Lemony Chicken Pasta Salad Recipe

I made a big bowl of this salad recipe for lunch expecting there to be plenty leftover for tomorrow.  I was sooo wrong!!  The whole family loved it, the hubster and I went back for a second helping but what really shocked me was Little Miss declaring it was delicious and asking for not just a two or even three but four helpings!!  She's getting to be a really fussy eater, sometimes just getting her to the table can be challenging.  She's asked for this salad again and I'll certainly be granting her request.

It was the sharp lemony flavour that really made this dish shine.  It beautifully complemented the really fresh parsley.

Ingredients:

Chicken Breast

Pasta

Lemon Juice

Olive Oil

Garlic

Oregano

Parsley

Cucumber

Cherry Tomatoes

Iceberg Lettuce

Peppers

Rocket

Cress

Tools:

I started by finely chopping the garlic.

Then the oregano.

Mix the oregano and garlic with olive oil and plenty of lemon juice.

Add half to the diced chicken breast and leave to marinade.

Reserve the other half for later.

Put the pasta on to boil.

Prepare the rest of the salad.

Chop the parsley.

Grate the cheese.

Fry the chicken.

Drain the pasta and add the reserved dressing.

Stir in the chopped parsley.

Add to the salad.

Stir in the cooked chicken while it's still warm.

Serve with a sprinkling of gated cheese.

Family Day Out in Blackpool, England

We go to Blackpool every year to see the illuminations, but this is our first trip during the summer.

Dogs aren't allowed between the north and south pier during the peak holiday season.  I can respect that, it's a shame that a minority of irresponsible dog owners ruin it for the rest of us.  So off we walked south of the south pier.  Only to see a no dogs sign.  It's actually an extra mile beyond the south pier before you can take your dog on the beach.  So unfortunately our day started off with a rather dismal picnic on the concrete.

Before we walked along the promenade.

Back towards the tower,

It was a beautiful day.

Little Miss loves this newsprint on the pavement.

The tide seemed to be in for the whole day.

So we had a walk along the north pier.

The kids loved looking at the sea through the boards.

Little Pickle has just started walking and he was delighted to feel the boards underneath his feet.

Little Miss had a go on this brilliant vintage Helter skelter.

BiasBound Unicorn Fleece Blanket Sewing Project

This is a super simple sewing project that makes a wonderful "soft" blanket that my kids love.

Tools and Materials:

Most of my sewing stash comes form the lovely people at Minerva Crafts.

They have a gorgeous selection of fleece fabric to choose from.

It's just a piece of fleece with bias binding sewn around the edges. 

I've used pre-made bias binding for this one but you could easily make your own.  Here's my tutorial on how to make and apply bias binding.  

I hand stitched the back of the bias binding as I find this gives a neater finish on manufactured binding.

What's in My New Bullet Jounral Supplies Bag

Squee!!  I treated myself to a new Bullet Journal supplies bag, one that can hold all of my bullet journal goodies!!  I'm gonna just jump right in.

It's the VASCHY Large Pencil Case Pencil Organizer which  bought off Amazon.

It comes in a variety of colours, I opted for Burgundy.

There's two zippered pockets in the front and pen loops on the right.

The next "page" has small pen loops on the left and big ones to the right.

The next one has big pen loops on the left and small ones on the right.

And finally big lens loops and a deep pocket section with another zippered pocket.  The first thing I did was re-arrange the "pages" so that the smaller pen loops wee all at the front.  I'll manage with the bigger ones but the smaller ones are better for my purposes so i want them at the front where I'll be putting my most used pens.

Those being my Gel Ballpoint Pens.  I bullet journal in a Rocket Book as well as normal paper so I use a lot of Frixion pens.

Next I have a set of Frixion Highlighters.

And some Fibre Tip Colouring Pens.

Then I've popped my cheapo gel pens in the case.  I got these from Aldi a couple of years ago, I wouldn't recommend them.  I should chuck them but I just can't bare to see them go to waste.  

Then I have a set of DoCrafts brush tip pens.  I have had these for well over a decade and the are still going strong.

I have a very old and simple set of Crayola Watercolor Colored Pencils.

I even had room for a few random bits on the back section.

And it closes!!

I've filled the front zippered pockets with my stencils and some washi tape.

I put some other random bits I don't use often in the very back pocket.

And there was still room for a pack of paper.

Unfortunately my Staples Arc Bullet Journal will not fit.

But it still closes

and there's even room for a little clip on light.

It bulges a bit but it's all in there.

I'm really impressed with my new purchase.  It fits all of my supplies together in one place.  It keeps them all neat and organised so I can easily grab whatever I need.