The’ Bon Maman’ feeling !

 

  

I hope I didn’t keep you in suspense for a very long time after my last post.Of course  no murder has happened in my kitchen .We found a lot of blackberries and to my shed I went looking for my collection of  jars.The jelly making  went all right until accidently one full jar, without lid, felt.The sight looked horrible but tasted ever so sweet!It’s a real family thing for us to find blackberries ,usually by the end of the school holidays.In old clothes ,because they make terrible stains,we fight the blackberriebushes,they scratch and tees us but just like the poem by Mary Cicely Barker(Flower fairies)’you get your troubles well repaid’ because blackberriejelly is simply delicious!

 

I know what you’re thinking ,you can’ keep jellies and jam like this.You have to store them somewhere dark and cold.Like an old fashioned cellar or in my case a refrigerator.But I had this brief moment of being  in an old French kitchen full of the sweet smell of fresh jelly and old pots and pans!Just like the ‘Bon Maman ‘advertisements.I couldn't resist bringing my storage cupboard in the ‘jellymood’! So I made some ‘sweet’ pictures,you have to image the smell your self !

But back to reality,the jars are all in my refrigerator ,tightly packed because there are quite some .It’s not very romantic but the only way to keep them fresh,and I must honestly say if you use nice looking jars and some jolly adhesive stickers,it does look very sunny in the frig’ !

 

These are the blackberries from my own garden.It’s only one plant but after the three years it’s now  growing in my garden it has given us enough fruit to make six pots of jelly this year !

 

Many ‘sweet’ greetings from me and Jackie ! Hope you liked my blogpost and  hope you want to come back some time.Don’t feel obligated to leave a message because I myself read a lot of blogs and don’t always have time to give comments.I feel very honored simply knowing that you have read my blog and want to come back some time !!

No, I’m not using Jackies begging eyes to ask you to visit my blog some time again ,I just like the picture !!!!!!!!

GREETINGS .

 

Fresh vegetables and jam making……..

We live in Alkmaar which is a city but not that very big.It’s surrounded by little villages which still have that ‘country feel’ .Every now and then we visit one of those little villages for our jam and vegetable hunt, fresh from the farmer !Last week we went to Sint Pancras, which is a 10 minutes drive from us,and a nice drive with the bicycle .You see some very nice farmhouses with very large gardens of which we can only dream of!! 

The nice thing of this village is that the people are friendly and always ready for a talk.Some of them, well actually quite some sell  fruit and vegetables in their garden fresh from the vegetable plot.You leave the money in just a jam jar and of you go to the next garden.

 

My youngest son and I wanted to make fresh tomato soup and some jam,and went for a healthy hunt looking for ingredients to make this.Some very nice people we spoke to ,especially the nice lady that gave us plums, cucumber,and the sweetest cherry tomato's ever for free !!!She even showed us her very nice vegetable garden,and offered my son an ice-cream because of the heat.Where do you find those people these days?If you read this nice lady thanks again !!

 

Taste the difference,tomato’s fresh and biological, without pesticide.I can honestly say, they were very ,very tasty.

Fresh eggs as well.

          

A healthy basket ….

We made the tomato soup but didn’t find enough fruit for jam.We are going to the  dunes of Egmond aan de zee for some blackberrie   picking.                                                                                                                                             

What is this?A murder? I will tell you next time !  

Many greetings from ,ANITA.

Back again……

After a break of two months I’m finally back and still alive and kicking !Many thanks to Gonda (The old and the beautiful),Vale(Les cortions)and Mea(Mayflower)for leaving  such kind words  where I was .Somehow there were  so many things to do and so little time for my blog.But now my holiday is almost over  my’normal’ life of working,cleaning,cooking and blogging is slowly coming back and I’m packed with new ideas for my blog!

 

It sounds a bit boring ‘normal’life but there’s nothing wrong with it.I always enjoy going on a holiday but also enjoy coming back.Especially if  I’ve  found some nice things for my house .This wreath of gypsophila I made some time ago and added  some new founds to it.A few hearts of stone ( nice addition to my hearts collection) ,some green and some shells for a little holiday touch !

We don’t life that far from the sea so there always a little holiday feeling if we’ve been on the beach either for a little sunbathing or a nice walk.And it isn’t very difficult to have a large stock of all sorts of shells as well!!It’s always fun decorating with shells.Every summer at a certain point I get that ‘beach and shells’ feeling.It really means summer to me, not that I spend a lot of the time sunbathing ,that’s not quite my thing but it’s the feeling of sun and the seabreeze, fun ,holidays ,everything.So my’ Happy memories’ wallcupboard is filled with old cards and shells.

A nice old of course ,white bowl ,filled with shells,rope,feathers and an old card. An easy way to give your room a beachy feeling.What to think of this new book I found.It’s could ‘zeezicht’ or sea sight and is packed with beach houses and ways of getting the right beach atmosphere in your (beach)house.

 

So I’ve put some of this book ideas into practice and started decorating !

These shell pots are fun to make especially with kids.You need some glass jars and some glue to stick the shells to the jar and then a rubber band to hold it together.You can remove the band after some time.Then a candle in it and ready it is.You can also decorate it with some(old) rope tight to the jar. 

 

Yes it’s very clear we have been to the beach and came home with lots of shells.First a quick wash because you only like the smell of shells on the beach but not in your home !!!!Then you let them dry on a sunny spot and then the fun starts.Trying to stick the shells to the pot without them falling of .But still it’s fun to make ,and your reward comes when darkness falls………

 

Some very original lights.

So far my post for this time many greetings from me ,and of course my Jack Russel ,Jackie !!!

  ANITA.