Strawberry

Today is Strawberry Day. A weird date in the calendar to be celebrating a summer fruit but who am I to argue?

I found something for all three of us to do together.
Using heart shaped balloons we each made our very own strawberry.

First up we have S wearing her new Harry Pooter PJs and deciding going cross-eyed was the best pose for this photo. 

Me with my attempt. As you can see I also wore my CK strawberry brooch today, a happy splash of red against the black and grey.

Last but by no means least G with my strawberry on the left and his on the right. He doesn't normally wear a hat indoors just in case you were wondering!

As you can see from this photo the birthday balloons and banners are still up, to be honest they probably still will be for a couple more days yet.
We've been busy with all kinds of birthday related things so I've got a little bit of catching up to do from the last few days. 
Nothing new there then!

Adult and Teenager

The 23rd February means that our house is decked out in balloons and banners.

Today it's T and S's birthday.

And two very special birthdays there are.

Today T turned 18 and S became a teenager.

With T no longer living at home and with the plans he had for his birthday we weren't going to be able to see him so we asked if he could come over yesterday evening.

This was our chance to give him his presents and the info he needed for collecting his tickets to his birthday treat.

T loves the musical Kinky Boots and so we bought him tickets to go and see the show in London this evening.

Plus some spending money for a meal out.

I wasn't sure how best to present him with this part of his present until I saw this tiger on Pinterest.

Our nickname for T is Tony Tiger.

The arms are folded in towards each other so the tiger is clutching the little scroll and I placed a small piece of sellotape on top of one to keep them in position.

T and S exchanged and opened gifts to each other and we sang Happy Birthday to T and he blew out the candles on all 18 of these mini cakes. 
We ate a good few of them afterwards.

S, G and I all got up early this morning to have breakfast together whilst S opened her gifts from us.

She wants to have her ears pierced a second time and so we gave her the money to have that done, plus a little extra.

Her nickname is Baby Bear so I cut out this cute chap for her and with his arms folded he clasped onto her money for safe keeping.

S has said she had a good day at school, lots of people wishing her happy birthday and being sung happy birthday numerous times too.
She is now at dance, as she is most Fridays, and very excited she was too about being there on her birthday.
When she comes back my sisters will be here for hot chocolate and cookies to help round off the day.
Oh and another rendition of happy birthday to be followed by more cake.

I love them both so much and special times such as these are so precious, even more so as they grow up.

Give Us A Twirl

For those of us of a certain age the words 'Give Us A Twirl' will, in an instant, transport us back to Saturday night TV with the one and only Bruce Forsyth presenting The Generation Game.
Anthea Redfern was his wife and glamorous assistant and each time she was introduced at the start of the show Bruce would ask her to 'give us a twirl' so we would get a 360 degree view of whatever splendid outfit she was wearing that particular week.
As today is Bruce's birthday I went with baking cakes and topping them off with a chocolate Twirl.
I actually baked these last weekend as this is when I was seeing my mum and sisters for a little catch up and as my sister T is a huge Brucie (and Twirl) fan I thought it would be most appropriate.
The cappuccino cakes were made using this recipe from the Co-op magazine and I can say hands down they are the best cakes I have ever made.

Out of Sync

I'm a little bit out of sync with my days at the moment for various reasons.

Take last Friday and the Chinese new year.

We would normally have Chinese food to celebrate, but I was out for a meal with 3 of my old school friends.

One was 50 in December and another reaches 50 next Monday.

Me and my other friend both have our birthday in July so we've still got a few months of our forties to go!

 This meant celebrating the year of the dog had to be put on hold until Sunday when along with the Chinese food I opened this mini bottle as it was drink wine day.

Normally I would go for a glass of red but this was given to me at Christmas and had been chilling in the fridge since then and I thought I should probably get on and drink it.

Saturday was Random At of Kindness Day.
My plan had been to buy a box of chocolates and present them to a shop assistant whilst I was out shopping in town for T and S's birthday gifts, but I completely forgot!
I was so absorbed in ticking things off my list, not to mention getting sidetracked when I spotted a couple of gifts for friends with birthdays later in the year, that it wasn't until I was on the bus home that I remembered.
So annoyed.
I will just have to make sure I do it next year.

Today is the anniversary of the formation of the Women's Institute.
The WI always conjures up images of home made cakes and preserves and so I planned to have scones and jam for my lunch.
That was before I made an appointment for the dentist.
With a numb mouth until late afternoon I wasn't really able to eat so I'll be having them tomorrow instead.

So with no photos to share from the past couple of days here is a random photo of my new PJs.
Soft, snuggly and wearing them makes me feel like a fluffy marshmallow.

O (Canada) Go On Then

Did you know that the Canadian flag with it's red maple leaf has only been in use since 1965.
15th February is known as flag day in Canada as this is the date of the flag's inauguration. 
Think of Canada and the words maple syrup are never far away, well in my head that's the case anyway.

