I didn't take any pictures of our first company meal last night because I was in hostess mode, but we had friends and their son over for dinner. It happened somehwat spontaneously. Merrit's off school this week for the half-term holiday and was excited to help menu-plan and cook lunches and dinners for the week. For last night's dinner, he wanted to make lasagna, salad and bread.
Since lasagna feeds a crowd, we called our friends to see if they had plans. It worked out perfectly for them because they were just returning from an overnight camping trip. They said yes, and our dinner date was set.
As the smell of baking lasagna filled the house, I realized that our table only seats four...and we were having a dinner party for seven. Oops. Now what?
I decided to take a page from my mother-in-law's book and "eat in shifts" as she says! (She's used to cooking for a crowd!) So, when our guests arrived with a bottle of wine and dessert (or pudding, as they say), I poured us each a glass of wine and fixed up the kids' plates. While the kids ate in the kitchen, we sat in the living room and talked. Only a few times did Ollie, smeared with red sauce, run into our living room (with its white couch!) and ask for "MORE ZANNYA, MOMMY."
My friend J and I wiped down faces and hands, cleared and wiped down the table while Mike and L set up a TV show for the kids to watch. Then the adults ate.
I say it's minimalist entertaining because we didn't have enough seats, I had to wash plates between courses (kids' plates did double duty as dessert plates later), and we all ate right in our small kitchen. It was a bit tight--and hot since I'd had the oven on for over an hour--so opening the french doors to the back courtyard relieved any clausterphobia we might have otherwise felt.
That was fine, since Mike and L and the kids all sort of wandered out there from time to time. It was a nice evening; the rain had cleared and, of course, it was still daylight even at 9:00pm.
We let the kids stay up until almost 10:00pm (still daylight!) since there's no school tomorrow.
Cleaning up was a cinch--minimalist again--because I'd hardly dirtied any dishes and had already cleaned up after the kids' meal. Four dinner plates, four salad bowls, four dessert plates, four wine glasses, cutlery. In the tiny dishwasher. Done.
With our first dinner party behind us, I think we'll have to do it again soon!
We set out late on Saturday morning for The Holy Island of Lindisfarne, our first trip in our new-to-us car. The island is about an hour and 20 minutes from our home in Whitley Bay and is about 15 minutes past Bamburgh Castle, which we visited earlier this spring.
On our way, we stopped for lunch in the Village of Alnmouth. The grey cloud cover that had followed us all the way from Whitley Bay suddenly cleared, making our stopover in this sweet little ocean-front town all the more stunning.
We drove through the town once or twice, looking for a place to eat. There were two coffee shops, two inns/pubs, and a sandwich shop by the golf course. We flipped a coin (not really) between the two pubs and settled on The Sun Inn.
We had a delicious starter of warm bread and just-from-the-oven Camembert cheese. For our meal, the boys shared a 100% Brittish beef hamburger (a bit overcooked) with baked beans (a staple side dish!) and chips (aka French fries). I ordered steamed mussels, which were good, but Mike didn't like his meal so he ate my mussels and I ate his crayfish salad on a baguette. It was okay, but I was eyeing MY mussels the whole time. :-)
This pub served proper English ales, meaning hand pumped and just a bit cooler than room temp.
Merrit is looking so grown up these days with those adult front teeth coming in! The boys have always been pretty good restaurant-goers. It helps that they love food, I guess, but it definitely makes it more enjoyable for us when we know that they'll sit (relatively) still for an hour or so while we have a nice meal out.
Sound-front terraced homes in Alnmouth.
The tide going out from the sound back into the North Sea.
Dunes. Wildflowers. Gorgeous.
Can you believe these poppies?
Are these wild or have they been planted here? So picturesque!
Poppies are blooming everywhere right now. The petals look like paper.
Everywhere we looked along this seafront walkway,
we took in beautiful ocean views.
This makes me think of the North Carolina coast and the sea oats.
The sound with boats, and the English countryside beyond.
Don't know the story of this cross on a hill in Alnmouth,
but it's very striking.
We drove a little farther north along the Coastal Route, a scenic network of highways that run along the northeast coastline of England, until we came to the turnoff for The Holy Island of Lindisfarne.
A few people--namely the receptionist at my chiropractor's office--have told us that we should go to Lindisfarne. There's a castle, and a priory, and a village, and a tidal causeway that's only passable at low tide...and is famous for stranding over-confident tourists and locals alike.
