I just counted up what was left of our Christmas money. Out of the four of us I had £2 more than anyone else. So I jokingly said, "I'm the RICHEST!". To which Chatterbox replied, "It will be difficult for you to get into heaven then".
Lol.
"But not impossible," I said. :)
For nothing is impossible for God, even for a smug Mummy who has £2 more than the rest of her family.
Speaking of interesting interpretation of scripture by young small-persons. Chatterbox has many times said, when she has come last in something or not won a game, "The first will be last and the last will be first. Therefore, I win!"
*Sigh* "That's not what that scripture means!" Grrrr. Lol.
The most lovely one was when Chatterbox said to me, "We have a King!". So I said, "No we have a Queen, Queen Elizabeth II".
"No Mummy! We have a King! KING JESUS!"
They never fail to make me smile (in between the regular parental "why are you not doing your homework?"-type frustrations).
Saturday 30 January 2010
Thursday 28 January 2010
Word up
see more Lolcats and funny pictures
Ah the kitties, they never cease to amaze and amuse.
I no longer have angst [ahem]. However, I have come to a realisation and a decision. I, of course, will continue blogging (chuh, could the decision have been different really? ;)). But a leetle bit of 'wanting to be popular' had crept in. By this I mean that, in wanting more readers, I was watering things down a bit - so as not to offend. Well of course, I don't mean I am going to be all ranty, political and large and growly about what I believe/think. But neither do I want to water-down my faith for fear that someone might be offended or (even worse) NOT READ MY BLOG [sharp intake of breath] - because you know that would be just the end of the world. :)
So there'll be the usual mix of funny cat pictures, English-isms, daily chit-chat and (hopefully) some deep thinks too. I'm a mother, a wife, a daughter and crazy-cat owner - but most of all I am a Christian and it shapes my whole life, and I ought to be unapologetic about that.
BTW, do you like my new header? Lol, I love that picture of our cat. She's all fangs. The picture was taken of her looking up at a toy expectantly.
Big hugs. x
Tuesday 26 January 2010
A wee break me lasses
Oooh, shiny white blog! It's like snow's fallen... :)
I think I'm going to take a wee break from posting whilst I have big deep thinks about what I am doing with this blog.
As you know me dearies, I have the urge to delete every so often. I often succumb, but I'm not deleting - even if I did I can restore in 90 days (so if you see it gone it'll no doubt return). I'm just suffering a touch of blog angst...what to post, what not to post...etc.
When I first started blogging in those days of yore I wanted it to be all about Jesus. I think I've drifted a bit, and that's not good. Oh I don't mean I shouldn't post about the day-to-day joys of motherhood, etc. What I mean is Jesus ought to be the centre even of the everyday.
Anyway, you don't want to hear all about my angst. So I'm going to take a few days away from posting.
I think I'm going to take a wee break from posting whilst I have big deep thinks about what I am doing with this blog.
As you know me dearies, I have the urge to delete every so often. I often succumb, but I'm not deleting - even if I did I can restore in 90 days (so if you see it gone it'll no doubt return). I'm just suffering a touch of blog angst...what to post, what not to post...etc.
When I first started blogging in those days of yore I wanted it to be all about Jesus. I think I've drifted a bit, and that's not good. Oh I don't mean I shouldn't post about the day-to-day joys of motherhood, etc. What I mean is Jesus ought to be the centre even of the everyday.
Anyway, you don't want to hear all about my angst. So I'm going to take a few days away from posting.
For Prayer
Angela from Tracing Rainbows is a Baptist Pastor's wife. This morning she shares that some of their link missionaries have asked for prayer for the region of Cusco in Peru. The photo on her site shows just how bad it is. Would you pray? Here is the request from the missionaries:
“Dear praying friends, please pray for the region of Cusco. The Urubamba river has flooded, bridges have collapsed and there are terrible mudslides. Many homes made of adobe (mud and straw) have been washed away; some people have died in the mudslides, others have lost their homes and livelihoods. Today the Cusco region was declared a state of emergency for the next 60 days. Some of our missionary colleagues living in the countryside have experienced terrible damage to their property. We in the city are only experiencing minor annoyances with travel disruption and water shortages but we urge you to pray for those who are so badly affected and the response that the Baptist convention and other churches will make to reach out to those suffering.
Thankyou, Scott and Anjanette Williamson”
For more information and to see the picture visit Angela at Tracing Rainbows: Crisis in Cusco.
“Dear praying friends, please pray for the region of Cusco. The Urubamba river has flooded, bridges have collapsed and there are terrible mudslides. Many homes made of adobe (mud and straw) have been washed away; some people have died in the mudslides, others have lost their homes and livelihoods. Today the Cusco region was declared a state of emergency for the next 60 days. Some of our missionary colleagues living in the countryside have experienced terrible damage to their property. We in the city are only experiencing minor annoyances with travel disruption and water shortages but we urge you to pray for those who are so badly affected and the response that the Baptist convention and other churches will make to reach out to those suffering.
