counting my blessings

Hello lovely friends...

How was your week?

Mine felt extremely long indeed - by Wednesday I was convinced that it should already be Friday!  {{smiles}} 

It didn't help that my phone died a sudden and sad death when it fell out my pocket, plop! right into a tub of water, which meant I had to scurry about organizing a new one...

Or that poor Nancy had her wisdom teeth removed this week, meaning we are a currently a man down...

I am realising just how much she does to keep the wheel turning each day.

On top of all this, we went and added a rabbit, a guinea pig and a kitten to our family...

And for some reason, kitty thinks it is great fun waking me an hour earlier each morning, so I have been functioning on very little sleep the past couple days.

But amidst all the craziness of these unprecedented times and the daily struggles we face, it is wonderful to know how deeply our Saviour cares and that He is walking close beside us...

Nothing happens without His knowledge, and He promises to give us fresh grace and strength for each day...

I have have so much to be thankful for, and I know that there is joy to be found in each season of life, if we will but stop and notice...

I thought I would share a list of twelve little things I am thankful for right now...I always find it lifts my heart to count my blessings. ♥

♥ glorious Autumn weather, roses blooming, and the musical trill of the birds in the trees...

♥ being able to purchase an almost-new phone from a friend.

 ♥ cuddling up with Village Diary (by Miss Read) each evening, and imaging myself an inhabitant of Fairacre...

♥ harvesting new peas and baby spinach from the garden for our salads.

♥ early morning walks with my mom, little siblings and Timmy (our dog) before I go off to work.

♥ playing in crinkly piles of Autumn leaves with the children in my "other family" (I work as an au pair).

♥ kitty snuggles (yes, even in the middle of the night) with Tabitha.

♥ late night chats with my sister.

♥ making homemade pizza with my sisters whilst singing along to beautiful Praise music.

♥ laughter around the table and homemade delicious milk tart (a South African thing).

 ♥ discussing garden plans with my mom and coming home one afternoon to find Mom had been to the second-hand store,and had laid hold of various treasures to use as planters and decor for the garden.

♥ treating myself to two novels by Lynn Austin and excitedly anticipating their arrival in the mail.

~
May the joy of the Lord be our strength in the week ahead!

What are you thankful for today?

Blessings,
Kelly-Anne

Introducing♥Tabitha

After almost year of hoping and dreaming...

I brought this sweet eight week old kitten home from the animal shelter yesterday.  ♥

 

Meet Tabitha, named after the character from Beatrix Potter's stories.♥

She has loads of spunk and energy, and a truly enormous purr for such a tiny bundle of fur...

 She has stolen our hearts ♥

I hope all my lovely readers are well and enjoying a beautiful week!

Blessings,

Kelly-Anne

Orange, Almond & Polenta Cake

Hello dear friends and happy Thursday!
I hope that you have had a lovely week thus far...♥

Now that I am back at work, life is busier than ever, which means I don't have a lot of time for blogging...
Today the children and I spent the morning sewing felt hand puppets which we will finish off tomorrow.
I feel so thankful to be able to resume a somewhat normal way of life, and I am purposing to cherish each moment, and take things slower.

Apart from au pairing, I have been weeding and tidying the garden, and planting more spinach, lettuce and beetroot seeds.
We are also getting a delivery of manure today which I will add to our compost heap.
Stay tuned for a garden update coming soon!

And now, here is the recipe for the orange, almond and polenta cake I promised to share...
This cake is absolutely delicious served with fresh whipped cream and a cup of tea...it is also gluten-free♥  {{smiles}}

ORANGE, ALMOND AND POLENTA CAKE

 

100ml fresh orange juice

25ml sugar

5-6cm rosemary twig with leaves

150g butter

150g castor sugar

3 large eggs

5ml baking powder

Pinch salt

5ml finely grated orange rind

175g almond flour

75g polenta

Preheat the oven to 160 degrees Celsius.

Grease a 20cm cake tin. 

Heat the orange juice and sugar over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. 

Remove from the heat, add rosemary twig and allow to infuse for five minutes. 

