Chocoholics Beware

I needed a special chocolate heavy recipe to make for a friend as a gift yesterday so I went on line to see what I could find and here is the result.  I got up nice and early this morning so I could bake them and then get some into the mail nice and fresh!

Rich Chocolate Cookies 

- but that name really doesn't do the cookies justice.

How about

Chocolate Overload

or 

To Die For Cookies

or 

Big Yum Cookies.

Alright maybe none of the above!

(Edit - my girlfriend made them today and she has renamed them the 

EAT AS YOU GO COOKIES!  Seems to work!)

I just know they are seriously yummy - perfect for dunking if that is what you like, gorgeous straight out of the oven and, by the way, my house smells delicious and these have the 

hard-won Guitar Hero seal of approval.

You will find the recipe here and it is simple enough.  I made a double quantity. 

Melt the butter and chocolate together then add in the remainder of the ingredients.

You are supposed to add in a cupful of chopped walnuts for each quantity but I don't know if my friend likes walnuts and I know they like chocolate so....I added a big bag of Smarties (like M&Ms for my American friends) 

You are then supposed to put the mix in the fridge for an hour to set hard enough to portion out but I find this makes the mix too hard.  So I just let it sit for about an hour (while I went and collected Fly Boy's Laptop which had been left behind on its own at the bus stop - yes he freaked out- yes so did I and yes - he was jolly lucky to get it back.  Honest Year 8 boy handed it in so I rewarded him with an itunes card!)  Anyway I digress - after an hour the mix was solid enough to scoop - if you don't have a scoop use a spoon - this mix will melt all over your hands into a sticky mess as there is so much chocolate in it.

And finally - the end result!  I have had one and I approve!  Guitar Hero loves them but there is no guarantee he will eat more - Fly Boy has so far not even bothered to try one!  Thank goodness I have friends to cook for.

 

Dare you to try them!  Such a pity you can scratch and sniff!

Till next time..............happy stitching!

Marvelous Marg

My lovely Aussie Hero Friend Marg decided to help me out with the sewing for the Irish Charity Bazaar this year and sent me a huge bundle of homemade goodies to send over!

Check out these bags - great for the beach!

Ad some cute cushion covers

I really love the colours in this table runner.

These napkin holders, complete with gorgeous Aussie napkins are great too.

Another lovely cushion cover and check out the really neat satin stitch on the blossom!

Gorgeous zippered pouches

Cute kids pencil cases - I so love that fabric - where do you find fabric like this?

A cute little mug rug

A trio of Aussie zippered pouches

and a pretty soft pastel one

A really nifty folding shopping bag

which folds up really neatly and then the top folds over the picture and closes it all up.

And two nifty thing-a-ma-bobs for carrying a plate - and I bet Marg has a heap of these as she is such a great cook!

Thank you so much Marg!  You are the best!

Till next time..............happy stitching!

Poor Cherry Red

Yep, Poor Cherry Red is missing out at the moment.  I am so busy with Aussie Heroes at the moment that she is coming a pretty poor second.  The only problem is that my heart truly lies with Aussie Heroes and personally I don't feel like I am missing out.  


You must have noticed that I am not posting as often as I once did on Cherry Red and I am sure you have worked out why.  Just at the moment things are rather busy.   We just had the weekend in Melbourne and I have two weekends home and then head down to Canberra for four days- egads!  I am so looking forward to this trip but there is so much I want to achieve before I head down there.


Additionally I am not getting time to read blog posts much either although now that the boys are back at school (thankfully - three weeks is a looooong holiday) I will spend a bit more time sitting in the car waiting for them so will catch up a bit then.


If I haven't commented on your blog for a while that is because I have unwillingly turned into a lurker at times.   I do most of my blog reading on my ipad and sometimes it freezes in the middle of a comment and I can't finish the comment.   No idea why - probably operator error!!!  


So, I am still around, and I am still reading and loving all your blogs but I can't always comment.  


And I am still sewing - lots - but also doing paperwork and chasing media and spreading the Aussie Hero word. 


Now, to end on a happier note - check out this quilt.  I just love it.  It is called the "Carefree Quilt" but I would like to call it something like "Simple Joy"  or "Free and Happy".  

(source)

Jennifer over at Ellison Lane Quilts wanted to know more about the quilt so she did an interview with its clever creator, Rosie Stirling, and posted it on her blog.  You might like to read it too.

Hope you enjoy it!

Till next time..............happy stitching!

Happy 80th Birthday

We have just come back from a weekend in Melbourne to celebrate my Mother-in-Law's 80th birthday.  I had just enough time before we left to make some chocolate chips cookies to take down with us.  Instead of chocolate bits I used a packet of Easter coloured M&Ms.  

No one seemed to mind let me tell you!

These photos were taken on the Saturday night at the birthday dinner.   This is Grandma, the birthday girl, and Grandpa.

Grandpa in this one again and my hubby's oldest sister, Julie and her hubby Bob.  Bob and I used to work together and would you believe he first laid eyes on her on a photo that was on my desk among other family photos.  He was keen as mustard to meet her and when she came up for a visit they went out on a date and that was it!  After that it was just a matter of time till they got married and they have been devoted to each other since.  All from a picture on my desk!

 This is Ros and Peter, my hubby's younger sister and her hubby.

