60 weeks until ...... number 5

Once again today has been busy but I have managed to prepare the meals for the week ahead.   This is a regular weekend exercise and means the HD3QBEM needs only to heat the dishes up each evening. We have compromised in this way so that she feels she is contributing to the running of the household and I have a meal ready and waiting when I get home from the gym.

My new recipe for the week is this
Chickpea and Apricot Tagine.   Amendments were  two teaspoons of raw sugar instead of the specified palm sugar disc as I have no idea what that is.   We had white rice, in deference to the HD3QBEM's delicate constitution.
I think this is a keeper but there is a divided verdict in this house, perhaps attributable to the generation gap.   It is still going on record in my recipe book and I will be repeating this one.

Daylight saving has begun here in New Zealand and I lost an hours sleep last night.   Hopefully my eyes will remain open until I can do the dinner dishes after which it will be off to bed for me.

And what comes next?

Since finishing my UK Trip Book I have been busy making Suffolk Puffs.   Lots of them.
Well, to be honest, thirty six in total.

And what am I going to do with those?
These will form a Christmas Tree for my friend in Japan who has no space to put up a real tree in her home.   She will put up my tree on her wall and hang small ornaments from it.   Clever don't you think. 

So far so good.   It is hard to place randomly when your mind works mathematically!  
Now I need thirty six large buttons to go in the centre of each puff.   Probably gold ones or failing that bright red and bright green.
A tree trunk, a bucket, gifts around the base, backing, binding.....  
No Margaret!   This is not yet nearly finished.   You still have some way to go ;-)
Now I am off to watch Heston Blumenthal create "the world's greatest Christmas pudding".   That guy is mad.   Mad but interesting!

Dreams are free but they are such fun...

Oh Happy Happy Day!
At my house we are doing the...

The stitching on my UK trip book is finished.   It will be finally finish-finished onto the book cover and will look like this.

At the moment it is only pinned on but I couldn't wait to dance the dance!   Belgian linen has an open weave so I intend to line this with a piece of doctors flannel and then stitch to the fabric book cover. This has been hard work - one thread of floss over one thread of 30 count fabric but I have thoroughly enjoyed the dreams I have stitched into this.   Anticipation is in every cross!
I have the Trip Book ready.   I have the money in the bank.   Now all I need is the time and the freedom.   Look out UK - here I come (one day).

September Christmas Ornament

It is time to reveal my contribution to the 2013 Ornament SAL that is being run by Silver Lotus.
It must be well over five years ago that I downloaded this chart from Gazette94's blog and I have finally gotten around to stitching it on a scrap of linen with an oddment of the Anchor equivalent of DMC 115.   Unfortunately my scrap of linen, while large enough for the actual stitching, proved insufficient for the desired triangle finish and this was the result.  

Not too bad, if I say so myself.   I'm not keeping this one - it will go into the sale of work at our Guild Exhibition in November and hopefully find itself a new home.

60 weeks until ..... number 4

Today Spring has finally arrived!   It is warm.  It is sunny and the cherry blossoms are a wonderful pink cloud.  

After the dreadful thunder and lightning last night, today's weather was a real surprise but most welcome.
This weeks new recipe is not really a new taste but I wanted to try this in my slow cooker.  
Slow Sweet and Sour Chicken.   The verdict is "delicious" and I will definitely try this one again, possibly even when I have guests for dinner as it looks great too.   I used tinned pineapple - well drained.

The Wales band on my UK Trip Book is half finished and tonight I plan to concentrate on that.   This afternoon I made a list of what stitching and sewing I want to accomplish before Christmas - that was a bad idea!  The list is daunting.   The HD3QBEM always told me "your eyes are bigger than your stomach" and obviously that holds true for more than just meals;-)

An almost finish, an almost started and a part way done!

Today was an almost day.   New Zealand almost won the Americas Cup yachting race, wasting a couple of hours of my precious time in the process and starting my day off in the way it was to continue ;-)
This afternoon was Embroiderers Guild and I started this small Christmas Ornament.   Our speaker was so interesting my attention was diverted and this is only an 'almost finish' which I plan on completing tonight.   It will become a triangular ornament for the Christmas Tree.

I have decided to up-cycle a skirt which I bought for my nephews wedding eight years ago and have only worn twice.  The wedding was in my pre-digital camera days so I have no photo to show you.  

But the skirt is now far too big and as I like the colours, the questionable ruched bottom was removed.  The elasticated waste unpicked.  Now I have fabric to cut a pencil skirt and make it to fit.

In a couple of weeks I should have the knitting you see to the side complete -  a cotton cardigan to wear with the skirt.   Success is almost guaranteed.   (Is this how the New Zealand yachting team feel?)  So this is my 'almost started'

My conscience is screaming at me to finish my UK Trip book which is neither an 'almost start' nor an 'almost finish' but rather a boring old 'part way done'!!   Here is the current state.   Aren't those two houses cute?   Hopefully tonight I will get the tall crane? adit? completed.   Give me a week and I plan on having this project move to the 'almost finish' state.  

And next?   Yes I have that sorted and here is a shot of the materials and a hint of the project!

Have a good evening.

60 Weeks until .... number 3

This week I decided to go 'healthy' and chose a recipe from my monthly "Healthy Food Guide".
These taste great but the jury is still out on whether or not they really are healthy?!

Ginger and Coconut Balls

1/2 cup dried dates chopped finely
1/3 cup dried prunes chopped finely
1/4 cup crystallised ginger chopped finely
1/4 cup raisins
1/3 cup unsalted cashew nuts

Mix all these ingredients well in a food processor until they form a tight mixture.
With damp hands roll the mixture into balls.
Using 1/4 cup fine desiccated coconut dust the balls thoroughly before placing in the refrigerator to chill for at least two hours or preferably overnight.

The HD3QBEM loves ginger so these are sure to be a real hit with her and I can see myself making this recipe many times to use instead of "after dinner mints" when I have guests.   Yep!   This is a keeper but I wouldn't classify it as healthy ;-)