When we arrived at the causeway, cars were lined up, waiting to cross. I hopped out of the car to read the posted sign of the tidal schedule and crossing times. Why did I bother? I should know by now that posted rules and regulations mean less than nothing to Mike.
The sign said we could safely cross at 2:40pm. It was 1:50pm. What we thought was an ambulance, but actually turned out to be a refrigerated fresh-seafood-from-Scotland truck, was the first to cross. Then other trucks and SUVs--vehicles with high suspensions--started crossing successfully.
Mike inched our car to the front of the line, front tires resting in the receding water. It was receding fast, too! As we sat there, it must have gone out another 10 feet just 15 minutes, while I bought chocolate-covered vanilla pops from an ice cream truck.
It looks cold, but it was actually quite warm, but windy.
Parked at the waterline, Mike considers making a break for it.
Trusty camera at our side, we of course filmed our crossing, complete with Mike saying he's teaching the kids how to have an adventure, and me being nervous and asking, "Did we make it?" (hello, if I can ask that question, I guess we did!)...it's dorky, but here it is...
Wow! Lindisfarne. Stunning. There's no other word. This is definitely one of the places we will bring family and friends when they come visit. We parked the car, as it's a pedestrian-only village, and started walking. It was windy, but warm and sunny. What a gorgeous day to be in such a picture-postcard setting.
As we stood on the grassy bank of this U-shaped rocky harbor, I said to Mike the 360-degree view was just surreal. At 11:00, the Lindisfarne Castle (you can see it in the distance); at 12:00, this gently lapping harbor of teal-blue water with fishing boats bobbing about and our boys pitching smooth stones into the water; at 4:00, the ruins of the ancient priory; at 7:00, the quaint village with row houses and shops and roses in bloom; and from 8:00 to 11:00, greener-than-possible fields, herds of sheep, and low rock walls. Everywhere you looked was something impossible.
We walked up to the castle gate, but realized that we didn't have our National Trust Membership Cards with us. (Because we are members, we could get into the castle for free WITH our cards; but without them it would have cost us about £25.00. So, we opted to skip the castle this time, and come back another time.
Ollie at the Lindisfarne beach.
The boys found these painted rocks. Not sure who put
these here...?
Is there anything more English than a stacked-rock wall and field of sheep?
Mike and Merrit approaching Lindisfarne Castle.
We'll come back another day....
Mike (and probably our Euro-car-fanatic-friend, Jer) will just kill me for not knowing any details about this car other than it's a four door, silver BMW. But, here it is!
Here's the car in front of our house. The car has a huge trunk, cloth interior,
a CD/tape/iPod stereo, and is very clean inside and out.
Looks lean and mean, right?
Not bad for a family car. :-)
Well, I do know a few other details. It's 10 years old and has decent mileage (don't know the numbers). Omgosh, this is such a girl post!
I do know that Mike did a lot of research, looking around, and talked the seller down a bit. We got a great deal on it, and were able to buy it with cash. That feels good.
So, hopefully, we'll be out and about this weekend. We are thinking about where to take our sporty new family car on its maiden voyage. Any suggestions?
Homemade ice cream from Delaval's, a little pizza, coffee, and ice cream
shop by the seafront. Best pizza in town! And I hadn't tried their ice cream til the fayre.
It was yummy.
On Saturday, we attended the Spring Fayre for Merrit's school. My second attempt at scone-baking was brilliant. This time, I got the oven temp right and the results were fab. I was a tad worried that because I only had 1 ounce of frozen, shaved butter instead of 1 1/2 ounces, they wouldn't be good, but I used vegetable oil to make up the difference without any problem. They didn't have quite the rise that they would have otherwise had, but the flavor was nice and buttery! (See how I'm working in those British adjectives like "brilliant" and "fab"? They really do say them here!)
So, yep, this American was representin' at the loaded-up table of scones baked by English mums!
The spring fayre was great! We all had an awesome time. As a fundraiser, I think it was a big success. Everything cost a little something, but not much. For instance, admission was 50 pence (or 50p). There was a bouncy castle for a pound, an inflatable slide for 50p, and a few other small activities for kids to do (Guess how many jelly beans in the jar for 20p, etc.). And face painting of course. And a costume contest.
5 minutes on the slide for 1 pound per kid.
Ollie is so brave. He held his own with much bigger kids.
Fearless, that one.
Inside, there were tables set up where local shopkeepers were selling items and food. I think a lot of the shops and restaurants and booth-owners had donated the proceeds of, or at the very least the profits from, their booths.
