Another birthday and the lovely bits of winter

Our littlest one turned 20 yesterday and I can't begin to reconcile where the time has gone since she came into this world.  Genevieve wanted a birthday meal at home so I made Indian food, lovely butter chicken, sweet potato and chickpea curry with rice.  This year was a bit different to previous years because my littlest now has a boyfriend, a very nice young man who enjoyed my food too.  :)  I made an orange cake for the birthday cake, a new recipe which unfortunately had a few problems holding together it was so lovely and moist.  It tasted good so that's all that matters, we're not too fussy in our house.

The dodgy cake.

20 candles, almost enough to start a fire.

 Every birthday, Fathers and Mothers Day and Christmas morning it is our tradition to have croissants and coffee, tea or hot chocolate, whatever is your preferred hot beverage mid morning.  Yesterday Genevieve had an exam at 9.30am which meant an early start for us both as I drove her to the complex where the exam was being sat.  So we had our croissants and hot drinks this morning.  I think this is a hot chocolate fit for the birthday girl.

 

So birthdays for our lovely girls are over for another year.  Winter however is not over with another two months to get through.  This morning it wasn't raining and we even had a little sunshine, the perfect opportunity to get out in the garden to do some weeding and pruning (me), raking leaves (hubby).  It was cold but I rugged up and spent a delightful couple of hours enjoying the fresh air and getting out into nature.

  I've always been one to struggle with winter although it doesn't seem quite so bad this year.  Perhaps by the end of August I'll be well and truly fed up.  That being said, I always find it so encouraging when I see the Hellebore's in bud and

 the Daphne about to flower.  I love bringing little sprigs of this divinely smelling shrub into the house.

I hope you are spending the weekend doing what you love.

Anne  xx