Pretty you, appreciative me, joy-full possibilities

Here comes a gush. Stop me if I run to sycophancy! It is simply that I cannot help being moved by blogs and their bloggistes just lately.

It is Pom Pom's fault tonight. Her latest pretty, appreciative, joy-full post makes me wonder why I don't revel in the lovely little bits of everyday.

So this month I am resolving to enjoy pretty you, be a more appreciative me, and explore all the joy-full possiblities that must surely lurk on dusty shelves?

Or maybe even behind closed doors! Happy hearts for February. Gush over. I'll leave you alone for a while- half-term next week. I'll be exploring the joy-full possibilities of chaos....

For Mise

Mise has, as always, pronounced le mot juste in the her commentary on mon petit bloggisme. I wasn't thinking of cake stands per se, except that obviously subliminally I was. I am delighted!


Maybe if any old subbing money ever leaves County Hall and discovers the location of my non-Swiss bank account I'll get the Portia cake stand. This would be suitably appropriate after a part-time month of coaxing Year 9 through A Merchant of Venice.

This is the cake stand I'd send to Mise. Elegant perfection. Cake only to be served by lady-at-home in hat to match surrounded by an intelligent but still cake-appreciating circle of fine acquaintances.

Or perhaps we need something for Valentine's Day?
If a cake stand did appear, and actually, what a fine idea, it would perhaps be one of these.
Which one do you want? I'll ring County Hall tomorrow...

Friday Cake Bake

When I got in from work at 10.10pm on Thursday night PC had made two apple crumbles and the aroma on coming through the front door was very ood. (That's good really.) I am quite sure that they qualify as Friday Cake Bakes since it would have been breakfast time in Australia.

We're having a very quiet and mellow weekend here in the suburbs of Belfast, during which I have given in and started my Christmas shopping. One drive across the City required, and the traffic was strangely busy.

Today PC and Mattman cycled up and round and down through our local wood, while Jo and I continued the leaf raking process. It's good to keep energetic young men gainfully employed, I am discovering.

We're cosily ensconced this evening, with candles lit and a warming curry on the hob.

And no doubt we'll do the usual round of Sunday things tomorrow, with school back after the half-term break on Monday. All very homely and ordinary.

The soft voice of the radio weather lady said earlier that tonight will be cold, but with star-filled skies. Well, that will be nice for Belfast!

Vernal green

My mother knit this for me for Christmas, and its warmth has rarely been cast off since! But the colour is really starting to shine now that Spring has been coming! The actual colour is very like the lovely yarn shown at the Quiet Home today. In it I confess to feeling like this:

And would you believe that as I type PC has just floated in on a cloud of finally having found a new tech coat, and it is also in vernal green!

So that's my Alphabe-Thursday-on-Friday-again for the very difficult letter V! What I really wanted to post about was this, but it would hardly have been the most original dream!

Make do and mend, Mother Hubbard

On the Monday before Christmas, when we were all together thanks to holidays and snow days, we got into the car with The Huge List and did The Big Shop. We did this in Ballyclare, local market town and big residential area, which would, we foolishly thought, have guaranteed fairly clear roads. No!

The Huge List was, however, most successful, and only tonight have I come to the end of freezer, fridge and cupboard supplies. Helped nicely by Nigel Slater. On the Monday after Christmas (I think) I watched his Simple Suppers' Festive edition- a week's meals from the weekend's left-overs. Maybe not quite so bowl you over with lifestyle as other celebrity chefs, but reassuringly accessible on ingredients and graciously humble on a nonetheless bowl you over with lifestyle kitchen garden. And I wept my way through Toast on i-player yesterday lunch-time.

Anyway, the recipe for Perky Turkey is super with turkey or the remains of a roast chicken. (Can you identify seven ingredients without checking the website??!!) And it lets me sneak late through the door, again, of another Alphabe-Thursday!

God, what do you call an elephant with no nose?

There is a chasm that exists between my real life and my aspirational life, portrayed in this blog. I shall attempt to bridge this chasm tonight...

Today I took my recently released children (Holidays start today! Cry freedom to the oppressed!) to a china shop to buy a birthday present. Hence the very lovely Emma Bridgewater plate, and one mother tumbling over five year old boy thankfully on her way out of said china shop and not dropping said plate.

The plate will be delivered with three tastefully decorated fairy cakes, and one cupcake iced with a musical note, nestling in a handmade-by-Niqi box. So obviously we had to measure the cupcake, although we needed not to eat it long enough for this to be accomplished.

And then we decided to do more work on our summer diaries. It was late by this stage, which perhaps accounts for the fact that during open prayer time after stories Joshua decided that God would like to hear some jokes. I do wonder if he was possibly the only person on the planet telling God a good joke, or two, or three, or.... go and sit on the top step, Joshua, and read quietly until Matthew is asleep.

The punchline, by the way, was a woodpecker!

Lesson ?- To have faith

Oh but I have smiled and laughed and cried this afternoon! And as soon as I stop smiling and laughing and crying I'm going to fit myself out in tea-dresses and tank-tops!

Don't let a lack of small children keep you from this film- not if you value your dresser of tastefully mismatched china and your bedecked wellies! Or even just Maggie Smith...