Happy Homemaker Monday / Menu plan 28th February 2022

 

It is immensely sad what is going on in the Ukraine and I absolutely respect those Ukrainians who are staying to defend their homes. Like the rest of the world it was with sadness and disbelief when I heard that Russia had actually invaded and I am proud of the way the world has reacted and condemned these actions. Even the majority of Russians did not want this to happen. Hoping and praying that it does not escalate and it is over quickly.

 When Covid started I purposely decided to stop listening and reading to the news all the time. I found that I was starting to feel anxious and worried which are not feelings I was used to. I catch headlines so I am aware of what is going on, but I don’t want to dwell on matters that are out of my control. So, I am not going to go write too much about what is going on for my own sanity.

 Weather

We had a glorious weekend weather wise, much needed after the storms of the last few weeks. Today, however it is back to grey and dull. It does look like it is getting brighter towards the end of the week however.

 Menu plan

It is a nice, simple menu plan this week with Pancake Day and Ash Wednesday taking care of two days. Craig and I are at a Masonic Ladies Weekend in Lytham St Anne’s which we are both looking forward to. Emma is going to be cooking for her and Matthew as neither wanted to come along.

Monday – Chicken Caesar Salad

Tuesday – Pancakes

Wednesday – Tatty Ash

Thursday – Ikea meatballs (need to take a trip to Ikea)

Friday, Saturday, Sunday- Away for the weekend

 Craft basket

Starting on the Dumbo element of the Disney Cross Stitch this week once I have purchased a smaller hoop. There are also got some needle felted love birds to finish off and  I have cast on a new dishcloth pattern.

 On the TV.

A couple of months ago Craig and I caught an episode of ‘Death in Paradise’ on TV and we both enjoyed it, so this week we have started watching the programme from the first episode with Ben Millar. 

 On my reading pile

I have about halfway through ‘The Crafternoon Sewcial Club’ by  J Williams which is an easy read. The book club choice this month is ‘If you could see me now’ by Cecilia Aherne. I have also got ‘The Opposite of Butterfly Hunting’ by Evanna Lynch (Luna from Harry Potter) where she retells her life with anorexia when she was a child.

 

Wishing you all a peaceful week.

Linking up with Karen and Sandra as usual.

Making Lattes in a Hotel Chocolat Velvetiser vs Nespresso Vertuo

 We bought Emma a Hotel Chocolat Velvetiser for Christmas as she drinks a lot of hot chocolate and had wanted one for a while. She loves it and it is used at least once a day. I am not a great fan of hot chocolate as I now find it a bit too sweet for my liking.

I am more of a coffee drinker and I have a Nespresso machine which I have had for several years (I took out a subscription so the machine only cost £1). When I found out that you could now get flavoured lattes to make in the Velvetiser I thought I would give them a go and see how they compare to the Nespresso.

I went for the Everyday Selection 10 pack which included 3x Caffe Latte, 3 x Chocolate Latte, 2 x Salted Caramel Latte and 2x Hazelnut Latte for £14. The flavoured coffees at Nespresso cost between £5.20 -£6.20 for 10 Vertuo pods and you only get the one flavour in the pack.

Making the lattes 

In the Velvetiser you simply pour the milk and the contents of the latte sachet into the Velvetiser and press the on button. It takes a couple of minutes to make the latte.

In my Nespresso I have to warm /froth the milk in the aeroccino and put the coffee pod into the Nespresso machine and press the button for the coffee to dispense into the mug. Once the aeroccino has finished you then pour  the milk on top of the coffee and stir.

Taste.

With the Nespresso machine the flavour is quite subtle and sometimes needs a bit of sugar added to really bring it out. That is the same for all the flavours.

With the Velvetiser I found that the Chocolate Latte was very rich and still a bit to chocolately sweet for my taste.

The Caffe Latte again was very rich and despite it only supposed to be coffee flavoured I still felt like there was a hint of a chocolate taste to it.

For both the Caramel latte and the Hazelnut latte I added extra milk once the Velvetiser had finished. This made it less rich which was more palatable for me. However with both there still seemed to be the chocolate undertone.

The Winner.

Although the Velvetiser, according to Emma, makes fantastic hot chocolate I will still to my Nespresso for making Lattes. I find that the Velvetiser is too rich a flavour and is quite thick and creamy for a coffee which is not what I want from a coffee. I found all the Velvetiser lattes a bit sickly and there is no way you would want to drink more than one a day.

