Ta - Dah......

Ted is finished..........
He looks quite smart I think, he now has new clothes, a pair of pants and a very swanky jumper. Well I thought he deserved a complete makeover, after all, he is nearly fifty. I didn't have a pattern for the jumper so just made it up as I went along, I had a few problems with the shaping for the armholes and neck, but got there in the end.

I decided he needed a nice bag to sleep in, so got the machine out and used up materials from my stash. A very simple drawstring bag.

He looks in good shape and may now live to see another generation grow up.

This has been a lovely project to work on.

I feel so privileged to have been part of "Little Ted's" recovery. I will miss you.

White on White.......

Today we woke to more of the white stuff, I had an early start for a long day at work . The drive in first thing was difficult, as none of the roads had been gritted. It totally took me by surprise.

This has been one of the longest patches of snowfall we have had in years. Only one more day left in January, I am praying for a less white February.

Flowers and Candy......

Anemones are one of my favorite spring flowers, they remind me of my eldest son, my other half brought a large bunch of these flowers into the hospital when he was born, it was February 1989, nearly 21 years ago. Can't believe my little boy is coming up to this age.

I have been a bit restrained on the book buying front of late but this week I have succumbed and bought two lovely sewing books, one by Poppy Treffey, I just love her work and was very impressed when I visited her stand at the 2009 Christmas Country Living Show. The other one is a Japanese Book, showing 120 designs to stitch. Like all books from Japan it is written in Japanese but luckily they have very good diagrams/instructions to follow, so hopefully I will manage.

My other indulgence buy was a book on cupcakes, from the famous http://www.primrosebakery.org.uk/ in Primrose Hill London.

No relation.

I just love looking at the luscious pictures, real eye candy. I am looking forward to trying some of these recipes out.

And finally some treats of my own, Last Friday's Treats in fact (22nd January) which are still sitting in my fridge, I forgot to take them into work. Everyone was dissapointed, sorry folks. Such a fool, can I blame my age on this one!!!! Hope I remember to take them next week.

Coconut and Pecan Iced Chocolate Layer

A Little more Progress.........

Slowly but surely Ted is looking better, (at least I think so). He now has velvet paws, claws are being stitched on and he will soon be finished.

On the Mend........

I managed to snatch an hour today to start the repair on Ted. I started by making some paper templates of his paws. I have decided to cover his newly stuffed paws with a layer of felt first, before applying the top layer of brown velvet. I have purposely not overstuffed him as his fur is so worn I do not want to put too much pressure on his already worn out body. He looks better already I think.......

New Year.......New Ways

I gave up on New Year Resolutions years ago, and I found trying to start them on January 1st quite impossible. It takes me a couple of weeks into the new year just to get back to normality. This year has been even more difficult because of the cold weather here in the UK.
A must this year for me is adopting a more Healthier Lifestyle, so with this in mind I made a very large bowl of Tabbouleh and some home made Smoked Salmon Pate. For the Pate I blended the smoked salmon with cottage cheese, it is surprisingly very nice.

Getting Back to Normal..........

Well the big thaw is on and I am sooooooooo pleased. It is quite amazing how quickly all that snow has begun to melt and so far no problems with all that excess water. It is raining and normally I hate the rain but it is a welcome relief. A few more days and hopefully it may all have vanished. The chickens are liking it too, they are now out, and I have even had a couple of eggs from Jill . Getting back to normal also includes our household, DS2 left on Sunday for the new University term, so we are now down to three.
Also being back to normal will give me a chance to have a look at Ted, I have got some stuffing now for his paws, so I better go and make a start......

I Just want it to Go Now.......

.........and so do the chickens. They have hardly been out for weeks, opting to stay in their house all day. Jill popped out today but was soon heading back into the warmth. We have had another big dump of snow during the night and it took us 2 hours this morning to clear the drive and road in front of the house. The skies are blue now and it looks so picturesque but I just want it to go. I have had enough of the bad road conditions and anxiety of getting to and from work.

I

I spotted these icicles hanging from the conservatory roof, I hope the gutters don't break with all the weight of snow.

I cleared a path to my studio,the snow is so fine and powdery.....

There is talk that provisions are running out in village shops, I have been creative using up lots of the excess food bought for the holidays. DH bought a box of plum tomatoes before Christmas
so before they go off I have been making Tomato Sauce, I just made the recipe up and hoped for the best. This is how it goes.........

Chopped onions
Chopped Red Pepper
Tomatoes
Olive Oil
Thick Balsamic Vinegar
Teaspoon Brown Sugar
Salt, Pepper, Garlic Cloves, Dried Basil

(You need to adjust the amounts, depending on how many tomatoes you have.)

I baked it all in the oven for about 40minutes, at 140*c.
Blitz it in the food processor and voila. Ready for Homemade Pizzas or Pasta sauce. The kids just love it as sauce.

Any finally, Little Ted is still waiting to be repaired, but he is going to have to wait until I can get to the shops to purchase the correct stuffing for his paws.

Keep warm and safe wherever you are...... Posting this fromy my cosy Studio, it is now

-3 degrees outside.

.... Happy White New Year......

Happy New Year to you All , Wishing you Good Health and Happiness.

2010 is finally here and we woke up this morning to this.....
We are definitely in a winter wonderland here today, there must be at least 6-8". It has been snowing on and off all morning with severe weather warnings out for our region. Today is a stay at home day, and thankfully no work commitments. DS1 returned to University yesterday as he is off on a weeks Snowboarding Holiday today. I still have my other two boys at home, they enjoyed a bit of sledging or is it "snowboarding" on a nearby field. As I walked round to open the chicken house this morning these are the scenes that greeted me.....

The roof of the Hen enclosure, chicken wire covered in snow.

The Garden

The birds struggling to find food........