It's Been a (Long!) While....

I just want to say thank you for all your messages of concern.....I have been away for quite a while - I do try and catch up with all the goings-on in the lives of my blogging friends around the world but as for posting myself; university has been (and still is) all encompassing....I am taking advantage of the short Christmas holiday to stack up the books, take some deep breaths and let you all know I am still alive! (albeit in an altered state!!!)

The end of 2011 hurtles towards us at alarming speed - 2012 waits somewhat impatiently in the wings....whatever your hopes, dreams and aspirations for the year ahead, may they all come to fruition....we are packing up the car and heading to Norfolk to belatedly drop off Christmas presents and then spend the first days of the new year in London...whatever your plans, I hope 2012 brings you all much joy, laughter, love, good health and happy memories....let's catch up again soon!  s

Madeleine's the girl for me......

Firstly, let me say I don't really have what you might call a 'sweet tooth' - give me a plate of sausage rolls or prawn dumplings any day.....but...sometimes, there are those moments when only cake will do....you know, when you just want something sweet with a cup of coffee but don't want to go overboard so you feel like you have to starve for the rest of the day as penance for your lack of willpower?

I was having one of THOSE moments the other day as I flicked through Harry Eastwood's 'Skinny French Kitchen' - the result of yet another late night foray into the delightful world of online shopping......I came across these and knew I had to make them.....immediately.......you may have to be slightly more patient if you don't happen to have a madeleine tin to hand (but really the hardest part of the whole process is skipping to your nearest kitchen equipment supplier to pick one up).....

The delightful thing about these particular little French fancies is that the clever Ms Eastwood has reduced the calorie content of a typical madeleine to a mere 87 calories! Oh joy...guilt free coffee and cake!
If you would like to join me in indulging, here's the recipe:

1tbsp oil, for brushing tin

4 medium free range eggs

Quarter tsp salt

100g caster sugar

100g plain flour, sifted

1 tsp baking powder

80g ground almonds

Half tsp vanilla extract

Half tsp almond extract

50g melted butter

1. 
   
   
   Preheat oven to 210C, 410F, gas mark 6 & brush madeleine mould with a little oil.





2. 
   
   Whisk together the eggs, salt and sugar until frothy - add the remaining ingredients and mix with a balloon whisk.





3. 
   
   Spoon into the moulds, filling them three quarters of the way up.





4. 
   
   Put the filled tin into the freezer for 10 minutes and refrigerate the mixture ready for the next batch. (Ms Eastwood tells us it's important to do this to get the characteristic little bump on the bottom - who am I to argue?)





5. 
   
   Once chilled, put in the middle of the oven for 10 minutes exactly - repeat the process once cooked with the remaining mixture but make sure you wash out the pan and grease again before continuing as the cakes may stick if you don't.





6. 
   
   Store in an airtight tin for 3 days or......brilliantly......freeze....and bring out when you want to impress with your delicious French cake baking (for only 87 calories, remember)!

Thank you Ms Eastwood....now......apple tart anyone?..............s

Bluebells.....

When we lived in Australia, one of my treasured memories of being a small girl in England was the bluebell wood in Spring....I could almost smell the faint hyacinth scent and feel the wet sappy stems in my fingers if I wished hard enough....






Now I'm all grown up, I realise that pulling up these woodland beauties is not only illegal but guaranteed disappointment! There's no sadder sight than an armful of bluebells thrown down, wilted and withered, by someone who didn't realise they wouldn't even survive until they got home....They are meant to be enjoyed like this, growing under the beech trees, sunlight dancing on their blue bell flowers, filtered through the bright green soft new leaves above. Now we are living here again, I insist on an annual pilgrimage to a bluebell wood, to breath in the scent and marvel at the blue carpet before me, as far as the eye can see, in every direction.......

Truly an experience for every sense............this would have to be in my personal

'Must Do Whilst On This Planet' list.....hmmm, now there's an idea..........Happy week...........s

Saturday Snapshots.....

This weekend - on my kitchen windowsill........









Wisteria looking wonderful - smelling wonderful too.....

