French Knots

Cake helps

The children had an own clothes day at school last week to raise money for Haiti but wanted to do something themselves. The decided on a cake sale on Friday after school, we have a captive audience as we live next to their school, so I envisaged 150 children eager for cake - that's pretty much what happened!

( Not our actual fairy cakes!) 

The children made posters to stick up in the front window and printed out adverts to give out in the playground, then helped make about 75 fairy cakes, 30 cornflake cakes, a banana loaf and 40 oat biscuits! At 2.30 it started to snow(aarrgghh) but by 3pm it was sunny so I set up the table in our drive and luckily some kind friends dropped off more cakes. My Little Helper and The Big Sister dashed out of school, climbed over our wall and the frenzy began! All the cakes were bought within 12 minutes, we could have sold 3 times as many and so many generous people said ' keep the change'. Selling each cake at 20p the children thought they might make twenty or thirty pounds but when they counted it up they had £62.76! Well done my darlings, I'm so proud of you for wanting to help and organising it so well.

The money has been donated to a charity Pebbledash blogged about, Shelterbox . The children thought the idea of sending a box with tent, blankets, tools and colouring books was very sensible and I like the idea that they and their friends know what they have contributed to. It makes it seem more real to a 6 and 10 year old, knowing what their money is helping to send to Haiti and how it will help a family just like ours.  

Boasting over!

Snow in suburbia

We woke up to 8 inches of snow, well when I say woke up I mean the time we got up as it was morning as opposed to the other times in the night we were woken up by The Baby Brother ( pesky teeth)!

Happily the school was shut as the staff couldn't get in so we spent the day snowballing and sledging. A bonus day, an extra holiday.

I've never seem so much snow here, light and fluffy just right for enjoying. Goodness knows what it'll be like after it's frozen tonight though.

 
With a well stocked pantry and freezer we don't need to go any where, school is closed tomorrow too so we'll be in front of the fire toasting our toes.

He'll have to stay outside though, don't want a flood on the floor.   

What a weekend!

So what do you happens when 20 of your nearest and dearest get together in your little house?

 
Lots of eating, chatting, giggling, little girl toenail painting, baby gurgling, oh yes and a little bit of drinking later on too! We had a 13 person sleepover - 2 babies, 1 toddler, 3 small boys and one Big Sister along with their parents. What fun and what a late night - we stayed up chatting and playing a daft music game until it was tomorrow, you've got to let your hair down sometimes. It was lovely to watch all the little cousins playing together, even though they don't see each other very often they all had super fun!

The prospect of people flying in and driving over from hither and yon gave some motivation to get all those little jobs done - so there is now a lock on the bathroom door, the toilet has been fixed ( off I went to the plumbers merchant ' can I have one of these please?' - £1.50 and 2 hours of Mr FK's time and a very large spanner, ta da the toilet flushes properly for the first time in 18 months!) pictures hung and those piles of bits and bobs cleared away.

We have a row of tall bookcases in our bedroom, to make a nook for storing stuff and I've been meaning to make a curtain to cover the gap between the bookcases and the wall for about 2 years. So I found a bit of fabric that my sister in law gave me a while ago and amazingly it was just the right size. When she saw it she knew just where it had come from, a duvet cover my Mum had given to her and my brother many years ago that had torn but was such a jaunty blue and white stripe that she saved it. And gave it to me. Serendipity.  

Weekend

Lots of little things got done and one very big one - plenty ticked off the to do list! Tackling clutter hotspots, you know those piles of things that sit there so long that you don't even see them any more, has freshed up quite a few areas of the house. Still more to do with Christmas approaching I still want to clear out some cupboards in preparation.

I planted some strawberries on the allotment in one of the raised beds that Mr FK built for me. A lovely peaceful hour in the sun, solitary work and so enjoyable. They looked a bit small and weedy once they were in and I could almost here the slugs dashing for a hearty meal.

The list of Christmas present I'd like to make has been drawn up and several designs are underway. I feel really excited about Christmas this year and suddenly we are in the middle of Novemeber so it's the perfect time to start planning.

  

Some satisfying knitting has been done, sweet little hats and some socks for me.

And a wonderful surprise from Mr FK

an MP3 for me, just need to learn how to use it!

My Little Helper and I made an autumn crown like the one we saw at Elsie Marley

 

We watched Dr Who, how scary was that episode?! I nearly had to watch from behind a cushion! The glazed eyed, water gushing people were so menacing.

And the really big thing ....Mr FK painted the hall, stairs, landing, stairs and landing! I helped by keeping the children out of the way and choosing the paint - what a team! Pictures to follow once it's all put back together.

Autumn events

We managed to squeeze in some fireworks in the garden between the rain showers. It reminds me of being a child, the smell of the fireworks, damp leaves under foot, writing my name with a sparkler and oohhing at the rainbow shower of colours. Hopefully my children will carry memories forward of this November ritual. No bonfire as we haven't really got the space and I was disorganised this year so no parkin or toffee apples either!

 
image from here

Sunday was Church Parade for Remembrance Day with all the Beavers and Brownies scrubbed up for the day. The Big Sister was with the Guides at our local church and I went with My Little Helper to a  lovely service at a church I've not been to in about 30 years, since I was a Brownie myself. The vicar spoke about courage and the nature of war, appreciating those fighting even if you have doubts about the actual war. All the children were given a red helium filled balloon with a tag attached detailing and commemorating a soldier who has died recently. The Baby Brother and I had Ian Malone who was only 28 when he was killed. I thought of his Mother and squeezed the my little man tightly in my arms, watching his older brother with his fellow Beavers releasing their balloons. So many balloons. 

