Family gathering at Christmas.

Isn't it great when the family arrive for Christmas get togethers ?


Especially when you are just a little princess.
But check out my favourite little visitor on my home page.
http://www.jillpendleton.co.uk/ He's called Oscar and he wears a cap.

Database in place and working.... yippee

Two little jobs sorted in time for Christmas. One is a canvas print of some delightful children that I had photoed for one of my family albums a couple of months ago. This shot of the young brother and sister blew up so well for a brilliant Christmas present. See details on my personal website http://www.jillpendleton.co.uk/ . The postcard is one that I designed for one of our bed and breakfast landladies in time for next year's season. Looks better if you click onto it to blow it up large. Her bill came to only £25 including the design.
Tom the website whizzkid came in to work this morning and cheered me up no end by uploading the b&b pages to include our new database, which means that all the listings on the pages will automatically rotate in order as each new surfer logs on. (Try it !) Up to now I have had to change the pages myself to enable everyone to have a fair amount of time at the top of the pages. This has taken a half hour chunk each time what with B&B's hotels and self catering, not to mention the odd rotation of the camping page.
BUT - NO MORE !!!!!! Yippee and ....
thank you Tom ... Great Christmas present !

Nancy for 2 days, work abandoned, who cares ?

Here she is the light of our lives. Little Miss Nancy Noodle.
Here with Granny and Grandad for 2 nights so that her Mummy Jennifer, now 7 months pregnant with baby number 2 can have a breathing space. So, the house is in even more chaos than usual, mealtimes are not to schedule and at 5 in the evening I feel ready to drop.
The only thing that I managed to do is keep up with e-mail, which is important at the moment as proofs for our new birthday card range arrived earlier today. 6 designs to sell online.

Tom the website wonder will be back in on Friday, and we should be getting a new website underway for ordering greetings cards and pictures with our Dartmoor photos.

That plus making Christmas cards that I do each year. So far, I have 52 completed and now that we are underway, it shouldn't take too long to sort out the rest. Each year it is a tree theme with 100% recycled materials. This year I found a fabulous size 20 ladies dress at Proper Job the re-cycle centre in Chagford, and I have picked off all the dozens of sequins that adorned the bodice, and cut out the sewn in petticoat that gave me yards of black netting ... all good stuff, and the dress is still ok for the dressing up box.

As for a present for Nancy, I feel very strongly that she has far too many toys, so she will be getting new knickers, new tights and a large bag of dog biscuits that can go into a special ' Nancy only' tin for giving to Topsy each time she comes to see us.

I had better be off now, because it was suggested to us by a certain 2 year old, that sausages might be a good idea for dinner tonight, so I need to mix and egg, some milk and water into batter for toad in the hole, and of course that will need some onion gravy, to go with the sprouts, carrots and roast parsnips.

I should have composed a piece all about Dartmoor Accommodation and how marvellous all our accommodation providers are, but the Granny in me is having such a lovely time, and now Rob and Nancy have started to decorate the Christmas tree, so it will all have to wait for another time.

Season's greetings everyone....

Oh and the picture ? Well it's son in law Ben's birthday on Friday and I didn't have a suitable birthday card for him .... but I have now !!

The Christmas rush with a helping hand from Tom

Apologies all round for not updating my blog but things have been fairly hectic of late.

To start with Rob, myself and pal Mark Sheridan held an exhibition of our photographic work in Chagford on the 13th November where a couple of hundred people came to have a gander.

And a few weeks before that I took on 24 year old Tom, a clever computer guy to help me in furthering the website by sorting out all those geeky things that leave me completely baffled.

