Hip Hip Hooray!

My middle daughter and I celebrated our birthday last week. While my daughter is in the prime of her life and another year doesn't show, this is not the case with her mother :-) But.....as Shakespeare once said: 'With mirth and laughter let old wrinkles come'. Mirth and laughter certainly play an important part in my life.

I made a blueberry cake for our party. It has a cheesecake topping, which is really delicious. The cake is fruity, moist and the combination between the topping and soured cake really good. It will look stunning on your tea table, especially when you decorate the cake with blue violets. If you are interested in the recipe,you can find it here.

Today is the start of celebratory week in Holland. Our queen Beatrix will abdicate in favour of her son Willem Alexander. Tuesday will be the day when it all happens. There will be flags and bunting around Holland. Street parties and flea markets in every town and village and lots of people dressed in our national colour, orange. My family and I will follow the ceremony on tv and go into town afterwards. Looking forward to it very much!

Wishing all my Dutch followers a sunny and joyful Kings Day. A big 'Thank you' and Hip Hip Hooray to our queen, for being just the way she is.

A Happy new week to you all.

Love,

Madelief x

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Girl power

Now that the sun came through at last, it's full speed ahead in the garden! Daffodils, lung worth and blue grape hyacinths are in bloom. One trying to outshine the other :-) The cherry tree is a cloud of little pink flowers. I can almost see the plants in my cutting garden grow a centimetre every day. 

My two youngest daughters and I did the last couple of jobs that had to be done. I planted and replanted and built a supportive structure for the sweet peas. My middle daughter got rid of the layer of algae on the greenhouse and my youngest daughter took care of the garden path, which is weed free now and has a straight line from the back to middle. We did so much! I am really grateful for all the work they have done. Thanks to them and my friend Ilse, who came to help last week, it all looks beautiful once more. The garden is ready for summer, tea and birthday parties and candlelight suppers! 

On Wednesday I popped over shortly. Eating my lunch on the veranda, in full view of the garden, felt absolutely fantastic!

Have fun this weekend!

Love,

Madelief x

 

 

A string of daisies

Now that spring has finally sprung, my head is filled with flowers. As soon as the sun comes through and the soil warms up a little, I will start sowing. Packages of sweet peas, Forget-me-nots, Cosmos, Zinnia and mixed cutting flowers are waiting in a little basket in the garden house.

When at home, I am either crocheting or baking :-) Last week I made an orange chocolate fudge cake, which was delicious. The combination between the orange and chocolate, divine.
I was inspired by the Great British Bake Off, which I enjoy watching now and then. The cake is probably a calorie bomb, but when at work in the garden, I don't mind. I can use the energy and the calories will probably be burned by the time I go home. We had visitors too, so not much of the cake was left on Sunday night. If you are interested in the recipe, you can find it on the BBC's website.

I crocheted two strings of flowers this week. The daisy chain is my favourite. There's something about daisies that makes me smile. It's probably their friendly appearance. My garden is full of little daisy plants which I seeded last year. I hope that in a few weeks time, my garden path will be lined with them.

While I am typing this, the grey clouds move over, to make room for blue skies and sunlight.

Wishing you a bright and sunny weekend!

Love,

Madelief x

On my knees

Hurray! After days of hoping, checking the weather forecast and a growing amount of biennials on my balcony, ready to be taken to the garden, I could finally get on my knees and start planting.

I found a beautiful spot for my blue and white lupins, replanted the foxgloves and daisies I grew from seed and got rid of dozens of seedlings of the beech tree and elder tree. 

Most plants survived the winter. Even some delicate roses I feared for. I hope my Dahlia tubers will get into growth again. I took a risk leaving them in the ground, covered with leaves and pine needles.

The garden house feels damp inside. There is a layer of mould on the shelves. I will probably have to give them a new layer of paint. The window sills and floor are covered with all sorts of dead insects. Algae have taken over the greenhouse. We will have to give it a good scrub, so that the we can see through the glass panels again. Terracotta pots are waiting to be filled with violets & pelargoniums. 

Crocuses are enjoying the first rays of sunlight and colourful shoots pop up everywhere. Daffodils are on the brink of opening, so are the blossoms on the trees. Spring arrived at last. I picked my first bouquet to take home with. The hellebores look elegant on our mantelpiece in a blue and white Delftware vase.

A lovely weekend to you all! They say the weather is going to be perfect for gardening. If you are looking for me, you know were you can find me :-)

Love,

Madelief x