Thank you so much for your messages, emails, and more. Surgery went as well as expected, and I'm very grateful to be home now and recovering. There's not as much resting as I'd like, but I have my two little ones running circles around me as I move through the day.

I'm filled with appreciation after receiving lovely flowers through the post from the furthest corners of the globe from friends afar, cards enthusing get well and thinking of you (and the glitter! Glitter makes everyone feel better, doesn't it?) and even a huggable monster pillow with the biggest googly eyes I've ever seen.

Thank you all, for your thoughts and kindness. I've been keeping myself very busy - with soap, recovery, craft, yarn and exploring Essex (!) and finding all of the lovely things on our new doorstep. I've got a lot to show you. And, it might even be summer soon. Here's hoping. x

Today I am grateful for my sunshine flowers on a cold and rainy day. I caught a cold this weekend and spent almost all of my waking hours on the couch, wrapped up in a blanket, feeling quite yuck. Graeme came home with a bunch of the brightest, cheeriest flowers you have ever seen on Friday and they've been adding a bit of cheer to my mountain of tissues.

I'm back! Thank you for all of your wonderful messages, thoughtful comments and encouraging emails. I appreciate every single good wish and positive thought. There hasn't been much change in my little cousin's condition, but we are ever-hopeful, and we are all being strong.


It's funny how there really is no place like home. After flying for 12 hours straight, it feels as if you might have visited another world, or at the very least, another time zone. But No: we are only one hour ahead of South Africa here in the UK, and it's all very much the same world I left behind the last time I was there.



I think that sometimes you need a big awful family emergency to really make you stop and think about your priorities.


I have missed my little blog, it's good to be back.

A little while ago my dearest friend Anne sent me a box of treasures, and I think now's a good time to share them with you.

This is the second week in a row that I've insisted on taking my Saturday off work. I feel quite liberated! This is definitely something I could get used to.

There's nothing quite like getting up on a Saturday morning and heading out for a day at the markets. Oh, and we are spoilt here in London with so many beautiful markets to choose from! This Saturday, however, we headed to the eclectic Hackney for an amble around Broadway Market.

















It's a lovely market with filled with oh-so trendy vintage decor, clothing, antiques and oddities like bicycles, guitars (and a banjo!) and farmer's produce all hustling and bustling in tarpaulin-covered stalls.

















Such beautiful flowers, gathered in bunches, waiting to go home with happy Londoners. They're nice and bright, despite the sporadic showers, downpours and menacing grey clouds hanging over the market.

















Broadway Marketeers may be trendy, but they're also very humorous.

















Here are some miniature cupcakes from 'VIOLET', a popular bakery and cupcake school in Hackney. They have some traditional flavours (like those above) but also some interesting ones like Rhubarb Mini Cakes and Violet Blueberry.






















And here are some beautiful (and clever) meringue-topped cupcakes! Not sure what the ones on the top shelf are: red velvet cupcakes? Deep brownie cupcakes? Hmm.






















If cupcakes aren't your thing, how about some fudge? There's a wide variety of delectable treats in store, whether you have a sweet tooth (like me) or you prefer something more savoury like spicy curry, vegetable falafel, or farm-style hamburgers.






















There's loads to see and do in the markets (London Fields is there too, as well as Netil market) and the surrounding area is very beautiful as well - filled with graffiti, parks and a canal (with canal boats!).

















This is a sign above a door at the London Fields Primary School (built in 1925). There's so much to see around London Fields! Plus, we found a great antique market section that sold all sorts of bizarre things and made excellent fodder for G's photography.






















We left Broadway Market with a bag brimming with delicious goods: balsamic glaze from the The Olive Oil Co., herb feta cheese from Borough Olives, fresh Apple Juice from the farm stall, and the pasta (above) from La Tua Pasta where we met up with Isabella, the charming marketeer who happily sells pasta to hungry Londoners. Also, we work together :)

















Here you can see inside my delicious tortelloni that have been filled with pumpkin. You cook the pasta for about five minutes in boiling water and then they're done! Just like that! The pasta itself is really tasty too, not something I'm used to with my aversion to Fatti's & Moni's. Served with a side salad topped with yummy feta cheese and balsamic glaze: delicious. It makes me want to buy a food processor and a pasta maker and sit in the kitchen for hours making my own pasta. Sort of.