He is currently building a database for my www.dartmooraccommodation.co.uk site, and we have worked together on building a new website for one of the bed and breakfast providers at Yelverton. The customer is delighted. Please take a look at the finished product by clicking onto www.dartmoorbandb.com and let me know what you think .... It would be good to pass a few encouraging comments in Tom's direction. We rub along very well together even though I am just old enough to be his Granny. You can see how clever he is by the picture of his Frankenstein fashioned pumpkin that he turned out for Halloween. And one thing that I find very endearing is that he is madly enthusiastic to help out in any way he can. I had a job taking publicity pictures for a new sock making outlet last week, and as I was struggling to show the socks off in the best way possible, he volunteered himself as a model bless him. We did have to crop the shot somewhat as the whole thing looked slightly as if he is perched on the edge of a piece of porcelain !

Our latest project is adding things to buy onto the website in time for Christmas, such as kites for children and gifts for walkers (how about a new Dartmoor map ?) in preparation for a commercial website that we hope to organise for producers who make goods exclusively on Dartmoor. That and the new wedding page on the site, should keep us busy for a while.

As you see in the picture of me above, I am currently up to my neck sorting out pictures in time for Christmas. The lovely twosome in the shot are 2 nippers at Tedburn where I took over 50 shots of a smashing young family in time for Christmas presents. If you would like to see details of what I offer have a look at my own personal website www.jillpendleton.co.uk

Hopefully from now on I should be sorting through the muddle of stuff on the desk and moving forward. I managed to bake 2 Christmas cakes this morning, all the while nipping in and out of the office to help Tom install information into the acres of pages on the database. He tells me that shortly we will be able to offer customers all manners of choices as to where they would like to stay and with which facilities - family room, with dog - this side of Okehampton etc.

So it's onwards and upwards and next step oh come all ye faithful. As usual I haven't bought a single family present, but as is usually the case, it will be alright on the night as they say ......

I very much hope !

Cheers for now anyway, and thanks for looking....

Jilly

Yet another success at Sticklepath Fireshow

What a great shame that the weather was wet wet wet last night.
We were part of a drippy crowd at the amazing Sticklepath Firework Show, which is one of the very best Dartmoor bonfire night shows that I know. Well marshalled and usually a great night out.
But last night the showers kept coming down, and threatened to put paid to the celebrations.
I had to feel sorry for the kids on stage in their skimpy lycra costumes, but they carried on like the true troupers they are. Costume making and set development takes up weeks of unpaid time by local enthusiasts, and each year they come up with something fresh topped off with a sizeable firework display. There were lots of oohs and aahs last night plus singing along to the likes of 'Come on Eileen' and well known songs.
This year's show was entitled 'Dangerous Intent' and as with every year the whole scenery ediface was set light to in the closing stages. My pal Pat had made a bit of bunting for the top of the circus tent, and I have to say here and now, NEVER have I seen such an excellent specimen of bunting construction, at any party anywhere. Exemplary work on the bunting front Pat !!
I do wish though, that I had paid more attention to the advice that I had given on my own what's on page http://www.dartmooraccommodation.co.uk/pages/whats_on/dartmoor_diary_november_2010.html
when I advised folks to wear warm and waterproof clothing, because, when we set out from home it was dry and I only topped my normal clothing with a warm anorak, and after an hour of standing in almost continual rain, I was regretting my own stupidity.
Next year I will be taking a hat, and 2 more layers of clothing, and scarf and maybe just maybe a sharp stick to poke the tall bloke who hoisted his fairly big child onto his shoulders as the music started, and blocked out the view for dozens of people. Ok, I do understand that kids can't see, so sitting on top of your Dad is a good plan, but Dads should think just a little about other members of any audience and think about where to position themselves .... I know that Rob used to with our two.
There were about 2 dozen children aloft. Maybe the organisers could recommend an area just below the sound system gantry for next year as a good place for 'hoisters' to be, then everyone else will be able to enjoy the whole fabulous extravaganza without bum in face.....

But as ever, we have to say 'Well done the organisers..... another fantastic job.'

Weddings on Dartmoor.

