Rockyroad Recipe

Ok, because i love you all im willing to share this amazing recipe with you! You will need the following:

A big saucepan full of hot water
2 very large glass/metal bowls
A big baking tray lined with greaseproof paper
1.4kg (yes really) of chocolate (galaxy, cadburys, lindt whatever you love the most)
4 mars bars
4 snickers (you can really use any choc bars you like!)
100g dried apricots
100g sultanas
100g cornflakes (you could use rice crispies if you want)
180g malteasers
100g marshmallows (i like the small ones)
chocolate sprnkles

Break up the chocolate and place in 1 bowl over the hot water, simmer the water and stir chocolate to speed up the melting process.

cut up all the other ingredients and mix (except the sprinkles)together in the other bowl. Pour over the melted chocolate and mix until completely covered. Pour into baking tray and smooth out, pushing it down as you do. Cover the top with sprinkles and leave to set in the fridge over night.

Remove from baking tray and cut into whatever size pieces you like! You can also spoon the mixture into cake cases to make them a more child friendly size (if you can force yourself to let the kids have some that is!)

Why not try using other ingredients? Pop rocks, fudge bars, caramel bars and even M&M's would work with this. Think Willy Wonker and just go nuts! I must warn you though, it does make a huge batch, try halving all the ingredients if you dont want so much!

Enjoy making it and enjoy eating it even more! And dont forget, you get to lick the bowl too!! HE HE

Rather a lot really ..............

Ive had a very busy weekend! On Friday i did some baking. MIL went to a BBQ birthday party on Saturday and asked me to bake a birthday cake! I love to bake and when i get the chance i leap at it. I got the Hummingbird Bakery cook book for xmas and hadn't made anything out of it so I decided to make the Hummingbird cake:



It contains banana, pineapple and pecans and its covered in cream cheese frosting with a layer of frosting in the middle. I also decided to make a rocky road slab:




This is pure decadence on a slab! I didn't get to try any but im gonna share the recipe with you next post.

I also received a parcel from one of my pen friends containing loads of Hello Kitty bits! I was over the moon and will be sending her a great big thank you card! I also received my new Bag in the post on Saturday morning, I'm madly in love with it and it holds all my knitting stuff!!:



Monkey man called me on Friday afternoon and said to me did i fancy going camping! I really did so we went on our very 1st camping trip! We have a lot of camping gear as we have been meaning to go for a while. The only thing we didn't have was a big enough tent! We only have a 1 man tent but thought we would be ok! We would have been if our pitch hadn't of been on a slope! It was like watching a carry on film! We kept sliding down in the tent and squashing each other! We woke at 2 in the morning because it was freezing and Monkey Man decided to sleep in the car! I didn't get much sleep after that so we were both up and 6.30! We had also forgotten to take a washing up bowl, and some towels! (basic school boy errors we wont be making again). We cut open a 5 litre water bottle to use as a bowl and just used a t-shirt for drying! It was fun and we will defiantly do it again!






It was a really lovely site. It was like a woodland with lots of little clearings to pitch up in. We were surrounded by trees and you could hear other people but not see them which was nice. My friend WannaKnit is an avid camper and has lent me a larger tent to use for the rest of the season so our next time will be great. (Thank you WannaKnit)

I went to knitting group on Sunday when we got back, I managed to get another 2 squares done:



Ive got 2 more to do and the 1st batch is done. Ill need to get another set of the yarn to finish the blanket. Im currently working on the wedding shrugs and some baby bits that i will post once they are done.

When i got back on Sunday Monkey Man was in a very dark mood. He was stressing out about work. He went to the doctors yesterday ad has been signed off with stress and anxiety. They have put him on meds and are arranging some counselling for him. Im really worried about him and feel abit useless, theres nothing i can do to make him better. I just need to give him lots of hugs i think.

Just a little one.

Ive finished another square for the Tobago Granny blanket:


Its knitting group tonight and i will be working on my WIP's. I cant seem to start anything new, which is a sure sign that I need to finish whats on the needles. I will also be finishing the invitations. After correcting the problem of no date they should be out in the post tomorrow.

