The cake melted in the oven

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HUFFLE

Still a house full of ill people but we are coming through the other side.  Good job because I had a list of things to do today including driving four under 12’s to a dodgeball tournament.

Huffle was whistled downstairs this morning by Smallest wanting to go to school and wondering why Huffle was having a lie-in.  Well he is FORTY THREE now and he says he feels like it too.  Poor old fella.  No-one on Facebook (apart from a couple of family members) wished him a happy birthday and he was really disappointed.  Then we realised facebook didn't have his birthday on.  Silly Billy.  My fault too because I never posted anything on there because I put his birthday cake on Instagram.  Poor Huffle.

He only opened one card before the kids came home and that was from Grandma and Grandad who Facetimed and sang to him.  He went to the mailbox yesterday and found a letter from a Hearing Aid company.  Well that said it all really.  Today he excitedly hopped to the mailbox again to find another card, this time from AuntPear.

His other cards and presents were saved for later.

This morning I made an orange jelly and a Cake which looked very strange and I don’t know why
I put it in the oven because it looked very wrong.  It was wrong, it melted all over the bottom of the oven.  The house smelled burnt for the rest of the day but luckily it was a beautiful sunshiny day and we could have the windows and doors open (13*).  My second attempt was fine.  No idea what happened the first time.

I left Huffle working and took the school kids to the tournament with all intentions of leaving them there but it was too far away and would have meant two ours of driving for me back and forth.  Plus not one parent wanted to help me out even though I said I wasn't feeling that well.  PaddingtonsDad (teacher) told me I could lie down in my car.  oh thanks for that and one parent said she had plenty of spare seats in her car but felt it was out of her comfort zone to use them.  Well thank you kind ladyNOT!   So I stayed all afternoon with just a banana for food in a cramped gym with parents who don't understand personal space and kids who stunk of BO.  Smallest's team did really well and the two Hamlet school teams ended up playing each other for fourth place.

Back home I quickly made a start on dinner.  Huffle had requested Butter Chicken and in hindsight we should have done it tomorrow but the kids helped and we did it all with Lentil Dahl and homemade naan wraps and put together the cake and had a lovely dinner, jelly and ice cream and a slice of cake later.

Huffle has had three letters/emails this week calling him STURAT instead of Stuart, so we thought it would be funny to put STURAT on his cake.  very naughty. 

We watched Huffle open his cards and presents and although he didn't get much this year due to illness etc, he was pleased.

we'll get him more suff when we go out next.

Big shooters don’t win cinema tickets

Last week Smallest had a Valentine Dance which he had to go to and the minimum donation was $5 (we later found out it was $1) and for every $5 you were given a ballot to enter for prizes.  Smallest came home today with a prize of two $15 giftcatds for cineplex.  He was particularly pleased because one boy raised over $100 and got nothing.  That might sound a bit mean but he was trying to raise the most money so he could win a pizza party for his class.  Little did he realise that he could have bought a pizza for cheaper!!!  Yay cinema time.

Smallest also has got through to the final of the Multiplication Tournament.  He beat a girl yesterday, another today and has one more to beat on Monday (though she is REALLY good).  Yay clever boy.

Small’s Band got a Silver in a festival on Thursday evening (though it wasn’t a competition) and he bought home a very battered and old Tuba for him to practice on for the rest of the Semester (his teacher very kindly recognised that he does not live near the school and therefore it would be difficult for him to bring his normal tuba home and back again regularly.  For that I thank you Q for being thoughtful to me!

At the end of last week Smallest was ill with a sore throat and cough but is now fine apart from a cold.  Small got a sore throat this week and also has a cold but is managing it.  Huffle’s tonsils grew and grew and finally he went to the walk in doctors today and found out he has strep throat but now has antibiotics.  I got a sore throat yesterday and now feel terrible with a cold too and legs that don’t feel like they should hold me up!  Although Huffle carried on working, I did have a day of sitting and knitting and watching TV, lucky me.  (Well I say a day, I still made dinner).

