February Begins

A friend brought round a jigsaw puzzle for entertainment one evening. There was no picture on the box but lots of Hitchockian clues, including the red herring you can just about see in the not-very-good photo.

Meanwhile, the cats snuggled into one of their many boxes and ignored us.

The last bit of semi-normalcy in my life before I got the phone call that changed everything.

 

A Very Merry Christmas

Heading towards the end of the Blackhurst Advent Cocoktail calendar, we had a Mai Tai for Day 23.

The real cats don't know why we're bothering with these puzzle imposters.

Blackhurst Advent Cocktail Calendar Day 24 was a Gin-gle Bells. How pretty is that? It's gin (obviously), pomegrante juice (supposed to be cranberry but we didn't have any), lime juice, caster sugar, sparkling wine (supposed to be Prosecco but we didn't have any), with green sugar crystals for rimming (steady...).

The cat advent calendar jigsaw puzzle is now completed, and so too is the cocktail one. I made a photo collage of the second half. We did it! Our livers may not thank us, but we were dedicated to the cause. Thanks to all who played along, with love and festive spirits. 

Our Blackhurst traditional Christmas Day morning breakfast: bagels with cream cheese and smoked salmon (prosciutto for Him Outdoors) with glasses of Bucks Fizz.

 A walk up Mt Painter and a sh*t selfie.

Roast dinner (pork) with fresh greens and summer salads. 

I'm well aware that I'm no influencer or anything, but here is the 'unboxing' of my Christmas present from Weevil - a wonderful selection of teas and a beautiful cup from which to drink them.

A Christmas Day visitor to the brewery. We relocated them to a more appropriate tree. 

On Boxing Day I went to the Hyatt Hotel to drink champagne with Calamity Sue, and we spent the Chrimbo Limbo period eating and drinking with friends, and walking in the hills. 

More of the Blackurst Advent Cocktail Calendar

Out on a walk I came across these delicate flowers on a eucalyptus. I think they're very pretty, although the cockatoos just rip them off the tree with no respect.

 

I was hosting a theatre meeting at mine, so when everyone arrived, we served them a Rosita so they could join in with the cocktail fun. 

Day Ten was a Painkiller - it had quite the photo shoot. 

Day Eleven's concoction was a Jungle Bird. 

I should mention that some cocktails take more preparation than others, and that they don't always work out perfectly the first time. We had several attempts at Day Twelve's which was a Dominicana. Not all of the efforts looked aesthetically pleasing, but they all tasted great, which is the main thing.

As we are now halfway through the Blackhurst Cocktail Advent Calendar, I thought I'd create a pictorial collage. Also, a friend told me that they much preferred this advent calendar than the beer one we have done in the past, which made me think of the cartoon below.

Day Thirteen is a nod to My Cousin Rachael, as it was she who first introduced us to the Aperol Spritz. 

You may think that Day Fourteen's Campari Spritz lacks imagination after yesterday's offering, but it was hot (32 degrees) and we couldn't be bothered to be more creative. 

I think these Queen Park Swizzles are super pretty for Day Fifteen. Him Outdoors was very proud of the layering (rum; lime juice; sugar syrup) - apparently this is the national drink of Trinidad and Tobago.