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In this post I am going to share with you how to recreate the Wimbledon experience at home. My previous post shared my experiences of actually visiting the tournament, now I am giving hints and tips to host your own social event with family at home.

I may earn money from the companies mentioned in this post as I am an affiliate. This does not incur any cost to you and I only recommend companies and products that I use and trust

This year the tournament has joined many other sporting events by having to be cancelled due to the global Covid 19 outbreak.

The Game

I have many friends who are huge tennis lovers and i know are really going to mix their annual fix of this fabulous British tradition. I have already described my experiences of attending as a spectator. Now I’m going to suggest ways you can enjoy watching tennis at home.

Wimbledon may be cancelled this year but the BBC will make sure you can still watch plenty of classic action and hear from the top players. BBC Sport will have over 50 hours of programming for two weeks from 29 June, including weekday rewinds of memorable matches, an Andy Murray Greatest Hits weekend and a countdown of best finals.

Or these fabulous scatter cushions in a variety of colours can be used both inside and out as they are waterproof

They would both look good against this fabulous picnic rug

This fabulous eco friendly outdoor tableware set would be perfect for serving food on

For young and old alike how to recreate the competitive spirit of the tournament by a game of swingball to host your own mini tournament

Next is what to wear – something casual but suitable for garden and Wimbledon elegance

A pretty little shift dress is ideal. Wallis has a lovely one that can be dressed up or down with heels or flats and as its neutral and can be matched with many coloured accessories to add a colour pop. Click here for details Wallis UK

These sandals would look fabulous again from Wallis  they have a metallic trim as I love a bit of bling.

This is a similar look to what I wore at Wimbledon

Shift dress with sparkly slip on comfy wedges

Alternatively if you’re not comfortable in a dress how about a jumpsuit

with a kimono

And of course sunglasses are an absolute must – no outfit is ever complete without them. I am wearing my favourite Tiffany’s in the photo. A treat when I retired. I do have quite a few other pairs though  I’m a little bit obsessed. Remember to make sure they have a high UV protection. Here are a few styles I like at the moment

How about these rose gold mirrored beauties?

 Match the food to the occasion

Food and drink are also part of the occasion. There are the obvious choices of Strawberries and cream. Accompanied by a jug of Pimm’s – a perfect refreshing summer drink.

Food choices could be simple cucumber sandwiches or other tasty finger foods. Nothing too intricate that needs you to use cutlery. Your hands need to be free to cheer on amazing parts of the game! Any light summer picnic food is appropriate. I shared a fabulous Mary Berry recipe for scones to make at home to accompany the strawberries and cream.

Due to the menopause I am always looking at ways to reduce sugar and calories without losing out on taste and fun. I have become a big fan of Skinny Booze. SkinnyBooze now offers the UK’s most exciting collection of lower calorie wine, beer, champagne, gin and premixed cocktails. Ensuring that the only compromise is the number of calories contained,.

Finally add great company, great tennis and lots of laughter. The BBC alongside their coverage of classic games are running a promotion called #WimbledonRecreated where they wish you to share what you are doing to celebrate using the hashtag over your social media channels.

If you have enjoyed reading how to recreate Wimbledon at home I’d love to hear what you are planning to do.

How to grow vegetables in a Square foot garden is something I have learned whilst staying at home. I have talked about spending lots of time in the garden and watching gardening shows on TV during Lockdown.  I was quite in awe of seeing vegetables being grown from seed.

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As a couple of our flower beds were looking a little overgrown and in need of a revamp. I could see that there was a potential for growing vegetables and herbs in one of them, I had been wanting my own herb garden for a while to grown my own for use when cooking.

Research

My garden is south west facing so gets lots of sun. Once I’d identified a suitable bed the lovely Mr Fitz did any heavy digging and moved a couple of plants to other areas of the garden. I weeded out the rest and started preparing the soil. I didn’t really have any knowledge of how to do it. The preparation was unresearched and I just did my own thing. Once the beds were cleared, I raked the soil until it was fine and I added 50 litres of fresh compost which I was able to obtain from a small local garden centre when it reopened, and mixed it through. I then googled about planting methods and the best vegetables to grow, It was then that I discovered the Square Foot Gardening technique.

Preparing My Square Foot Garden Plot

Square foot Garden

Square foot gardening (SFG), was invented in the USA in the early 1970’s. I admit that I had never heard of it until doing this research

Square foot gardening is a method of growing vegetables which centers around planting crops in blocks rather than rows. The system divides the growing space up into a grid of square foot areas (hence the name), with each one crop allocated to each square. It maximises the ability to grow crops in a compact area.

