Hot Topics Q & A #2

 As before, a question I have answered for myself, and a second one where I need your input please!
[1] Am I Picking Up Good Hydration?

I think so, and I am humming Beach Boys Songs all the time, in this long, hot summer. My best hydration tip is use a smallish coffee flask, and put ice cubes in when you fill it. That keeps the water chilled all day. A big flask is just too heavy to carry around - and you can usually find a suitable tap for refilling if you drink the lot. Eating food with a high water content is really helpful too. A cubes of water melon, slices of cucumber, a thin broth type soup - all these help hydrate. I'm also leaving a filled bowl at the end of the past for all the pooches who potter past with their owners in the blistering heat. Our pets need hydrating too.

[2] Box Shocks?!?

One of my lovely little box trees is looking really sparse and sad. Lots of leaves have gone brown and crispy. I have kept watering and some new ones have appeared, but it has completely lots its charming conical shape. SIL suggested it was in the wrong spot by the front door, as it is in full sun all day. She recommended moving it to the shade and giving it a long cool drink in a bucket of water. As I was doing that, one of the many dog walkers passed, and said "Box Caterpillar!" It seems these little beasties are running rampant through the village . "We had a box hedge for twenty years and it has disappeared almost overnight." I cannot see any caterpillars on either bush. Should I leave the brown crispy foliage in situ or attempt to brush it away? I will not attempt to trim the topiary into shape until it has a full head of lush green foliage, 
Have you any experience of Box Caterpillars? 

Thank you all. The box on the other side of the front door seems ok. But I will sadly have to dispose of this one....

Monday Madness

We went over to Kings Lynn to collect my embroidery machine [a long overdue service] and Liz and the girls came with us. We had a fun time exploring charity shops. Then we came back to Cornerstones. By our front door is a green bin for parcels. I keep a brick in it, to stop it blowing over. When we come home, we lift the lid, and usually say "just a brick!" Rosie has shortened this now to JAB! Today Jess ran to the bin and said Jab! But on the doormat was this card

We checked the parcel bin again. Then the big wheelie bin round the corner. The parcel was there.

Fortunately the bin was otherwise empty. But that is not a safe place!!!

The other bit of post had the most wonderful address

I love the idea of Bob Almond at His Shed.

He went off to do stuff, as did Liz. I was with the girls.

I'd promised Rosie she could have some nail varnish I didn't want. 

Jess volunteered to paint my toenails for me. 

I was given no choice about the colour.

I really must get her Auntie Steph to give her some tuition!

The things we grandmas do!

Hot Topics Q&A #1

 Still hot here. I have an answer for one question, and then a question for which I'd really appreciate your answers. Thank you.

[1] What Are Chafeguards?

Safeguards are things which guard us from anything unsafe. Chafeguards is my word for things which guard us from painful chafing in hot, sticky, sweaty weather. First up, baby powder

Baby powder these days is no longer talcum. In the UK/EU the rules are very strict about the purity of traditional talc. In the USA, there have been cases of cheaper talc containing carcinogenic asbestos. But Boots and major supermarkets are all using cornstarch. A dusting on your skin helps all those areas which get sweaty and maybe sore. Rub it on your sandy feet and it will leave them clean, soft and comfortable when you put your shoes on. 

Chub-Rub shorts are fabulous. In hot sticky weather I find it really uncomfortable wearing a dress, my thighs rub and chafe. A pair of these under my skirt makes such a difference. I use Snag. They are light and fit perfectly. Liz recommends Primark cotton cycling shorts. As Carole King [almost] sang, Can I believe the magic of your thighs? Will you still love me tomorrow? 

[2] Are you a [S]crimper?
I keep being sent links to this offer - a free mini crimpit wrap. I can see the potential usefulness of this gadget for making quick snacks in the airfryer.  I read a few reviews which went from 5* genius, use it everyday to 1* useless, I could get the same result with beaten egg and a fork. Have any of you out there got one, and how would you rate it? Crimp and Rave, or Scrimp and Save?

