"When Will The Queen Write Back?"

....so Miss E's asked me yesterday, hoping for a reply from Her Majesty. There was great excitement when the this mail was delivered today. She listened intently as Miss N read the letter to her. Quite a thrill for all of us to enjoy too.

Today Miss O (11) made a double batch of Double Chocolate Chip Cookies - another new recipe, likely to become a family favourite. (We added an extra egg to the double mix as we found it a little dry to roll). 

Several times I have asked Miss O if she could bake something which was healthier, yet my requests fall on deaf ears and a screwed up nose. It delighted me when Miss V (9) found this great recipe for Muesli Bars. She managed to make them with minimal assistance. They require no baking but do take several hours to set properly, best in the fridge - and are very tasty! 

Working on my EPP stars I have been enjoying choosing fabric tones which suit my mood at the time, whether that be vibrantly happy, calm and gentle, or just a soothing background combination. 

A few minutes hand stitching here and there is beginning to make a pleasant little treasure trove of blocks and certainly adds some pleasant colour to wherever I find myself.


Sharing with WIP Wednesday.

Promises of Joy

I love discovering buds on plants, the anticipation of watching them fill and then flower is wonderful, especially if the plant is a new to me. Last week I planted out a Ned Kelly Grevillea, which will grow up to 2m/yards high, is fast growing and has orange red flowers throughout the year - so the tag says.

 

In my first year of paid work, 28 years ago, I bought a car, Janome sewing machine and a Sunbeam Mixmaster. The car lasted many years but has thankfully been replaced. The sewing machine and Mixmaster are still going strong and are used almost every week. On Monday one of the original mixmaster beaters broke. I was very thankful to be able to buy a new pair of stainless steal beaters on Tuesday. Long lasting reliability is something I treasure in these machines.

Chocolate Caramel Slice is a favourite in our family. Miss O made a double batch yesterday to share with visitors - it's all gone now.....

Our homeschool term started again this week after our short mid-winter break, leaving less time for creative pleasures (including blogging). I'm hoping to have more to share in a few days.

Our white camellias are flowering. I love their pure white hearts dotted amongst their shiny deep green leaves. It's several years since I planted these shrubs and each winter they bring forth more blooms than the previous year - a joy indeed.

Joy is what happens to us when we allow ourselves 

to recognise how good things really are.

                                                                             Marianne Williamson

Sharing at Tina's Weekend Flowers.

A Delicious Week

A truly delicious week! The food treats were so good I had to have some of each one......

1 & 2  Calendula flower speckled with a little morning dew

3  Sponge cake by Master T (13)

4  Coffee cupcakes and coffee frosting by Miss O (11)

5  Profiteroles and homemade chocolate sauce by Miss O (recipe on her blog)

6  Baked cheesecake and homemade caramel sauce by Miss G (15) who also made wonderful lemon meringue pies with our homegrown lemons

7  Even the undersides of my hand sewn quilt blocks look beautiful to me

8  Yesterday was rainy, the perfect time to teach the children to play chess

9  Holiday house boat on the river

10  Another glorious sunset as seen from the bridge

11  is number one again because I love it so.....(cropped as suggested by S.C.)

Sharing at Weekend Flowers, I Heart Macro, Orange You Glad It's Friday, SkyWatch Friday.

Joy in the Process

Just completed this afternoon, I love the added detail of a little stitching on this English Paper Piecing (EPP) star.

It has been a relatively productive week as we near the end of our school holidays. Homeschooling and household management tends to leave little room for such pleasures most days.

A kitchen container kit keeps my supplies together, ready for those moments which afford some quick glue basting or a little hand stitching. Zip lock bags are excellent for neatly storing my hand cut papers, cut fabric and glue-basted pieces in their own tidy sections.

Slowly but surely the plan comes together. The joy is in the process, as much if not more than anticipating the finished product. I'm loving working with these stash fabrics and steadily creating with my hands.


Sharing at Work In Progress Wednesday.

Sweet Winter

 Little Miss Cupcake (eleven year old Miss O) continues to bake nearly every day. So many tempting delights. I am a self-appointed taste tester of all batters/doughs -someone has to do it ;)
She mostly makes double batches of everything as they disappear so very quickly around our family of ten. Thankfully I am usually content to leave the cooked products alone. I did drink the cup of white tea (thanks Catherine) above but I didn't eat the red velvet cupcake.

Our winter continues to be wonderfully mild. Miss V's calendulas are flowering beautifully, reminding me of miniature sunflowers.


Sharing at NurturePhotography: Gold, Tina's Weekend Flowers.

Super Heroes, Sport and Sewing

We had a flying visit from a Super Hero today, one never knows who you will meet in our humble home, but you have to have your camera handy for these moments never last long......

Many thanks to all those who offered suggestions regarding last week's English Paper Piecing (EPP) sewing question. A finer needle, a change of thread to Guttermann polyester as well as closer stitches has yielded a much better result - so much so that I made a replacement block with the same fabrics before moving on to more stars. I have also discovered the joy of glue basting - much quicker, neater and easier.

A little progress to report on the Musical Stairs quilt, with my girls' assistance    :)

Now for those who know our family, you will be aware of the importance placed on cricket by all our children. Tonight is the beginning of the 2013 Ashes cricket series between Australia and England so it didn't surprise me when I discovered a cake was being planned to celebrate this much anticipated event!  A pitch was made from a tiny individually baked cake with toothpicks for the stumps and a red 100's & 1000's sweet served as a cricket ball. I have just heard cheers from in front of the TV - we are bowling and have just taken our first wicket - I'm guessing the cake has now been half eaten!

Thanks for stopping by - keep an eye out for super heroes, you never know where they may be lurking....


Sharing at WIP Wednesday.