This seemed to be a perfect answer to my small space. Typically this is recommended for raised beds in a 4 foot by 4 foot square. My bed was a semi circle, around 5 foot at its longest part and 3 foot deep, but I decided to adapt the method to suit me. The area is then marked out into 1 foot squares. One square is then devoted to 1 crop. The number of plants you put in each square depends on the size of the individual crop, so for example you might plant 16 of a small crop such as radish or rocket salad, four of a medium-sized crop such as round lettuce or strawberries, or one of a large crop such as broccoli or cauliflower.

Planning what to plant

During my research I came across some Planners to help me, I downloaded mine from Pinterest. They provided information as to how many of each type of crop can be planted in a 1 foot square. This was a great help. From this I was able to decide which seeds to buy, between us we chose vegetables that we would eat.

My Square Foot Garden Plan

As well as this bed we also planted some tomato plants in a large pot we had, herbs in pots and potatoes in a vegetable grow bag – we bought a pack of 2 from B&M but these from Amazon are similar

My tomato plants in a pot on the patio

My potato plants growing in a canvas sack

Planting

I purchased some seeds of veg and herbs we like and simply read the instructions on the packet. Some seeds could be sewn straight into the bed others needed to be started in a seed tray or pot before being transplanted out into the bed after they had reached a suitable size.

After making labels I then covered the bed with net to keep the birds off, we have a couple of wood pigeons who visit regularly and are right scavengers plus blackbirds that can scratch up the earth at times.

My square garden plot marked into squares seeds sewn and covered with net

I then sat back and awaited to see what grew. It took between 7 and 10 days before I saw the first signs of growth. So exciting to see it begin.

I started this project creating my square foot garden at the start of May, it is now mid June and I am now the proud owner of crops at various stages of growth. These are Potatoes, Tomatoes, Mint, Coriander, Sage, Oregano, Basil, Parsley, Sweet peppers, Chilli peppers, Savoy cabbage, cauliflower, Sprouts, Beetroot, Shallots, Garlic, Peas, Mangetout, and Lettuce. I’m amazed and proudly walk in the garden every day inspecting the rate of growth and doing any maintenance work that’s needed.

Some of my fabulous crops

When I started this it was to pass the time in Lockdown and I thought that if I failed at least I’d cleared that particular bed and I could replant it next year with flowers and plants, but who knows now. I will keep you updated with the progress of my crops!

Coincidentally after I began ITV then started to transmit a show on a Monday evening called Grow Your Own devoted to this very subject.

It has been so easy that I would encourage anyone to give it  ago. It’s not too late to start for this year and they can be planted in the smallest of spaces in any container.

If you are reading this is it because you are thinking of starting to grow your own square foot garden or are you already the proud owner of your own.  Let me know what you do, or do you have any tips to pass on to me. I would also love to hear from you of your successes or failures.

Thanks for popping in today

Retirement in Lockdown has been a mixed experience for myself and Mr Fitz. My previous post outlined what we did to fill our days in the first few weeks.

So it’s now June and we’re 2 and a half months into this unusual phase in the world.  Time has flown for us and it’s interesting to reflect on our activities.

Retirement

Mr Fitz who was working for the NHS as a hospital porter took early retirement at the end of April. This date was pre planned prior to the Covid 19 outbreak. This is a lifestyle decision following the death of his brother aged 66 and my brother aged 70. John is 62 in October and not due to receive his state pension until he is aged 66. He has therefore not got an income – his NHS pension is very meagre as he was only employed with them for 10 years. He does have some personal savings to keep him going for a while. We are not planning on changing our lifestyle though, just being more frugal and looking for value for money. His plans for retirement though looked so much different, we would go for long walks, pub lunches, restaurant meals, trips into Manchester and further afield. Instead he’s captive with me! We are lucky to celebrate 35 years of marriage in September and still get on so well. We have had no problems being with each other 24 hours a day.

Walking

We have continued to walk, not further afield like the Lake District and Whitby as planned but just locally. We have found many local tracks, one track provides us with 4 different options of routes to take, all semi rural with beautiful scenery. We pass horses, sheep, cows, have seen hares frolicking in fields and seen crops and mowed fields now showing new growth.

Home

Gardening was never on our agenda in Retirement, however our garden has been our saviour.  We have spent hours in it tidying and replanting beds. I have even cleared one bed to start my own Vegetable patch, using the square foot gardening technique, something I discovered whilst researching how to start growing my own. My first seeds are now beginning to shoot. I love seeing progress each day. The sun has been shining a lot and we have enjoyed beer and wine in our lovely tidy garden. Watching and listening to the birds. One robin has become quite tame and given us lots of pleasure as he hops around us after scraps of food.

