ROCKING YOUR WORLD FRIDAY - 45TH OF 2026

 Morning I'm late again apologies, time truly does fly doesn't it. 

So let me clock the positives and silver linings from the last 7 days

So last Friday we fancied a baking day, we'd both read about soul cakes which are a traditional cake based on a custom of 'souling' which dates back to the 14th century in Britain.  This was where poor people including children went door to door singing and asking for soul cakes and in exchange the recipients promised to pray for the givers deceased friends and relatives to help release their souls from Purgatory.  Each cake was thought to represent a soul and were typically marked with a cross to symbolize the release of a soul from suffering.  The custom faded when the education act forced children to school although pockets of the tradition survived in places like Shropshire and Staffordshire into the 1950s.  Then we discovered we already had a recipe in our English Heritage cook book so we set too making some.  Despite their name they are actually a spiced biscuit with currants in and they were genuinely really tasty, this photo from before they were baked but you get the gist. 

We had also carved some pumpkins, but I'd insisted that hubby bring edible ones (I hate food waste) and so the contents of the pumpkins were split.  The seeds were roasted in the oven for future use.

Some of the puree that we made from the flesh was turned into pumpkin cake.  It is a really heavy cake, but it is tasty and so we managed to use some of the puree.  We froze the rest.  I have previously attempted to make a pumpkin soup but they are always quite insipid that I've never had a successful one, so I'm on the hunt for another recipe that I could use the rest of the puree. 

Then we made a traditional Barmbrack cake, which is an Irish recipe.  I told my hubby that I'd never come across it before (my Dad was Irish) but as I started making it (it's a tea loaf) and read about the five traditional things that are normally baked into the cake which are

 a ring for marriage,

a coin for wealth 

a pea to represent that you won't marry that year

a stick as a sign of a dispute 

a rag a sign of financial poverty

 I had a really vague recollection that my Grandma had one once as I remember them cutting into the cake and someone finding the rag.  It was so strange to have such a memory come to light and I checked in with my siblings and whilst my brother couldn't remember the items he could remember our Grandma making the cake and it was really tasty.  Needless to say I didn't bake the items into the cake but we did enjoy it over the weekend.  

Then my hubby finished the day by making a batch of granary breadcakes, so a very busy baking day which was most fun. 

Saturday we were busy on with making things for Christmas so we were both in the craft room, but once I'd started making mistakes I decided it was time to quit whilst I was ahead. 

We put the Halloween pictures in the windows and the pumpkins on the doorstep as usual but as we are at the bottom of a cul-de-sac and set back from the road we only got one set of trick or treaters but I felt like we'd joined in.

Sunday we walked up to the nearest village, we wanted to see how much had changed since our last walk as with the dawning of November the 'winter' switch seems to have come on.  The trees are much more devoid of leaves and most are now yellow as the final nutrients are removed before the tree releases.  We saw the farmer mowing a field of grass which is presumably feed for his animals over winter and stopped for a drink at the pub.

In the afternoon we sat and put a couple of films on and I sat crocheting which was lovely.  

Monday through to Wednesday I was mighty busy at work as usual. 

Thursday I had a blood test and then we went into town early as we had the theatre but had been pre-warned the roads would be busy with traffic for the bonfire and firework display in the main town centre park.  There were very few shops to frequent (our town centre died many years ago) however, we did manage to get hubby's email address sorted on his bank account so we will consider that a win.

We had a lovely meal at the local college restaurant and then we went to see The Wizard of Oz (another musical) thankfully knowing the story we could judge where we were in the show and as all of the cast could genuinely sing it was a really enjoyable show.

So there we have it the positive moments and silver linings from the last week.  I hope yours have been good too. 

Hugs 

ROCKING YOUR WORLD FRIDAY - 44TH OF 2026

 Morning all tis Friday time to clock the positive moments and silver linings from the last 7 days 

So the first positive of the last 7 days after we arrived home was getting everything put away and the washing on and settling back into the rhythm of life.  We popped and picked things up on the way home with the forecast of storms so we could batten the hatches and stay put for the weekend, which is what we did. 

I also arrived home and within an hour of being home this arrived which I had ordered whilst we were away.  I'd been notified that Sirdar were doing a crochet along of the Harry Potter variety and whilst I kept putting it off, I eventually decided to get it ordered before they were no longer available. 

Not only did it come with the tote bag

But little extras as you can see, a label to sew on to the finished product.  The Platform 9 3/4 ticket has a QRL code on the back to get to the website with the instructions. 

The Ollivander's box had a crochet hook inside.

My favourite however has to be the crochet stitch markers made to look like Bertie Bott's Every Flavour beans. 

I have never done a crochet along, so I hope I can keep up, although if I'm honest it won't matter if it runs into January as I'm sure I will have time to enjoy the process then. 