Thankyou, Scott and Anjanette Williamson”
For more information and to see the picture visit Angela at Tracing Rainbows: Crisis in Cusco.
Monday 25 January 2010
Happy Homemaker Monday
The weather in my neck of the woods:
Chilly and damp. I thought I saw a couple of snowflakes as I walked back home from school this morning.
One of my simple pleasures:
Reading to my girls.
On my bedside table:
The Stripping of the Altars (though I must admit, this book is starting to draaaaag so it might not be on my bedside table next week!) and You're Coming With Me Lad: Tales of a Yorkshire Bobby and my Bible (I'm reading Genesis, Matthew and Acts).
On my TV:
~Series 8 of 24 - How is Jack Bauer still alive? He's like some kind of Terminator-robot-man.
~QI
QI is a BBC comedy quiz show. 'QI' stands for 'Quite Interesting'.
Something learned recently from QI: It is only in recent years that girl babies wear pink and boy babies wear blue. For many years, as recently as the 1920s, pink was considered the stronger and more boyish colour and blue was more delicate and more suited to the girls.
Indeed, boys used to be called 'girls'. Yes, up until the 15th century, female children were 'gay girls' and male children were 'knave girls'. 'Boy' was the word for a servant. 'Quite Interesting' you might say. :)
On the menu for tonight:
Home made pizza.
On my To Do List:
Laundry.
Ironing.
Hopefully a bit of cleaning too.
New Recipe I tried last week:
I don't think I tried anything new.
In the craft basket:
Nothing at the minute.
Looking forward to:
My walk into the village with Mum - Edit: I started typing this post before walking into the village with Mum, but we've been, so I'm no longer looking forward to this but looking back with fond memories! :)
Homemaking Tip for this week:
To keep the tops of kitchen cupboards free of dust and grime, lay newspaper on the tops (blue-tack it down if it curls). Every so often take up the old paper and lay new.
Favorite Blog Post of the week (mine or other):
Melissa's post about making a scarf from an old t-shirt (or t-shirty material): A T-Shirt (but not) Scarf. It looks so simple but with a great result. I may just try it. Hey, then I'll have something in my 'craft basket'! Technically, it isn't Melissa's idea (she links to another site with instructions), but I'll give her credit because if she hadn't posted about it I wouldn't have known about it.
Favourite photo from last week:
Not one of mine:
see more Lolcats and funny pictures
Lesson learned the past few days:
That I have got to stop intellectualising/reasoning/researching everything, and just trust God.
On my Prayer List:
My dear friend who has cancer.
The people of Haiti.
My Dad who has been made redundant and who finishes in March.
My family, my church and my friends.
18"Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: 19When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path. 20The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. 21But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away. 22The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful. 23But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown." (Matthew 13. NIV)
Hosted by Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.
Saturday 23 January 2010
Wednesday 20 January 2010
Cleaning, laundry and other necessaries
Next thing that needs to get on track is cleaning, tidying, laundry and other necessaries. I am going back to a system that has been very successful in the past.
I don't do well with schedules. I am a perfectionist, if my schedule says, '12 noon - laundry,' and I am ten minutes late my brain is going, "FAILURE!". For all you relaxed non-perfectionists who are thinking, Well duh! Get a grip woman!" I just can't help it, that's the way I'm built. :P
The way I keep on top of things at home is by timing myself. Incidentally, this can apply to other work, not just household work. Although in the workplace I like lists and computer generated reminders - but that's another post I'm sure! :)
I shared in a Happy Homemaker Monday post, a couple of Mondays ago, that a great way to do a quick tidy up after the chaos of weekend (are all you mothers nodding your heads?), is to time yourself with no more than 5 or 10 minutes in every room. Your home won't be perfectly tidy and clean after this, but it will feel a million times better and then you can concentrate on laundry (the other post-weekend nightmare).
For the rest of cleaning, here's how I do it, (Flylady has similar schemes)[This can be done a couple of times a week, or once a week if your time is precious]:
- Get a clock, timer, mobile phone - anything that you can time yourself with.
- Starting in the kitchen after breakfast and my prayer/Bible time I start with 15 minutes, clean around the sink, stack the dishwasher, wipe the surfaces, clean the floor - as much as you can do in 15 minutes.
- After 15 minutes move on to the next room - the aim isn't perfection, but just as much as you can do in 15 minutes. Carry a box or basket round with you and chuck stuff that needs to go into a different toom. Carry a couple of bags too, 1 for rubbish and 1 for recycling.
- Depending on your energy levels, take a 15 minute break every hour (that's what I'm doing right now!).
- Work your way round every room in the house.
