And So It Begins!

Yes, the weeks are flying by and with outside jobs dwindling there is lots to do, prepare, get on with indoors and, ultimately, enjoy come the big day. YES, I'm getting ready for the Big Ho HO, already my favourite Christmas CD is on a loop and I love the preparation as much as the result to which it leads. I LOVE Christmas; my aim is to make it as yummy a cosy, family time for me and my men as I can. Bring on the snow as we all love the idea of having to stay home by the fire!

Therefore I'm starting off in red as I'm in really in full festive swing because yesterday the decorations started to go up. I normally wait until today but the weekends fall a bit skew this year, plus we have guests to stay next weekend and I want to be totally tinsel central by the time they arrive. Eeeek! I can't wait to get a pan of Gluhwein, cranberries, orange and cinnamon bubbling away so I have a lovely festive smell in the back ground, too. I'm about done apart from a few table decorations. I like to have some of those around but this year I'm trying to make it easier to dust things by the decorations being easy to move if you understand me.

As you may have seen on an earlier post my preparations began about three weeks ago, I think, when I ordered a few craft items as I normally do at this time of the year. I began, as usual, by making some new tags; these are given as gifts, for decorations for people or to go around the house. I have to say I'm totally addicted to making these; I definitely have my own style when it comes to these and this year I've used some fab vintage paper I found last year. A couple of things have come out beautifully including this fab card and then I'm very pleased with the tags. 

When Jon had gone to work and the boys were away to school I began with the paper chains in the living room as these go corner to corner and need to be in place before the tree is brought into the house; I think the tree will be here on Tuesday. Then with the festive tunes blasting out I was bobbing between the kitchen and the living room putting the other decorations up.These are the perpetual advent calendars, the 1-24 garland on the sideboard above the drinks tray, mmmm. and my mantle piece items which include more paper chains and decorated jars. In the kitchen I have the paper chains Alf and I made from some more of the vintage paper. I LOVE the dresser now as I made the banner, too, and I always have a couple of the cards on there which the boys made when they were tiny.

I really enjoy bringing the greenery into the house and always like to have it sit in a bucket for a few days to give it a good drink. This year I'll be decorating with some for our visitors but doing the main lot a little earlier, too, due to us going away for a couple of days between Christmas and New Year. (We have an Airbnb booking for NYE so will be back in time for that.) It is just a gorgeous thing to have in the house and on Boxing Day when we have a little get together with the neighbours I love draping the table with holly, twisted willow and ivy from the garden plus pin lights, of course, between the tasty goodies. Can never have enough pin lights!

A couple of new additions this year will be a pompom wreath and a rag-and-pin-light garland. (There they are again!) The wreath is for the TV room, which has a purple wall along with Marvel and DC comic pictures, and can take something a little less traditional as you see by the colours I'll be using! I began making the pompoms when we lived at our previous house! They were meant for a rug but.... so I'm giving this project a go using a glue gun so will hopefully last a few years. I'm also interested in making some pompom bookmarks as gifts. 

The garland is something I've wanted to have a go at for ages.

I'm really pleased with how it turned out and for once I have something on the banister.

Christmas cake and mincemeat are made, sloe gin is sitting in the cellar brewing nicely (I'm sure that isn't the right word) and I'll hopefully make the first mince pies this afternoon. I've decided on the teacher presents to make this year - some seasonal biscuits and rum truffles - and the calendar is already filling up with school activities. 

Lists and my planner are helping remind me that we pretty much know what we are having on Christmas Day and Boxing Day...

and we're having our mini Christmas this coming weekend full of tasty treats, including mince pies, of course. The boys have their Christmas jumpers, Jon needs a new one and I have festive leggings!

As I sit at the kitchen table I can see this at the window and I feel very festive. Fav word!

Ok. Time to get the brekky sorted, boys out of bed and then later this morning I'm out at our village Winter Fayre which is always a fun thing - Alf love the bottle stall and I get a cuppa and maybe a mince pie.

Lou.

Mince Pie Mayhem and Poly House Protection!

This was the kitchen yesterday.