My veg patch divided into square foot plots

Food

I have talked about reducing food waste, this was something we have tried to do when accessibility to shops has been limited and bearing in mind our new frugal life style in retirement. I have been consciously still avoiding waste but one think we have noticed is that we haven’t been cooking a meal everyday. We haven’t been as active so some days we’ve had a side salad with a jacket potato or the previous days leftovers. Crackers and cheese has been very popular with us. Not the healthiest but very satisfying.

Watching TV

We are of an older generation so don’t tend to regularly binge watch Netflix, in fact we don’t have a subscription. We do have a full Sky package and I have an Amazon Prime subscription. One thing we have realised is how much we enjoy the Soaps, and the reduced episodes from all of them have been a big hole in our viewing along with no live sport. In my opinion the TV has been poor, we have struggled to find anything exciting many nights. I said we don’t binge watch but we do occasionally find something that grabs us.

Our favourite shows have been The A Word from the BBC we have watched the previous 2 series and this series has been the best so far. The storyline of a family coping with the diagnosis and then the behaviour of an Autistic boy called Joe is charming. The casting is marvellous, Max Venta as Joe is adorable, Molly Wright plays his sister Rebecca and their relationship is so touching. However many scenes are stolen by Christopher Eccleston who plays Joe’s grandad – hilarious bringing the humour to the show. If you haven’t watched it yet all series are available on BBC iPlayer.  Pointless has been something we have watched several times a week. There are always a few episodes on our planner, both the regular and the Celebrity versions. I love, love, love this show and would love to be a contestant. Mr Fitz is warming to the idea. I find myself punching the air with glee when I get a Pointless answer. Surprisingly we have also watched hours of gardening shows – is this a sure sign that we are now in retirement? Not something we have regularly watched before lockdown.

Tracing my Family Tree

Following VE Day celebrations when I celebrated my parents contribution to World War 2 I began to reflect on my family and it’s heritage. Coincidentally my older cousin was experiencing the same thoughts and we talked by telephone. My SIL passed me some photographs that were in my brothers possessions, mostly black and white, with people I did not fully recognise. My cousin and I swapped photo’s as he had some well. We started to try and identify who they were. I had started to look into my family tree 2 years ago. I have picked it up again. I bought some books to keep records and have been totally absorbed in it. Once lockdown is over I am going to join a Geneology group at my local library and investigate it further. I have manged to trace back 3 generations on my fathers side.

What have you been up to? Have you found yourself taking up new hobbies or interests? How have you found TV, I’d love to know if you have any recommendations.

Motown the Musical is much more than a showcase for its music it’s also a lesson in American musical history.

I saw this production at Manchester Opera house during the recent UK tour. It has enjoyed a successful spell in London.

I was fortunate to win these tickets and wasn’t sure whether I really fancied the show. Don’t get me wrong I love a trip to the theatre and Motown music formed the backdrop to my teenage and school years. I usually research shows I go to see but in this case I hadn’t.

Motown the Musical

With just $800 borrowed from his family, Berry Gordy founded Motown records and launched the careers of Diana Ross and the Supremes, Michael Jackson and the Jackson 5, Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, Marvin Gaye, The Temptations and many more. Motown the Musical brings this story to life and follows the record label through the decades up to the point of the 25th Anniversary celebration.

The show starts at the end e.g. the day of the 25th Anniversary party where Berry Gordy feels disillusioned and rejected by many of his artists. The initial dialogue is with him and his life long friend and brother in law Smokey Robinson. From this scene the show follows the story back in time from the start of Gordy’s story.

The initial music depicts The Temptations and The Four Tops tip toeing around each other in competition singing their collective songs. The vocals and choreographed moves that were the ‘norm’ of the time are on display. So slick and suave with sharp shiny suits. The original boybands! I love watching these old acts on Youtube and I felt really nostalgic seeing them portrayed on the stage.

I was hooked from this first scene – singing along, proud that I remembered all the words! The show continues at a fast pace with so many memorable songs Featuring over 50 classic hits including My Girl, What’s Going On, Dancing in the Street, I Heard It Through The Grapevine and Ain’t No Mountain High Enough.

The show continues to flow through the years, Smokey Robinson an ever present. It portrays the relationship between the iconic songwriting team of Holland Dozier and Holland responsible for so many hits.

There is a portrayal of so many stars we have known and love from The Supremes featuring Diana Ross, Stevie Wonder and The Jackson Five.

