I've been ill over the last couple of days and was very busy before that which led to the being ill.  We have friends over from Australia , so was making the most of seeing them whilst they were in the area.  I went to see Sally Morgan, the psychic the other night, wasn't very impressed with her but it was a night out.  Work were having a bake sale on Monday so I spent all of Sunday baking - I made 100 cakes and biscuits.  They raised over £300 and were sold out by 11.30!
Tomorrow Little Man will be 5, seems to be such a milestone!  He is very aware that it is his birthday and I have made some cake pops for the party bags and some cupcakes for the birthday cake.  Pics to follow.
I'd best try to get to sleep before Mr S gets home.
Night!

Sunday - I finally finished and delivered the latest order of cakes.

 The lettering needs some work but I don't think it turned out too bad!

 Cupcakes.  Mum wanted a blue theme and he wanted Yellow!  So there was a compromise of the two and I think they actually go together quite nicely.

I'm sure there is a way to get the pics closer together but after today I can't cope with that!

Another busy day what with a meeting in school first thing, shopping for cakes that are to be made later today and then rounding up small people while Mr S goes out gallivanting!
I have 24 cupcakes and a cross shaped cake to make for a Communion on Sunday.  So tonight I have cut out the cupcake toppers and the lettering and decorations for the cake.  Later on I will bake the cakes and try to keep the small people away from them.  I have some plain cakes left over from the earlier bake in the week, i gave one to Little Man after his tea and he was very disappointed that there was no icing or butterflies on it!
Pics to follow shortly when everything is assembled.
It is now 01.36 so time for bed  xx

I've had had the most exciting day today in a long time.  I've not been at work this week but went in today as we had a VIP visitor.  The office was teeming with Police, they were checking the bins, cupboards, the ceilings everywhere!
Because............................
http://www.flickr.com/photos/enherts/sets/72157630127263064/

I made some cakes for the occasion which were admired by the police with one asking who made them and was she married!
I gave up trying to pretend to work after a while as there was far too much commotion with the crowds and the Brass Band playing (they always choke me up).

It was a very special day ending with the fact that I can now park in the car park nearest to my workplace and my new permit was ready!  Trust me it was exciting, the last permit ran out in September!

Hopefully I will sleep tonight after all the excitement!

I have been very neglectful in the last few months! Housework, blog etc but not the children!  I have still been making things but slowly and have some unfinished projects hanging around.  2 of them are jelly roll quilts that need quilting but haven't found the time or space to do that yet!
I am still very pinterested and saw a lovely piggy project which I thought would be ideal for a piggy loving friend and her birthday.  Here are my little creations before they went in for roasting  baking!
They were a great hit and well recieved!  I used sculpey for the first time and just kind of rolled and shaped it till I was happy.
A pencil was used to poke in the beads for eyes and make the nostrils.
These 4 were made from 3 packs of clay hence the multicoloured one on the left!

I will be back soon with more makes.  I've got cupcakes to bake for Queenies visit on Thursday and a confirmation cake to do for Sunday!  EEK!

Pinterest/Pinaddicts

As both Mr S and Little man were home sick today, I escaped to the kitchen to do some baking.  I have become very 'Pinterested' recently and have spotted these gluten free muffins (I'm a Coeliac) so have decided to make them for the Pinaddicts challenge; https://www.facebook.com/pages/PinAddicts/317504048287231?sk=wall

They should have looked like this;  

but they looked like this;

 They taste great though and no different to 'normal' cakes.  Luckily I had some cup measures to hand!
The recipe is here; http://www.livingwithout.com/recipes/gluten_free_cinnamon_doughnut_muffins-2573-1.html

Here’s the recipe for a doughnut shortcut. Just bake these in 12 muffin cups—nice and easy. If you can, let muffins cool completely before enjoying them so the cinnamon-sugar topping has that satisfying ‘crunch.’ (It’s worth the wait!) This recipe can be made with egg replacement.
¾ cup milk of choice
1 cinnamon stick, optional
½ cup (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter or dairy-free alternative, room temperature
⅔ cup sugar
2 extra-large eggs
1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1½ cups gluten-free all-purpose flour blend of choice
¾ teaspoon xanthan gum
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Topping

½ cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a standard 12-cup muffin tin with unsalted butter or line with muffin papers and set aside.
2. In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, heat the milk and cinnamon stick, if desired, whisking constantly for about 6 minutes or until reduced to about ½ cup liquid. Strain mixture and discard cinnamon stick. Set aside to cool.
3. In a large bowl, cream the butter or dairy-free alternative and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and vanilla and mix until well combined.
4. Whisk together the flour blend, xanthan gum, baking powder, salt, cream of tartar and ground cinnamon and add to the wet ingredients. Add the cooled scalded milk in a slow, steady stream, mixing to combine. Beat the batter until it thickens and becomes a bit more elastic.
5. Divide the batter evenly among 12 prepared muffin cups. Place the muffin tin in the center of preheated oven and bake 15 to 18 minutes or until muffins are lightly brown and a toothpick inserted in the center of the middle muffin comes out with a few moist crumbs attached.
6. While muffins are baking, make the topping by combining cinnamon and sugar in a medium-size bowl. Once muffins are finished baking, allow them to cool slightly and then roll tops (while still warm) in the topping. Set aside to cool completely.

Each doughnut muffin contains 239 calories, 5g total fat, 5g saturated fat, 0g trans fat, 61mg cholesterol, 168mg sodium, 33g carbohydrate, 0g fiber, 2g protein.

For Egg-Free Cinnamon Doughnut Muffins, replace 2 eggs with 3 tablespoons applesauce + 1 teaspoon baking powder + 1 tablespoon flaxmeal + 3 tablespoons hot liquid (combined and mixed well). Add ¼ cup additional flour blend to dry ingredients if dough is too wet.

Will it ever end!

I have been so slow in updating this blog as so much has happened since the last post.  It was Young Lady's birthday which went well.  She had a great time and got some presents and money which she was very excited about.  She had an Aero Mint Cake from Tesco which she loved and then we saw some friends in the evening.  I negotiated a return to work one day a week for the time being as the winter has really caused my fibromyalgia to flare up.  Luckily I managed to do one week before a weeks annual leave which means I am back on full (not sick) pay. Yay!  During my AL it was my birthday, I'm a firm believer in not working on your birthday so i always request a day off or AL.  Unfortunately, I got tonsillitis!  It is a usual occurance at this time of year and is not the first time that my birthday festivities have had to be postponed!  We have also had some snow!  The kids had a great time and Mr S took them sledging which they loved.
During all these exciting time Little man has been ill many times with vomiting, eye infections, sore throats, coughs and colds, it is never ending! he hasn't done a full day at school since before Xmas.  I thought this week was going so well with 4 full days under our belt but at 01.35 this am, off we went again! 
Oh well, we will see how he improves but have made him and appointment at the GP's for an MOT!