This was the first mince pie session of the season. I tried a couple of new things - a pecan nut under a circle topping on some of them and also painting some holly leaves; Tracy can vouch for my ridiculous sense of joy over the latter! Eeek!

I actually made a total of 42 but managed to burn a dozen when I got sidetracked by something. Aargh!

Here is me being a little festively naughty, considering I was going to Slimming World last night (still managed to only put on 1lb so still within my target weight after 8 weeks I think.) First mince pie from my kitchen. Mmmm, and Jon said they were better with me having cooked the mincemeat when I made it.

We are pretty much Christmas Central here, just a few more decorations to go up but I'm loving, as usual, the living room with my paper chains and paper globes.

I have this basket display in the bottom kitchen window and I'm very pleased with it. I like to have some things I can pick up and move to other places if I want to decorate somewhere else quickly.

However we are not getting the tree until the weekend what with Jon being back and forth to see his dad.

Now, on Sunday there was a team effort, so no time for action shots,and we got some tarps put over the Poly House. This means that as I find the time to do so I can start and tidy up inside a bit. It already feels better as I can dry out things like pots and tray that are just carrying so much water.

It isn't the prettiest thing in the garden by any stretch but it is serving a purpose until Spring. 

(So pleased that the angle of all these photos means you cannot see what an horrendous state my far veg patch is in just now!)

In other news FIL still hasn't had his op but it is scheduled for Thursday, fingers crossed.

Right, boys home shortly and better be ready to referee the mince pie situation as they are already getting eaten up stupidly quickly, but that is what they are for!

Bye for now.

Lou.xx

Christmas Catch Up. 11 Days To Go To The Big Ho Ho Ho!

It was only Friday when I last posted but it really seems an absolute age away! 
I forgot to say in that post that I ate for breakfast the first two mushrooms I have grown, along with one of our eggs on my home baked bread for breakfast. 

Can it get much better than that, really?!

Talking of chickens we are also doing our bit regarding the bird flu thing. I am hoping that the ban is lifted sooner than the allotted time to be honest. Also the one that was seriously malting is growing its feathers back as far as I can see, thankfully. Ho hum, life goes on.

On Saturday morning we were doing jobs in and out. Jon and the boys were carrying on with the wall project and I was inside cooking breakfast and getting tidied up before we went out at lunchtime.

The Gramps were coming to stay a couple of days and also to see Alfie's Stage School Showcase so we finished up and met them in Aber for a cuppa before the performance. It was just great to see him joining in with stuff and the children from the other groups.

When we came home we were just enjoying some family time and had a Chinese takeaway in the evening. I was very pleased we decided not to go out to eat as it was the Strictly semis and boy was it Glitter-ball Tastic! A-maze-ing!!!

Sunday morning I was up early making a big pea and ham pie and yet more mince pies as we had two friends coming to see us, so we were going to be eight for lunch. (I will say at this point since December 4 I have made 11 dozen mince pies!!) When our friends left I made my second batch of mincemeat, same amount as last time which had a base of 2lbs of dried fruit plus everything else; at least I know how many pies I can get from it.

I just make the lovely Mary Berry pastry for the ones I am baking off that day and then another lot for the next session. Good job I like making them! 

Jon and his dad continued to make progress on the parking area on Sunday and you can see it here looking just fantastic so far but still some work to do. Jon's dad is coming back for Monday when we have a digger being delivered so we can level it out ready for the gravel. At the same time we are going to gather up a big pile of the bamboo and green rubbish in the far corner of the garden and have a fire.

This is the view from the road with the new fencing in the background.

Then from the fence to the road...

followed by the new wall, and Jake, that's been built alongside the steps down to fire pit.

On Sunday evening we had a lovely meal out.

So, Monday morning found me making sure Alfie had his piano book and Harry his cornet as there was to be an assembly where all the children who were new to music lessons were playing.

I then popped into Aber with the Gramps for a spot of lunch and then came home in time to do a few inside chores before the boys came home and went out to get their Christmas presents and tea with the Gramps. Whilst they were out I made a little garland decoration for each of the boys' rooms with the tags I think I mentioned I bought at Waterstones. They both looked like this, just threaded onto paper ribbon.