At long last I have uploaded a weddings section on my Dartmoor website.
Having been a wedding photographer for over 10 years, I know a bit about weddings and I think Devon and especially Dartmoor can be the most romantic and exciting wedding location.
I love speaking to Brides and Grooms planning their special day. Once they have got over the initial hestitation .... "oh, but don't we have to do it like this...?" and realise that getting married means that the day is entirely for them and that they can fill it with exactly what they want..... "Yes you can have a bouncy castle, whyever not ?" then they become filled with super ideas that make the day completely magical.
The new getting married pages will have lots of information over the next few weeks....
I'm working on it !!

Pixeycombe impresses me yet again.

Horses to say hello to and a comfortable guest lounge with real fire for the evening.
I called into Pixeycombe B&B early on this year when the weather was dire, so it was good to call in last week on a beautiful sunny day. Great hosts Trevor and his wife Sue are busy folk.
The B&B offers livery with 2 stables and grazing within view of the house. And the really good thing is that you can saddle up and go straight out on the Moor for the day.
They are thinking about offering mountain bike hire at the rate of just £12 per bike - helmet included. so for an energetic family this is just the spot.
A short ride in the car will take you to the Royal Oak Inn at nearby Meavy where good food is on the menu.

A cutie at the wheel of a tractor...

Apologies for not keeping the blog up to date, but I have been very busy with the camera. Last week I headed off for the Miniature Pony Centre near to Moretonhampstead to take photos for their next years publicity leaflets. What a joy to see the pre school tots taking turns at 'driving' the real tractor. Their Mums haul them into place and the ever helpful staff at the centre are endlessly patient whilst the tots pull all the right levers that enable to bucket at the front to lift a bagful of hay aloft.

This sweet little chick is Evie, and it was worth the journey just to see her face as she twiddled with the knobs and discovered how to sound the horn - a great many times !!

It won't be long now until the centre closes at the end of the season. You can find the link to the centre, and a slideshow of my photos on this page of the website:- http://www.dartmooraccommodation.co.uk/information/family_days_out_on_dartmoor.html

and a link from that page takes you to a discount voucher to get in.

Great success in the greenhouse with my tomatoes this year
I planted 7 Marmond plants from seed (Lidl) and they have come up with some massive fruit, almost you might think too heavy for the plant to hold on the bush.
Huge fruit, some in weird shapes, but all sweet as can be.
Click on the shot to see how utterly lush they look.
Along with my bumper crop of courgettes, I have been making ratatouille galore.
I have been giving the courgettes out to anyone who will have them, and been handing them in to the local pubs. My tip for growing them will is to plant them in black plastic, and give them the odd watering can full of water now and again. Lucky us we live on a farm plot and the farmer lets me have a wheelbarrow of rotted manure at this time of year, so I stir a trowelful into each waterbutful. As you can see they thrive on it.
Something else that thrives in the garden despite my picking off and squashing efforts is the cabbage white caterpillars and the odd snail. Look at this little blighter all curled up in the remains of his dinner.

My latest food review - the Rock Inn at Haytor now in place.

Just to let you know that my latest food review is in place.
Checkout
http://www.dartmooraccommodation.co.uk/food/food_review_rock_inn_haytor.html
to see.

Thank goodness - a day off.

Thursday saw us taking a "day off", well as soon as we had spent an hour or two in the office !

I am struggling to upload over 400 pictures of Chagford Show onto the show's website in a slideshow and it's slow going.

I do love the show and it would be impossible for me not to take pictures, but you know how it is, you take far more than you need and then almost all of them are worthy ... so which ones to jettison ?

But as we were running out of basic food provisions we arranged to have lunch with daughter Jennifer and indulge ourselves in a little Nancyness.

I now own a bus pass (yes me !! who can believe it, and me without at crease on my face ? - joke!) and had been threatening to use it, so after lunch Nancy Rob and I all hopped on a bus into the city and took a twirl around the shops.

