Liar Liar Pants on Fire

Last night I found out that my husband has been lying to me for over a year.

He can cook.

Really, really well.

Since I've met him he's claimed that cooking isn't his strong point. He's admitted that he can just about follow a recipe, but that's it.

Last night the truth came out.

He made a pumpkin and sage risotto. It was the best risotto I have ever eaten. Not only was it delicious but it was also perfectly seasoned and cooked to the perfect al-dente texture.

He claims that all of this was luck. I don't believe that luck could produce something so scrummy. I'd have happily paid for this in a restaurant and gone back again and again.

I am such a lucky girl to come home from work to such a fabulous dinner.

If you want to have a go at making this, hubby followed this Hugh-Fearnley Whittingstall recipe. The only real difference was that we had already roasted our pumpkin so just added it a few minutes before the end.

Bedroom Dreams

Following on from yesterday I've been day-dreaming about the bedroom I'd most love to be having night-dreams in...

Fairy Lights  / Knitted Blanket / Ceramic Knobs 

I love twinkly fairy lights wrapped around headboards, There's something about the soft light they give that makes everything feel so much more romantic. Like having lots of little candles lit, but with a much smaller chance of setting the whole place on fire. As well as having normal fairy lights I've been thinking about having some more unusual ones dotted around. These Moroccan style lights from notonthehighstreet.com would be lovely around a dressing table.

Recently I've been falling in love with big, thick, cabled knitted blankets. I keep telling myself that I'm going to knit one for myself but I simply can't find a wool that I love enough. Until I find the perfect wool I'll keep cuddling them in shops. I've also seen some adorable knitted cushion covers, which once I get around to knitting a blanket, I'll be knitting to finish the look.

I've also become a bit fed up with having a mix-match of bedroom furniture. We bought cheap pine chests of drawers which I stained a light grey colour myself, I think they're wonderful. The finishing touch that they still need are some pretty ceramic knobs. I'm hoping to replace our battered bedside table with something similar.

Spare Room Sort Out

Last night we had our first overnight guests since we've started living together around a year ago. Before we moved into our last flat Andrew emptied a storage unit he had, so we had a spare room full of loads of boxes of unsorted bits and bobs.

With the nature of how doctor's jobs change Andrew had years of finishing work late on a Tuesday evening in one part of the country and having to move overnight to start his new job on the Wednesday. This means just throwing things into boxes with the aim of sorting them out in the future, but never really getting around to it.

Over the last year I'd say that he's sorted out and disposed of over half of all of the random stuff. There were over 2 large moving boxes of bits to be shredded and boxes upon boxes of free mugs and stationary from conferences and drug companies. Our last flat move in August was a big kick up the bottom to get rid of loads of stuff.

Living near a major airport we've really had to get our acts together and get our spare room sorted, as lots of people want to come and stay the night before a holiday. By sorted I mean at least dig out room for a bed.

We got our bed from Ikea. I was really impressed because the mattresses come all rolled up, so we could fit a double bed and a double mattress in our VW Golf. Unfortunately we didn't remember that Ikea beds are slightly different sizes to normal beds, so we have a bit of an issue with fitted sheets. It's one of their cheaper frames, but I adore it's swirly, romantic headboard. Perfect for twirling fairy lights around.

It's still full of boxes and needs a little sorting out, but it's so nice to have a spare bed and finally be able to let people stay over.

Because of (yet another) unexpected change to my future jobs, we'll be moving again in another 6 months. I'm hoping that will give us the perfect opportunity to have a little clear out of some more stuff and finally get things properly organised.

Once we've moved again I want to start replacing our mismatched, cheap and falling apart furniture with some bits that look nicer together. I keep trawling around second hand furniture shops falling in love with vintage pieces but daren't buy anything nice when so many things get damaged while moving. For now I'll have to satisfy my longing for pretty interiors with Pinterest. *Sighs*

If any one has any tips of anywhere other than my beloved Ikea to find cheap but pretty furniture and interiors bits and bobs I'd love some tips.