And this......majestically gliding on the brook at the bottom of the garden......

What more could you want?...........Happy weekend.............s

Happy for Wills.....

All the superlatives have been used up....we now know every incy wincy detail about the dress (the seamstresses had to wash their hands every 30 minutes and use new needles every three hours to keep the lace clean).....we know what they ate (cornish crab, Castle of Mey lamb and Highgrove vegetables).....how many tiers the cake had (8).......





We've pored over the column inches, admired the best dressed for their style and sophistication in their choice of outfit, smiled with a small degree of satisfaction that for some, no amount of money can make them chic (you know who you are - lady with the pretzel on her head and the two who got the fabric for their ensembles from sofa.com) - just proving what our mothers used to tell us - that it's not about how much you spend, it's about how creative you are with what you've got.....and talking of mothers, for me as the mother of a son the same age as William, the overriding joy of the day was seeing this devastated little boy who had just lost his beloved mum.....













emerge from the doors of Westminster Abbey with this gorgeous girl on his arm and the prospect of his own warm, loving and close knit family.........















Just what Mum would have wanted........Good Luck Wills & Kate - may your life together be blessed with laughter, fun, health and happiness...........s

London Requests the Pleasure of Your Company...

Yesterday, with just three days to go (!) to the BIG day...London was on sparkling form.....the parks were looking pristine.....








The flowerbeds have been newly planted with bright and happy blooms.....

The statues in front of Buckingham Palace have been cleaned to within an inch of their life with pressure washers......

The crowds were already gathering.......

Photographers - ten-a-penny.......

All the T.V channels have set up shop to get the best view at Westminster Abbey......

And outside the Palace....

The Guards were polished to perfection.....

The souvenir stalls were making a mint......

There was even a bride......

But not the one the eyes of the world will be on come Friday morning........so.......will you be attending??!!............................s

Snowdrop time....again....and a new mantra....

I just cannot believe I haven't spoken to you all for so long...the snowdrops are up, the first early daffodils are making a timid appearance (hopefully there won't be an avalanche of snow any day now crushing their fragile yellow heads, as so often happens to these delicate little spring blossoms)....the garden is a carpet of white with the promise of Spring on the way...Meanwhile, up in my prison cell, I mean study, work continues apace...





I tell myself this every day - as I struggle to find a few hundred more words to complete another essay:

Even though it's been tough on the grey matter (getting it working again, that is!!) there's also a great sense of satisfaction....my GG is still here from Sydney - I was hoping for some essay writing tips but she doesn't seem too keen to help....Strange......She keeps telling me that she has her own essays to write when she gets back to Aus in a couple of weeks...I think it's more about the little 'affaire de la coeur' she has embarked upon while she's been here myself..... Ah well, you're only 21 once and if you can't embrace youth, life and love now, when can you?

The newlyweds are not so newlywed and my little grandson celebrated his third birthday last weekend complete with a smartie chocolate cake and a village hall full of his friends.....All in all, a busy start to the year...

Half term next week seems very appealing - 'normal' life may return for a fleeting visit before I glance in horror at the assessment deadline calendar once more..

Meanwhile, I plan to join a friend for a trip to Cardiff, the shopping capital of Wales tomorrow to remind myself that there is life beyond the keyboard!

Look forward to catching up with you all & do hope all is well in your world............s

December already!!!!!

How can it be possible that it's December tomorrow???? The year has come full circle....just wanted to say hi...I haven't been neglecting you all - have been regularly checking in to see what you've all been up to! I'm sitting at the computer and WAY behind on an essay due in at the end of the week so.......as I'm struggling for inspiration thought I would say hello to all you inspirational lovely blogging buddies instead....What a rollercoaster it's been since I saw you all last....the course is 'full on' as they would say in Aus and in addition, we are on placement all the way up to Christmas. The life of this particular student is well and truly full! I truly cannot believe that the end of the year is in sight and once again, the logs are stacked and the woodburner lit...where does the time go???

