Baker Turns 8!

Our boyo, Mr Baker Hallow, turned a massive 8 years old on August 26th! I really can't believe that in less than 6 weeks, he will have been in my life for such a long time. Other than my parents, he has been the only constant for me over those eight years and we have such a complex relationship you can definitely tell we've spent a heck of a lot of time together. Of course, like most dog owners can relate to, he has been my best friend (minus my husband) and is the closest we'll have to a child...and because of that, we do love each other very much as well as occasionally butting heads. Come to think of it, the main reason we do butt heads is when he constantly cries for no reason, but that is 100% a 'hereditary' trait he's gotten from me haha!
Back when I first started writing here again in April, I posted a mini-series introducing all of our 10 pets. Click here to read Baker's 'Meet the Pets' post and learn a little more about him.

Every year on his birthday Baker has always gotten presents and had at least a small tea party, some years a proper party with doggy cake and a couple times a BBQ. This year however his birthday fell on a Wednesday and his Daddy only has one day off a week. The other usual party guests, his Granny and Granda, were obviously unable to attend too due to the current world issues.
That means turning 8 was a slightly different affair. On the day I took his annual portraits with the banner I make him and it was extra special this year now that his bedroom is finally fully finished. Then the following day is when we celebrated as a family. Mr H and I blew up lots of balloons (he literally has an obsession with balloons) in the morning so that when he came down he'd have a big surprise before opening his presents!
Check out the video below to see how he reacted to the balloons and him opening his presents.
Lastly, at the end of this post, I've included the past 8 years of his birthday portraits...he's getting an old man now!
Until next year...

Collective Book Haul // June - August

A haul!!! Woohoo!! Finally, a book haul. It has been since the 19th of May when we posted our April book haul and it definitely feels it. We aren't big shoppers nor do we spend much money on things other than the basics/essentials, so our little trips to the charity shop picking out books has been a big miss. 
In March and April, we bought 9 and 13 books respectively all online and although the majority of this collective haul was also purchased online, we did actually get to go back to a book store at the end of July...more on that after the haul.
 

The Umbrella Mouse by Anna Fargher
Amazon

The Well of Ascension: Mistborn Book Two by Brandon Sanderson
Amazon

Frostheart by Jamie Littler
Amazon

The House of One Hundred Clocks by A.M. Howell

Amazon

Tolkien Boxed Flexibound Set  by David Day
Amazon 

The Whitby Witches by Robin Jarvis
Amazon 

Tales of the Greek Heroes (Puffin Classics) by Roger Lancelyn Green
London Bridge Books via Amazon

Myths of the Norsemen (Puffin Classics) by Roger Lancelyn Green
Amazon

A Brief History of the Vikings by Jonathan Clements
Amazon

The Scent of Magic by Cliff McNish
eBay

The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
Music Magpie

Inheritance by Christopher Paolini
Music Magpie

The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There by Catherynne M. Valente
Music Magpie

Bilbo's Last Song by J R R Tolkien
Music Magpie

Letters from Father Christmas by J R R Tolkien
Music Magpie

Disney's Wonderful World of Knowledge 1-22 [Not pictured]

eBay

Redwall by Brian Jacques
Far Place Animal Rescue Charity Shop

The Witch of Lagg by Ann Pilling
Far Place Animal Rescue Charity Shop

The Garden of Lost and Found by Harriet Evens
Keel Row Books

The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
Keel Row Books

A Wonder Book of Beasts

Keel Row Books

Farmer Giles of Hamm by J R R Tolkien
Keel Row Books

Eighty Fairy Tales by Hans Christian Anderson
Keel Row Books

Uncle Remus by Joel Chandler Harris
Keel Row Books

24 books! (Technically 46 if we count the WWoK series separately). That seems like a lot and is way more than we have gotten in a long time, but being over a three month period it's not that bad really haha. Two-thirds of what we bought were still shopped for online, and only one third we're brand new. The following third bought during our one and only venture to an actual in-person shop, which will not be repeated for a long time because it was the most hellish experience. We popped out one day with our masks on to check out a new book store that an animal charity we support had opened, but the general public are the most disrespectful, ignorant, non-rule-abiding idiots that it gave me panic attacks and I haven't been/won't be going anywhere again for the foreseeable future!

