My presents from seattle

Other than the return of my beautiful wife, of course:

You may have noticed a theme....

Thank you traff!

:D

I got stuck in this yoga position in public...

yeah, getting into this position was pretty easy. getting out of it again wasn't.

re-post from etsy- Handmade weddings (I know, normally I'm so over stuff like this- but this is so cool!)

Story by ohnoodles

Published on Mar 24, 2012 in Read

Photo by Eric Ronald Photography 

Rin Hubbard, formerly Rin Lincolne-Tolley, is the daughter of Australian craft genius Pip Lincolne and works as a chef at Lowlands Espresso in Preston. Her husband Joe is a social media nerd and guitarist in the Melbourne surf rock band The Bluebottles. The couple met five years ago and live in Preston with their housemate Sarah and their two cats, Felix and Blanket. They love good coffee, good food, TV series addictions, music, and most of all, cats! Rin has a blog called Oh Noodles that she is slightly slack in updating.

In the months before our wedding, my mum Pip put a call out on her blog, Meet Me At Mike’s, asking if people would like to contribute to our wedding by making a pom pom and sending it to us. Well, let me tell you, that worked like a treat! By the day of our wedding, we had hundreds and hundreds of pom poms from all over the world. Most of the people who sent pom poms had never even met us — people are so lovely! We strung them through our fig trees, from marquees and pretty much anywhere they could be strung.

The week before our big day, I had a ladies’ craft evening. This is where most of the handmade goodness happened. Myself and ten or so lady pals got together at my house, ate delicious food and crafted everything from lolly bags to paper planes to individual confetti bags.

All of our flowers were from my mother-in-law’s garden and a florist friend’s boutique. My close friend Clara arranged them in posies on the tables and in hanging jars my husband and I made. Clara also baked a Fruit Tingle cake and was in charge of the pre-wedding bride breakfast and pampering, as well as keeping me sane!

The day before the wedding was our big set up day. My mum’s best friends hung streamers and bunting they made for us, catapulted pom poms into trees and yarn bombed our front fence with the words “Rin + Joe.” My mum was busy making dough and prepping toppings for the delicious pizzas that were going to feed our 100+ guests.

On the big day, it rained all morning, which ruined our decorating plans. Loads of family and friends came to help out, and all of a sudden it was time for us to go to our hotel and get ready! We didn’t have a bridal party, but Joe’s older brother, my close friend Clara, and our photographer Eric came to the hotel with us and drank bubbly while we all got ready together.

Before we knew it, we were walking back into our house and down the “aisle” in front of all our favorite people. We made our entrance together as our three brothers and our housemate played guitars and sang an acoustic version of “Such Great Heights” by The Postal Service. It was a bit teary and good, to say the least.

The ceremony was great, with everyone cheering and clapping and being raucous. When we were pronounced husband and wife, the guests popped champagne and we swigged Passion Pop from the bottle and flailed our arms in happiness.

After the business part was done, everyone ate Mum’s homemade pizzas. The fig pizza with fruit from our own trees was the most popular. My youngest brother manned the snow cone machine and our guests played badminton in the front yard. We did family speeches, which were full of happy crying. The friend speeches were full of giggles and jokes.

But best of all was the cake buffet. Together we cut the biggest cake to reveal the inside — layered rainbow colored sponge! It was amazing. All of our guests got a photo of the happy couple (us!) and a lolly bag to take home. Before we left, everyone threw bags and bags of confetti at us. The little kids loved it the best. We walked up the main street to our hotel, with big smiles and confetti in our hair. It was the best day ever.

Glow-under-blacklight jelly

So, this is my interesting fact for the week:

If you make jelly following the packet instructions but using tonic water (light or normal) to replace the normal water, it will glow under a black light.

True story.

Vodka jelly has never been better....

Sunny saturday pictures

highest points

Cambridgeshire- boring field
Northamptonshire- racecourse lane
and viking way in Leicestershire.

I was trying to be good and get chores done and si rang me to say I had 15 min to get ready as we were going adventuring.
this is what we went to find.

It was a pretty cool adventure.

Bermuda weather!

I went to the park and the cemetary today- and walked 4 miles!
lots of exploring and now my face is sunburnt!
:D

here are todays photos:

Today will be hotter than bermuda. apparently.

So, what will I do with myself?!

I'm thinking I'll probably want to go outside at some point. Maybe for a walk or take the bike somwhere. It's a shame I don't know Bedford better- there are some woodland areas that would be lush walks but I have no idea how to get to them- and no-one to come and save me if I get lost.

I might go and explore the graveyard in brickhill.
thats been an intention for a while.

And I have to do some work for work- I'm writing booklets for a scheme of work- and then some powerpoints with the learning objevtives and outcomes on them. it's much more work than I thought it would be.

