Lace and Stollen

It's only  three weeks until we leave for our anniversary cruise so I decided I better get back to the lace jacket post haste.. Except for the front I thought I  had it all basted to the bobbinet but on closer examination there are several areas that I need to beef up the basting.   White on white is as difficult as black on black.  As I hold all the pieces together it is much heavier than I thought it would considering it is just a bunch of string and air...and I wonder how practical it is going to be in April.  If nothing else I'll just wear it to dinner in the evening.  I was also concerned that the detail on the lace wasn't that visible but I think that is just my eyes...

Spring rains are rapidly turning our road into a sea of mud but the snow is disappearing rapidly as well.  I did get to play in the dirt (mud) yesterday to start repairing the pig damage which is overwhelming.   I had made wire guards for special plants and I'm finding  smashed wire guards and empty spaces so I'm trying to figure out what is gone. Luckily some perennials I can divide from elsewhere in the garden but most of the plants and shrubs they targeted  are just destroyed.

One perennial missing  is my bergenia cordifolio . It was among my favorites that needed extra protection and extra fussing. I say I won't replace those kind of plants but who knows if I happen on one at a plant sale. I was grateful that they didn't get any of the new clematis I planted last spring.  They were all still under too much snow... Now they are exposed and vulnerable but haven't seen pig since the sheriff went over there. 

I'm also hoping that some that look destroyed like my honeysuckles will come back from the roots.  I did order another today just in case.  One cannot have too many honeysuckle vines.



I have the scones quest pretty much mastered so I am pursuing the perfect stolen recipe. Since it was heavy rains today I  worked on that today...a cold grey day indeed. I'm looking for the recipe that will be reminiscent of the stollen my husband's beloved Hungarian grandmother made for him as a child...   A German friend gave me three German cookbooks with stollen recipes and I chose the one using the most butter and the fruit was soaked overnight in rum... we all know more butter is better...and the rum can't hurt.

Happy husband tonight!!