I've been wanting to use those words since we moved into this house nearly two years ago, but finally last night I had a permanent place to keep my sewing machine. (Mr C - if you're reading I'm claiming squatters rights now so if you want the space back then tough!) This cabin at the bottom of the garden was where the previous owner of the house used to teach music therapy to autistic children. When we looked round I instantly knew what I wanted to use the space for, but once we moved in other jobs took priority and then Little Miss C came along and it went to the bottom of the to ... read more
Oat and Raisin Cookies
I've got the NCT girls coming over this afternoon and after a long weekend at home the cake tin and biscuit barrel are rather bare. Last night I had a quick look through my various cook books and came up with this recipe for oat and raisin cookies from The Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook. One thing I did notice when looking at the recipe was that it required 4 baking trays for 20 cookies. Now, I don't know about you I don't actually own four baking trays. Mr C thought I was a bit excessive having three, but seeing as my oven only has two shelves I couldn't work out how to fit four ... read more
Nella Last in the 1950s: Further diaries of Housewife, 49
Nella Last in the 1950s is the third (and sadly last) of the books (following Nella Last's War: The Second World War Diaries of 'Housewife, 49' and Nella Last's Peace: The Post-War Diaries Of Housewife 49 ) that have been compiled from the many diary entries that Nella Last submitted as part of the Mass Observation project. The title is pretty self-explanatory and contains entries from the 1950s. Admittedly not as "exciting" a time in history as the war years or period of change immediately following them, but fascinating all the same in terms of seeing how a normal ... read more
Am I a MADs worthy mummy blogger?
I started this blog nearly three years ago when I was still getting used to calling myself Mrs C. At the time Little Miss C hadn't even been thought about and therefore there was certainly no aspiration to be a "Mummy Blogger". Times have changed though and several people recently have referred to this blog as a "Mummy Blog". I still don't think of it like that myself, instead it is just about me and my life, of which LMC is obviously a huge part. Over the last year I have heard several tales of downsides to being a mummy blogger, especially on the competitive side. ... read more
Be-Ro Victoria Sponge
For years my late Gran told me to get myself a copy of the Be-Ro cookbook and last year I finally did - I just wish I'd done so sooner. This book has in every standard baking recipe you could ever need which is pretty impressive when you bear in mind it only costs £1.50 a copy! Unfortunately this Victoria Sponge never made it to its intended recipient as an ill Little Miss C had to take priority. There was one bit I had to disagree with though; Step 5: When cool, fill with jam or cream. Or??? Surely that should read "and"! ... read more
The 1950s Housewife
We've had a house full of sick people this last week so there's not been much to blog about (or much time to do so - my washing machine has never been busier!) We're not quite at the end yet, but I'm hoping we're not far off. Someone today sent me a link to this article in the Daily Mail: My (very slimming) week as a 50s housewife. I'm not normally a Mail reader, but this did make an interesting read over a cuppa. I'm trying to track down the Good Housekeeping book that they mention though and when I have a bit more mental capacity and time it'd be ... read more
Clothkits Sunhat
The Clothkits catalogue can be a dangerous place, especially when you have a little girl who seems to like girly stuff as much as Little Miss C does. Today's sunshine made me even more determined to spend some time with my sewing machine to ensure that she actually had a sunhat and amazingly I actually did make the time to do so! I bought the kit for this hat a while back, along with a matching sundress kit which is next on my to do list. I think it's turned out really well, especially since I managed to do all the sewing just in the time that Little Miss C had her ... read more
Simple Chocolate Cake
Looking back I am amazed that I haven't blogged about what has to be the world's simplest chocolate cake before. This recipe came to me from my Gran and there's one for making a plain sponge (of which there is a similar recipe in Hugh F-W's River Cottage Family Cookbook). The weight of two eggs in self-raising flour The weight of two eggs in sugar The weight of two eggs in margarine Two eggs Cocoa (I usually use 2-3 tablespoons of Green and Blacks' Cocoa) A splash of milk Sieve together the flour and cocoa. Cream together the sugar and margarine in a bowl. Beat the ... read more
New shoes
Not much time for words right now, but Happy Mothers' Day! ... read more
At Risk – Patricia Cornwall
I love Patricia Cornwall's Scarpetta series and when looking for something to cheer myself up in a charity shop the other day I was rather pleased to find a copy of one of her newer books; At Risk. As I curled up in bed with it I was initially a tad puzzled as to why someone had written a summary of some of the characters inside the front over. It soon became apparent though as I have never met such a woolly set of characters in my life. This book just didn't gel together at all. The characters were all over the place, the plot didn't hold together at all and to be honest I found ... read more