(Image courtesy of Ms.M – I always had problems photographing my chocolate bird tart – but look how beautifully Ms.M shot it!)

(Image courtesy of Ms.M – Apparently these serveware (from Boleslawiec, Poland) are hugely popular with the Japanese crowd recently. I can see why! It is soo rustic-cute!)

(Image courtesy of Ms.M – And this is my new tablecloth. It is natural linen with blue stripes)

(Image courtesy of Ms.M – And look! There’s the new cheese cake!)

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More & more I seem to write less frequently here – I don’t know exactly why not, because I actually have tonnes to write about!

Like…

I’ve been wanting to write about how I came to perfect my new ‘Baked Cheese Cake’ by slightly adjusting it week-by-week, 10 grams of this & that one week & oops, let’s go back a 10 gram another week, until I finally settled to its best ingredient ratio (It took 6 weeks of tinkering to perfect the creamy texture). And I want to write about how my regular customer (body builder with heavy tattoos) have been buying these cheese cake slices from its week 1 debut. And about how he ONLY buys cakes from my stall…!
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And then I want to tell you about how I came to sell wooden rabbits alongside my cakes, &, &, &… the article I wrote for somebody else’s website about London, & about the little mention about me in a very famous weekly magazine… &, &…
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& as for this ‘Baked Cheese Cake’, now that it is publish-ably good, I’ve been meaning to post the recipe here on my website, but yep, you know me folks! There’s probably going to be a looo-ng wait ahead ’til we see that post…! (Just like how it took me 6 months to post the Lemon Drizzle Cake recipe!)
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Well… instead, I’m gonna tell you about my bloggy visitors. I’m starting to get a fair number of you guys visiting me at my stall now – it is so totally amazing! THANK YOU! There’s been Londoners, aswell as people from outside London – & quite a number of French people using the Eurostar, some Germans, & a few Americans! They all mention this blog & say that’s how they made a point of scheduling Broadway Market in their visit! THANK YOU! – If there are any readers who would also like to come to the market in the future, please come by the stall & let me know that you’re a reader – I’m always up for a chat!

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About a month ago, a Japanese blogger came by my stall (early in the morning!^^ な〜んてね!また来てね！) & took Ah-MAZING pictures. Seriously good. When I saw these images on her blog page, I thought to myself “I want these…”. So I asked for her permission to use it on here. I’m sure you’ll all agree that this Ms.M has huge talent!

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Ms.M used Nikon D70 for these but recently upgraded to D90. Since then I’ve been pondering on getting myself a SLR camera like hers (I currently have Canon G9 – & now & then sneakily use D’s D80 for my blog pictures). What sealed the deal for my shopping conviction was when Ms.T, another blogger, came by my stall & showed me her Lomo LC-A camera. I’ve been a huge fan of her nostalgic-looking pictures on her blog – & so my thought turned to getting Lomo LC-A instead of SLR which would be alot pricier at £800+.

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Also, the thought of going back to old-skool 35mm film made the idea twinkly romantic – it may be cumbersome to have to go get it processed everytime, but there’s that magical moment of getting the prints back – tangible, to hold in your hands, not the digital RPG representation on your computer screen.
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Then! (yes, the story continues!) My cheap-skate mindset got hold of me when I read on the interweb that Olympus XA2 is a good & cheaper alternative to Lomo LC-A.

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So from considering an 800 quid SLR camera to then a 150 quid Lomo, settling on a 10 quid 80’s camera from ebay (it should arrive next week!) …
… That, my friends, is how one can ride this recession…! I mean, I just saved myself 790 quid! (in principle…)

The thing about being a working mum is that some things end up being on a back-burner. Be it that towering pile of washing that needs folding or that strawberry plant (looking terribly sorry) which desperately needs watering. I look at these & think: “yes, I’ll do it when I get around to it”, but the fact is, I just about get around to it when it is soooo unbearable to look at, something has to be done or else…
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I think to myself, well, it’s alright, it’s inevitable, they are not nice to live with but I’ll get by. C’est la vie. (D might have a different opinion here…!) BUT! When it comes to spending quality time with my children – well, that shouldn’t get forfeited because of mummy working right?. Surely a breach of unspoken contract. I start every morning with that belief system, but recently… …:
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The other week my son asked me to put together a Thomas the Tank Engine cut-out. It looked really fiddly. I said, “Later, Love. I’m just washing the dishes”. He asked me again on another occasion – I said, “Maybe when baby S is having a nap because it’ll be difficult to concentrate if she’s around.” Then next it was “Maybe after dinner.” And then he’ll say “What about NOW, Mommy?!” I sigh “It’s too late now, it’s bedtime”.

