Submitted!

Yesterday was a great day, I submitted by PhD Thesis to the exam schools in Oxford.  Sadly there is no fanfare for this (it comes after the Viva exam when you get to be Dr.) but I was happy all the same. I took a photo of the slip of paper just before the copies of the thesis got sent away to the examiners.

submission process

In celebration of the culmination of 3 years work and the end of 8 years at university I did a bit of window shopping (I need a handbag and coat for work), met a friend for lunch (we had cheese toasties at Zappis), learned to blowdry my hair after a haircut and had a makeup lesson at debenhams. Good girly day right?

In the evening Mike took me out for dinner. I was sorely disappointed (though the restaurant has amazing reviews) but Mike loved his meal. I had a goat cheese tart (not any better than shop bought) and mussels (which I think will never live up to those I had at the original Loch Fyne). I skipped pudding though perhaps the cardamom creme brulee would have won me round?

This week whilst waiting to submit (you have to informally invite all the examiners and wait to hear back) I have done lots of tidying and sorting; I had to clear out my desk at the lab and find somewhere for all the stuff to go. (I can't wait for Mike to finish my bureau so I have somewhere to keep pretty stationery but in the meantime I am enjoying researching bureaus and writing desks for interior inspiration). I bought and labelled flour containers in our baking cupboard, and emptied the one box we hadn't yet unpacked. I also baked a honey spice cake but it was far too sweet and therefore is considered a failure.

This weekend we have some visitors and I'm planning a visit to a country estate for an autumn walk tomorrow (and forage). I have given up on the tomatoes and picked them green so making chutney is probably also on the itinerary.  Next week I have no plans at all so hopefully Mike will whisk me away somewhere for a few days of relaxation before I start work properly on the 8th.

Claire

Sunny weekends

Since we moved house we are entirely lacking in a social life which has the unexpected bonus of lots of time to ourselves. The weather over the last few weeks has been my favourite: sunny with a slight nip in the air in the morning so that the leaves gleam.

The new place has two sets of decking with table and chairs on (spoiled I know). One gets breakfast and evening sun, the other gets the rest of the day. I could happily eat all meals outside if suitably wrapped up. Meals of salad and bread for warm days, or soup for cold.

We had some great success with a walk on Saturday afternoon. With a screenshot of the ordinance survey we hadn't known there was going to be a pub exactly halfway around the 6 mile journey! A pub with deckchairs, hampers, cider and icecream next to the river. We will definitely be going back there because the food looked ace! The walk itself had lots of variety - a lovely wood, some open fields and a meandering riverside. I have incorporated some of it into a new running route (though I have to be very careful to avoid tree roots in the wood and so my pace suffers).

morning run

In over-excitement about autumn I spent a fortune on food yesterday, on the menu (literally, a chalkboard menu a friend bought me for my birthday) this week:

Sea bream with smoked paprika spiced aubergine and tomatoes, leek and potato soup, butternut squash and sage risotto, butternut squash, sage and sausage casserole, fish pie...(you get the idea). 

I am also about to give in and use our green tomatoes to make mum's chutney ready for winter. I've got enough plum and blackberry jam to last forever so if anyone would like to swap it for apples (which we don't seem to have any of nearby) then that would be awesome.

PhD is still plodding along. I spent yesterday making sure all the formatting was perfect. Today I am researching residue functions in MRI and how my project may help. Hopefully finished this week!

Does everyone else love autumn as much as me? Wooly scarfs, blankets, lined-boots, tights, still sunny???

Claire
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A reveal!

Ta-dah

hanging out after blocking

I can finally say that this blanket is done.

some closeups

It was originally started for a friend's baby but it turns out her sister crochets too so now it's in the 'pile of things I really should give away but-oh-it's-soft-and-pretty etc'. I'm not sure I like it as much as the bright blankets I've made but it is much better yarn and so the softness is a definite plus. I also made it big enough to snuggle on the sofa in (though it doesn't look it in the pictures). I would have made bigger but I was stopped by a lack of pink yarn (and even had to take apart a pink elephant to finish it so now he has blue ears). 

Anyway, here it is. The pattern is Lucy's summer square with a HDC border, the cream wool is a huge ball of aran I got from a discount shop and the other bits are odds and ends given to me. 

I hope you like it. It's hard to take photos of blankets!

Claire

Work outfits

WE HAVE THE INTERNET

this is exciting because it means I can blog again.

I started work last week. First post back is this one purely about dressing up for work. Having been a student for 8 years (yes) I am used to wearing jeans, or pjs. But last week I got to dress up smartly every day and wear heels. I bought some lovely underdress slips (not the squeezey ones though because I thought I was going to faint when I tried one) and played around with existing dresses. I also bought a new 3/4 sleeve dress and a belt from Jaeger which I adore (but it was too warm to wear the dress last week). I currently have 8 outfits, but may buy one more dress in navy 'cos I'm taking the one with the gold collar back.

The first week of work was great! It was an induction week with some playing around with cars, and lots of team building. For the next month though it's back to finishing the PhD. Which I better actually get back to because I'm supposed to be submitting this week. 

so long

Claire

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House move

We have been moving house, and have no internet for a while so here is a quick update whilst I'm at uni for the day.

