I Should have stayed in bed!!!

I have been walking around with MS brain fog for days now and said to Lord Huntingdon (Simon) the other day that I should not drive at the moment feeling this way!

I took Maddie to the bus stop and coming home through my gorgeous electric gates Simon hand made for me when I asked him to make me a pretty set of gates, I pressed the close button to early and ended up with the gates tangled in the tray of the ute.

                                                                 Stuck solid!!!

I tried to reverse and this would not release them either.

The driver side door would not open as the gate is in the way!!!

I Climbed out the passenger door (glad no one was around to see me try and manouver over the seats) got out and thought I should lock the car as I am a little paranoid about unlocked cars.

Started walking up the driveway in tears thinking what an idiot I am only to realize I had just locked the keys in the car - the only key we have for the ute as we keep saying we need to get another cut!!!

On the phone my wonderful husband keep reasuring me it would be Ok he will fix it, don`t worry go and have a coffee and go back to bed!!!

He said we know its not your fault - obvioussly referring to the dreaded MS!!

How am I sooo lucky to have fallen in love with such a wondeful man?!!!!!!! xxxx

There was no other way to release the gate from the ute than to cut the gate!!

After the cut had taken place this is what my gorgeous gate looks like!!

Simon is now down at Metaland buying new Metal to fix the gates I destroyed.

I will post new photos when the new project I created for him is finished, so stay tuned!!!

Multiple Sclerosis Sucks!!!!!!!!

Yes I said it MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS SUCKS!!!!

This is not the normal thing I would say on a daily  basis but today I have said it LOUD and CLEAR.

I HATE THIS DISEASE!!!!!!!!

I want to be able to do what I once took for granted. To walk normally without the fear of falling over. Which is what I have been doing more of  - Not much fun at all really!!

Even writing this blog, I had great intentions when I started of posting everyday about my cooking, sewing, house, family, animals and so on.

Now I am stuck for words, I have every intention when I get up to write this and that but as time moves on and it flys as 1 day blends into another as I sit and contemplate what to do.

I cant seem to focus, I get exhausted from nothing which I know is one of the worst symptoms of M.S. The Chronic Fatigue stops me from doing and achieving so much.

I once played Tennis, Indoor Cricket and Softball for the State now I find it hard to walk around the supermarket!!!

IT`S JUST NOT FAIR!!!!

My daughter had her 18th Birthday Party last Friday night and it has taken me all week to recover. I nearly passed out on the night from exhaustion, I was the only one there not drinking!!!!

I know it could be worse, but today I just needed to whinge!!!

Tomorrow I hope to post something far more suitable for my blog as I am normally so positive

Danish fruit and custard Pastry

Danish Pastry is a favourite of many of us including myself.

I made these and they are sooo delicious its worth putting in the effort to make them. They do take 2 days to make as you need to let the pastry sit. However they are simple enough to make.

Give them a try, they will become one of your favourite recipes for sure!!

                          

Creme Patisserie
1 Vanilla Bean
1 3/4 cup milk
4 egg yolks
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup cornflour
2 tbsp butter

1.With a sharp knife, slice the vanilla bean in half length ways. Using the tip, scrape the interior to remove seeds. Pour the milk into a saucepan and add the vanilla pod and seeds. Bring to a simmer. Remove from heat, cover immediately and allow to infuse for 15 minutes.

2. In a large bowl, whisk the egg yolks and sugar until slightly pale.
Incorporate the cornflour. Remove the vanilla pod from the saucepan and reheat the milk bringing to a simmer. Pour a third of the hot milk over the egg yolk, sugar and cornflour ( to temper the yolks ). Whisk to gether and pour the whole mixture back into the saucepan. Bring to boil while stirring with a whisk, making sure to scrape down the sides of the pan with a spatula.

3. Remove from heat and pour the cream into a clean bowl. Allow to cool for 10 minutes so that it is still hot but not boiling. Incorporate the butter while stirring. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap until ready to use.


