tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-79263704297798607312024-03-21T02:28:33.374-07:00Helen ClydeHelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.comBlogger614125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-8261792028535763822017-03-03T20:26:00.000-08:002017-03-03T20:26:15.365-08:00The first days in Singapore<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2Cw21oFvt7Sx1r0GlqtFMa8Sz0OB2DNqKkTkG1xvFRgw7k0oTR6NzExRJX1e4ao2AOcbMAUwUkHaspFEjdhKKr0-GqSzmSi08UIaMEEtUMAFJ1RIR9ymmSuHSAC6gQ58c0nPc6NcTnOM/s1600/DSCI0095.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2Cw21oFvt7Sx1r0GlqtFMa8Sz0OB2DNqKkTkG1xvFRgw7k0oTR6NzExRJX1e4ao2AOcbMAUwUkHaspFEjdhKKr0-GqSzmSi08UIaMEEtUMAFJ1RIR9ymmSuHSAC6gQ58c0nPc6NcTnOM/s640/DSCI0095.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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So, on Wednesday afternoon we began our journey to Singapore - me, and the M´s. </div>
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Tim had been there a few days earlier, and we skyped and wrote a lot, and I was excited seeing both him and Singapore alike. My two ladies gave me a gentle good bye, which made me happy and sad at the same time. I feel sorry they can´t come with us, although I know they´ll be in many good hands. And I liked how we seemed to bond more in the days before, when we knew we wouldn´t been seing each other for a while. It seemed like all three of us were our nicer selves. </div>
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I felt happy during the flight, and I like everything. I didn´t mind the crying babies, on the contrary - they made me appreciate how grown up and quiet my sons are :)</div>
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And I loved how they both fell asleep on my lap, and how sweet and cuddly they were. </div>
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The flight took 12 hours, plus the two hour journey to the airport and one our from the airport to our appartement, and it was exhausting, but not as much as I´d feared - due to the time difference it was already evening in Singapore when we arrived, so it was okay to go to bed and finally stretch out - after a walk to get to know the area a little, of course. </div>
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So our neighbourhood (and pretty much all of Singapore) has a lot of amazing, huge, futuristic architecture, which makes you marvel at how many people are actually living here. Wow. Just wow!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKWyVmsw7bXsEt8eboLIH8ErSwZC8EM9TJuPmYfZZUspA13AbF_WnBtkOlSJy6fHGdqFjZV76gDI3eACNkNevWF-lsN9qkGSHw_oYJyv4agHVq-re-3G1SrgRTFq2GEC7HrZLhRGRsCkY/s1600/DSCI0144.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKWyVmsw7bXsEt8eboLIH8ErSwZC8EM9TJuPmYfZZUspA13AbF_WnBtkOlSJy6fHGdqFjZV76gDI3eACNkNevWF-lsN9qkGSHw_oYJyv4agHVq-re-3G1SrgRTFq2GEC7HrZLhRGRsCkY/s640/DSCI0144.JPG" width="480" /></a> </div>
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The air is - at least to me - beautifully warm. I do love the heat, and when I left Germany, we had temperatures around the freezing point, and sheets of icy rain, so I greeted the warmth with open arms!</div>
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It does rain here, and a lot, too, but the rain is warm, and refreshing. I went swimming in the pool on the sixth storey of our building during the rain, and I adored seing the droplets of water resting a little on the surface before dissolving. So, so gorgeous!</div>
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Everytime I visited that pool so far, I was the only person in there. Really. Of all the many residents there, I seem to be the only one using it - and I got there often, and swim a lot. </div>
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However... we walked around the premises, where we ha our first encounter with a Food Court. Yeah, I love food courts. And I´m sure I´ll write another, extended post about food in Singapore. </div>
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There´s a stall where you can get freshly made juice, in a mutitude of interesting flavours - rose petals and water chestnut and dragonfruit and bitter gourd and wheatgrass - and I´ve got a tough time deciding what to try first. Good thing is, we´ll be here so long I can try them all :)</div>
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And then we went to bed - did you ever see a "Pillow Menu" before? </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3wxs-UaDYrR6tlr7K_hSFOj2jxhzIvXVOjY5TweD4I9A4qmpP00jGpe1pH6pr0dJxU3AM9AlkON2WlFrO1whGPBBViU_EEKYrx-XaJQIMzOL7yYM7JsuRG7q4Aw2PrwlI8yS-WWqEhY4/s1600/DSCI0148.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3wxs-UaDYrR6tlr7K_hSFOj2jxhzIvXVOjY5TweD4I9A4qmpP00jGpe1pH6pr0dJxU3AM9AlkON2WlFrO1whGPBBViU_EEKYrx-XaJQIMzOL7yYM7JsuRG7q4Aw2PrwlI8yS-WWqEhY4/s400/DSCI0148.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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That´s one thing I found unusual :) The whole appartement is very nice, clean and luxurios, but not over the top or trashy, but in a well thougth-through, minimalist way. I love it. Every storage space here tucks away neatly, every surface is streamlined. </div>
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That´s the boys, working for school - we left Germany under the premises we´d be doing at least some work for school, and that´s okay. We spend around two hours every morning either working on their workbooks or writing about our experiences. We can hear birds outside, and they sound completely different to the birds in Europe.</div>
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So we´ve arrived. And yep, we did see a little more than our appartement so far, but that´s for the next post. Right now, I´m closing this computer, and we´ll see what we´ll discover today. </div>
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See y´all. It´s nice to be back here. </div>
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HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-91123347665580340782017-02-27T10:50:00.000-08:002017-02-28T00:26:51.265-08:00So...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
...it´s been a while. Like - really a while. The last "proper" post I wrote here is from 2014, and the break was completely intentional.<br />
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I spent those last years well and filled them with all I could get into them. I hitchhiked back home from Ireland. I went back to Uni and am currently in my second semester, pursuing a bachelor´s degree. I finally, at the old age of 35, took my drivers liscense, and I love love love driving a car! I began swimming, 1000 metres every week, no matter what, and it makes me incredibly happy. I taught myself soap making and sort of opend a pop-up soap store, which is so much fun! I became a clean, tidy and organized person, believe it or not :D I quit smoking, and I became vegan. The kids grew, a lot. Both girls are young women now, and the twins will have finished primary school in a couple of months. <br />
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I´m happy, and calm, and I´m constantly working on myself. Part of this is abstaining from blogging.<br />
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BUT.<br />
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We´re going on a big adventure soon - we´ll be living in Singapore for two months. And I´d like to write about it, so I will keep my memories. <br />
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I figured, this blog serves really well when it comes to keeping memories. I like reading my old posts. It´s like talking to my younger self. My pictures don´t get lost in the cloud. So when I commence blogging now, it´s mainly for myself. As a sort of diary. You are invited to read along, though. I tried facebook, in order to keep in touch with people, but I´m still not convinced. I like my own blog design a lot more, and I feel strange posting there. This here - this I´m okay with.<br />
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So. So I´m back, at least for the next two months. You´ll hear from me :)</div>
HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-75344243050472531082015-10-07T00:15:00.006-07:002015-10-07T00:15:53.802-07:00Come on over... <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
... if you understand some german you are invited to check out Ronnie´s and my newest hobby site:<br />
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<img alt="" border="0" height="118" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6ESrGupOTq54HHPTTRZzPojqoY9tjb_ABJSY_ubyJBH0DPB6MyTjtkxmWsa3R9XxMJ40VivjDAv4zfa9SxlfCaFwNTLkfwIy1oSE-xhm1u6ligekZkZM8Mjc6rBe_1VvKtsN80HEw76Y/s320/header.jpg" title="" width="320" /> </div>
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<a href="http://seifenimperium.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">seifenimperium.blogspot.com</a></div>
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HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-80293943459389821222014-10-05T15:28:00.000-07:002014-10-05T15:28:14.565-07:00So very fall...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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We went kite-flying yesterday. I´ve always loved that, and felt like it was the pure embodiment of fall - fall, and ultimate freedom, though now that I´m writing this, it does feels weired to see that in a kite - that´s never free, but always captured with it´s line... </div>
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However, I enjoy kite flying, and now my twins do, too. </div>
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This weekend, they got infected by the joyous feeling of wind getting caught in the kite, carrying it up, and feeling the power to hold something that´s so far up in the sky. They´ve asked me to go again as soon as possible, and I´ll be happy to oblige. </div>
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Can you see my spot in this picture? :)</div>
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I didn`t take it too often, though - my spot - I was busy running around between the kites. As I said, I love kite flying. </div>
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More very fall things we did this week? </div>
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Finding natural forts in the hedges along the bike trail...</div>
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...going to the farmer´s market, with it´s noises and smells and the turkish vendor that sells a whole big box of figs for 3 Euros only, and where there´s an instant companionship among the buyers - unsurprisingly, cosidered the close physical proximity of them :)<br />
