Operation Christmas Cake

Today I did the very important job of feeding the Christmas cake or I should say, cakes (I made one for my Mum and Dad too).

 'Feed the cake?',  I hear you ask...Yes, feed the cake!

It is very important that the cake has a good 'feed' on some brandy to make it a moist and juicy cake.
 

For this I use a darning needle and syringe...prick it all over and drip some brandy in the holes...as recommended by the queen of cookbooks, Delia Smith.
I use a 5ml syringe of brandy and do this process maybe a couple of times, two weeks apart, before I marzipan and ice it. I made the cakes in the half term holidays, the last week in October and this is the second lot of brandy they've had. I guess you can do this as often as you like depending on how 'boozy' you want your cake to be! Alternatively you could use whiskey.

In it goes... 

 

 

Can't wait to taste it!... Hic ;-)

 

 

 

I should add that my twin sister Donna has also made a Christmas cake this year and so we will be having a 'cake off'! She is an exceptionally good baker and makes the most delicous cup cakes and  my favourite ever coffee cakes, so the competition could be tough. May the best cake win! I will let you know the outcome..!

 

 

Priceless.

I noticed recently (thanks to the Google banner) that on the 1st of November it was L S Lowry's 125th birthday. He was a famous artist in his time, painting industrial scenes and landscapes in and around Salford, Manchester, England, where he worked and lived for over 40 years. His style of painting was unique and the human figures in his paintings were often referred to as matchstick men.

 



'Going to work' by L S Lowry.

 The picture below is an interpretation of a Lowry painting, drawn by my middle daughter Laura, when she was 6 years old. She's 14 now. It hangs in our hallway and I often look at it as I am about to walk up the stairs.

I love the way she has captured the figures leaning into their 'walk to work' or wherever it may take them and how she has used shading in her drawing to give depth and feeling. I know I'm her mum but for a 6 year old I think she produced a 'priceless' piece of art work. More priceless than the original Lowry painting in my eyes.

I have to confess to not keeping all the artwork my girls have produced over the years...well the loft would have caved in if I had! But I have kept some of it and it is such a blessing to look back on, remembering those little hands that have drawn or painted it and how proud they were when they brought it home.
I guess what I want to say is, cherish those works of art, they are precious, just like our children and often
 reflect their character and little ways. Hold on to the memories.


 

50,000 miles and counting!

Today, my car reached a milestone...50,000 miles!

And to celebrate, it got a new exhaust!

*Fact* The Earth's circumference at the Equator is 24901.55 miles.

So my little car has driven the equivalent of driving round the Earth twice!

 

 

My green Citroen Saxo has been a very reliable friend over the past 6 and half years whilst it has been in my care and hasn't needed much work doing to it in all that time. In fact, when I got it, it  had just short of 25,000 miles on the clock so I've only just doubled that and it is 11 years old now! (Same age as my youngest daughter. Although 11 in human years is young, I think 11 in car years seems a lot older!)

It is usually only used for the school run but has had a few longer journeys along the motorway, when I'm feeling brave! I really don't like driving on the motorway, unlike Phil, my wonderful husband, who regularly drives an almost 700 mile round trip to come home on the weekends!

 

However, my little car almost didn't make it to this milestone in it's life when it was almost written off 2 years ago. 

 

 Someone reversed into the side of me as I was reversing out of my parking place at a local supermarket. The driver admitted it was her fault. But when it came to the repairs, the insurance company said the car wasn't worth as much as it would cost to pay out for the bodywork to be fixed. I was really upset about it because the insurance company made that assumption by looking at their guidebook for a car that age and model and also on what a garage told them about the work that needed doing...not what I knew about the car. I explained about the low mileage, how it was in great condition and well looked after and that there was no way they were writing it off!

Thankfully after many phone calls pleading my case,  a nice man came and took a look at it and said it wasn't your average 'Y' reg car and decided the repairs could go ahead...So my beloved car was saved! Hooray!

