Hobbits, Mountain Goats, and Chickens

So...yeah...it's been a while. I know, I know..... "Every day...twice"....totally NOT happening. I've been busy over the last few weeks! Between work and entertaining visitors, I haven't had a whole lot of time to blog. One event that was definitely blog worthy was our hike up Blencathra with Geoffrey in the Lake District. 5 miles should only take a couple of hours right? Right. If you don't have to scramble for your life along the ridge of certain death and destruction. Some of us (me) found this adventure more nerve wracking than others (Jim, Geoffrey, and Murphy). I often found myself sitting on the ridge, looking at the beautiful view, and thinking "I could sit here for a while and wait for the helicopter...Obviously I can't go back down...or up any further". Also had a few conversations with Jesus.... "Well, Jesus....looks like I may be meeting you sooner than expected...."

Now before you go judging me, and thinking how it's not really that scary to walk up a mountain. Let's give you an idea of the scale. That arrow, is pointing at a circle with two tiny people walking along the ridge.

And before you go thinking, "psshhhh..those people just look so small because they are so far away"... Here is what I saw when we got to the ridge. Not exactly a walk in the park..... huh?

Anyway...I learned a few things during our not so leisurely stroll:

1. I'm only afraid of heights when I have to rely on my own two feet/ability not to trip that stands between me and certain death.

2. Men do not inheritly have a sense of fear of dangerous situations (I like to call this "common" sense) like women do.
3. Murphy also lacks this "common" sense.

4. While involved in these dangerous situations with men and/or Murphy, it becomes necessary for me to have a grasp of the danger at hand for everyone involved.

5. This "common" sense x 3 may not help the objective of the task (e.g. get to the top of the mountain), but did put me one step closer to something I would like to do (e.g. ride in a helicopter

**6. In the end, the fear isn't necessarily justified, and the reward can be worth the risk.

The moral of the story? I'm kind of a big chicken....who knew?

In the end, and with lots of encouragement from Jim, Geoffrey, and Murphy, I made it to the top!

Here's a few photos from the climb:

Jim "The Mountain Goat" WightmanBeth "The Big Chicken" Wightman

Family photo:Geoffrey "Frodo" Middleton

The view from the top:

*Please note: number 6 is only applicable to the female sex. If you have a Y chromosome, ignore number 6. Please think through the risks you take, and how these risks may aversely affect those of us who fear for your life. Even when you don't think there is anything to be afraid of.

Run For Your Life!!

Today was the big day: Race for Life 2011! Before I went to meet Fran and Emma, I decorated my back sign and gathered all the supplies I needed for the race. Running shoes: check. Water: Check. Positive attitude: check. I headed off about 9:45, arrived at our meeting point and awaited the arrival of my cancer fighting comrades.

This is the sign I wore to let everyone know why I was running the race: And this is the cheeky little t-shirt mom gave me especially for race day...sporting the slogan "Support your Girls". Get it?

So, we arrived at Lancaster University, and began the trek to the starting point of the race. When I spotted numerous tutu's and tiaras in the crowd, I realised that my "cheeky little t-shirt" was, in fact, quite tame! When we got to the holding area, we were coerced into performing a slightly silly aerobic routine for a warm up. Though, I must admit, we had a good giggle, and it was fun watching the massive group of women getting pumped up for the race!

After the warm up, we were separated into "runners", "joggers", and "walkers". Emma and I convinced Fran that if she could walk a marathon, she could certainly jog three miles! The organisers herded us to the starting line where we snapped a quick photo:

Just after this, we began jogging. I have to admit, the course was harder than I expected! It was encouraging seeing the determination of all of the women involved so we all pressed on! I, for one, had to walk up most of the hills towards the end, but managed an okay time of 34.5 minutes. Emma and Fran weren't far behind, but I think Emma deserves a gold medal for going for it after 2 weeks of being on holiday...and Fran deserves a gold medal for running it without any training!
Here we are with our medals looking slightly happier (and shinier) after we all finished and had a drink of water!

We missed our absentee comrade, Kate. So, after the race, we headed over to Costa Coffee to visit her. We had a lovely coffee and an equally lovely chat. It was good to see Kate, and so encouraging to spend some time with Fran and Emma. I haven't really spent much time with Fran and Emma before today, and I don't know about them, but I had a lot of fun!

So, Mom, I ran this one for you, and I had a fantastic time doing it! I love you, and thanks for kicking cancer's butt!

Cuddles with Daisy

Well, we had the absolute joy of hanging out with our beautiful niece, Daisy Grace Wightman (and her wonderful parents, Michael and Helen too!) this past weekend. And I quite literally mean it was a joy....If you looked up the word "joy" in the dictionary....you might just see this picture...

