The one and only Tearoom, to be sure , it is.

[UniS]

To pinch an intro from the very first one and only tea room thread. in 2009.

The tea room is now officially open, serving hot chocolate, tea, freshly-squeezed orange juice and a range of home-baked muffins. Tablecloths and crockery are charmingly mismatched antiques (no Cath Kidston here). We overlook an attractive although somewhat overgrown garden, with a distant view of rolling countryside.

Everyone is welcome but house rules dictate that anyone indulging in fisticuffs will be ejected.

Please come in.

2011
We seem to have fetched up in Ireland, this place looks remarkably like a pub,There is even a guiness barrel over there. The NMBs are all sporting shamrocks. The mirror ball is here, but I leave teh rest of the unpacking to someone else.

Scout, Wriggle hardly ever used any of her ride-on toys (therefore glad they came from car boots or friends, not bought.) They seem to have far less allure at home than at groups. She got far far more use from plastic toy farm animals, etc. And even more fron the guinea pigs.

Scout, I think it depends. My two adore their ride-on pony and car. They give me backache and I hate them. I spend a good part of most afternoons pushing them round; I try to get Kittenito to push Gatita but it just ends in tears. I have had more luck in persuading K to give G a ride on the back of his trike, though. She loves this.
However we have no play groups and no relatives with said stuff. So perhaps if TS has access to them elsewhere they are a needless expense -and you get to save your back!

I had something brilliant to say but have just forgotten it.

::wanders back to the MN Home for the Bewildered::

Thank to the wonders of the tea room - Can I offer you all a little snifter of something lovely as the sun sets? Baileys? bolly? biscuits?

Ride on's - Boy had a sit n ride car for christmas age 10months. He fair near wore out its wheels and did wear through 2 pairs of soft shoes trundling himself round on it over the next 8/9 months. It had lost its appeal before he was 2 however, about when he discovered pedal trikes at playgroup and scooters. Balance bike was 2nd birthday present and then sit n ride car was sold on.

Boy's was bought 2nd hand for a couple of quid and spruced up with a good scrub and some new stickers.

Did someone mention Bolly?

::perks up::

My memory of ride-on toys is that they were much more enticing at playgroups - where Girl could scoot for miles - than at home.

Ride ons. FWIW we have...

• a wheelybug - hardly used and huge waste of money (but it looked lovely )
• a Mickey Mouse ride on aeroplane (a present) that was used a lot but is now too small
• a Crazy Coupe car that Small Bean loves and still plays with a lot. At the weekend he was driving to Southampton for some reason.

If I had my time again I would only bother with the car. He has had a lot more use from his scooter and now his bike.

Maud.

Rdie ons - RBoy had one for his 1st birthday, it was a mothercare really, really basic one that cost £10 and he loved loved loved it. Would scoot round at home ad infinitum and rarely wanted to be pushed. Even though he whizzes about on his scooter now, he still returns to his ride on every now and then, it obviously has a place in his heart and happy memories. I thought right from the outset that it was an excellent spend of £10; in terms of play and enjoyment per pound it was utterly brilliant value. (Scooter has also been an excellent spend.)

TS is rather older tho than RBoy was when he first got it tho and already walking, while RBoy wasn't for while after getting it, so the extra mobility was a big plus for him back then, which may have made it more appealing. We've never had one of the big car ones but he does love them when he comes across them elsewhere.

Serpent - feel for you with the school thing. Dread to think of when it's RBoy. Not even entirely reconciled with nursery now.

Morning

Looks like LCT might need more antib's. Wheezy cough, playing with ears, cranky. Calling GP in a minute.

Can't answer to ride on toys as we just don't have the space. LCT does have a trike that he got for Christmas but it was probably a wasted purchase until we have a house with a garden! He does like to ride in the hall on it, but hardly the same!

and breakfast anyone?

- yes please!

Stopped at supermarket on way back from nursery so have croissants, pain au choc and danish if anyone's peckish.

Up at 6am to try to apply for Olympics tickets. Despite website crashing and general frustration I have just gone back online and somehow seem to have completed an application (had given ages ago and gone to wake Small Bean). So I may have tickets or may not ::shrugs::. Who knows?

Tee - hope LCT is ok. Small, cranky person is not at all fun.

Yes please to and breakfast!

::rushes about, packing things::

As I recall from many years ago, FineLad was a danger to humanity on a ride-on toy. He regarded them as tanks with which to mow down any individual unwise enough to be in the same room as him, and thus had them swiftly removed before he conquered the whole of toddler group with one. Other children seemed to manage them with a degree of thoughtfulness and peace.

