This week on Almost the Weekend, Mr & Mrs Almost are settling into the new normal — a new job, a first harvest and a lunch that did not go to plan.

Mrs Almost is a week into the new job and loving it — learning the role, lovely people and a walk to work that means Mr Almost can surprise her on the way home. He waited in the pub, missed her walking past, and had to run down the street after her. The loveliest surprise.

Honey continues to go from strength to strength. The odd cough remains but she is in fit and fine health and we are not worrying anymore. A vet check up is booked, mainly to top up her tablets.

We took a trip to London — parked on the outskirts, jumped on a very hot and very un-air-conditioned bus, and a stranger gave up his seat so Mrs Almost and our daughter could sit together. A small act of kindness that we will remember forever. London buses, please, some air conditioning.

The reason for the trip — our daughter wanted to see The Odyssey, Christopher Nolan’s epic, in 70mm at the Odeon Leicester Square, one of only forty one cinemas in the world that can show it. Electric recliners, a swivel table Mrs Almost smashed her hand on during a jump scare, Matt Damon, Tom Holland, three hours long and genuinely emotional by the end. Highly recommend — just the once.

Almost Blooming — our very first tomato harvest. A whole dessert bowl of red cherry tomatoes eaten with a lasagne. Nothing like shop bought. A second crop is already on the way and the pepper plant is flowering.

We’ve been watching Merlin on Amazon Prime — the 2008 origin tale of Merlin and King Arthur. Five series, magic, dragons, romance and heartache, with Colin Morgan, Bradley James, Katie McGrath and the late Anthony Head. A brilliant easy watch and well worth revisiting.

A few of our favourites this week — Nespresso in Covent Garden with an Oatly hot coffee and a yuzu vanilla iced coffee, Rituals conditioner, L’Occitane shaving cream and Body Shop ginger shampoo and conditioner picked up on a lovely walk through the Brighton lanes.

There was, however, a low point — Mr Almost’s homemade ham salad roll came with two fruit flies already inside. It went straight in the bin. He went hungry.

Tipple of the Week is Tango Zero’d The Tangiest Peach — sugar free, peachy in colour, and tasting almost entirely of cherryade. A rare miss. Bring back the Guinness.

And Almost Edible is a homemade chicken curry made completely from scratch — no jar — with curry powder, tomato puree, onions, steamed carrots, leftover slow cooked chicken and a splash of low fat coconut milk. A proper kick, even on a hot day. A firm success.

Pull up a chair. You’re one of us now. 🎙️

This week on Almost the Weekend, Mr & Mrs Almost finally cross the finish line — and then head north for a week in the Lake District.

The Race for Life happened. We live streamed it, just as we promised. Off road forest tracks, a lot of uphill, uneven ground and the Rock Choir serenading us three quarters of the way round. Fifty two minutes and forty five seconds. Bang on par with our training. Our daughter shot off into the distance and finished a couple of minutes ahead of us. The marshals and volunteers cheered us the whole way. We started and we finished. We have the medals to prove it.

Mrs Almost has started her new job. The nerves were real, the eye was twitching and the first day went brilliantly. Twenty five minutes walking each way, seven and a half thousand steps and two cars sitting on the drive. A great move.

Honey had the time of her life in the Lakes. Six hours in the car each way, out every single day, jumping in her buggy to relax and watch us in the hot tub, eating well and taking her tablets. The cough has more or less completely gone. She is a different dog. We are very relieved.

Then there was the Lake District itself — a week near Coniston Water and non stop from start to finish. Kendal for mint cake, a market cowboy hat our daughter has not taken off since, a trek uphill to Kendal Castle in sliders and a shoe that snapped directly outside a cobbler’s. He hot glued it back together and refused payment, so we donated to the cancer charity he was shaving his head for instead. Right time, right place.

We saw cows drinking from Coniston Lake for the very first time. We visited the Derwent Pencil Factory in Keswick and won pens in a quiz. We queued for gingerbread in Grasmere and discovered Wordsworth is buried right next door. And we hired an electric boat for two hours at Bowness on Windermere with Honey aboard — easily one of the best afternoons we’ve ever had.

Almost Blooming — the garden did not get watered while we were away. Everything wilted. Everything survived. And the tomatoes are red at last.

We’ve been watching Rooster on Sky — an American comedy drama created by Bill Lawrence starring Steve Carell. Ten episodes, one season, brilliantly funny and completely binge worthy.

Tipple of the Week is Twinings Refresh sparkling tea — raspberry lemonade with hibiscus, white tea infusion, added magnesium, fifty calories and no artificial sweeteners. Genuinely one of our favourites yet. And it doubled as our four year anniversary toast. Here’s to the next four.

And Almost Edible went on tour — Kendal mint cake, Grasmere gingerbread, Cartmel sticky toffee pudding, a beautiful roast beef dinner at the Unicorn Inn in Ambleside, pie and chips at a proper chippy and an M&S quiche Lorraine to bring us gently back down to earth.

Pull up a chair. You’re one of us now. 🎙️

This week on Almost the Weekend, Mr & Mrs Almost have a big week — a last day, a diagnosis and a race that is two days away.

Mrs Almost has officially left her job. Worked right up to the last minute, handed everything over, left them wanting more and walked out on a high. Life is short. Follow your dreams. New job news is coming next week.

Honey has had more scans. The diagnosis is confirmed — a leaky heart valve and early stage heart disease. She is on two types of heart tablets and the cough is already improving. Respiratory rate is in the normal range while she sleeps. She is still with us, still eating, still nosing about in her dog pram and we are very relieved. We will keep you updated.

The Race for Life is two days away. The nerves are very much in. The knee is achy, the gym has been thirty six degrees and running in the heat is genuinely hard work. But three of them are doing it together and there is a pint of cold cider waiting at the finish line. We will run, walk, hobble or be carried if necessary. We will make it.

This week we also walked into town — a Caffè Nero vanilla latte on the Vitality voucher, a horror game from CEX for the daughter who has already spent five hours playing it and Honey in the dog pram nosing about at everything. A lovely slow morning.

Almost Blooming this week went indoors. The roses have been deadheaded and are resting before the next bloom. And we built our very own terrariums — sealed glass bowls with a tiny tree, gravel, soil, moss, grasses and a self-sustaining ecosystem that waters itself through condensation. Before and after photos are on the Facebook group. We are very proud of the tiny tree.

We’ve been watching The Fortune on Channel 5 — a four part psychological drama with Eleanor Tomlinson, Matthew Lewis, Rebecca Front and Nina Wadia. An inheritance, a mystery, twists, turns and a very satisfying ending. Four stars. Available on My5.

Tipple of the Week is J2O Apple and Raspberry — still, not fizzy, raspberry forward and a solid three out of five. The cider won this round.

And Almost Edible is Old El Paso enchiladas — chicken, onion, peppers, packet spice mix, cooking sauce, flour tortillas, cheese on top and into the oven. Quick, family friendly and an absolute firm favourite. Definitely once a month at least.

Pull up a chair. You’re one of us now. 🎙️