Saturday 20 April 2013

Ain't no mountain high enough

Ain't no valley low enough, ain't no river wide enough, to keep me ... at home with the dog. Yes this is the weekend the brave adventurous members of the household have taken themselves off to the wilds of the Yorkshire Peak District to do the 3 Peaks Challenge. 3 peaks, 25 miles in a day. Training has been varied, from long countryside dog walks and 12 mile hikes to Hatfield forest in the south, and around 'Arthur's Seat' and the Pentlands in Scotland.
Specialist clothing has been packed - the men have new walking boots, new waterproof trousers, new socks, special new moisture absorbing t shirts, new micro fleeces and waterproof jackets. The backpack that we bought for Js trip to Tanzania is clocking up a few more miles! My daughter has taken a pair of walking boots she had for a couple of school A level geography field trips to the Isle of Arran and Gower Peninsula 9 years ago, a jacket from the same trip that I have been using for dog walking, a pair of thick old socks, some leggings from ASOS, an old t shirt from Topshop and one of my old fleeces. Can you guess which one prefers to save her money for buying more trendy clothing?
The weather report for today is perfect. Sunny with a light southerly breeze and about 10 degrees (but who trusts the British weather?)
The dog and I have plans for the weekend too. One of us intends to walk a bit, sleep a bit, eat a bit , get up to mischief in the garden a bit, and hang around the kitchen for treats a bit. The other one plans to walk a bit, go to the supermarket a bit,eat a bit, sit in the garden with a coffee reading her book a bit, watching some tv programmes she recorded that no one else watches a bit and cooking some new recipes.
I am planning some good hearty meals for their return. One of Mama Keys' famous family lasagnes has been requested and I'm going to try Paul Hollywood's soda bread to go with it followed by a chocolate and pear frangipane tart that the Hairy Bikers did this week. When it comes to tv chefs, I have to say that I find Paul Hollywood much 'easier on the eye' than the Hairy Bikers!
Well, the sun is shining as as all us Brits know, we have to make the most of the British sunshine while it's there, so I'll finish up here and hope the sun is shining on you too - wherever you are! Have a good weekend!
PS has everyone signed up for Sian's new venture? Sounds like it will be fun. If you haven't done so already, pop over and take a look.     

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Lovely post Deb. Hmmmmmm can't decide which of you is the one getting up to mischief!

Maria Ontiveros said...

Sounds wonderful. I'm hoping to do a little crafting today. I'm sure your crew will have a terrific time!
Rinda (off to see Sian's blog soon)

Amy said...

This weekend we have a big charity walk on - The Oxfam 100km trek -it sounds a little similar. I am sure they will devour those yummy dishes when they get home!

Sian said...

Best of luck to them! The talk of micro fleeces resonated with me this morning. I spent half of yesterday queueing in Decathalon with a shedload of stuff for TSO's first camping Guide trip next weekend..

I'm glad you are in for the swap..I'm up to 36 names so far!!

Miriam said...

I had to laugh at the TV chef comment. I watched him make that bread! Hope you have a lovely weekend and your family return safe & well to enjoy that lasagne!
I have signed up to Sians new adventure.

Scrappi Sandi said...

Enjoy your quiet time with the dog! Enjoy the sunshine too! :D

Ifa said...

Oh wow, 25 miles/day! Good luck. I managed about 5/day last year at camp. I think you picked the best option of staying home. I have joined Sian's venture too.

Denise said...

Yum to the lasagne - fun times :-)

ComfyMom~Stacey said...

I hope their hike went well!