 Here are the cousins - minus the littlest one who was at a sleepover as there was no way she would have coped with the long night out.  These guys!  Once you get them together you can absolutely tell that they are related!  My two are Guitar Hero, second from the left and Fly Boy  second from the right!  

 Now we are back at home in Sydney and the new school term starts tomorrow!  Oh my goodenss - Year 11 exams are coming up - oh dear!

Till next time................happy stitching!

Pieced and Quilted!!!!

Oh my goodness!  Just discovered that I didn't post this - it was supposed to go out the night before last.  Oh well, here it is tonight!  You have already seen the finished product but you might as well see this too.  Still love this quilt!

I am doing a happy dance.  Funny thing about my quilts.  As soon as I have someone in mind for a quilt it becomes theirs and no matter how much I like it I could never keep it - especially if I have developed any level of fondness for the recipient!

And it is just as well as I am SO PLEASED WITH THIS ONE!

Firstly, I love the colours.  And the turtles and whales.  

Secondly I am so delighted that the picture in my head translated to the fabric!  It doesn't always!

Thirdly I quilted this one by FMQing wavy lines all across it 

and while it is not perfect, I am really happy with it.

Happy enough to be comfortable with giving it away.

 I have included three pictures close up of the darker bottom section in the hope that you can see the quilting.

 I have the other ocean dreaming quilt to do and I am not at all wary about doing it now.

 Do love those whales.   

Now advice please - what colour binding?  Still to the blue or go with that apricotty orange you can see there, or maybe even the limey green.  Any suggestions please?

Till next time............happy stitching!

Short and Sweet!

And this post has to be short and sweet as it is half past midnight and I should be in bed 

BUT

I so wanted to finish this quilt and now that it is done

I just had to share it!

This is Ocean Dreaming 1 and it is off to the Middle East to a Chaplain serving with the Australian Defence Forces over there.  I asked him what he liked about the see and he wrote 

I guess I enjoy walking along the coast... My wife and I (and kids) have spent a lot of time on the northern beaches - particularly around the headlands, rock platforms and small beaches. I love to sit in the shade and read a book (my wife is a painter - so she draws) surrounded the sights and sounds and smells of wind and wave. It's probably difficult to capture that on a quilt!

Other than that - I love being at sea - the ocean is a beautiful living thing... so many colours and moods. To see an albatross or some other sea bird 100s of miles from land, effortlessly gliding across the surface - just above the waves is spell binding. Or to sea a whale breaching out at sea or a massive pod of dolphins with hundreds of animals moving together across the sea - that's a treat!

Up this way, in the Gulf of Oman - particularly in the winter months (when it is calm [ie. not monsoon season] and by calm - I mean a completely flat - just like the surface of a mirror) there are whole 'fields' of algae that light up at night, glowing fluorescent colours - it is just an extraordinary experience to witness the ship moving along from glowing field to glowing field at night. The phosphorus in the ocean seems to particularly abundant in these parts too. In some places it lights up as electric blue and green sparks in the water as the ship slices through the water. It is so much prettier than any fire works. In those areas where there is an abundance of this phosphorus, the guys will often direct the nozzle of a fire hose at the water's surface as we pass by - just to increase this effect!

Day and night there is so much that is good to see out there.... I guess when you are in a small ship surrounded by a lot of shipmates - even though you become very fond of one another, every one needs a break, for just a little ...and I guess - looking out to sea is the only way that you can get a little bit of time to your self. 

I hope I have captured some of what he talked about - I loved reading what he wrote!

I hope he loves reading what I wrote. This label goes on every Aussie Heroes Quilt.

This is going in the mail tomorrow morning!

And now, for me, TO BED!

Till next time..............happy stitching!

A Cross Stitcher!

Check this out - a cross stitch cover for your iphone!!!  I found it last night when I was checking out all the blogs that I am woefully behind on.  You can get them on ebay believe it or not!  

I would never have imagined you could get one.  

I used to do lots of cross stitch.  I had so many  patterns and magazines and loads of threads.  These days I would need my glasses to be able to see what I was doing and I doubt my hands would appreciate it seeing as holding a needle is painful.  It did keep me sane for a while though.  When I was pregnant there was a lot of time hanging out at home.  I didn't have family around where I was and my hubby traveled a lot so I had lots of time to fill in.  I would cross stitch for hours each day.

These are some of the ones that hang in our home.  Sorry about the picture quality.  I couldn't get a good shot with the glass on them.  

This is a special one - the words say " I hear your keys in the door ....you are home again...and safe...all the burdens of the day are lightened.....all the night noises are music to my ears".  No surprises for guessing that this was for my lovely hubby!  

 These next ones were just for me.  By the time I did these two cute little girls I knew I was having two boys and was fairly sure I would never have girls.  This was my girly gift to myself! See, one even has red hair!

 And the other one says "Cross stitchers are a different breed."  

 I loved all the little trinkets you had to add to this one.  

 And finally another one for my hubby.  But first note the Engineer's sign - SOOOOO  TRUE!

This one was so fiddly and detailed -  spent HOURS on it when I was on maternity leave.  I kept it as a surprise for my hubby and I think I gave it to him for an anniversary present.  So long ago now I would have to check the back to see.

No cross stitching here these days.  Too much sewing to do but also the hands just can't hold the needles anymore!

Till next time................happy stitching!