Preparing Christmas, but…

All my cutting shapes when I was making Christmas cookies with our children.

 

Hello Friends!

Yesterday I baked mince pies for our Christmas 🎄 meeting on Saturday. 

I had the mince meat since last year when our son came for Christmas. It has been travelling from England to Dubai and back to France ! ( not a carbon free mince meat!) 😂 

I made my pastry from my old English  baking book ( from the 80’s) I used half butter and half lard and it is the British touch ! On the net they use butter only but lard makes the difference!

I did my Christmas decoration with traditional colours, but I added a pink ones  on the console for a little touch of fairytale and childhood!  

Last month I should have been to Dubai but i decided to go in January end of January.

( i didn’t tell you but I am not feeling too well for some  months. I’m I having terrible  headaches and troubles with my eyes and I have been waiting long to get better…

I don’t know if you remember but long ago when I was a baby I have been the victim of a car crash and had brain,  eyes damages and cervical vertebra and since my spine cord surgery 

I have a lot of headaches and eyes problems, so December for me will be unfortunately a busy month going to appointments. First the ophthalmologist, then ultrasound sound and MIR the day after Christmas. Anyway, I will be going to visit my son in January and see my grandsons with assistance like I did last time. I have been wanting to see if it was going to be better but now husband doctor’s orders I must do all these annoying things! 16,22, 26 of December.) it is  usually very long to get appointments so December is not too long I have no choice but to go.

It’s not great fun!

 I tasted the mince pies and they have a very good taste, I love mince pies at Christmas !

On another subject. We have a program on tv which is called “ the cleaners” these people are helping to clean and tidy very, very dirty homes. On last Sunday as it was raining I watched an episode of it. I am telling you this because I can hear my husband cleaning the bathroom right now. Each time I watch an episode he is shocked and is cleaning and tiding everything! On Sunday he tidied until late at night! It is very helpful! 😂 ( I must tell you our home is clean and tidy! But he wants it to be perfect!

So he bought their book and clean 🧽! And we finally are both involved in the process…) 🧹 🧼 

Today, I will bake Christmas cookies for our Saturday event. On the picture below there are Italian goodies Panettone we use to have one for breakfast on Christmas Day so good with a strong coffee!☕️ 

( source:ZZZOe)

Thank you for all your visits and comments!

I wish you a good day.

This and that !

Hello friends!

Yesterday was a busy day. I had no time to go on my blog.

9 O’clock I drove to the butcher to place an order for Christmas Eve meal, then drove 12 kms to get the food for two weeks in total I had to go to four different shops

Then come back home at 12 h 30 unload the car, put everything away in the fridge… and have my salad eaten!

It was very heavy so hurt my back had to take painkillers 

For the rest of the day. But then I started

my Christmas decoration and  but I will get the tree 🌲 on Saturday with my husband too heavy for me!

I made an oranges garland with the oranges I dehydrated.

Our grandchildren had a four days bank holiday and my son took them to ski Dubai and the next day to have a picnic in the desert.🐪 they have seen camels.

Here are my two little boys! Then I had a chat with Maxime which is always great fun.

Last Saturday the weather was miserable but we went out

All day and went to one of our favourite  shop to have a look and say hello. This is the little shop and B&B

The owner is a very nice person and we made friends with her. So she invited us next Saturday to have a hot wine and cookies with other customers one of them will play music while his wife will sing Christmas carols and we will sing together.  It will be red wine with spices and oranges in Normandy we also do it with cider only for Christmas.🎄 so I am impatiently waiting for this convivial moment! 

Making mince pies’ I remembered there is lard in the shortcrust pastry in my English recipe book and it was hard to find but I have got it! It really makes the difference!

Pictures from last Spring ! A house nearby so beautiful!

Today, will be baking day ! Baking Christmas cookies for Saturday’s event!

I wish you a nice day!
 

A busy weekend.

Hello Friends!

This is the only new decoration for this year I have got too much!

Macaroni cheese

Last husband Lego creation!

We had lunch in Le Neubourg

This is the Brasserie restaurant which is called “ the two zebras” because the owners are twins. ( zebras in slang are the two funny zebras ( guys) )

I always found it was a strange church architecture?

We finished the two vegetable puzzles.

This weekend it was a busy one! We went to a town called Louviers where I ordered some clothes from the Tuesday live. Before ( I forgot) we went to the concept store

And I bought two new little puzzles  and had a latte macchiato. Then we drove to another town Le Neubourg and we had our lunch there. I should not have eaten this lemon meringue  cake… but so good!😊 

 

(Source : ZZZOe)

Some views from Rouen i found on Facebook  this is “ The big clock “

(Source: Rouen en photo on Facebook)

Autumn and rain ☔️ 🌧️

Hello Friends !

I hope those who celebrated Thanksgiving A very had a nice time and nice meal!

Today, I framed my first little puzzle and after the house chores are finished I am having a cappuccino and read my Christmas 🎄 magazines.

We are going to to start our Christmas shopping and order the food I need for cooking, then I’ll just have to collect them before Christmas Eve.

I wish you a nice weekend !

 

Window with a view.

Château de Kerjean Brittany .

Hello Friends!

Today, I will show you a place I love in Brittany.

Le Chateau de Kerjean which was partly destroyed, when? At the French Revolution of course! The stones  have been sold . It dates back to the 16 Century.

We visited it during a summer stay in Brittany and it was fabulous to have a drink outside and look at these windows opening on the sky! It was a window with a view! View on the sky and changing all the time and full of mystery in a remote place among the forest and land.

The mysteries of Brittany !

For those of you who are celebrating Thanksgiving A very Happy Thanksgiving to you!!

It was the castle before the revolution