End of the week that was!

Hello! Well, hasn't the week gone well over at Lucky Snapping. Everyone seems to have enjoyed looking back and sharing some thoughts and if not they have put down some special snowy memories to enjoy in the future.

So, what is happening here in the Big House? (that's what Col's mum used to call it, she lived next door in the barn they converted.. I had forgotten that name, maybe I shall keep it up...)



Auntie Jordan meets Annabelle..x



The girls have gone back home to ease the family back into things without the pressure of school runs and work. Next week we will see Lyla a bit during the day and do the afternoon run.  Lilly told me yesterday she needs to see Auntie Kate and Uncle Zac a lot more; I laughed as these are the two people she hasn't seen so much this week, hence the two people she hasn't faced as a united front.. she has tried us all out and we have communally caught on to her funny trying ways, you know, the ways of a clever little 4 and half year old.. yesterday for example she told April she didn't need socks with her little plimsolls when getting dressed for school.  When I got her out of the car I noticed and we laughed when I took her into school and I mentioned it, an old friend who works there tut tutted to me and said 'ahh the standard of your parenting..!

Everyone else was working or at school yesterday so I had a trip out with Lyla. Zac sent me a picture of how snowy it was with him in Southampton (and sure enough Anne later in the day showed me the same!.. a three day weekend for him, but good as he has had exams so will enjoy the chillin') but we had nothing, plenty of rain overnight and later in the day, but it wasn't even chilly enough for snow, even though the clouds at times threatened some kind of havoc!   

We had a little walk in St Ives, the grey cloud over the island and the houses whilst the sun broke through white clouds onto the beach.  A solitary man walking his dog on the beach, the waves lapping, very quiet, almost like an early morning on holiday..all around the town there is an air of preparation and repair. Men in white overalls, builders vans, scaffolding. It is like they have all agreed to get spruced up for the onslaught of spring, though to be fair the town gets bust all year round now, almost a little Padstow..

We bought saffron buns at a tiny shop which is almost like the corner of someones kitchen, just a window to the street, a small door and a counter in front of the door into the house. You open the door and a lady comes out of her house to sell you one of about twenty things in her window. Gorgeous though! Still warm and so full of fruit!

Saffron buns are a real Cornish symbol..but they vary a lot, some are awful and dry, others are pale and not fruity enough ..

Good old Wikipaedia..

This "revel bun" from Cornwall is baked for special occasions, such as anniversary feasts (revels), or the dedication of a church. In the West of Cornwall large saffron buns are also known as "tea treat buns" and are associated with Methodist Sunday School outings or activities. Most commercially available saffron buns and cakes available in Cornwall today contain food dyes that enhance the natural yellow provided by saffron. The very high cost (it is the world's most expensive spice by weight[3]) makes the inclusion of sufficient saffron to produce a rich colour an uneconomical option. The addition of food colouring in Cornish saffron buns was already common by the end of the First World War when the scarcity of saffron forced bakers to find other ways to colour their products. Larger versions of the saffron bun baked in a loaf tin are known as saffron cake. The main ingredients are plain flour, butter, yeast, caster sugar, currants and sultanas.[4]

When I gave a piece to Lyla it reminded me of how much easier it was once the children were old enough to eat one whilst we were out shopping, you know, at that age where at last, you can give them something to eat to avoid that hungry screaming before you get them somewhere for proper lunch! 

So for me it was a little nostalgia for the day..

... and wow, the house is quiet today.. but tidy! ;-)