new found skill and annoyed with myself for yet another tried and failed project.

Anyway, to cut a long story slightly less long, I practiced, failed, unravelled, stomped my feet, tried again and gradually began to 'get it', allelujah!!! An epiphany, practice DOES make perfect, well maybe not perfect but a damned sight better then when I started!

I have just finished making myself a scarf with some crocheted flowers at each end. I am very proud of myself for not only creating something that looks quite pretty but also for finishing what I start for a change!

So, next time this turtle sticks her neck out, she has a nice scarf to keep it warm! :0)

recessive genes?

We're in a recession apparently and the amount of people trying to save money, or talking about trying to save money, has exploded!

I love it personally as we've been trying to live cheaply for a few years now, since I had to give up work. Hence getting the chickens, growing fruit and veg, amongst other money making (or rather money saving) exercises.

This is the diary of a chicken keeping friend of mine and I love reading what she's been doing to save a penny or two! http://diaryofapennypincher.typepad.com/blog/#tp

Apart from perusing parsimonious personal postings, I signed up to the http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/ newsletter and have had really good tips from that. For example, I managed to print off 4 x £5 Debenhams vouchers on line recently and got 4 brand new 'lock & lock' tupperware boxes without having to spend a single penny! The vouchers had no minimum spend limit but it was one voucher per item so, I bought 4 items that were just under £5 each which meant they were all free! Of course, it was one voucher per person so I roped mum and Ian into coming with me and then just smiled sweetly at the cashier! ;0)

We even got free parking thanks to mum's disabled badge! That's another good money saving tip, take a registered disabled person with you when you go shopping ;0)

Mum even treated us to coffee and cake in the Debenhams cafe, so I didn't even have to spend a penny all day! Well, not til I got home but I blame the coffee for that!

Christmas is coming...

...and I haven't been blogging very much at all!


I've been spending most of my time on Facebook to be honest. It's more interactive and my blog doesn't seem to attract many comments, not that I do it for that reason but on FB you do get more of 2 way relationship with those with whom you share your life. However, you can't really vent memoir style on there so thought I'd pop back for a scribble on here.

I've been devoting quite a bit of time to my 'Poetry Found' project and another 2 issues have been collated, designed, printed and distributed to be scattered. Almost 400 copies were sent out to various scatterers in time for National Poetry Day. I adore making the little books and secreting them where I think they might be appreciated.

That's another reason I've been using FB a lot. It's so useful for, well, social networking! PF has its own FB site and it's invaluable for co-ordinating the poets and the scatterers but not only that, photos have been uploaded and experiences shared.

That's not my hand by the way, it belongs to NPD director, Jo Bell, who was also one of the happy band of scatterers.

Sometime in August, we went to Gawsworth Hall to see The Bad Shepherds. Ade Edmondson is a member and they are really rather good! The fantastic setting made for a magical evening.

I mentioned previously in my blog that we were intending to get some quail. We've had the housing for some time but not got round to getting any birds.

I saw a post on freecycle '5 quail to good home'. As we promised to give them a 'good home' we've decided not to eat them! We don't know if any of them are female but we've had them a few weeks now and not had any eggs so looks like we've inherited a bunch of freeloaders ;0)

And apart from some pleasant, miscellaneous days out here and there in between, that's about it for the last 3 months!

As for the future, I shall endeavour to tear myself away from FB from time to time to share the odd snippet, whether anyone is reading or not!

Carry on camping....

Went camping again, this time just for the weekend, to Bala, Wales.

Our camp site (Tyn Cornel) was immaculate and situated next door to the national White Water Centre. A lovely riverside stroll took us there and while the extreme sports lovers splashed past us, we did some extreme cake eating and coffee drinking!

We also went on the little steam train that runs alongside Bala Lake and on the way home, we found an organic farm shop and stocked up on really nice produce!

our tent

river next to our camp site

couple of videos; one from the cafe at the white water centre and one on the little steam train...

In search of Cupcake....

I received a 2nd hand book today that I'd ordered on line from America and inside the cover I found a birthday card! I opened it and it read...

" cupcake
even if you called Mrs cleaver a notorious strumpet"

Now, having recently had a birthday myself, I thought it may have been a marketing ploy from the company I bought the book from but clearly not, unless this is some strange coded message!?

So, I thought it might be quite intriguing to send a message into the ether to see if I can track down naughty little Cupcake!

If you happen to be on facebook, or even if you're not, click on this link and pass the message along the virtual grapevine and lets see if it bears fruit! :0)