Danish Pastry
60ml warm water
125ml milk
1 large egg
350g plain flour
7g yeast
1 teaspoon salt
25g caster sugar
250g unsalted butter cut into cubes

Pour the water and milk into a measuring jug and add the egg, beating with a fork to mix. Put to one side for a minute. Get out a large bowl, then put the flour, yeast, salt and sugar in the processor and give a quick whizz to mix. Add the cold slices of butter and process briefly so that the butter is cut up a little, although you still want visible chunks is at least 1cm.Empty the contents of the food processor into a large bowl and quickly add the contents of the jug. Use your hands to fold the ingredients together  but don`t over do it. Expect to have a gooey mess with some butter lumps pepping through. Cover the bowl with cling wrap, put in fridge  and leave overnight or up to 4 days.

To turn it into pastry, take it out of the fridge, let it get to room temperature and roll it out to a 50 x 50 cm square. Fold the dough square into thirds, like a business letter, turning it afterwards so that the closed fold is on your left, like the spine of a book. Roll out again to a 50 cm square, repeating the steps above 3 times.

To assemle use half at a time as it makes alot, if you want to freeze the other half it is fine to use within 2 months.

Roll out pastry on a sighty floured surface. Cut into squares of a desirable size. Place the custard in the middle and add your choice of fruit. Fold either side into the center as seen in the photo.
Bake in a moderate oven until golden.

ENJOY

Honey I want a pig!

I remember it like it was yesterday which is strange as I am lucky to remember what I had for breakfast most days!

Lord Huntingdon and I were driving home in the truck from a job quote when I turned to him and said "Honey I want a pig"

I recall the look of -  here we go again written all over his face.

He knows I always get my own way - I usually arrive home with the animals and then he is running around like a man posest trying to build pens so they have a safe place to sleep so I would think that he is best just to agree, build the pens and he would be one step ahead of me. 

I left it at that and began talking about something else, all the time thinking when I get home I will research pigs to see what is needed for them as I had never had a pig before.

Soon after I got home the research begun into miniature pigs.

The next day I found some advertised on Gumtree and organised to look at them over the weekend which was a few days away.

Amongst other conversation about his new boat a shark cat a few days after I had told Lord Huntingdon that as I mentioned a few days ago I wanted a pig and I was looking at a pig over the weekend.

He asked where it was and mentioned that he was working on the Saturday, I said that was  fine I will take Jaimi-lee and Ben with me. He said "I know what this means with a sigh"!

I waited like a child waiting for Santa as I was so excited. Saturday arrived and we travelled the 2 hours to look at the pig which I had already imagined living at home.

We arrived at the property where the pig was. My son in law Ben said "Why is it when we come and look at animals with you they are in the middle of nowhere surrounded by bush" He is right it is something that  you would see in a horror film!

The Lady greeted us as soon as we stepped out of the car and ushered us behind the house where she had a chook pen and the pigs where in there!

She had told me over the phone that they were friendly and she had 2 to choose from.

Into the chook pen we went where she attempted to pick up one of the pigs but it was having nothing to do with her. I stood back to watch as I wanted to see their behaviour.

She said I will get their food so with that she went away and came back with a bucket of what I would call slosh!!! It was bread soaked in milk.

When they were eating she said you could do anything with them.

But I wanted to be able to do anything with them anytime!!

When they finished eating My daughter tried to pat them but they ran away. I tried they ran away! The owners 10 year old daughter tried and she was bitten by one of them.

With that I said that I only ever have animals which can be handled and are quiet as I have a granddaughter which will want to help feed the animals when she gets older.

4 hour round trip wasted, one unhappy Lady of Huntingdon!!

If she had been honest I wouldn`t have bothered looking at them.

Back home to Gumtree to see what else was available and there they were, a litter of 6 miniature pigs for sale and only another 2 hours from home the opposite direction.

I rang to arrange a time to view them the following weekend, asked all the same questions and told Lord of Huntingdon we had a trip next weekend.

Off we went the following weekend, it was a nice drive and before too long we were there.

We were greeted by the the owners 3 children as they had told me that they were not going to be home.

The piglets were in a trailer filled with hay and a cover over the top to keep them cool as they said it was easier to catch they for us before we got there.

We had a look at at the babies and then I asked to view the parents which they were delighted to show us.

The parents were a good size and you could walk around them without too much fuss.

I was excited as I knew this is where I was happy to choose not 1 but 2 babies a boy and a girl.

