Baking and Knitting

My Wednesday off work today felt both indulgent and totally necessary. Indulgent because it is a day off work midweek, and beyond washing up, I decided to do no housework, not to go out, not to bustle, just to relax. And totally necessary because I am just so tired right now. Although I love my new job, the travelling and hours have left me more than a little sleepy of late.

Last night, we decided to watch a film over dinner. (Burn After Reading....I was so looking forward to it, and it was such a disappointment!) I saw the first part while I ate, but after that, I was sound asleep.

This morning, I had the utter luxury of being woken up just before 7:00 with a cup of tea, and dear Carl telling me that I didn't have to get up as he was going to sort out his own breakfast and lunch today. I lay back down, snuggled amongst the feather pillows and duvet, listening to radio 4, and gently drifted in and out of sleep for a while. When Carl came to kiss my goodbye I sat up and drank my tea, while reading Country Living Magazine.

After a while I decided that I needed another cup of tea and some breakfast. I decided to have boiled eggs in my vintage egg cups, as I really wanted to use my new felt egg cozies. They came from Tchibo, and look just like flowers, dropped over the top of the eggs! Boiled eggs, soldiers and steaming tea is one of my favourite February breakfasts, especially when taken in the peace and quiet with a vase of daffodils for company as it was today!

My day has passed very restfully. I sewed up the slippers I crocheted for myself on Sunday, and made pom-poms for the toes, and then sewed up the hot water bottle I knitted myself a few weeks ago. Then I sewed the buttons on, and went and found my hot water bottle to go in it, so I could see it all finished. I have been reading my new book 'Food To Come Home To: Wholefood For The Family' by Jude Blereau, and knitting a new hot water bottle cover (a friend at work asked if I would make her one).

I have also baked a batch of raspberry oat bars, which have the most heavenly fragrant raspberry scent which is wafting through the flat as I type. I already make most of our food from scratch, but recently have been wanting to concentrate more on wholefoods and making even more from scratch...these are such a good thing to make for lunchboxes, or nibbling on instead of a cereal bar. They are basically whole meal plain flour and regular plain flour stirred together with porridge oats, and some butter rubbed in. I pressed half into a square tin, scattered some frozen raspberries over, and then pressed the rest of the mixture on top, and baked for an hour in a medium oven. Bliss!

Only three days to go until another day off...and best of all, I get to share that one with Carl!