Robbie Cheadle's Blog, page 42

Robbie’s Inspiration – Sunday Stills Monthly Color Challenge: Red

It’s been a while since I joined in Sunday Stills. The main reason is that I stopped posting over weekends last year in order to spend more time with my mom. This year, I am spending my Sunday afternoons with her and we are doing creative projects together. I am currently making the flowers for my new cake project for Terence’s birthday in May. Yes, I know May is weeks away but each flower takes me six hours to make and there are six big ones and twenty small ones plus a number of cakes to bake and leaves and stems to model. This year’s birthday cake is my most ambitious project to date. Mom is knitting a fairy and its coming along beautifully.

Anyhow, this week’s challenge is red for Valentine’s day and I have some pictures to share with you as well as a link to an amazing post about Michael and my Sir Chocolate books and our new Sir Chocolate High Days & Holidays Sir Chocolate book which is all about Valentine and includes some delicious themed recipes, just in case your prefer to give a book to any children in your lives instead of chocolate or sweets.

You can join in Sunday Stills here: https://secondwindleisure.com/2023/02/12/sunday-stills-monthly-color-challenge-are-you-ready-for-red/. Terri has kindly shared two of my haikus in her post which was a delightful surprise.

Both red flowers are from my mother’s gardenRoman warrior ice cream cake I made for Michael’s 8th birthdayRed roofed bookcase house my dad made for my Sir Chocolate booksSnowman from our latest book: Sir Chocolate and the Valentine Toffee CupidHeart shaped pink meringues filled with cream, strawberries and raspberries, and melted dark chocolate – the recipe for this Valentine’s treat is in our new book.

The wonderful Resa from Graffiti Lux Art & More blog has shared the most amazing post about Michael and my Sir Chocolate Books here: https://graffitiluxandmurals.com/2023/02/09/sir-chocolate-childrens-books-by-robbie-and-michael-cheadle/

Resa shares beautiful posts about street art, books, and other artistic and literary topics that are works of art and a great adventure. I hope you go over and take a look around.

Last but not least, Michael and I have a new Sir Chocolate book which is available on Kindle Unlimited here: https://www.amazon.com/Sir-Chocolate-Valentine-Toffee-Cupid/dp/B0BTBPZ9GT. It is also available as a paperback and an ebook.

Michael helped me create this video which I like very much:

Growing Bookworms – Meet children’s book author, Darlene Foster, and learn about her Amanda travel series and a review #childrensfiction #bookreview #growingbookworms

My February Growing Bookworms article features talented children’s book author, Darlene Foster, and my review of her latest book, Amanda in France, Fire in the Cathedral. Thank you to Kaye Lynne Booth for hosting.

Writing to be Read

Today, I am delighted to introduce Darlene Foster, author of the Amanda travel series of books for children aged 9 to 12 years old. I have read several of the Amanda books and enjoyed them all.

Your Amanda stories appeal to me as they take me back to my own childhood readings days of The Famous Five and Adventure series. Was there any particular children’s author who influenced the style of your Amanda series?

That makes me very happy to hear this since the Enid Blyton books were very popular. I didn’t read the Famous Five series growing up in Canada, but I enjoyed The Bobbsey Twins by Laura Lee Hope as they travelled to interesting places, encountered danger and solved mysteries. I also enjoyed Trixie Belden, Donna Parker, and Nancy Drew because the main character in each series is a young girl who overcomes obstacles and solves mysteries. The…

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Robbie’s Inspiration – Greek Lamb Stew

Another weekend has crept past. February is always a busy month for me as we have three family birthdays, a sister, mine, and Gregory’s, and also my wedding anniversary. This year it is 22 years since I got married. It really doesn’t feel anywhere near as long as that.

We have had to cancel our trip to the Netherlands in March. Hubby won’t be able to fly in March. He must wait until the blood clot is completely dissolved before taking to the air for 11 hours. We are hoping to go to Turkey at the end of May instead.

This weekend, we cooked two Mediterranean recipes. This is Sunday’s effort and was rather delicious. Hubby is well enough again to help and makes all sorts of comments about my deviations from the recipes. I always have to explain that I don’t deviate deliberately. It is merely a case of me reading the recipe the way I think it should be made – haha!