Passes Amber a mug of tea and a large slice of toast and marmalade. try not to pack it in your case.
Forecast is for more rain, guess I should do gardening stuff this morning rather than wait till afternoon.

yum to pain au choc and danish, and croissant with lashings of strawberry jam...

Why are you packing, amber? Did I miss something? Hope you're not rushing too much!

We have spent a productive morning using up the puff pastry that's been in the freezer for yonks to make yummy sausage rolls, at RBoy's special request. Greggs, eat your heart out! They're fresh out of the oven and cooling on the sideboard, please do help yourselves.

We had a bug from NCT sale (waste of money, but resold, so really don't mind) - but he liked the car that my parents got him for their house (long, hard floored hall) much better. He got a balance bike which he seriously started using at about 20months - and that was wonderful.

tomato and basil soup for lunch?

Are warm, homemade,Tearoom sausage rolls suitable for vegetarians? ::hopeful emoticon::

(off for a wild weekend in an olde worlde cottage in a few mins) (we tend to race off every few weeks as a treat after me enduring the medical stuff)

Oh yes bean, you'll find the tearoom sausage rolls are in fact exactly the right sort for vegans, vegetarians, people of other faiths, those on a diet etc as they will contain absolutely no ingredients that would be a problem.

::helps herself to some of those and some tomato and basil soup::

::puts out a home made cake for afters::

I read a recipe for 'sausage rolls' made with salmon. Is that vegetarian? My very annoying daughter has decided suddenly to become vegetarian after I thought that seeing all the bits of a freshly slaughtered bullock would be educational. She was not horrified, just fascinated .. then said that she would never eat another animal. I do find that vegetarian food is much harder to organinse than meat - think sausages, burgers, etc. At our recent school fete, there was nothing at all and she was very hungry. I will have to be more organised now.

Afternoon. LCT has two infected ears and more antibiotics. Sofa day declared.

I don't really like sausage rolls, is that odd? I always think they are greasy. I'm not against grease but it's not my favourite thing!

Have a nice weekend Amber!

My homemade sausage rools are never greasy, made with sausages or salmon. I make shortcrust pastry and sprinkle chopped herbs inside before rolling them up. There are actually a few on the bar over there (hands up all who remembered that we are in an Irish pub) if anyone wants to try them. Very good for sofa days as no grease spots.

Then I will try one, thank you Serp!

Unserp - no, salmon rolls are not suitable for vegetarians, and having fish presented by a few restaurants and more hotels as a 'vegetarian option' is really annoying for vegetarians. Some people call themselves vegetarian when they eat fish as well - but they aren't

However, if I can ever help with suggestions, please let me know! I chose to become vegetarian when I was 6, so as you will surmise, I have had a few years to get used to it.

MC horrified MiL (meateater) when he was 2 and a bit - by coming out with 'I like lambs'..... then 'I eat lambs and sheep and cows and pigs and chickens...' My view was the opposite - I think its really important to understand where your food is coming from. I think that's part of why I don't like the 'meat substitutes' - I'm vege because I don't like meat - so I don't want to eat anything that is designed to look (or even taste) like it. I'd much prefer it to look of what it started as.

I think the baby doll stroller was a good £7 investiment -- oh the thrill and excitement! Pushing it all through PiL's house, snuggling Bunny in it, trying to entice the cats to have a ride. Bliss.

Have opted not to go for a ride on. Was trying to figure out if I should leave them as a "special" toy for toddlers and grandparents' house or if he'd get a lot of love/use from one. I think the stroller will be used much more.

DS had a few ride-on type toys that we got at various garage sales, etc. Nothing really sticks out in my mind. But our house was carpeted in nasty grey spotty rugs and they didn't work too well. By the time we have another (if we do) all of our hardwood floors will be refinished so a ride-on for hypothetical DC2 will be more practical. :)

LittleO got a ride on digger from a friend when he was very young, maybe 1. He didn't go near it for about 2 years. He has been using it for the past year though, but he mostly pretends its an apatosaurus !

Estate agent called back, we have agreed on 25 less a month than asking rent. Not loads less but still, we're happy to have the house!

Goodish news on teh rent then. well done.
LOL at digger apatasaurous. Boy likes to lead telehandler about by the winch cord as if it were a dog.

Glad Toddler scout likes his toy buggy. a good choice of toy.

Boy is moderately aware of where meat comes from, tonight we were talking over dinner about who grew the chicken and was it from his friends ( who has chickens )garden like the Pak Choi was from our garden.

How very well balanced of Boy!