At this time of year I'm usually in 'Christmas prep' mode but this year, things are a little different! I think I will be lucky to even get a tree organised! The closest I've come to even thinking about the festive season is ticking the turkey or fish box on the office Christmas lunch menu.... My GG will be arriving from Sydney next week and her 'to do' list is filling up fast! First thing on the list is 'assist Mum with essay writing' - never again will I tell her that being a uni student is an easy life!

We did fit in a little frivolity last weekend with a flying visit to London, a macaron-fest at Laduree and a whistle stop tour of all our favourite places. Then, it was back to reality....and to the keyboard...

I can't quite get the taste of those magnificent macarons out of my mind - the rose and ginger or the salted caramel? Mmmmm.....will have to go back just so I can decide for sure..

Now about that essay.....HOW many words??? Oh dear, back to work I go....happy, happy December to you all.........s

Autumn morning...

I can't quite believe it's half-term here in the UK next week! There's been a lot happening in the English countryside lately...the tractors have been out in force ploughing after the harvest and making the local landscape a patchwork of colour.....

I love the look of a newly ploughed field - I can't drive past one without remarking on it's loveliness (I'm sure anyone who drives with me regularly thinks I'm completely mad). It seems to me to signify a rebirth, a renewal...no matter if the harvest was good or bad, the soil is deeply dug, turned over and shows a new face to the world, virginal and ready to begin a new cycle of life. Maybe it's also a reminder that nothing stays the same, seasons come and go, sowing and harvesting according to the weather and in rotation...sunshine and showers working in harmony with the soil and next year there will be wheat instead of corn. Maybe it also makes me think of our own sowing and harvesting, choices and decisions, results and consequences....

Bare soil offers all sorts of possibilities - seeds sown, nurtured under ground until the weather warms up again and a new season's crop comes to fruition.

As I drove through the countryside this morning, en route to the final day of my course placement, the bare fields were glistening with frost, leaves swirling gently to the ground alongside the car window and Nigel Kennedy was playing Vivaldi's Autumn from the Four Seasons on the radio.....perfection....hope your week is perfect too........s

An end....and a beginning....

We returned home from France on Friday to a distinct chill in the air...a definite feeling of autumn and an end to the carefree days of summer, children back at school...families back from holidays near and far getting organised for the new school year. I thought I would post a few holiday snaps - we based ourselves this time near Uzes, just over the border from Provence in the Gard departement. We stumbled across this beautiful little town last year when we were travelling in the area and wanted to become more familiar with it. We had a lovely week enjoying great food...






Interesting architecture - I'm just in love with French shutters....

Fabulous markets - the LAB is in serious trouble as I had picked out the perfect bag at this stall..he persuaded me that I didn't need to buy it there and then & maybe would find one I preferred later...needless to say I didn't find another I wanted to buy and we weren't there long enough for the bag seller to make another appearance!

Gorgeous & picturesque town squares with bubbling fountains...

And charming places to stay....

I'm not sure when we shall have the opportunity for another sojourn in the sun as tomorrow I begin a new venture...a three year commitment to a Bachelor of Science degree...am I completely crazy I ask myself? It all seems a bit 'other worldly' as I sit here on a lazy Sunday afternoon (don't think there will be too many of those for the forseeable future!) Anyway, I shall keep you posted - wish me luck & I hope to find the time to come over and catch up with all your news soon...not sure how much time I shall have so if you're wondering where I've gone, it's just to a comfy sofa with a pile of reading material! Whatever your plans for the autumn (or Spring if you're in the southern hemisphere) enjoy!.........s

A visit to Granny's house......

I thought I was exhausted when my GG returned to uni in Sydney...I thought I couldn't be any more tired - wrong! This week my son and daughter in law have been visiting with my two gorgeous grandchildren....I think I have forgotten just how exhausting small children are....early starts and full days...I am full of admiration for my D I L - she copes admirably with a very lively two and a half year old and extremely mobile ten month old...meanwhile, the LAB and I are barely managing to conceal our tiredness....our 'normal' lives are on hold whilst we marvel at the way these two devote themselves to their two gorgeous babies. Nothing we do in the course of a day seems remotely taxing in comparison....









