Month: August 2022

  • Feeding and bathing the birds

    The magpies and slugs now eat the food I leave out for the hedgehogs. I know because I leave the camera out on it overnight and there’s very little activity from anything else. Something that did surprise me is how popular a bowl of water is. I was going to throw away a chipped pasta…

  • Wildfarmed flour, giant vegetables, and bicycles

    Wildfarmed flour, giant vegetables, and bicycles

    I was very excited to discover today that Bandit Bakery sell Wildfarmed flour. Wildfarmed flour is the future of farming because it prioritises soil health by growing perennial plants alongside crops like wheat so rather than having a giant field containing one single crop it’s a more natural and sustainable biodiverse ecosystem consisting of several…

  • The book of Deer at Aberdeen Art Gallery

    The book of Deer at Aberdeen Art Gallery

    We went to Aberdeen Art Gallery today to see the Book of Deer which is a 10th century manuscript thought to be of Scottish origin and which references the monastery of Deer in Aberdeenshire. It’s currently on loan from the University of Cambridge where it has lived since 1715. The book is written in Latin…

  • First blackberry crumble of the season

    First blackberry crumble of the season

    It’s blackberry season – yay! This means lots of blackberry crumble. Ben went foraging and collected a huge container full yesterday, half of which got eaten last night. There are so many wild blackberries all over the place in Aberdeen and the fruit ripens at different times – I guess depending on how sunny a…

  • D&D, cargo bike, summer, and gardens

    D&D, cargo bike, summer, and gardens

    The kids played Dungeons & Dragons at Geek Retreat in Aberdeen yesterday. This was their second time playing and they love it. They went with friends this time which would have made it even better. On Saturday afternoons you can book in for a beginner’s session and learn how to play. Their first game was…

  • A computer game and a highland dance update

    A computer game and a highland dance update

    Daniel wrote a game in Javascript. It’s a re-creation of the snake game. You’re the snake and you move around the screen consuming fruit. Each time you eat a piece of fruit you get longer. If you touch the edge or yourself you die. Movement is via the keys W, A, S, D on your…

  • The Aboyne Games and foraging for dinner

    The Aboyne Games and foraging for dinner

    Yesterday we went to the Aboyne Highland Games and Elizabeth competed in the highland dance. It’s the first time we’ve been to the Aboyne games and the first time it has run since before the pandemic. Elizabeth came last or second last in her dances. The other girls were quite a lot better and I’m…

  • Happiness is …

    Happiness is …

    … seeing our first guest in the pond hotel. Can you spot him? We hope you liked it, Mr Toad!