This Week......

....has been a little hurried.....but not as hurried as I thought it was going to be.......so that was a bonus.

It mainly consisted of getting back into the school and house routine.

I don't really do New Year's Resolutions, but I did decide it was about time I gave my house an overhaul. Sadly, it's in need of a LOT of tlc. You do one thing, and it's the case of flowers on the windowsill. I'm tackling storage issues at the moment. I'm a magpie, a gatherer (I hate the word Hoarder). I live in a little house, and the Bears are getting bigger. It was only ever meant to be a stop gap house, but it's been a little more than that. So, it's small for us all now, but now is not the time to think about moving when the elder Bears' are starting a critical schooling period. So, I make do, and juggle stuff around. Ikea has been a blessing in the storage tub department. I did come back with a bed too though. That was a tad unexpected. So was the sofa cover, minus the sofa (I couldn't fit a bed and a sofa in my car). That's ok though, it just calls for another trip!

Geez, I really do have a lot of crap. Nice crap though, that I cannot bear to part with. Urgh, I'm useless. I have donated about 8 huge bags to charity shops in the last month, and I feel a bit pleased about that. I asked the Bears what they would like different in the house if I was to re-decorate. Weirdly they said they liked the house as it was. So, it's not all bad then. I think just moving a few bits, storing a few bits, slopping a bit of paint here and there and things can carry on as normal.

In between all this, I did mundane stuff like iron. It's a job I really really LOATHE. I don't find it therapeutic, I find it a complete time waster (like dusting). But I did it. A MASSIVE basket of it, and for one teensy tiny moment, I felt like a domestic goddess, instead of a cleaning loser.

I'm that sad that I stick a pic of all my hours work here too. I seriously was proud of myself for sticking with it! 

The weather has been a mixed bag this week. Bright sunshine one moment, and dark grey clouds the next.

This week, the family computer was updated.Whilst I love new technology, I like what I'm used too. New updated versions of everything annoy me. I'm having trouble commenting on peoples posts, and it's such a faff to work out why. I'm not geek minded at all. Oh well, it gives me a chance to have a play.

I have been enjoying having an endless jug of flowers in my house this year so far. Mainly Daffs and Hyacinths.

The pale pink Hyacinths on my Mantel faded so, a Hyacinth bulb and some Narcissi have gone up.

I do have a lovely little pot of hyacinths and tulips bringing me delight. I keep moving them about the rooms. It's amazing how just a few flowers can lift one so much. They seem to be relatively cheap at the moment too.

Baby Bear made my heart sing when he handed me his picture. He told me that he loves how I make the Mantel different (it's often a thing we do together, he's like my little artistic director) and he thought he'd draw the Mantel that day. 

Awe bless him.

I have enjoyed kitchen time. I love it in my little kitchen when the sun shines.

I am currently liking pink and aqua/mint together.

I am loving little additions to the kitchen too, like sheep. Something rather cute about this one.

I love sorting, and noticing. I love bright and cheerful. I like chunky and necessary also.

I like the useful too....

I have been loving making bread. Or should I say 'trying'. I have been trying different methods. Some work and some don't.

I really wanted this one to work here but I just am not getting any results from it. It's not rising. Tastes decent enough and not heavy which is weird for it not rising really. I wonder if it's my conversions. I find it really hard to convert USA cup sizes to UK metric/imperial. There are sites that convert things but I find it a tad confusing. I'm guessing if it says one cup of flour and one cup of sugar for example, you measure in the same cup measurement. If you convert that on a chart it's different weights in grams but I guess it's just done in cups. I know I sound like a complete thicko, but I don't get the accuracy. Well, something is going wrong my end. I've found, actually doing the suggested ingredients from my bread maker pamphlet in my bread maker is working well. I don't like bread made in bread makers. I find the tin sizes annoying, and hate how it bakes with the dough hook in the loaf. Most bread makers can do the first bit for you and then you just do a last prove yourself and bake it yourself. That seems to work well for me. It takes two and a half hours from start to finish. I really quite fancied a loaf in an hour! Really just because I'm lazy. It's not like it's difficult to put the ingredients in a bread maker and then just leave it for an hour and a half.

I still am determined to make a loaf without any help form my bread maker. I shall carry on testing recipes.

Whilst the sun has shone I have been sorting in my little kitchen. It has been a lovely little spot to be in this week.

I have even managed a little bit of relax time. In between wash loads and ironing, my treat for doing it was something naughty and a good hot cuppa. Mundane simply has to be equalled with something lovely for me. I remember being at Uni and having to write a dissertation on Greek Mythology. It wasn't a module I really wanted to do, but I had to fit it around my teaching modules which sucked at the time. Anyway, I remember wondering how on earth I was to write so much on something that I didn't want to do. So, I decided every 500 hundred words, I would stop for a really nice drink and treat to reward myself. That way, it all sort of equalled itself out. In twenty years, nothing has changed it seems.

Also, This week has been a week of creative juices flowing. Oh my, I have so many ideas of things that I want to start or try. It's that nice exciting time, when you just buzz buzz buzz. Also annoying, as I have that excited nervous energy feeling. It's hard to concentrate when I have that. Also annoying, that suddenly I have all these ideas and I want to start them all.

I'm still researching yarn for when I make the 'proper' Bella Wrap. Now I know I can do it, I'm trying to find the 'right' shade of natural to make it in first. No yellowy hue in sight. I like Drops Andes for coloured ones.

I'm still plodding on with the Sunshine Day Blanket, but it is slow going this week. I have made progress on my footstool.

The black shiny fabric that was under the black crochet cover was covered over with a bit of calico. Big staplers are great things for work like this (not great if your youngest decides to check it out and staple your table). 

Of course it had to be pink didn't it. A dirty pink, my favourite shade of pink. I thought it goes so nicely with the lovely bare wood of the little legs. I did think that blue/grey would be nice also (in the background). A little cushion project that was never finished as I ran out of yarn, but I think it could work well too. I may just mix and match when the mood takes me. Hopefully the pink cover should be finished by tonight. Better than the black crocheted cover it came with. 

I also couldn't resist these balls from my local shop. Aren't they delicious? The mottled ones are Drops Fabel in shades 800 and 801, and the mauve one is Drops Baby Alpaca in shade 4314. I'm still in layering mode and thinking these would make super wrist warmers (like I need any more). This shade of mauve is about the only purpley/lilacy shade I can work with (it's a little pinker than the actual pic). I particularly love it teamed with deep forest greens and dark olives. I'm thinking on a Bella Wrap in those shades, so mauve wrist warmers should compliment it well! 

I also have plans for more embroidery. One is a big project, but I like the idea of doing it. Not sure that if I do it, I'll have anywhere to hang it in my little abode, but I think I'll love working on it. The other is a smaller project. The idea is whirring fast in my head, and I'm loving thinking about it.

This year too, I am planning to get to know my sewing machine a little better. I have a dress I want to make. It'll take a mountain of practice. With crochet, I wanted to learn it just to make a granny squares blanket. Nothing else interested me, it was just one simple blanket. I wanted to learn crochet, make the blanket, and then move on to learning another craft. Seven years later, and I haven't yet moved on. The same may be said with sewing. I want to learn to sew, simply to make a particular dress......and an A-line skirt. Two things, if I can master and make, then I should be happy enough to move on. Let's see if that's the case.

So, it's been a making, baking, clearing, sorting, ideas buzzing kind of week. 

A happy one.

I'll take that.

I'll also take another slice of warm bread. The buzzer has just gone. The Bear's are not going to get a look in. Somebody stop me, I'm outta control............

Have a super weekend all

xxx