Nancy and I travelled for free - deep joy ! and Rob paid £2.80 for his return ticket. He will be eligible for a bus pass too sometime in September, then I think there will be no stopping us. We will be off on the bus with Nancy to the seaside at any available opportunity. He's only 5 and a half weeks younger than me but the Goverment are phasing out bus passes soon and he is caught up in the adjustment time lapse.

The 'quick nip' into the supermarket on the way home relieved us of over £100 but at least now the fridge, freezer and cupboards are stocked again.

Whilst in the city we took ourselves into pleasant Fern's for afternoon tea and the dear grandchild was (of course) a paragon of virtue.

Back at Jennifer's Nancy was keen to show us her new bike. She's 2 and a half year's old now. It's all flown by in a matter of seconds, and being with her reminds me that we must take some more time off.

She is still so little that I want to pick her up all the time, and yet here she is propelling herself around the garden on a bike with very much the same 'I can do it' attitude that her Mother displayed at the same age.

Where has the last 30 years gone to ? Come to that how can I possibly be 60 ?

I was just a little bit sad that when I told the bus driver that this was my first sortie with the beloved bus pass, he didn't respond with "oh but you seem so young"

Bit like when Jennifer came home from school aged about 7. She sat in the back of the car and said, 'Mummy, when we get home can you tell me all you remember about how you lived in the Relief of Mafeking ?' To those of you not familiar with the Relief of Mafeking, it took place in May 1900, and when she asked me I was 34 not 94.

Mind you, I am getting partial to some rather large red Granny slippers that I own. And I have now reached the stage where if a visitor arrives, my first thought is no longer, Quick let me get out of these old fuddy duddy slippers before they see me. I now think, Who cares about what I wear on my feet? And come to that if it bothers them, then I wish they hadn't come anyway.

Listen to me ranting on ......

Sorry folks ....

Must be an old thing !!

Chagford Show - Prizewinners !!

Elizabeth was home this week to help us with our stand at Chagford Show.
She runs a busy website design company in Norfolk. http://www.lingodesign.co.uk/ so she flew from Norwich to Exeter to be at home for 4 very busy days. We had a final evening last night - home cooking, game of Scrabble, she and Rob against me (I won) and then watched the loathsome John James get evicted from Big Brother before she drove over to Jennifer's in Exeter to spend the night in time for the early flight back. Ben (son in law) valiantly offered to drive her in to be at the airport for 6.30


Robert with 2 local Mikes, and me with one local Debbie!
The show was as ever great fun for all. Having been the photography judge for 10 years or so, and spending at least 2 hours in the horticultural tent scribbling comments on the entries, I decided to hang up my hat this year and book a stand of our own.
Thanks to Rob, all the paperwork was dealt with in time, the display boards ordered, cut to size and painted, the gazebo was strengthened and erected the night before, flower troughs delivered etc. and within an hour of our getting there I was off with the camera taking pictures of everything that was going on.
Chagford Show really is one of the best. There is so much going on that appeals, it takes some going to see it all. I wish I'd had a pedometer on. An overall map of where I went during the day would show me like a drunken sailor lurching from pub to pub, as I spied things to photograph all round me.
I hope to have all the pictures ready in a slideshow on the http://www.chagfordshow.com/ website by Wednesday.
Will let you know when to take a look.

Ed brings Sampson out to plough

Do click onto the black and white picture to see ...

I took this earlier this week at Chagfood. the editor of the Okehampton times asked me to nip along to take a picture of Sampson and co ploughing the patch. (Not this photo) and I took this one of Ed as he was leading Sampson out.

Sampson, ploughing ??? Yes, I imagined a giant of a shire horse ... but this sweet little chap made no murmur as he was kitted out with all the straps and kit, and he walked up and down the furrows like a goood 'un.

Read all about Chagfood and the veg boxes by clicking on to http://www.chagfood.org.uk/

Summer Sunday

How do you like my back wall ?

I plant it up each year. The hole in the wall is our post box.