I’ve read many stories of Diana Ross being a Diva and this is how she is portrayed throughout the show. She had a long standing relationship with Gordy but ultimately leaves him and his label after being offered more money by RCA records. In this production Miss Ross was played by Karis Anderson of the band Stooshe. She plays her well although I thought her voice mimicked Ross’s best at the lowest softest notes. The wardrobe worn by her and the Supremes was amazing – oh to be 20 years younger and 6 sizes smaller!

Karis Anderson as Diana Ross

But to me Edward Baruwa playing Berry Gordy who has the stand out voice – my favourite black singer of all time is Teddy Pendergrass and Baruwa has the closest voice to his I have heard.

 Edward Baruwa as Berry Gordy

I have to give a special mention to the young actor who played Michael Jackson in his early days. Yami is a local Manchester lad who got the role after attending open auditions – he was so like the real thing! His vocals and movements were great to see.

What I really liked about the show was that the History of black people and civil rights ran as a backdrop throughout the story. Events portrayed included the assassinations of John F Kennedy and Martin Luther King through to the Black Power movement, strongly supported by Marvin Gaye.

I attended a Monday night show and I don’t think it was the liveliest of audience. The cast encourages the audience to join in with songs and the final seat has the audience on its feet. I suspect on a livelier night the audience could be dancing in the aisles.

The music of Motown has now been around for 60 years and is definitely here to stay!

Evaluation

Motown the Musical tells the thrilling tale of the man who broke barriers, fought against the odds to create something more than a record label. Discover the story behind Motown, the personal relationships, the professional struggles, and – of course – the music that made history, defined the sound of a generation and got the whole world moving to the same beat.

Motown the Musical continues to tour around the UK after leaving Manchester and I highly recommend it if you are a music fan.

Any trip to the theatre is turned into a special occasion with a pre show dinner. The Ivy Manchester is virtually next door to The Opera House, a fabulous venue that I reviewed in February.

Thanks for reading

Romance can mean so many different things to so many different people.

Even dictionary’s have different definitions – one I found that I liked stated it as a noun – to mean a feeling of excitement and mystery associated with love.

I have also seen it describes as a thoughtful expressions of love.

Having been married for 33 years and together with my husband for 38 years I think we must be getting something right. We are very happy and friend have commented on our relationship, how close we are and always laughing. I think there is a lot of romance in our relationship but maybe not in the classic way that it is to others. We do not do grand gestures like public displays of affection or flowers delivered to the door.

Also the romance has built during our relationship, I think true romances grow and evolve. They are never perfect from the start, we both think that we love each other much more now than at the beginning. Our opinion is that you think you love someone when you get married but as time has passed you know you do after a few years. Shared experiences and values.

Still happy and romantic after 33 years of marriage

We are a happily childless couple and that may have an impact on our closeness – we are everything to each other. Having each others sole attention – well Mr Fitz may argue that he shares me with Manchester City Football Club! To understand that last sentence you may want to read my previous post about why I love football.

We may give each other a card or we may not – it’s not something we get hooked up on if one forgets or doesn’t bother. We do not need one day of the year to express our thoughts – we do it daily.

Romantic gestures to us are small things, more gestures of love and caring – a brew in bed at weekends, Mr Fitz surprising me with my favourite take away fish and chips! Recently I had a nasty chest infection and I was having to sleep sat up on the couch, he got up in the middle of the night and offered to go to the 24 hour chemist to get me supplies. The silly text message during the day that doesn’t make sense to anyone else but us!

I read a lot these days about girls wanted to be treated like a princess and to them this means being bought expensive gifts and getting their own way about everything. This is the total opposite of my view on life. Each person is equally important in a relationship. Each person can have different viewpoints on many things and it is important that  both persons viewpoints, hobbies and interests are respected.

Mr Fitz and I do lots of things differently and although extremely close and loved up we are by no means joined at the hip!

In summary it is the silly things that are romantic gestures to us – one Valentines day he bought me a card and a pasty from a well known high street bakers! To me that was funny and sweet. I’d much rather that than expensive flowers. I’m fortunate to have been on the receiving end of so many small romantic gestures that have meant a lot to me and count my blessings to have romance in my life every day.

Anyway thank you for reading this and I wish you all a Happy Valentines Day

What is the most romantic thing that has ever happened to you – I’d love to know please comment and let me know or email me

Excellent service is always a huge plus in any restaurant. We recently visited Fado Rock in Corralejo Fuerteventura and found the service here to be of the highest standard. If you haven’t yet read the resort review then feel free to take a look now.