And now we are at Tuesday which feels like a Monday because the Gramps went home this morning then the boys went to school. I've had breakfast, put the washer on, collected the eggs, made one lot of pastry for the pies, washed up, just taken some croutons out of the oven that I've made out of some loaf ends and I have my bread proving, too, whilst I do this.

I took a photo of the bottom kitchen window the other day and I love looking at this little vignette. I hope the hyacinths come into flower soon and that they are white - it wasn't possible to tell from the label on the pot they came in.

Ok it is now 11.30am and I will get the pies made and then it will be lunch time. That is a heck of a festive ramble but you know how it gets at this time of the year.

Bye for now.

Lou.xx

Dec The Halls, And The Tree!

Well we are in full throttle as far as Christmas is concerned, and we LOVE it! We have given ourselves Elf names this year.

The front door and step have been dressed.

Today is Monday and we have been Busy at Bronllan, nothing new there!

On Friday it was Jake's turn for a little bath ready for Christmas. No photos I'm afraid, no spare hands but at least that job is done. Another little task was to order the turkey from the butcher in Tregaron and we can pick that up on Christmas Eve; the fridge freezer in the cellar store room with be switched on soon so it can sit in there - I read the other day that you should collect a fresh turkey as late as possible as butcher fridges are much more effective than domestic appliances. I also did a few of the inserts for the 1-24 garland and the other night we tried to sing the first two lines of Christmas songs or carols backwards!

As I said in my last post I started with the main decorations on Monday and we are now done downstairs. Here are some shots of the kitchen; I spend so much time in here that I love decorating.

This is a little dark but I wanted to make an effort decorating the windows this year.

I love having little things the boys have made dotted about, even if they are a couple of years old, and more paper chains!

This are two of my favourite handmade Christmas decs.

I have one of my little vignettes in the living room again this year and of course the paper chains and honeycomb decs are up, as you can see in the tree photo.(This year I have about eight of them both upstairs in the boys' rooms and downstairs.

In the evening it was the switching on of the tree lights in Bont. The tree is outside the community hall and the children from the boys' school are always invited to sing a few songs, there is a competition for Christmas craft projects and there are stalls, mince pies and hot drinks; here you get the idea.

Saturday was a bit of a mad day. In the morning I made bread and when Jon got back from an errand I popped across the road to look at our Winter fayre. I won some chocolates on one of the stalls! Whilst there Jon and the boys were outside finishing the fencing they started last weekend. After I fed the boys their lunch I took Alfie to his Stage School session, did the food shopping then picked him up later. When I got home a friend of Jon's was in the kitchen and there was great merriment as he had brought a leg of Serrano ham and the boys were dying for it to be cut; they loved it when we were in Menorca on holiday.

We settled down in the evening to watch Strictly which is VERY exciting at the moment!

On Sunday morning Jon fetched the tree from the Christmas tree farm a couple of miles up the road from us. I have to say a 6ft Nordman Fir for £30 is a flippin' good deal. After a bit of tidying up I set to baking the first two dozen mince pies including a few with a surprise pecan nut in; as I look at the plate now, however, there are just six left - now you understand why I make dozens of them in December. I will make two dozen tomorrow and one lot will go in the freezer!

I mentioned about using a lovely jar I found in a charity shop for slices of lemon and lime with cherries for drinks. Well on Sunday I sliced up the fruit and put it in the jar with the cherries and cooled sugar syrup. This is how the jar now looks and I think it looks great!

And so to this morning. After breakfast I brought the tree decorations up from the cellar and set to. I have to say I like to decorate the tree on my own; this is due to a slight case of OCD with me wanting everything just right. Here is the tree before the decorations....

and here we are when finished.

I particularly like the top of the tree;I don't have an angel or a traditional star but prefer something nice and simple.

It took me about three and a half hours from start to finish, including nipping off an unruly branch at the bottom to use as a decoration and tidying up afterwards. I have a box with the decorations the boys have made over the years (so pleased I put the date of lots of them) so they will be added later this evening.

Ok, that was a long post but I can't do one every day and there is a lot going on so this is my way.

Hope you enjoyed my ramblings, I'm sure there will be more in a few days.

By for now.

Lou.xx