They were not related so if we choose to we could breed them.

I picked the 2 I liked one white and 1 black and white.

We paid for them, put them in a large box and put them in the back of the 4x4 and we set off to take our new addition home!!

We arrived at home, put them in their pen and we spent the next few hours in their with them. They were inquisitive of their new home and gave us lots of amusement as we got to know them.

The next day back in I went and had a great time teaching them to sit and teaching them there names.

They  sit now when asked, get down when told, come when called and eat out of my hands.

I have so much joy with them. Babe is the white girl and a little cheeky  at times!!

When I fill up their water container she picks it up, empties it and then puts it in he bed. Maybe she thinks its her baby?

Now I have taken to filling their pool up with water and we are installing pig sippers in their new pen, which will hopefully save her wasting the water.

Squizzy is the black and white male and he is more of a sook than Babe and he loves his cuddles.

BABE

This is babe I have had her for about 3 months now.

She is incredibly smart and behaves herself most of the time.

Squizzy

This is squizzy he is a sweetheart and a sook.

Coffee anyone?

What type of coffee drinker are you?

I enjoy a lovely strong cup not a mug. It must be a cup otherwise the ratio is out. With just a little milk-some say it is just a wave over the top, and no sugar.

I don`t feel as if I`m alive in the morning until I have my first cup then I feed the animals which takes me the majority of an hour then I am back for my second cup!!

I enjoy espresso moccona the majority of occasions as it is quick and easy.

If I have a little more time and feeling like a cappachinno or a latte I use my DeLongi coffee machine.

So now you all know how I like my coffee I suggest we set up coffee dates at a particular time each day where we sit down together with a coffee and chat.

Let me know what time suits you all and see if we can create a group where we can all enjoy a coffee and each others company.

Hope to chat soon. xxx

Stranger to friend

Have you ever been blown away with the kindness from someone you never knew?

I have the absolute pleasure in saying that this week I have. I am not sure if this person wants to be named so I will leave that until I hear back from them as I believe they should be named and applauded!!

This very generous kind hearted person  saw my blog and offered to pretty it up for me.

It was pretty boring as I have no idea what I am doing when it comes to computers and did not know where to start.

I was so very thankful for the offer and overwhelmed that a stranger would suggest it in the first place.

This sort of kindness has never happened to me before and I will definitely remember it forever.

They did an amazing job I LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!!!!!

I love vintage and think it shows through the look of my blog.

But how do you thank a stranger who lives so far away from you?

I feel saying thank you is not enough.

Let me know if you have a similar experience and share your story with us I would love to hear from you all.

Happy 18th Birthday Maddie!!

Has it really been 18 years today since I gave birth to our beautiful daughter Maddison?

It seems like only yesterday !!!

Do I miss the nappy changes, teething and getting up throughout the night when she was a baby? - Aabsolutely not!!

Do I miss the early morning cuddles as she jumps into our bed when she was a toddler? - Definitely!!

                                                 BUT ON THE FLIP SIDE

When she goes out with friends I will not be sleeping I will be pacing the floor until she drives through the gates and I know  that she is home safe and sound, then I will sleep!!

I will be begging her not to jump into bed  and cuddle up with some guy she has fallen head over heals for.

She may be classed as an adult from today but she will always be my baby.

I will always be there for her no matter what.

I will protect her with my life, there is no reasoning with a mad woman protecting her child regardless of their age.

I love Vintage

Yes it`s true, I LOVE VINTAGE!!  I have warned my family and friends that over time they will start to see  changes in me as I begin to transform myself back to the era I love.

It will be like going back in time, but without the time machine.

I am fortunate that my family support my choice and I guess that they may think that this is a passing fad which will wear thin after time. I THINK NOT!!!

The only problem I have had is finding some of the fantastic clothes in my size. I am not embarresed to tell you that I have a full figure. The medication for my multiple sclerosis had contributed to my weight gain enormously - but things could be worse!!

If anyone has any ideas or knows where I may be able to purchase any vintage clothes from I would love to hear from you:)

My daughter Maddie and I are fortunate to be going to a PINUP WORKSHOP on 21st May and boy are we excited.