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8628_zps098ab618.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8628_zps098ab618.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8628_zps098ab618.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a><br />
What about picking apples?<br />
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8631_zps070cb3ce.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8631_zps070cb3ce.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8631_zps070cb3ce.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a><br />
We can apply a nice check! to that, as well - our good friends invited us again this year to help them pick some from their big apple tree.<br />
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This year´s harvest was a lot smaller than last years, but I´ve got my jars ready to cook some apple sauce tomorrow, and the dehydrator is running right now :)<br />
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We kickstarted the first of our Halloween preparations for this year - yay!</div>
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And my maybe favourite thing this weekend - which I liked even more than the kite flying! - was our backyard campfire. </div>
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Tim spontaniously came up with the idea - getting some wood and making a fire - and it was so awesome!</div>
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I so enjoyed sitting around the fire, roasting bread and potatoes and eggplants, and we sat until it was pitchdark...</div>
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... and we read Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets in the light of Eva´s mobile phone torch app and looked into the embers and coals. Very, very sweet. </div>
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Music: </div>
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For this pos, this song :)</div>
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a) because Joe Purdy does make some nice music, </div>
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b) because this song was featured in an episode of "Lost" that Tim and I are currently watching and</div>
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c) because it contains a ukulele, and there is no happier instrument. </div>
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And with this, we´re gliding into our school break for fall - see you! </div>
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HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-30239651876075511452014-10-03T15:06:00.003-07:002014-10-03T15:06:46.089-07:00Goat cheese, grains and pumpkins<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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So - today is a national holiday in Germany, to celebrate the union
after the fall of the Berlin Wall, and that means - everyone´s on the
road, enjoying the free day and going on various kinds of trips and
excursions. </div>
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We had splendid weather, so off we went!</div>
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First, we visited a pumpkin farm. Like, for real. Yep, that´s how cliché we are - but we liked it :)</div>
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As you can see, the twins were over the moon for the very tiny baby pumpkins, and spent their pocket money on a really small pumpkin they now use to decorate their toy castle. </div>
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They also liked the really big ones - this one was - behold! - Europe´s biggest pumpkin! At least that´s what they said :)</div>
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Our next stop was a mill. </div>
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A private, small, very green mill, in a very remote area surrounded by fields. </div>
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We were allowed to have a peak inside, where the miller explained how everything worked, and we dipped our fingers into the fresh flour. </div>
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Next stop: The goat farm, with the cheese manufactury.<br />
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Hooray for feeding goats!<br />
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May I also point out the stellar-fashionista combination Ronja is wearing here? Note: Dress from the flea market, combined with a hat she crocheted all by herself the night before.<br />
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Feeding the goats rocks, especially when one gets cool shoe covers. Later, we even got full-body covers:<br />
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And then we got to see how the cheese was being made:<br />
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Of course we were allowed to try it, too. And I questioned the lady about how to make some at home, so you can expect some cheese-themed project in the future.<br />
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Ronja and I had this on our mind for a while - I mean, it´s only the next logical step, following our own honey, eggs and all sorts of juice, sirup and jam, all though we will not - mark my words - NOT - get a goat for our garden. We won´t. But cheese - we can try to make some. It didn´t sound too complicated. <br />
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I do admit Eva had a tough time. <br />
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She felt too old and too awesome to be included in such childish activities, which I guess is okay - and she did hold herself quite gracious, given the circumstances she´s a teenager who´s not in the slightest interested in her family´s agricultural adventures and was yet being dragged along by us. And I was able to cheer her up with some cookies from time to time.<br />
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And speaking of food:<br />
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Freshly baked bread, goat cheese, butter, homemade fig jam, homemade plum juice and home made honey - oh, and peppermint tea fresh from the garden - that´s paradise :)<br />
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As for today´s music:<br />
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This was our sing-along tune in the car today. I love this song. I absolutetly adore it. The original is awesome, too, but I´m posting this cover because I really like how the two boys harmonize. But what´s best are the lyrics - oh, they are so fun :)<br />
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Enjoy your weekend, everybody!</div>
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HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-33204350356230633262014-09-24T23:21:00.002-07:002014-09-24T23:47:05.559-07:00Blue sun printing<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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This is one of those projects I saw on pinterest and wanted to try ever since - you need paper that is sensitive to light, and sunshine, and then you get some magical results. Basically, working with it is a mixture of art and a really neat science experiment, so, what´s not to like?</div>
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I had little trouble finding the paper in Germany - much less than I expected - searching for solar-papier on amazon go me quick and very affordable results.</div>
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The paper came, delivered in dark plastic:</div>
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It is not super sensitive - you don´t need complete dark to work with it. I had my kids find the stuff they wanted to place on it before, so it wouldn´t have to be exposed too long, but you don´t have to hurry placing the leaves or toys or whatever you take on the paper - if you do it inside.</div>
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We worked in the kitchen, placing the sheets of paper on a frame we used instead of a tray, so we could carry them out to the balcony into the sunlight.</div>
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I think my favourite is Miro´s playmobil artwork:</div>
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When you start, the paper is all blue, but after some minutes out in the sun, it turns completely white - except, of course, for the parts covered with stuff. One trouble though is wind - leaves or lace are swiftly blown away, so you get no proper print. I´ve read about covering the paper with glass, but I didn´t have one at hand, so... we just tried shielding our paper from wind the best we could.</div>
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Sometimes more, sometimes less succesfull. </div>
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As soon as your paper is completely white, you can rinse it in clear cold water.</div>
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The image will first dissolve, and later, when it´s dry, reappear. Really cool :)</div>
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Right now, these prints are still hanging from our ceiling, looking awesome, but I could totally see fragments of them used on greeting cards or in mixed media art pieces. And we´ve still got some paper left :)</div>
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Music:</div>
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<a href="http://www.myvideo.de/watch/9480094/5_Seconds_Of_Summer_She_Looks_So_Perfect" title="5 Seconds Of Summer -- She Looks So Perfect - MyVideo">5 Seconds Of Summer -- She Looks So Perfect - MyVideo</a></div>
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If you haven´t seen this perfect video, do yourself the favour of watching it, at least to the point when the clothes start raining - it will make you happy for the rest of the day :)</div>
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HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-13738559511976012732014-09-23T03:28:00.001-07:002014-09-23T03:30:38.694-07:00Easy cozy hooded sweaters<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I´ve been making these sweaters now for I don´t know how long - it´s always the same, basic pattern, and you can change it however you want to - leave the sleeves to make a vest, make it longer and slightly slimmer to create a dress for a girl, applicate all you want... I really love it. </div>
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So, since I lost the pattern, I picked an old sweater from Mehmet, folded it, and roughly traced around it for the seam allowance. It was late and dark, but it looked like this: </div>
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After I´d cut it from fabric, it looked like this, and I went to bed happily: </div>
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Usually, I take fleece, but this time I found some fleece-lined thick, rich jersey fabric, with a surface smooth enough to allow me to iron-on the shark print.<br />
