It generally all boils down to boys and buns here! Admittedly for most of the last week it has been about nothing much more than boys and bugs (of the tummy variety) but we are now all most well. And that is an extremely good thing. But otherwise there is nothing, still as yet nothing, quite as calming to a houseload of sun-filled, sun-stoked suns and other people's suns than a batch of buns and a table load of icing and things. This is another extremely good thing while it lasts. Friends of suns are also an extremely good thing. That's fabulous when going well. So well done to Troubled Sun for being nearly at the end of a trying year on the suns of other people front. I may have been a little bit blank to one of these people at the level crossing hiatus today. This is not an extremely good thing.
When do buns become cupcakes anyway? Is it when they are properly iced and enormous and you could look at them for a long time before daring to eat- with a small fork, obviously. We had lots of those, not made by me, at last week's Mums in May. Now this is a huge source of gratitude on my part. I managed to organise a Mothers' Union event. Phew. Slightly absolved after a year of inept muddling! More gratitudes- people came and brought friends, they all brought more food, they must each have donated double the suggested amount for the work of Irish MU, the sun shone and shone and shone! The sun has in fact just stopped shining, which is nearly a tiny relief given that we are people of a frozen clime and a fortnight of South of France temperatures is definitely more than Calvinists deserve!
Are YWAM folk Calvinists? I didn't get much of a grasp of the work they were doing out and about this week. We were hosting a little family, so Strawberry Land was wholly concerned with falling in love with Layna! Layna discovered Charlie and Lola, which was a fine excuse for me to sit down and revel in Lauren Child. Not that I ever need much of an excuse... Such a novelty to have a house full of something other than boys and buns.
Now finally, Thrifty Thursday has a confession for the group. She has been most careful during this Year of Living Small, and it has indeed been a time of living very large in the wonderful provision of He who provides, and in the kindness of friends. She has shopped locally and cannily and kept within budgets. She has made do and tried to mend! She has used everything to hand, and has moved in an environmentally responsible manner. However. Due to the very wonderful amount of substitute teaching that she was given at just the right times, and having helped pay some big bills and taken the strawberries away at Easter for PC's birthday, Thrifty made a spontaneous decision. Do you remember those? You used to do them before you had children. Maybe you don't recall. It certainly took Thrifty by surprise, but believe me, given the right opportunity, you would be amazed at how fast you could text back simply, "Yes." No thought required!
Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge crossed.
Giant's Causeway admired.
Corrymeela experienced.
Crochet mastered.
But there will be a prize for the one who can most accurately guess what on earth she is doing here!!
The last things I made for 30 days of making were three little felt brooches to take with me to the Coffee Bean Deli yesterday. I have a group of three truly fabulous friends who are there most days, and I try to be there once a week, because life is definitely better when I do! We loosely describe ourselves as Bean Craftin' because sometimes we bring out our projects.... Mostly I drink green tea and admire their projects!
When the relevant time comes along we celebrate Bean Birthdays, with bunting, cake and present tailored to the individual Beanie. Thursday was for moi! My birthday is not quite yet, but the absence of in-school strawberries makes for a more relaxing time!
Cupcakes everywhere. Red velvet ones, and excellently good ones at that. Apparently the ingredients were a compilation of various recipes but the technique is all Jamie Oliver, from the summer magazine. Queen Niqi in charge on that one, so obviously very high standard achieved! Thank you to all!
This is also supposed to be my Monday Greatitudes post, so here goes! This month of making things is really quite good. A bit of focus and pressure to cut through the daily getting on and getting through and generally enjoying it all, but not actually knowing what you've achieved, if anything!
In the late autumn of 2007 I had resigned from my very safe, fairly prestigious full-time French teaching job and was embarking on a new life as a minimally job-sharing teacher in a most challenging school. I was discovering the sheer relief of less juggling and simple joy of walking up and down the leafy surburban hill that links our house to their school.
So, I got the book for Christmas, discovered the world of blogs, marvelled at the creativity and beauty of homes and lives. And subsequently met Crafting Catherine, and through her discovered the Bean and Niqi and Lorna. And as of yesterday my "kak-handed", remnants of tacky wool crochet blanket is complete! Thanks, June! (And Jane...)
It felt like a full, and glorious, week of birthday celebrations! It ran seamlessly into a weekend I had to spend ill in bed, which did itself run less seamlessly into a week of marking coursework. That week is now about to run helter-skelter into two months of marking GCSE French orals and marking more coursework.
To all teachers and examination students (and hopeful political candidates) I can only declare "Bon Courage!"
Not including this....
ps Prince Charming points out that his Lowden is nicer than the one shown here- his has gold tuning knobs... 
Hello! Sending you all lots of love from Northern Ireland, where nothing much changes just as everything changes, as usual. Time has stood ...