I review all restaurants against the same criteria’s. I have outlined these on my sister blog, please pop over to read my process.

Name of Restaurant

Fado Rock

This is one of a chain of restaurants around the Canary Islands. It is a large airy restaurant away from the main high street but on the seafront. This review is made after our second visit, our first was on our holiday last year.

Reason for Visit

I visited with my husband on the Saturday evening of our holiday. We stay in an apartment and tend to eat breakfast and lunch there. For evenings we often have a takeaway. Our winter break is not one where we dine out every night.

First Impression

We arrived at 7pm and were the first diners there. I was a little worried that we were the only ones there but needn’t have worried as it soon filled up. It is a lovely large, clean well decorated restaurant. There are discreet images related to batman in the logo, but as yet I haven’t worked out the connection between the name and the film! One thing I noticed was how the cutlery is placed on the table – it is attached to the wine glasses instead of placed on the table in the traditional way. I thought this really eye catching. The waiters take it out of this set up and lay it down for you so that you don’t have to worry about dismantling it and dropping the knife and fork everywhere.

Novel way of placing cutlery on the table

Time To Get Served/Attention

We were met and seated immediately. Given the choice of all the tables we chose a position by the window. However as it was after dusk the view was not the same as it would be in the height of summer.

Food

Having eaten here before we knew that the portions are very generous, therefore I chose not to have a starter. Mr Fitz chose a tomato and onion salad which was so fresh and delicious served with a slice of aubergine crisp and a chopped chives. Before the starter was served we ere give a free appetiser each – a small deep fried cheesey nibble.

For main course I chose pork fillets in Roquefort sauce and Canarian potatoes.  Mr Fitz chose the Fado special kebab which was huge! 2 kebabs, 1 was mixed meat – steak and chicken, the second one was large chunks of fish.

Tomato and Onion salad

Pork fillet with Roquefort sauce and canarian potatoes

1st part of the Fado Rock special kebab – note the salad artistically wrapped in cucumber

Fish kebab

We did not have a dessert as we were full – to follow we were given a shot of honey rum, a local speciality drink.

We were so full that instead pf moving home for a drink, we decided to go back to our apartment and watch something downloaded on our tablet.

Service

Excellent service all round, in fact it is second to none. 2 staff accompany every dish and are so attentive. Drinks orders are quick. The serving staff also have a great humour and are so friendly.

Evaluation

We would highly recommend this restaurant. Great decor, staff, service and food.

Would I Visit Again

Definitely yes without hesitation.

Do you have a favourite holiday resort and restaurant? I’d love to hear your comments.

Thank you for popping by today and if you liked this maybe look at my review of Hawksmoor in Manchester on my sister blog beespiesandrainyskies.info

On World Prematurity Day I just had to pay tribute to this day after working in Neonatal care for over 30 years. Even after retirement I still worked some part time hours in the field for a while. I finally hung up my stethoscope 12 months ago, I felt these precious babies and their families deserved someone with a sharper brain to care for them than me with my menopausal brain fog.
Throughout my time it has been a privilege to work with such fine specimens of humanity – the babies!
When I’ve told people what I do many people have commented “oh that must be hard” “that must be sad” but no. It’s quite the contrary –  it’s uplifting and inspiring.
These little beings that arrive at the most inconvenient times, many weeks early are as tough as teak. Parents and families are scared of their small size and shiny skin, many looking like little skinned rabbits in the early hours after birth. Those of us who care for them aren’t, we know they are strong, tough, durable and will fight to do what’s necessary to cling to life. Sadly some don’t get to stay here but have to join the heavenly band of angels, but thankfully the majority make it in the end.

World Prematurity Day has been allocated to raise awareness and pay tribute to this unique world. They have my utmost respect and I am in awe of them and their families.
Many of the babies I cared for in my early career are now parents themselves, some are fine big rugby players, clever, talented adults.

Parents as well cope with more than they think they can. Premature births often happen when a mother of family also have another traumatic event going on – these preterm babies don’t care! Mother can be days away from a house move, death of a close family member, another child already in hospital. The birth of a tiny, frail baby is another burden they fear they cannot cope with – but they do! They manage to deal with a whole host of things whilst still managing to visit daily, sometimes for a stay of over 100 days. They do remain sane and come out smiling.

The professionals who work in the field, support these fragile tiny bodies as if they were a family member, they listen to stressed parents, wipe away tears of sadness and laughter, encourage parents to have some ‘me’ time. These professionals also grieve with bereaved parents and celebrate with parents as tiny milestones are reached.

On World Prematurity Day I salute you all.