That hopefully won't stop us buying the odd book online of course, but that does mean monthly hauls won't be back for quite some time.

Our Eco Journey - The Kitchen

This post has taken a little longer than expected to get up, purely due to procrastination and me putting it off to post other things. Obviously, this is the second post in this mini-series talking about how we do our little bit for the planet in our house. Pop over to Our Eco Journey - The Bathroom to read the first post.

To start off, I'll repost exactly what I said in the first post. I have to direct your attention to a specific word in the post title - 'Journey'. This is a journey. I have been adjusting my lifestyle since I was a teenager, from consciously seeking out only cruelty-free options for health and beauty as well as cleaning and home products, to going vegan and working on my eco-friendliness. It is a life long journey and I know there are still things I use out of necessity or even purely not being able to afford alternatives, but am I trying and that is the main thing.

Now that all of that is out of the way I want to share the things we are doing or using in our house to try and be as natural, animal-friendly, eco-friendly and eventually as low waste as possible. It's so lovely to have a husband with the same values as me and who also cares a lot about these things, so all the products I'll be showing you are used by both of us (where applicable). Over the years I've used multiple different companies and we are settling into some favourites so let's get started out with our kitchen!

I'm going to lay this out super simply and describe the items shown in the images, from top to bottom.

Dish Splash Solid Dish Soap.

I can barely remember what it was like to wash dishes with washing up liquid after using solid dish soap for the past few months. We've tried a couple but definitely settled into this one by Primal Suds. It's plastic-free, cruelty-free, palm oil-free and vegan. It suds up and washes really well and lasts way longer than a bottle of washing up liquid would!

Find it here > Primal Suds Dish Splash

[If you are a dishwasher user you should check out Smol Dishwash]

Bamboo Soap Ladder

Where there are soap bars, you need a place to put them and rather a plastic or ceramic dish where they sit with no drainage, we use a bamboo ladder that allows it to dry out and preserve the life of the bar.

Find it here > Primal Suds Soap Ladder

Coconut Dish Washing Brush With Wooden Handle

It would feel a little hypocritical to be using a solid dish soap with a 'plastic' sponge (polyester or nylon) that aren't recyclable let alone biodegradable so we tried a couple alternatives before choosing this brush. I rub it directly on the soap bar and then simply buff it of the washing up!

Find it here > Loof Co via Peace with the Wild

Storage Jars

All of our dry foods, grains, herbs and spices are stored it reused jars. We do not buy new jars specifically but just clean out old jars and paint the lids to make them look more cohesive. Hopefully, zero waste re-fill stores will become more popular and one will pop up around us, but right now there are none nearby so unfortunately before decanting into jars some foods do come in plastic packaging. 

Recycled, Plant-Based Non-Stick Pans

I have no idea how I found these but when I originally saw them I'd recommend them to my Mam who needed a new pan set. When we needed a wok/stir fry pan this was obviously our first port of call.

Prestige Plant-Based pans boast being the ''World's friendliest plant-based non-stick that's PFOA & palm oil-free. Better for you and our planet.'' They are also made from recycled materials, come in fully recyclable packaging and are recyclable themselves. Not only that but for every item bought Tree Aid plant a tree in Africa! I am obsessed with this range and cannot wait to upgrade the rest of our pans when they all finally end their lives. 

Find them here > Prestige Eco - Plant Based Non-Stick Cookware

Galvanised Metal Mop Bucket

I have always wanted a metal bucket, as weird as it sounds. When you move out for the first time most people don't have the option to spend ££ on basics like a mop bucket but when we needed a new one after moving to this house I knew I wasn't going to be spending money on another plastic bucket that just breaks and ends up in landfill. 

Wooden Sweeping Brush

Along the same lines is a wooden sweeping brush. Natural bristles work way better than horrible plastic ones too. 

(As you'll see I haven't included a mop. There was actually a brand new mop left here for us when we moved in and so we haven't yet invested in a wooden mop with replaceable cotton head.]

