Well that was nice! We ended up having an unexpectedly free weekend, and relished the chance to get some relaxing in! The return of the ridiculous cold and silly snow though ensured it wasn’t ALL slobbing, as with the new pooch we still had to go out, when we probably wouldn’t have done otherwise! Still, he seemed to enjoy the snow (after we’d managed to drag him out into the cold!)…..
Saturday started with a big breakfast of pancakes and maple syrup….I’d decided that if I *was* going to venture outdoors in the vile weather, I’d at least set myself up for it with a filling and somewhat naughty breakfast! We took a late-ish walk nearby after that (with Adam’s Mum and dogs joining us), ending up at the super snowy Windmill Hill, where Cooper enjoyed chasing snow balls like a crazy hound!
We pootled around town after that, finding it a shame that we’re not allowed to take the hound into any shops or cafes (that was my most favourite thing about Vienna and I wish we’d adopt a similar approach here!). After we’d picked up a few bits and pieces we needed, we walked home for a harty warm lunch of left over veggie korma from the night before. When the weather is like this I just can’t have a cold meal!
We took a walk around Fairlands Valley Park in the afternoon, Cooper enjoying trying to make friends with the water birds and nearly falling into the freezing cold lake a couple of times! Then after a trip to the supermarket, we settled down at home for a relaxing evening. I made a yummy supper of tagine (chicken for me, lamb for Adam) and then snuggled on the sofa with the hound to watch Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy…. we’d not watched it since the cinema so it was great to see it again on the Bluray. Such a brilliant film.
Thankfully, I think our pup understands weekends, so we were allowed another late-ish morning on Sunday and headed out at a reasonable hour to walk again on Windmill Hill, then around the Sunday Car Boot Sale at Hitchin Market. There weren’t many traders out in the horrid weather, but it was still nice to browse, and good for Cooper to get some market shopping practice in whilst it wasn’t too busy!
Back at home, we set about making some delicious granola. Adam had found a recipe for us to adapt, and so we added lots of our favourite things and made a very special batch for us to yum up at breakfast. I’ll post the recipe very soon!
After that, I cooked up a big roast lunch for us, with a pork joint and all the accoutrements….that kind of meal is just so perfect for a lazy Sunday, especially when it’s so bitterly cold outside! We walked off the lunch (which had been followed by Sticky Toffee Pudding with Custard) with the hound, ending up at our local for a quick half pint in the cosy bar.
Once home again I spent some time training Cooper….he is understanding our basic commands now (‘sit’, ‘lie down’, ‘paw’ and ‘wait’) but we need to work on his alone time as he gets quite anxious when he’s not with us sometimes! Then it was a supper of tagine left-overs before we settled down on the sofa to (finally) start watching season two of New Girl. I’d forgotten quite how much I love the show, and really enjoyed watching the first few episodes (so much so that I could have carried on all night if Adam had let me!). Still, all the rich food and cold weather meant I was pretty sleepy, so an early night was the only thing really on the cards.
Ems x