- Once I've done this, I move onto my 'projects' list. This is a list of things that I find hard to keep on top of, my perfectionism gets in the way and I spend far too much time on them. Here's what's on my list and the time I allocate every day to: windows (5 minutes - usually works out at 1 window), filing (5 minutes), ironing (30 minutes), shelves/cupboards/drawers in the kitchen (5 minutes), putting away laundry/ironing (15 minutes)...you get the idea.
I'll be back! :)
Budgeting...
I have so much going around my head right now, I could write ten posts. But I'll try to condense all my brainwaves into a coherent post...
Perhaps if I wrote this with headings? Hmmm, ok.
Saving Money
We are unbelievably skint right now. Since hubster took his current job (after being made redundant in January last year - his current job is lower paid than his previous) the cost of living has rocketed. For example, a loaf of Warburtons is now £1.20 and supermarket bread is awful (hence me making my own bread right now), diesel is now £1.10 a litre (that, my American friends, is US$6.78 a US gallon), school dinners are now costing me about £70 a month, and our gas and electric bill for a MONTH is £124* (I have negotiated it down to £105, but more of that later). *I've been online and I've read two separate average gas and leccy costs - one said £149 a month and the other was £71 a month.
My budget is shrinking and shrinking. I won't say exactly how much hubs is earning a year, but it's not huge - however, neither is it tiny. I continue to look for jobs in schools - my next application is to be an examination invigilator at a local school.
So, what am I doing to save? Well, nothing spectacular.
The one place I don't want to skimp is with food. Cheap meat, in particular, isn't as good quality as the decent stuff. Cheap ham, for instance, is 'reformed meat' - urgh! However, by planning meals, using ingredients we already have, and not going shopping when hungry (lol) I hope to make some savings. The average cost of food, apparently, for a family of 4 (two adults, two children) in the UK is around £100-£140 a week. To me that seems to be a lot, what do you think?
Oh and we're having roast cat tonight...she has to sacrifice too...hahahahaha JOKING! Seriously though, with all the redundancies, etc., during this recession, we are SO grateful to God that hubs has a job. As I have already said, I continue to look for term-time work and there are opportunities for me to pursue. We have family and a church that will always support us if we do get into trouble, we are mightily blessed!
Lol, run out of time...I will have to put my thoughts into multiple posts after all!
TTFN xxxxxx
Perhaps if I wrote this with headings? Hmmm, ok.
Saving Money
We are unbelievably skint right now. Since hubster took his current job (after being made redundant in January last year - his current job is lower paid than his previous) the cost of living has rocketed. For example, a loaf of Warburtons is now £1.20 and supermarket bread is awful (hence me making my own bread right now), diesel is now £1.10 a litre (that, my American friends, is US$6.78 a US gallon), school dinners are now costing me about £70 a month, and our gas and electric bill for a MONTH is £124* (I have negotiated it down to £105, but more of that later). *I've been online and I've read two separate average gas and leccy costs - one said £149 a month and the other was £71 a month.
My budget is shrinking and shrinking. I won't say exactly how much hubs is earning a year, but it's not huge - however, neither is it tiny. I continue to look for jobs in schools - my next application is to be an examination invigilator at a local school.
So, what am I doing to save? Well, nothing spectacular.
- Moving to a cash only envelope system;
- Trying to use the tumble dryer less (although this is hard, as I have said before - particularly in autumn and winter. In summer I love using my washing line outdoors);
- Switching off appliances when they're not in use;
- Switching to economy on the dishwasher;
- Turning down the heating a degree to 20 oC (68 oF);
- Planning my meals for the week.
The one place I don't want to skimp is with food. Cheap meat, in particular, isn't as good quality as the decent stuff. Cheap ham, for instance, is 'reformed meat' - urgh! However, by planning meals, using ingredients we already have, and not going shopping when hungry (lol) I hope to make some savings. The average cost of food, apparently, for a family of 4 (two adults, two children) in the UK is around £100-£140 a week. To me that seems to be a lot, what do you think?
Oh and we're having roast cat tonight...she has to sacrifice too...hahahahaha JOKING! Seriously though, with all the redundancies, etc., during this recession, we are SO grateful to God that hubs has a job. As I have already said, I continue to look for term-time work and there are opportunities for me to pursue. We have family and a church that will always support us if we do get into trouble, we are mightily blessed!
Lol, run out of time...I will have to put my thoughts into multiple posts after all!
TTFN xxxxxx
Monday 18 January 2010
Blog Frenzy
I have been rather immersed in blogland these past few weeks. Snow and what-have-you has left me relying on t'owd computer for company.
It was fun, but back to real life, I really need to cut back.
I've been all of a 'ooh bloggy joy'. But all good things must come to an end...ha, not an end but a reduction at least.
Flickr"Oh, what a simply delightful blog!"
I've read some fascinating discussions at a variety of blogs and forums, but I'm going to have to cut that back too.
Flickr"Have you seen? She doesn't blog in black! Who doesn't blog in black? It simply isn't done!"
