Football at every turn!

Summer’s come to an end and the past few days have given us some hazy sunshine - Indian Summer I've heard, though we are having some rain today. The kids have been back at school for a few weeks now and with this brings the after-school and weekend activities that  require us to ferry them back and forth.  We've had unexpected growth in our house that produced an extra inch in my son's height, arms and feet and we are having to shop in the mens department to fit his 5ft 10 frame.  With all this training he has been doing these past few weeks we expect further growth and another trip to the store to buy some bigger sizes. 

I do marvel at the changes that are taking place literally before my eyes.  I posted a while back on how he is growing up so fast and is no longer the sweet little boy who used to want to hold my hand as part of the A-Z challenge called Growing

He has been attending training every week and wants to push this up to two – school work permitting and has also been doing his weights at home. 

Warm up before the game

Discovering he can watch American football on channel four and Sky sports one opened up another dimension, and he has been pre-recording the 1am programme to watch at his leisure.  We now have both Sekani with his  American Football and Alan not only watching English football on the tv he is also coaching 2 times a week for Aslan Football Club   – with the football season started August you can imagine what ‘joy!’ it has been in our house with cheers, roars and ‘yes’s’ with almost 24 hours of sports on the go!  I suppose I’ll have to get some ear plugs or schedule my creative walks and do some more photography, which isn’t a bad thing I guess....

Sekani played in a match on Saturday at Crystal Palace Stadium, there were lots of other tournaments going on from teams up and down the country.  They had to meet up at 7am kicking off around 10am and me and Alan were at the sidelines cheering him on till around 5pm.  I have a confession to make... I never thought it would be quite as exciting seeing them play, If I knew the rules I guess I would be better placed to know what was going on....Sekani said he will teach me, took lots of pictures and here is him in the throws of play - number 47.  (You hear me shouting in the background before I drop my phone).

and here as he attempts to block another player....

All in all I am not totally converted, but I might even be able to watch a game or two as I take a break from my art corner

If you can't beat them join them!

365 Days of Colour - Flower of the Day - 118 - 124

Day 118

Reflection

Look at all your achievements not matter how small, you have come a long way

Quote

Pay no attention to what the critics say; no statue has ever been erected to a critic. ... Jean Sibelius

Scripture

We all know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. ...Romans 8:28

Day 119

Reflection

Right at this moment you are enough

Quote

I learned to live many years ago. Something really, really bad happened to me, something that changed my life in ways that, if I had my druthers, it would never have been changed at all. And what I learned from it is what, today, seems to be the hardest lesson of all. learned to love the journey, not the destination. I learned that it is not a dress rehearsal, and that today is the only guarantee you get. I learned to look at all the good in the world and to try to give some of it back because I believed in it completely and utterly. And I tried to do that, in part, by telling others what I had learned. By telling them this: Consider the lilies of the field. Look at the fuzz on a baby’s ear. Read in the backyard with the sun on your face. Learn to be happy. And think of life as a terminal illness because if you do you will live it with joy and passion as it ought to be lived. ... Anna Quindlen

Scripture

The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life ...Proverbs 11:30

Day 120

Reflection

Where there is hope there is love

Quote

Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go ....T.S. Eliot

Scripture

Commit your works to the Lord, and your plans will be established .. Proverbs 16:3

Day 121

Reflection

So many miracles have come from you

Quote

It is not the answer that enlightens, but the question. ...Eugene Ionesco

Scripture

Be strong and courageous... for the Lord your God is the one who goes with you; He will not fail you or forsake you. ...Deuteronomy 31:6

Day 122

Reflection

There are no microwave solutions to your dreams, just hard work, but it’s worth it!

Quote

All change is not growth, as all movement is not forward. ... Ellen Glasgow

Scripture

Wisdom and power are His. He changes times and seasons... He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning. ...Daniel 2:20-21

Day 123

Reflection

Right this moment, everything is where it should be

Quote

All art, whether it pleases us or not, helps to add colour, excitement, joy, or sadness and, most often, a sense of awe to our life’s experience. ...Henry O. Dorman

Scripture

Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart ...Psalm 37.4

Day 124

Reflection

Love is the key, how much do you love yourself...

Quote

You’ve got to keep the child alive; you can’t create without it. ... Joni Mitchell

Scripture

The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. ...Psalm 9:9

Time for Cake...