The work week has been mighty busy with several important meetings including the post audit one, but they all went well so that is definitely a positive. 

Our son, daughter-in-law and grandson came for tea on Tuesday which was lovely.  Unfortunately our grandson is struggling with all the bugs and sniffles that come from going to a nursery, but having been checked out by the Doctors they have concluded that it is purely viral and there is nothing more they can do to help and that it should hopefully clear up soon, his cough isn't nice to hear if I'm honest and when he arrived the other night his bottom lip was out definitely indicating that he wasn't feeling great, but he seemed a bit more like himself after some food and we so love to see them all. 

Thursday and we had a bit of a sorting day, we cleared out the window setting and had a good clean and fettle.  I cleaned the windows and the mirrors so they look better.  Then we cleared the dining table and had a clean of the bathroom and the stairs.  The house just feels a little better for a bit of TLC so that's a positive. 

And finally sitting in front of the fire last night reading, sometimes it is the simple things in life that are the greatest pleasures. 

 I hope you have a wonderful day, weekend and week ahead. 

Hugs

ROCKING YOUR WORLD FRIDAY - 43RD OF 2026

 Good evening, please forgive my tardiness I wrote this very early on Saturday morning but needed the main PC to upload photos and well let us just say that I find myself on Monday evening - apologies. 

So the reason for the tardiness was the fact we've just had a week away.  We enjoyed days at the cottage we stayed at, days out adventuring, reading, chatting and slowing life down, enjoying some of the autumn treasures that the world has to offer at the moment. 

Last Friday we set off just after 12 heading to a place called Oreton which is quite frankly in the middle of nowhere, we went via Stafford (a place we know well), onto Bridgnorth and then travelled on to Oreton.  The roads would definitely give Cornwall a run for its money, so why make the grateful list, I'm grateful that we got there safely and were greeted with somewhere lovely to stay. 

We'd taken our food with us so we didn't have to venture out again, we unpacked and settled down for the evening.  The cottage was small with the main sleeping and living areas together, but the kitchen was separate as obviously was the bathroom.  We had a stunning view over the owners garden into the woodlands below and a hot tub to enjoy. 

On Saturday with glorious blue skies and after a long journey down we had a lazy day, hot tub, drinking coffees outside, chatting and reading and slowing things down. We saw the pheasants stalking around on the land, a muntjac deer wandered across the garden, we'd been warned that they are quite noisy at times and that it can be quite eerie sounding.  Birds of prey above us, the owners indicated they were buzzards and there was rather an angry crow having a go at one.  There was a squirrel having a frenzy in the apple tree.  Blue tits still dotting around, the owners two cats being mesmerised with the blue tits (thankfully not that they were in reach) and then in the evening hearing the owls and then hubby spotting a barn owl before we noted the bats fluttering around, absolutely wonderful.  

Sundays plans were scuppered when we realised that our original destination was shut, so we headed to Wightwick Manor just on the edge of Wolverhampton albeit still out in the countryside. 

A beautiful house to wander around with some great volunteers chatting to us about its history, they always bring the houses to life. 

I loved all the angles of the house

Spotted this cute bat on the outside of the entrance

Saw a nod to Hardwick Hall with the plaster frieze in the main hall

which was utterly gorgeous

and enjoyed wandering around the garden including the vegetable garden where we spied some good sized pumpkins. 

Monday and we'd booked for Blist Hill at Ironbridge now taken over by the National Trust.  It seemed not to have changed significantly, most of the shops open and working, and opportunities to see things in action which was good, albeit that lots of the items to buy were now via donations buckets which led to a lack of car park change for us which we didn't foresee.

I spied these in some of the shops, yes that is a swede that has been carved out, something my Mum did for me when I was little and I can genuinely still smell the charred swede smell when she lit the candle inside. 

The cobblers shop was like stepping back in time. 

Tuesday was a really wet day so we went to RAF Cosford.  Somewhere we've only been once before and whilst we had to run between the hangars we were under cover the majority of the time. 

My issue with it that as I'm growing older and more cynical I just see all things war as an absolute waste of human life so whilst interesting I genuinely found the day really difficult.

Wednesday and  we went to Berrington Hall another National Trust property and had the opportunity to see a Court Mantua dress, something worn in the presence of royalty from the finest materials designed to attract the most attention and with the width of the dress we are assuming this will have done the trick. 

The gold in the court mantua dress is genuine gold thread and the material is woven silk. 

The dress was sold off at some point or given away to another local house and apparently came up for sale at Christies who contacted the National Trust to offer it back to the house from which it originated I believe being purchased for around £6000 around 2015, the season then spent with specialsts tending the dress who cost an awful lot more than the dress itself.  