Lol I love these pictures. They're all, apart from the first two pictures on this post, from a group of pictures by a chappie called Mike Licht on Flickr - see the full set here.
Flickr"Happy days are here again
The skies above are clear again
So let's sing a song of cheer again
Happy days are here again".
Don't read a blogger by her blog attire - she's all rainbows and sunshine inside. :)
I'm going to go purge my Google Reader! Have you developed 'Winter Blog Frenzy Syndrome'?
Happy Homemaker Monday
The weather in my neck of the woods:
Wet and muddy with patches of ice here and there.
One of my simple pleasures:
A lovely cup of coffee - black, no sugar please - and a good book.
On my bedside table:
The Stripping of the Altars and The Book of Common Prayer, You're Coming With Me Lad: Tales of a Yorkshire Bobby and my Bible.
On my TV:
- A History of Christianity with Professor Diarmaid MacCulloch.
- History of Britain with Simon Schama. There's more info. on Wikipedia, if you're interested. I'm up to 'Revolutions' 1649–1689. Britain after Charles I's execution, when Britain was led by Oliver Cromwell. This was really a miserable period in history - Oliver Cromwell wasn't the most jolly of chaps, and he did some fairly atrocious things.
On the menu for tonight:
Lasagne
On my To Do List:
Catching up with chores after the weekend.
Hopefully some reading.
Some washing and ironing.
Taking the girls to dancing.
New Recipe I tried last week:
Chocolate brownies, which were a partial success.
Beef and carrot casserole with cheesy dumplings from the recipe book From My Mother's Kitchen.
In the craft basket:
Nothing at the minute.
Looking forward to:
Getting to church tomorrow, I missed yesterday.
Homemaking Tip for this week:
To get scum off your bath, sprinkle washing powder (laundry powder) onto a cloth and use it as a gentle scourer. The scum should come off easily without scratching the surface of the bath.
Favorite Blog Post of the week (mine or other):
2010 - Living in the Future by Angela. I want this book! It's a book written in 1972 in which some chap predicts what life would be like in 2010. Angela links to a website devoted to the book. She also writes about her day in 1972. Ahh, it makes me all nostalgic...well I wasn't born until 1973, but anyway...penny sweets, long hot summers, our Vauxhall Viva, my Dad's big moustache...LOL!
And also, Simple Arithmetic by Monix. I have such a time with Chatterbox's maths because it isn't taught in the same way that I was taught...and I find it so confusing that it was good to read that someone else finds it rather befuddling too.
Favourite photo from last week:
Not one of mine:
Lesson learned the past few days:
Can I say 'lesson learned' when it's something I keep falling down on? Guarding my tongue (or my typing on the internet) is an ongoing lesson. And also not reading things on the internet I know are going to wind me up! Let it go Sarah, let it go! :)
Onwards and upwards one hopes...
On my Prayer List:
My dear friend who has cancer and is being put onto an aggressive cancer treatment. However, she is a walking miracle confounding doctors, they cannot imagine how she has carried on with her life. She is an inspiration - but does suffer so needs lots of prayer.
My Dad who has been made redundant and who finishes in March.
My family, my church and my friends.
Devotionals, Scripture Reading, Key Verses:
Jesus answered, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." Matthew 19:21 (NIV)
Hosted by Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.
Sunday 17 January 2010
Happy Sunday
Hope you're having a happy Sunday. I was a bit ill this morning so I didn't get to church. I'm feeling better now though.
So I watched A History of Christianity, with the historian Professor Diarmaid MacCulloch, which I had Sky+'d. It was very interesting. The first episode covered Christianity from the very beginning and its move east. It was very interesting indeed. For example, I'd never heard of the Syriac Orthodox Church, which parted ways with the main church in 481 AD over a disagreement at the Council of Chalcedon. The service in Syriac Orthodox churches is in syrian-aramaic, a language very similar to the language Jesus spoke (He apparently would have spoken Aramaic in a Galilean dialect, very different from that in Jerusalem, it is also possible that he would have spoken Koine Greek and of course Hebrew - the language of the majority of the scriptures).
I also baked a loaf of bread in my bread maker for the first time in ages. Hubs happened to mention the other day that he preferred home-made bread (who doesn't?), plus I'm trying to save money. Bread flour is 61p for 1.5 kg, which will make 3 loaves. Decent packaged bread (not the cheap rubbishy bread) is at least £1.00 so even with the salt, sugar, butter, milk, yeast and electricity used, it works out cheaper and nicer and less full of preservatives.
Lol this picture really made me laugh.
see more Lolcats and funny pictures
As you may have surmised from the amount of pictures I post, I have a plethora of funny sites in my Google reader. If you're interested here they all are:
- Acting Like Animals
- Apostrophe Abuse
- Apostrophism
- Engrish Funny
- Epic Win
- Removed the Fail site...it's got decidedly dodgy of late.