Burger & Lobster - Soho

What meal invokes more of a feeling of celebration than a big plate of lobster? I can't think of anything. In fact it's probably such of a celebratory dish in my mind because I also associate it with being so expensive that I could only possibly order it on the most special of occasions.

Not anymore. 

Burger & Lobster is now a small chain of restaurants that have blown the preconception that lobster has to be expensive out of the water.

Expensive or not lobster is still a treat, and as hubby has never had it before I decided to treat him to lobster on his birthday. I'd been here once before with a university friend and was just as impressed this time. 

The Soho restaurant is huge with a big bar stretched along one wall and a massive multi-story lobster tank. The whole place feels very informal with simple wooden tables and no fancy crockery/cutlery/tablecloth set up. There's no need for a menu as there is a choice of 3 things. Burger, lobster or lobster roll, all identically priced at £20. For those with a massive appetite there are always some monster lobsters priced individually on the board. There is however a great little menu of cocktails, matched to go with each of the choices. 

As far as I'm concerned they may as well have called the place Lobster & Lobster, because I'm simply never going to choose anything else. Hubby and I both ordered grilled lobster. 

The lobster comes with crisp skinny fries, a generous side salad and a gravy boat filled with deliciously naughty garlic butter. The lobster itself already has it's claws cracked so all that I needed to do was snap where the cracks were and use my little pointy stick to get the lobster out. 

Last time I went I was given a plastic bib, and I don't know if it's because I looked tidier this time or perhaps they forgot, but I wasn't given a bib this time. This led to much dabbing of garlic butter and lobster splatters on my dress. Next time I think I'll ask, as I definitely saw other people wearing them.

They might have desserts, but both times I've been here I've been far too full to even think about eating anything else. Next time I go I'll keep a look out.

I'll definitely be back for a third time, and I might even stray from my usual habits and have the lobster roll that I've heard so many good things about.

9/10

Birthday Day Out

Last week, for hubby's birthday, we decided we'd have a big day out in London. We're less than an hour away and yet we hardly ever go.

To be honest it started as a bit of a disaster. We decided that it would be a lovely idea to go to the Natural History Museum. We like the dinosaurs. Unfortunately we both completely forgot that it was half term. The queues to get in were insane! We scrapped that idea, and similarly the Science museum and ended up having a day of pigging out and wandering around.

A birthday lunch has to be special and what's more special than lobster? We pootled off to Burger Lobster (which deserves it's own post later this week) and stuffed ourselves silly.

After that we had a wander around Covent Garden, peeked in the Apple store and had a nosey in the Royal Opera House. Hubby has never been before, so I'll have to try and find some not-to-expensive tickets for something there.

We made the most of the lack of rain and took a stroll along the river to Blackfriars bridge, crossed over and walked back towards the Southbank Centre. We stopped for a lemonade in the cosy bar of the BFI while we decided what to do next.

After quickly consulting google we found lots of recommendations for hot chocolate at Cafe Vergnano. Never one to miss the opportunity for a nice hot choccie we decided to see if the hype was true. It is. The hot chocolate was so thick and rich it felt as if we were drinking melted chocolate. I'm glad I went for a small one I'd probably have passed out from chocolate overload!

While having my hot chocolate I (kind of) accidentally ended up eavesdropping on a man who looked just like Barney from How I Met Your Mother chatting up a pretty girl. It was cringe-worthy and hysterical at the same time. I think he actually thought he was Barney. I'm not sure if telling girls about all the other women who want to sleep with you actually works as a chat up line, but he sure thought it did.