It is made up of a number of pieces and one of the sleeves is missing as is the main v piece at the front of the dress.  Romantics have it that the sleeve will have been given to a maid as a gift from the owner and the v shaped piece would have been re-used on other dresses. 

This dress after all its work was worn only once, as it was unfashionable to be seen in such a dress more than once.  

It reminded us of the School for Scandal that we saw at the RSC, we genuinely thought the width of the dress was purely exaggerated for comedic effect we genuinely hadn't realised that the dress was a style of the era.  

The dress is due to be put back into storage for a while whilst they come up with another way of displaying it and to rest it as gravity is not being kind so we were lucky to see it. 

I had great fun trying on some of the dresses when we were wandering around, I quite liked the look of this one, perhaps I was born in the wrong fashion era. 

After leaving Berrington we went north to Ludlow to have a wander, it was almost closing time but we found an independent bookstore and bought a couple of books and an amazing church to look around which seemed so big when you stepped inside, the outside surrounded by buildings making it deceptive. The statues on the altar were amazing.  

Thursday was our last full day and our aforementioned postponed trip on Sunday was rearranged to today.  It was the furthest we travelled from our holiday home but was a must as you all know we love our sculptures so we went to the British Ironworks Museum.

There are so many more sculptures than the last time we went and it was wonderful to see 'The Knife Angel' again.  I've still not seen the Manchester Bee although its trailer was there.  

I loved all the sculptures but here are a few of my favourites

This was created for the King's coronation

This one represents Covid

This was one of my favourite ones from the day

I love a gonk

which was hiding behind this

as you can see

All the sculptures are made from scrap and the majority (I'd say 99%) are made on site. 

I know Kate went in celebration of her birthday recently, we stopped off at the cafe for a shared scone and a shared Bakewell tart and a cup of tea and I have to say after the half scone I was stuffed so I'm not surprised that they provide boxes to take home leftovers from their afternoon tea which are simply enormous. 

It was the perfect end to our week away and we were treated to this view as we headed home. 

 I hope you've had a good week too, hugs. 

ROCKING YOUR WORLD FRIDAY - 42ND OF 2026

 Morning all tis Friday time for 

So last weekend we had a relatively chilled and relaxed weekend, which as you will know is most bizarre for us if I'm honest. 

After a busy day with jobs on the Friday there were no fixed plans over the weekend so we enjoyed some book reading and film watching, for me a little crochet and some scrapbooking and I'll be honest it was absolutely wonderful.  

We did decide to go to YSP on Sunday as we both agreed a good walk was necessary and we both really enjoyed the trip out.  We had breakfast there and this very cute robin flew into the cafe to help himself to crumbs on the floor, the staff commented that he was quite mischievous and a regular visitor.  Here he is right next to my chair. 

 Then did a huge walk down to the Weston for a new exhibition.  Can't say it was our favourite, but new artwork is new artwork.

Some Henry Moore in the main space down to the Weston

then the new artwork itself

On our return back up to the main centre we went past the huge Jaume Plensa piece in the autumn sunshine

Signs of autumn all around the park

We stopped to enjoy the view and I noted the heart shape in the ivy, something I've genuinely never noticed before. 

We went through the main formal garden and found 3 new artworks. 

This first one was most odd and the face reminded us of the mask out of V for Vendetta

From a certain angle these looked like camel humps but up close not so much

This one definitely had a feel of Beetlejuice about it and was a fair size. 

We also enjoyed a couple of films on Sunday afternoon 'The House with the Clock in the Walls' and 'Ghostbusters Afterlife' both of which I enjoyed. 

Monday arrived and the working week was long and a blur if I'm honest.

On Tuesday our son, daughter-in-law and grandson came for tea, the changes in our grandson week to week are amazing so I snook this photo of the two of us whilst he was sat on my knee.

We did however go out on Wednesday night to see 'Twelfth Night' at the Crucible with Matthew Horne from Gavin and Stacey fame (not that we ever watched it), he was very good in the part of the Malvolio and the whole play was amazing to watch with its rotating stage in the same setting that they hold the world snooker championships.  

I also spotted someone that I thought I knew and with a quick check in with my best friend who lives in the very far north of Scotland, she confirmed her eldest daughter was there who I haven't seen in over 20 years, the last time I saw her she was 4.  I couldn't miss the opportunity to go and say hello which was lovely. 

Thursday was officially my first day off but a need to sort work's petty cash was required so I dashed in to sort.  We then met up with my sister for a cuppa at Ikea before she went on her night shift and then in the evening we went for pre-theatre dining and a play at the local theatre 'The Lady Vanishes' was a fabulous play to watch set on a train and as it wasn't a musical it finished at a sensible hour.

That my lovely people were the silver linings and positive moments in my week.

I hope you manage to clock some too. 

Hugs