I ordered a hazel tree (for the nuts in autumn if the birds and squirrels don’t get them first!) and Ive accidentally ordered ten(!!!). Would anybody like one?

A wee video made while refreshing our Ivy detergent.

Here lads, as a self-professed killer of anything green, look at these! Pea shoots (half are going to be garnish for food and I’m going to attempt to grow the other half into proper peas). These have been so easy and I’m buzzing! Today some pea shoots, tomorrow a farm!

I’ll admit was very skeptical about this one…laundry detergent made from ivy leaves?! But thought I would give it a go before I dismissed it completely and I’m sold. Got the recipe from Nancy Birtwhistle during an attempt to rid the house from as many chemicals as we could. You basically pick a big bunch of ivy which we have growing everywhere! Bigger leaves with lots of veins are best. Rinse them, cut into strips and put in a pot of water and boil then simmer for twenty minutes. Let it cool and that’s it! The leaves are full of saponins which make the suds. Cool and bottle then put two tablespoons in a cup in the drum of your washing machine. Add two tablespoons of washing soda to the drawer to soften the water and run on a long, cool cycle (uses less electricity too). Clothes come out smelling fresh. You can add essential oils if you want a fragrance. (Ignore the poison label on the bottle, it was a leftover Halloween decoration 😂)

I’ve been trying to balance making the most of my time off work to get ready for the weeks ahead, with resting and taking some down time. It’s a tightrope! I sat last night and tried to work out where I struggle most during a typical week and dinners are always it. When I’m frazzled, dinners are the first plate to stop spinning. Takeaways cost us a fortune last year and I’m so sick of it being such a big deal. I spent this morning batch cooking - two cottage pies, a lasagne, a bag of bolognese, roasted a chicken to have dinner later and will strip the rest of the meat for a curry for the freezer too. So six dinners all in and took about 90 mins to make. Now going to spent the rest of the day chilling, might watch a wee movie or go out for a walk. No NYE plans - anyone got anything going on?