SURPRISE! SURPRISE!!

I had to go into our local town yesterday to get 'supplies', rang the big one to say I would have sushi as I was starving and then took ages to do the small supermarket shop. Called into see my friend next door then drove home, in the drive I 'seemed' to notice a boy run across the lawn . It didn't really register who it was until one of the Melbourne family dogs ran out to greet me. No 1 daughter and the boys decided to give us a surprise visit for the weekend. It was really lovely to see them up here and we made the most of it, starting with a walk. We had to be ferried across the little creek on the 4wheel motor bike, the big one the safest driver in the world. Then we were off, 4 dogs....2 Jack Russel visitors and our Bear, the young [and silly] golden retriever and Orak, the retired guide dog.....

and the soccer ball and the football.

I stayed on the bike with the big one and followed them up to the stand of spotted gums, planted by original owners for making fence posts.

We checked the level of some of our dams with some help from the dogs, Orak above and Bear below.....

It is such delight to see so much water in our dams after being almost empty for so long!

Our main big dam near the house is overflowing, just fantastic as it is some insurance for any fire fighting near the house and also valuable water for the trees in the garden. You might remember the dam

in earlier photos. Now the water is nearly up to the top. Miraculous!

Today we had a sausage picnic up in the rocks where we have a superb view, out over the plains. I made some orange muffins, a little tresat after the basic sausagre in bread and butter with tomato sauce! No photos as I couldn't find my camera....really annoying. the big one and No 3 grandson had gone up earlier to light a 'campfire', a really relaxing way to spend a few hours in the fresh air on Sunday!

I will be in Melbourne for the next couple of days so there may not be another post until Thursday but will try for Wednesday.

Have a wonderful, wacky, wicked week with no wobbles or even wibbles to hold you back. Love Aubrey

A Pink Wiggly Worm

When is a wiggly worm not a worm...when it is my scarf being crocheted in

THE RIPPLE PATTERN!!

I thought the scarf was a bit ordinary for the lovely wool Kate gave me so I decided to give the lovely Attic24 Lucy's ripple pattern a try and

IT IS WORKING!!

I guessed the number of ch. sts. to do, using Lucy's formula of 14 plus 3, put 157 chains on and am now nearing the end of the 1st row so hope it works out and that my counting is correct!

I have a poor sad doll needing a new face belonging to one granddaughter.....

This is the weather today...and it is cold!

The big one has helped me with some cleaning up and I feel so much more in control so.....

I might sit down and do some beanie knitting firstly, then the scarf. I had planned to go down to out tiny local 'town' but it is not the weather for going out! Much nicer to stay here with a warm fire and achieve something here.

I shoud add that I am not complaining about the rain, I have sworn I will never, ever complain about the rain, EVER!! after all the dry we have had here!

 I am very interested in our political situation with a possible hung parliament and several independant elected representatives. For the first time for so long we are hearing some common sense, truth being spoken, and NO spin. I wonder as so many are doing, what the result will be.

I am leaving you with this wonderful wisteria belonging to a friend. Isn't it gorgeous, can you bring the scent to mind...it is one I love! Good to lookat when the skies are very grey!

I hope you are having a wonderful, wild [and wet?] Wednesday!

love Aubrey

Beanies for The Bald and The Beautiful

We now have 8 beanies knitted for these boys at Malvern Primary, Melbourne who are going to shave their heads to raise money for cancer research. It is comforting to see the numbers build up as the knitting friends probably have to do 40 -50. These boys are from Year 3 to Year 6 so a very brave thing to do.

The blue and red vest came from this wonderful book .....

and this is the vest pattern.....

But without the hood.

Kate managed to knit a beanie when she was here, the car journey from here to the wedding and back certainly helped! Thankyou Kate!!

Have a Terrifc Time this Tuesday, love from Aubrey

What shall I do today!

I am out of bed at a more normal time and the sun has come out... will it be ironing...or putting 'stuff' away in their rightful places....gardening. Mmmmmm! Yes that is the ticket as the big one says to me!!

The new vest just completed for No 6 grandson. looks really good on and will I think be very useful as the weather starts to warm up . I have worked on the ends of the wool when knitting more than two rows of stripes,e.g. 4 rows of each , so that you don't have all those ends to sew in and will do a tutorial later.

