Another damn lifestyle blog
I recently posted about partial completion of a treehouse for my kids, A-Bomb and the Terminator and committed to writing a little more about it. As to how many sections or how long it will take till I write them all, I guess that is dependent on how much I do to the tree house and how long it takes me. But I’m in a good position to describe how I got the basic strucuture up so here it is.
Continue reading “Tree House for Horrors – part 1”
So as I’ve posted before I’ve done some hot smoking in the past using my Callow Smoker. But I asked EmmCee for a cold smoke generator for my birthday and she duly delivered. So this is my first effort at cold smoking.
Continue reading “Cold Smoking – first steps”
Over the years I have tried many different types of self-sufficiency crafts, whether this be home brewing, beekeeping, grow your own or butchery. I have done a bit of curing now and then too, my homemade chorizo didn’t give me botulism. The proscutio was edible, the salt beef was rather good but the pastrami still needs a bit of work. My least successful attempts have been at homemade bacon, although in my defence they were my earliest.
So in the spirit of practice makes perfect I had another go.
Continue reading “Homemade bacon”
As ever I berate myself for not updating my blog often enough and must do better. This week has seen real movement on household projects. One of these, the new kids Treehouse, features heavily in our “Summer with the Monsters”.
Continue reading “Living with Monsters – Kids Treehouse”
I finally got down to one of my long term projects the back door porch. There is a lot I love about my house but being unable to leave the back door open in the rain is not one of them. So I got the bits together and got on with it.
Continue reading “Woodworking – Back Door Porch”
So spring is most definitely here and here in wettest South Wales we’ve had an unheard of 3 or 4 weeks without any significant rain. The garden has really sprung into life in that preiod early flowers and apple blossom in abundance.
Continue reading “Spring is in the air”
All work and no play makes the little monster irritable. So at great request we had a Treasure Hunt inspired by the 80’s classic of the same name. As Gamesmaster I therefore provided the required map and clues whilst EmmCee sorted out the required treasure.
Continue reading “Trapped With Monsters: Treasure Hunt”
So at the time of writing the Great British Lockdown is imminent. The international CoVid-19 pandemic is striking us all and we at Fat Cat’s Patch are no different. A-Bomb and the Terminator have been off school a week already because one of them had a cough. Now schools have closed with no clear view as to when they will open again. So the responsibility has mostly fallen on EmmCee to do some home schooling, which is no easy thing. EmmCee and I are both working from home and our productivity has dropped a fair old bit. Having two children in the house requiring attention tends to do that.
Continue reading “Living La Vida Lockdown”EmmCee and I decided to celebrate Chinese New Year with the monsters by cooking a few Chinese styled dishes. Continue reading “Chinese New Year”
So EmmCee and I enjoy doing things that are “different” just for the fun trying something new and Wassailing seemd to fit the bill. We have watched the like of Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall and others Wassail orchards. We have our own modest little orchard and have made our own cider from it. So a little Wassialing seemed like a great activity for the weekend. And one in which I was sure the Monsters would be happy to take part.
Continue reading “Wassailing With Monsters”