Faithful and Brave

 April 2015, Bob and I took Liz and Jon to Oxburgh Hall - the lovely NT Property the other side of Swaffham. Liz and I climbed into the Priest's Hole - and got our stickers to prove it. I cannot imagine what it must be like to know that at any moment you could be imprisoned or executed for your faith. The Bedingfield Family, who had owned Oxburgh for centuries were staunch Catholics, and throughout the turbulent Tudor period, were 'recusants' - practising their faith as they believed they should. 
When we visited on Saturday with Liz and the girls we were being bright and cheerful. Jess loved taking part in the Summer of Play activities. Lots of games on the grass she could get involved with, and she really enjoyed herself. She was a princess bricked up in a tower by her Mum - from which she escaped with enthusiasm, and she played giant dominoes with Grandad.

Rosie and I went into the house, we looked at various things [including down into the Hole, which was roped off to visitors]
I showed her the picture from 11 years ago afterwards. We also looked at the display regarding the Regency Period.

There were beautiful golden masks for people to try - opposite a grand mirror so they could admire themselves. But my main reason for wanting to go was to see the Esther Tapestry. This is a wonderful story. This huge Flemish Tapestry, created in Tudor times, featured story of Queen Esther, and for centuries a set of 7 pieces hung in the Hall. Then in 1924 they were sold, and went to the USA.

People tried to track them down but failed. Until last year, when one of the set was spotted in a sale in Maastricht by Jeremy Warren, a NT curator. A huge amount of money was raised [total unspecified - rumour has it £1.5 million +!] from NT funds, the V&A, The Art Fund and private donations.

And in June the tapestry finally came home.

It is a fabulous piece of work. The detail of the weaving is astounding. Rosie commented on the Queen's dress and cloak and said she thought it was "beautiful, because you could see the textures in the Queen's dress".  I think the tassels along the top are fun.

I had hoped to buy a postcard but they have yet to arrive in the shop. I shall return in the autumn on a quiet weekday. OH was quite busy over the weekend. Unlike the Mary Queen Of Scots embroideries, and the Bayeux Tapestry, this piece is a woven tapestry. Rosie is rightly proud of her Flemish ancestors. 

I told her the story of Esther, and she remembered watching a film about Purim, the annual Jewish festival commemorating this brave woman, who risked her life to save her people.

I do hope they find the other tapestries in the set some day!

Grandparents went to the bookshop whilst the girls and Mum walked round the grounds. Then we all ate ice creams in the shade. Thank you to my family, and the NT for another day of fun and sun.

 

Home Is Where The Heart Is

 

Hooked On Hats

 At the start of her Norfolk Holiday, Rosie found a lady with a little stall, selling goods for charity. She fell in love with this crocheted sunflower hat, and happily handed over £2 for it. Yesterday Ro and I had to go into Norwich together - lots of people commented on the hat! It is the sort of thing I'd have worn back in the seventies.Careful inspection revealed it to be 5 granny squares and a frill.
Internet research has produced the free pattern if you want to make your own. I cannot guarantee you will look as charming as she does though!

Buzz Off!

It is official. There are definitely more flies around this summer. The hot weather, and fewer wasps, mean there are greater numbers of them. I have an electric zapper in the kitchen, it's blue light glows eeerily in the evening, but it seems to work there. But we still get them flying round in the other rooms. 

I'm trying to avoid developing an irrational hatred of these creatures. This article was very informative. Keeping surfaces clean, and all food covered is important. Apples are in the fridge, not the fruit bowl. And bananas are inside a cupboard. And because I like to make tea in a teapot, and have a jug of milk, I've unearthed my jug cover. 

It's the vintage doyley I edged with beads five years ago. A traditional solution, and it works beautifully.

I was out in a park with an old friend this week. Some guys were packing away a display about bees. There was a big photo frame. In the absence of grandchildren, we seized the moment for ourselves. 

I now realise flies are important pollinators. There are some plants which are only pollinated by flies [like cacao - no flies, no chocolate!] But I still struggle with their increased presence in my home. 

Bees are much cuter! 

How do you cope with house flies?