Day tripper

The Kitchen is on paternity leave this week, which is a welcome change from work. Although the supreme being in the house has wryly suggested this means she gets a week off and I look after the little one, I haven't as yet put this hint into action. However we, as a family trundled off to the botanical gardens today. Even though Finland is enjoying the coldest winter in 50 years we thought at least the greenhouses would be open. If nothing else we reasoned, it would be an adventure.

Needless to say it was. We got off at the wrong bus stop in the middle of nowhere and had to walk the last mile and half to the botanical gardens, luckily for us the day was one of those days where the earth is covered in snow and the sun was shining, so despite the cold temperature it was a pleasure to be outside. When we got to the greenhouses I have to say I was impressed and the little one certainly went goggle-eyed as she saw things she had absolutely no comprehension of (gold fish especially!). However it is clear the Ruissalo is somewhere to explore in the summer and in the autumn and is a tiny piece of Finnish nature only a bus ride from our front door.

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My little brother arrives tomorrow and will meet his niece for the first time. I hope she doesn't confuse her daddy with the guy who kind of looks quite like him....


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The kitchen is currently blogging and making tea (or more accurately ignoring what is on the stove and hoping for the best). I am making carrot and celery soup with tarragon for no other reason than I have the ingredients. My inspiration levels have been at the functional for quite some time and I've been more successful at producing better than average lunches than dinners recently. However this week we have managed a rather delicious aubergine and lentil moussaka and now with this soup things are going well. I had an idea today that it was time to start making terrines.

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Finally the other project I have going at the moment is learning to play Day Tripper by The Beatles. I learnt it in F for some reason which seems incredibly complicated compared to using E in the 1st position. Now however I have gone with E and am sliding up to the 7th position which leaves me loads of time to sing the song and play the lead guitar line without looking like a total plonker. It is nowhere near polished yet but it is getting there and the little one is impressed if no one else is.