Outings are a military operation complete with snacks, lunch, drinks, potties, clean clothes, clean shoes etc. A walk up the lane becomes an adventure...the smallest diversion in the day is a memory to be treasured and talked about for a long time....these small people are a constant reminder to stop, look and listen - life is all about the here and now - smell the roses and celebrate the everyday.
After a last walk to pick blackberries and feed ducks on the canal, we have waved them off wedged into the car between bags of nappies, travelling highchairs & travel cots.....having enjoyed their visit immensely but secretly thanking our lucky stars that we are off to France tomorrow a deux with no necessity to take along any other parapheranlia apart from our own clothes, shoes, reading materials and a camera......ah yes, the joys of (grand)motherhood........s

Surprises at West Wittering..

Dash - you were on the money & gilliecoco - well done, you spotted that we were at West Wittering on the West Sussex coast...on the southern side of Chichester Harbour. I grew up close by but strangely, don't recall going there! I know that as a small girl our family picnic'd regularly here but like many things in my 'pre Australia' life, I wasn't paying attention...








We nestled into the sandy dunes and watched yachts racing in the harbour with Spinnaker Tower glistening in the background and far reaching views beyond to the Isle of Wight...

As the afternoon became early evening, we made our way back along the sandy path to the car, marvelling at the diversity on this small island. When we moved here from Australia, I was determined not to take anything for granted and really look at my surroundings, appreciating the seasonal changes and history which oozes from every nook and cranny....something I don't think I ever did when I lived here before.

We wound up the day stopping at http://www.thefishhouse.co.uk/ for oysters and champagne...a perfect end to a perfect day........s

Birthday at the beach...

As it was my birthday on Monday, the LAB and I decided to make a weekend of it after the wedding celebrations. After a wonderful brunch cooked by my son and new daughter-in-law we headed for Uppark in the South Downs of West Sussex - more on that later. The day was glorious, even though autumn is waiting in the wings.... I was craving salty air and sand between my toes (basically our Sydney life!) Teaser for Thursday - at which exotic beach destination do you think I took this? (We didn't get on any planes & don't forget we live in England!)





White powdery sand, sun drenched beach grasses and bleached to pale gorgeousness beach huts.......answer tomorrow!..........s

Let them eat cake....

I'm returning to the wedding theme JUST ONE MORE TIME! On Saturday night, my son and his new wife held an 'event' for all the friends and family who weren't with them in Vegas (namely US!!!!) It was held at Spinnaker Tower, Gunwharf in Portsmouth. As you can see below, the views are spectacular and luckily, the rain stopped, the sun shone and it was a fabulous view of the Solent, Isle of Wight and surrounding areas as the sun went down.

A few weeks ago, they asked me if I would organise a cake for the night - I readily agreed and then started thinking about how I was going to produce a cake suitable for a wedding in the AGA! As I have told you before, the AGA is brilliant for lots of things but I haven't had a lot of success with cakes. There are two ovens - one permanently at 220 - 250 degrees and the other 120 - 150 (not good when you need 180 for a good cake outcome!) This project has caused me one or two sleepless nights and quite a few fretful hours recently...after a few trial runs (and much consumption of chocolate mud cake by whoever would agree to be a tester) I finally found one I was happy with. I wasn't game enough to take a chance on the cupcakes though - the temperature in the AGA varies depending on how much it's being used; therefore, the first batch may cook perfectly and by the time you get to the 4th or 5th, they may not as the heat will have dropped....! Not ideal when you need nearly 100 cupcakes, all perfectly the same size and height!
I found a place in south London called Crumbs and Doilies and they came to my rescue with dozens of beautifully decorated indulgent cakes (two sizes - diet and don't care..) On Saturday morning, we set off early for London, complete with topcake, ribbons etc., collected the cupcakes and zipped down the A3 to Petersfield to the Real Flower Company to collect some of their magnificent scented garden roses to decorate the finished cake. We were lucky enough to find they had some 'chocolate' coloured roses in stock - hard to see from the photo, they are a burnished pinky chocolate colour. Off we went, now laden with buckets of roses, be-ribboned boxes of cakes, bags of ribbon and a fragile iced topcake. The tower doesn't close to the public until 6.00 p.m. and it was about 6.20 p.m before we managed to get everything into the fast lift which whisks you to the top - 30 minutes before the guests were arriving & a seven tier confection to assemble! It was finished with literally moments to spare and I slipped on my high heels as the first drinks were being poured! Talk about stress! This is the end result - I think they liked it - there wasn't a crumb left at the end of the night so I'm presuming they did! I'm crossing Wedding Cake Supplier off my list of potential business ventures as I type this......