Or this one, which was inspired by one of life's simple pleasures: sticking a heart sticker on your nose and taking your own picture...What else?

We had so much fun being big kids for the weekend....We caught crabs until we were starving, hunted for snails until the wind almost blew us to smithereens, bounced on the trampoline to our heart's content, and shopped 'til we dropped. Here are a few pictures of the activities that made us laugh and smile all weekend long!

There was lots of story time with Auntie Beth and Uncle James:


We had a picnic of fish and chips on the beach, and looked for snails with Pam (Pam! Pam! Pam! ...Helen sang a song with these lyrics and there was an accompanying dance, "The Pam Dance" which really made Daisy giggle)

We also took a walk along the cliffs at Caswell...

And last but not least, we had a bit of levitation training on the trampoline!

We had a fantastic time, and we can't wait to hang out with the Welsh Wightmans again soon!

Pork Tenderloin Medallions- A Tasty Original Recipe!

Well, I guess it hasn't been twice a day every day. To be fair, I've been entertaining! Also, we've been without internet since friday, and having a wonderful time with the Welsh contingent of the Wightman family (photos and blog post with more details to follow)! For now, I'll just leave you with a delicious recipe which I made last Thursday night. We ate it with broccoli, corn on the cob, and roasted potatoes...yum!

Pork Tenderloin Medallions

You will need:
1 Pork Tenderloin (About 500g/1lb)
1 tsp Salt (If you're into that kind of thing.....)
1 tsp Pepper
1 Tbsp butter or margarine

For the Sauce/Marinade:
2 tsp Brown Sugar
4 tsp Wholegrain Mustard
1 tbsp Soy Sauce
1-2 tsp Balsamic Vinegar

(This is a general guide...taste the sauce as you go and make it your own!)

Prep:

1/2 - 1 hour prior to cooking (could be longer if you prefer): Cut pork tenderloin into slices about 1" thick and place into a non metallic dish. Mix ingredients together for sauce. Taste the sauce, and modify if necessary. Sprinkle pork with salt and pepper, and pour the marinade over the pork. Allow to chill in fridge, turning occasionally.

Cooking Method:

*Pre-heat the oven to 180 C (or 375 F).
*Place a frying pan on a medium to high heat and add butter or margarine to pan. (Tip: Make sure you stir it quite often and keep an eye on it or the butter will burn)
*Once butter is melted, add the pork medallions to your frying pan, and pour over all of the marinade. Fry medallions until golden brown on each side (about 5 minutes if your pan is nice and hot), and keep basting them in the marinade.
*Once browned, put the pork on a baking tray and pop them in the oven for another 5-10 minutes or until fully cooked.
*Pour the sauce from the frying pan into a dish (I'd put it into a microwavable dish and zap it for a few seconds when the pork is ready!)

Excellent Served With:
Low maintenance or make ahead side dishes....I recommend twice baked potatoes (make ahead) with plain ol' carrots and broccoli!

Giggly Feet

So...most women have had a pedicure...but how many of you have had a fish pedicure? Mom and I got a fish pedicure today! Here's some pictures of the experience:
Mom outside of the store.... (The name of the store is Giggly Feet http://www.gigglyfeet.com/home.html)

Trying to smile even though it really tickled...and is a weird feeling. (I think I had a harder time with this than Mom!!)
This is the close up of the fish doing their job!

The verdict? Definitely an experience....but not something I would do again!

Tea Time- (a.k.a. The Poetic Stylings of Pam)

I'm pleased to report that my mom arrived safe and sound yesterday morning. We ordered some quintessentially British weather for her arrival (see also: cold, wind, rain). Ah, the summer in England. It's a magical time.

Since Mom has been here, we have done lots of exciting and monumental activities including grocery shopping at Asda, (It was super busy, and I think mom deserves a gold star for maneuvering the shopping cart through the masses of grouchy teenagers and bossy old women), thinking about painting the bathroom, purchasing new sheets, buying paint, and shopping at Dunelm Mill. So...pretty much we've been doing lots of shopping.

All that shopping and thinking about painting the bathroom was quite exhausting. Therefore, we've just been having a well-earned tea and coffee break. Check out the cute mugs mom got at Dunelm Mill. Mine says "I love mornings...I just wish they came later in the day" and Mom's says "Dieting is wishful shrinking".

The caffeine and shopping seem to have inspired a wave of creativity in my mom, who has found herself smitten with the 5 sheep we have living in our garden. That's all for now, but I'll just leave you with the awe inspiring and heart warming words of my mother.

