In with the new

New things arriving in the Four Happy Bunnies house ...

Mademoiselle Primavera from the lovely, lovely Stephanie at

Millefeuilles

 

Please visit Stepahnie's blog and look at her lovely photos and

amazing work, she is so talented.

l would like to wish Stephanie lots of luck with

her Etsy shop - opening soon

Next ...

Sorry - poor photos this evening

Pretty, pink jug - a gift from my sister

I couldn't take a photograph of the bottom

of the jug but it is stamped

'Life is Sweet'

and the other goodies

Amelie DVD

Rowan Crochet Workshop Book

Italian Home Baking, Gino D'Acampo

 a print for my kitchen

and finally

a vintage, embroidered cushion cover

(more about these soon)

Take care xx 

The Weekend ......

Doesn't everywhere look wonderful at the moment?

Shopping in my local supermarket this week, I just couldn't resist

all the red, white and blues goodies

So patriotic was I feeling that I bought 10m of plastic bunting!!!

No slaving over hand made bunting for me this time, hehe!

and

(no I didn't buy union jack flags for my car!!!!!!!!!)

but

I bought a pack of 6 (plastic) flags to decorate my

plant pots.

Oh, can you imagine the groans from the rest of my family ....

I smiled at the thought of their horror (oh dear - bad person), as these goodies slipped into my trolley !

I have really enjoyed spending time in my neglected garden this weekend.

My constant companion, my shadow, my faithful friend

has loved every minute too.

Ollie rarely left my side. 

 A total pain when trying to read a book (edited to add

that was me reading the book, not Ollie!) - he would

suddenly (and silently) leap through the air and land on my lap.

Can you see that nose in the middle picture?!

He was very upset that I had left him behind

the gate ...

Anyway, come in -

not much to see at the moment

but this is where I have been relaxing

Look who was keeping an eye on me ...

She is such a big bird and her nest is so tiny

I hope they don't fall out of the nest -

not with a dog running around the garden!

I hope you had a lovely weekend too?

Take care

Just one '99' please!

Did you know that next week is .... 

National Ice Cream Week

30th May - 5th June!!

I love ice-cream and this has to be my

favourite ice-cream seller

... selling ice-cream on the Norfolk Broads between

Wroxham and Horning.  Next stop Venice!

Unfortunately we couldn't stop the boat we had just

hired for the day!!  The captain hadn't quite mastered

the controls at that point. 

As you can see in the photo, it was also very cold (photo taken

at the beginning of May)

.

Ice-cream trivia

The average number of licks to polish off a single scoop ice-cream cone is approximately 50!



On average, each person in the UK eats 9 litres of ice cream every year; sounds a lot but the Scandinavians eat more with the Americans topping the chart at 20 litres per year!

More ice-cream is sold on Sunday than any other day of the week

'99' is a trademark of Cadbury Limited and it is used to describe a scoop or swirl of soft serve ice cream with a Cadbury chocolate Flake in it.
If you only take a few scoops form a large tub of ice cream, protect the quality of the ice cream by preventing air getting to it by scrunching up a few pieces of greaseproof paper and put these on top of the ice cream before replacing the lid.

Today most ice creams contain only around 5% fat and plenty of calcium, minerals and vitamins

What is your favourite ice-cream?

Banoffee Fudge Loaf

What more could you ask for, after a day at work, than to come home to a slice of cake and a cup of coffee!

My Boy has been taking part in his school’s Year 10 Work Experience Programme.  He’s had an amazing time working at our local League One football club.

Going to school is a chore for My Boy – he likes to meet his friends and ‘hang out’ with them at lunch time but he does NOT, no way, enjoy sitting in a classroom and writing.  He is capable, but disinterested, in his GCSEs (just awarded an A for French speaking, 1 mark off an A* - with half an hour revision the night before the test!). 

It has been like a breath of fresh air in our house over the last two weeks.  He has been waking up with the lark and getting ready for work without constant nagging.  No squabbles over homework = bliss BLISS!

Yesterday he had the day off (electrical work at the football ground). 

Staying with Grandma for the day, they decided to bake, bake, bake!!

I am sorry I didn’t take a photo of the cake before we sliced it, but believe me that was the last thing on my mind.  Admittedly this isn’t a ‘pretty’ cake but what it lacks in the looks department it certainly makes up for in taste!

The recipe is from Tesco, but I wanted to record it on my blog as I am likely to misplace it!! 

BANOFFEE FUDGE LOAF

5oz softened, salted butter, 10oz plain flour, 6oz light muscovado sugar, 2 lightly beaten eggs, 1tsp bicarb of soda, 5fl oz semi-skimmed milk, 3 medium, ripe bananas and 3oz vanilla fudge.