I'm toying with the idea of cycling to tesco.
:S
I have visions of my backpack ending up full of milk.

Oh, and I need to tidy my house. before Traff comes back. and has a breakdown because of the mess.
I keep loosing stuff in the chaos.

McNoLeg's latest house upgrade

the other box freaked him out as it wasn't see through, so he's got a new one- twice the size of his old one!

he seems happy enough though bombing about.

:)

He likes his christmas Gary too!

:D

Solar storms

A solar storm in the Earth's magnetic field has largely passed, but adverse effects could still occur, experts say.

"The freight train has gone by, and is still going by, and now we're just watching for how this is all going to shake out," said Joseph Kunches, a scientist with US weather agency Noaa.

Charged particles from the Sun will keep on passing the Earth until Friday.

There had been fears that this "coronal mass ejection" could wreak havoc with satellites or power grids on Earth.

However, up to this point, Dr Kunches said, "all told, it's not a terribly strong event".

The current coronal mass ejection (CME) - travelling at some 1,300km per second - began arriving at Earth on Thursday morning, after the release of two particularly strong solar flares earlier in the week.

'Wake-up call'

Activity near the Sun's surface rises and falls through an 11-year cycle that is due to peak in 2013 or 2014.

Some solar flares result in CMEs - the launch of a huge bubble of charged particles hurtling toward the Earth at speeds up to millions of kilometres per hour.

Continue reading the main story

Solar Storms

• The sudden release of magnetic energy stored in the Sun's atmosphere can cause a bright flare
• This can also release bursts of charged particles into space
• These solar "eruptions" are known as coronal mass ejections or CMEs
• When headed in our direction, the charged gas collides with the magnetic "sheath" around Earth
• The subsequent disturbances in the Earth's magnetic envelope are called solar storms
• They can interfere with technology: satellites, electrical grids and communications systems
• They can also cause aurorae - Northern and Southern Lights - to be seen at lower latitudes

• 
  

The Earth's magnetic field protects it from the constant onslaught of high-energy particles from the Sun and elsewhere in the cosmos.

However, the solar storms that mark the arrival of CMEs can disrupt the field enough to have an effect on the Earth's surface - causing current spikes in power grids or disrupting navigation devices.

Among the more benign effects is that the magnetic-field disturbance can make the Northern Lights visible at lower latitudes.

But it is often unclear, even up to the last minute, just how grave or spectacular the effects will be on Earth - that depends on the magnetic alignment of the material within the CME, which is difficult to predict.

Because different parts of the bubble can have different alignments, scientists say that the storm could still have adverse effects as it passes.

"The magnetic field in the solar wind is not facing in the direction of danger. But it could change, into the early evening," said David Kerridge, director of geoscience research at the British Geological Survey.

Although space weather scientists have seen no more significant activity since the solar flares that launched the current storm, scientists around the globe are still keeping an a close watch on the Sun.

"The part of the Sun where this came from is still active," Dr Kerridge told BBC News. "It's a 27-day cycle and we're right in the middle of it, so it is coming straight at us and will be for a few days yet. We could see more material," he explained.

But regardless of its eventual extent, this episode of solar activity is a preview of what is to come in the broader, 11-year solar cycle.

Dr Craig Underwood, from the Surrey Space Centre, UK, said: "The event is the largest for several years, but it is not in the most severe class. We may expect more storms of this kind and perhaps much more severe ones in the next year or so as we approach solar maximum.

"Such events act as a wake-up call as to how our modern western lifestyles are utterly dependent on space technology and national power grid infrastructure."

Many storms are benign; this storm could enable skywatchers to see the Northern Lights from parts of the northern US and northern UK.

But the strongest storms can have other, more significant effects.

In 1972, a geomagnetic storm provoked by a solar flare knocked out long-distance telephone communication across the US state of Illinois.

And in 1989, another disturbance plunged six million people into darkness across the Canadian province of Quebec.

Tea party

Thank you very much for inviting me to your tea party soph! it was ace!

Soooooo much cake!

:D

proper sunday- tea, cake, gossip and sofa-ing.

Vintage shopping in london

My first ever kilo sale- this one was run by judy's affordable vintage- I really can't believe what good value it was- it was bout 5 items for £15. I might go to one of the bath or bristol ones- the london one was busy and the 1st evening was "trade only" which meant the awesome stuff was probably snapped up on friday.

loads of 70s 80s and 90s stuff though and I got my outfit (or part of it) for the medieval wedding.

score!

with our plunder!

not a shirt!

Traffs been after a shirt in that patter since we lived in cardiff- Hayley was so excited when she thought she'd found him one.. 

petticoats on the ceiling..like clouds :D

guess where we went...