Happy week.........s

Life is the Occasion...

L.K. Bennett in the U.K are currently running a new season campaign entitled 'Life is the Occasion'. It features some of their customers (wearing LK Bennett clothes of course) photographed in the environment in which they work..

Lydia Gifford is photographed at Giffords' Circus - you can read more about Giffords' Circus in a post Sarah at http://www.semiexpat.blogspot.com/ did a while back. I love these photos - you can almost forget they are trying to sell you something! You can see more about the idea behind the photos at http://www.lkbennett.com/life%20is%20the%20occasion.

Have a great week & don't forget - Life IS the occasion....enjoy it........s

Wedding Photography....but not as we know it..

OK - I confess that I wasn't too keen on the idea of a Vegas wedding but I have to admit right here that if they hadn't gone to Vegas, there's one thing they would have missed out on big time - the awesome talent of this lady:





Her name is Olga Wilson and she has a business in Vegas called Dott Photography - She puts a small selection of her work on the blog part of her website and it was there I have to say I saw the best wedding photography I think I have ever seen. Today, she posted some of the brilliant shots she took of Neil and Sam's wedding last week - I truly think they are the most innovative, clever and inspirational photos - she has captured the fun loving spirit of both the bride and the groom and given them a series of images of their special day so beautiful and original.....
Do you remember the days when wedding photography meant taking photos of the bride getting ready, the groom shaking hands with the best man, the happy couple standing in the doorway of the venue and some photos of all the relatives looking bored? (That was if you could round them all up at the same time and get them to stand still for long enough!) The result was usually an album filled with photos of wooden looking couples, nervous looking bridesmaids and startled guests which then gathered dust in a cupboard....not any more!
I sent the link to my GG in Sydney and got a reply to the effect that no matter where her wedding takes place, she is going to fly this talented girl to take her photos! (she must be good!)
Take a look & let me know what you think! http://www.dottphotography.com/

It WAS a nice day for a white wedding...!

Just married!

Now you see what I meant about the dress!

Scarlett O'Hara eat your heart out!

Nice day for a white wedding.....

When I used to daydream about my children's wedding days, this wasn't in the dream:

Or this:

I imagined English church bells ringing, bridesmaids with summer flowers in their hair and posies with ribbons dangling, big hats and small family squabbles - maybe that's also what my son and his fiancee imagined when they were making wedding plans and announced that it would take place here.....

Today, 11th August, on the terrace of the Bellagio Hotel in Vegas, my handsome boy will marry his fiancee and girlfriend of 11 years...

I met a lady last week who told me that she has four sons and has warned them all that if they decide to 'run away' and deprive her of the whole experience, she won't speak to them for a very long time! I did have that thought also when we first heard of the plan - today I'm not sure...I have mixed feelings - my easy going fun-loving son and his fiancee are having a ball, surrounded by a few of their closest friends (but stangely no family!!) They view the whole thing as an opportunity to have a great party, in a place devoted to fun and indulgence - as far as I can tell, devoid of any traditional trappings....

It's sort of bizarre really - for me, it's a normal day filled with normal household routines. As my son buttons up his waistcoat and the bride slips into her Louboutins, I shall probably be at Waitrose, shopping for groceries....

Underlying all of this is a desire for their happiness, fulfilment of their dream and a long and wonderful marriage - but still I think I hear those bells chiming faintly in the distance...........s

Travellers' Tales....