We bought and shared some Indian onion bhajis for 1 pound (think hush puppies but made from onions). And the boys shared a Sticky Toffee Muffin that I bought for 1 pound.
30p for these cute little cupcakes.
Merrit wondered if the glitter was edible.
How cute is this flag?!
Ollie chowed down on his half-muffin.
One area of the school had a large rummage sale, where parents had donated toys; all were selling for between 20p and 1 pound. It was super crowded in there, and we don't need anything like that, so we didn't go in to browse.
Out on the Astroturf field, there was a cool obstacle course set up. (in the background)
The boys playing on The Timber Trail, a permanent feature of the playground.
Sort of like a low, kid-friendly ropes course.
I bet the silent auction raised a lot of money. I bid on a Mom's Relaxation Package (massage, pedicure, manicure, bottle of wine) but didn't win. There were other cool packages. Like a golf package, a few different family outing packages, and kids packages.
I heard from a mom at the school that, all told, the school raised about £5,000 (about $8,200). That's awesome.
The boys on the rock climbing wall.
Merit with one of his friends from class, Jai.
The coolest part of the whole thing, I think, is that people had fun. No one was guilted into buying anything that they didn't want. Nothing was overpriced. And it was a community-wide effort. And that was the school's main fundraiser for the year.
Why don't American schools do this type of thing instead of sending the kids door to door selling tins of popcorn and scented candles?
You room moms and PTA volunteers, can you shed some light on this? I'm so curious. Since we weren't really "in" the school system back home--we homeschooled--maybe there's something I'm missing...? Not trying to hate. Just sayin'.
In any case, I'm glad my donated scones were sold--and eaten--for a good cause!
Hello Errbody- Mike here...Mir and I have taken some pictures since we've been here walking the streets-- oddities, funny shots. There are some things that appear to be normal to the English but I can't help but simply point and laugh.
????!!!! Uh, yeah.
Just like the package says, you asked for it!
Poor Tino. I can only imagine him flying over the world, with the wind in
his face/beak, thinking to himself, "Man, I sure miss that cage."
It's a little faux pas in the U.S., but apparently it's okay
for English children to show their Dixie pride!
This is a fashion store for homeless people.
Seriously though, this clothing store hadn't opened yet.
Modesty is an English value.
"Excuse me....ah, yes...I'll take a ham and cheese panini, a couple of
pork faggots, and a parka. To go."
(FYI, a jacket is what the Brits call a baked potato.)
Okay, when did Chlamydia become the latest
Pokemon character?
If there's anything the English are good at, it's standing in line.
I was simply standing on the side of the street, looking at my phone, near
a vendor...and then I looked up and there were about six people standing
behind me, in line. I actually had to say, "I'm not waiting for anything."
Nothing like thinking about the mafia when you're strapped in a chair
and the guy behind you has a straight razor.
Because fish and chips is a gateway drug to the hard stuff.
Like HP Sauce.
"I say, have you noticed how smelly my wheellie bin is today?"
"Why no. I thought that was MY wheelie bin."
Awkward.
and the two of us,
now parents, exhausted after three years--
just a season, really--
But a season of hospitalizations and traumas--
a tracheostomy tube for our four-day-old firstborn
a g-tube in his tummy for my milk
a cleft palate repair, and brutal recovery
nursing staff down the hall while we slept
my unplanned, unwanted c-section
my hard-headed will to breast pump his milk.
And the palm-tree breeze of Isle Mujeres,
sifting that stress away like sand,
reconnecting us, resurrecting us.
With our boy, safe
home with grandparents,
his hospitalizations and traumas behind him,
behind us.
We all miss this furball, especially Merrit! Skippy is his nighttime snuggle buddy.
We got an email update from our friends, Jer and Kara, who are keeping our two cats, Skippy and Jenga, for six months, the legal waiting period for entry into the UK. Three months down, three to go! With three cats of their own, a dog, and their almost-one-year-old daughter Emmie, they've got a house full! How can we ever thank them for taking such good care of our two rugrats?! And now, here's Jer:
The cats are doing just fine. Skippy has claimed the glider in Emmie's room as her spot outside of when we have the door closed with Emmie taking a nap or for the first hour or so she's asleep at night. If we're watching TV she's either on the back of the couch as a nice headrest for me or half on Kara's lap purring away. Otherwise, she's sharing our bed with Jenga or sun bathing in the kitchen plant window (see picture).
