What I have loved this week! Week 5. #FridayFavourites

Happy Friday! It has been another wet week here and it has been chilly but I’m trying very hard not to complain because I’ve been keeping an eye on the weather reports from the US and wow! The snow, the ice, the temperatures all looks brutal. I really hope everyone across the pond has managed to stay warm and safe because just watching it on the news makes me want to put the kettle on and wrap myself in another layer. I am of course linking up with Erika and Andrea today to share the things which I have loved from the past week.

Lots of wrestling!

If you know me, you won’t be shocked that wrestling is top of the list again. It has been a big week in our house. We had an extra show on Saturday night and there’s another extra show coming up tomorrow night, which has made the whole week feel a bit more exciting than usual. The event is the Royal Rumble which is always one of my favourites. It’s the one that really sets all the storylines up for the next few months in the WWE. This year it’s being broadcast live from Saudi Arabia, which means we’re being treated to earlier start times. Tonight’s show starts at 5pm and tomorrow’s at 7pm! The Saudi shows are always impressive but this one has really blown my mind. A month ago the site where the arena is was flat ground and over the the last few weeks they've built a full-on custom arena. The speed they work at is unreal.

Hair dye!

Saturday afternoon was hair-dye day. If you dye your hair bright colours you’ll know it’s never a quick job. This was an all afternoon thing. First the bleaching, then washing it out, then the dye, then waiting, then rinsing again. By the end of it I was so sick of the process but happy with the result. I love having bright coloured hair, I always have and I probably always will. Despite what some people think it makes me feel like me and life’s far too short to be boring.

Slow cooker meals!

Every now and then I forget just how brilliant the slow cooker is. I’ll go a few weeks without using it and then wonder why on earth I stopped. This week it made a very welcome comeback. There is something nice about throwing everything in, putting the lid on and letting it do its thing while the house slowly fills with the smell of something delicious. On Tuesday evening, we had pork belly and winter veg pot roast. It’s an oven recipe but it works perfectly in the slow cooker. The meat was soft, the veg was full of flavour and it felt like proper hearty food which was just what we needed on a cold, damp day!

My monthly goals!

At the start of January, I wrote a blog post about my goals for the month. At the time I wasn’t sure if it would be a one-off or something I’d keep up with. As I’m writing this I’ve only got one thing left on that list that I haven’t done and I feel so chuffed with myself. Writing everything down really helped. It gave me that little nudge to actually get things done instead of thinking I’ll do them at some point. I’ve already started writing down ideas for my February goals, which feels like a good sign. I think this is going to turn into a monthly thing.

Harry Potter Hagrid's Hut Terrarium!

I’ve had this Harry Potter Hagrid’s Hut terrarium kit sitting around for ages and I finally got around to starting it last week. I did had to pause to let the plaster of Paris set but I cracked on with it this week and got it finished! I think I did a good job and it's so cute. In a few weeks it will look even better when the grass starts to grow.

Harlan Coben's Run Away!

A gripping 8-part Netflix thriller following Simon Greene, a father searching for his drug-addicted runaway daughter, Paige. After finding her in a park, a violent altercation with her boyfriend, Aaron, leads to a murder investigation where Simon is the prime suspect. The series dives into a dangerous underworld, revealing dark family secrets, betrayals, and the extreme lengths a parent will go to for their child. I am half way though as of writing this and I am enjoying it. There are so many twists and turns.

What have you loved over the last week?

My favourite mug cake recipe!

Sometimes life just calls for dessert! You know when it’s late, the house is quiet and your sweet tooth decides say we must eat cake now! You don’t want to make a whole cake but you are craving something warm, gooey and just a little indulgent. This is where the mug cake comes in. It only takes about 5 minutes to make and I have a favourite recipe which I want to share!

Mug cakes are the ultimate cheat’s dessert. They are quick, fuss free and best of all require minimal washing up. You mix everything straight in a mug, microwave it for a minute or two and voila you have a personal portion of cake ready to go. No mixers and no multiple bowls. The beauty of mug cakes is that you can stick with a classic chocolate, go for vanilla or get a little adventurous with peanut butter, caramel, berries or even a hint of coffee because it’s a single serving you can experiment without feeling guilty about wasting ingredients.

Here’s my go to recipe. It’s rich, chocolatey and comes together in no time. Perfect for when a sugar craving hits and patience isn’t an option!

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons plain flour.

