Prune, Apple & Brandy Cake-----------------------

This is such an easy, and I would say healthy cake, if cake can be good for you!

Prunes, apples, almonds, yum.

Prepare your prunes the night before so they soak up the brandy and become really

 soft, then mix everything together and bake in the morning. 

It's an English recipe and and a kitchen scale is best for measuring - or you can

 convert the ingredients to ounces online.

I've served warm with whipped cream for dessert, or cool as just a moist 

slice of cake with a nice cup of tea.

Don't tell, I'm actually having a little slice for breakfast with my coffee right now!

Shades of blue and a sofa story. . . . . . . .

blue day in February. . . . . some thoughts.

Productive January and February days are often thwarted by weather
 conditions which are not the most hospitable for doing outside chores.
Yesterday morning I did push myself to get out and fertilize the Spring flowering
 bulbs - their bright green tips are pushing up through the ground and leaf
cover. The day was lovely, mild and sunny, afternoon temperature reaching 68F.

 As I get older I find days at home in winter are often best spent indoors, but
 having time on my hands I admit to becoming somewhat lethargic. 

Looking around the cottage I find myself craving changes, some too huge to
 even give serious consideration to, so I store them in the ever burgeoning
 to do/wish list file folders. Others are more manageable and this past week I started
 to make a little headway.

I love these not too difficult to remove and then pull back on slip covers on

 the bedroom loveseat. I had them custom made some years

 back to disguise the no longer exciting striped upholstery, and I will probably

 keep them forever. The big cover and seat cushion I can

 wash and dry in my machines, no need for a laundromat visit.

Whereas, remember this post I wrote almost two years ago - gosh how time flies - 

about the exhausting Slip Cover Battles and thoughts on buying a new 

upholstered sofa.

But no, I've not replaced the sofa - this pic was taken several years ago - but I did

 replace the carpet with 'farmhouse' hard flooring, below, which I love so much.

 I continue look at sofas but just have a hard time buying a replacement for this one

 which is still good, comfortable (it's actually a Serta Hide-a-Bed), and the right size

 for the somewhat small room.

Personally I will only consider one made here in North Carolina, (once, and
 hopefully again some day, the biggest furniture manufacturing state in the USA),
 as it would be well built, beautiful, and not fall apart in a few years as some
 imports apparently do. However, it could cost as much as lovely cruise for two
 to some wonderful place on the planet!

I've been dreaming in indigo blue lately so have collected photos of beautiful

 blue sofas, usually in velvet, a fabric which seems to allow deep saturation of that

 gorgeous color. I've spent far too many hours online looking at sofas, e-mailing

 companies for advice, and finally choosing one whom I'd want to build my sofa

 here in North Carolina . . . . . . . actually just a couple of hours west on the highway.

But then I get cold feet! Indigo could never not be lovely, and it would work well in

the cottage, but it does seem to be the latest trendy color in decor. 

So perhaps I'd be happier with a beautiful neutral, a non trendy classic, which for me

 would be grey of course!

It would be a medium dark warmish grey, not too blue, not leaning toward beige,

 but similar to the velvet sofa in the center of the collage above . . . . . . 

. . . . . . or this tufted beauty above, I so love this style.

I could add touches of indigo blue, or most any other color, with pillows, throws etc.,

perhaps even an indigo accent chair.

Another option?

Details coming later when I tell you about the leap of faith I've taken this week. 

Stay tuned for more sofa stories.

Meanwhile, today I'm hanging out my Valentine flag, planning to get in the kitchen

 to bake a favorite prune, apple and brandy cake, doing some 'housecleaning' on the 

MacBook, and perhaps washing some dining room china. 

Sounds good to me.

Do you have special wintertime projects on your list?

Are you gradually checking them off?

Birds at breakfast. . . . . . . . . .

Yesterday, after refilling the bird feeders, Bob called me to the window to advise of

 "a very big bird" on the suet holder.  Of course it was the beautiful Northern flicker.

 This is the male, but within seconds another one arrived, perhaps the female.

 Excited, I raced for the camera but when I returned, camera in hand, it had flown

 away and sadly I didn't get a shot of the pair. . . . . . . . . . . 

. . . . . . . . . . I did however capture this shot later, our largest garden visitor

 sharing breakfast with the smallest, always very welcome, Carolina chickadee.

For me, this was a special Winter morning moment.