Yesterday I dropped off a birthday gift to my friend G.
Her son has a part-time job in the food hall of a much loved retailer and had bought home a bag rammed full of ready made pancakes.
They had more than enough to fill up their family of five and so she very kindly offered us a couple of packs. 
How could I resist.
That's pancakes twice this week now.
Being Canadian flag day I dowsed mine with the remaining maple syrup.
A much better option for today than my original plan of reflecting the flag colours in my choice of outfit.

Loving It

I always have lots of bits and bobs with hearts on decorating the dining room mantle for the month February.

 At the start of the week I added to the decorations with a paper garland strung across the dresser.

I bought a book of differently patterned papers from The Works, cut out hearts from the three prettiest ones and threaded them onto a length of red ribbon.

G and I don't exchange cards and presents on Valentine's day but I wanted to make a little gesture.
I bought a little net bag of chocolate hearts and ladybirds and popped them onto this heart shaped plate with a stamped note saying 'happy valentines day my little love bugs' for G and S to share.

This evening T is coming round to stay with S so G and I can go to to the theatre to see The Shadow Factory. 
Look at us going out on a school night, very much looking forward to it though.

Flippin' Brilliant

The title of this post does not refer to the stack of pancakes I shall be eating later, for of course Shrove Tuesday is my celebration of choice for today, but instead it is in reference to my latest read How to Find Love in a Bookshop.

Being half term I have some time off this week and this afternoon I needed to be home for S. 
As so often happens she made plans to go out with friend so I was at a loose end.
I should have cracked on with the household chores but the lure of my book was too strong, I needed to know how it ended.
So I sat down and read for 2 hours.

It had me hooked from the start.
Just a few short pages into the story and I was crying. 
Emilia is sat with her father as he is dying. It bought back that time in my life when I had to cope with the loss of my dad.
Maybe because it would have been his 78th birthday soon and so emotions are always a little more heightened around these times, but also because she writes with such a warmth of feeling.
Her descriptions of food are marvelous and with just the right combination of words she paints a vivid picture of the world where the story is set and the people who inhabit it too.
It's a romantic tale of people finding what (and who) they need through the bookshop in one way or another.

In one passage Emilia is just locking up the shop on Christmas Eve.....
'Emilia put on her coat, shut the door and turned the key. She thought of all the books they had sold, and imagined them being opened the next morning, and people being transported as they sat on the floor surrounded by wrapping paper, or curled up on a sofa with a glass of champagne, or sitting by the fire while the chestnuts roasted.

I love those sentences. The images they conjure up and the essence of the anticipation of new books at Christmastime. I always have a new pile of books for Christmas and look forward and enjoy that quiet time on Christmas afternoon when you get to peruse them properly. 

This book would make a great present, for yourself or someone else. I did promise myself a while ago that once I have read a book it will go to the charity shop as our shelves were groaning, but I really don't want to let this one go as I can see me dipping into this again.

Mary and Munch

Two days worth here.

Yesterday was Mary Quant's birthday.

She of the hot pant and mini skirt fashion world.

Given my legs the most elegant way for me to mark the day was with a piece of jewellery.

The five petal daisy is instantly recognisable as Quant's logo and when I saw this necklace at a car boot last year I snapped it up in readiness.

Clicking on this link will take you through to the BBC website and details of when on 12 Feb 1994 the Scream by Edvard Munch was stolen from an art gallery in Oslo.

Here are G and I doing our best to replicate the painting and also probably the look of horror on the face of the director of the museum on being told about the theft.

A Day For All....

....to join in with.
Whether you realise it or not, thanks to the weather today you'll be joining in with celebrating Umbrella Day.

Loved this little idea on Pinterest so made sure there were Babybels available as an addition to lunch today.

Whilst on the subject on brollies, I was thrilled to find a clear domed umbrella in one of the multitude of pound shops when in town last week before our music event.
I have been wanting to use one as a decoration at Easter time after being inspired by this image on Pinterest.
The idea was originally used for a bridal shower, but the pale pastels reminded me of Easter and seeing as Easter Sunday is on 1st April, the month for showers, I am looking forward to cobbling together something especially if we have another family afternoon like last year.

Double Dough

The title relates to the food I've eaten today and not a huge monetary windfall.

Shame.

But tasty all the same.

First off we have lunchtime in the park.

 I had two wholemeal bagels, both with a good slathering of cream cheese, for bagel day.

Fast forward to Friday's evening meal.
Always something quick and easy and there are few things quicker and easier than a pizza.
Pizza day is definitely one day of celebration I can get behind!

A Little Butterfly.......

..... was my accessory of choice to represent Opera Day. 

I have only started going to see opera at the theatre within the last couple of years and Madame Butterfly is one I haven't seen as yet.

We were on an away day at work today, lots of discussions about work and work practices and so maybe a little light opera listening will help me to relax this evening.

