Helicopters

Andre has started flying helicopters again. Remote controlled ones. He comes home everyday and tells me he needs to order a new (bigger) helicopter. He's only had this one for a month and I know him, once he gets a better one he won't ever fly the smaller one again. So I say no for now. A bigger one will have to be flown outside anyway so can wait until summer.

I think we will soon have quite a collection of helicopter videos. Here's a link to the first one we took outside on a day when it was above 0C. I managed to stay out for a few minutes to take the video before going back inside.

Here's the latest video. Flying inside. Plus the consequences of flying inside which you'll see at the end of the video...

(Click this link to view it bigger and better on vimeo.)


Blade CX3 Video#2 from Anneliese Mostert on Vimeo.

The last of my sister's visit

Here's a video I made of the clips my sister took while she was here.


Simone's visit to the UK from Anneliese Mostert on Vimeo.


Bigger and better viewing on vimeo.

Chelsea Buns Recipe

For those who liked the picture I posted previously of the chelsea buns I made, here's how to make your own!

We used our bread maker to prepare the dough, but I'm sure with a bit of mixing and kneading you can do it without a bread maker too. I just love not having to get my hands sticky!!

Setting on bread maker: 'Basic' - 'Dough' (2hr 20min)

Enriched dough recipe: (This is what will go in the bread maker or what you will mix together yourself.)
1/2 tsp yeast
250 g strong white flour
1 tsp sugar
25 g butter
1 tbsp milk powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 medium egg
100 ml water

Additional ingredients:
15 g butter
100 g mixed dried fruit (I used only raisins)
50 g soft brown sugar
1 tsp mixed spice (I didn't have, but later thought I could have just added some cinnamon.)


Once the dough comes out of the bread maker:

1. Knead the dough lightly and roll out to an oblong 26cm x 20cm.

2. Mix together the mixed dried fruit, soft brown sugar and mixed spice. Brush the dough with melted butter and spread the fruit mixture on top. Roll up from the long edge and cut into 8 - 10 slices. Arrange on a greased baking tray and allow to prove at 40C until doubled in size (approx. 20 min).

3. Bake in preheated oven at 220C for 7 - 15 min or until golden brown.

Allow to cool. Drizzle with glace icing.


For the icing I just mixed some powdered sugar with water. I don't know what the difference would be to using icing sugar and water or what exactly glace icing is supposed to be! Powdered sugar was all I had here so that's what I tried and it was perfect.

Enjoy!

My birthday in London

I'm doing some catch up blogging today. I've been surprisingly busy these past few weeks editing videos, photos and websites and of course making time for facebook and watching some tv. I have also been busy baking some treats for my wonderful husband who works so hard. See:

Chelsea Buns! mmmmmm...

Anyway, I still wanted to show you the rest of the photos, well a few of them anyway, from when my sister came to visit us. So here's some of the day we spent in London which also happened to be my birthday.

We managed to march her past most of the tourist attractions. 

And march we did to make it in time to see the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace.

We stopped for lunch at Harrods where we also met up with a good friend of Simone from school.

A walk through Hyde Park. We couldn't only show her the shops! 

It was actually quite a mild day as you can see here where Simone even took her jacket off.

A very busy Oxford Street.

We made sure we got all the London tourist photos taken.

Regent street, on our way to Piccadilly Circus.

Another stop, this time for drinks at Gordon's Wine Bar.

And then on to dinner: pizza at The Dicken's Inn.

The last stop after dinner before heading home: London Bridge.

Smile on a Monday

Here's something to make you smile :-)

The guys playing Xbox Kinect* on Saturday. They looked so funny!!



Playing Xbox Kinect from Anneliese Mostert on Vimeo.



*Xbox Kinect is a type of "TV game" without any remote. A camera picks up your body movements so you physically need to move your arms and legs to play the games. It's a lot of fun!

You can also see this video on vimeo.

December Snow

It's a bit of a late post this one, I've had the pictures on my desktop to post here but with Christmas time and family visiting I only now realised I forgot to show you the last snow pictures. They're on facebook, but for those of you not on my fb, I didn't want you to be missing out on these beautiful snow pictures. It all melted away after Christmas. Maybe there will be some more soon...

(Click on picture to see larger image.)

Christmas Eve Stop Motion Movie

Christmas Eve 2010 from Anneliese Mostert on Vimeo.


You can also see this video on vimeo.

And you can see the one we made last Christmas here.

Our attempt at getting some exercise over Christmas

Before my mom went back home to Germany we all went for a walk to the park up the road from us. There was still some snow left from the week before and my sister also wanted to get some snowy pictures.

We decided to go walking every morning after that and I even pointed out some different routes my sister and I could walk. Well, that was our first and last walk of the holidays! We just never got around to it again! I honestly kept forgetting about it. My sister said she remembered, but never reminded me... But actually we were kind of busy and often left the house early. The few mornings we didn't leave the house we enjoyed just relaxing and doing nothing.

So here are some pictures of our one and only walk. I think it was actually Christmas morning.

Windsor with my sister

My sister, Simone, came to visit from California so we've been doing some touristy things here. Sadly she left this morning. I'm a bit behind with the blogging so here's another of our holiday posts.

Last week we drove to Windsor and did a tour through Windsor Castle. It was the second time I've been on the tour through the castle and I'll do it again, it's very interesting with so much information you cannot take it all in with one visit.

Unfortunately no photos are allowed to be taken inside the castle...

We now have two tickets for unlimited visits for a year so we'll be going again!

An American Starbucks order in England

My sister, Simóne, has been visiting me for the past week over Christmas. She has been living in California for 10 years now and has picked up many American habits - one of which is entering every Starbucks we pass to buy a coffee which never tastes like coffee.

On Thursday evening we were on our way to the train station when we passed yet another Starbucks. She had to go in. We had to choose between missing our train and buying Starbucks and of course Starbucks won.

Andre and I waited outside and had fun watching the young guy behind the counter trying to keep up with Simóne. Here's how the conversation they had inside went:
(Imagine her with her very American accent in a small British coffee shop.)


Simóne: I would like a tall-skinny-caramel-nut-brulée-extra-hot-latte. (Said very fast.)

English Starbucks guy: What is that?

Simóne: Oh, maybe you don't have it, it's a limited edition one we have in America.

English Starbucks guy: Well, if you tell me what's in it I can try and make it for you

Simóne: You need the Caramel nut brulée syrup.

English Starbucks guy: Maybe if you come back next year we will have it...
I like the way you just said that though, we're trained to take orders like that, but I've never heard anyone say it like you just did. (He means said in that order and really fast.)

Simóne, smiling: In that case I will just take a skinny peppermint mocha.

English Starbucks guy: Would you like whipped cream with that?

Simóne: No, because I want it skinny.

English Starbucks guy: Sometimes people here order a skinny with cream to balance out the calories.

Simóne: Oh. Ok, no cream thanks.

English Starbucks guy: Here you go then. I like your accent by the way!

I think he went home telling his friends he finally had a real American order at Starbucks!

Bath

In 2008 Andre and I spent a week in England and he also took me to Bath for a couple of nights. It was summer then and I loved this town. So it was special to go back there again, even though this time it was a freezing cold day.

Unfortunately the Roman Baths there were closed, but we had a walk around the town and a warm lunch in a pub.