TARRAGON & THYME

2025 has been a lot busier for me overall.  Of course there have been hiccups and things going wrong but that is par for the course and you just have to "pivot" and change course, get on with things as they happen to you.  Sometimes though it is like digging yourself out of treacle.  There is a saying that goes something along the lines of if it does not break you, then it makes you.  That for me is forever the silver light in sometimes murky waters. 2025 has been positive in many ways.  I officially retired and I seem to be finding my "peace" along the way.  I am also having to realise and appreciate that my limitations due a lot of the time to medical issues need to be taken more seriously and adapted more.  Unfortunately I have added another couple of conditions to the list and quite frankly am getting very bored with it and frustrated with the limitations that are imposed as a result of trying to keep myself healthy.  I am here, I am pres...

 I have computer problems at the moment and cannot post on Messenger. Here is wishing every single one of you a lovely and joyful Christmas. Hopefully will get the techy bits sorted when I have a bit more time. Enjoy the holiday folks and hold your nearest and dearest close. Catch everyone soon. Tricia  x

I nipped into town today to go to B & M, the Works, Sostrene Grene and Waitrose. I came away with some baubles from B & M.  Three packs of Green Stars and three packs of golden pine cones. Now I did not really need these.  I had been eyeing them up and they dropped the price slightly and that is why I ended up buying them.  These will come in handy for next year as I have a framework that goes over a large table that you can decorate seasonally with different things.  As this has only been a recent buy, I needed to find some suitable decorations and these are a starter for that.  Keeping to the green and gold colourway that I have for the dining room as the idea is to have this over the dining table or a side table. Then I went to The Works and managed to get a Page a Day Diary for 2026 which is what I went there for.  Very handy for planning and plotting various events but also things that I do seasonally in my household.  Also crafting, prese...

Today has been all about getting ready for Christmas and beyond. Stocking up on ingredients for meals moving forward particularly over this Christmas period. This year, as it is just the two of us, I have chosen to simplify matters on the food front. We will be eating well in our usual fashion. However I have not been able to do my accumulation of food items as I would normally do a little at a time, and have not been in a position to do what I would normally do or what I wanted to do. That is okay though in the longer term, it is just that sometimes things do not work out how you hoped it would. However, next year I intend to be a little bit different on all fronts. I have decided to take hold of the household reins again a little bit tighter and being more selective in my choices and I will be making a lot more stuff including a lot more home prepared food items for use in my Christmas Pantry rather than buying and paying a lot of money. I will as usual only be buying base ingr...

I have been and done a little food shopping today; not much but a little. Still a lot more to do and we are planning on going to Tallington veg shop over the weekend to buy in a lot of fresh veg and some fruit and possibly some more meat.  I had planned on going on Friday.  However have moved the planned trip as we need to go to the Tip.  Weather-wise Friday is looking as a good day to get rid of a load of the rubbish that needs to go to the Tip. I have also been trying to ensure that there is food available for the coming month by way of ingredients in the Freezer, Fridge and Pantry. Today however, I have come across a few bargains.  Have bought in the following: Italian sponge biscuits/Lady's fingers which I always prefer for using in puddings or indeed a trifle.  Two of these came home with me at £1.69 a packet. 3 bags of Coconut Bites, which are a bit like a Coconut version of Ferrero Rocher. These are £1.69 a bag though.  Totally delicious. 2 small cra...

 Just doing what I can get done where I can.  It has been peaceful which is the main thing and I have had some time to my own thoughts and time for planning things through or a semblance of a plan moving forward on several issues. Today however I scored some reduced fresh Raspberries which were reduced from £2.50 a small punnet to  £1.25. I came home with six punnets which will join the other punnets in the freezer and will either go towards a Raspberry jam or a Raspberry syrup. There is nothing wrong with them and I have as a matter of course been putting them into the freezer for making a batch of jam here and there or indeed for use in puddings or on a breakfast. Having base ingredients means you can in practice do so much more with them. I have also done the same recently with chicken pieces which were reduced to £2 a tray.  I bought three of these and they will be useful in a feasting pie or indeed for stir fry. If I come across the reductions this is what I hav...

Now the day is over time to recount some of my little travels for today.  It is currently chucking it down with rain quite heavily as I let my hands clatter across the keyboard, letting the words flow from my head to my fingers. Today I managed to venture out of the house properly, as for the last two days or so I have been confined to barracks with the "Lurgey".   Starting to feel a bit more comfortable now.  Severe head cold which has subsequently landed on my chest.  However, I am a lot comfier than I have been and slowly starting to get better.  As a result I have just gone with the flow.  Today however, I was starting to go "stir crazy". The other day, I bought some wooden Christmas tree decorations to make up and needed to take them back as there was a wrong piece in the pack.  There should have been four different pieces and there were three different ones with the fourth being the same as one of the previous three. In my infinite wisdom I ...