MIL has asked me to bake a cake for a party she is going to on Saturday. Ive looked through my baking books and have decided on the Hummingbird cake from the Hummingbird Bakery cook book. Ill also be making a rocky road slab for the kids. (I love the look of this and cant wait to make it! Ill post some pics when im done.

Not happy!

Well i went to Weight Watchers last night and ive not tracked this week and been slightly naughty, however i have walked everyday this week, be it to or from work sometimes both! I wasnt very positive and was hoping for that elusive half a pound so i would have lost my stone and guess what ...... Id gained 1.5lbs!!! I was so not impressed! That it no im tracking again and i will succeed this week! Watch this space.

On the reading front i have finished the last Riley book but its wide open for another installment which im really hoping is out soon! Ive just started reading the Grave sight series by Charlaine Harris - the lady who writes the Sookie books. They arent quiet what i expected but i will bear with them.

Knitting wise im still working on the wedding shrugs and hopefully will have another one finished this weekend and hopefully the invitations will also be finished soon too. Im crocheting like a nutter now i know how to do a granny square! Heres some pics of big squares for a blanket and little squares that ive turned into key rings:





Well Monkey Man and I plan on doing some walking this weekend so I hope to have some nice pics to share. Have a good weekend all. xxx

WWKIP day

Well Saturday was World Wide Knit in Public day! I had planned to make a huge thing of it but we only had a month to organise to we decided to keep it small this year. I met up with a few of the girls from knitting group (SallyBarrett, SlimKnit, WannaKnit, NeedleMum and Knit24seven) and we hit the beer garden of the Two Rivers Pub in Staines! The weather kept going from sunny to cloudy but we had a good time. WannaKnit brought along some beautiful handmade bunting and some sweets which was lovely of her. We had a slight ant problem but nothing too major. Katie was on her honeymoon so we didn't expect to see her but once we'd packed up and were ready to go she popped by! It was lovely to see her and her wedding was great.

I managed to finish "holey Cowl Monkey man" Its made from manos de uruguay silk blend wool and it feels lovely. I wish id have made it a bit longer but and quiet happy with it:


I also finished my first ever granny square crocheted blanket:

This will be a Christmas present for Lou Lou and I'll be making one each for Jubba and Callum too. (Jubbas has been started)

I had quiet a bit of Manos left so decided to make a lovely thing id seen on Ravelry. Its sort of a cross between a hat and a headband, it keeps your ears and head warm but allows you to keep your hair up:




I really love this pattern, its very simple and looks great. I will defiantly be making more!

I got home last night and had received 2 post cards from Postcrossing, one from Holland and one from New Zealand so i was very very pleased about that.

Work still isnt great but ill hopefully know more today as to whaat is going on.

Ive started the final Riley Jensen Guardian book and cant wait to get it finished, its a very hard one to put down. I need to also research when the next one is due out. I think there is also a new Sookie stackhouse book due out soon.

Shocked and Stunned!

I went to Weight Watchers last night after being absent for 3 weeks! I was dreading getting on the scale considering the amount of fudge and chocolate i ate in Wales but i lost 3lbs! ive hit my 5% goal (lost 5% of my original body weight) and am half a pound away from losing a stone!!! Im very very happy! I woke up super positive this morning and decided to walk to work! It took an hour and 5 minutes and i was drenched in sweat as its super humid here today.

Tomorrow is world knit in public day and me and some of the group members are meeting at the pub to sit in the garden with our needles out! If your a knitter, get them out in public too tomorrow!

Ive also stumbled across a very moving and amazing blog: http://yearofgiving.wordpress.com an American guy is giving $10 to a stranger everyday for a year, its his blog about why he chose them, their story (which he doesnt know until he has handed over the money) and what they intend to do with it! Please take a read and see if your moved by it as much as me.

Bits and Bobs

Well ive not got much to talk about today. Work is extremely stressful at the mo. Its all over the place and im not sure where I Stand so keep your fingers crossed for me.

