Cyberspace is a wonderful thing!

My husband who is not an FB addict like me, had got a bit jealous of me, I think, showing him photos of the flooding around the area, decided he would have a little trawl of our local news pages and in the process came across a reunion page of a coffee house that used to exist in town.   He came across a couple of names that he thought seemed familiar the first being a possible sister of his best man at our wedding, and said she was friends with another lady who he thought might be our best man's wife.  (our best man died in 1980). Well a little investigation by me on my genealogy site and I confirmed that yes the first person was a sister, and b) second person was his wife, who had since remarried!

Well I took the bull by the horns so to speak, and posted a message!   Resulting in us chatting and sharing some photos yesterday evening, and me finding our wedding photos and scanning them all this morning.  This was a bit of a feat.  I thought we had a proper album somewhere, but couldn't find it although I did find my mum's album.

We had all the proof photos - which as they are over 40 years old had gone a rather faded sepia colour as they weren't "fixed".   We had a brilliant photographer that day - who by the time we had the evening reception had printed all the photos he had taken that afternoon in proof format and displayed them all for us. So I have been busy today scanning them all and attempting to rejuvenate them!

So here are a couple of my photos:  

Best man and my hubby (on right)
(retouched from proof photo)

group photo (I made bridesmaids dresses and my wedding dress)

and this is the photo his sister shared
absolutely love this photo

So all in all an exciting weekend.

Lemon and Herb Chicken

Well I have been experimenting again with the slow cooker.  I have made this before but in the oven, so thought I would try it out in the slow cooker.

The packet says add a sliced onion, couple of med carrots and new potatoes and drumsticks.  However, I used ordinary potoes, but cut hem into cubes, and chicken breasts which I also cut into cubes.

the packet mix

in slow cooker ready to go

The finished dish served with runner beans

I was really very nice, and I shall do it this way again.  I am not a great lover of chicken, though OH is.  The chicken was so tender done this way.

Slow Cooker successes and slight failure!

I am trying to be good and use my slow cooker more often.  (Well no point in being given a Christmas pressie that you asked for if you don't use it!)

Here are a couple of successes:

Rice pudding with raisins

Second attempt at bread - using a packet mix

and today was an Oops day.  I had seen a recipe for Baked Apples on the net (thought I had saved the recipe - but then could 't find it) - so did another little trawl today.   This recipe said so many hours on low (but it was too late to do that) or 4 hours on high.  However, four hours was too long - the apples had exploded when I checked how it was doing after 2 hours!

Oops!

However, as you can see all was not lost when I added a few spoonfuls of mincemeat to it, and as stewed apple it was "delish" - and there was enough to freeze for another day, when I will probably add a crumble topping to it.

Card for a 3 year old

Created in CAP2.  The bear was saved as a picture and then taken into cut-out studio to create various decoupage layers, and shadows added.

The embellishments along the bottom were turned into stickers and shadows added to create the 3D look.

A Good Start to 2014

Many moons ago a family moved from London to Crawley.  The parents joined the local village society and became friends with a couple who had lived in the centre of the village.   Both families had children who went to the local schools, and they too became friends.

One family was mine and another was the family of a girl called Paula.   Some years later, having lost touch (my parents moving north when I got married, and I moved away - Paula was already married and at Uni), through the power of the internet the two met up again, and became friends on facebook, and although they don't see each other regularly today was a day when they did, as Paula and her husband came across for a cuppa and a promised piece of Christmas Cake!

So here we are, me and my pal Paula - 59 years on since we were first friends, and looking just as mischievous as we were all those years ago.  We haven't changed a bit (she said tongue in cheek) and we shall both be celebrating a big "0" this year!

So we have done a bit of reminiscing - I think it was Paula that taught me how to climb trees!  I was remembering a holiday spent camping with her family on the South Downs, and she recalled a trip to London, when we went to stay with my Nanna.  (I am sure we were very good and didn't get up to too much mischief there!)

Not only were our parents friends, but also my brother and one of Paula's brothers were best buddies too. Unfortunately we both lost these two brothers early in life -  mine in 1981 and Paula's in 1980.

I have Paula's dad to thank for teaching me a lot of the history of Sussex, as he used to lecture for the WEA, and my parents attended a lot of his lectures, and then "dragged" me with them on outings to view historic sights around the County - but what I learned has stuck with me all these years.

We have made a promised that we will meet up more regularly in 2014 - as we only live about 6 miles apart!

Birthday Cards

last card for 2013 .....

created in CAP2, matted and layered and then Silks "Ice" acrylic glaze applied to give a shimmering finish.


... and the first cards of 2014:

High-bred crafting - stamping and CAP2

A LIli of The Valley rubber stamp, coloured with Promarkers, background created with ink pads and duster brush then painted with Silks Ice glaze.  The background was created in CAP2.

A variation created in CAP2

I liked the effect of the background I created in the blue card, so changed the sentiment, recoloured the elements, and added a little bear.

Playing with Christmas Presents

A needle felted rabbit, made with a kit my daughter bought me

My first production from my new slow cooker that my son bought me - a loaf of bread

tasted quite good

Had fun with the bread - it rose rather well in the proving stage, and I had to scrape some of it off the lid - the next loaf will be half the recipe - lol!

A Christmas Treat for Myself

I have a new dress to wear on Christmas Day - but needed a new necklace.  Originally it was going to be a red necklace, then I discovered this pretty heart in my stash, along with the heart rings.  I also made myself a new watch.

Necklace with pearls, crystals, heart and flower shaped rings,
and a gorgeous magnetic clasp.  Watch strap with snowflake spacer
beads and pearls.

The reverse of the little silver cut out heart has a
black back with silver butterflies - twso necklaces for
the price of one!