My Inner World

As of approximately 45 minutes ago, we are back Online! Due to complications with the pregnancy (All is well now!) I had to leave work earlier than intended, and in that same week, the Internet at home died..... So I was without the WWW for a good number of weeks. Talk about feeling like you lost a limb! But, we are back now! Thank Heavens!

I am looking forward to reading up on your respective blogs after I get this new PC secured, I HAVE MISSED YOU GUYS!

Love and light,

Mieneke

Am just after realizing, I have used the word "Treassured" in my last three posts.... Should really use the Thesaurus more.....

LOL! That "Friends" episode. "Baby Kangaroo Tribbiani"

Great, just laughed so hard I gave myself another coughing fit. Should really stop having so much fun in my own head.

Darn Cough!

When I found out I was pregnant on Munchkin, I told Paddy I was going out to get myself two new Billy Connolly DVD's. The way I figured it, once contractions started, I was going to throw on Mr. Connolly and laugh the baby out!
My intention was to not watch the DVD's until that time. But, Mr. Connolly is irresistible. They were viewed several times before her due date. In the end, I was in hospital before I even got the chance to watch them once contractions started. I adore the laugh out loud, belly shaking inducing qualities of his shows. Billy Connolly's World Tour DVD's are a must have, but his "just" Show DVD's are treasured possessions of mine, too. There are still a few on my wish list. I get a little "Happy"-buzz, every time I find a new one.
If we are lucky enough to become pregnant again, I will be heading off to the shops with the same declaration as last time! I swear, Billy should be required viewing in the delivery room. (Wonder what Billy would have to say about that!!)

For your viewing pleasure: (Beware, he is fond of the F-word, but look past that, he's Scottish! ;) )

Tuesday Morning, I arrived in to work to a find blast from the past in my inbox. An English lady living in The Netherlands, that I used to be friends with, is coming over to Dublin for a week next Sunday. She was a member of the motorcycle club I was involved with. We were very close from when I was about 17 until I was 21. I would go over to her apartment for dinner, we would have loads of fun on Rallies. Spend Birthdays, New Year's Eve, Days at the beach, shopping at IKEA together.
She's about 12 years older than I am, but I was always very mature for my age and it was never a problem. This was the lady that pointed out to me that there were jobs in UPS in Ireland. The lady that organized a surprise party for me at the town bowling alley, I had NO clue! ;-)
She was a good friend.

When I was living here for about three months. She came over to stay with me. Other club members were in the country, too. She didn't want to go and see them, I did. And I was nasty to her. I don't remember exactly what happened. But I do remember getting very annoyed with her. I thought she was being very childish for some reason and I snapped at her. This startled her as I had never done that to her before. The situation became very awkward as she was staying with me in my house. Later, I met her at a rally in Germany, and it became obvious that some real damage had been done to the friendship at that was the last time I spoke to her. Almost 5.5 years ago. Thinking back on it, I regret the course our friendship took, all those years ago. Whereas I believe a friendship should be able to handle a few knocks, I do admit that I could have been a lot more diplomatic. I definitely should have handled things differently.

I have tried to send the occasional e-mail, but they were not well received, or so I thought. The e-mail this morning said when she would be here and asking if we could meet up.

I am delighted at this and treasure the idea of being able to apologize in person.

This week is shaping up pretty well!

Munchkin has had a continuous cold for the last four weeks, with not ONE but TWO throat infections thrown in for good meassure. The throat infection she is sporting now, has her in a mood that you would not believe. Since this all started my daughter has moments of overwhelming, all consuming rage. Her temper get's the better of her and she just looses it. This is new territory for us. She has had little fits before but these are like nothing we have ever seen. We have to be consistent, and let her know that this behaviour is unacceptable. And we are, it's just really really hard to see your daughter so overwhelmed with fury all of a sudden. I can see how hard it is for her and that breaks my heart. I just really, really hope that this will go when the throatinfection and the cold go.
It's made quite the impact on our family, I know it sounds small, but it is so strange to have the behaviour of your child change so dramattically practically over night!


Also, I passed my driving test yesterday! I got a re-sit within 6 weeks (the current waiting time to sit your driving test is usually just over a year.... absolutely appaling) and decided I was not going to let nerves get the better of me this time.
After the last time, when I was driving home after failing my test, (Only in Ireland.....) I was kicking myself for letting myself get to so worked up. Was not going to let this happen to me again.
So yesterday, I got in the car, pretended the guy was just someone I was giving a lift somewhere and passed!
I am SO delighted with myself and will send off for my full license this lunchbreak!

