Ok so now we are in the 'got to make the most of the pool' timezone and the weather over the past few days has been set against us. I have to admit I wimped out this morning but John met the challenge head on and got in to do some exercises in the water to help strengthen his dodgy knee. To be fair the treatment he had seems to have worked but he hasn't over tested it yet - choosing to play just one session of pickleball a week and no badminton at the moment - pickleball although energetic does not put so much stress and strain on his joints.
He will soon have to make a decision about badminton as his annual subscription will be due for renewal soon and it would be a shame to let it lapse if a couple more months' rest will see him back to something like his previous fitness.
As I said I wimped out today but I will get back into the swing once our weekend visitors have been and gone. My Aunt and Uncle are staying with us again and we will pick them up this afternoon after pickleball and Mum will come up on Sunday and take them back with her and then they return to the UK on Tuesday. Bless them they are talking about returning next year, health permitting, and if they do my Uncle will be 87!
I am cooking tonight - we are going out for our other meals and as the weather today was quite indifferent up here in the hills we decided that we would eat indoors this evening and I had our meal in the slow cooker in readiness. In fact I had found a timer switch which I hoped would ensure that the slow cooker came on at 2.00pm otherwise we might have been eating quite late. I set the table in readiness and we set off for Emba where we were quite unprepared for the 30 degrees and brilliant sunshine which greeted us. Mum said they hadn't had any rain at all but had been treated to the electrical storm and some rather noisy thunder.
Over the past few years when Joyce and David have visited we have had them to stay with us for a few days but then Dad was alive so it gave him and mum a day or so's break. We are conscious that now things are different and John was worried about leaving Mum on her own even though it is little more than a day as she will be back up with us on Sunday morning. If they do return next year we may have to review this depending on how Mum is feeling. We just thought it would give her a rest from having to think about entertaining for a few days because when you have people with you 24/7 and you are not used to it, it can get a little tiring.

We were exceptionally hot and sticky when we returned from Emba, so much so that John didn't care what the temperature of the pool was he was going in for a cold bath - he says it will be good for his muscles anyway!!! And, good news, the timer switch worked so the slow cooker had been doing its stuff whilst we were away and the meat was smelling good. I still think that I should have chosen a cut of meat with a higher fat content and will do so for another time.
Whilst John cooled down in the pool and I had a shower and then finished off cooking our supper Joyce and David took advantage of the lovely temperature in the conservatory and relaxed before it was declared that the sun had gone over the yardarm somewhere in the world and we had our pre-dinner drinkies!
Ok so this is what our food looked like and I have to admit I was pretty pleased with the way it all turned out - I was hungry and enjoyed it which isn't always the case when I cook. We had the slow cooked pork in lime, honey and ginger served with sauted carrot, leek and peas and a dish which is called potato and onion casserole which is like Dauphinoise potatoes - in fact I shall have to have a look at the recipe to see how this differs.
I had par-boiled the potatoes in stock to give them additional flavour and then made a 'sauce' with caramelised onions, mustard cream and cheese. I had used up some feta which is salty so didn't salt the potatoes but added plenty of black pepper and then finished it off with a thin layer of cheddar cheese - this is then baked in the oven firstly with a cover of tin foil to ensure the potatoes are all fully cooked through and then for a while without so that the cheese melts and browns.
The meat was delicious - John had carved it into thick slices to ensure it didn't fall apart too much and it was beautifully tender and it is most definitely a recipe that I shall do again - I think Mum would like it because she loves ginger.
Our big Friday night in was spent playing Rummikub - and this is what concentration looks like if you are octogenarians - either that or the lighting in our lounge is so 'ambient' that they were struggling to see the tiles!!!! In the end I gave Aunty Joyce a torch so she could be sure she and David could differentiate between the blue and the black colours.
He will soon have to make a decision about badminton as his annual subscription will be due for renewal soon and it would be a shame to let it lapse if a couple more months' rest will see him back to something like his previous fitness.
As I said I wimped out today but I will get back into the swing once our weekend visitors have been and gone. My Aunt and Uncle are staying with us again and we will pick them up this afternoon after pickleball and Mum will come up on Sunday and take them back with her and then they return to the UK on Tuesday. Bless them they are talking about returning next year, health permitting, and if they do my Uncle will be 87!
I am cooking tonight - we are going out for our other meals and as the weather today was quite indifferent up here in the hills we decided that we would eat indoors this evening and I had our meal in the slow cooker in readiness. In fact I had found a timer switch which I hoped would ensure that the slow cooker came on at 2.00pm otherwise we might have been eating quite late. I set the table in readiness and we set off for Emba where we were quite unprepared for the 30 degrees and brilliant sunshine which greeted us. Mum said they hadn't had any rain at all but had been treated to the electrical storm and some rather noisy thunder.
Over the past few years when Joyce and David have visited we have had them to stay with us for a few days but then Dad was alive so it gave him and mum a day or so's break. We are conscious that now things are different and John was worried about leaving Mum on her own even though it is little more than a day as she will be back up with us on Sunday morning. If they do return next year we may have to review this depending on how Mum is feeling. We just thought it would give her a rest from having to think about entertaining for a few days because when you have people with you 24/7 and you are not used to it, it can get a little tiring.


Whilst John cooled down in the pool and I had a shower and then finished off cooking our supper Joyce and David took advantage of the lovely temperature in the conservatory and relaxed before it was declared that the sun had gone over the yardarm somewhere in the world and we had our pre-dinner drinkies!

I had par-boiled the potatoes in stock to give them additional flavour and then made a 'sauce' with caramelised onions, mustard cream and cheese. I had used up some feta which is salty so didn't salt the potatoes but added plenty of black pepper and then finished it off with a thin layer of cheddar cheese - this is then baked in the oven firstly with a cover of tin foil to ensure the potatoes are all fully cooked through and then for a while without so that the cheese melts and browns.
The meat was delicious - John had carved it into thick slices to ensure it didn't fall apart too much and it was beautifully tender and it is most definitely a recipe that I shall do again - I think Mum would like it because she loves ginger.
Our big Friday night in was spent playing Rummikub - and this is what concentration looks like if you are octogenarians - either that or the lighting in our lounge is so 'ambient' that they were struggling to see the tiles!!!! In the end I gave Aunty Joyce a torch so she could be sure she and David could differentiate between the blue and the black colours.
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