 

 I'm hoping with it's new exhaust it will keep going for a few more years yet and then I can pass it on to the girls to learn to drive in...so no retirement for the old car just yet!

 

And as a special treat...I may take it to the car wash on the weekend and possibly give it a vacuum too...well, it's not every day your car reaches 50,000 miles on the clock!

 

 

 

The steep road.

The sermon at church today was about Peace.
This is something I don't seem to experience much of with having 3 girls at home aged 16,14 and almost 12. Anyone who has kids knows that peace doesn't go hand in hand with family life!
I often feel like an international peacekeeper trying to prevent World War III from starting!
I try to step back from it all and let them sort out their own problems but more often than not they end up asking me to help sort it out!

I suppose that kind of peace is more to do with 'noise' as opposed to inner peace.
Sometimes in life we feel unsettled and upset and crave peace and stability in our lives. Perhaps we have to make a life changing decision like changing jobs or moving to a new area or life just seems to be in turmoil. Perhaps we are in the midst of a problem that seems to have no end. It is at times like these that we search for peace and an answer. We can feel fearful of the future and what it may hold.
We may feel overwhelmed by circumstances and situations, I know I feel that way quite often and whilst  I was sat in church today an old Sunday school song came to me:

When the road is rough and steep,
Fix your eyes upon Jesus,
He alone has power to keep,
Fix your upon Him;
Jesus is a gracious Friend,
One on whom you can depend,
He is faithful to the end,
Fix your eyes upon Him.

This week I have felt overwhelmed at times and weighed down with some emotional stuff my girls have been going through and when you're a mum it affects you.
I clearly heard God saying to me today,
'Don't focus on your problems, fix your eyes upon me!'
Yes, the road is rough and steep at times and the enemy is good at  trying to trip you up and steal your peace. I know he has certainly been trying to do that with me lately. But by fixing your eyes upon Him, our gracious friend on whom you can depend, you will be able to walk the steep road, confident in the knowledge that He will see you through the tough times. I need to keep focused on Him not the things I'm going through. We're human and so we're bound to feel the emotions that come with burdens and tough times in life but don't let them overwhelm you like I did earlier this week.

Philippians 4 verse7 says:

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

I have felt that inexplicable peace when going through tough times, when making hard decisions or when I don't know which way to turn. I look back on times gone by and know that despite how hard it was back then, I wasn't alone and His peace helped me through.
He will show you the way forward and guide you on life's path.

So, a new week beckons and I will keep focused on Him! I will make Him the focus not my problems because He is bigger than all of them put together and their is nothing He can't overcome! Amen.

Tomorrow I will be going to this at my church:

IGNITE at Spring Mount Christian Fellowship, Monday November 26th, 7.00pm

Ignite is a chance to Praise God in a very intimate setting, with less people and chairs, and more time and music than your average church meeting. The Youth Band will lead worship, and often play many new and different songs, as well as some more familiar ones. There is also time to Pray for our lives and the lives of others, whether it be friends and family or whole countries and nations. Ignite gives us the opportunity to spend time worshipping and praying like never before.

There is NO set finish time, but the last two events have finished around 8:15pm. If this is too late for you, feel free to leave early.



Perhaps I'll see you there! Have a great week :)

I guess I should write something...

So, I set up this blog a week or two ago and I've not written anything yet!
Perhaps that is because life just seems so busy right now.
Or perhaps it's because I'm unsure of what to share with you.
Or maybe it's because I have a boring life!
Well, it's probably all three of the above.

Perhaps I will share some things you may or may not know about me...

1. I love God.
2. I am a twin. My sister is called Donna and I am 15 minutes older than her.
3. My middle name is Louise.
4. I like white wine and I especially like champagne!
5. I play the flute.
6. I work as a teaching assistant and school administrator.
7. I have a scar on my neck from having my thyroid gland removed 18 years ago.
8. I'm a left hander and my twin sister is a right hander.
9. I have green eyes.
10. I do not dye my hair ;-)

Well, this will do for my first blog post...I might write something deep and meaningful next time!