Ingredients

100 grams black olives, pitted

2 x 410 gram cans diced tomatoes

5 large carrots, peeled and chopped

2 large aubergines, diced

70 grams red onions sliced

1 kilogram lamb chops (small)

700 grams lamb knuckles

Salt and pepper to taste

2 bay leaves

15 ml garlic flakes

15 ml dried thyme

4 x cups beef stock

Olive oil for cooking

Method

Cut the aubergines into slices, rinse in cold water and salt, set aside for 30 minutes. Salt and pepper the meat and brown the lamb in batches, set aside. Add more olive oil and cook the red onion, aubergine, and carrots for 5 minutes. Add the garlic and thyme, stir through. Add back the meat and any juices. Add the tins of tomatoes, bay leaves, and black olives. Add the 4 cups of beef stock and bring to the boil. Turn down and simmer for 50 minutes to 1 hour.

I served this with rice and with rosemary and lemon roasted potatoes. Delicious.

Robbie’s Inspiration: Freedom, a Tanka Poem #TankaTuesday #Poetrycommunity

Hi everyone

I wrote this poem for Colleen’s latest poetry challenge on Tuesday and here I am posting it on Sunday. Why is that you might ask? I can’t really say other than I like to space out my posts, especially as I also post at least twice a week on Roberta Writes. I don’t have a blogging schedule like most bloggers do. I am a fly by the latest thought or passion that captures my interest kind of blogger, which means my posts are inconsistent or delightfully unpredictable, depending on how you look at it. I do at least have themes. My posts are always about books, poetry, cooking, baking, and fondant art.

Here is my latest contribution of Colleen’s weekly challenge called Freedom. This poem was inspired by this fabulous photograph by Wayne from Tofino Photography. You will find Wayne’s latest photographic post here: https://tofinophotography.wordpress.com/2023/02/04/snow-moon/

I long to break free

From my dysfunctional life

Self inflicted pain

Resulting from crushing debt

And draconian systems

by Robbie Cheadle

This week’s #TankaTuesday required poets to choose at least three words from the random word list to write their poems. I used: draconian, debt, system, and dysfunctional.

Robbie’s Inspiration: A Mother’s Lament: A Collection of Poems by Nikki Rodwell

What Amazon says

They say the pain of childbirth is made more bearable by the fact it is ‘pain with a purpose’. Sometimes the pain that mother’s experience later is equally, if not more, painful. Through her poems Nikki gives purpose to that pain and hopes that mothers who have grieved in any way or struggled with their relationships, will relate to her words.

Making sense of pain is a complex and personal journey. In this collection of poems, Nikki bears her soul and reveals that the deeper the grief, the deeper the love. Although it’s easy to feel disempowered and lost within pain, she demonstrates how, by stepping into it, we can give ourselves permission to heal.

My review

I reviewed this book in my capacity as a member of Rosie’s Book Review Team. If you would like your book reviewed, you can contact Rosie Amber here: http://rosieamber.wordpress.com/.

This collection of poems has an undertone of deep sadness and each poem revolves around loss and the erosion of parent and child relationships. I had a close relationship with my parents when I was growing up, especially my mother who was an open minded person and easy to relate too at that time. I was able to confide in my mother without fear of judgement or rejection. My relationship with my dad was a little more ‘pitted’ as I was ‘a daughter’ but it was still a good and solid relationship which I could depend on.

The poems in this book describe breakdowns in parental relationships which I found tragic. Although I don’t have personal experience with this, and I hope I never will have, I can relate to it through friends, both when I was a youngster, and now as a mother.

The emotions of the poet in A Mother’s Lament are strong and vibrant, a bit like screams of frustration on a page.

My favourite poem in the collection is Mirage, as follows:
“I see you through fog misted glass
three shadows blurred around the edges
Sun catches the crystal
blinding my vision,
highlighting the grimy smears.
I strain to keep you in focus
but you are fading.
I wipe the dirt,
my hands heavy with shame,
but you still don’t appear;
my mind was playing tricks.
Was it a mirage?
The glass remains cloudy.
I step outside
to the lonely space where you once stood,
and discover:
the glass was dirty on the outside.”

For me, this poem embodied the essence of this collection. The sadness, guilt, desperate wish for reconciliation, and also the disappointment and frustration at the mother’s lack of success in bridging the gap.

An excellent collection of heart breaking and vivid poems.