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So the next morning, I lined the pocket with bias tape (so it doesn´t fringe):<br />
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If you add the pocket before you assemble the whole thing, that makes it much easier.<br />
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And then you proceed the way you like it - since I made sleeves consisting of two parts each, I first attached the front sleeves to the front, then the back sleeves to the back, and then assembled the two sides, sewing down from the shoulder to the wrist, and from the other side of the wrist, via the armpit, down to the bottom. (I hope that makes sense.)<br />
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I added some elastic in the hood, attached the hood,<br />
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and had my sons pose for me:<br />
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Yeah, hemming the sleeves too would certainly make sense.<br />
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They are wearing them right now, though - it suddenly turned quite cold over here, and they´re having swimming class today :)<br />
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Music for the day:<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/-k_KlCqAZ-I" width="560"></iframe><br />
As much as I´m tempted to go with that "Sweater Weather" song, I´m more in the mood for some smooth JM :) If you don´t just listen, but watch the video, you get to see a nice guitar being built, too!<br />
<br /></div>
</div>
HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-44029817568691404642014-09-18T23:24:00.000-07:002014-09-19T01:27:21.031-07:00Dear Scotland, <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I´d have wished you independence.<br />
<br />
Two years ago, I found the idea of an independent scotland ridiculous, outrageous and unbelievable, but then we had an <a href="http://helenclyde.blogspot.de/2012/07/i-should-really-pack-our-bags.html" target="_blank">awesome scotsman</a> in our home who totally convinced me otherwise.<br />
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I was anxious for the results, and excited to see how an independent Scotland would change Europe. A peaceful separation of a two countries I grew up taking as a granted union felt refreshing, and I - as everybody else, I guess - imagined the watershed-effect for countries in a similar situation - Catalunya, Belgium, Wales - would we become a different Europe? <br />
I wished all the best for the Yes-side, because I liked the dedicated, but overall constructive way of the debate, and I stayed up late and got up early to see the results. <br />
<br />
Well, maybe a Union with Britain is not so bad after all.<br />
<br />
Here´s some consoling music:<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/xBU1KcbNQHQ" width="560"></iframe><br /></div>
HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-70000404388556113602014-09-18T01:33:00.001-07:002014-09-18T01:33:03.465-07:005 minute hat from an old sweater<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Ronja had this blue, knitted sweater that she´d long outgrown but still regularly wore, despite the arms being to short, so I snitched it from her.<br />
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I didn´t want to throw it away, though, because I could see why she loved it - it had some nice, elaborated knitting patterns.<br />
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So I made a hat from it:<br />
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<a href="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8488_zps072d0324.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8488_zps072d0324.jpg" height="640" width="480" /> </a></div>
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I simply cut out a shape roughly resembling a hat and sew it together. </div>
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8489_zps70adee87.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8489_zps70adee87.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8489_zps70adee87.jpg" height="640" width="480" /> </a></div>
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So now it´s Evas cozy winter hat :) </div>
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Music: </div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/CFav1vtzUnE" width="420"></iframe> </div>
</div>
HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-75698864782649568942014-09-15T08:47:00.000-07:002014-09-15T08:47:00.690-07:00Fig tarts<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/figtarts_zps968e332e.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo figtarts_zps968e332e.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/figtarts_zps968e332e.jpg" height="640" width="396" /></a></div>
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These are super easy and yummy and fast to make.</div>
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You need</div>
<ul style="text-align: center;">
<li>Ready made dough, a kind you like</li>
<li>Figs, obviously - one for each serving</li>
<li>Goat cheese</li>
<li>Bacon</li>
<li>Honey to drizzle over them</li>
</ul>
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All you need to do is spread the dough in your dishes, put cheese in it, cut the figs into quarters and nicely arrange them on top of the cheese, add the bacon (or leave it, to make it veggie), and put them in the oven for 15 minutes.</div>
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When they come out, you sprinkle them with honey.</div>
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Enjoy :)</div>
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HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-37585191086376970062014-09-14T07:21:00.004-07:002014-09-14T07:21:48.825-07:00Something new. <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Friday morning, I volunteered in an old peoples home.</div>
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I´m the local story teling lady, but usually, I read for kids, teens, and, sometimes, adults. I´ve never read for people with dementia.</div>
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A friend of mine works in an old peoples home, so she asked me whether I´d like to read to her folks, and sure, why not? When I´m old, and my eyes are to weak to read by myself, I sure want someone to come and read me my Stephen King. But at first, I wanted to get to know them, so I could choose the literature appropriate - what would they like to hear, what would be interesting, but not too challenging, how long is their attention span, those were questions I wanted to explore first. So my friend suggested I come first to volunteer, to get to know my audience, which I then did :)</div>
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My audience is in severe need of some upcheering. We made plum cake together, and most of them are really, really far gone and need a lot of assistance, or very, very depressed, or both. Unlike a school, an old peoples home is, despite all the efforts of the great staff, still a depressing place, let´s not pretend otherwise. </div>
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So I´m coming back, next month, to start telling some good old german fairy tales. Stuff they know from their childhood. And I won´t be just reading. We´re making a show out of it, bringing requisites to touch and taste, and we´re going for a very interactive reading, and I´m excited for that.</div>
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Then, Friday afternoon, Miro won the fourth price in a baking contest. </div>
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8470_zps80ec29fe.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8470_zps80ec29fe.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8470_zps80ec29fe.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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His cake looked like the earth, and he made it all by himself, decorating and and baking and all - he even burned himself in the process. His price was a 20 Euro voucher for the local restaurant, and he is very, very proud. </div>
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8471_zpscd24d9cd.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8471_zpscd24d9cd.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8471_zpscd24d9cd.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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I made a cake, too - I was reading that day anyway, so I decided to bake the book I would be reading.</div>
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8467_zps09240b79.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8467_zps09240b79.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8467_zps09240b79.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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Our local library held the baking contest, and I was reading there, anyway,and I love love love playing with fondant and marzipan. I also loved to take this baking contest as an excuse to finally get myself these food-coloring sharpies I´d always wanted to try :)</div>
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See? I told you I wanted to celebrate my housewifey-ness. Is that a word? </div>
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Saturday morning, we went off to a horse racing track.</div>
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8478_zpsd1d4dfa0.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8478_zpsd1d4dfa0.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8478_zpsd1d4dfa0.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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Again, something I´ve never done before, and something that never really was on my radar - neither am I much of a horse lover, nor a sports fan. I do like trying new things, though, so when Tim suggested it, I was excited - what an awesome, creative idea for a weekend outing!</div>
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We rode all the way by bike - 34 kilometres all together. I had expected to see a lot more crazy hats, but they were non - not on heads, though you could buy some. </div>
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8476_zps95e6973a.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8476_zps95e6973a.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8476_zps95e6973a.jpg" height="640" width="480" /> </a><br />
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Tim even placed some bets - for the exorbitant sum of one Euro for each child - and Mehmet won 60 cents to reinvest in sweets. He also got a horseshoe, which he´s keeping for the day he´ll open his farm. <br />
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And then, Saturday, night, I served some wine.<br />
South African Chardonay and Shiraz.<br />