- I can haz cheezburger (lolcats)
- I has a hotdog (loldogs)
- Oddly Specific
- The "Blog" of "Unnecessary" Quotation Marks
- There I Fixed It: Epic Kludges
My plan today is to update my profile with a few new links.
Have a happy Sunday!
Saturday 16 January 2010
Typically British Reading Challenge
Oh the possibilities! Hat tip to Pamela for this one.
I'm thinking, Elizabeth Goudge, some more Sherlock courtesy of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, Rosamunde Pilcher, Douglas Adams, Sir Terrance Pratchett (more commonly known as Terry), and perhaps I ought to find some English/British authors that I'm not familiar with?
The plan is to read a certain amount of British authored works of fiction over the next 12 months. There are 4 levels:
• "Put The Kettle On" – Read 2 Typically British novels.
• "Gordon Bennett" – Read 4 Typically British novels.
• "Bob's Your Uncle" – Read 6 Typically British novels.
• "Cream Crackered" – Read 8 Typically British novels.
I'm going for 'Cream Crackered'. I don't really read much foreign fiction so I think it will be fairly easy (that's if I'm not still reading 'The Stripping of the Altars' for the next 12 months!!).
To join in click on the image at the beginning of this post.
Friday 15 January 2010
So, what went wrong with my cake?
Hey out there all you baking bloggers, can you tell me what went wrong with this brownie cake?
As you can see it's all cracked, the cake is very crumbly in texture and nothing like the picture in the recipe book! I very rarely bake.
Here's the recipe I followed:
200g plain chocolate
200g butter
3 eggs
175g sugar
200g plain flour
Oven temp: 180 C
Break up chocolate and cube butter, put into bowl set over a pan of simmering water to melt gently (stir frequently).
Whisk the eggs until frothy. Add sugar and whisk until mixture thickens like mousse. Whisk in melted chocolate.
Sift in flour and stir well.
Transfer mixture to a tin lined with greased baking paper.
Bake in the oven for about 25 minutes.
So what did I do wrong? The cake has cracked and is crumbly, instead of moist and all in one piece.
I've never made brownies before - not with melted chocolate anyway (last time I made brownies I used cocoa, but that was years ago). I wondered if I should have let the chocolate cool before mixing in, whether the eggs weren't whisked enough? What makes a cake too crumbly???
Thanks in advance for your advice.
xxxx
As you can see it's all cracked, the cake is very crumbly in texture and nothing like the picture in the recipe book! I very rarely bake.
Here's the recipe I followed:
200g plain chocolate
200g butter
3 eggs
175g sugar
200g plain flour
Oven temp: 180 C
Break up chocolate and cube butter, put into bowl set over a pan of simmering water to melt gently (stir frequently).
Whisk the eggs until frothy. Add sugar and whisk until mixture thickens like mousse. Whisk in melted chocolate.
Sift in flour and stir well.
Transfer mixture to a tin lined with greased baking paper.
Bake in the oven for about 25 minutes.
So what did I do wrong? The cake has cracked and is crumbly, instead of moist and all in one piece.
I've never made brownies before - not with melted chocolate anyway (last time I made brownies I used cocoa, but that was years ago). I wondered if I should have let the chocolate cool before mixing in, whether the eggs weren't whisked enough? What makes a cake too crumbly???
Thanks in advance for your advice.
xxxx
Thursday 14 January 2010
PORK CHOP RISOTTO - serves 4
Click on the image above to take you to the current cooking feature on Sandra's blogThis is a favourite recipe of mine. So yummy. I've posted it before on an old blog long since deleted. I thought I'd add it again to join in with Sandra's 'Cooking Thursday.
1 medium onion - chopped
2oz streaky bacon - cut off rind and cut into strips
1 clove garlic - crushed
2oz mushrooms - sliced
1 chicken stock cube dissolved in 1 1/4pt boiling water
1oz margarine or butter
6oz long grain rice
pepper
4 loin of pork chops
1 small (7oz) can sweetcorn with red and green peppers (or 1/4 each red and green peppers and frozen sweetcorn)
1 rounded teaspoon chopped fresh parsley - if desired
2 tomatoes - cut into quarters
Method
1. Fry onion, bacon and garlic (red and green peppers, if using) for 3-4 mins in melted marg.
2. Add rice and fry until fat is absorbed.
3. Add mushrooms, stock, and seasoning to taste. Bring to boil and cook until stock absorbed.
4. While rice is cooking, grill chops. When chops are cooked, place on top of rice mixture. (If you are using frozen sweetcorn, add to rice mixture when most, but not all, of water has been absorbed)
5. Drain sweetcorn, add to rice mixture. Stir over a low heat for a few mins., taste and add more seasoning, if necessary.
6. Just before serving add parsley and tomatoes, to allow tomatoes to warm through.
7. Place rice mixture on a warm serving dish and arrange chops on top.
8. Serve with a green salad - if desired.
You can use fresh peppers and frozen sweetcorn, if preferred. Finely chop 1/4 red and 1/4 green pepper and fry at the beginning with the onion, garlic and bacon. Add a handful, or what you prefer, of sweetcorn after rice has been simmering for about 15 mins.
