The Wednesday Hodgepodge #65

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. Do your goals and dreams energize or exhaust you? Elaborate.

For me, my goals and dreams energise me! I write a goals and plans post every month here on my blog and there's something about writing everything down that gives me a kick up the backside to get those things done. I write myself a to-do list most days of jobs to do around the house that I work my way through it. I don't always get everything done but I don't feel overwhelmed, I feel motivated that at least I got something done. Sometimes there are just not enough hours in the day.

2. July 23rd is national lemon day. Are you a fan of this flavor? What's a favorite dish or beverage you enjoy that calls for lemons?

I am not a big fan of lemons. I don't hate them but I don't go out of my way to choose lemon flavoured things. There are a couple of exceptions though. 

You can't beat a glass of lemonade with lots of ice on a really hot day, there is nothing better. It's so refreshing and I also wouldn't say no to a slice of lemon drizzle cake. I don't eat it very often but if someone offered me a slice with a cup of tea, I'd happily tuck in and enjoy it and think to myself why don't I eat it more. I do enjoy using lemon scented things to clean with though, everything always smells so fresh!

3. "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade"...is this something you're pretty good at managing? Have you had to do this recently? If so tell us about it.

I like to think I'm quite good at making the best of a situation. I'll probably have a little moan about it first but then I usually start thinking about what I can do instead of focusing on what I can't. A good example recently has been the really hot weather. I love summer but there have been points where it has been too hot to do everything that I have wanted to outside. Instead of going out for the day or getting jobs done around the garden, it has been better to stay inside where it's cooler and I've used the time to catch up on blogging, watch a film and tackle a few jobs around the house that I'd been putting off. Thankfully it has cooled down now to a more manageable temperature. 

4. Something you love that is lemon yellow in color?

My mind has gone blank and the only thing I can think of is sunflowers! They just look so cheerful and always remind me of summer. I have some growing in my garden that are as tall as me and they look like they should be blooming any day now! This one was from last year!

5. How would you describe your attention to detail?

My attention to detail is pretty good, especially when it comes to things that matter to me. If you’re expecting perfection in my blog posts, you’re looking in the wrong place. I definitely have the odd typo, spelling mistake or completely miss some punctuation. I’m more focused on sharing the story and getting my point across than I am about pleasing the grammar police. When it comes to attention to detail with my family, it is so important to keep things running smoothly with things, like noticing when we're running out of milk, using up food before it goes bad, remembering important dates, following new recipes properly so they're a hit with my family and remembering small details that my girls have told me.

6. Insert your own random thought here.

I’m writing this on a Sunday afternoon and I’m still buzzing from last night’s France v England game. What a match! That was proper football, the kind that reminds me exactly why I fell in love with the game in the first place. Both teams went out there and gave absolutely everything but it was so refreshing to see it played the right way. No silly drama, no nonsense with alleged corruption and none of that nasty stuff on the pitch. No dodgy fouls or anyone trying to hurt each other, it was just two teams playing with real skill and enjoying themselves. And because they were enjoying it, I loved watching it at home. It was just brilliant from start to finish. The excitement and the respect that both sides showed each other!

One of my favourite summer days out! The agricultural show!

The Winterton Agricultural Show is something we have been going to ever since we moved to North Lincolnshire seven years ago and it has become one of those days that I always look forward to every summer. It's a traditional country show and has a brilliant mix of farming, food, shopping and entertainment, so even if you don't know the first thing about agriculture, there's still loads to enjoy. There's cattle, sheep, horses, vintage tractors and classic vehicles alongside food stalls, local businesses, craft tents, fairground rides, live entertainment and displays in the main arena. There really is something for everyone.

The day didn't exactly get off to a smooth start! My dad had two vintage cars to take to the show and has spent all his time working on the Reliant Ant (the orange one) to make that show worthy and he just assumed his Reliant Scimitar (the yellow one) was good to run as he last drove it a couple of weeks ago. Well, on Saturday morning he was supposed to pick Stu and me up as he was driving the Ant and my brother was driving the Scimitar. That didn't happen as the Reliant Scimitar had a petrol leak! The whole pipe was split and when we arrived at my dad's my brother was underneath it and not in the best mood as he was in his nice clothes with stinky overalls over them. A wheel had to come off so they could repair the petrol pipe and they had an hour to do it. Amazingly, we were on our way to the show in 45 minutes. Of course, it wasn't the end of the little hiccups. Just as we got out of my dad's gate, the Scimitar broke down. My brother and I were behind and my brother went out and gave it a push start. What a drama! We made it there with time to spare and the big bonus was Stu and I got in as my dad and brother's guests, so we saved ourselves £15 each, the entry fee!