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Thursday, Friday & Saturdays I work full hours +, so by the time I managed to stick together his Thomas was a shameful five days later. I know… I’m crap. And I’m not happy about it. Ever since my second baby is around, I’m just so extra busy, my son is getting less & less of my time. You might say it’s normal, but… when he WANTS TO LEARN how to use a chopstick, I SHOULD be able to spend some time with him to teach, not say “maybe another time…” like I do…

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I just don’t know how I’d cope as the children will need more & more of me as time goes. They’ll need help with homework & general guidance. And I can’t rely on their grandparents to look after them all the time. Something will have to give. Which reminds me of:
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A couple of months ago there were three shops/ restaurants asking me to start (wholesale) supplying cakes to them. Plus, I was invited to participate in a chocolate festival too. It really would have been a wonderful opportunity to expand my business. I’ve heard of success stories of similar beginnings. But HOW could I do it? I’m already up to my neck with everything – with cramming in work, parenting, & housekeeping. I could start employing someone for baking more, & a driver for deliveries. Maybe rent a bigger kitchen. I could even start another market too if I go down that road. I know exactly how to go about it. I could easily double my income. But no. It’s just too much. Too much. I can’t justify giving away anymore Mummy-time.
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These thoughts got me a little depressed at the time. Not sure exactly why. Maybe because it was a reality check that this is as far as it gets… Maybe I won’t be doing the market for long? When I see young families down the market, I occasionally feel wracked with guilt that I am forfeiting Saturdays (a family day) for my work. Maybe I ought to work at a supermarket check-out during school hours instead.
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Anyway, last weekend the side mirror of our car broke off (don’t ask how), & I’m transport-less to the market this coming Saturday.

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And, remember I told you that my brother lives in Paris? Well, it seems like he won’t be for long.

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So put the two together, the decision came about to take possibly the last opportunity to visit him there – with just my son, just the two of us, traveling on the Eurostar train that my son has been obsessively talking about the past two years (boys, eh?). We’ll be visiting Euro Disney! I’m planning on quality time with him all weekend!
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So, no trading this Saturday I’m afraid. Hope you understand…

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(By the way, have any of you been to Euro Disney? Any tips? Like, should I purchase the tickets in advance or just buy it at the entrance?)

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Update 06.05.09:

I just purchased the Euro Disney tickets online!

Update 10.05.09:

Just came back! Euro Disney was great!

Hi.
I ‘d just like to let you know that I won’t be trading this Saturday. Yes yes, I know, it’s the Easter weekend, & business would probably be great, but I’ve been steadily developing a cold since two Saturdays ago (the day that was cold & hailing). I’ve kept it under control since then, working through it nevertheless, but today, I’m seriously feeling under the weather. On top of that, there are other factors that add to my decision. – My parents are away & I have been paying for childcare whilst I work. Plus, D’s best-mate is coming to stay over this Easter weekend which would be totally fun, I really like the guy, but the house is a right old tip… & this cold is making me feel unmotivated to do anything about it…

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So anyway, hopefully I will be able to use this spare time at home to finally post the ‘Lemon Drizzle Cake recipe’ (with process pictures!) that’s been in the pipeline since last October. The cake is the same one that I sell on the stall, & have several self-proclaimed fans/ followers that come back week-after-week for a slice. Funny thing is, all of these customers are male – so my presumption is: ‘lemon drizzle’ is the one cake to make for male guests…!?

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I hope all of you have a fantastic Easter weekend! And I apologize if there were any bloggy-visitors who were planning to come to my stall this Saturday. Sorry, & I really hope to see you another time…
t xxx

HIIII!!! I’m just soooo excited! I just had to share the news with you…!

I just bought a hot chocolate machine online, & am going to start selling hot drinks from this Saturday…!!! It’s sooo gonna be the best – simply proper couverture chocolate, milk & double cream (no, not cocoa powder in sight). I’ll make it thicker than your standard kind, it’ll be like liquid ganache. Oooh, imagine… I’ll place the machine just next to my truffles & the chocolate boxes – isn’t that like, totally choccy heaven or what!?

Anyway, hope it goes well. I hope I won’t be stuck with gallons of chocolate drink at home time…! I feel giddy with excitement, but anxious with worry too…

Hello. I’d just like to mention that I’ll be back trading tomorrow! I know it’ll be FREEEZING, quite probably covered in snow… – I hope that the weather doesn’t put people off coming out, because I (as usual) have made more than I can sell… (do I ever learn??)