Casette tapes! in rough trade- I can't remember the last time I saw one!

:D

Things always sound better on tape... until they go wibbly.

Pancakes

Ingredients

For the pancake mixture

• 110g/4oz plain flour, sifted
• pinch of salt
• 2 eggs
• 200ml/7fl oz milk mixed with 75ml/3fl oz water
• 50g/2oz butter

To serve

• caster sugar
• lemon juice
• lemon wedges

Preparation method

1. Sift the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl with a sieve held high above the bowl so the flour gets an airing. Now make a well in the centre of the flour and break the eggs into it. Then begin whisking the eggs - any sort of whisk or even a fork will do - incorporating any bits of flour from around the edge of the bowl as you do so.
2. Next gradually add small quantities of the milk and water mixture, still whisking (don't worry about any lumps as they will eventually disappear as you whisk). When all the liquid has been added, use a rubber spatula to scrape any elusive bits of flour from around the edge into the centre, then whisk once more until the batter is smooth, with the consistency of thin cream. Now melt the 50g/2oz of butter in a pan. Spoon 2 tbsp of it into the batter and whisk it in, then pour the rest into a bowl and use it to lubricate the pan, using a wodge of kitchen paper to smear it round before you make each pancake.
3. Now get the pan really hot, then turn the heat down to medium and, to start with, do a test pancake to see if you're using the correct amount of batter. I find 2 tbsp is about right for an 18cm/7in pan. It's also helpful if you spoon the batter into a ladle so it can be poured into the hot pan in one go. As soon as the batter hits the hot pan, tip it around from side to side to get the base evenly coated with batter. It should take only half a minute or so to cook; you can lift the edge with a palette knife to see if it's tinged gold as it should be. Flip the pancake over with a pan slice or palette knife - the other side will need a few seconds only - then simply slide it out of the pan onto a plate.
4. Stack the pancakes as you make them between sheets of greaseproof paper on a plate fitted over simmering water, to keep them warm while you make the rest.
5. To serve, sprinkle each pancake with freshly squeezed lemon juice and caster sugar, fold in half, then in half again to form triangles, or else simply roll them up. Serve sprinkled with a little more sugar and lemon juice and extra sections of lemon.

Honey face mask- bust magazine

Despite what beauty companies want you to think, taking care of your skin does not have to be expensive. It also doesn't mean you're limited to the beauty aisle at Target to clean out those pores. Sometimes the best remedy for stressed skin is sitting in your very own food pantry (or in my case a cardboard box in my cramped apartment). Pure raw honey is an amazing treatment for any skin type, whether you're oily, dry, sensitive, combination, or even normal. Honey can be combined with other fridge-found items to customize each treatment, like milk and honey for dry skin, sea salt and honey for oily skin, and yogurt and honey for blotchy skin. Personally, I find honey alone to be a great remedy for tired, inflamed skin that has seen calmer days.

To make a honey mask it's crucial that you drop the $8-12 for pure, raw honey or organic honey. Manuka honey is also a wonderful option but that liquid gold costs about twice as much as the regular stuff. Raw honey is not filtered and contains the essential enzymes and healthy good stuff that will benefit the skin, which is why cheap honey is no bueno when making a face mask. Honey has natural antimicrobial properties that when applied topically kill bacteria living on the skin, especially if you have any scrapes or abrasions. Honey also tones the skin (this I only know from experience) and provides immediate effects, such as calming inflammation and relieving redness. 

 To apply the honey, simply use clean fingers and smear it on fresh skin, leaving it on for however long you want. The beauty of the honey mask is that unlike masks found in drug stores or department stores, the amount of time you leave it on has no adverse effects whatsoever. The only downside is you may be tempted to lick it off your face, in which case, go ahead. Honey mask don't care!

When it's time to remove the honey mask, you may want to let the steam from your shower or sink hit your face for a couple minutes in order to let the honey truly penetrate the deeper layers of skin. Then, using warm water and a gentle touch, wash off the honey until your face is clean (note: it should feel soft and not squeaky). Pat dry, and then you're done! The honey should be moisturizing enough so you don't need to apply any extra moisturizer afterwards.

Happy world book day!

These are some of my favourite book titles:


I really enjoy reading- I think its one of the things I miss most at them moment- I'm so mental busy I never have time to read anything anymore.
this summer you'll struggle to get my head out of a good book!
suggestions taken!

my mother gave me this book last time I was home- I do enjoy a good historical romance! 

However, my all time favourite book (sorry to be predictable)  has to be....
.

Today we celebrated world book day at work, as part of that we did some fundraising fro various charities- I got cupcakes, Mehndi, painted nails and the opportunity to dress up as a book character.

can we have world book day every day?