Happy New Year 2010 & My 1st Blogshop's Giveaway

Well we had a grand time with the extended family over the Christmas get together, which was spent in South West London.

Lots of merriment, lots of eating a little drinking, ridiculously late nights/ they could be rightly called early morning bedtimes and simply enjoying each other company.

At any one time over the four days there was a constant fluctuating of numbers from 14 to as much as 21 people, with age ranges from 3yrs to an elder in her eighties.

My family absolutely adore Christmas and this year was another great one and even those who could not be with us physically were able to be there virtually using the Internet. Hopefully next year if everyone can make it would be even bigger and better.

So with this in mind roll on 2010 as there are more family get togethers to plan and to execute.

To help celebrate the New Year with all of you out there I'd like to let you know of my Blogshop's 1st ever Giveaway, the rules are all explained there, so hope you'll take part and spread the word.

Anyway this is my last posting of the year 2009, I feel kinda sad all of a sudden but excited at the same time for the year ahead.

So I would like to wish everyone,

A HAPPY & PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR 2010!!!!!

and a great growing season to all the gardeners out there as well.

Day 24 of the Advent Season.... ARRRGGHH!!!

Mini Christmas Crackers

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Mini Christmas crackers were today’s treat and the bible stories they heard are pictured below.

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My list of things to do are as long as yesterday’s but its all mainly kitchen based. So I’m off to the kitchen again.
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The girls and I would like to wish you a very Merry and Blessed Christmas and in case I don’t update again before the New Year, I would like to wish all my readers a prosperous and for the gardeners out there fruitful harvests for the year 2010

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Day 23 of the Advent Season

The girls got these personalised name stamps today, so I’m sure you know what ensued afterwards. I made them with hot glue and a piece of foam board.
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These are stories they heard today.

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Today I got on with completing a few household chores and because I’m crazy I choose to host a sleepover very last minute to help out a neighbour with baby sitting her three girls (6, 12, 14yrs). It put the pressure on but thankfully didn’t end in tears.
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Well tomorrow is the big cook off, I like to get the Christmas meals all done and dusted on Christmas Eve but I’ll still pop in to update the blog with the Advents’ Calendar last gift/ treat.
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In Trinidad we like to make impromptu musical instruments with what ever is at hand when we are 'liming'. One of our favourite things to use is a bottlle (usually from an alcoholic beverage) and a spoon (that might be around from eating food), Hope you enjoy the song.
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Day 22 of the Advent Season & Meeting Santa

Recycled Juice Carton Wallets

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I stumbled across the tutorial for these a few months ago and knew the next time we bought juice in these types of cartons (which isn't often) I would have to give them a go. The girls love them and immediately upon receiving them they initiated a game of shop and shopkeeper using glass stones as play money. My printer is down so I wasn't able to print out a template but they were fairly easy to make using other items to create the desired template shape, oh! and another thing, the tutorial gives an hour to create but I took about 25 minutes to do them both.

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Today's Bible Stories.
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On Sunday I smugly announced I was finished with my Christmas shopping, then late Sunday night I realised I had forgotten some things, arrgghh!

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So I braved the treacherously icy pavements with kiddies in tow and went to town and the grocery store.

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Good thing too as I had forgotten to take the kids to see Santa Claus, it was my youngest first meeting and she was a little awestruck and a little speechless (which is a not normal).

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Anyway I got home thinking yep I'm all done now only to realise I had forgotten a few key ingredients (*&^*%^), so I'll have to pop over to the grocery tomorrow at some point to get them.
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Today's Trini Christmas song is 'sung' by a local stand up comedian, who more talks than sing (not sure if he can sing) he has mixed in differing elements of local Christmas music. It probably won't be appreciated by most but another Trini would get it!! because he humour is based on local events and culture :) Gosh! I really miss home at this time of the year.
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Sprangalang - Bring drinks

Day 21 of the Advent Season

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix.

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So the kids got to do some baking today with their treat from the Advent calender being a chocolate chip cookie mix of dry ingredients, all they had to do was add the wet ingredients, here is the recipe.
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And whaa!! la!! 6 mini cookies each to enjoy with a cold glass of soya milk.

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Learning about the miracles Jesus did.
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Here are some close up shots of the ice patterns in an icicle.

Now that the rains have returned and the snow appears to be on its way out, I know the beautiful icicles days are numbered. so here are a couple more shots of the icy beauties.

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The Trini song today is about the enjoyment of local foods at Christmas in particular the range of homemade wines that is generally available. This is another parang influenced tune.

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Scrunter - Home Made Wine

Day 20 of the Advent Season & Christmas Decorations

Pine Cone Ornaments

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Well today we started to decorate the house and most importantly the tree went up, so the Advent gifts were ornaments they could hang in the tree.

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Here are the bible stories they heard today.

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Here are photos of some of the decorations that were put up this evening.

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This trini sound is sung by a female Calypsnian with the stage name Singing Francine. This song is also parang influenced, hope you enjoy.

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Singing Francine - HURRAY HURRAY

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(please see below for Friday & Saturday's updates).

Day 18 & 19 of the Advent Season

'Feathered Pencil Friends' are what the girls got out of their Advent Calender on Friday, these are so simple to make once you have the materials, for quick drying use hot glue.
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The bible stories now tell the journey of Jesus' adult life, which are generating a lot of questions.
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Empty Lollipop Wrappers.

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Oops! I forgot to take a picture of the kids sweet treat out of the Advent Calender on Saturday.

Scotch Bonnet Chili Peppers

Saturday evening into night I finally got around to tidying up the conservatory which meant cleaning up the recently aphid infested over wintering plants. In doing so I also harvested all the usable scotch bonnet peppers to make a some chili jelly (hopefully). The chili plants on the left as you can see were badly infested, along with the Greek basil. I trimmed every thing back to about 6" including the not so badly affected Vietnamese coriander, washed them all in a weak solution of soapy water and gave everybody got a light watering to keep them ticking over. Hopefully the basil and the chili plants will make it through the winter, the lemon grass (which was not trimmed back and had no aphids) and the V.coriander I think will be just fine.

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I find icicles fascinating, ever since I was a little girl in the hot West Indies I have longed to see the icicles I would read about or hear about over the news that sometimes maimed/ killed people in the States during their freezing winters.

I am yet to see monster killer icicles but with the recent cold weather I am finally seeing fairly decent size icicles forming. and I can't help photographing them. The one in the center above is the same one on the left but a few hours later when it has grown some more.
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The Trini song today I think goes perfectly with the themes of the bible stories of late. It is parang influenced and I hope you all enjoy it.

Crazy - Put JESUS In Yuh Christmas

Winter Wonderland!!

Woke up to a winter wonderland,

heavily laden trees,

with it sitting 8 to 10 inches on the ground.

School is closed a day early,

let the holiday fun begin.

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Brrrr! its cold, time to come inside and warm up, maybe listen to some parang influenced Trini Christmas music to help warm up my frozen toes. Santa in this song have the right idea, don't yah think?

Machel Montano - Soca Santa