Cats Flying High

To any doubters who read my blog...yes we do have 20 cats.
Just thought you feline lovers out there might enjoy the antics of a few more of our moggies, when experiencing dried Cat Nip leaves for the first time.
 This is TOTO ...he could not quite work out how he felt.

 MISTY wonders if he is alright ...and they are not close friends normally

 MARVELLA sure loved munching the leaves

 SID joined in too

RUSTY and WILLOW look on

 WILLOW enjoyed a munch in the end, but her legs gave out.. bless her ...happy and high

 CHINA ...like brother Sid ... was so chilled out and the cover became her NBF.

Take Care xx

WOYWW…Wk 172 … full of good intentions.

Meant to be so organized …
Meant to show you my cat blanket that was meant to be something else….will explain another time.
Meant to show you the progress of a poncho …. which sadly I realized was not working and so have just ripped back 250gs of yarn…with the help of Kris. He thought it was great fun … I did not.
Meant to get round to everyone last week but only managed about 80 …I did however visit all those who dropped by my place…as I always do unless blogger stops me. I feel if someone has made the effort to comment on my post, they deserve  a visit … if I have not managed to get to them already.

So actually …to put it in a nutshell …. I have been a rubbish woywwer this week.
On a happier note ....
You have all heard of  ….
A shoal of fish and a swarm of bees!
And even a gaggle of geese!
Well…..
I am leaving you with a ‘Cuddle of Cats’ …..

What makes you think that I love these three ….well I did before they chased a moth round the bathroom resulting in a domino effect disaster  …. then a Daddy Longlegs (Crane Fly) caught their attenton and they flew round the kitchen resulting in a smashed mug!!!! ....and I have another 17 .... most of whom have just discovered natural Cat Nip for the first time. lol.

Take Care xx

Kittens and Kids ...4th post this week ... yeah

 The kittens are growing fast …I really think we have reached saturation point now...feline wise  ….so no more....and you read it here …nature will take its course over the years to come and reduce numbers …and ... I WILL NOT GIVE IN TO BIG CUTE EYES OR TALES OF WOE any more

Kittens and boxes were made for each other....this is Kris's trainer box.

Rusty loves the kittens ….I hope the love continues after they are grown up.

 You can see the look of love in Barneby's eyes

 During my break from bloging, Kris started Big School… had to capture how cute he looked …and grown up.

  Robbie always loves going back to school …I think he misses the structured routine during the holidays …and the girls of all ages,who make a fuss of him … he has such a sweet loving nature. We try to keep a routine during holiday time but nothing goes to plan. He is finding this year harder but we will persevere …he may get extra help soon.

 Take Care xx

WOYWW 171 ...I really missed you all.

It is quite a few weeks since I last joined in a WOYWW but here I am …back with my Blog Family after about a 6 week break  ….I actually don’t have anything on my desk except  a mess but these ATC’s were on the table so I thought I would show you them ….my first attempts, inspired by everyone’s creations at the Birthday Challenge all those weeks ago .....ok months ago lol.  These ones were created while away 'cat sitting' at my sons ( see previous post if you want to see their cats and my GS‘s)…and they have been sitting here for a few days waiting to be put away. (click for a close-up).

 I have some more part finished but I have not done any backs yet. I am not sure what I am going to do with them but I needed to make a birthday card for DD ….OMG she is 40 …. and used one like a topper ….I think it works….maybe that’s the answer for me when needing a card. I also made a card for GS Olly but forgot to take a photo …doh.

 I also did some doodling while away … not that happy with it as I just could not get it to flow neatly but hopefully I will get into it again …and become neater eventually. I was not going to show it but then I needed to prove I had done  something else crafty during my break from bloging. lol

 This is another page in progress

That’s all this week and I will try to get round to as many of you as I can …great to be back bloging again.
See I can do short …ish posts …and it is the 3rd  one this week …. which is a record for me.

Take Care xx

Post 2 …..House/Cat sitting

My blog break started when my creative mojo had joined the foreign legion and I had to go over to my son’s house to cat sit his three felines while he and his family went to Ireland. The total silence …except for the TV and me talking to the cats and myself, was amazingly de-stressing ….even my leg swelling problems seemed to disappear. My knees however, complained about the height of their sofa …and it did not improve with time, as my DS had informed me it would, after witnessing my first attempt to extricate my old over weight body from its clutches.
 Cooking for just me and eating when I wanted to, was relaxing even though I ate too much as the fridge and freezer were well stocked…. And it was so nice not to think of other peoples eating likes and dislikes.