First up was finding something to eat since we had missed breakfast. One of the things I love about the Winterton Show is the food. There are always loads of food vans selling everything from burgers and loaded fries to cakes, ice cream and fresh coffee. We got a bacon sandwich and a fancy coffee to get us going.

We never have a real plan for the show, we do a lot of wandering with little stops to look at things. We wandered past the motorbikes, had a look at the sheep, stopped to admire some beautiful owls and browsed a few random trade stalls selling everything you can imagine.

Eventually, we made our way over to the main arena to see what was happening. There were cattle being judged along with the amazing agricultural horses. I don't think you ever quite realise just how enormous some of these horses are until you're sat looking at them. It's lovely watching the owners proudly walking them around the arena after all the hard work that clearly goes into preparing them.

After that came the Driving Turnout. An equestrian event where competitors show off horses or ponies harnessed to vintage, classic, or traditional carriages. It's one of those things which is so relaxing to watch and it's nice to see traditions being kept alive.

When that was finishing off, we decided to visit the craft tent and do my favourite thing at the show, shopping! I can never resist looking around all the handmade stalls. Last year I held off buying things until the end of the day and a lot of what I wanted was sold out. This time I wasn't holding back and the bonus of my dad being there was that I could drop anything I bought off with him, so I didn't have to carry it around.

Last year I bought a horse print from a little company called Keeper Kraft. They make handmade pictures made from upcycled shotgun cartridges and feathers. I got the feather one because the shotgun cartridge ones had sold out. This time I got one! I also bought a gorgeous framed glass art from Smythical Media, a knitted plant, the most amazing fudge and a few other things!

After dropping everything off with my dad, we headed back to the main arena just in time for the Scurry racing. If you've never seen it before, imagine Formula One but with ponies. lol Tiny ponies pull lightweight carriages around an obstacle course as fast as they can. If they knock over obstacles, they get time penalties added to their score. Even after coming to the show for years, I still love watching it. Everyone around us was cheering as the ponies raced around the course and it became far more exciting than you'd expect if someone simply described it to you.

It was coming up to lunchtime and there was only one thing we wanted, the stone-baked pizza made in a little truck. We've had it the last couple of years and it is amazing! I am a bad blogger and didn't take a photo. We made it back to the main arena in time to see the floats coming in! Local schools and community groups spend weeks building and decorating the floats and the procession travels through the streets allowing the local community to cheer on the participants before the floats reach the showground and are led in by a marching band. They get judged and prizes are awarded for the most creative or best decorated ones.

We then went for another wander, stopped off at the beer tent for a pint of something cold, had a catch-up with my brother and my dad's partner and then gave into Ellie's nagging of wanting to go on the fairground rides. Stu and the girls went on the Twister, Becky chickened out of going on the Waltzers so it was just Stu and Ellie and only Ellie was brave enough to go on the Miami. It's a ride that is a long row of seats which spins in vertical circles. It's not for me, just watching it made my stomach turn!

To finish the day, we headed back to the main arena to watch the Bold Dog FMX stunt team. The riders performed huge jumps, backflips and tricks on motorbikes, which was something quite amazing to see!

By the time we left, we realised we had been there for about 7 hours and fitted so much into our day! It was so much fun and when we got home we were more than ready to sit down for the rest of the evening! It was another great year at the country show and we will be back next year!

Our weekly meal plan! 20th - 26th July!! #MealPlanningMonday

Happy Monday! I hope you all had a lovely weekend. Our weekend was a quiet one but nice. I did a bit of gardening on Saturday, along with the normal housework and yesterday was spent watching sport. The F1 Belgian Grand Prix and of course the World Cup final. I've watched nearly every other match, so had to really.

Last week's meal plan went well. We ate everything I had planned and on the day I had planned too! It felt like I was winning at life. lol All the meals went down really well and were eaten without any complaints. I do like it when that happens.

This week we have a few things going on and Ellie and I are going to go on a little adventure which I will share more at a later date. Oh! and the UK is getting a new Prime Minister today. Andy Burnham is the 7th in the last 10 years, which seems crazy but it happened. Eek! Can we not just get a good one and stick with them for a while?

On the menu this week we have:

Monday - Chicken satay salad!

This is something different for us because we've never actually had chicken satay salad before. Obviously, we've had chicken satay and we've of course had salad but we've never thought about putting the two together. It's marinated chicken served with salad and topped with a satay dressing. The recipe also includes pomegranate seeds but I think we'll give those a miss this time. The dressing is the bit I'm most looking forward to though, we love satay sauce here.

Tuesday - Tuna Patties and sweet potato fries.

Tuna is one of those things I always seem to have hiding at the back of the cupboard and it usually gets thrown into a sandwich or mixed into pasta when I need something quick but this recipe caught my eye because it’s a bit different. The patties are made by mixing the tuna with herbs, a little lemon, Dijon mustard, breadcrumbs and egg to help everything stick together. They’re then cooked until they’re golden on the outside. I’m really curious to see what everyone thinks of this one because it’s not something I would usually make.

