Planning for a fruitful summer

As spring is close to springing I am thinking ahead. Planning for the summer. Well planning some fruit and veg planting. Although we live in a flat without a garden it does have a scrap outside and lots of window sills. My plan is to grow as much as I can in the available space. I can also plant some stuff in the Mother garden.

So I have been doing some serious research on what to plant where and how to grow it. I have found this site about making the most of limited gardening space very useful - http://www.verticalveg.org.uk/ Filled with brilliant information telling you how to make the most of your small spaces. I am already planning tomatoes, courgettes and herbs. Also strawberries. There defiantly needs to be some strawberries.

I love a bit of planning. Nothing puts me in a better mood. So I am off to browse some more and plan some more and ream.

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counting the days, hours, minutes and seconds

On friday I return to work. I am desperatly trying to avoid this but have somehow not managed to come up with a reason not to go. Well appart from the fact I don't want too.

So I am preparing. I have made some nice lists of things I need to get done over the next few days. I have yet to manage one of them. I wander about the house thinking about the lists and how important it is that I get on with them. Instead I have been having fun. The fun is more delicious as I know I should be sorting washing and changing bedding.

This weekend was were blessed with the most wonderful blue skies and mild days. We spent the days when I should have been attending to my lists out and about. Walks to Chiswick and bumbling around the shops. Watching the rugby at the local whilst eating the most wonderful lunch. Sunday was spent pootling about in Richmond soaking up the sunshine by the river.

I have realised I have begun trying to cheer myself up what with the impending DOOM of returning to work. I have baked a lot. Cookies, cakes, muffins. I have also been cooking wonderful meals. Stuff that requires more preperation than I will have time for when I go back to work. Today I may have a go at peanut butter brownies which sound great.

I have also been trying to really enjoy things that I won't be able to do as much. Long and relaxed lunches with the moomoos. Spending the days taking her out to fun things. Also quizzing the pook about his day when he arrives home from school. Being able to spend a precious hour just the two of us whilst moomoos naps.

Well thats enough with the doom and gloom. I have some photos to sort from the weekend and will pop them up shortly.

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The days fly by approaching spring

Yesterday we had our first wonderful sunny warm day. The first taste of spring. The sky was blue and the air warm with that taste that promises long sunny days wandering. I have been rather neglectful of my blog these past two weeks. Busy with first birthdays and preparing to return to work. I have but a week of maternity leave left.

The crafting has been somewhat missing over the last fortnight. Pushed out of the way by other pursuits. I have been doing a great deal of baking spurred by the baking of the moomoos first birthday cake. I baked a simple sponge filled with buttercream and strawberry jam. It was rather delicious. Here are some photos of the finished cake. The butterflies I made myself. Spraying them pink and decorating them with edible glitter. I was rather pleased with the finished effect.

After the cake success I was griped by a baking fever. From my oven sprung amongst other delicacies sour cherry and oat biscuits, banana blondies and breakfast muffins. All this baking is doing nothing for my waistline but the family are loving it.

I am sure I will be back on the crafting bandwagon soon.

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Brussels

A wonderful day was had in Brussels. The -10 temperature was a bit nippy. Here are some photo highlights. Not as many photos as I would have liked but as I have mentioned it was rather cold!

A view from the eurostar as we raced through the french countryside.

More train, snow, reflection fun!

Long shadows as we begin at Brussels Midi

 Sampling some tradition beverages in the Toone Bar. Sadly we were not there on the right day to see one of the marionette shows.

My mum checking out some artwork. I forget what the gallery is called but it is HUGE and free!

Some of the wonderful things I saw and managed not to buy at the flea market. It was very difficult.

We stumbled upon this wonderful frozen fountain. It was still working however it had the most wonderful ice formations. I took a lot of photos of it. Completely enthralled with its beauty.

Look at all the icicles and the prettiness! The pond must have had about three inches of ice on it. Oh so beautiful!

Is it not the most magnificent frozen fountain that you have ever seen?

A panorama of Le Grande Place

An Febuary is running away with us with a flurry of snow!

Today I am sitting in the window looking out at the melting snow. On Saturday night it began. A light but consistent flurry that lasted throughout the night until about 7 am on Sunday morning. What it left behind was a beautiful world of White. The pook has always adored snow and with up with the larks to play outside. Crafting snowmen and having snowball fights. I introduced the moos the snow. She seemed rather indifferent towards it.

Look at my street all blanketed in snow! I love the way that it makes the world tinged with blue.

The pook out with shovel and a plastic colander to use as a makeshift bucket.

As it was no weather to be going out I got down to some serious crochet. First I completed the border on my granny stripes blanket. What a task! It seemed to take forever. I then started on the long process of sewing in all the ends. I have never enjoyed this (Does anyone?) and have still not completed it with 42 ends still to sew in. I decided that a wonderful day snuggled up at home was not a day to spend sewing in ends. Instead I started on a small project that I had been meaning to do for some time.

I have the most delightful little crochet book called Baby Crochet by Lois Daykin. I adore this little book full of wonderful projects. For a while I had fancied making the moos one of the little beanies in the book. So I settled down with my hook and some random yarn that I had hanging around the place and got going.

It took me about four hours to finish the beanie with a few breaks for drinks and lunch and interruptions by little people. I am very proud of the finished piece. It looks adorable on the moos. Here are some photos.

I love its simple stripes.

I also love the curly pom pom for the top.

Here is the moos sporting the new hat on our walk today.

We had a rather wonderful walk today despite the melting snow. Here are some pretty bird steps we spotted by the path.

We also picked up some beautiful daffs for the table.

I will of course pop some photos of the completed blanket up when I have finished sewing in the pesky ends. I am off to Brussels for the day tomorrow so hopefully I will have some nice photos to share.

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Still alive...

Busy with bake sales, poorly little ones and of course crochet! I promise to post something more substantial over the weekend.

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