Alan blowing out the candles with my niece Symphonie looking on

Alan celebrated his birthday a couple of weeks ago and I had decided to get him a cake.  The local supermarket doesn’t have much choice of wheat free cakes so I went to the health food shop instead who had a larger selection, but nothing that visually looked like a ‘celebration cake’.  I ended up getting a Crimbles stem ginger cake, It didn’t look like a birthday cake so I glamed it up a bit and decorate it with some icing.  Not having done this before I wanted to keep it as simple as possible and got the ‘ready to roll’ variety.

What I didn’t bargain for was how much I would enjoy decorating the cake.  I guess it was about being creative, so with the icing, a bit of imagination and colour, anything is possible!

I got some lettering, hearts, sprinkles and got to work.  I even made a mini version of Alan reading his favourite book....the Bible.  I was so surprised at how easy it was and how effective it can be...I know I'm by no means an expert now!.  I improvised a bit and used marmalade to stick the icing but it added a lovely taste to the stem ginger pieces in the cake, in fact it tasted delicious and if you get a chance you should check out some of Mrs Crimbles products. They have also got gluten free recipes.

Taking a stroll down memory lane I thought about growing up as a child and the baking my mum would do...... Mum would bake her famous Fruit Cakes - a moist to the touch cake with flavours that complimented each other in a taste explosion in your mouth.  She baked when we were little and carried on up until around 2000 when dementia began to take hold.  She would put all the ingredients together effortlessly without recipes, holding the secrets in her head.  The cakes would come out perfectly all the time. 

We would argue as kids who would get the bowl or the spoon that that she used to mixed the ingredients as you knew this would taste equally divine, the bowl was the preferred option.  In those days we didn’t have problems with salmonella poisoning or we never heard about it.  I remember us getting excited with anticipation as the baking smells wafted through the sun drenched kitchen, the exotic smells of the nutmeg, mixed spices, vanilla essence and the wine soaked fruit that made the cake so moist.  We longed for it to be cooked and knew mum would let us taste a slice of the not-yet-cooled cake.  When she wasn’t baking cakes she made cupcakes, buns, breads, pies, you name it she could put her hand to it.  When I left home I tried to continue the baking family tradition, but as life took over, the tradition dwindled.  Every now and then I feel the urge to bake and have my sultanas and raisins pre-soaked in wine waiting....

I guess now that I can no longer eat wheat I will experiment with the other flour products you can get, and try out some of the recipes from my book, maybe a cake from scratch is due.....

My son’s birthday is coming up and I’ve brought some supplies to have a go with the baking and decorating, so then I’ll be able to taste the cake as well, will let you know how I get on!

365 Days of Colour - Flower of the Day 111 - 117

Day 111

Reflection

It is important to set boundaries

Quote

Stop the words now. Open the window in the centre of your chest, And let the spirits fly in and out. ... Rumi

Scripture

Peace I leave with you.. My peace I give unto you.. let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.. John 14:24

Day 112

Reflection

You can do it.

Quote

You’ve got to get up every morning with a smile on your face And show the world all the love in your heart. ... Carole King

Scripture

For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting; and His truth endureth to all generations... Psalm 100:5

Day 113

Reflection

What do you want more of in your life, make plans to receive.

Quote

What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us. ... Ralph Waldo Emerson

Scripture

I am coming soon. ..Revelation 3:11

Day 114

Reflection

To someone else in this world you are a miracle.

Quote

Anyone can escape into sleep, we are all geniuses when we dream, the butcher’s the poet’s equal there. ... E.M. Cioran

Scripture

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me ..Psalm 23:4

Day 115

Reflection

There is a fine line between expectation and anticipation

Quote

Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear. ... Ambrose Redmoon

Scripture

He who sows sparingly shall also reap sparingly; and he who sows bountifully shall also reap bountifully...11 Corinthians 9:6

Day 116

Reflection

Sing your song....someone somewhere needs to hear it

Quote

Learn something new. Try something different. Convince yourself that you have no limits. ... Brian Tracy

Scripture

Whatever you ask in My name, that I will do... John 14:13

Day 117

Reflection

Look back, You have come a long way...this is not your destination

Quote

Artistic growth is, more than anything else, a refining of the sense of truthfulness. The stupid believe that to be truthful is easy: only the great artist knows how difficult it is.

... Willa Cather

Scripture

I can do all things through Him who strengthens me... Philippians 4:13