The Nespresso is more of the coffee taste and consistency you expect from a latte. I also think that it is better value for money especially if you take out the subscription.

 

I have not been paid nor have received either machine as a gift to undertake this review. This is my own opinion based on products that I paid for myself.

Menu plan /Happy Homemaker Monday 21st February

 

Well, the weather has certainly been a feature here in the UK this past week and the worst is not yet over.  We have been fortunate not to suffer any damage and the power remained throughout. I have to admit I did enjoy lying in bed and listening to the wind blowing outside. Emma has gone to Jersey for a few days to visit her friend. Thankfully she has avoided the storms when she has been flying. She has had a good time and I am looking forward to finding out more when she gets back home.

This week looks a lot calmer and drier and the temperature is about average for this time of year.

Menu Plan

Last weeks menu plan did not really go to plan for different reasons. I am not really holding out much hope for this week at the moment. I am going to repeat some of the recipes from last week as we did not have them.

Monday – YOYO (You’re on your own) There is only Matthew and I for dinner and I am going to quilting group

Tuesday- Spaghetti Carbonara with Garlic bread

Wednesday – Quick Asian Beef Ramen noodles

Thursday – Garlic butter steak and potatoes skillet

Friday- Steak pudding, chips, peas and gravy

Saturday – We are out at a birthday party

Sunday- Roast dinner at In-Laws (this should have been last Sunday)

In my craft basket

I am still working on my long term projects in the evenings ( EPP quilt at quiliting club and the Disney Cross stitch). I have also started the needle felted love birds kit that I hope to finish by the end of the month.

 Currently reading.

Daily Readings- Simple Abundance and Romancing the Ordinary by Sarah Ban Breathnach

The Crafternoon Sewcial Club – J Williams

The Vintage Housekeepers Circle (ebook)- Alison May

 Quote of the Week

I found this on Pinterest and considering everything going on currently thought it was rather appropriate.

Linking up with Sandra and Karen to see what everyone else is enjoying.

Have a good week.

Menu plan / Happy Homemaker Monday 14th February

 

I didn’t bother with a menu plan last week as Matthew and I were the only ones at home in the evenings. Matthew is so picky and what he eats is rather limited that I just did his usual rotation of foods.  I am trying to introduce new foods but he eats with his eyes and I can usually tell whether he will like it by the way he looks at it.

I had a productive weekend and made a shopping bag and a pair of pyjama bottoms for Emma as well as catching up with some friends on Saturday evening.

This week Emma is staying at her boyfriends all week as his parents have gone away so the house is going to be quiet. She is still going to come home to walk Penny except the days when she is in work, so Penny will be going to Doggy Day care. Craig is out Tuesday and Thursday and I am out tonight and Thursday at W.I. meetings.

 To Do

• Order a birthday card for my nephew in Australia
• Book my car in for a service
• Filing of paperwork in post rack
• Tidy garage

 Weather

Not bad for the time of year. Average temperatures just wet which is not what you want when going out for a walk with a dog who likes to go on the muddiest paths.

Menu Plan

 Monday- Yoyo

Tuesday- QuickAsian beef ramen noodles

Wednesday- Butter Chicken

Thursday –Dirty Fries

Friday- Chicken Nachos

Saturday –Gammon and Cauliflower cheese

Sunday- Roast dinner (at Mother-in-Laws)

Currently watching

'Go gently' is a Youtube channel with Bonne Wright (Ginny Weasley from Harry Potter). She tells us how she tries to be more sustainable and to do more to help climate change. I like the fact that she is telling us what she does rather than preaching and being judgemental about everything. The channel also gives a small insight into her life now. It is to accompany the book she has written which when it is released here in the UK I will be buying.

 In my craft basket

• The Disney cross stitch which is my long term home project that I will be working on during the week in the evening (when I am at home).
• Needle felted love birds kit
• Flower filled box frames for Mother’s Day gifts.

Linking up with Karen and Sandra to see what other people are enjoying eating this week.

Wishing you all a good week.