4 tablespoons sugar.

2 tablespoons cocoa powder.

3 tablespoons milk.

2 tablespoons vegetable oil.

Method:

Mix the dry ingredients: the flour, sugar and cocoa powder in a microwave safe mug.

Add the wet ingredients, stir in the milk and oil until smooth. The batter should be thick but pourable. At this stage, if you’re feeling naughty drop in a few chocolate chips or a spoon of peanut butter!

Microwave on high for 70 to 90 seconds. Start with 70 and check. Keep a close eye! Every microwave is different, and you want it moist and soft, not rubbery. The cake will rise above the mug and look like a little chocolate volcano.

Let it cool for a minute, then eat straight from the mug!

Optional extras - Dust with icing sugar, drizzle with chocolate sauce or plop a scoop of ice cream on top.

I’ve tried dozens of mug cake recipes, some disastrous some OK and a few amazing but this one hits the spot. The cocoa powder and sugar ratio is just right, the oil keeps it moist. The best tip I can give you is to use a big mug! If it's too small it will spill over and you don't want to spend the evening cleaning the microwave!

So next time you need a dessert fix and don’t want to bake a whole cake grab your mug, whisk up my favourite chocolate recipe and microwave your way to happiness.

Do you ever make yourself a mug cake?

The Wednesday Hodgepodge #40

I hope you are all having a good week? It's Wednesday which means it's time to join in with the Wednesday Hodgepodge with Joyce who blogs at From This Side of the Pond! Each week there are 6 questions, we answer and then link up. Simple!

1. I live in the south so we're pretty much only talking about the weather right now. Give us a weather report from where you live. Does the kind of weather you're having today affect your mood in some way?

Right now, here in Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire, the weather is doing that very British thing where it can’t quite decide what it wants to be. I’m writing this on Sunday afternoon and we’re looking at a couple of grey, gloomy, damp days. The temperature is hovering around 5C (42F) which is cold enough to make you sigh when you step outside. Wednesday is apparently going to be sunny, dry and bright with temperatures reaching a thrilling 8C (47F). I know that doesn’t sound impressive but at this time of year I will take what I can get. The rest of the week is wet and grey! Ugh!

When it’s wet and grey out, I just feel a bit flat from the moment I look outside. My motivation disappears. I don’t want to start anything, I don’t want to finish anything and I definitely don’t want to be enthusiastic about laundry or housework but then when there is a bright day, like midweek, I will get a boost of motivation and I feel like I can take on the world which will hopefully see me through to the weekend when I don't mind it being grey and wet because weekends are meant for Pjs and cosy days at home.

2. Avocados, kale, cauliflower and cottage cheese have all had their time to shine. 2026 brings us the year of the cabbage. Is this a vegetable you like? If so, what are some of your favorite dishes that call for cabbage?

If you’d asked me this a year ago, I would have said absolutely not. I hated cabbage unless it was shredded into coleslaw. Then last year we were out for Sunday lunch at a pub and cabbage came with my roast dinner. Normally, I’d push it to the side of the plate and pretend it wasn’t there but for some reason I tried it and I loved it. It was green cabbage with bits of bacon and full of flavour, nothing like the cabbage I remembered from my childhood. The following week it was red cabbage and again I loved it too. I’ve tried making it at home since and it’s just not the same. I don’t know what pubs do with cabbage but whatever it is, my version is never quite the same.

3. Was a Cabbage Patch Doll a part of your childhood? Or maybe your children's childhood? What's a toy trend from your childhood you remember wanting for your own?

I remember being at primary school and someone brought a doll in to play Jesus in the school nativity and it was a Cabbage Patch Doll! I fell in love with it instantly. They were the ugliest looking things but all my friends seemed to have one but I never got one. Hmmf.

The toy I asked for every single Christmas and never got was Mr Frosty. If you grew up in the UK, you know, that little fella promised endless slush puppy drinks and endless joy. Looking back, my mum was probably imagining the mess and she was right. In a moment of madness I bought Ellie one about 10 years ago, the Frozen Olaf slush maker which was basically Mr Frosty in a different outfit. It was useless. It didn’t crush the ice, it didn’t make proper slush and it just made a mess! My mum was right!