I think I have the task of packing a suitcase down to a fine art....this comes with years of practice - schlepping my wardrobe & personal possessions from one side of the world to the other at a moment's notice! I realised this week that I haven't passed the skill on to my children (or at least if I tried, they weren't paying attention!)

Firstly, my darling baby girl was packing her case to return to Sydney uni for the start of the new semester - we have tried (unsuccessfully) to convince her to travel light (I couldn't quite work out what she could possibly be bringing with her when she arrived here as her chest of drawers in her bedroom was completely stuffed full of her clothes, along with the one in the guest room). Nevertheless, after a 'massive clearout' when she was feeling up to it and the glandular had subsided a bit, when the inevitable day of packing bags for the return trip dawned, this was the scene:

A couple of years ago, we invested in some luggage scales and what a great investment they turned out to be - I'm sure they have saved hundreds in over-weight baggage charges......when they were pressed into action, I breathed a sigh of relief.....she proclaimed her bags to be well within the allowed weight and off we went to Heathrow (yet again.....)

On arrival at the check-in desk, we duly loaded the bags onto the luggage scale and noted the solemn look on the face of the girl checking her in...she pronounced that the bags were 'at least six kilos over' - I looked at my GG and she responded with a puzzled expression...pressed further, she explained that she had only weighed the large one! We never actually got to the bottom of why she thought the other one was either weightless or would be disregarded by the airline! Oh, the innocence of youthful naivete! This girl has obviously never had to stand in a very long queue and hand over a very large sum of money because she couldn't bear to be parted from a large section of her wardrobe....

After some sweet-talking from the LAB (whose sales and negotiating skills come in very handy on such occasions) and the removal of a large coat from the bag - which she carried over her arm but still went onto the aircraft (not in the bag admittedly....)??!! she was on her way....

Another journey to Heathrow early this morning (not by me this time!).....my son and his fiancee were flying to Las Vegas to be married on the 11th August....the main topic of conversation for the last few weeks has been........no, not the venue, flowers, food, guests or accommodation.......but the troublesome problem of how this diminutive girl was going to transport her HUGE dress from here to there....

(This is a model wearing a very similar dress from the collection by the same designer)

I visited them last week and also pondered the mission ahead....THE DRESS had to be moved so that I could sleep in their guest bedroom (it actually took up most of the space in the room!) I took with me suitcases of varying sizes and we all put our heads together to solve this mathematical problem - one VERY large dress + one VERY small girl + a possibly tight squeeze in the storage locker in the aircraft cabin = a BIG headache; or, alternatively:

one VERY large dress inside a VERY large suitcase checked into the hold + an inattentive baggage handler = an even BIGGER headache...

Eventually, it was decided that the best course was not to let THE DRESS out of sight, resulting in son, girlfriend and dress all boarding a flight to Vegas this morning - at last contact, all were happily ensconced at the pointy end of the plane (frequent flyers saved for a long while specially for the occasion) and the champagne was flowing......happy days........s

Down the garden path....

Who can resist a pathway meandering through beds of lavender or clipped box hedges to an unseen hideaway up ahead, out of sight? The path is inviting "Come on - follow me, you never know what you might find'....






Maybe a painted white wooden bench, perfect for a sit down and a few minutes in the shady scent of some climbing roses before exploring more.....

As for an open gate! No matter how hot and tired my aching feet might be, I just cannot resist having a peek (and taking a photo!)

These are just a few of the magical gardens we have been visiting over the glorious summer we are enjoying here in the U.K. Absolutely fabulous - lush, scented and exactly how you would expect an English country garden to look...

The lavender has been at its best in the last few weeks....we have certainly been getting our money's worth from our National Trust membership! Gorgeous, gorgeous English gardens...I take my hat off to the army of dedicated gardeners who keep these gardens looking like this...they work tirelessly to bring their gardens to the peak of perfection during the summer months & perfect they certainly are.....

What a fantastic summer - who said it rains all the time in England??

Hope you are all enjoying a little piece of paradise whether it's winter or summer where you are.....x