Word of the Week- Insomnia

 

I tend to sleep quite well normally but this week I have really struggled with sleep. I am up at 5.00am during the week so I aim to go to bed no later than 10.00pm. This week however, I have not done that. Craig has been out every evening and I have had been staying up later as I find it difficult to sleep if someone is out of the house at bedtime. I have been working on a cross stitch and wanting to work to a certain point each night or going to craft club. I have also been waking up earlier as well. I have tried using some sleep remedies such as pillow sprays and creams but they haven’t helped me to stay asleep.

I feel as though I have been suffering from jetlag. I am glad that my exam was last week as I have struggled to stay focused at work and I have definitely had brain fog on Wednesday. I am also finding it impossible to motivate myself to do any housework other than the basics. No doubt I will have to catch up this weekend.

I am purposely doing nothing this evening and knowing that I don’t have to get up in the morning hopefully means that I can relax and sleep more and even if I wake up then I don’t necessarily have to get up early.

I have not taken to having any extra caffeine as I don’t want to exacerbate the problem, but I have noticed that I have eaten more sugary based foods. I am trying to drink more water instead which I am finding is helping. (I must remember to do the same when I come back off my holiday later in the year.)

If you have difficulty sleeping what do you do?

Linking up with Anne to see how everybody else's week has gone.

Frobly-Mobly and other fun words

Whilst scrolling through Pinterest the other day a word and definition popped up that I have never heard before but I think is wonderful and I am going to incorporate it into my everyday life. The word was Frobly-Mobly. It is the response you give when someone asks you how you are and it basically means OK. I think that it is a fun answer rather than using the standard and boring response of ‘OK’ or ‘Fine’.

I then became curious to see what other words are out there that people could use to liven conversations up and bamboozle or discombobulate people and this is what I found. 

Fudgel -pretending to work when you are not actually doing anything.                                                                   ( I think most people have been guilty of this)

 Dysania -the state of finding it hard to get out of bed in the morning.

 Ultracrepidarian -a person who criticizes, judges or gives advice outside of their area of expertise

 Twattling- a conversation or reports about other people, typically involving details which are not confirmed as true.

 Groke -to stare at someone while they are eating in the hope that they will share.                                                 (The dog is very good at this 😊)

 Slugabed -a person who stays in bed past the usual or proper time to get up.                                                           (Most teenagers at weekends and during the school holidays)

 Shivviness-the uncomfortable feeling of wearing new underwear.

 Blatherskite – a person who talks at great length.

 Balter -to dance gracelessly without particular art or skill but sometimes with enjoyment.                                   (Aka Dad dancing.)

Crapulence -sick feeling after eating or drinking too much.

Wamble -stomach rumble

Cockalurum -a self important little man.

Tidsoptimist – a person who is always late because they believe they have more time than they do.                                 (Definitely Craig.)

Lanspresado – the one who always shows up with no money.                                                                                            (I think we all know someone this applies to.)

 

Are there any other words that you know that you use that make other people look at you strangely?

Word of the Week -Birthdays

 

This week is bookended by birthdays. Last Saturday was my Mother in Laws birthday and we had most of  the family around for pizza from Costco. We weren’t able to celebrate her 70^th birthday last year due to lockdown so that was why we decided to have everyone around this year. The family all chipped in and bought her a necklace and matching bracelet as a gift. I don’t know about you but generally it gets more difficult to buy for people as they get older.

 On Monday it was one of my brother in law’s birthday (I have 6 in total). He and his family live in Blackpool, so cards had been sent and messages were posted on Whatsapp. We will be seeing him this weekend however when they come over to celebrate another brother in laws 50^th birthday. We are going out as a family to celebrate at a local Indian restaurant tomorrow. We have all clubbed together to get him a voucher for a tattoo. I know he will be happy with that as he had mentioned getting another tattoo and the one he wanted was quite big so no doubt quite expensive.

 Craig and I took him out last night on his actual birthday to Tampopo. He wanted some advice on getting a new phone so we went with him to get a new one and then went on to eat. My brother-in-law is not a big fan anymore of big parties which is why we are having a family meal instead. His children did not have anything planned for the day and we felt that even though we were celebrating on Saturday we had to do something on the day. The staff at Tampopo brought over a chocolate dessert and sang Happy Birthday to him when they found out. He reveled in the attention. I on the other hand would have gone bright red with embarrassment.

Linking up with Anne at Raisie Bay as usual.

Wishing you all a good weekend.

Deborah