Otters in the park

 This morning Tony and I had a walk around Albert Park in Middlesbrough. We hoped to catch a glimpse of the otter playing in the lake there. Imagine our delight to see not one but two otters. We stood for ages watching them playing and feeding.  The cafe in the park has been taken over so we popped in for a cuppa and a bacon sandwich.  They were absolutely delicious and the staff there are lovely.  If you visit the park to see the otters please do support the cafe.  We are losing far too many little businesses.

Indoor veg growing

 Yesterday the chap turned up to collect the bed from the spare room.  Today we're going to have a walk in the park and do a little otter watching if it's around. When we come back I want to give the spare bedroom a thoroughly good dust and polish. I'll give the carpet a good clean too as it's probably thick with dust. I'm really excited to think that I will have a proper craft room again.  It's nearly six years since my workshop was taken down. 

On the growing front I've planted up my Greenstalk in the porch. Now it's a waiting game as the seedlings grow.  Hopefully I'll have lovely fresh carrots and spring onions twelve weeks from now.

Creating a proper craft room

 Tony and I made a start emptying the spare room today. I offered the bed on Gumtree and it's getting picked up on Saturday afternoon. It's hardly been used and would have been a crying shame to take it to the dump. There's a lovely thick memory foam topper too.  I'm glad that someone can use it. I've ordered the craft table units for the room. One each.. it'll be nice to have a proper table to set up my sewing machine. I'll definitely use it a lot more if it's set up ready to go.

Pretty China

 Yesterday Tony and I popped to Stokesley to see if we could find a jigsaw or two in the charity shop as we'd finished our latest one..

We did manage to find two more at £1.49 each. I also found two pretty china tureens so of course I bought them. They'll be lovely for serving vegetables or rice out of when we have friends over.  I'm an absolute sucker for pretty China.

Song sung blue

 Yesterday morning Tony and I went over to the park to watch the otter again. It's magical watching it play in the water. Then in the late afternoon we went to the pictures to watch Song Sung Blue. I'd wanted to see it for absolutely ages and it didn't disappoint.  Well worth going to see if you are unsure. I'm off to the dentist for a checkup this morning and this evening it's carving club. The weather though cold is dry at long last. I can't remember the last time that I looked out of the window and saw a dry patio. It's been sopping wet for ages. Hopefully I'll get some seeds sown today.

Otter in Albert park Middlesbrough

 The other week Tony and I were told about an otter in a local park. We've just been for a walk around the park and we're absolutely delighted to have seen it swimming in the lake there

Growing food indoors

During the Autumn last year I ordered a beautiful sunshine yellow GreenStalk. My intention was to plant mini varieties of peppers, tomato, aubergine and chillis.  Tony bless him decided to pay for it as a Christmas present.  BEST PRESENT EVER... I  have said it many times before and I will say it again. If you only have a tiny space to grow veg then these planting towers are fantastic.  They are not cheap but will repay the investment many times over.  This morning I've filled two of the tiers of my indoors GreenStalk and planted on some of my little seedlings.  With a bit of luck I will be harvesting fresh tomatoes, peppers, aubergine and chilli long before the outdoor ones are ready. When I think of how much money I've spent on crafting materials over the years my eyeballs bleed.  At least this investment will feed Tony and I. If my conservatory faced a different direction I'd be putting one in there too. They come in a lovely range of colours and would be stunning filled with flowering plants. I bought mine from Rooted in Bolton.  If you decide to invest in one please mention that you saw them on my blog. I don't receive anything for that but it's nice to support our own UK suppliers. 

Steam trains

 I don't know whether I've ever mentioned that I am a huge fan of steam trains.  Last year we had the privilege of taking a ride on the replica of Locomotion.  We'd stayed overnight in Pickering and thoroughly enjoyed the train journey the following day. If we lived a bit closer to a heritage line I'd be volunteering there. I can just imagine floating about in one of the beautiful dresses of the time. I would'nt be averse to getting my hands dirty learning how to look after the train either.  Or perhaps working on keeping the station looking it's best. If you didn't see my video of Locomotion here's a little reminder.

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Pomegranate seed update

 The pomegranate seedlings are really looking strong and healthy. I'll be so pleased if I manage grow even one pomegranate in a couple of years time. 

I'll be passing two of them on to a couple of friends.  We live in different parts of the North East so it'll be interesting to see if any one of us is more successful at growing them .

Food for free

 It's the time of year when the thoughts of many of us turn to growing fresh produce. I've spent a  lovely hour today working in the garden today. I've also been planting chits from potatoes into little pots. I'm challenging myself to grow potatoes from nothing more than the chips from potatoes. 

It'll be interesting to see what (if any) kind of harvest I might get.