 1           pre-heat oven to 160c.  Lightly butter and flour a 2pt loaf tin.

2           Beat butter and sugar for 5 mins.  Gradually add eggs, beating all the time.  Sift in the flour and bicarb then gradually add the milk until smooth.

3           Fold the mashed bananas into the mixture with the chopped fudge.  Spoon mixture into into the loaf tin.

4           After 30 mins take the tin out of the oven and cover with foil then return to the oven for a further 30 mins.

5           Remove from oven and leave in tin for 10 mins to cool.

 

Serve warm or cold.

Thank you My Boy – I am one very happy mummy!

Take Care xx

No longer a WIP!!

I am soooo excited!!!

I have finished a WIP!

This is quite a new concept for me.  As you know I am a plant/resource

investigator - I rarely finish a project!!

This is the cross stitch I started a few weeks ago from

the 'Home Sweet Home' Cross Stitch book by

the very lovely and talented Helen Philips.

I am just a little in love with Helen!!  Helen's blog

is amazing - full of pretty and wonderful things,

truly inspirational.

Now I need to find a frame and hang it somewhere.

Out with the old and in with the new ....

I have started a Bargello Cushion for our bedroom.



Bargello is a type of needlepoint embroidery consisting of upright flat stitches laid in a mathematical pattern to create flowing waves. The name is said to originate from Renaissance Italy - from a series of chairs found in the Bargello Palace in Florence, which have a “flame stitch” pattern.

This WIP is perfect for me - being both quick and easy - allowing my

'butterfly' mind to flit from one idea to another. 

Hope you have a great week

Take care xx



 

May Day Fair

Sorry I have been absent for a while.  Life suddenly got the better of me. 

 A young boy in my class was run over after school a couple of weeks ago.  I went in the ambulance with him to hospital.  Words cannot describe the trauma and the impact it had on me. 

Fortunately the lovely boy is okay and back at school (the driver was travelling at under 20mph – thank goodness for low speed limits near schools).  Apart from losing consciousness and some bruising he was a very, very lucky boy. 

I have a lot of blogging to catch up on!!  Now the sensible thing would be to start at the beginning, but I think I prefer to post in reverse order!!

So today, with Miss B revising (AS levels in French, English and Biology) and My Boy playing football, Steve and I went to a May Day Fair, in a village where I spent a lot of time many years ago.

 

As a child I lived in the neighbouring village and I would walk through a lovely bluebell wood to meet with friends and pass lazy days gossiping and planning our future (usually involving a handsome prince and horses!).

I had forgotten what a pretty village it is with chocolate box stone cottages, with colleyweston slate roofs, nestling in the beautiful landscaped parkland of Elton Hall.

The village looked beautiful today with lots of bunting, vintage music playing in the background and stalls selling everything from plants, French bric-a-brac, homemade crafts, home grown plants and freshly baked bread and cakes. 

I took some photos before the battery ran out on my camera (although it wasn't easy balancing a bag, brolly and camera!!!

We didn’t stay long as unfortunately it was pouring with rain again.  I felt so very sorry for all the villagers ,and stall holders, who had put in so much effort.  I love events like this - they really bring a community together.

 I bought myself a couple of things before we headed back to the car

an old bottle/jar - think I might use this for bubble bath?

and a rusty bracket!!!!

 and home to an afternoon of cross stitch

 and listening to the radio.

I hope you have had a lovely weekend?  

Back soon xx

Distracted & Dreaming ...

Oh my goodness!!!

it has been one of

thOse weekends ...

My crochet course started on Saturday

I was VERY excited.

So excited that I spent 5 minutes

looking for my bra before I realised

that I was already wearing it!!! :0

and then

I drove to the Drs surgery to

collect a prescription ...

but totally forgot what I was doing/where I was going

 until

I realised that I was parking my car...

at the local supermarket!!!  :0

but I am pleased to report that

things improved, as I arrived at the bottom

of crochet hill

 at the top of the hill I

started to relax

when I was greeted by a resident - bearing gifts

sorry about the quality of this photo, but she didn't stay

still for long!  This brought back memories of my first dog, a

working border collie.  Border collies are the most intelligent and

loyal dog you could wish to own, but they need a lot

of stimulation or they become bored and destructive!!  (hmmm a bit like Ollie!!!)

Anyway more of my crochet course next time

 (in my mind I have already

mentally ticked off the crochet box!!)

because inside I was distracted by this

fabric stash envy!!

So, I stopped at Hobbycraft on the way

home and bought a few things .....

and now I want to start quilting :) :)

and as this slipped into my shopping bag too ...

I couldn't resist making this...

so Belbin, I think I am a typical

Plant!