You're 80% Irish

Congratulations, you're a shining example of an Irish lass (or lad). There's hardly anyone more Irish than you!

Overwhelmed with Joy is hosting “Holiday Cooking – Blogger Style” It has put me in the holiday spirit already!

I am by no means talented in the kitchen, but the below recipe has been incredibly well received over here in Ireland! It’s very basic, and most Dutch people make it this way but as it’s SO easy to make, I thought I’d share. Just in case anyone was looking for something quick and easy!


Dutch Apple Pie

Ingredients:

Crust:
16 oz Cream Plain Flower
8 oz Butter (Room Temperature, I use “Stork” for Pastries)
6 oz Caster Sugar
1 egg

Filling:

8-10 Large cooking apples
100/125 grams of raisins
Cinnamon
Caster Sugar
1 Egg


Crust:
Lightly beat the butter and sugar together. Add the egg and beat until smooth. Lastly, add in the flower and mix together to form a paste. I like to make the paste in to a ball and leave it in the fridge until I have the filling made. The colder the paste when you line the pie tin, the better the crust will turn out.

Filling:
Peel the apples and cut them in to small dices in a large bowl. Add sugar, cinnamon and raisins according to taste. Scoop the mixture around to make sure that the sugar, cinnamon and raisins are spread evenly. Personally, I like lots of cinnamon, but I don’t go too crazy on the sugar. I don’t measure it out so all I can say here is: “Go with what feels right to you”
This will already start to smell really good and you will need to exercise some self control to not start nibbling on pieces of apple! ;-)


Grease the inside of your pie tin with a stick of butter.
Take the crust mix out of the fridge.
Place ¾ of the ball on a lightly floured board and roll out to line your pie tin.

(I am not sure what they are called, but they are pie tins that have a loose bottom and a kind of a spring on the side to easily “pop” it off the pie. Can you tell I don’t usually do recipes yet?)

When the tin is lined, scoop the apple mixture in to the tin and press down firmly with the back of a spoon.

Roll out the remaining crust mix to make long strips about half an inch wide and lay these on top of the filling in a grid shape.
Whisk an egg, and with a small baking brush, lightly smear some egg on the grid.

Pop in to your preheated oven (about 210 Degrees Celsius) and leave for one hour.

Once it’s done and cooled down, pop it in to the fridge for a night. For some reason it tastes even better then!

Enjoy!

Please be sure to drop by at Overwhelmed with Joy! to read and share your own holiday recipes!

**Tag: Dessert

Right, so Hotmail? Was not being my friend over the last while. It was annoying me no end, because I like to reply to comments through e-mail. Sometimes I could read my mail, but not reply. Other times, I could not even get past the log in screen. Sometimes, I could compose an e-mail and send it, but not reply to the reply I got.
I was ready to fling the whole thing out the window!

My friend, who is much wiser in all things computer/Internet, told me my Internet security settings were set waaaaaaayy to high and mentioned some other stuff, that frankly, just induced "Blank Stare" on my face.
And then says, "But sure, you don't need Hotmail to reply to comments, you can just reply in the comments themselves..."
DOH! Ofcourse I could! I was just foccusing on this Hotmail thing so much, that I had'nt even considered replying through comments..... How "blond" is that?

Lesson learned: Do not get so focussed on one issue that you close yourself off to other perfectly use-able alternatives!

My very good friend, Mieke, is over to visit us from the Netherlands, so I will not be sitting down at the laptop to do the e-mail/blogging/computer thing too much while she's here. (She's still in bed now, having a well deserved lie in, lucky so and so! :-) )

But you can bet your cotton socks that I will be blogging and e-mailing again on Monday night.

Last Sunday, I was sitting at the laptop, happily backing up our digital photographs to CD, when *poof* the lights went out and every. single. housealarm in the neighbourhood went on! Total and complete blackout!
But, thanks to the miracle that is the laptop battery, I was able to spend the next hour, like so:

Computers at candlelight: Welcome to the 21st Century! :-)

Just had my very first Oreo Cookie, Hershey Milk Duds, Tootsie Mini Rolls and Reese's peanut butter cup EVA!
A colleage went on holidays to Nevada and brought them back.

I just may have to emmigrate for these babies! ;-)