Its knitting group tonight and i cant wait! Im having major withdrawal symptoms and cant wait to get my fix. Also we are making arrangements to meet at the pub on Saturday as its "World Knit in Public Day" and we want to show our support so weather being nice we will all be sitting in the beer garden knitting or crocheting. I got some wool for my birthday - i was given money but couldn't think what to buy. There is no point getting clothes as im losing weight and there is nothing much else i want except wool! Heres my newbies:







Ive got three balls of Whizz Aran and ive started Crocheting a granny square blanket with the pink one, i will be crocheting the other 2 into blankets too. Ive got 2 hanks of Manos De Uruguay Silk Blend and 7 balls of Katia Tobago (one of each colourway) im unsure what to make with these, if you have any ideas please let me know.

Ive got really into postcards (see my other blog http://mizmiffy-postcardheaven.blogspot.com/ for details) and have signed up for Postcrossing which is a great idea. Ive been busy sending letters to pen pals and got myself a new one yesterday, shes from the Netherlands and ill be writing her letter today.

Im currently reading book 7 (i think) in the Riley Jensen Series and am eager to get this one finished so i can see what happens to her. There is one more to read in the series but I think Keri Arthur is writing another.

Well thats all for today! xxxx

A Wickedy Woo Weekend (Saturday, Sunday and Monday)

Sorry i seem to be waffling on about my holiday but theres so much about Wales i love and want to share with you. Heres the rest of my Holiday:

Saturday was as little miserable weather wise so Monkey Man and I went for a drive and found a little fishing shop (what a surprise) that was having a closing down sale so monkey brought himself a rob and reel for £20! which was an utter bargain. So of course he had to try it out then and there so we headed for the beach! On the way we passed my dream house:

its a converted "rope House", it was a workshop for making rope, once it was wetted and twisted it was hung to dry in the tall section of the building. I love it and dream of taking a look at the inside.

Well as i said the weather wasnt very nice, however i cant go to the beach and not get my feet wet!


We went back to nan and pop's and got changed and all headed to Letterston for the best fish and chips in the world. Getting the 4 of us in the Rolo Days was fun! lol I however opted not to have fish and chips but had Welsh black sheep faggots and chips instead, they were amazing! Yum Yum.

Sunday was my birthday and my Nan gave me this:


I used to play with this bracelet when i was a kid and as you can imagine i was overwhelmed. The charms are (from left to right): A highland cow, and st Christopher coin, an American penny, a set of bagpipes that open up to reveal a tiny little dancer, a dolphin, 2 mice on a boot, a tankard that opens, an acorn that opens to reveal a squirrel, a woodpecker, a spinning wheel, the bible that opens up and has a prayer written on paper inside, Westminster abbey, a cross heart and anchor charm, a Devon shield, a man hanging from a danger sign, a crab (Nan's a cancer) a windmill that actually spins!, a dog, a horseshoe, a ship and a heart clasp.

I also got loads of cards and money and monkey man brought me Lego Rock band!



In the morning Monkey and I went to my Castle! I absolutely love Pembroke castle, im not sure what it is that i love but its one of my fav places in the world and i got to share it with my fav person in the world:






We went up into the tower and down into Wogans Cave - It was used by ancient settlers and then as caves for the sea inlet and then the castle was built on top of it. The walls have oxidisation on them that actually make it look like its bleeding!





There was also a display on at the castle depicting training and weapons and also what life was like:






They also had some ladies doing crafty stuff:



We spent the afternoon with my family, we took a walk along the moat surrounding the castle and i finally got to meet my cousins GF, She is sooo lovely and hes such a luck guy. Shes also very short, lol.






We got back to the house and had a lovely tea and cake:



All in all i had a great day. Heres a few more pics of my family:






Monday we jumped into the car and drove along the coastal road. We stopped at a few places, one of which was St Govens. Its a tiny little church built into the cliff:






Unfortunalty we had to go home the next day but Monkey and I are now more determined than ever that we want to live there. Once we are debt free thats what we will be working towards. I would advise anyone who isnt sure where to go on holiday to take a look at staying closer to home. Wales, north and south are beautiful places to visit. It caters to all tastes and theres plenty of camp sites and caravan park, which i think makes a holiday even more memorable.