Goodbye 2013. Hello 2014!

As we dive headlong into a new year, it's always a good time to reflect on the one just gone.

2013 was a year with some amazing highs, but also some real lows!

Finding out my dad had been diagnosed with cancer was the biggest low of the year. My parents had struggled through a few really tough few years and were finally in a place where they felt more happy and content and then BOOM!!! 

His first course of treatment began in November and comes to an end in late January. Hopefully with a successful result. It has been stressful and emotional for everyone, especially my dad and mum. But we have pulled together and had strength for each other when we've felt low. I would have been lost without my fiancé Tim, so I thank him with all my heart.

During the same period my Uncle became ill and was admitted to hospital for several days. Thankfully an operation in the next month or so should rectify his problem, fingers crossed.

As you can imagine these two events were real shocks and it was in a way nice to have some really exciting things going on at the same time to give us all a welcome distraction.

Our children are the best tonic for us and our family. They can make even very sad times seem better!

Scarlett has continued to do well at school and has again exceeded our expectations, making us immensely proud of her every day.  Seeing her love for learning and achieving is a wonderful thing. Long may it continue.

George is coming on leaps and bounds.  Having turned two in September, his speech is really improving. He loves interacting with all age groups of people and gets really excited when he learns something new. As with his sister, he makes us proud every day.

They are growing in to wonderful little people and I'm excited to see what 2014 brings.

The really big event of 2013 was the purchase of a house in Wales.

For the past 5 years we have been looking to buy a property to set up as a holiday rental. We knew where we wanted it, it was just waiting for the right one to come along and in August it did. 

Six weeks later it was ours and after a lot of hard work sourcing furniture, painting, and fitting a new kitchen, at the end of December it was ready to take bookings. And we've actually got our first booking, yay!!!

So 2013 has been testing at times, but I feel all things are sent to make us stronger and I feel strong!!

So bring on 2014, I'm ready!!

Happy new year to you all and may you have health and happiness.

Sarah

xx

Christmas Crafting - Christmas Cake Revisited

As promised in my previous Christmas Cake post, I said I would share with you my finished decorated cake.

Well you are in for a treat, as I actually have 2 cakes to share with you.

The first is the cake I made for the local Toddler Group, for their 'Guess the weight of the cake' competition.

I decided to keep it simple with a Christmas tree theme and everyone seemed to love it.

The second is the cake I made for my good friend Paula.  For the past few years she has asked if I could make her a Christmas cake, so it can't be that bad!!

Hope you like them. 

Enjoy what's left of the Christmas break. x

Christmas Crafting - Stocking

I don't know why, but Christmas always makes me want to get my craft on. Whether it's sewing, baking or any other kind of craft I decide to try my hand at, I always get a huge satisfaction from being able to say "I made that!"

Thankfully my family are very accepting of my craftiness and look forward to what goodies they may find in their stocking.

One of the first things I decided to make was a Christmas stocking for my son George.  This was to be hung in his room for him to find Christmas morning full of lovely little surprises.

George turned two at the beginning of September and I decided his room needed a bit of change, so we opted for a Farm theme.  I made some bunting and a cushion cover from some beautiful Michael Miller fabric, so when I saw the Christmas farm theme fabric I knew I had to make a stocking.

Firstly I cut out a stocking template of the size I wanted from paper (I only had baking parchment, but it worked fine).  I then attached it to the fabric and cut out two stocking shapes.

I then decided the stocking needed a decorative edge around the top.  I had several pieces of felt, but none looked right, so I decided to cut pieces out of a spare Ikea blanket I had lying around.  The scalloped edging was perfect.

After cutting out the size edging I wanted, I sewed it onto the outside of each stocking shape.

Placing the right sides of the stocking together and beginning at the top, I then sewed the stocking together. Leaving the top open.

I then turned it inside out and attached a piece of ribbon to the back of the top part, ready to hang.

And voila, you have a Christmas stocking.  And my George loved it!

Christmas Crafting - Christmas Cake

Every year I make a Christmas cake, whether it's for family, friends or gifts.

This year I am making one especially for the local Toddler Group I'm involved with in the village.  As part of a Christmas themed session they are having a competition to guess the weight of the Christmas cake and I offered my baking services.

I use a tried and trusted recipe I came across several years ago on the BBC Good Food website called Simmer & Stir Christmas Cake. You can find the full recipe here.

It's the perfect recipe for me, as it doesn't need to be made weeks ahead.

The first part of the recipe requires you to bring the butter, sugar, dried fruit, zests, juice and brandy slowly to the boil, then simmer gently for 10 minutes.  Remove the pan from the heat and cool for 30 minutes.

Whilst the mixture is cooling, you need to toast the nuts gently to brown them, then once they have cooled, chop roughly.

You then add these along with the eggs and ground almonds to the cooled fruit mixture, mixing well. Then sift in the flour, baking powder and spices, stirring gently until there are no traces of flour left.

Spoon the mixture into the prepared tin and smooth down evenly.

Bake in a preheated oven for 45 minutes, then lower the temperature and bake for a further 1-1 1/4 hours. 

At this point your kitchen will smell amazing, with what I can only describe as the warm scent of Christmas. This makes me happy!

You'll know the cake is done when you insert a skewer and it comes out clean.  Then make holes all over the cake and pour on the extra brandy until it has all soaked in.

Leave the cake to cool in the tin and once it's cold remove from the tin and peel of the lining paper. Wrap it in baking parchment and then foil to keep it fresh, moist and all round lovely.

After this you can either serve it as it is or, like me, cover it with a layer of marzipan, then a layer of sugar paste. Decorate to your hearts content.

Here's one that I've decorated before.  I shall post a picture of this years finished cake soon.

What are your go to Christmas recipes? Have they been passed down on scraps of paper or googled on the World Wide Web?

Happy Christmas baking!

x

Our special place!

As I write this it's 11pm on a Friday night and I am sat in our Welsh holiday house.

Everyone else is tucked up in bed and I am here taking in my surroundings in the peace and quiet.

We set off straight after school and arrived about 9pm, got the kiddywinks to bed and unloaded the car.  I then pottered around for a while, putting things we had brought with us into the right rooms.

Now I'm sat thinking how lucky we are to have such a beautiful place. 

At times the whole process of buying this house and filling it with all the stuff we've needed has been quite overwhelming.  But now we are almost finished I'm able to step back and go "wow, we did this!".

I can't wait to be able to share Ferryside with everyone. It's such a special place.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

I'm still alive!!

Hi fellow witterers (have I just made up a new word?).

Sorry for my recent absence,  but I have so much going on at the moment it's crazy. All of which I hope to tell you about in more detail very soon.

To divulge a little,  we are currently in the process of buying a property in Wales.  Hopefully this should all be completed and exchanged in the next couple of weeks (fingers crossed! ).

Once everything has gone through,  we shall be setting the house up as a holiday cottage to rent out.

As you can imagine there are lots of things to do,  so most of my time is spent searching for furniture and accessories and planning room layouts.  It's a tough job but someone has to do it!

I look forward to telling you more very soon.

Thanks for popping by.

Sarah x