Shilly shallying

So I've started selling Phoenix Cards and my first event is coffee and cake for some friends at my house. Humm better have a big tidy up and maybe even break out the hoover......

  

or I could recover my kitchen chairs in some snazzy spotty fabric.

And the bathroom is looking a bit messy with the children's bath toys lying around. I need a slugis I think to fit on the little shelf at the end of the bath. Yes, that's much better.

Ok what else? Dusting? No I'll make some nice labels so everyone knows what sort of cards are in each basket.

Good job The Big Sister is rustling up some apple cake or I'd have another reason to put off tidying up.

Have a lovely weekend, doing the little things that please you.

   

3rd time lucky!

We've finally had a sunny week away in the caravan. As Mrs Moog commented Croyde and Woolacombe are lovely, especially on a bright and sunny autumn day. It was a windy week but mild and warm so we could explore the beaches and get out and about. We spent more time on the beach than we did on our summer hols! My Little Helper thought all the surfers were super cool and used his savings to buy a skimboard ready for use on a beach with slighty less surf - he's not a great swimmer yet.

  I love to sit and watch the world go by, enjoying a picnic and watching the children play. The Baby Brother wriggled his toes in the sand and busied himself growing his second tooth, slow down little man! He's 6 months old already and in another 10 minutes he'll be a year old!

 

So many pretty villages with chocolate box cottages but it must be heaving in the summer.

We went to Lynton and rode the Cliff railway which is a splendid bit of Victorian engineering affording super views and saving you from a heart attack as you climb back up.

 

We had a day out at The Big Sheep watching sheep shearing, learning about different breeds and enjoying a sheepdog demonstration. They also have a playbarn with huge slides, usually the sort of noisy place I avoid like the plague but the children loved it and spent ages racing down the deathslides. They persuaded me to have a go - once I was sitting perched on the edge looking over the vertical drop all I could think of was broken bones and how far away the nearest hospital might be! I gathered my courage and as my 6 and 10 year old children had done it without palpitations, launched myself off the edge......ssssssssshhhhhhhhhiiiiiiiiiitttttttttttt!!!!!!!!!!! just about sums it up!

We spent a day mooching round Illfracombe, which figured large in a story my Grandma used to tell about visiting my Popsie there during the war and the guns being fired from the cliffs making the wardrobe jump about in her room at the guest house.

 A traditional family holiday, beach, paddling, fish and chips, ice cream, evening games of Junior Scrabble, reading and relaxing. Wonderful!

Little things

One of the joys of blogging is recording the little things, everyday life, happens in your home and in mine. The cement that holds childhood memories. The moments I want to smile over when I'm 80.

My Little Helper discussing footie ' We're playing Tottenburg this weekend'

The Big Sister ' No that's a cake!'

                                                   ***

My Little Helper discussing 'I gotta feeling' By the Black Eyed Peas which has been our song of the summer, wherever we've been it's been playing.

( which has a few lines that go - Lets paint the town
We'll shut it down
Let's burn the roof
And then we'll do it again )

' burn the roof?, are they making extra bedrooms or building flats Mummy?'

                                                 ***

The Big Sister's growing passion for baking

  Loving the Jaffa cake and Malteaser decorations!

 

And her apple cake is dangerously moreish! 

                                                  ***

The Baby Brother's pink cheeks and fist gnawing were a giveaway - the first little tooth is just visible in his gum! Goodness, wasn't he was only born 5 minutes ago not 5 months.

The sun is shining so I'm going to take my 'still got a gummy smile, but not for long' little fella for a walk.

A celebration

After my aforementioned night of no sleep I spent Saturday rushing through a to do list in preparation for The Baby Brother's Christening on Sunday, cake, flowers, tablecloths to iron. Thank goodness for the energy rush provided by the wonderful Mr Cadbury!

 

I covered jam jars with pretty fabric from a recycled pillowcase, held in place with raffia. The asters gave each table a cheerful touch and I used my collection of hand embroidered cloths, the ones that are too nice to chop up!

Sunday was an early start as the Christenings are during the 9.30 family service and first I had to set up the hall in the Cricket Club. The Big Sister and I sat in the car park at 8am as arranged and waited.....waited....waited, eventually I barked a message into their answer machine and dashed home to put on my glad rags. With visions of our family and friends arriving at the gloomy hall going round in my head I rang again just before 9, phew the cleaner was there and The Big Sister and I dashed back, dragged tables and chairs into place, whizzed the tablecloth and flowers around and screeched back home on two wheels.

Naturally my purple face set off my outfit to a 't' ! The Baby Brother looked a picture in our antique family gown and, as I hoped he didn't drool on it too much, worked out it must be about 100 years old. It is a lovingly made confection of silk, embroidery and lace worn by my children, myself and my siblings, my Mum and her brother and Grandma and her brothers. A connection with the past, with other Mothers before me and those dearly loved who are no longer here.

 

 

To sleep....

....perchance to not be woken up every 5 minutes!

10.30 to bed, late night watching Strictly!

11.02 The Baby Brother wakes crying

1.56  He wakes again and has a huge feed

3.04 My Little Helper wakes up crying

4.27 Mr FK kicks me hard and mumbles ' sorry, was dreaming I was playing football' after I dig him in the ribs

5.25 The smoke alarm outside the bedroom door tests itself. I can't go back to sleep just in case the house really is burning down and am running through how to carry all 3 children at once in my head. 

Tonight I'm going to camp somewhere peaceful, like the hard shoulder of the motorway.