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8485_zpsb43102a5.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8485_zpsb43102a5.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8485_zpsb43102a5.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a><br />
<br />
Actually, I never, ever drink any alcohol at all, but my best friend had decided to throw a house concert with a wine tasting, and I loved helping her out. I walked through the room and chatted with everybody and refilled their glasses, while telling them about cinnamon and honey like flavour - though I acknowledged that I didn´t taste the stuff myself - but I had thoroughly read the description :)<br />
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The house concert itself was sweet, as well - a group of five ladies singing really great accappella.<br />
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8480_zpscc110860.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8480_zpscc110860.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8480_zpscc110860.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a><br />
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Their humor wasn´t for me, but I loved the idea of hosting a house concert, and I´m pondering about how to organize that.<br />
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So that was my very busy weekend with lots of firsts, and lots of new experiences.<br />
<br />
Now I deserve to sit on the sofa and treating myself with some warm, lovely, very September-like potato-pumpkin soup.<br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8486_zpsbbbb7665.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8486_zpsbbbb7665.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8486_zpsbbbb7665.jpg" height="480" width="640" /> </a><br />
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Music:<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/BKFhJp0LPcM" width="420"></iframe><br />
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The girls from my friend´s living room :) </div>
</div>
HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-11699635599002658332014-09-12T09:05:00.000-07:002014-09-12T09:05:32.579-07:00My gorgeous<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/evabente_zps0397372f.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo evabente_zps0397372f.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/evabente_zps0397372f.jpg" height="640" width="475" /></a></div>
<br />
Eva and her best friend recently did a photoshoot, and I´m loving the results!<br />
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/evashoot_zps779d6df8.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo evashoot_zps779d6df8.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/evashoot_zps779d6df8.jpg" height="640" width="481" /></a></div>
<br />
Eva found an advertisment on the door of a public toilet - seriously. Exchange your toilet coupon for a free photoshooting - one photo for free, the rest you have to buy. And of course she was eager to do it, and I agreed, because the photographer seemed nice and I liked her unusual approach on gaining new customers. I also liked that Eva decided to do it together with her best friend - I still have pictures of those two with matching permanent marker smears on their 3 year old faces. And I loved how they did each others make up - again and again - and picked clothes and giggled. Very sweet :)<br />
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Music:<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/pMWjVdPHGgM" width="420"></iframe> <br />
<br />
Since this is an Eva-post - let´s go with this one :)</div>
HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-47520907558634463062014-09-11T12:47:00.000-07:002014-09-11T14:21:41.496-07:00Dehydrating food.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8461_zps1bea48a6.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8461_zps1bea48a6.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8461_zps1bea48a6.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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I´ve been pondering about this ever since I began my juice/jam experiments. You can dehydrate fruits by putting them into the oven, at low temperature, and I did try that. The downsides are a) you need to turn the food over, so it dries from both sides evenly, and I never liked having my oven running for several hours - what a waste of energy.</div>
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If you live in a nice and warm and sunny area, you can apparently dehydrate food in your car. I´ve read several instructions on that. Only, neither do we have much sun, nor a car, and somehow, I feel strange putting trays with apples and bananas into a rental car. We might transport our chicken coop in it, but using it as a dehydrateer would be a bit over the top, wouldn´t it?</div>
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So I found this nice dehydrater in a Croatian supermarket, for a fracture of the price you´d pay in Germany, and happily took it home.</div>
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8458_zpsb3451fd5.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8458_zpsb3451fd5.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8458_zpsb3451fd5.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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It consists of several plastic trays which you load with fruit...</div>
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8406_zps74582a8f.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8406_zps74582a8f.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8406_zps74582a8f.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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...and then you plug the baby in and see what happens.</div>
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The results: </div>
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8462_zpsb022d63d.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8462_zpsb022d63d.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8462_zpsb022d63d.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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The strawberries are nice and crisp, and they taste like they would be awesome in a muesli - if they´d last that long. </div>
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8463_zpsf04f9397.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8463_zpsf04f9397.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8463_zpsf04f9397.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
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My favourites were the figs, because they are crispy and remind me of croatia :)</div>
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And the bananas are sweet and delicious, a lot sweeter than fresh ones, and I love them!</div>
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As for the energy loss - I can´t really tell, but at least you can dry a far larger amount on much less space with this baby, and that must count for something. </div>
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Music:</div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/vRWfoAPUit4" width="560"></iframe><br /></div>
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The first time I heard Taylors new single, I wasn´t too enthusiastic. Then I found myself humming it, against my will, and Eva loves her Talor, anyway. And then this cute Tyler Ward cover popped up on my youtube feed last week, and I was pretty much sold :)</div>
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HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-79571530495595847202014-09-09T00:51:00.000-07:002014-09-09T00:51:07.086-07:00Beeswax Lipbalm, homemade.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8404_zps3835e049.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8404_zps3835e049.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8404_zps3835e049.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a><br />
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Looks pretty awesome for homemade, doesn´t it?<br />
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The recipe is super simple.<br />
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You need 30 % beeswax (which you can buy in pellets or, if you´ve got honeybees, harvest from your own tribes :)), and<br />
70 % oil. I took olive oil, because I had it and it was suggested in the recipe, but I also made another version with linseed oil, and I imagine the almond oil we used for our handbalm to work even better.<br />
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You melt it both until you´ve got a homogeneus, golden liquid, and then pour it into the sticks.<br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8399_zps823bbdc8.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8399_zps823bbdc8.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8399_zps823bbdc8.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a><br />
I got them on amazon and they are 15 cents, each. I also still had the little crucibles left, I think their intended use is to store nail glitter in them, but I always thought I could find some sensible use for them. So, when I still had some of the oil-beeswax mixture left, I poured it into those. <br />
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As for the pouring, I still need to look for a method not to make such a mess, but over all, it worked just fine - you can wipe the excess off with a paper towel.<br />
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And that´s basically it - the secret to super cool homemade beeswax lipbalm.<br />
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The labels are what gives them this extra touch, I think - I loved labelling them. I used <a href="http://www.picmonkey.com/" target="_blank">picmonkey</a> for it. <br />
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I gave most of them away, to friends, but Tim actually sold some at work, along with my homemade handbalm and that made me kind of proud :)<br />
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Music for the day:<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/77gy-2UUA-c" width="420"></iframe><br />
This is a nice one :)</div>
HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-48243665904952610642014-09-07T09:50:00.001-07:002014-09-07T09:50:43.621-07:00Meanwhile...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
...I´d like to apologize for my prolongued abscense of this blog.<br />
<br />
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I´ve been celebrating being a housewife.<br />
<br />
Since I quit my job, I´ve been able to pick up my sons early from school, and be home when my daughters get back. I write letters to the boys, so they get to practice their writing when they answer me, and I´ve been reading to them - a lot. I love to see how they begin to read for themselves, especially Mehmet. <br />