Five Little Sheep

Five little sheep grazing in the grass.
Four were blokes, and one was a lass.
The rain and the mist were blowing around.
The five little sheep were asleep on the ground.
Their coats kept them warm in spite of the weather.
But soon they'll be shorn...this rhyme is so clever.

The End.

(Copyright Pamela B Thomason, May 2011)

Jim is Superman...Clark Kent is a Fraud

That's right. Clark Kent, eat your heart out. James Wightman is actually Superman. (By the way, I'm convinced that being married to Superman is directly linked to my unrealistic expectations of myself. See my first blog post.... Queen Elizabeth I of Lists and Spreadsheets).

Today, Jim built compost bays for our garden. My friend Susan, who is amazing and environmentally conscious, should appreciate this project as we are both using recycled materials (old railway sleepers) AND composting! We're so green. Anyway....

First, Jim gathered the materials he would need to make the compost bays: Railway sleepers, tape measure, and a chainsaw.

These wooden beams are the railway sleepers...and he lifted them. All of them. (Anyone but Superman would obviously be dead from such exertion). He stacked them together to form a sort of large "E" (but with an extra space...so there are three rectangular spaces).

This is the result about half way through....

Next, Jim used a chainsaw to cut a notch in the wood so that the beams would fit together more securely.
And here's the bird's eye view of the final product:

So, we now have compost bays! Also....my husband is a total BA.

Queen Elizabeth I of Lists-and-Spreadsheets: A Royal Decree

Yes, humble subjects. It is I, Queen Elizabeth I, ruler of this wonderful land of Lists-and-Spreadsheets. It is, as ever, delightful to be in the presence of my loyal friends and servants, including you Lord Good of Intentions, Sir Lofty of Expectations, and Lady Initial of Motivation. Once again, I am sure that you will all be pleasantly surprised that your Queen has deigned it time to embark upon yet another conquest: I will conquer Blogland....


Seriously though, I am the queen of lists (and also spreadsheets...and also lists in the form of spreadsheets). Something you need to understand is how ambitious I am when creating said lists and spreadsheets. Here are the names of a few I have authored:

1)The Ultimate Bi-Annual Cleaning Checklist (a.k.a. Scrub Everything with Toothbrushes)
2)The Best Wedding Ever Where Everything Will Go As Planned Because I Made This Spreadsheet
3) Save Lots of Money Every Month
4) Lose 800 Pounds (a.k.a. Being a Negative Weight is Better Than Being Overweight)

*Please note: Some titles may have been changed to more accurately reflect spreadsheet content


In addition, I think you need to see an example of a list composed by me:

* 5:00 am - Run 10 miles
*5:15 am- Take a shower
*5:18 am- Wash/Dry/Iron any laundry
* 5:25 am- Paint all internal walls. And Ceilings
*6:00 am- Scrub entire house (inside and out) with toothbrushes
*6:32 am- Steam clean carpets
*[Some entries to list have been omitted due to limited space]
*10:45 pm- Read entire Bible
*11:45 pm- Sleep

Needless to say, my lists and spreadsheets are extensive. They are detailed. They can be slightly unrealistic. If only I was Superwoman, or maybe an actual queen with loads of servants to carry out the tasks at hand, then my lists would make sense. But alas, I am a mere mortal and there are only 24 hours in a day.

If I were to accurately title a spreadsheet based on the tasks I end up completing, the titles would look something like this:

1) Get the Whole House Clean on the Same Day Once a Year if You are Lucky
2) My Wedding Will be Awesome Because I Will Show Up and Get Married to the Man I Love
3) At Least We Won't Spend More Than We Earn
4) Lose 10 Pounds in One Year (or Two or Three Years)

The list? It might look something like this:

*8:45 or 9:00 or 9:15- Wake....up......drink...coffee
*9:30 or 10:00- Think about doing stuff
*10:05- Vacuum?
*11:30- Dust?
*12:00- Lunch Break
* 1:30- Think about doing more stuff
*1:45- Procrastinate
*2:00- One load of laundry?
*2:30- Go for a run?
*3:45- Shower
*4:00- Call it a day

So maybe my lists never end up getting everything crossed off, and maybe my spreadsheets are never to be seen again after their initial compositions... but I think I do alright. I mean....I do clean the house at least twice a year whether it needs it or not!

Okay, okay. I may also be the Princess of Exaggeration and Self Deprecation...

The truth is I've got a wonderful husband, a very happy dog (I mean....seriously happy...sometimes she's so happy she pees a little), a fantastic family, and we live in the most beautiful countryside I've ever seen. And to top that all off I am going to update this blog.....


Every day.


Twice.