Eco-Friendly Laundry Capsules

Smol is something I bet many of you have seen advertised on social media recently. I never go for any adverts, I am pessimistic and untrusting haha. However, the usual laundry detergent I used was Astonish liquid and the only place anywhere near us that stocks it is Home Bargains...that is a problem because even before Covid I didn't like going in stores, so of course now I don't go in anywhere at all.

That's why I subscribed to Smol a few months back. They are plastic-free, cruelty-free, have lower levels of added chemicals, come in fully recyclable packaging and fit through your letterbox.

You tell them how many washes you do a week, how many capsules you use each wash and they will send you a new pack in time for your pack running out. 

Find it here > Smol Laundry Capsules

Eco-Friendly Cleaning Drops

Just like our laundry, Astonish was our main go-to for most cleaning products alongside the odd Method product due to them both being great cruelty-free options. Both come in plastic bottles and again were hard to get a hold of without going into certain retailers. 

Now we are obsessed with Ocean Saver's Eco Drops! They are a small capsule with a concentrated liquid inside. You pop them into a bottle with some water, they dissolve, you clean your house! Obviously, they are vegan, they are also 100% biodegradable, plant-based, non-toxic, they smell great and they work!

Find them here > Ocean Saver

Amber Glass Spray Bottles 

With the above item, you need an empty bottle to use them with and when trying to re-use our old Astonish bottles we had issues with the tops. That gave us the excuse to order some not only beautiful looking, but eco-friendly amber glass replacements. Amber Glass also is great for protecting the contents inside from light.

Find them here > UMISKAM via Amazon

Eco-Friendly Fabric Conditioner

After enjoying the laundry capsules and receiving the email telling us all about their new Fabcon, we decided to order some of Smol's new Fabric Conditioner! It's something I've never really bothered using but with 10 animals in the house and a husband who works as a chef, we can always use a little bit of an extra boost in our washing loads. We had the idea to super dilute some in a bottle too to use as a fabric refresher spray which will also be helpful when having to dry clothing inside on rainy days to help combat any slight 'foosty' smells!

Did you know that most fabric conditioners contain animal fat?! Gross eh? Smol's doesn't though!

Find it here > Smol Fabcon

Borax Substitute

Although all our cleaners are really great, we have quite hard water where we are so mixed with our bar soaps our bath and shower door tends to get a texture to it that isn't the easiest to scrub. Borax Substitute is a non-toxic powder gentler than soda crystals but stronger than Bicarbonate of Soda. You can mix it with water to form a paste or with lemon juice or white vinegar for a great scouring product.

Find it here > DriPak via Peace with the Wild

Some other things we have or do in our kitchen that aren't pictured are:

Recycling Boxes

You might be able to see a tiny peek of these in the bottom of the amber glass bottle image. We have two boxes in our under-sink cupboard that we use for glass and other recyclables which is taken either out to the big recycling wheelie bin or the bottle bank so that things aren't just laying around.

Cloths and Tea Towels

This might seem an obvious thing but from watching cleaning videos online or seeing people haul cleaning products I thought I could share this. We only use cloths, rags and tea towels for cleaning etc around the kitchen. We do not use any cleaning wipes or kitchen roll and many of the rags we do use are old t-shirts and such that are washed and cut up to repurpose. 

Decomposable Bin Bags

We try very hard not to have too many things going into our general kitchen waste bin, nor do we have much food waste at all but I still find it important to have bin bags that don't contribute even more plastic.

Compost Bin

And finally a compost bin. Technically this is outside in the greenhouse but it's the last port of call for any food waste. We try to eat everything we can, the Guniea Pigs also eat their fair share and then if there is any leftover it goes to compost. Mr H also tends to bring home cut offs and waste from work that is often too much for even our greedy Guineas so at least it can go in our compost bin rather than just put in general waste at work.

Oooff! Now I realize why I have put off writing this for so long! This took quite a while to put together and I'm sure I'll have forgotten something but either way I hope you find some ideas that you can put into practice in your house. I look forward to looking back on this in the future and seeing how much I have progressed because remember, this is a journey, not a destination. No one is perfect, we can all just try to do what we can for our planet. If everyone made one swap it would make a huge difference! 

