Where did the week go?

Hello!  It's Saturday here and I feel like I missed a few days last week...  For some reason my mojo is still missing, so I have tidied and re-arranged my craft desk several times.  I have had ideas about making a soft toy cat (with that ever-useful leftover curtain fabric and some crochet bits).  I have framed a couple of my cards that I had given to my husband.  I have put up a Stick-on-Peel-Off quote on the wall.  I have labelled all my Distress inks with the good old Dymo machine from work.  I made fridge magnets (very cool by the way)... I have purchased a pair of winter boots from Nine West because it is still very wintery here.  I have pretty much done everything except make cards.

Last night I cooked for a dinner party for the boss.  I was a bit out of practice since I didn't do any entertaining type cooking while we were on holiday (I did do plenty of eating though!).  It was a casual buffet style dinner with no starter so I did four different canapes instead and they worked out really well.  

The Menu:

Canapes:

- Mini Thai salmon fish cakes with chilli lime dipping sauce

- Prawn and vermicelli Vietnamese finger rolls with sweet chilli dipping sauce

- Salmon and lemon mousse served in a miniature vol-au-vent case with a rolled cucumber garnish

- Tiny crostini topped with wasabi mayonnaise, honey soy seared steak slices and a pickled ginger garnish

Mains:

- Pistachio stuffed chicken breast wrapped in bacon served with a brandy cream sauce 

- Medley of grilled vegetables

- Lemon and Pistachio cous cous

- Emmental potato gratin

- Leafy green salad

Dessert:

- Elderflower panna cotta with chocolate dipped strawberries and a brandy snap garnish

I'm getting a bit bored with my cooking lately so it was nice to do something different for a change.  I do love making canapes.  One day when we are back in NZ in our own house we will host lots of lovely of cocktail parties with lots of different canapes... (in my dreams).  I've ordered some new cookbooks... can't wait for them to arrive!

I have a quick card to share today that I made a couple of weeks ago for a sketch challenge at A Gem of a Challenge, but I forgot to post it, so I haven't made that challenge...  Here it is anyway...

This little cutie is one I won from The Digi Garden in a challenge a while back, but I hadn't had time to colour her and her friends up with all my DT commitments.  The papers are mostly from Crate Paper as is the sentiment and the gumball machine chipboard embellishment.  The ribbon is from The Ribbon Girl and the brad is from My Mind's Eye.

Here's a close-up:

And here are the copics I used:

I would like to enter the following challenges:

Hotshot Craft: Ribbon

Clearly iStamp: Anything Goes

Happy Saturday!

Arabella Chickie