 I took knitting, doodling, and the where for all to create my first ATC’s…more of this on a later post. So glad I did because it rained every day…most was heavy precipitation  and going out without transport was not an option….well  not for me anyway.
These are the three felines I looked after ….
Harley … she took almost the whole two weeks to tolerate my presence

This is her son Totoro (the b& w) …named by Ben and Jake, after a character in a Japanese cartoon they love….he is so tolerant of everything…..and Ivy, her daughter from her last litter…such a nice temperament …and she is mother to  our Barnaby and Ellie.

 Seeing Jake, Ben  and Olly was wonderful  …even though it was only a day at each end of their holiday.
Jake’s operation site is now infection free but they will not really know how successful it all has been for maybe a year because of the effect of the terrible infection in that area.
When  Emma had to check Jake’s face and trim a stitch end, he thought it was going to hurt and cried so hard that he broke into a sweat …I stroked his hair and pushed it away from his forehead. It stayed like it …he looked so cute …just like a youngster from the fifties …so I has to grab a shot after he had stopped crying  and realized that Daddy was telling the truth about it not hurting.

 Olly is growing up fast …he was two on the 9th ...and is almost as tall as his brothers.

 And Ben and Jake are little posers ….this hug was staged by Ben, as soon as I said the words ‘Can I take your photo‘….such different personalities too.

 And then finally my photo with the boys ... DS said 'Big Hugs'....just look at poor Olly's face lol.

More Cats and Kids to come ...and some crafting for Wednesday maybe.
Thanks for dropping by ... and a big thankyou to anyone who has time to leave a comment ...I really love reading them.
Take care xx

Soda Scones/rolls (aka My Mistakes) ...Very Low fat ... low sugar too

I am back …at last … with a revitalised mind ….ready to share my life and family with you all out there …just as before ….I have even done some crafting ...  but where to start???
I think I will post several times this week …all with different topics… and I will start with a recipe ….as I have just made a batch of ‘Mistakes’ this morning.
Let me explain ......
I can make my scones with my eyes shut …and maybe that was the problem. …. several weeks ago  I was trying to make cinnamon scones …a mix of my scone recipe and that of a chap who has a Tea Room, locally.
However …when they were in the oven I realized that I had not rubbed in any margarine. …a big oops
My ‘Waste not’ mentality did not allow me to remove them from the oven and bin them …,I had to finish the cooking of them….after all the seagulls seem to eat anything around here.
To my amazement they looked fine …but how could they be???
Later  I realized that they were actually similar to soda bread and so when they were cooled I tried them ….they were so yummy when spread with butter. …and even better with mashed banana … and again fantastic with bramble jelly. I am so sorry there is no photo …they were gobbled up too quickly .... as were the following batches.lol
 I did however manage to snap today’s Mistakes …Garlic and Herb …which are almost fat free … and sugar free too…great for packed lunches with a slice of you favourite cheese or with homemade soup.

In case anyone wants to make my Mistakes…  here is the recipe…. tweaked  a little with each batch.

 Nanas Mistakes ….. aka ... Cinnamon  Soda Bread rolls  Prepare just over ½ pint (abt 350ml) soured  milk…( soured with 2 tbs lemon juice and left to stand for upto an hour)
Heat the oven to 200 degree C … 400 degree F …. Gas 6

Sieve together ….
450g SR flour
Pinch salt
1 heaped tsp bi-carb soda
2 rounded tsp of cream of tarter
3 tsp of caster sugar
And the seasoning …..
2 rounded tsp cinnamon …a little more if desired
1 level tsp allspice

Working fast … stir in the milk  with a round ended knife …it needs to be a wet dough so add extra milk if needed.
Turn on to a well floured board
Sprinkle top with flour
Pat out to ¾” thick and using a floured  2 1/2” cutter,( dipped in flour) make 12 rounds …place on to an oiled and lightly floured sheet and leave to stand for 2mins.

Pop in oven …cook for about 15 mins …check….when golden brown remove and check that base sounds hollow to the knock.

First  and 2nd day enjoy fresh
3rd day …toast and enjoy buttered.
They freeze well too.

Savoury ones
 Version 1 …..Season flour with black pepper ( as much as you fancy)  and  level tsp celery salt and reduce the sugar to I tsp ….great served with cheese.

Version 2 … Sugar free and very low fat as the milk I used is semi skimmed …
Use 1 tbs of white vinegar to sour the milk and leave to stand for a few hours at room temperature …stir in 1tsp garlic puree when soured … Add oregano ( dried or fresh, to your taste) and  a little black pepper to the flour mix for the seasoning and add NO sugar..

They are really worth a try ...and so cheap to make.

It feels so good to be back
Take Care xx