4. Something you've spent a lot of time doing lately?

I’ve spent a lot of time decluttering lately and it’s one of those things that starts off small and suddenly takes over your life. I’ll go in to sort one cupboard and come out with three bags and a pile of "why do we even own this" items. I’m trying to take it slowly this time. I’ve learned that if I go too hard too fast I get fed up with it and want to avoid it altogether. So I’m doing bits here and there, stopping before I hit that wall and reminding myself that it doesn’t all need doing at once.

5. Somehow it's the last week of January...sum up your month in just three sentences.

January flew by instead of dragging, which feels like a small miracle. I started the month full of cold but now I feel better than I have in ages. It actually feels like I’ve got loads done, which is not the usual January I am used to.

6. Insert your own random thought here.

Question number 2 has really got me thinking, mainly about how pubs and restaurants have some sort of secret power when it comes to food, especially vegetables. Things I would normally not eat at home taste amazing when I am out. Cabbage is a prime example. I am thinking when someone else has cooked it, served it to you and will handle all the washing up afterwards, it just tastes better. I feel the exact same way at home when Stu cooks. Even if he follows the exact same recipe I would, it somehow ends up tasting nicer and I find myself appreciating every bite. When I cook, I’m thinking about the mess, the timing, what still needs doing afterwards and whether I can be bothered to wash that pan straight away or leave it to soak. When he cooks, I just turn up and eat and there's no thinking involved. I think pubs do have a magic touch but I’m fairly sure the real ingredient to enjoying a meal fully is not having to be involved.

My favourite spot in my house: My armchair!

Every house has that spot, the place you automatically head to without thinking, the place your body just knows is home and for me, it isn’t my bed although that is tempting, it isn’t the kitchen as there's too much responsibility there and it definitely isn’t anywhere involving laundry. It’s my armchair! My chair, my spot, the throne. Hehehe

It’s not fancy, it doesn’t recline at the touch of a button or look like something out of a show home but it fits me. It was actually 2nd hand when we got it along with the sofa but it was like brand new. I've been sitting in it for seven years so I think it is holding up well. The cushions are perfectly squished, the arms are at just the right height and there’s a very specific dip where I sit that no one else is allowed to comment on. Everyone in the house knows it’s mine. They can sit in it but they know they shouldn’t and if they do, they’ll get the look.

It’s where I blog from most days with my laptop balanced on my knees and a blanket thrown over my legs even in summer, I think it is a comfort thing. This chair has supported hundreds of blog posts, half finished drafts and those moments where I stare into space wondering how on earth to word what’s in my head. All of my favourite posts started right here. No desk, no fancy setup, just me, my thoughts and my chair. There’s something about sitting here that makes the words come out easier, maybe because I’m relaxed or because I’m surrounded by the normal noise of home. This chair is my writing place!

It’s also my TV watching spot. Whether it’s rubbish daytime telly, something I’ve seen a thousand times or something dramatic that has me shouting at the screen like the characters can hear me. This chair has held me through laugh out loud moments and emotional ones where I pretend I’m fine while reaching for a tissue. 

It’s where I’ve had some of the biggest conversations with my girls. Now that they’re grown our chats are different. Sometimes more serious than I ever expected when they were little. This chair has been the backdrop for talks about life, relationships, worries, plans, mistakes and everything in between. Some conversations start casually. Me sat here, one of them perched on the sofa and suddenly we’re talking about something important without meaning to. Other times one of them will come and sit on the arm of the chair or on the floor nearby and I know it’s about to be one of those chats. It’s where I’ve learned to listen more and to talk with them instead of at them. I've laughed here. Proper belly laughs and I've also cried here, quiet tears, angry tears. This chair has held me while I’ve been strong for my family and then broke down when I am all alone.

When I feel like I’ve done enough for one day, I come here, sit down and breath. Sometimes I scroll mindlessly, sometimes I plan things and sometimes I do absolutely nothing. It’s where I sit with a hot drink and let it go cold because I forgot it was there, where I snack and where I tell myself I’ll get up in a minute and then don’t.

There’s something nice about having a place that doesn’t expect anything from you. I can just sit here and be. This armchair has seen every version of me. Tired me, motivated me, emotional me, happy me and overthinking me at 11pm when the house is quiet and my brain goes into overdrive. I think that’s why it’s my favourite spot, not because it’s the nicest piece of furniture but because it’s part of my life.

It might be just an armchair but it’s also my creative space, my comfort zone, my front row seat to family life and my little bit of calm in a busy house and if you’re wondering no, you still can’t sit in it.

What or where is your happy place in your home?