Purchase A Mother’s Lament: A Collection of Poems

Amazon US

Levantine kebabs in chunky tomato sauce

The original of this recipe comes from Milk Street: Tuesday Nights Mediterranean: 125 Simple Weeknight Recipes from the World’s Healthiest Cuisine. I am reading this book as part of a cooking challenge by Bernadette from New Classic Recipe blog.

My husband chose this recipe and when I came to make it, I had to make a lot of changes to the method and ingredients because I didn’t have the things mentioned in the book. I decided to post this amended recipe and try another one for the challenge which takes place from 18 February. I will choose the recipe next time and make sure I have the things I need to make the dish exactly as per the instructions.

Ingredients kebabs

1 kilogram ground beef

100 grams pine nuts, chopped

15 grams fresh coriander, chopped

Salt and ground black pepper to taste

70 grams red onion, chopped

7,5 ml cayenne pepper

7,5 ml ground cinnamon

7,5 ml ground allspice

30 ml sweet paprika

2 eggs

Method for kebabs

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Shape the mixture into 14 long kebabs of meat, 10 cm x 3 cm. Shallow fry in a pan in a little olive oil. I fried the kebabs in batches of 5 for about 15 minutes until cooked through.

Ingredients for chunky tomato sauce

400 grams cherry tomatoes, halved

4 small tomatoes quartered

15 ml fresh coriander, chopped

60 ml olive oil

70 grams sliced red onions

10 ml lemon juice

Salt and ground black pepper to taste

2 x cans diced tomatoes

Method to cook tomato sauce

Place cut tomatoes on a greased baking tray, cut side up. Cover with chopped coriander and sliced red onion. Mix olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a cup and pour over tomatoes. Bake in oven, heated to 230 degrees Celsius for 20 minutes, turning twice.

Serve

Pour cooked tomatoes over kebabs and ensure the kebabs are covered on all sides and absorb the juice from the tomatoes. Add the cans of tomatoes and simmer for 10 minutes. Serve with rice or flatbread.

New Sir Chocolate book: Sir Chocolate and the Valentine Toffee Cupid

Michael and I have a new Sir Chocolate book available on Amazon. It includes a Sir Chocolate fantasy story, a poem, instructions on how to temper and mould chocolate and two other delicious Valentine themed recipes.

This book is available to read for free if you subscribe to Kindle Unlimited and is also available as an ebook and a paperback here: https://www.amazon.com/Chocolate-Valentine-Toffee-Cupid-holidays-ebook/dp/B0BT9GBNHL

Thank you to Colleen Chesebro from Unicorn Cats Publishing Services (UnicornCatsPubSvcs@gmail.com) for editing Sir Chocolate and the Valentine Toffee Cupid. You can find out more about Unicorn Cats Publishing Services here: https://colleenmchesebro.com/welcome/

You can view my book trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNl-Ec5Qpzs

You can find step-by-step instructions on how to make these videos in Power Point here: https://acflory.wordpress.com/2022/07/21/powerpoint-master-class-with-d-wallace-peach/

Robbie’s Inspiration – A poem on Vocal and a poem for Tanka Tuesday #Poetry #Poetrychallenge

Vocal is running a poetry challenge with the theme of Uncommon – write a poem about something rare. I wasn’t going to participate as I couldn’t think of anything I fancied writing about until yesterday when I discovered Eleanor, the hadeda, had come into my office for a visit.

I thought that was quite rare, I’ve never had a hadeda come inside before and I’ve lived in my current home near a bird sanctuary for nearly 20 years.

These are the pictures that inspired my poem, The Visitor. You can read the poem on Vocal and if you have a few extra minutes you can register on the site and leave a like and/or comment for me. Or you can just leave a comment here.

You will find my poem here: https://vocal.media/poets/the-visitor-8hphqb0xd1

This is my haiku for Colleen Chesebro’s latest poetry challenge. I thought the lady depicted in the picture looked like she had a title or position of some sort and was born privileged. My poem is about the lack of permanency of titles and position.

Titles are not owned

Merely temporary gifts

Easily transferred

By Robbie Cheadle

You can join in Colleen’s challenge here: https://wordcraftpoetry.com/2023/01/24/tankatuesday-ekphrastic-poetry-challenge-no-304/

#CFFC – Fun Photo – Hands and Paws

My husband came home from hospital on Friday afternoon and is recuperating at home for a month before seeing the neurologist again in mid-February and the physician at the beginning of March. He is doing very well and its going to be a long month for him as his screen time is limited and he may not work.