I didn't mention it when talking about specific items but it is important to mention the cost. Many people argue vegan and eco-living is only for rich, privileged, stuck up people and I can't disagree more! My husband and I live month to month and have only one income. You see a larger price tag or a smaller item but these things last so much longer or are small as they are concentrated therefore often either save you money in the long run, work out cheaper for each wash or are of equal price to other leading brands.

Let me know what you think, if you use any of these products or other things that you recommend we should try in our kitchen!
Until next time!

What Mr Hallow Read This Quarter [April - June]

Halfway through the year!! and what a quarterly post this is as I've read... a huge 15 books! being in lockdown was great for extra reading time. Unfortunately towards the end of the quarter I was back at work and found it hard to keep up with reading.

April

The Odd Sisters: A Tale of the Three Witches by Serena Valentino

⭐️⭐️

I think two stars says it all, I found this book very hard to read and it seemed to go on forever. There are a few different books in this Disney series and I don't think I will read anymore. 

The Slow Regard of Silent Things by Patrick Rothfuss

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I read this book days after it got delivered I'm waiting for the third installation of the King Killer Chronicles so this was a great little read to get a little of Patrick Rothfuss's unique writing style. I loved this short story anybody who enjoys fantasy needs to read some Rothfuss. 

A Map of Days by Ransom Riggs

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

It was great to read the next installation of the parculiardom, I like how this book has progressed the series it reads a little more grown-up than the previous books. I was apprehensive to read this as it brings the story into modern times but it adds depth to the story and I cant wait to see where this goes.

The Silver Chair by C.S. Lewis

⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was one of my favourite Narnia books, I loved the underground element to this story thinking back now I'm writing this I'm thinking why didn't I rate this book 4 stars?? 

The Twisted Tree by Rachel Burge

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I wasn't planning on reading this at first but after Mrs H loved it so much I decided to give it a go. It did not disappoint although the romance side of the book wasn't my favourite I loved how the element of Norse mythology has been brought into the modern aspect of the story.

The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I had been planning on buying this for a while and I think its the best book I've read this year so far, I couldn't put it down I enjoyed everything about this book. I have read good things about Brandon Sanderson and cant wait to read more of his work.

The Brightest Star in the North: The Adventures of Carina Smyth by Meredith Rusu

⭐️⭐️⭐️

I thought this was a great little book to read, it was fast-paced and an interesting story. I enjoyed the astrology aspect of this book and the characters fascination with the stars.

May

The Last Battle by C.S Lewis 

⭐️⭐️⭐️

It was great to finally get through the whole of the Narnia series, I enjoyed reading every book with that being said I think this was one of my least favourites. I didn't like the character of Shift and what he brought to the story.

Loki: Where Mischief Lies by Mackenzi Lee

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Well as we love all things Disney and Marvel in our house, I was so excited when Mrs H surprised me with the book one day. I couldn't wait to read it so put it on the top of my TBR for the month. I wasn't sure at first about the book being set in mainly in London but that worry disappeared quickly and this book left me wanting more! I hope Disney brings out more Marvel tales.

The Doomspell by Cliff McNish

⭐️⭐️⭐️

I read this on the recommendation of Mrs H as she loved it, and the world in this book had me hooked straight away. This is the first installation in a trilogy and I think I'm thoroughly going to enjoy reading more! As I write this I currently have the second installation on my TBR for next month so make sure to check out the next what read this quarter post to see how it progresses.

Eragon by Christopher Paolini

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Again this was a recommendation form Mrs H and I actually enjoyed this book far more than she did!! I loved everything about it, dragons and a fantastic high fantasy world,  I just can't wait to read more! This was another book I just couldn't put down!

Myths of the Norsemen by Roger Lancelyn Green

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Well what can I say about this... I was already familiar with most of the nordic tales in this book but wow the author made something I'm hugely interested in boring as hell! I love to read about the gods but I think this book was written just as something to sell and not written for enjoyment.