Snail Mail

Send a postcard, write a letter, pop a funny clipping from a magazine or newspaper inside a card, share a favourite recipe or print off a photo from times past.
Do any or all of these today for Send a Card to a Friend Day. and let someone know you were thinking of them.

Never Going to Give You (the sauce ends) Up (on the bottom pudding)

A very contrived titled post to celebrate Rick Astley's birthday.
This wonderful chilli cinnamon chocolate pudding is made by plopping the cake batter into a greased pudding dish, topping with cocoa and sugar and then pouring freshly boiled water over the top.
Once cooked the recipe states that 'the top will be set but underneath it will be wobbly and liquid.
And do you know it was.
Served with clotted cream custard it certainly warmed the cockles on a cold day.
Delish.

Wrap Up Warm

No contest for my choice on Sweater Day.

This grey jumper is the ultimate in warm and cosy.

It was a fabulous find in my favourte charity shop, the local Barnardos where everything is £1.99.

I wore this when we had our weekend away in Bristol late last year and as it had kept me toasty as we explored that city I knew it would be perfect for out little urban walk today.

We live very close to an area of Southampton called Bitterne.

A while ago I had bought a booklet produced by a local history society detailing a self guided walk around Bitterne.

The walk itself is divided into 3 sections and today we did part 1.

The walk begins by The Red Lion pub.

A year ago, after undergoing refurbishment and a new extension, it was reopened by Wetherspoons.

A nearby underpass has a tiled red lion on the walls echoing the lion in the precinct.

Although the road was extremely quiet on a Sunday afternoon it is quite the opposite during the week as it's a main road into town.

The guide book told us that this was once a route used to herd sheep along on their way to market. On the corner of this road stands a shop and from it a watchmaker plied his trade. One day his young son managed to get out of the gate and wandered onto this stretch of road. Suddenly 4 horsemen galloped towards him and being scared and not knowing what to do to get himself safely out of the way he began to cry. One of the men dismounted, scooped him up and returned him back home to his father.
Apparently this gentlemen was none other than Baden-Powell who had been riding from the Southampton Remount Depot towards Netley Hospital to visit soldiers who had been injured in the Boer War. 

Near the corner of one road stood a solitary tree which we would have walked past without a second glance had the guide book not drawn our attention to it.
4 foot from the ground a metal hook is fixed into the trunk, positioned there in the 1920s, so a gentleman named Alfred Petty could hoist himself on to and off of his horse. He needed this assistance as he had lost a leg. 

I can't help but wonder who on earth thought it was a good idea to put in white UPVC windows on this building which had originally been built as a Baptist Chapel but has also been used as an Anglican chapel, council chamber and library.
With it's dull brown exterior and the stark white of the windows it looks more than a little plain and could really benefit from a bit of tlc.

One house I did fall in love with was this cottage. 
With a 'Sold' sign in the front garden I hope it's going to have some new residents who will love it and create a happy home insides it's walls.

This row of houses are just a section from a cluster of identical homes built in 1970.
They stand on the site formerly occupied by a grand pile named Anglesey House which was home to Mr Gerald Mills. He was one half of the romantic publisher's Mills & Boon's.

There were once a fair few pubs in this area and now just two still survive.
We discovered The Humble Plumb about halfway through our walk and as the sun has disappeared and we were feeling the cold it did looked very inviting but we decided to keep going, although I think a future visit is needed.
The other pub is The Fox and Hounds. Built in the 1870s it was originally named The Cooper's Arms but changed to it's present name a decade later to honour a local hunt which met there.

G had never walked any of these streets and it has been years since I had visited some of them too.
It was fascinating walking around somewhere so local to where we live and finding out about social history so close to home.

Live Music

G regularly checks the websites of local live music venues and whilst doing this very thing last November he found the Lounge Kittens were performing a family friendly show at The Art House Cafe. 
The gig was in aid of supporting  Independent Venue Week.
G introduced me to the Kittens last year and as today's event was advertised as family friendly we thought it would be lovely to share it with S too.
Today marks the anniversary of when Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper were killed in a plane crash. They were all on tour together and were flying from one town to another when the tragic accident happened.

Going to watch live music today seemed like a very fitting thing to do.

Hip Hip Hooray

it's Hedgehog Day!

Two accessories to wear today.
A little felt brooch which I stitched myself especially for today

and a hedgehog scarf which was part of my secret Santa gift from someone in G's family just this last Christmas. 

Back to It

As of today I'm attempting to start again with my birthday year of activities.

It was a good way to begin again as 1st February is Hollywood heart throb Clark Gable's birthday which meant watching a movie I have never seen before.
It Happened One Night is a romantic comedy which won 5 Oscars in 1934, including one each for it's leading stars, today's birthday boy and Claudette Colbert.

It was an absolute treat to watch and I know it's one I will happily watch again. 
Do yourself a favour and settle on the sofa on a Sunday afternoon and be spirited away on a greyhound bus as the love story between this pair unfolds.