Cee’s photo challenge this week is Hands and Paws. Here are a few pictures of mainly paws. I don’t seem to be much in the habit of taking pictures of people’s hands.

White lionessFondant dormouse in a fondant teacup – you can see part of the teapot cake behind (I made this cake for my mother’s 84th birthday last year)You can see the bottom of the lioness’ paws (the pads) in this pictureCaracul – she only has three legs because one had to be amputated after she was caught in a trap. She lives in an animal sanctuary.Fondant kitten with paws in the air in a fondant poppyMy circus strongman’s clenched hands were quite difficult to model and attach

You can join in Cee’s challenge here: https://ceenphotography.com/2023/01/17/cffc-hands-and-paws/

Treasuring Poetry 2023 – Meet poet and author Andrew McDowell and a review #poetry #bookreview #Treasuring Poetry

Welcome to my first Treasuring Poetry post of 2023. Today, I am featuring poet and author, Andrew McDowell. I have also reviewed his excellent fantasy novel, Mystical Greenwood, and a most intriguing collection of poetry called As the World Burns: Writers and Artists Reflect on a World Gone Mad, to which Andrew is a contributor. Thanks for hosting, Kaye Lynne Booth.

Writing to be Read

Which famous poet has influenced your poetry the most?

When I was young, I admired William Shakespeare. I was impressed with how he used words to convey emotions and ideas, and I wanted to follow his example. In my junior year of high school, I participated in a Poetry Out Loud contest where we had to recite a poem. I chose Sonnet XVIII (“Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?”) and won third place. The Shakespearean sonnet was the first poetic form I tried to consistently write in beyond regular rhyming lines. It would not be until college that I began branching out to other forms and eventually free verse.

Which poem that you’ve read has impacted the way you see things in life?

This was a tough one, but one poem that has impacted me is Robert Frost’s famous “The Road Not Taken.”

Two roads diverged in a…

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Robbie’s Inspiration – Poetry book review: Finding a Balance by Lauren Scott

What Amazon says

Finding a Balance is Laurens second book of poetry, following New Day, New Dreams published in 2013. This compilation speaks often of her emotions and spirit after finding out about a life threatening disease two years ago in one of her family members. There is no devastating ending in the near future but many unanswered questions that will plague her family indefinitely.

In contrast to this sadness, Lauren has always possessed a romantic soul and is blessed to have celebrated twenty six happy years of marriage to her husband and best friend. So from darkness to finding the light again through faith and adding a touch of romance, she finds strength to move forward. This book takes the reader on a roller coaster ride of different emotions evoked from life and love but regardless of what is thrown in her path, hope will always prevail.

My review

Finding a Balance is a collection of beautiful poems that speak to the daily emotions of life and, in particular, the pain and sadness of her journey along the path of a life threatening illness in a family member. Both my sons have suffered, and continue to suffer, chronic illnesses so this is something that is close to my own heart and to which I intimately related.

The poet’s shock at the news is clearly described in her poem The Cards We’re Dealt, a saying I use myself in relation to my own family’s illnesses. This is a quote from the opening stanza:
“We sail through life smoothly
until a wave knocks us down
with no means for escaping
no turning around or backing away”

Seeing our loved ones in pain and ill and not being able to do anything about it is one of the heaviest burdens a mother can bear. These words say it all:
“Shaking my head,
I lie in beads of sweat’
gripping the edge,
waiting to fall
into the depths …”
From Reality’s Edge

Not all the poems are about chronic illness. Many are about the poet’s love for her family and her husband of 26 years. There are some delightful romantic poems in this collection. The one I enjoyed the most is called The Box:
“You placed it in my hands, adorned with a red bow
only a short clip of time had passed by our window
After pulling out tissue paper of white
I was entranced by the amazing sight
For inside was a lifetime together
and a house to be filled by the love we would gather
The walls stood bare waiting for memories to dress
showing reasons for us feeling truly blessed
The best gift of all, thought, I am thrilled to say
was your heart at the bottom, committed to stay”

I have read another book by this poet and find her writing and poetry to be simple and genuine, filled with realistic emotions and thoughts and not couched in complex wording that is difficult to decipher and understand. There is poetic strength in simplicity.

Purchase Finding a Balance by Lauren Scott

Amazon US

Lauren Scott Amazon Author Page