Growing Up (Part 3)

PS
I forgot to add another very major 'event', which is also a part of growing up. In the last 2 years i have for the first time lost 3 very close relatives, 2 of which we were very very close to. Its not a nice part of growing up but i guess it can be added into the sum of everything that has happened. I think its nice to make a quick list like this, it makes you remember all the major things you have achieved and makes you feel like time hasnt been wasted!

Growing Up (Part 2)

In the spirit of veggie carries recent blog, (and also because I am currently feeling too lazy to think up my own topics) I thought I would add my own 'grown up list'.

In the last 2 1/2 yrs I have;

1. Got married to Almost Dentist Hubby

2. Moved house 5 times to 5 new counties (twice whilst pregnant!)

3.Had Cutybaby (became a 'mum' eeeeeek!!!!!!!)

4.Travelled to New York, Orlando, Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Saudi Arabia (again), San Francisco, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, India.

5.Made many new good friends

6. Got obsessed with cupcake baking!

7. Was introduced to the world of blogging

x

ps my next aim for 2008 is to BUY A CAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Growing up

In the past 12 months I have:

1) Got married
2) Moved house twice (not including living in two bed and breakfasts for a month)
3) Lost my parents and dog to France
4) Got a my first car
5) Had three jobs, in three different locations.
6) Been abroad twice- once to visit my parents and once to visit my parents-in-law
7) Become a godmother
8) Learnt to bake
9) Started a blog
10) Been to Church more often than the previous few years put together.

I am feeling like an adult at last. Which I suppose I should do at 27!

Christening

I am now officially a Godmother, to a tiny, sweet little goddaughter. It was a simple ceremony, very quick, and my goddaughter didn't even cry when the minister put water on her, she just whimpered slightly. In fact, she barely noticed the occasion go by, and slept through most of the day. There were a lot of little kids there, mainly boys, and the same cannot have been said for them. The day was probably the hottest of the year, and after the Christening there was a party, which was mainly outside due to the hot weather. They were all running around, playing football, on slides, in the sandpit, bouncing on the trampoline, and then they all decided to take off their clothes, and then the paddling pool came out. They were so boisterious, I really can't understand where they get all their energy from. It was good fun anyway, and Veggie Hubby scared them all playing the monster, and then ended up with the unenviable task of being slide marshall, while all the kids pushed each other trying to get a go on the slide. On the other hand, I spent more time in the shade, and holding my sleepy goddaughter.

Cinderella

I'm going to become a Godmother on Sunday. I had my outfit all ready, and assumed I had my shoes somewhere in storage here. However, this morning, I wondered... are they actually here? I couldn't remember seeing them, and thought they must be with my parents in France. As I drove off to work, Veggie Hubby started looking for them and sent me the following email at 9am.

" Sorry can't find your shoes. I will look more, but if we can't find them I suggest you either 1)quickly buy a pair in M&S 2) We buy one this evening, at Asda or the shoe store in High Street. 3) If you give me your shoe size, I can go there this afternoon and buy you a pair (white or pink). If they don't fit, I'll give them back on Monday. "

I found it quite funny that my husband offered to buy me shoes. The lady who sits next to me she said she would never let her husband buy her shoes, as he would probably buy her something really unsuitable like boots. I wasn't sure if VH could find me anything appropriate, so I went to the shops at lunchtime, literally racing around, to be there and back in an hour, trying to find some shoes that would match my dress, and also a Christening present (as I won't get much chance to shop tomorrow as I'll be travelling there). I came back to the office with only my lunch. I couldn't find any shoes that were remotely possible, except one pair of white shoes that weren't particularly attractive but a) they didn't have my size b) a very old lady was also looking at them and commented that they were very nice, which kind of put me off. I find it very difficult to find shoes in general, let alone under an hour, that is a challenge too far.

When I got home guess what? As soon as I got in the front door, Veggie Hubby noticed a carrier bag he hadn't noticed before, and they were slightly squahsed but in there :-) Thank goodness neither of us had bought a new pair. VH did buy two cards though, one for my goddaughter-to-be, and one for me, 'On your goddaughter's Christening day.' I don't know whether he could have chosen good shoes, but he certainly found great cards. I'm just lacking a Christening present now, but I'm not too worried about that, buying a photo frame/album isn't as difficult as buying shoes.

Here are the shoes in question... I am slightly embarrassed the 'George' logo is visable, but I like sandles that have a strap around my ankle, or else they just feel like they will fall off.


P.S. This post demonstrates that I am very disorganised and last minute , and also that my flat is on the messy side...
P.P.S. I am really looking forward to the Christening and becoming a godmother. The weather is so hot these days, it will be perfect.
P.P.P.S. This post is for you, Shop Girl*

MMmmmm Mangos!

I hope everyone is not getting bored by my dessert obsession. Personally I do love drooling over some tasty photos. Anyway, we were never a family that went for the traditional strawberries and cream in the summer, instead we had mangos and cream! So a big box of mangos is a true sign for me that summer is finally here. Here is something my mum made, and i 'assembled' then ate swiftly afterwards!! (dont worry i made more than one). Its a version of Eton Mess, but with mangos, cream and meringues mmmmmm.

The female of the species is more deadly than the male

Here is the spider specimin of the day, who was found in the bathroom, a popular spider location. YUK I hate spiders. I have to say this spider isn't as bad as most, it wasn't too big. House spiders are far worse. I prefer female spiders to male ones, as they eat the male ones therefore reducing the spider population. (Having said that, VH reminded me that they give birth to thousands of babies, making them even worse than their weaker counterparts).