Wednesday 13 January 2010
A quick post
On Sunday night, the children came to church with us. During the preaching Squidge turned to me and asked me, "Mummy, when we die do we turn into hedgehogs?".
She looked very confused when I started to laugh.
Later on, when I remembered it, I said to hubs, "I couldn't help but laugh when [Squidge] asked me if we turn into hedgehogs when we die."
To which hubs looked at me as if I were mad and said, "She said 'angels' not 'hedgehogs'!"
Lol. Little treasure.
Tuesday 12 January 2010
Kitty vs. candle
"What in the wide world?"
"Interesting..."
"Not edible"
[Long pause for kitty-thinks - #background music#]
"Ok...I'm intrigued...Wonder what it feels like?"
"Just a little bat with the paw"
"Gently...gently..."
"Yep, definitely hot"Please note no cats were harmed in the taking of these pictures!
You may be wondering why I've still got a Christmas decoration out? Yes my hubs was wondering that too. :)
It's going away today, I just love the spinney-candleness of it and have been resisting its return to the loft.
Hubs will of course have to do his manly duty and return all the decorations to the loft, I would do this myself, but as Michael McIntyre explains - the loft is a man's domain.
Plans for the day:
2 loads of washing - almost complete
[pause for a quick interwebbing]
Clean fridge* - *didn't do yesterday
Clean kitchen and dining area
Clean hall floor
Wash bedding
Lie on floor in heap
Pull self together
Pick kids up from school
Monday 11 January 2010
So just how much is that?
Her Majesty keeping an eye on the numbers
Here's an interesting British English/American English difference that if you are a high powered banker could get you into trouble.British English: Billion = a million million (in US trillion)
American English: Billion = a thousand million
British English: Trillion = a billion billion
American English: Trillion = a thousand billion
So I will be putting my trillion into a British bank, because otherwise it might end up less than it ought to be. ;)
Happy Homemaker Monday
The weather in my neck of the woods:
Snow/sleet, so very damp and the roads are trecherous.
One of my simple pleasures:
A quiet time in the morning with a book and the cat on my knee.
On my bedside table:
The Stripping of the Altars and The Book of Common Prayer and my Bible.
Edit: Just been to the library and also got some cook books: From My Mother's Kitchen, Food on a Budget, Gorgeous Suppers. Also: You're Coming With Me Lad: Tales of a Yorkshire Bobby
On my TV:
- I've been really enjoying Got to Dance on Sky1, it's really good. I really like Ashley Banjo who is the choreographer and dancer with the dance group Diversity who won Britain's Got Talent last year (the Susan Boyle year!).He comes across as a really nice bloke.
- We watched a DVD my Dad lent us called The Insider*, which was the true story of a whistle blower from the tobacco industry. It had some choice language in it, but was very moving. *The link takes you to the website of Jeffrey Wigand who was the whistle blower the film was based on. It is quite sickening what these awful companies can do just because they have so much money even though they promote a something, which is dangerous for health.
- We're looking forward to the new series of CSI coming back on this week and Criminal Minds is on soon too.
Spaghetti Bolognese
On my To Do List:
Catching up with chores after the weekend.
Clean the fridge.
Some washing and ironing.
Taking the girls to dancing.
New Recipe I tried last week:
No new recipes.
In the craft basket:
Nothing at the minute.
Looking forward to:
Going over to some friends from church who record and write music and 'jammin' with them! :)
Homemaking Tip for this week:
On a Monday set a timer and spend just 5 minutes in every room working your way round the house. First, tidy if the room is tidy then clean, if the room is clean then organise, if the room is tidy, clean and organised then sit down and have a brew you deserve it! If you have lots of time you could spend 10 minutes in every room. It's a good way to start if you don't know where to start or if your house just needs a bit of a fettle before visitors come round.
Favorite Blog Post of the week (mine or other):
The Care and Feeding of Children by The Bookworm. It really made me think again about the food I prepare and feed our family, and also modern attitudes to food. And it also made me want to get back to making some good hearty breakfasts rather than cereal and toast constantly!
Favourite photo from last week:
When Geese Attack!That the love of Christ conquers all. That my church is like WAY cool.
On my Prayer List:
My dear friend who has cancer and is being put onto an aggressive cancer treatment. However, she is a walking miracle confounding doctors, they cannot imagine how she has carried on with her life. She is an inspiration - but does suffer so needs lots of prayer.
My Dad who has been made redundant and who finishes in March.
My family, my church and my friends.
Devotionals, Scripture Reading, Key Verses:
[W]hoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 18:4 NIV
Hosted by Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.
Sunday 10 January 2010
Words, word, glorious words...
Slice of Life has just passed on a couple more words...
