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......