<br />
I´ve been indulging in being a housewife, and in doing housewifey things with purpose and very consciously, just because I <i>couldn´t</i> this whole last year, and <i>now I can</i>, again. Finally. <br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<img alt=" photo DSCF8437_zps4d11c593.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8437_zps4d11c593.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></div>
<br />
I deeply enjoy cooking beautiful meals and arranging beautiful dinners - even more than I did before I worked, because during this year, I learned how preciuos that is.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8441_zpsad8ca54b.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8441_zpsad8ca54b.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8441_zpsad8ca54b.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a><br />
<br />
I´m participating in a baking contest next week, just because, (and I´ll post a picture of my hopefully awesome cake...), and I bleached the laundry, something I think I´ve never done in my whole live, but it worked nicely, and while doing it, I felt a nice connection to generations of women everywhere in the world who´ve done that before me. It did show nice results. <br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8405_zps26a748d2.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8405_zps26a748d2.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8405_zps26a748d2.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />
I even painted my kitchen. I´m pretty sure this kind of enthusiasm won´t hold forever, but right now, I feel like I´ve got wings, and I feel like I can finally do all the things I´ve wanted to do all year long, fix all the things I wanted to fix but always was to tired to.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8450_zps592af292.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8450_zps592af292.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8450_zps592af292.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />
And we´ve been riding our bikes, of course. <br />
<br />
I still do some volunteer work in school, but instead of spending 30+ hours for very little money there, I come for 2-4 hours a week, and I only come when it makes me happy, and play a few songs on my guitar, help some kids who really need it, and then I hapily go. I also volunteer in Eva and Ronja´s schoolcafeteria:<br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8432_zpsef89c698.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8432_zpsef89c698.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8432_zpsef89c698.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a><br />
<br />
That´s so cool! I love working there, one morning ´o week, because I like the rush when all the kids come during break time, and the feeling of actually working with my hands, preparing hundreds of sandwiches and salads and being <i>fast</i>. Once a week, I love doing that. The girls I work with are awesome, and my daughters enjoy having me there and are not one bit embarresed, but love seeing me there. Oh, and I´m proud of my blue apron :)<br />
<br />
And I´m catching up on my social contacts. That as well. And I´m watching intellectual debates about the death penalty and refugees and religion on youtube, because while I worked, I felt like my brain was drying out with boredom of the ever-same repetetive tasks, and now I need to catch up a little. <br />
<br />
I´ve also been sewing quite a lot, and I worked on several cool projects, which I´ll show you over the course of the next week - promise with pinky-swear.<br />
<br />
But for now, I´m leaving you with an appropriate song:<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/EOUfEd19t8s" width="420"></iframe><br />
Back to the roots :)</div>
HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-69209650233898724642014-08-16T04:10:00.002-07:002014-08-16T04:10:25.941-07:00One last Dubrovnik post<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8322_zps13abb4ec.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8322_zps13abb4ec.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8322_zps13abb4ec.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a> <br />
<br />
We´re back home allready - the kid´s school starts next week, unfortunately - but before I go back to regular posting, I allow myself one or two more vacation-related posts - I figured I love reading my old vacations myself, and over the years, I figured this is the nicest photo diary I´ve got. So bear with me :)<br />
<br />
The picture above, by the way, was really hard taking - I wanted, wanted wanted a picture of the old town from above, and there´s a costal serpentine road from which you´ve got this breathtaking view.<br />
Unfortunately, it´s really tough stopping the car for a photo - there is no, and I mean no place where you could stop your car. It´s all bendy and crowded. So I was really thrilled when Tim found an opportunity for a couple of minutes in the evening hours :)<br />
<br />
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<br />
I found a streetmusician with a lijerica who let me play! It´s really easy! Also, I found it quite interesting you didn´t push the strings down from above, as you´d do with a violin or a guitar, but push your fingers against the side of the string to change the tone. I´ve never seen that before. <br />
<br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8316_zps77eb9ba5.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8316_zps77eb9ba5.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8316_zps77eb9ba5.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a> <br />
<br />
I checked two music stores and several souvenir stores to find a lijerica for myself, but without success.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8246_zps237f866a.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8246_zps237f866a.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8246_zps237f866a.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a><br />
<br />
What I found fascinating to experience was how a country can get back on it´s feet.<br />
<br />
The war on the Balkan was pretty much the first war I consciuosly took note of as a child - it also was the first war a german army participated in after WW2, and I remember the first refugee kids in our village. And many stayed - Eva´s got a good friend whose mom came over as such a refugee child, and I know plenty of kids in school who still speak Serbian or Croatian - which is pretty much the same language by the way.<br />
<br />
Of course you do still see traces of the war, suddenly popping up in between the very European beach promenades.<br />
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<br />
Former fancy restaurants, hotels, stores, that now look like hollow teeth and have trees growing in the rubble, and you wonder how they might have looked 30 years ago, before the war, and how it came they were abandoned. And then you walk around the corner, and there´s a shiny beach bar where you get an awesome chocolate frappé.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8310_zpsb1e56115.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8310_zpsb1e56115.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8310_zpsb1e56115.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />
And I felt like this was a gigantic exclamationmark of hope - a country that had been shattered by war, now blossoming. And the boarder to Bosnia is casually passed by thousands everyday back and forth, and nobody seems to mind. I really liked that.<br />
<br />
And one last thing I want to keep of Croatia - after the view of Dubrovnik, the sound of the lijerica, the feeling of hope is...<br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8251_zpsc1ade036.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8251_zpsc1ade036.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8251_zpsc1ade036.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a><br />
...the taste of fresh figs. I mean, fresh from the tree, ultra sweet and crispy and delicious like you can buy nowhere and only get in Nikolina´s garden :)<br />
</div>
HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-30374741745550925812014-08-08T03:06:00.000-07:002014-08-08T03:06:14.103-07:00Boats and Islands.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: center;">
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The coastline here is pretty much sprinkled with small islands, so when it comes to the "What to do around Dubrovnik" tips you find in books and on the internet, it usually involves boats. <br />
<br />
We booked a small boattrip around Lokrum. On Lokrum, there´s almost nothing, except for pine trees, lots of pine trees, and a small monastry. <br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8268_zps6c221d22.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8268_zps6c221d22.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8268_zps6c221d22.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a><br />
This is a text from 1151, from a bishop about the ownership of the island, and I loved to be in the same room as a piece of script that´s almost 1000 years old. <br />
<br />
And there are caves, and people jumping off cliffs.<br />
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<br />
I liked how the boat looked.<br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8219_zpsb9a84d32.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8219_zpsb9a84d32.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8219_zpsb9a84d32.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a> <br />
<br />
And I liked how my girls looked:<br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8202_zpsb7082523.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8202_zpsb7082523.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8202_zpsb7082523.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a> <br />
<br />
They also rent pedal boats with a slide on top over here, and we used it to bribe our kids into not fighting when cleaning the table, so we´d rent one if they behaved nicely.<br />
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<br />
It gave me nightmares, though. The idea is - you pedal out really far, and then slide off into the water. My girls are superb swimmers, and I let them do whatever they want when it comes to water, because not only can they swim, but they are responsible judges of their own abilities. I can trust them to be save.<br />
<br />
Which can not be said about my boys. They can swim... sort of.<br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8294_zpsebbe4154.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8294_zpsebbe4154.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8294_zpsebbe4154.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a><br />
<br />