Wednesday - A help yourself evening.

This is one of those easy tea nights where everyone can help themselves to whatever's in the fridge. There should be plenty of leftovers to choose from, so nothing will go to waste. Ellie and I are out for the day and I already know that by the time we get home I won't be in the mood to start cooking.

Thursday - Ham pasta bake!

I found this recipe on the NHS website when I was looking for recipes to use up leftover ham and even though it's aimed towards little ones, I thought it looked like something my whole family would enjoy. We love a pasta bake here. It’s got all the good stuff in it too: pasta, ham, mushrooms, onions, garlic and peas all mixed together in a tomato sauce. I like that it’s got a few vegetables hidden in it because sometimes it’s much easier to get everyone to eat them when they’re mixed into something tasty rather than sitting on the side of the plate looking lonely!

Friday - A Chippy tea!

Friday night and we're back to having a chip shop tea! No cooking, no fuss and the biggest drama is deciding what we fancy. Last week I had the best fish and chips and I am quite fancying it again.

Saturday - Home made pizza!

We do love homemade pizza. I will buy the bases ready-made and we can add our own toppings. I will be having BBQ sauce, smoky sausage, onions, mushroom and a little sprinkling of cheese on mine!

Sunday - Beef chuck stew with thyme dumplings, mashed potato and veg!

This is exactly the sort of meal I want at the end of a busy week. A proper comforting Sunday dinner. This is made with slow-cooked beef and carrots in a rich tomato sauce, with herby thyme dumplings on the top. I will serve it with mashed potato and vegetables on the side. It will all be cooked in the slow cooker!

What are you eating this week?

A photo every day for a year! 12th - 18th July Week 29 of #Project365

Happy Sunday!! I hope you've all had a lovely week and are enjoying your weekend. Ours has been a good week but a quiet one. Quiet is good and I am not complaining in the slightest.

Yesterday was just a normal Saturday. Meal deals for lunch for Ellie and I, I cracked on with the housework, got the washing done and even did some weeding in the garden as it was very cool. I am not saying cold because after the weather we've had over the last month or so I am glad for a break from the heat. I managed to get quite a bit done in the garden without feeling like I was melting! We don't have much planned for today apart from watching the Grand Prix and of course the World Cup final. I will be cheering for Spain to win, Vamos, Espana!!

Now for a photo every day!

193/365 12th July

Technically Sunday as it was after midnight when the England match finished. It was a late one because it went to extra time against Norway. I was definitely feeling it the next morning but it was worth staying up for. Jude Bellingham was fantastic throughout the whole tournament and especially at the end of the Argentina match when he slapped one of the players around the head. Hehehe. I know he probably shouldn't have done it but it did make me laugh.

194/365 13th July

We went to the all-you-can-eat place in Hull on Monday. We always have a bit of everything but my plate was mostly full of noodles, garlic mushrooms and Coca-Cola chicken! We realised it was a good deal on a Monday, £9 something for the food and then a few pounds extra each for a soft drink. We could have spent the same at McDonald's or somewhere else and felt hungry a few hours later. We were full for the rest of the day. I didn't eat anything apart from a couple of biscuits later on that evening.

195/365 14th July

I got a few things from Primark including this Bon Jovi T-shirt! It came from the men's section but fits just fine. I quite like looking in the men's section because band T-shirts are often better than the women's ones. There was a hoodie that I thought about buying but it was a cream colour, almost white and I don't do well with that colour as I am a muck magnet!

196/365 15th July

One of my sunflowers is now as tall as me, five foot five and a half! Lol. I don't think it has stopped growing either. Every time I go outside it seems to have gained another couple of inches. Everything seems to have shot up this week. Flowers, plants and my sweetcorn is almost as tall as the sunflowers!

197/365 16th July

A few Crimson Clovers appeared in my garden this week and the bees and butterflies are loving them. After Googling it, I read that it is one of the most popular cover crops, meaning it's planted between growing seasons to improve the soil and the soil in my garden can do with all the improvement that it can get.

198/365 17th July

My dad's cherry tree is looking fabulous at the moment and is full of cherries. He is going to pick me some over the weekend as we only noticed them as we were leaving and we were short on time. I'm already thinking about what I'll do with them. I'll probably eat most of them just as they are because they're one of my favourite fruits but if there are enough left, I might make a crumble or pop some into a pie!

199/365 18th July

As I write this, I am sat here watching Little House on the Prairie, the remake on Netflix and I am loving it. The scenery is beautiful, the cast work well together and it is just so wholesome. It has that feel-good factor that is quite hard to find these days.

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