The weather has been mainly raining and windy.  No Snow and lots has melted.  No ridiculously cold temperatures, mainly positive temps.

Nothing much has happened this week, partly due to illness.  We have nothing planned for the weekend except a football game for Small on Saturday evening and trying to get everyone back to fighting fit.

Chocolate Chip Cookies made by me.  Chocolate Genoise made by Small.    Rye and Spelt Bread  that refused to rise (awaiting a response from PaulHollywood).   Foggy walk.  Rain and Fog.  Power Cut.  A morning in the greenhouse.  GBR beating Canada in Curling (not smug).  Small and his beaten up Tuba.

Graffiti and Lights

*******WARNING PHOTO OVERLOAD*******

Yesterday, midday, we travelled into Toronto on the train for the Festival of Lights.  As it was best viewed when it got dark, we had an afternoon to fill first.   Huffle decided to take us somewhere I have been wanting to go for ages, Graffiti Alley.  A series of alleys, interconnecting, all covered with really cool graffiti.

Huffle drove us to the train station, the train took us to Union Station and then we walked nearly 2km to the Fabric District.  It was a bright cool day, at times very cool but the sun helped to keep the iciness away, at least until much later.

I think we went down about six alleyways, pretty much covered with amazing artwork.    There were a few people milling about, but not too many.  It was very cool.

Top Cat and his impersonators

love how every space is covered, even doors and shutters

Huffle particularly liked this because it was part of a program from his childhood

Muhahahahaha

THOMaaaassssss

Rinky dink panther

these birds were a favourite of Smallest's and kept appearing everywhere

The end of the graffiti brought us out to China Town.  Huffle requested a waving white fat Chinese cat for his birthday so we looked in various shops trying to find the right one.  We found a small pair of waving cats which we bought but the one he specifically wanted could not be found.  At one point Small turned to me and said “I’m getting a bit fed up with all this Chinese stuff” and Huffle promised not to take him to China ever!”.  After traipsing through China Town, watching a show of Chinese dragons, seeing pig heads hanging in windows and checking out hundreds of waving cats, we decided to go and find something to eat.

a sidewalk (can't help it) show of chinese dragons

Cat on a chair?  why not!

We walked another 1.4km to the Theatre District and had a lovely meal at a place we’ve been to a few times called Hey Lucy.  Chicken and spicy sausage pasta, Margherita Pizza and Calzones with Sweet Potato Fries plus a large local beer.  Very nice.

1.8km walk away to our favourite Pizza/Gelato place which unfortunately had closed down since our 

last visit, which was probably a year ago.  What a shame.  We planned to have a cheeky gelato and a long sit down as Smallest’s feet were really hurting and my left calf was achy and spasm’ing.  Instead we walked another 1.2 km to the Distilliary District where the light festival was.  It wasn’t quite dark so we went into Cacao70 for a warm, a long wait for a table and eventually a coffee, two parfaits and a cake and four spoons.  

Hruffles Chocolate Cake - honestly there was a cake in there somewhere

Raspberry Parfait

Triple Chocolate Parfait (of course)

By the time we finished, it was dark and we were ready to go and see the many lights of the Festival. By now it was very cold, Smallest’s feet were hurting and he had tummy ache from too much ice cream etc.  However, the lights were really good and there were plenty to see.

TFL entrance before it got properly dark

fire breathing dragon

bit weird

a piano in a glass box made these lights change

I would like one of these in our house

the lights moved to music.  cool

trying to not look cold

I would also like these in our hall

the fire didn't seem to have any heat

picture through a window.  don't know what it was but I really liked it

clever

this could fit in the kitchen

random people but the queue to have a photo in it was just too long

We probably spent about an hour there and then walked another 2km to the Train Station where we got to sit down and rest for ages before our train arrived.  All in all we did 17,000 steps today and walked 11km’s.  No wonder everyone hurts!

We all have a day off today and we are spending it in our PJ’s.  HAPPY FAMILY DAY