And they always believe they can swim to... yeah, that island is not really far away, is it? <br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8302_zps74980aa1.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8302_zps74980aa1.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8302_zps74980aa1.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a><br />
<br />
See those two small dots?<br />
<br />
That´s Tim and Miro. Tim swam with him, but it still made me nervous. <br />
<br />
Also, I was scared the whole time one would end up under the boat while I was watching the other, so I guess I spoiled their super cool slidey-boat trip for them. But I felt a lot better when I had them back on solid ground. And the girls enjoyed it, at least.<br />
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8305_zps0534ef5a.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8305_zps0534ef5a.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8305_zps0534ef5a.jpg" height="640" width="480" /> </a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Music: </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/NIuUE3PWqjM" width="420"></iframe></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
Late last night, I heard some music through my window. I silently tapped on Eva´s door, we quickly threw on our dresses and snuck out the door. The house we´re staying in is close to the local fire brigade, and the people from this village use the house for their Thursday night dancing gatherings. They did, actually, practice traditional folk dancing. Not with costumes, the touristy stuff, but for fun, the youngest dancers being around Eva´s age, the oldest with grey hair. And the music I had heard (and thought it came from a tape) came from a Lijerica, a traditional croation instrument with three strings. The guy who played it told me the strings were made from a tennis racket :) So I thought I´d give you an example of the Lijerica for today :)</div>
</div>
HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-84497322903877158562014-08-07T03:39:00.000-07:002014-08-07T03:39:03.027-07:00Dubrovnik<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8233_zps6d7d3e80.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8233_zps6d7d3e80.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8233_zps6d7d3e80.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />
This is why I like Dubrovnik.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8241_zps273bd816.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8241_zps273bd816.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8241_zps273bd816.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
And this.<br />
<br />
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8275_zpsfdf6c7df.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8275_zpsfdf6c7df.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8275_zpsfdf6c7df.jpg" height="640" style="cursor: move;" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />
And this (And yes, that´s Mehmet jumping off that cliff like a young god there :) )<br />
<br />
Unlike other metropoles we´ve visited, Dubrovnik has one big advantage: The stunningly clear, adriatic sea, in direct reach. Whether we visited Amsterdam or Paris or Prague or London, it was always this dance around keeping the kids happy and entertained, not stretching their patience for too long, and then quickly leaving the city center for a park or the campsite or some place the kids would like. Well.<br />
<br />
This is pretty much the city center of Dubrovnik´s gorgeous old town.<br />
<br />
There´s a little bay, right along the city walls, that looks like open arms hugging the sea, and we spent the last days with intervals of swimming - walking through the town-swimming - repeat. Worked perfectly. I´ve never seen water so clear, so swimable, in such proximity to a big city, I still can hardly believe it, and I´ve got no idea how they keep it so clean, but there you are. You can see swarms of hundreds of little fish swimming around you, sometimes feel them, too. And Miro and Ronja found crabs, and mussles - it´s so cool!<br />
<br />
Of course, Dubrovnik is not only swimming.<br />
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8256_zpsa4568462.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8256_zpsa4568462.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8256_zpsa4568462.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />
There´s the new town, where regular people go to buy cheap shoes for kids who lost theirs at the beach but that otherwise looks like just any other town, and there´s the old town, a fully restored medieval fairy tale city.<br />
<br />
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<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8201_zps5c68883f.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8201_zps5c68883f.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8201_zps5c68883f.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />
In fact, it is King´s Landing. And as much as I´d like to state that´s a pure coincidence we only discovered here, I´ve got to admit that, yes, that was part of the reason we came here. We wanted to see King´s Landing. <br />
<br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8258_zpsb1fe519f.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8258_zpsb1fe519f.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8258_zpsb1fe519f.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a><br />
<br />
You can walk around the city walls and see all the orange roofs - a walk around the city walks is considered something like a must for tourists here -it´s like going to La tour Eiffel when you´re in Paris. Though you best do it on a clouded day, because the sun is bright here and there´s no shade at all, but many stairs :)<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8252_zps25a059d2.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8252_zps25a059d2.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8252_zps25a059d2.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
There´s the Onophrian fountain...<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8194_zpsb20e1631.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8194_zpsb20e1631.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8194_zpsb20e1631.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
...where you can not only refill your water bottle, but that also offers yet another place to splash around with water - it´s Mehmet and Miro´s favourite place in the city, also because of the money some tourists throw in for luck - and I know that the twins, despite me telling them not to, plucked the sum of 3 kuna (around 40 cents) out of the water, giggling and then investing it secretly in sweets from the pirate candy store right next to the fountain. <br />
<br />
Speaking of pirates...<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8195_zps3cd9f05e.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8195_zps3cd9f05e.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8195_zps3cd9f05e.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
...the guys who place parrots on random tourist´s shoulders are in Dubrovnik, as well. <br />
<br />
And the world´s best frozen yogurt is sold in Dubrovnik, and on the market, you get lavendar oil for almost nothing. And when Tim and the kids went for their... I guess fourth round of swimming, I got a whole hour off just for myself, during which I found two bookstores (so we can read some Zoran Feric now), and a war memorial museum, and two churches, and some really cute designer stores.<br />
<br />
I´m one happy woman :)<br />
<br />
More tomorrow, I´m going to soak in the sunshine now, so I´m closing this post with some fun music:<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/knkuFLK9zJw" width="560"></iframe><br />
Courtesy of Eva :) <br />
<br /></div>
HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-73335136382648815382014-08-04T11:32:00.004-07:002014-08-04T11:32:32.788-07:00Luxury<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF8143_zps707d46f7.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF8143_zps707d46f7.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF8143_zps707d46f7.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a> </div>
<br />
Last night, we slept in a bed for the first time in a week, which is awesome.<br />
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We´re staying in a small village named Mlini, 8 km south of Dubrovnik, and it´s lovely here. What makes it so lovely is, beside the hot, dry weather and the stunning view and bla bla bla, the awesomeness of our hosts.<br />
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We´re the first they are renting their newly remodeled flat to, and they really go out of their way to make it nice for us. They´ve got a huge garden, and Nikolina, our host, regularly comes up to our flat and brings us tomatoes and Zuchini and potatoes and onions from their garden. They also happen to have chickens, so we get free eggs, as well.<br />
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And they´ve got sheep, and Miro loves the small mountain of freshly shorn wool that´s casually lying around in the garden. He picked some, and uses it as a bed for his toy Donald Duck, who now camps in the drawer of his bedsite table.<br />
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Nikolina even makes her own soap and her own olive oil, she´s so cool!<br />
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We´re also enjoying sitting around a table for our meals - not that eating from the ground is a bad thing, but I kind of like this civilisation-thing even more after not having it for a week. <br />
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And with a proper kitchen, one can even make cool things like scraping out watermelons to drink from them - that´s so not possible on a wet campsite :)<br />
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Another nice thing is - the next neighbours own a garage. For the type of car we came with. So tomorrow, we´ll try to see whether they can fix our problem or, even better, declare it as no problem at all. Walking here is a bit tough, since small Croatian villages apparently don´t have sidewalks, but lots of fast, suddenly appearing cars on very narrow roads, and with my twins, that does make me nervous. Also, the hills are worse than the one we live on. So a car would come in handy, but we´ll see - so far, we´re enjoying the comfort of a bed and a kitchen and a bathroom, that feels heavenly :)</div>
HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-80311027449020299062014-08-03T12:58:00.001-07:002014-08-03T12:58:34.244-07:00From rain to sunshine. <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Eventually, it really stopped raining in Bled, and when I woke up around six the next morning, it was bright and sunny and I went, all by myself, swimming in that awesome lake, while everyone else was asleep, and that was a moment of pure, warm happiness. I swam on my back and looked at the clouds and the mountains and the castle and felt utter bliss.<br />
