Home Comforts

For someone who loves domesticity as much as I do, I am, I'll shamefacedly admit, a pretty shoddy housekeeper. I'd like to claim, in my defence that I am both a conscientious mother and teacher and between them these leave me little time to clean the oven or wash down the skirting boards. Honesty compels me to confess though, that I always seem to find time to arrange flowers in a pretty jug, bake shortbread or reorganise my vintage teacup collection. It's a question of priorities I suppose and I've always chosen to put the fripperies that I enjoy before the hard graft. Things are starting to change though and it's in large part to this lovely book. Although it is ridiculous in places (do I really need dozens of pages of closely typed text on stain removing or slightly bossy instructions on how best to remove books from a shelf?) it is also an enjoyable, cosy read. Women of my generation - the horribly named "Thatcher's kids" - were brought up to expect much of ourselves in terms of career and life outside the home and therefore running an well-ordered, clean and comfortable home was not valued or considered important. Hence, I have got to my mid-thirties and am only just getting into a proper housekeeping routine.Of course, the seasonal urge to sort, scrub and clean brought about by the signs of Spring helps too. Plus I've developed a little method of doing a horrid job - scrubbing out that manky under-the-kitchen-sink-cupboard - followed by a lovely one - lining drawers with scented liners or organising the photographs into albums - which is working for me. My home is still FAR from perfect but I'm getting there. Still not entirely sure my mother would agree...

Reading List - January 2013

I'm always fascinated by other people's reading habits. When I visit friends' houses I love little more than nosing around their bookshelves - usually, it has to be said, with a greedy eye on what I might borrow. So I thought it might be fun to keep a record of my own reading habits this year, month by month. I present to you, the inaugural list...

"Christmas at Cold Comfort Farm" by Stella Gibbons.
"Letter from Point Clear" by Dennis McFarland.
"Kitchen Diaries Vol.2" by Nigel Slater (yes, I really did read this like a novel).
"Pure" by Andrew Miller.
"The Betrayal" by Helen Dunmore (my absolute favourite this month - loved it almost as much as it's prequel, "The Siege").
"The Provincial Lady in America" by E.M.Delafield (wonderful, of course).
"Saints at the River" by Ron Rash.

Three beautiful things....

.... from a quiet Sunday in January.
1. A long, lazy start to the day - a pot of tea, Bon Iver on the stereo and the weekend supplements from yesterday's "Guardian".
2. The Lovely Husband makes his famous Shin of Beef stew. It simmers away for hours, filling the house with delicious smells. By the time I finally get to eat it the anticipation makes it extra yummy.
3. I am loving this month's Book Group book, "Pure" by Andrew Miller.

Welcome 2013

The Lovely Husband and I made a decision to celebrate the New Year in a different way this year. We were tucked up in bed by 10:30pm and asleep shortly after. Woken by the fireworks at midnight, we exchanged a sleepy "Happy New Year" kiss then nodded straight back off again. But on New Years Day the three of us were up with the lark and went for a walk, loaded with blankets and thermos flasks, to a wood, not far from us. We climbed to the top of the hill and hunkered down to watch the sunrise on 2013. There was not a soul around (unsurprisingly) and it was so quiet we could hear the beating of the birds' wings which were flying above us. It was calm, peaceful, beautiful. 

When the sun was fully up and the cold getting the better of us we came home and cooked a big brunch for friends. A long, lazy day followed, full of conversation, laughter, jigsaws, books, naps and crochet. If the rest of 2013 continues the way it started we are in for a very, very happy new year.

Half-term Images

A dewy cobweb....

A new bakery....

No fairies, unfortunately.....

A favourite bookshop, comes with a woodburner and homemade cakes...

Storecupboard Challenge Update

We survived. No-one starved; in fact, no-one even noticed. We ate pretty well on the whole. For breakfasts there were bagels from the freezer, muesli or porridge (or indeed my new favourite, muesli porridge). Lunches were mostly leftovers, although there was a bit of ham that got used up in sandwiches. Snacks came from the fruit bowl. And for dinner in the evening we ate rice and dahl topped with crispy, spicy onions; shin of beef stew and vegetables; spaghetti and a tomato, anchovy and chilli sauce and a vegetable risotto. Rather carbohydrate-heavy, perhaps and certainly not enough meat for the Lovely Husband, a committed carnivore, but generally speaking, quite good grub.There were a couple of cheats though. One afternoon we met Jen and the kids for tea and cakes after school, so there was just toast with slices of cheese and apple for supper that night. And Friday night, after swimming, always means fish and chips. On the whole though I think it was a pretty successful venture. There is something incredibly satisfying about using up things from the cupboard, fridge and freezer. And the fact that I spent a fraction of what I normally do on grocery shopping is equally satisfying. A fiscally responsible woman would have transferred the money saved into an ISA or other high-interest account. An organised woman would spend it on Christmas gifts. I am neither so the money saved will stay in my account until I fritter it on books and macaroons.

Storecupboard Challenge

The Waitrose delivery that arrives each week came in considerably fewer bags this time. I have been closely following the Storecupboard Challenge over at The Quince Tree (one of my all time favourite blogs) and was inspired to try and follow suit . In a nutshell, the idea is to try and minimise food waste by using up all those packets, jars and tins which lurk at the back of the cupboard and in the bottom of the freezer while new stuff is bought and shoved on top of it  (or, at least, that's what happens in our house). I know it's going to be more of a challenge for me than for Sue. I have considerably less time, skills and knowledge than her, not to mention a pretty paltry storecupboard to begin with. Still, I'm up for the challenge. There's fresh stuff I've had to buy - milk, butter, fruit and vegetables. There's been a trip to our wonderful local bakery for a loaf of bread. But other than that I'll be surviving on whatever I can forage from the kitchen cupboards. I know - I'm practically Ray Mears....