Ten on Tuesday: wheelbarrow-races and cheesy-cakes

1. Thank you so much for the support following my last post. I feel very cared for and really appreciate everyone's kind messages. I know I was treading a fine line between authenticity and over-sharing (I wonder if there should be a similar 'rule' to 'do not text when drunk' about not blogging when emotionally raw?!). I'm still finding things tough, but am out of the crisis, ...and bits of my house that are usually a mess have been organised into Orla-Kiely-covered boxes, so it's not all bad ;-)

  

2. Today is my gorgeous husband's birthday, so we've had a lovely relaxed long-weekend, with trips to the park (with the boys) and brunch at Moose Coffee (without them). 

3. I made a "cheesy birthday cake" (according to Westboy). (New York Cheesecake from The Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook, -which is an unpredictable nightmare of a recipe book as every set of instructions seems to be missing a vital piece of information, but thankfully this was a success).

4. The boys & I have had some wonderful times with Nana and Grandad over the past couple of weeks. Particular highlights have been wheelbarrow rides round their garden and puddle jumping in a nearby country park.

5. I loved making this stencilled wrapping paper. Wondering what to stencil next...

6. On Westboy's first day back at preschool, he sang all the way through the streets, riding on the buggy board. One verse, (to the tune of "The wheels on the bus go round and round") was: "I'm going to do a standing up wee... all day long". There are some times when I'm glad that his speech is difficult to understand ;-)

7. Speech therapy is TOUGH. It's horrible watching him find something so difficult (especially something that most people don't have to think twice about), and not being able to intervene.

8. I painted the lids of my most useful cake tins (a TJHughes bargain, with 'Jamie Oliver' on the lid) with blackboard paint. Now I can label them with what's inside. Or not, if I want to keep the cake for myself...

9. ...and yes, it really was chocolate & beetroot brownies in there, and they were delicious. (From the River Cottage Everyday recipe book).

10. Some Foy Vance, to finish: 

Linking up with the other Ten-on-Tuesday ladies: Sarah, Jo, Lucy, Hannah, Esther & Laura.