I secretly enjoy moving house, the sorting and organising and labelling and list making. Not to mention the fact that we were both off work and so I got to spend a week and a bank holiday just hanging out with my husband (where hanging out is doing all the cleaning and manic stuff but also eating random combinations of leftover freezer food, playing boardgames, singing songs to each other and having tea in bed before starting the day).

We had less than 24 hours to move house so everything from upstairs went to live in the garage while we cleaned. Once again my miracle products (Magic Eraser and Biomex) made good work of everything and we were very proud of the results (and the checkout clerk was impressed). We also cleaned half of the kitchen to save time on the day. Then Mike's parents came to help and his mum and I finished the cleaning whilst the chaps packed up the van. It was 3 trips in the end (of 1 hour each way) so we were all exhausted by the end but it's done!

Disappointingly the new house wasn't clean when we got there - they'd rushed to give us more moving time but hadn't let us know so we hadn't even got the van when they called to say it was ready. There are also no picture hooks, and only one curtain rail so it's really hard to personalise. However, we've now got it how we want it with the purchase of a new kitchen island, a wardrobe for the bedroom and a dresser for all my crockery. We personalised the dresser with my stripey green ceramic door knobs and it's all white and lovely. This is now my favourite room in the house.

Sorry there are no photos. Here is one of my mother-in-law and I waiting for the the last van load having cleaned ourselves out of the house:

lots of love

Claire
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Fabric wishlist

We are currently packing our house up to move. This will hopefully be the last time we move to rent. We have loved this house but paying close attention to it whilst cleaning shows that, really, it's only the kitchen and location which are 'nice' and everything else is just a bit tired.

To distract myself from the fact that my house is full of boxes, I took comfort in my pinterest boards. Most of my 'dream house' items are pastel or delicately patterned ceramics, but the fabric items on there are vibrant and (sadly) not husband friendly:

(created using http://www.photovisi.com). 

The ottoman was featured on house and home and now can't be found, the shower curtain and flower bedding are both urban outfitters, the quilt (bottom left) is from not the high street and the yellow peacock bedding is from Dwell Studio

Since we are moving away from our friends, this print is speaking to me at the moment

Home is wherever I'm with you

In the Bible, God says that He goes ahead, clearing the road and " I'll lead you to buried treasures, secret caches of valuables - Confirmations that it is, in fact, I, God, the God of Israel, who calls you by your name ". Taking this verse out of context a bit, I have been comforted that God will uncover treasures for us in a new place, a new way of serving and a new set of people as confirmation that he is a God who knows us and provides for us.

Love

Claire

Review - The Field Kitchen

On Friday night as a birthday treat, Mike and I went with some friends to The Field Kitchen . It was so good that I want to recommend it to everyone!

The field kitchen is a pop-up restaurant, I shall leave further description to the website:

“Imagine a garden, barn or courtyard filled with low-lit lamps, round and rectangular tables, higgledy piggledy cutlery, glassware, table linen and plates. Complimentary jugs of wine and fresh elderflower and fruit concoctions. Steaming hot Italian coffee. Take a van with a kitchen in it, fill it full of fresh, local and interesting ingredients. Put an instinctive chef in it who is all about passion and giving the best he can. Welcome to The Field Kitchen Oxford.”

On Friday, with the sun beaming, it was held in Hogacre Common, found by walking down a track, crossing a (honestly sketchy looking) railway bridge and emerging into a sunkissed meadow with a pavillion. When we arrived, there were children playing rounders and happy adults enjoying coffee and looking smug after their own meals. 

the field kitchen, in a field, husband looks happy about his pork

We were seated under a granny lampshade next to speakers playing lovely folky music (later replaced by live music). I sent a photo to my mum who remarked 'oh you really did mean eating in a field'.  We received jugs of wine and water and settled down to wait for our first course (we didn't know what we were getting until we got there).On the table were lovely flowers and herbs, and a sprig of lavender on our napkins. The starter was a sourdough bruchetta with a pea and garlic puree and it was a great introduction to the type of food, which one could imagine was plucked straight from the community allotment next door (indeed, some is sourced from that very allotment). The food was served on mismatched crockery, but I managed to get the same set for main and pudding. 

Seabass and strawberry and custard tart.

The others had pork as their main (and see how happy my husband looks!), I had seabass having consulted with the chef the day before. Both were served with a scrumptious caponata - not as sweet as the version I make so that it complemented the fish more. I really didn't expect something as extravagant as seabass for my meal so it was a wonderful surprise. Pudding was an equally glorious strawberry custard tart. 

Snuggled up husband

We finished off with a pot of coffee fresh from the stove whilst listening to the acoustic performers and chatting. By then the sun had set and it had got chilly so on went the lamps and we were provided with blankets from a huge hamper. We had already paid online for the meal and so it was a very relaxed atmosphere with no pressure to leave. Others came and went but we basked in the atmosphere. 

In case of rain, there is a pavillion on the common where dinner can be served, but we were very glad that we got to experience the true 'Field Kitchen'. The meal cost us £30 each, including the wine and we would definitely love to go again (if we weren't leaving Oxford in 3 weeks). 

Lots of love

Claire