Maddie also loves PIN UP and is competing next year which is exciting.

Let me know if you would be interested in seeing my transformation and if you are keen I will post photos along the way.

As far as living the life I want to live and breathe it. I love the values that were in that era and I think we could all learn a little from it.

I want to make the old fashioned recipes as they are oldies but goodies.

I want to sew, but I am just learning and it takes me jours to create something simple.

If you have anything which you would like to share please don`t hesitate as I would love to see it.

My sewing attempt as promised.

I had good intentions as always, but when it came down to sitting down in front of the sewing machine fear took over! Yes FEAR!!!

Where do I start, what do I make? And the thing that scares me  the most FAILURE!!

I put off my attempt for the whole day as I could not picture what to make, I had told my daughter that I wanted to make a bag to but my plastic bags into, you know the kind you get from the supermarket.

Well she came to my rescue this morning. I think she could tell how disappointed I was that I had not yet made anything so she told me how to make one over the phone. Knowing me as she does she said "you don`t understand what I a trying to explain to you do you?" And with that she said that she would whip one up in about 10 minutes and take photos along the way with a written description, which she would then send  me.

I got the sewing machine out and set it up in anticipation. The message came through and off to work I went. Her finished product looked so good I had high expectations of what I could achieve considering it was only a cylinder shape which she managed to put together in about 10 minutes.

I picked out the material I wanted to use and gathered the supplies I thought I would need along with setting up the ironing board as I wanted my attempt to be neat and I had heard that ironing helps to achieve a tidy look.

I put my phone on the desk next to the sewing machine with the email up so I could follow it step by step.

I started at step 1 and read through the instructions not missing or leaving out anything.

I folded here and there and ironed them flat. I was told to pin here and there but thought I would miss that step as I had ironed a crease in so why use pins, as I was only going to remove them after sewing anyway.

I stitched the casing for the elastic in place and to my horror I realised that I had stitched where I was going to put the elastic in.

My disappointment was evident to my daughter when she received my call to ask how do I fix this?

"What already, didn`t you follow the instructions and the photos?" she said.

"Well I thought that step could be missed" was my reply in explaining to her.

She said she would call be back in a few minutes to explain how to fix the problem.

It was quiet obvious to me now that I should not try to take shortcuts as I just stuff things up in doing so!!

While I was waiting for my daughter to call back Lord of Huntingdon come in from cutting firewood to find me in front of the sewing machine trying to work around the mess I had made.

Being the man he is he immediately jumped into my chair to fix my stuff up. He explained this and that and unpicked this and that. He thought at this stage that it would be easier to start from scratch to show me as I learn by doing not reading instructions.

He cut out his material and folded here and there and stitched here and there and before I knew it he had achieved a bag to hang the plastic bags in.

Not wanting to give in as I am afraid of failure as I said before I cut out another piece of material and proceeded to fold here and there and to stitch here and  there and in a relatively short period of time I had made my very own bag.

It may not be perfect to the seamstress or as decorative as my daughters but I am proud of it all the same.

It only took me the whole afternoon to stress out, stuff up and finally achieve.

Now as I have said before I have Multiple Sclerosis and I once was as sharp as a tack I now have trouble concentrating and focusing on the task at hand but I am going to try  sewing something new tomorrow, I will let you know how I go and if you have any simple projects for beginners let me know and I will attempt them.

Carry On Sewing

Hello Everyone,

Today I brought a sewing machine and I am going to try sewing! This is new to me but I have had sewing machines in the past which have just sat dormant in the closet.

I now have a renewed interest. My daughter has been busy sewing as I have sat by and admired her enthusiasm and her creativity.

Most members of my family and my husbands are very creative.

Its time for me to learn and to give you all a laugh along the way.

I hope to achieve something which vaguely resembles a plastic bag holder for my first attempt.

I have been to spotlight today to purchase supplies with my daughter to point me in the right direction.

Tomorrow I will be setting up the sewing machine and start the task at hand.

I will be posting photos along the way to give you an indication on what I am up too and I would love your feedback and may I ask support!!

If you send me through some simple projects I will give it my best shot and post photos along the way to get your feedback.

I am off to get a good night sleep for my attempt tomorrow see you then:)