The first polyanthus [is that polyanthii or polyanthuseseseses for more than one flower or plant?] popping through. I have been watching it for ages and it has been so slow. Don't you hate it when you are waiting for something cheery and it is slow!

Have a Mighty Monday, mightily good!

Love Aubrey

Last bits of Kate!

I haven't been near the computer for the last ten days or so, only a quick few minutes occaisonally to see who has been doing 'what' as Kate has been here. It is always such precious time when overseas family come to stay and always so hard to say good-bye. I try to remember my son saying to his boys as they headed back from NZ to Perth where they live with their mother, 'When you say good-bye, just remember it gets closer every day to saying 'hello' again'.

So Kate has gone, home to her beautiful new room, here and I have my memory 'bits' around me!

The wool she has left for me to take over to NZ next time I go...for A jumper for Archie from wool bought on 'special' in our little country town.

a lonely  towel in the empty bedroom!

I'm not sure whether this was really left for me but I can't waste it AND it is delicious, and I am sure makes me feel better!

Some beautiful paper for origami, my first ever paper crane and the gorgeous wool Kate gave me to crochet a scarf.

AND the wedding! The whole reason for her trip! It was very cold, the little 'fur' stoles the girls wore were a wonderful idea and looked so pretty. Grandson no 6, aged 7 1/2, after watching the bride walking down the aisle with her father returned to his seat said to his mother,'That was awesome!' I think we all felt the same thing!

We had a lovely few days together and I am now returning to some sort of normality. If only Kate had been here for a few more days maybe we might have worked in the garden!!!!!!! No, I think it is just up to me!!

WHEN TWO CRAFTING WORLDS COLLIDE!

Well, Kate is here and all great excitement! Our wool together creates a cacophany of colour, our jaws are probably going to ache soon from all the chattering.

We sat up in bed  drinking our tea and knitting our beanies for  THE BALD AND THE BEAUTIFUL , for all the brave boys at Malvern Primary who shave their heads and raise money for cancer research....and talking!

Unfortunately chores still had to get done and I need some computer help so our crafting has to take second place for a little while.

The sky was black this morning with brilliant sun shining in the east

The sun has mostly gone but there is so much going on in the house it doesn't matter.

We are off  to NSW for a family wedding so no more until Monday I imagine.

Have a great weekend!

Sleepovers for dogs

Aster and Flash belong to daughter No 1 and her two boys and the dogs love having sleepovers here on the farm!!

 And I mean sleepovers!!

 I went to make my bed and there Aster was, snuggled under the blankets, 'I didn't think you would find me' she whispered to me!!

Yesterday was the most wonderful day but spent most of it inside catching up with things in preparation for Kate's arrival. I pulled weeds late in the afternoon for an hour or so but the chill had come into the air and I had missed the best part of the day.

And today... today was to be my gardening day! The heavens had decided this wasn't to be...it is raining, beautiful as it is this wasn't my plan for today! Never mind, maybe some sit down and knit...or crochet.

YELLOW!!

Do I like YELLOW ? 

a bike from long ago, still loved by children!

'Lemon tree, very pretty, lemonflowers sweet but the fruit of the poor lemon is impossible to eat'

Our first daffodil

Oxalis is pretty but..

Jonquils shining brightly

This chair has many tales to tell, of places and people

My very favourite place mats, the original painting done my very dearest artist friend June, and Ikea's best matching serviettes

Our yellow kitchen tiles,

'plastic' chopping 'board' brought back from the UK by daughter no1

My studio, actually more citrus than thephoto shows, and one of my paintings, lemons of course

grapefruits from a friend, bananas.... supermarket of course...

my brother's homegrown apple...and

ALMOST MY FAVOURITE!!

I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!

A winter crepe myrtle

Spiders had been very busy here overnight in our old crepe myrtle. There were little diamonds glistening on the webs, I don't know where the spiders found such an amazing  sparkling bounty!

 

The tree is very old and was pruned long ago and then left to it's own growth design. The result is that branches cross over and join, droop down when in leaf and flower and it continually amazes me with the shapes and life I see in or on it.

This morning the camera, all by itself, clever magician that it is took some weird and wonderful photos, all of this one tree......

a little mysterious here

and here....

and here...

here......

and here..

I was so busy viewing the last photo from different angles that I have quite forgotten which is really the right way up! Now I wonder what I could do with this image. I wonder if....