Plants are creative, unorthodox and generators of ideas.

If an innovative solution to a problem is needed, a Plant is a good person to ask.

 A good Plant will be bright and free-thinking.

 Plants can tend to ignore incidentals and refrain from getting bogged down in detail.

The Plant bears a strong resemblance to the popular caricature of the absent-minded mad professor.

or am I a

Resource Investigator ?

A Resource Investigator has a rush of enthusiasm at the start of a project and vigorously pursues contacts and opportunities.

She is focused, and has a finger firmly on the pulse of the outside world.

Where a Plant creates new ideas, a Resource Investigator will quite happily adapt ideas and gain inspiration from other people.

 A good Resource Investigator is a maker of possibilities but has a tendency to lose momentum towards the end of a project and to forget small details.

Oh dear, Oh dear, Oh dear!!!

in conclusion ...

I haven't got very far with the crochet -

more details to follow.

Take care xx





Back to work ..

Work ..

I really, really love my job.

I will admit that I look forward to the holidays and spending time with my own children and catching up with friends, but I think I am very fortunate to be able to work in  a wonderful school, with amazing colleagues and fantastic children. 

But ....this is how I have been spending my evenings!

When really I would prefer to be doing this ....

WiP number 3!!!!

My lovely Ollie had an

 accident at the beginning of the week.

We're not sure how, but he fell out of our kitchen door

one evening and injured his paw/claw.

After a couple of visits to the vet, they

decided that the best way forward was to operate

under anaesthetic.

Although the operation was successful, Ollie took at least 48 hours to

get back to normal (a tail wagging, happy, hungry dog). 

It is amazing to see how Ollie has adapted to walking around on

3 legs.  Hopefully, after another appt. on Saturday, the dressing will

be removed and Ollie will be running around on four legs again.

A new plant

 Retro baking - Key Lime Pie (Yummy)

I'm very excited .....   my crochet workshop starts on Saturday!!!!



Friday bits and bobs ....

The rest of the week in numbers!

Number 1 - how many projects should you have on the go?

Mr B really doesn't get the whole making things/crafting life.  He believes in order, not chaos, in his life!  If I have a project on the go he thinks I should complete it before moving on to the next thing.  In an ideal world, I would agree with him.  But in my real world I get bored and distracted far too easily.  I am like a magpie - I like collecting pretty things that might one day come in useful. 

So I have two projects on the go (I don't think that is excessive, do you?)

Project A

I have two squares on the go in this project at the moment.  I am knitting 20cm x 20cm squares in various stitches to make a sofa blanket.  There is such a long way to go with this project -  I have 3 completed squares and two more works in progress!!  Sorry the colours are not very clear in these photos but I would say they are stone and very earthy green combinations.

Project B

I am enjoying this project so much, but it is difficult to sew at night when the light is starting to fade.

and that's it!!  Surely this can't be classed as 'too many'?

Number 2 - Bedtime reading

Recently I bought a lovely book about the story of education and schools in my village from 1553 to the present day (1920!!).  It is a wonderful book.  I now understand that many of the street names in the village are called after teachers at the school.  One street in particular is named after a popular Head, Mr Towning.  Apparantly his ideal was to see the school as a family.  His aim was to know each child and to give responsibilities and opportunities for initiative.   His motto was "Manners maketh man," and he was equally concerned with the a child's moral values as well as arithmetic.

What I particularly love though was his belief "aim at the stars - one never reaches them, but soars higher than the tree tops".  refreshingly he didn't believe in using the cane but used it as an ornament in his office.  I think I would have enjoyed meeting this man.

Alarmingly it is reported that in 1884 a unique punishment was given to a young girl  - she  was locked in a coal hole for punishment!  After her parents complained, it was recorded that the teacher was considered to have done no wrong but in future she was to abstain from locking up any child!!

Number 3 - Great British Sew Off!

Have you heard that 'Love Productions', makers of The Great British Bake Off, have been commissioned to produce a new programme and the search is on to find a great British sewing enthusiast.  They are looking for amateurs to take part

"From skirts to shirts, blinds to bags, if you're at home behind a sewing manchine and a dab hand with a needle and thread we'd love to hear from you"

So lovely people, what are you waiting for - I would love to see you on TV! 

Number 4 - have you seen this blog post?

As you know, I am very new to blogging, but already I am addicted.  I found this lovely blog recently little birdie.  The post this week that really meant a lot to me was called Inspiration.  I am sure many of you will identify with this post - I know I do. 

Number 5 - look what I just received in the post!

I am so excited !!  I love Helen's blog Helen Philips. 

Do you think it is ok to start on project number 3?!!

take care

Lorraine xx