US English: hutch = British English: dresser (welsh dresser)
US English: credenza = British English: sideboard
That's funny. For me a hutch is something a rabbit lives in.
Has anyone got any more interesting transatlantic differences?
US English: hutch = British English: dresser (welsh dresser)
US English: credenza = British English: sideboard
That's funny. For me a hutch is something a rabbit lives in.
Has anyone got any more interesting transatlantic differences?
Far too much internetting
Well in between playing bejeweled on facebook and idly reading a variety of blogs and websites I am starting to go boss-eyed. So I need to go do something constructive, like reading! :) I'm still enjoying The Stripping of the Altars.
I want to start incorporating some extra cleaning now that Christmas is over, the things that get missed like the inside of cupboards, etc.
If you like to do a big project then here are a couple of links to a New Year cleaning plan (Hat tip to Sandra):
2010 New Year's Cleaning Grand Plan
Complete text: Grand Cleaning Plan
I'm not sure if I am going to go all out for a grand cleaning plan or just put in a couple of 15 minute projects a day. Depends whether I'm feeling overwhelmed or not. If the weather stays bad and I can't get to church/the village during the week (I do a bit of voluntary work at church on the phones and sometimes in the coffee shop and I help out at Grandma's) then I can plunge into something major but if things start to clear up then I think a bit here and there would be better.
Well, now I've bored you all with my cleaning plans, here is some excerpts from a song our Music Group leader sang this morning:
Still Your Soul in Silence by Don Francisco
So many turns, so many ways, so many voices cry
Standing at the crossroads watching time go flashing by
Indecision paralyses, it's the fear of choosing wrong
But waiting is a step itself and you're wondering too long
So again you search the scriptures and again you ask your friends
But last of all the One Who knows the beginning from the end
In the clamour and confusion, and the blindness of your choice
Still your soul in silence, and listen for His voice.
That is quite beautiful and I feel a deep truth to these words. "The fear of choosing wrong", I think that is a little of where I was at yesterday. Christianity is vibrant and varied, but at the heart of it is Jesus Christ - He is the One we all seek; and if we do genuinely seek then we will find. At the end of the seeking, we will know that our seeking is actually the Lord drawing us - as the Good Shepherd the Lord finds the lost sheep and carries him home.
You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:13 (NIV)
No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day. John 6:44 (NIV)
See I'm still on the internet! Must go xxxxx
I want to start incorporating some extra cleaning now that Christmas is over, the things that get missed like the inside of cupboards, etc.
If you like to do a big project then here are a couple of links to a New Year cleaning plan (Hat tip to Sandra):
2010 New Year's Cleaning Grand Plan
Complete text: Grand Cleaning Plan
I'm not sure if I am going to go all out for a grand cleaning plan or just put in a couple of 15 minute projects a day. Depends whether I'm feeling overwhelmed or not. If the weather stays bad and I can't get to church/the village during the week (I do a bit of voluntary work at church on the phones and sometimes in the coffee shop and I help out at Grandma's) then I can plunge into something major but if things start to clear up then I think a bit here and there would be better.
Well, now I've bored you all with my cleaning plans, here is some excerpts from a song our Music Group leader sang this morning:
Still Your Soul in Silence by Don Francisco
So many turns, so many ways, so many voices cry
Standing at the crossroads watching time go flashing by
Indecision paralyses, it's the fear of choosing wrong
But waiting is a step itself and you're wondering too long
So again you search the scriptures and again you ask your friends
But last of all the One Who knows the beginning from the end
In the clamour and confusion, and the blindness of your choice
Still your soul in silence, and listen for His voice.
That is quite beautiful and I feel a deep truth to these words. "The fear of choosing wrong", I think that is a little of where I was at yesterday. Christianity is vibrant and varied, but at the heart of it is Jesus Christ - He is the One we all seek; and if we do genuinely seek then we will find. At the end of the seeking, we will know that our seeking is actually the Lord drawing us - as the Good Shepherd the Lord finds the lost sheep and carries him home.
You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:13 (NIV)
No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day. John 6:44 (NIV)
See I'm still on the internet! Must go xxxxx
Saturday 9 January 2010
Hi-de-hi, ho-de-ho
I spend far too long reading these sites...
There may be? Perhaps just a peek...arghhh!
However, sometimes church members can be just a tad too enthusiastic about visitors and newcomers.
This next picture just made me giggle.
And if you ever get fed-up with your spider monkey, just swap it. They're authorised.
There may be? Perhaps just a peek...arghhh!
However, sometimes church members can be just a tad too enthusiastic about visitors and newcomers.
This next picture just made me giggle.
see more Lolcats and funny pictures
And if you ever get fed-up with your spider monkey, just swap it. They're authorised.
see more Engrish
Thursday 7 January 2010
Geese attack! Cat attack!
After school (yes school was open!) I agreed to take the kiddiwinks up to the lake (about 150 yards from our house so not really a strenuous trek) to feed the ducks. Two of the neighbour's children came with us too.