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Later, I cooked a nutritious breakfast...<br />
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...and took the rest of my family to the lake. Despite the rain, lake Bled is gorgeous, and Eva said she never wants to leave, or at least come back soon, and both girls spent some time writing romantic fairy tales playing in Bled while we... rode on.<br />
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This is Croatia, or the first we saw of Croatia from the car. It´s rocky, and gigantic - there´s miles and miles and miles of space filled with nothing but rocks and trees, and for little german me, that´s pretty impressive - where I live, every little scrap of space is used for <i>something. </i>I rarely get to see a vastness like this. <i><br /></i><br />
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It also makes you wonder what would happen if your car broke down in the middle of this immense nothingness - something that didn´t feel too far off today, since this stupid little light in our car began blinking - you know, the one that, when you look it up in the manual, says something along the lines of "Immediatly stop and take your car to a trusted partner or bad things will happen".<br />
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The thing is, it´s not even our car, but one we rented. And we didn´t rent it from an official company, one with an emergency number or something similar, but from a nice guy over the internet. Also, it´s not like there are many garages at hand, and since the car still drove, so did we - at least until we reached a noteable city, which was Sibenik.<br />
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Sibenik is a shopping paradise with huge malls and even bigger hotels and beach and summer. Also, with a garage and a guy that told us to keep driving - it was Saturday afternoon and I guess he just wanted to go to the beach. So did we.<br />
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We found a campsite and pitched up our tents - they were still wet from Slovenia, as were a lot of our clothes, but everything seemed to dry within minutes in the hot Croatian sun. We ate bread and olives and this awesome Croatian cheese that tastes like the<i> ser</i> my polish hostmother used to make, and we went swimming in the sunset.<br />
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And later, when the kids were adorably sleeping in their tent cabins...<br />
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Tim and I went for a walk along the beach, and actually saw two falling stars over the dark night sea.<br />
Very, very beautiful :)<br />
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I´m still nervous about the car, but I do have a song for the day - after finding out that every Croatian radio station we could find only played synthetic 80´s pop mixed with Croatian folk, I brought out the CD case Tim´s father gave us, and it actually contained a Beatles greatest hits.<br />
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Unlike the rest of my folks, I had a lot of fun belting along to this old gem:<br />
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HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-63971821823668082072014-08-01T02:30:00.000-07:002014-08-01T02:30:01.106-07:00Slovenia is wet<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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How´s that for swimming in paradise?<br />
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The little town Bled in Slovenia, just South off the Alps, is stunningly beautiful. I cannot say how often today I exclaimed how <i>blue</i> the water is. And clear. But <i>blue</i>. As if they´d put color in it, but of course they wouldn´t do that.<br />
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And the flowers:<br />
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Never in my life have I seen flowers with petals in two different colors. Never ever ever. I´d really like to take a hike with someone who knows the botanic around here. <br />
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Walking around the lake, with it´s castle looming majestically on a rock, and the little church on the island in the middle, chiming at all hours, it really feels like walking through postcard country. Picture perfect. And they offer... basically everything. Today I´ve seen posters advertising <i>spa minigolf thai massage paragliding balloon flights waterskiing dragon boat ralleys surf classes scuba diving classes cave excursion guided climbing tours wine tasting classical concerts pilates classes mini trams row boats swimming under waterfalls yoga pony riding segway tours bike rentals wooden outdoor whirlpools</i> and pretty much everything else when it comes to the touristic entertainement sector.And cake. There´s a picture of cake at every corner, always the same, creamy-buttery cake, and they even have a cake drive-through. I´m thoroughly impressed. <br />
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It almost feels as if they are trying to offer every, every, everything to keep people here, while most people we´ve met on the campsite are, like us, just transit tourists staying here for one or two nights, before they go on further south. Which is a shame - this place does offer an incredible natural beauty, and we´re considering spending more time here on our way back.<br />
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The downside:<br />
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The rain. Man, did it rain last night. While my sleeping mat is made from sturdy plastic, old army material from a fleamarket in the 90´s, and it stays nicely dry, Tim´s nice, expensive, soft sleeping mat is soaken. We actually have puddles in our tent, and around our tent, and everything is muddy. <br />
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Hiring some rounds at the washing machine and the dry cleaner brought some relief, as did some warm spaghetti in a nice little restaurant.<br />
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And it´s sweet, cuddling in the tent, reading Animal farm and drinking hot chocolate.<br />
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I´m sure if it had rained less, little Bled, Slovenia, would have felt like heaven. But as it is, I´m looking forward to go south, cross the border to Croatia and escape the rain :)<br />
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Oh, and btw - the reason I´m not posting any music of the day with my vacation posts is the wobbly internet connection. I´ve got to be quick, and use all bandwidth to upload my pictures. Opening youtube seems to crash everything :) So just imagine a nice Ed Sheeran song here, okay? <br />
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See you from Croatia!</div>
HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-90584932841183116872014-07-31T03:39:00.003-07:002014-07-31T03:39:50.098-07:00Crossing the Alps<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Yesterday we left Munich, to cross the alps and go southwards. Our goal was Bled in Slovenia, and the way from Munich to Bled was originally the shortest etappe of our journey. So we packed our tents and hit the road again. We crossed the border to Austria, listening to our trusted audiobook "Holes" by Louis Sachar again, while driving through the rain and looking at the scenery in the rain...<br />
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...when a sign popped up, saying "Eisriesen Werfen".<br />
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That means, roughly trnslated, something called "Throwing Ice Giants".<br />
Sounds cool, right?<br />
So we decided to take a little break, I mean, it can´t take longer than an hour to check out what that meant, right?<br />
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Turns out, Werfen is a small town in Austria, and "Eisriesen" is the name of the worlds largest ice cave. To reach it, you have to hike until you reach a height of 1600 metres in the alps.<br />
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Which we then did, assisted by a super cool cable cart, but still. <br />
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The air tastes different up there.<br />
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And it´s so, so stunning, seeing those gigantic mountains. I saw them and thought about the utter determination humans before me must have had crossing those. Carving paths and tunnels in them and through them, marking passages, hammering out stairs to climb.<br />
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It´s an utter miracle for me that the land north of the alps and the land south of the alps has a connection at all. I mean, I see the reason behind building a boat and crossing an ocean. That feels... natural. But the idea that people ever looked at those mountains and thought... Yeah, I´m going to climb that? Wow. Just wow.<br />
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The caves itselves were not less impressive. Unfortunately, it wasn´t allowed to take any pictures, so here´s one from their official website...<br />
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...which you can find <a href="http://www.eisriesenwelt.at/die-hoehle/bilder.html" target="_blank">here</a>. <br />
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The tour took 80 minutes, during which one had to climb 1400 frozen stairs, carrying small lamps with open fire. It was dark and icy cold and Miro and I always felt like slipping, and we were hungry and tired and freezing, and it was beyond amazing and an incredible adventure that made us bond and feel alive. Our trip went only about 1 kilometre into the mountain, but the whole system of caves is more than 42 kilometres long.<br />
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When you go in and out, there´s an incredibly strong wind, due to the exchange of cold and warm air, and that alone is awesome. <br />
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Of course, this whole endeavour didn´t just take an hour. We spent more than 6 hours in Werfen, Austria, 6 amazing hours, but it really delayed our arrival in Slovenia. We reached our campsite at almost midnight, where we pitched up our tents in complete darkness (with the help of the headlights of the car), on really muddy ground. Mehmet and Miro where asleep allready, but we had to tired, fighting little girls - and then it rained all through the night. We got lucky it didn´t rain when we arrived. <br />
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I´ll show you more of Slovenia tomorrow - it is nice here, picture-postcard-nice, though wet and muddy, but for now, I´m going to check whether I find a way to dry our wet sleeping bags and whether there´s a place where I can buy new shoes for Miro, who´s soles are no longer attached to the rest of his shoes. We do love adventures :)<br />