Both she and Jenga are no longer shy about letting us know when they THINK they need food--even if it's the wee hours when one of us has gotten up to check on Em or use the bathroom. The all-caps are because they almost always have the special food that we have to give Pito, like the rest of the cats, but aren't very fond of it without mixing in some of the remaining other foods we still have. I keep telling them (all) it won't be long until it's only the special food that's left and there will be no more mixing to please their palates, but I don't think they believe my threats just yet as they have become quite skilled at eating mainly the other food from the mix.
Both have also learned from Pito, the water quality inspector, that they can persuade us to give them more water almost whenever they decide the existing filtered water isn't fresh enough. Skippy uses both her voice and a recently developed technique of scraping the metal bowl with her claws to get the point across. With all the talking from the cats we still don't cave outside of when it's reasonably close to the schedule. :)
Both your cats along with ours are also doing much better interacting with Emmie--maybe tolerating is the better word. Of course, she's getting better about not just grabbing as much hair as possible with a vice-grip hold! They're getting plenty of attention and care with now being halfway through their stay with us. August will be here before we know it!
The floury mess, the lid off the milk...made me think of my mother in law's kitchen!
I had to take this picture of the post-scone kitchen mayhem for you, Delores. :-)
This Saturday is the Spring Fayre at Merrit's school, and the parents have been asked to bring in scones for a bake sale. Scones are like sweet Southern-style biscuits with mix-ins, sometimes savory (cheese) and sometimes sweet (dried fruit, berries, or nuts). Is your mouth watering?
I have been taste testing scones from various shops and bakeries around town (see how I made that sound scientific?), but I wasn't ready to try baking them yet, given my history with The Scone's close cousin, The Biscuit. [Cue scary music.]
Last year, one of my New Year's Resolution was to finally get the hang of making a good biscuit--not even perfect, just good, since Biscuit Perfection comes only from Delores's kitchen. I kept at it, combining Delores's technique (always, always use White Lily and knead 10 times in the bowl before turning out the dough--no more, no less) with a little of Alton Brown's recipe (use half butter, half shortening) with a few of my own adaptations (bake it on a pizza stone instead of a cookie sheet).
So, yeah, I actually got the hang of it. Biscuits, that is.
Scones?
Not so much.
It doesn't matter how prettily you arrange them on the plate. Still sad.
All was going well in the beginning. I learned, from Delores, that you should be choosy about your self-rising flour and to use what women-who-know have used for generations. At home, that means White Lily. Here it's Be-Ro. I found the original Be-Ro scone recipe online (great little story here, too). And so that's the one I decided to use. Here it is:
Rich Scones (original Be-Ro recipe)
8 oz BE-RO self raising flour.
Half a teaspoon of salt.
1 ½ oz lard.
1 oz sugar.
Milk to make a soft dough.
2 teaspoonfuls of currents or sultanas.
1 egg beaten.
Method Mix flour and salt in a basin, rub in the lard./ Mix in the sugar and fruit. Stir in beaten egg and sufficient milk to make a soft dough. Roll out to a thickness of half an inch and cut into rounds with a 2½ inch scone cutter. Place on a greased baking tray, brush the tops with beaten egg and bake in a hot oven (425c) for about 10 minutes
Makes 14 scones
I had to make a few adaptations. Didn't have lard but read online that the best replacement for lard in a scone is to grate frozen butter and work it in while it is still cold.
I have a food scale, otherwise I would have been stumped with the amounts given
in the recipe.
I wanted walnuts in my scones so I added 1 teaspoon of walnuts
to the 2 teaspoons of raisins that the recipe called for.
Here's where things went horribly wrong. The recipe says bake at 425 degrees
Centigrade for about 10 minutes. As you can see, my oven goes to 225 C and
then just says "MAX." Hmmmmm....so, yeah, I just put it on "MAX." Makes sense.
After 10 minutes, the scones looked perfectly delicious! I brewed tea. I took the one that looked most like a "reject" since the rest would be for the school's spring fayre and put it on the plate. Beautiful!
Yorkshire tea. Strawberry jam. Freshly baked scone. All at 4:00pm, perfect timing. My first English tea at home! I must say I was pretty pleased with myself.
Until I realized the scones weren't done on the inside. Oops.
Back in the oven. I turned the heat down a bit. At this point, I had nothing to lose so I was just eyeballing the oven temp and guessing at the baking time. Five minutes later, the tops were scorched. Dang it!
Tomorrow: Take two. I have conquered The Biscuit. I can also conquer The Scone! Just wait and see...
