Sunday sip.....

I meant to post earlier this week but it has been a busy week for me. I had three health related appointments this week two of which to do with my thyroid problems. It is possible that it is growing again and an ultrasound has been scheduled for April to have a look at how things are going. I also had a day out with friends. So Sunday came upon me rather quickly and here it is time for my Sunday sip...

I started our Sunday morning out making coddled eggs in a ramekin with toast. You can find the recipe on my food blog by clicking here. We always drink "cafe au lait" each morning at breakfast. This is a half a cup of strong coffee mixed with a half a cup of hot milk. This being Sunday, we also have a treat with our second cup of coffee which was a "Sneeuwwitje" (Snow White). It is a coconut cake with a powdered sugar topping.

I have been preparing my wooden lace bobbins for a new piece of lace I am going to start this week. Sunday evening watching a German country life program was the perfect way to get these bobbins wound with thread since I do it by hand. Lace bobbins are so pretty threaded in pairs. I have been working on a patchwork quilt top too which is just about done and ready to quilt.

We have spent this spring like weekend in the garden also. There are many things which have to be pruned back in the late winter. We also drove to a tree and shrub nursery to pick up our new hedge. We have planted 20 hawthorns along a section of our front garden to separate it with the neighbors. The garden had been originally designed as one large garden with theirs but we want our privacy as we enjoy sitting on the bench in the front garden to have coffee in the sun. We like it to feel more secluded and this should do the trick. We picked hawthorn as it is well loved by birds. Cats are not able to get to them there so easily with its long thorns. The tiny white blossoms are so pretty in the spring but the man we bought them from said it will not have them a plenty like when it is a tree form. We have to prune them a good deal for the first few years to encourage the full hedge growth. They are planted and have had their first prune. I cannot wait to see them start to show some leaves as they are just wood for now. 

  Hawthorn blossoms...

What are you sipping this Sunday?

Sunday Sip.....

Today's sip is Yorkshire tea with a spot of milk.....

What better to have with a cup of hot tea then a speculaas cookie?

Not only do I love to eat these as they are my most favorite cookie but I also love my collection of cookie mold used to make them.....

The only thing is they are gone in a moment but then I can see the pretty plate that goes with my tea cups.....

What are you sipping this Sunday?

A touch of prim...

It is almost weekend once again. I have been taking down my Valentine's decorations which means time to think of something else in its place. Why not go with a prim look with my own touch?

Simple and pure!

Have a great weekend! Mine will be busy with a project which I hope to share with you next week. I am looking forward to working on it but, for now, here is a sneak peek.....

Sunday sip...

Last year, I did Make do and mend Mondays. This year, I wanted to come up with something different and am going to start recording my Sunday sips. Today is my 48th birthday and could not be better. We are celebrating at Cranberry Cottage by taking a walk in the woods and dinner tonight at our favorite restaurant. It even snowed so I could not ask for more. *grins*

My Sunday sip this week is Dutch hot cocoa with real whipped cream. Pure delight after a brisk walk in the woods. There is nothing like making hot cocoa and it is so simple. Just pour a cup of milk into a pan with a heaping teaspoon of cocoa per person. I use three small sugar cubes for two people. Warm while whisking until the milk is steaming but not boiled. We had leftover whipping cream from a dish I made this week so I whisked it with a little powdered sugar to top our chocolate.

"Announced by all the trumpets of the sky, 

Arrives the snow, and, driving o'er the fields, 

Seems nowhere to alight: the whited air 

Hides hills and woods, the river, and the heaven, 

And veils the farmhouse at the garden's end. 

The sled and traveller stopped, the courier's feet 

Delayed, all friends shut out, the housemates sit 

Around the radiant fireplace, enclosed 

In a tumultuous privacy of storm."

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Enjoy your Sunday wherever you are!

Dough bowl fillers for Valentine's

Christmas time is a perfect time to think about other holidays. I found some heart ornaments a couple of years ago at Christmas but use them for Valentine's Day. They make great bowl fillers.

Mixed with a large pink vintage ornament and some berries give a sweet touch for the holiday in my small dough bowl on the dining table.

For my large dough bowl, I bought a string of battery silver heart lights (again was among the Christmas articles) and left a few pinecones in my large dough bowl.

Scattered mat and shiny red heart ornaments combined with the lights and pinecones give a romantic touch for the holiday in our entrance hall.

Today is the 200th birthday of Charles Dickens. If you are a fan, stop by and read my blog entry on my book and food blog...

Bookshelves and Stove Tops.

I told them so.....

In January, I kept telling everyone it was going to turn to winter come February. We have been having very low temperatures for a week but yesterday it happened!

They predicted an amount of 3 to 4 cm. It started to come more as light flurries but beggars can't be choosers and I was thrilled with even this. 

The blackbirds have been here in the last few weeks getting their fill of our crab apples. The tree is almost empty and, believe me, it was flowing over with apples. I have used a number of them on my winter table and friends took some yet still there were plenty for the blackbirds to feast on. I guess all that extra body fat is helpful now. 

Because it kept coming down heavier and we ended up with this...

In the end, we had 15 cm of snow. It is subzero C temperatures so that means the snow sticks and will stay for a while as the cold is set to last in the coming week. It is glistening out side. It looks like the glitter angels came by and dropped their wares along the way. *grins*

This morning was bustling in our garden as the birds came to have their breakfast. Jos went out and topped up the feeder in the back of the garden. It was busy with finches feeding so our happy couple - Mr. and Mrs. Turtledove - waited patiently in the neighbors trees next to our garden for their turn. 

I do love winter!

Ground Hog Day

Tomorrow is Ground Hog Day. Seeing that winter has finally arrived in Holland, I think I can save that big old rodent the trouble. It is going to be sunny and between -5 and -9C so he will see his shadow and we have 6 more weeks of winter.

I dug out my pinkeep I made back in 2007. It is fun to sit this out for a couple of day and remember good ol' Punxsutawney Phil. *grins*