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HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-693011198954902042014-07-28T22:47:00.002-07:002014-07-28T22:47:43.974-07:00Munich - Day 1<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
My name is Bond - Vagabond.<br />
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Yeah, I know it´s a bad pun, but I saw it on a bumper sticker on the road today, and I<i> love</i> bad puns. Also, I loved the sticker, because it made me feel like <i>We´re on the road again</i> - which we are. <br />
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We´re on our way to Croatia, and Munich is our first stop - right now, I´m sitting in a little bar with a campfire and lots of drunken Dutch guys wearing no shirt - it really is lovely. It´s a cheap backpacker´s place with a huge common dorm room (though we sleep in our tent - and isn´t it awesome?)<br />
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... and where people share their food and everyone speaks English and there´s a piano for everyone to play - something I´ve never had before on any campsite. Really cool.<br />
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As soon as we arrived Eva vanished to her friend - a friend of hers moved here in January, and the two of them have been missing each other dearly. Now they´re whispering together in their own tent. <br />
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The rest of us checked out Munich city for a bit - Mehmet and Miro discovered the fountains and got completely wet so I had to get them new shorts.<br />
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We found a Garden of Eden themed art installation in a church that looked really pretty,<br />
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and guy with a grand piano playing in front of a Dirndl store. <br />
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So that´s Munich so far :)</div>
HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-1376776880065525232014-07-26T01:03:00.000-07:002014-07-26T01:10:22.721-07:00What we´re doing in our summer break<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Experiments. Eva, especially. Preferably with a little audience. <br />
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A nice experiment for a hot summer day is the instant slushie - we found <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?annotation_id=annotation_3425978689&feature=iv&src_vid=iaTEI5ftrIQ&v=5T68TvdoSbI" target="_blank">this video</a> and had wanted to see if it really works for a while. It does :)<br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF7960_zpsa12d1449.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF7960_zpsa12d1449.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF7960_zpsa12d1449.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a> <br />
<br />
...and if you need to crush some lemons for the drink and don´t have a pestle, a beekeeper´s pic does the job quite well. :)<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF7968_zps5a9603ab.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF7968_zps5a9603ab.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF7968_zps5a9603ab.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />
Meeting
friends we haven´t seen in a while. During work/school time, social
life has to lay pretty low, which is a shame, and over now.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF7835_zps842e4c3a.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF7835_zps842e4c3a.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF7835_zps842e4c3a.jpg" height="640" width="360" /></a></div>
That´s Ronnie and her very best childhood friend, who spent so many days and nights with us she practically is family. The two of them had a lot of silly bets and dares over the last weeks, most of them ending with buckets of water being emptied on each other´s heads. <br />
<br />
Going to town, to see what they´ve got to offer in the local mall is a nice idea when it rains...<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF7983_zpsabdffe83.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF7983_zpsabdffe83.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF7983_zpsabdffe83.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />
...and so is reading - of course!<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF7912_zps2fc710eb.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF7912_zps2fc710eb.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF7912_zps2fc710eb.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
Mehmet has read 3 (!) books so far, all by him self, and I am so relieved at least one of my boys has finally found out about the joy of reading! They love listening to me or Tim reading books, but so far, they´ve never read for themselves. I´m happy to see that changing!<br />
<br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF7996_zpsb545a1a6.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF7996_zpsb545a1a6.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF7996_zpsb545a1a6.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a><br />
Ronnie and I have been making duct tape wallets, so both of us stop carrying all our stuff in various pockets and purses, as we´ve done so far. There are tons of tutorials on youtube on how to make one.<br />
And the pictures of Mehmet and Miro are really, really sad. They are their new passport pictures, we´ve been taking them last week. Mehmet and Miro were very impressed with the many rules for passport pictures, especially the "Don´t smile" rule. They took that very serious. <br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF7817_zpsdd09c054.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF7817_zpsdd09c054.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF7817_zpsdd09c054.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
...and Eva and I have been making super soft handbalm with almond oil, honey and beeswax. So awesome!<br />
<br />
Also, we´ve been busy packing and organizing the last things for our trip - on Monday, we´ll be leaving for a three week trip to Austria, Slovenia and Croatia, and we spent quite some time washing the sleeping bags, finding the camping stuff, trying out which tent stil works, finding campsites and holiday homes and learning how to say "Thank you" in Croatian. It´s <i>Hvala</i>, by the way.<br />
<br />
I know that´s I´ll have wireless internet from at least three places on the road so far, so I´m looking forward to blogging from the road, which is my favourite kind of blogging - the posts I wrote when we were in Spain or England or Russia are the ones I still enjoy reading the most myself. <br />
<br />
If I find the time, I might write some pre-sceduled posts in advance, but I´m not sure about that.<br />
<br />
Music:<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/y6Sxv-sUYtM" width="560"></iframe><br />
This is the one song all six of us want on the mixtape for the long ride. The one song we all agree on. I know it´s been totally overplayed into annoyingness, but <i>dang</i>, it´s got swing!</div>
HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7926370429779860731.post-44121837655184516912014-07-21T05:51:00.003-07:002014-07-21T05:51:54.710-07:00Pillow talk<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF7929_zps73847fba.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF7929_zps73847fba.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF7929_zps73847fba.jpg" height="640" width="478" /></a> </div>
<br />
This is a surprisingly easy project, and I don´t know why I´ve never tried it before - sew a pillow!<br />
<br />
I got the basic pillow from Ikea - about four Euro, I think - and I had it lying around here for a while.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF7923_zpsd50372a1.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF7923_zpsd50372a1.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF7923_zpsd50372a1.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a><br />
<br />
I took some quilting scraps, and began placing them on the pillow, to see what looked nice, and how many I needed to safely cover the surface. I made a whole science out of which colour should go next to the other, and this is what probably took longest, but also was lots of fun.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF7924_zpsfbd38c9d.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF7924_zpsfbd38c9d.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF7924_zpsfbd38c9d.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
<br />
After I was convinced I had the right layout, I began connecting the fabric squares, right side on right side, to form strips.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF7925_zpsc98f38a9.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF7925_zpsc98f38a9.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF7925_zpsc98f38a9.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a><br />
And then assembled those strips...<br />
<br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF7926_zps128588e2.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF7926_zps128588e2.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF7926_zps128588e2.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a><br />
...to form a square. Now, doesn´t it look nice?<br />
<br />
For the back, I still had an old sofa-cover in the basement, that was about to be thrown away in the process of cleaning out the basement to create space for our beekeeper´s equipment - so I took it, had a close look at it to find the one clean spot, and placed my pretty newly quilted spare on top of it:<br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF7927_zpsd97f49e5.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF7927_zpsd97f49e5.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF7927_zpsd97f49e5.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a><br />
<br />
Then I cut around it:<br />
<a href="http://s882.photobucket.com/user/Buddelkiste/media/DSCF7928_zpsfc34152b.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo DSCF7928_zpsfc34152b.jpg" border="0" src="http://i882.photobucket.com/albums/ac24/Buddelkiste/DSCF7928_zpsfc34152b.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a><br />
<br />
And sewed the two sides together, pushed in the pillow, and sewed it shut. And that was it.<br />
<br />
Now I´ve got less scraps, more space in my basement, and a nice cushion - when Tim and I watch Game of Thrones on the sofa and I lay my head on his lap, his hip bones won´t poke my shoulder again :)<br />
<br />
Music:<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/7ECB5AigzzY" width="560"></iframe><br />
Something dutch again, fit for summer :)</div>
HelenClydehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10243315601530896467noreply@blogger.com0