Sunday 9 December 2012

Sunday Bargains and Barbeques...

It was the most glorious day today with temperatures well up on the norm - having seen the weather back in the UK we feel blessed - waking up in the morning and reading the papers in bed with a cup of coffee and the sun streaming in through an open window on December 3rd is bliss!!!

We had a bit of tidying to do and then we were shooting off down to Emba to have lunch with Mum and Dad and had arranged that we would meet them at the Duck Pond Market first - Mum likes to go to see if she can find herself any bargains and we had one or two things that we were looking out for that we just might find at a market.  A second-hand wooden chess set being one!  Whenever I used to do a car boot sale in the UK you could put money on finding a wooden chess set sat next to those soup bowl mugs that everyone had but nobody used!  That would be next to one of those blue plastic rocking seat things that was supposed to help you do sit-ups and a fondue set!


It was packed at the market - the good weather had obviously brought the masses out and to be fair there was quite a lot of stuff there - but not a single wooden chess set, fondue or blue sitty uppy thing!!!  I was quite taken by some castings as you came in - they were castings of ancient Greek gods or scenes from mythology - I was taken by them but John was not so we didn't buy any and to be fair I am not entirely sure where in the garden they would have gone.  Had we not put the mirror in the shutters under the pergola that would have been the ideal place!


We headed for a cup of coffee indoors which meant we could leave Dad there reading the paper whilst we took a turn round the stalls in peace!  John found a small magnetic chess/draughts/backgammon set which reminded him of his childhood and I bought him that to keep him going until we find a proper wooden set that he likes. 


I came across this plaque on a charity stall for the Polis Animal Rescue Group which looked like it was metal but on closer inspection was actually fibreglass and which I liked and at only €5 thought was a bit of a bargain - John thought I had been seen coming but what does he know!!!  I haven't finally decided where it is going to go so at the moment is just propped up under the bedroom window.

 
 After a good old mooch around we left the market and made our way to Emba where Mum has trimmed up for Christmas - John is itching to get our decorations down from the loft and up around the house - I must admit that it seems odd when the temperature is pushing 30 degrees!!  As I type this he is planning where everything is going to go and we have more choice now that we have the conservatory. 


We did not know what Mum had planned for lunch - it was a secret - and we had plenty of time for our regular Noms challenge before eating it anyway!


It transpired that we were having a mini-barbeque which was fab and we were cooking it on the electric grill thingy that I think Mum had bought from Lidl.  It was brilliant for cooking the sausages, chicken and sheftalia that Mum had organised along with hasselback potatoes and a fresh salad all topped off by a Bailey's cheesecake type pudding.  It is my turn next week - not sure that beans on toast will suffice!  It was lovely and it was even more lovely that we were able to sit outside in warm sunshine eating it!!


We made our way back home with a car full of our Duck Pond purchases and goodies that we always seem to accumulate when we have been to Mum and Dads!  This included a whole load of grapefruit so once I got back home I embarked on a marmalade making fest to use them up.

 
We had purchased a couple of baskets at the market which we wanted for storing kindling and logs either side of the woodburner.  one was a bit like a picnic basket with a lid and handles and Chivers felt it was important to give it the once over before we filled it up.  

It passed his scrutiny and now has pride of place on the hearth filled with a load of logs - John was planning on removing the lid and the handles but I persuaded him to keep them as i think it looks better that way.

As we got ready for bed we could see that there was a 'watery' moon outside and this is usually a sign of rain.  It is forecast for the forthcoming week unfortunately but it is December and so I guess we need to prepare ourselves.






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