June

Northern Lights by Philip Pullman

⭐️⭐️⭐️
So we have owned this series for a long time but I just had never got round to staring it. Mrs H actually got round to reading this first. I really enjoyed this book, I think the story was great but I just found it quite a slow read hence the three stars, thinking back maybe it should have been 4? I loved the deamons in this and I'm really hoping I find the other two books a bit easier to read.

The Conference of the Birds by Ransom Riggs

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Again another 4-star book for Ransom Riggs! I thought this book was great full of action and suspense, there was quite a bit of character development in this book and I'm excited to see where the peculiars end up next? 

Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve

⭐️⭐️⭐️
I was a little apprehensive to read this as its more of a sci-fi book and as you know I 100% gravitate towards fantasy, having said that I actually really enjoyed it. It was fast-paced and well written the characters were great and I have the second instalment on my next TBR and I can't wait to see how the story develops.

What a list of books! I can't believe I got 15 in three months that's half of my yearly goal. I found it quite hard to write this post as I've left it so long since I've actually read the books to write about them. I've told myself that I need to keep these posts updated from now on so I can review the books better. 

Beamish Open Air Museum - Our First Visit Since Re-Opening!

On Friday, 20th March one of our 'happy places' Beamish Open Air Museum closed its doors due to the current pandemic. The museum is primarily a charity meaning it really does rely on ticket sales and visitors buying gifts, food etc on-site to keep going. Thankfully they officially reopened on Thursday, 23rd July 2020 operating with pre-book a timed entry slot system. 
Our annual passes (the Beamish Unlimited ticket/annual pass is the exact same price as a day ticket!) had run out during the lockdown but of course, we were always going to renew as we always do and had actually planned on upgrading to the Friends of Beamish this year anyway. Therefore once the dates were available for the re-opening we jumped online, bought our membership tickets and reserved a slot!

We chose Saturday the 1st of August for our return purely because currently, Mr H's only day off is a Saturday...unfortunately. Usually, we prefer to do things midweek to avoid any crowds and especially children, haha, but with lockdown, summer holidays and weekends everything is all muddled these days anyway. 

If you read my previous post, Countdown to Disney 2020 // Honeymoon Cancellation Update , you'll know that the previous weekend was my first venture out into a public space and it went extremely badly. So it's safe to say I was super trepidatious! I knew Beamish themselves had put so much time, money and effort into making the museum as safe and comfortable as possible, but we all know it's the general public that cause the problems..!

Our slot was the first one, 10-10.45 and we live only 20/25minutes away so we arrived for 10.10 and our mini adventure began.

You'd never be able to tell from the photos in this post, I am very strategical in my photo taking, but it was much busier than I expected considering the time slot entry system. Once you were in you could stay all day so I can only imagine that if the same amount of people came in during each time slot, it'd be pretty packed by the end of the day. I later saw online that many people thought it was quiet, though having visited 8 times last year in all different seasons, on all different days, I still think it was quite busy for apparently running a lower capacity.

Many people also said they found their visit was much different to normal, and again I can't relate because we don't often go into buildings or busy public places anyway. Upon entry, we headed the opposite direction to the majority of the crowds, like always. Working our way around to the places we wanted to visit we veered to the less populated attractions within those, like always. When people got closer than about 5 meters I put a spurt on and moved away, like always!

To be honest, the only real differences I noticed were the queuing system at the entrance, that most people wore masks when going indoors, the vehicles were not running, there were lots of signs (it was a pro and a con that they were made to fit in with the period style because they looked great but I think fewer people took notice because let's face it not everyone looks at the details) and there were hand sanitizing machines dotted around. I assume the most difference would have been noticeable in the town but we didn't pop down there this time. 

Obviously my anxiety etc did rear its unattractive head. I had a mini break down and cry at the ticket tills and a few little stresses when people walked too close to us, but overall it was good to be back at Beamish.
I know that mask rules do not stipulate they should be worn in public outdoors and most people are perfectly happy walking directly past or standing near others without distancing but I am terrified. I have been social distancing for bloomin' years as it is, so now I'm giving off extra 'stay away from me' instincts!
Anyway, we had a lovely walk together, was graced with some fabulous sunshine followed by a tiny outburst of rain and got to breathe some fresh air.
Until next time!