However, I won't personally kill a spider, or get a hitman to kill it on my behalf. So my poor husband has to capture them for me, and release them into an indoor plant just outside our flat so we don't need to even go outside. Veggie Hubby believes they will all probably eat each other anyway. Possibly they might come back in again, I hope not, ugggh. I think they are more likely to pay a visit to our neighbour, as the plant is just outside her door.

Missing Children

I don't mean by this title that children have gone missing, but rather, missing from me (The French instead of saying, 'I miss you,' say, for example, 'Tu me manques,' 'You are missing from me.') Veggie Hubby really misses his little godson (2) and his godson's big sister (6). I miss them too, despite the language barrier they are still very affectionate and sweet with me, and despite not seeing him very often, they adore their godfather and get so very excited to see him. However, to see them requires a 24 hour journey each way, holiday time, and a lot of money. We can only really see them once a year at the moment, at Christmas if we are lucky.

I miss my niece a lot, she is eight and very independent-minded. She is easier to see as she lives in England, but it is still a bit too far for us to easily see and I haven't seen her since she was flower girl at my wedding last year, which is unforgivable of me really, to not even see my own niece who I love more than anything. I have tried arranging to visit her a few times, but it is difficult. Here is a little anecdote about her...on my wedding day, when I was trying to speak to everyone, she kept coming up to me, and telling me to spend more time with Veggie Hubby ('Why aren't you spending more time with him?).

There are other children who I miss a lot too, my friends' children e.g. Ms Cocoa's beautiful little daughter, and my cousins' children. I have pictures of them, but it isn't quite the same. I think I miss children more because you can't really speak to them much when not with them, and also they develop so quickly, they can completely change in a couple of months. For instance, my cousin's son, who has always been very shy, has suddenly become confident since he started school in September. Furthermore, the innocence and playfulness of children makes them, in my opinion, better than adults in many ways. Having said that, there are a lot of adults (and one black dog) who I miss too... :-(

I don't know if blogging is a form of therapy, I haven't used it as therapy before, but perhaps blogging can be a useful therapeutic tool?

Random Facts

Here are some random facts about veggie carrie and myself....

1. We once had office rooms next door to each other

2. We love coffee, but only the one that comes in big cups with lots of fluff and chocolate and sprinkles hmmmm

3. We have done ALOT of mundane statistics work (i am talking piles and piles of the stuff)

4. I had the pleasure of attending veggie carrie's wedding, as she did mine 2 years ago (also i have to confess i kept asking her in these 2 yrs to hurry up and get married so i could come to her wedding!!)

5. She got me addicted to blogging, and now baking too!!!

6. TV serieses!!! I follow everything from Neighbours, Desperate Housewives, Heros, The Apprentice etc

7.University- I think we both have fond memories of one particular location where we both lived, worked, made lots of friends, ate lots of panini's, and eventually moved away from.

x

Smells like summer!

So I am visiting home this week. I came laden with cupcakes of course, two batches for my brothers and sister to try- chocolate with mint buttercream, and coconut with mascarpone frosting. Both I can reveal went down very well!!!! Although perfectionist that i am, thought the mint ones looked a little 'halloweeny' and the coconut icing was a bit sloppy. Not that I think anyone minded. Its nice to finally have other people to enjoy my creations! Also the weather is finally warm (fingers crossed it stays that way), it actually smells like summer, as I am writing on my laptop, sitting in my old bedroom, windows open, curtain wafting in the breeze, smell of freshly cut grass, and barbecues, and children playing outside, the icecream man van jingle in the distance hmmmmm i love summer!

ps apple cake looks delicious too

Dorset Apple Cake

According to Google Analytics/Sitemeter, my most popular blog entry by far is my entry about Delia's low fat carrot cake. I've been baking again tonight, this time I made a Waitrose recipe for Dorset Apple cake. I hadn't even heard of a Dorset Apple cake until I saw this recipe in Waitrose. It was surprisingly simple and delicious. It just needs some accompaniment, such as fromage frais, clotted cream or vanilla ice cream. It reminds me of a Breton cake really, in its simplicity and appearance. There is a Breton apricot cake that I still want to make, but today was a British baking day. Having said that, Veggie Hubby and I did go to a French market, where there was even a stall selling Breton biscuits and crepes. There were many other stalls, including a cheese one as I had predicted, and a bag stall where I got a new black and white bag.

May Day

It is May! Wow, isn't this year just flying by? It hardly seems that long ago when I was in Canada at Christmas. To celebrate this new month, we have a lovely and welcome bank holiday- so no work on Monday. Even better was that I worked from home today, so it is almost like I have a four day weekend. Bliss! Shouldn't all weekends be three or four days? It would be a better balance like that I feel, as two days just isn't long enough. Having said that, my new job is still a novelty so I don't mind it too much, as it's different every day. It is having driving-free days that I appreciate the most about weekends.

VH and I haven't organised ourselves well, as we have no plans to go away this weekend. I wish I was seeing some friends or family (perhaps we'll pay my sister a visit???). We do have a few things to do though, as there is a French market all weekend in the local park. I am not sure exactly what this market involves but being French I am imagining it is most likely food (I would bet £10 on there being cheese). I love German markets at Christmas, they sell all sorts of unique things, and I am hoping that this market has things other than food. Talking of food, I am going to make a 'Dorset apple cake' too, I haven't baked for a few weeks since I started my job, and thought I'd give it a go as I have most of the ingredients here already.

Veggie Hubby and I may also escape this small town and look for somewhere else to live that is a bit more lively, and closer to work. We have somewhere to live in mind, so want to check it out, and there happens be a few shops there too. I look for a 'Godmother' dress whilst I am there - well I needed a special dress when I got married, so I feel that I need a special dress for becoming a godmother too... (any excuse).