Well, there weren't many ducks, but there was a fair outbreak of Canada geese.
Yikes!
So we fed them. The poor goosies and duckies (and three swans) haven't got much space for swimming, so they milled about, "honk, quack, honk, hiss, honk quack". The whole lake, barring a water hole here and there, is frozen. I've seen photos from Victorian times of ice skaters and even horse and carriages going across the lake. But I wouldn't chance it myself. Not that I have a horse and carriage mind you, or ice-skates for that matter. I wonder if I could drive a Citroen Saxo across it? Perhaps not.
The sun was starting to set, turning the sky pink. It was quite beautiful. And peaceful. There's something so quiet and peaceful about snow. Unfortunately, some of my photos are a little blurred, I'm not sure if the camera has condensation problems or whether I'm just useless!
My beloved hills.
The geese took umbrage at us leaving and chased us...creating screaming children left, right and centre.
On the way back we picked up Squidge's friend from school to take her to play at our house for an hour. Squidge was pretty chuffed about that and got rather excited. Lol.
Here is the final nativity on Epiphany yesterday. Wise men n' all. Next year a wooden nativity is essential. If only for protection against the local wildlife...our cat.
Chatterbox trying to restrain the cat. Who is officially snow-crazy.
So she just walked about on our Epiphany story pages. Why do cats so love to sit on pieces of paper?
I've had a lovely day today. Mum and I walked into the village. It was simply beautiful with the sun sparkling on the snow. I finally got to the post-office and we visited my Grandma, who at 90 is housebound and doubly housebound with the snow. Mum and I had some good chats as we walked. Thoroughly enjoyable.
On the way home we passed the girls' school and I saw Chatterbox having a whale of a time in the snow with her friends. "KISS!!", she bellowed through the fence, puckering up her lips. Lol, she's so cute.
Well, there weren't many ducks, but there was a fair outbreak of Canada geese.
Yikes!
So we fed them. The poor goosies and duckies (and three swans) haven't got much space for swimming, so they milled about, "honk, quack, honk, hiss, honk quack". The whole lake, barring a water hole here and there, is frozen. I've seen photos from Victorian times of ice skaters and even horse and carriages going across the lake. But I wouldn't chance it myself. Not that I have a horse and carriage mind you, or ice-skates for that matter. I wonder if I could drive a Citroen Saxo across it? Perhaps not.
The sun was starting to set, turning the sky pink. It was quite beautiful. And peaceful. There's something so quiet and peaceful about snow. Unfortunately, some of my photos are a little blurred, I'm not sure if the camera has condensation problems or whether I'm just useless!
My beloved hills.
The geese took umbrage at us leaving and chased us...creating screaming children left, right and centre.
On the way back we picked up Squidge's friend from school to take her to play at our house for an hour. Squidge was pretty chuffed about that and got rather excited. Lol.Here is the final nativity on Epiphany yesterday. Wise men n' all. Next year a wooden nativity is essential. If only for protection against the local wildlife...our cat.
Chatterbox trying to restrain the cat. Who is officially snow-crazy.
So she just walked about on our Epiphany story pages. Why do cats so love to sit on pieces of paper?
I've had a lovely day today. Mum and I walked into the village. It was simply beautiful with the sun sparkling on the snow. I finally got to the post-office and we visited my Grandma, who at 90 is housebound and doubly housebound with the snow. Mum and I had some good chats as we walked. Thoroughly enjoyable.
On the way home we passed the girls' school and I saw Chatterbox having a whale of a time in the snow with her friends. "KISS!!", she bellowed through the fence, puckering up her lips. Lol, she's so cute.
Wednesday 6 January 2010
We are most amused
I am a fan of these daft websites (Oddly Specific), it all began with lolcats and has extended to quite a few others. We are most amused.
Do you think it's Treebeard?
"I am an Ent!"
I bought hubs Treebeard for Christmas. It talks and scares the living daylights out of our cat.
I seriously lol'd and lol'd at this one. To put up a sign to tell people not to touch said sign is truly amazing and intriguing all at the same time.
The Magic Roundabout (click on image to get a better look). We Brits love our roundabouts, here is an artistic piece of urban planning. Mini-roundabouts forming one big roundabout. It's quite mystical in its madness.
Church Times
I remember once hubs missing an important council meeting at church because we went sledging...although we did genuinely forget.
Do you think it's Treebeard?
"I am an Ent!"I seriously lol'd and lol'd at this one. To put up a sign to tell people not to touch said sign is truly amazing and intriguing all at the same time.
The Magic Roundabout (click on image to get a better look). We Brits love our roundabouts, here is an artistic piece of urban planning. Mini-roundabouts forming one big roundabout. It's quite mystical in its madness.
Church Times
I remember once hubs missing an important council meeting at church because we went sledging...although we did genuinely forget.
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