our easter cake

Just put this in the oven... I know it is not traditional but I can't go past this lovely recipe from Nigella for a fruit cake. We have used it for Christmas, for an anniversary cake and as a gift in the past. When it is cooked, I'm going to roll out some marzipan for the top and it will be an Easter cake!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/nigella-lawson/chocolate-fruit-cake-recipe/index.html

As everything goes straight into a saucepan it is quick and there is little washing up to do. Plus the fruit simmers in butter and sugar - so it is super moist.

(I have come back to add a picture... and this is the only piece we have left! I used a little silver glitter, egg shaped marzipan plus the last few sugar decorations I been saving - really lovely buttons, butterflies, flowers - made from crystallized sugar)

our easter twig

There is a lovely flowering shrub in the garden. I have no idea what it is but the little spikes are joined by a rose coloured flower. I battled through the spikes to pick a couple of twigs (I think I had totally inappropriate snippers - paper scissors!)

We decorated it with the wooden hangy things I bought last year- reduced at Paperchase -and a few of our own eggs. The boys have painted a couple in the past and we have some modge-podged ones too - where we took polystyrene eggs and covered them in fabric scraps and the magic modge. (We bought ours from Artscape in Harpenden).

We had lots to do today - Harry at 'Learn to Ride' at Vauxhall, we played tennis at the Rec in the village and then watched the firemen fill the school swimming pool ready for Summer. Phew. I am exhausted. Only 9 days to go...

pancakes

My favourite, easy recipe which I'm sure I have blogged about before... (thanks to jamie) It gives us a slightly thick batter and we make small pancakes.

1cup self raising flour

1 cup milk

1 egg

Mix this up and rest it for a bit if you have time - I use a whisk to quickly get any lumps out. And then add your choice of fruit. A cup of frozen raspberries today, but bananas go lovely and sweet or chopped pear is nice. Blueberries sort of pop in the pan which the boys like.

Use a big tablespoon to measure small pancakes out into the pan - we have a giant frying pan which makes four at a time.

The boys usually have a mix of - lemon and sugar, golden syrup or honey... not all at once I promise. Or at least not this morning anyway. I usually try and stick to one or two. (Again, not this morning!)

Easter

We were a bit early for our egg hunt but we had visitors and the rugby on. So it was best to keep the kids busy.

Starting with some rectangles of sugar paper, we set the children decorating with felt tip pens. (No paint or glitter today!) Apart from Harry writing 'Gus has a big bum' on his sheet, the kids got right down to it... I think it is the possibility of chocolate which makes any task a winner.

Then I took their sheet and wrapped it around a glass, leaving an over-hang at the end which I taped at the side. Then I enclosed the overhang over the bottom of the glass and taped. Handle strips were stapled on. They weren't the most sturdy of Easter baskets but they did the job.

Me and Harry had hidden plastic eggs aroung the garden. (See our lovely new garden. Sigh!)

(I had bought 3 bags of 12 hollow eggs from Poundland and added small chocolate eggs or haribo sweets to them). It took the children almost no time to find them all - I must making the hiding more difficult next year!

Oops. Gus rips his bag.

March News

I know I have been ridiculously tardy about keeping this blog up and I apologise... if anyone is still reading this, that is. (Note the very cute pics of Gus to keep you sweet).

But it has been eventful. And I decided that I needed to prioritise the family and all that is entails.

We moved to a lovely house in a neighbouring village. And were sad to say goodbye to the White Hart. But now : we have a project for the future, a HUGE garden, close friends already established, the boys at the same school, and great local pubs.

So all good, then.

I haven't been sewing an awful lot. Although, the lovely Coffee Dog (cafe in the Spotted Dog pub) - with the very great Dane in residence - has a display of my crafty things. I added a couple more bunnies recently and they hold smart sunglass/glass cases by me. (how should I express that - 'sunglasses' glasses??)

Anyway, it is onwards and upwards for a funfilled Easter holidays. Lots of free activites, and mum is visiting at the end of April and I am applying for jobs. Phew. Not planning a lot of 'free' time. But off to sew a couple of superhero capes for some imaginative play. Maybe I should be wearing one...

moving day?

All a bit weary here. So thought I would share a photo from mum's albums. Here we are meeting Father Christmas in Shark Bay, Western Australia. We were brought up on a sheep station in the far north of WA. You may have seen this pic before but I haven't anything new at the mo!

Mum made our costumes. I am the slinky flapper. With a cigarette and long, glamorous holder. I remember wanting to have sparkly shoes to go with my finery but had to make do with navy clarks.

We are waiting forever for our house to exchange. Deadlines seem to come and go. And now looking to exchange and complete on the same day - this Friday. A bit fraught here. The day off school with strikes didn't help. But they do have my support. We went to the zoo instead, then Gus couldn't throw himself off the piles of boxes all day.

school photos

How they have changesd! I remember our school photos - very posed and in our attractive brown and yellow uniform. My brother always seemed to be dressed in a yellow polo necked jumper.

The boys had their's done at school and I have ordered a few for Christmas presents for the grandparents and aunts. I don't know how they managed to get these lovely smiles from H. He is known for his cheeky-teeth clenched grin whenever the camera comes close.