We wandered a bit more and ended up in the ever-interesting little shop in the Southbank centre that's full of gifty bits. This time of year they have already filled half the store with adorable (and expensive) Christmas decorations. I fell in love with little baubles which looked like balls of yarn (which I'm going to try to make) and a little mountable stag's head covered in multicoloured wool. The most exciting thing in the whole shop was a tongue in cheek children's book called "H is for Hummus"... an alphabet book for the modern (middle class!) parent and child. I'll be remembering that as a gift for some of my friends.

As if we hadn't eaten enough over the day we decided to make the most of being near all kinds of yummy food that we can't get easily at home and stopped for some dim sum before getting the train home. I almost had to roll off the train and down the road to home afterwards... I was so stuffed.

After a bit of a disastrous start, it was a very lovely day.

Busy Me

I have had a really busy weekend of nightshifts, and now I'm reaping the rewards. I have 3 days off in a row... Hurrah!

The thing I love about working funny hours is the time I get off when everyone else is at work. It's got the potential to be such a productive time. While everyone else is working I can go to the doctor, the bank or walk around the shops without being squished in a crowd.

I'll be perfectly honest. I'm not always that productive.

My first day post nights was spent curled up in bed with the kitten imagining that I was an eskimo huddled under a pile of furs. I was too lazy to even cook dinner and we ended up having curry. Today was a little more productive. The in-laws are staying on Wednesday night before going to the airport so I needed to give the flat a really good clean. I haven't done as much as I'd like, but I've given the bathroom a really deep clean, done a huge pile of washing up and put on two loads of clothes washing. Tomorrow I can properly tackle the lounge, kitchen and make the new spare bed. I probably need to dig the bed out of all the boxes in the spare room too. Oh, and hide the Christmas presents elsewhere, it would be a bit of a surprise-ruiner if they found those in bags next to the bed.

I've also spent ages cooking a delicious homemade dinner to make up for last night. We're having one of my wintery favourites... stuffed savoy cabbage in a rich tomato sauce. It's been twice as much work as I had to make a vegetarian filling for the hubby. I created one with quorn, rice, spices, butter and stock. It's pretty delicious and might actually be nearly as good as my meaty filling.

I really should finish tidying but instead I'm going to curl up on the sofa with a cup of jasmine green tea, some revision and Taylor Swift playing in the background. I promise I'm actually revising and not just looking at the cute baby on the book cover!

Step by Step - November

All my life I have been teased for my love of lists. In fact as I've got older not only has the teasing got worse, but somehow it means that people think I'm organised and I get roped into doing lots and lots of organisational bits and bobs for people.

I know I'm really guilty of getting bogged down in lots of little bits that I've said I'll do for other people and don't always think about doing things for me, so from this month I'm going to do what I've seen lots of other bloggers do and set myself some goals to achieve. Little steps each month to more happiness and organisation for me.

1. Read a textbook. 

Okay I know that this doesn't seem like much fun, but I spend so much time doing stuff for other people I forget to do the basics. I'm a massive geek and I ordered myself a new textbook last week. I've been saying that I want to brush up on my neonatology for a while, so that's what I'm going to do.

2. Write Christmas cards.

I always get to halfway through December when I'm insanely busy at work and remember that I've forgotten to write the Christmas cards I bought. I have stacks of them and this year I'm going to get prepared earlier.

3. Take a walk.

Once I'm outside in the cold fresh air I love having a walk, and it always makes me feel so much better, but I always find too much stuff to do indoors. This month I need to take some outside time.

4. Use my proper camera.

Since I got an iPhone I've almost totally stopped using my real camera. It's not a fancy DSLR, but I used to love taking pictures on it. This month I'm going to take it out more.

5. Take a bath.

Before you jump to conclusions I shower every day! There's nothing nicer when it's cold out to have a relaxing soak in a hot bath. I want to do this with no phone, no emails, no reading work stuff, just listening to music.

6. Technology free day. 

I'm going to spend 1 day this month with no iPad, no laptop and no smartphone. That means no thinking about work emails, no ignoring hubby for reading blogs (oops) and no stressing myself out by accidentally landing on the Daily Fail website.