Question: What is missing in this photo ?

Answer: 50 people and 5 dogs

3 hours and 20 minutes later

Fingle Bridge near to Drewsteignton.

It's a Granny thing...ok ?

You see when your Grandchild's dolly won't sit upright on the swing.....
You need to improvise !

Worth the effort for such a cute little smile don't you think ?

Goodbye Kenneth Asburner

It's been a sad old week.
Last week our dear friend Kenneth Ashburner died just when we thought he was recovering well from an operation. It's all too soon. Kenneth at 83 was as enthusiastic to learn and full of interest as any young chap I know. A leading expert on trees, he and his wife June have developed the Stone Lane Arboretum near to Chagford, which holds the National collection of birches and alders.
A stunningly beautiful garden on a slope, it's full of interest, the more so because they hold an annual sculpture exhibition there each year during the Summer months.
Kenneth was one of those chaps who knew so much about so many things, and he was ready to impart his knowledge without any pomp or show off flair. He would tell you about a certain tree and it's history at the drop of a hat. He knew masses of stuff about technical matters that he and Rob could chat about, and was always keen to know what we were doing and what we thought about things. Never in a patronising way, always enthusiastically asking just the right question that showed he had a total grasp of many diverse subjects.
He had a passion for railways, for music, especially jazz and he delighted us by playing the piano when he visited.
In 2007 the four of us took a trip over to the Isles of Scilly. We got down to Penzance on the train, and he absolutely loved the journey down there. He knew every station on the line. In the helicopter he was as excited as a young schoolboy, and he met every single new experience with head on enthusiasm.

"Shall we take a boat trip over to Tresco Kenneth ?" -
"Yes, let's, when can we set off ?"...

"How about us trying that fish restaurant this evening Kenneth ?"
"What a good idea, shall we book a table now ?"

His funeral on Tuesday this week was supposed to be a quiet private affair, with the plan that a memorial service be held in September to celebrate his life. But the church in Drewsteignton was full of friends and neighbours sad at his sudden departure.
We all went back to Stone Lane for tea and cake afterwards and as ever at ' a good funeral' the person who would have enjoyed it the most was missing. Had he been there he would have charmed the ladies, chatted to everyone, praised my sponge cake excessively then likely as not spilt jam out of middle of it down his clean jumper that June would have made him put on, and he would have been in his element surrounded by all his pals. Smiling at everyone all the time.

There's not enough smilers in the World. And we'll miss this one more than most.


R.I.P. Kenneth Ashburner. 1st March 1927 to 20th July 2010

Primrose cafe food review now in place

I did manage to upload the food review of the Primrose cafe at Lustleigh. http://www.dartmooraccommodation.co.uk/food/primrose_cafe_lustleigh_food_review.html
And if you are reading this ladies, thank you for your help !! Good Job Done !!!

Wet day on Dartmoor, but a sunny smile in Lustleigh ....

Pouring rain on Dartmoor as we arrive at the Primrose Cottage tearoom.
No matter though, it's all good, and just look at the sunny smile we receive from the young waitress. I will be adding a full review to my afternoon tea reports page as soon as I have a minute.
http://www.dartmooraccommodation.co.uk/food/afternoon_tea_dartmoor.html

The Ruth family visit Dartmoor for the first time !!

Great day out yesterday when the Ruth family came to see us.

They enjoyed their trip over the Moor to Scorhill Circle..

And a top cream tea at The Mill End Hotel.
As you can tell. I haven't got time to write it all up. But I will just say that we had a very smashing time. I'm just off out, so will fill in the details later (I hope)

Jill

Lucky Me

2 reasons why I'm lucky.....
No. 1 ...this heavenly place the beautiful River Teign is about 10 minutes walk from our house.
Click the pic to see it in all it's glory.

and 2 this is our cute little grand-daughter Nancy aged 2.
Agine click the photo to read the captions.