Remove the twig from the syrup. 

Set aside the syrup, you will need to reheat it and pour it over the cake later on. 

Beat the butter and castor sugar until creamy and add the eggs gradually while beating on a high speed, until light and fluffy. 

Use a mixing spoon to mix the baking powder, salt, orange rind, almond flour and polenta into the creamed mixture. 

Spoon the soft dough into the greased cake tin and level the surface. 

Bake for 50-60 minutes, until golden and done.

Remove from the oven, prick the hot cake and pour the hot orange syrup over the cake. 

Allow to cool before cutting.

Serve with cream.

Thank you so much for stopping by, dear friends. ♥

Blessings,

Kelly-Anne

in my world ~ may

 

 

^ Pictures from Caleb's fourth birthday party last week

 outside my window ~

  After a few warm days, I awoke to the sound of softly falling rain, and a misty world outside my window.

My garden is smiling with all the lovely water it is receiving.

in my cup ~

Black rooibos tea.

around the house ~

Our home is a haven and a place of peace in these troubling times...

Whenever I have to run to the store for groceries, I always feel so thankful to come home to a loving family and a cosy house.

reading ~ 

I have just started The Chronicles of Fairacre by Miss Read...so far I am enjoying the stories of life in the country and the little village school. 

 listening to ~

I have been listening to a lot of music by The Gaither Vocal Band and David Phelps.  

I find their music so uplifting and encouraging.

watching ~

 We just finished watching season 7 of When Calls the Heart, and The Chosen, a beautiful series depicting the life of Jesus...

Season 1 sees the calling of the first disciples and Jesus' first miracles...

We were so blessed by each episode, and I cannot recommend this series highly enough...

You can watch the trailer here.

from the kitchen ~

I have been spending hours in the kitchen trying out new recipes and adding the best ones to our collection... 

creating ~

 It has become mandatory to wear a face mask when leaving the house, so I spent the better part of two days measuring, cutting and sewing face masks for each member of the family.

I am quite pleased with how they turned out.

I also spent a day sewing a matching apron for Caleb and his teddy, which I gave to Caleb for his birthday.

in the garden ~

My little garden is growing steadily; the peas are flowering, the sweet potatoes are sending out new runners, the spinach is producing prolifically, and little radish, lettuce and kale seedlings are popping up all over.

out and about ~

Lockdown restrictions have been lifted ever so slightly, and we are now allowed to exercise in our neighbourhood between 6am and 9am each day...

Oh, it feels so good to breathe in the crisp autumn air and enjoy a brisk walk again!

one of  my favourite things ~

Sitting outside in the garden with my mom, sipping a cup of coffee and chatting about various plans and ideas.

thankful for

Being able to go back to work tomorrow...

Because I am an au pair in a doctor's family, I have been given a permit to work during this next level of lockdown.

I am so looking forward to seeing the children again and getting back into a bit of a routine.

dreaming of ~

This lockdown ending and being able go for a walk along the beach again or go on a roadtrip.

hoping ~

To spend more time pottering about in my garden.

We had a busy week or two preparing for Caleb's birthday...there were gifts to make and a little party to plan, so I didn't get a chance to work in my garden at all.

quiet moments ~

Beth and I took a stroll around the block this morning; there was a slight lull in the rain and all was quiet and beautiful outside.

for the love of words ~

Every morning I read online from Spurgeon's Morning and Evening devotional.

This is an excerpt from today's reading...

"Expect trouble then, but despond not on account of it, for God is with thee to help and to strengthen thee.  He hath said, "I will be with thee in trouble; I will deliver thee and honour thee."

I am so thankful for the peace we have in Christ.

~

Well, dear friends...  

I pray that the month of May would be a blessed and peaceful one amidst the turmoil and strife in the world.

I pray that you will find your strength and hope in Christ alone, and look to Him for wisdom and guidance.

I would also like to welcome sweet new readers...what a blessing it is to meet like-minded people in the lovely world of blogging!

With love,

Kelly-Anne