MY CRAFTING SPOT TODAY

  

 The cushion cover is coming on and I am so pleased with the colours. I have played around with the photo and think these colours are more like they should be. I often find my photos are not quite right as far as colours go but I am slowly learning a few tricks of the trade!

 

And the beanies for the Christchurch babies are also coming on. A friend has completed the ones in the first photo and mine are the second. This will be 'it' for a while as I feel a bit beanied out and want to get on with some other projects, painting as well. It was lovely to receive the bundle from my friend and she has loved doing them as well. 

The computer is incredibly slow today and keeps timing out so I'm thinking I have loaded something and am waiting waiting for it to go through when I realize that I have no internet...so no more photos today.

Yesterday I went to a rose specialist nursery and came home with two special treats, a Mutabalis and a

General Galliani, two that daughter Kate often talks about. It is fun for the two of us to have the same albeit in different countries.As a family we love to swap bits fro the garden and it is very frustrating not to send Kate back to NZ with a cutting or two. at least this way we can talk about what our rose is doing!! Now my problem is where to put them, maybe I'll do a bit of shifting first. it is a beautiful day today so am looking forward to getting outside. A light frost made writing this blog first was a more attractive proposition though.

 I hope you all have a lovely weekend as i will, the forecast is good so probably will be outside, otherwise i will go on with the painting I have begun...I may show it later...if I like what I am doing!!

CUSHIONS AND THE HAPPINESS FACTOR

 

When Greedy for Colour stayed a few weeks ago we went shopping to Spotlight and bought cushions for our beigey couch. With her encouragement we came home with these lovely cushions which are just right for our sitting room, brightening up the energy of the room. Sadly the photo doesn't show them to the best advantage as we have a very grey day and I DO want to write a post.When the sun comes out I will try again. 

I had been knitting but felt like something else  to enable me feel more energized and creative, especially when Kate was horrified to hear I wasn't doing anything. So... out came the wools and I began the granny square  cushion. It does have more life than it shows here so I will definitely take more, again when the sun comes out.

Doing the crochet also has inspired me to knit beanies again. They are for such a good cause, the Christchurch babies but you can only do a few at a time.Talking about the beanie,s a friend has begun knitting for the babies too and we will have a parcel to send off next week.

There  is no doubt though that creativity inspires creativity. It just needs to happen especially for the happiness factor!

 

Some snippets from the garden, these definitely add to the happiness factor too.

We have had nearly an inch of rain this weekend, making everything really squishy outside, puddles again. If only I didn't have the 'mother voice' always at the back of my head as I am sure I really would like to take off my shoes and socks and splash through the puddles....or just splash, shoes on and all!! But no, I am sensible and just look at the puddles and think...

The farm is much happier than it was during the drought, plenty of grass just waiting to pop up through the dry grass that has stayed there from last season. We have dairy cows here on adjistment at the moment but they are starting to go home as their calving seems imminent, in dribs and drabs as they are ready.

I have been on the internet for ages today trying to make sense of booking flights online. At last have finished it and have just rung Kate to say I will be with them all at the end of October. I have also booked for Perth at the end of the month to see our family there. Our 14 month granddaughter and two g-sons, 13 and 15. I haven't seen the boys for a long time so know they will be bigger and even more gorgeous!

And now it is dinner time so off to work I go1

THE LATEST FASHION DESIGNER

 

We had grandchildren to stay for the weekend and this design was created by grand-daughter who will be 5 in October. She gets an idea into her head and from there she creates....works it all out herself and only when finished does she appear with whatever it is. The poor old doll is nearly past it, her hair is definitely in the 'bad hair day' mode EVERY day. Last week she had to have surgery as her arm had come off and it was left for Pa and Nanna to operate on. With four hands necessary, two of them big farmer hands, we were able to attach arm back on...quite a difficult job. I do hope you like the decorations, back and front views both being showed

Some favourite days

We had a lovely trip to see the Eildon dam,in the north east of Victoria, 90% full, a few days ago. Two years ago it was 3% full... a huge difference. It was once the spot for water skiing, fishing, house boats etc but this hasn't been possible for years.  We took a picnic, ate under the gumtrees on the way there, something we really love doing.

 I just happened to look on my bench and saw the collection of yellow, funny how suddenly something strikes the eye, mundane, every day things and there they are!

And of course it is wattle time again, such a happy shrub!! Actually wattles seem to flower most of the time. The pale yellow ones seem to be the first during late Autumn, the as the weather becomes more gloomy we get the vivid yellow.

This morning I am off to our local 'village' for our Ist Monday of the month morning tea. It can be any number, from 2-3 to 12-14. It is so good to have this regular catch-up, we just know there will be someone!

Have a beautiful day!!

WHERE DOES THE TIME GO!

This cheeky fox and his friend ran across our verandah last week, down the steps onto the lawn! I had just finished a nap when they caught my eye so dashed down to tell the grandsons who were staying here. By this time this one was perched up on a rock wall, looking into the house so I grabbed the camera and ran around the house to find him looking through the fence at me, such a beautiful creature with such a bad reputation!

 While the boys and their mother were here.....school holidays.... we had a drive up to our special Rim of Heaven, rocks where we can look so far over the countryside down below and beyond. We took our lunch and just sat there, soaking it all up and enjoying the sunshine.

 Last week I showed the flowers E brought me home from the farm, the happy wanderer or sarsparella. Well, on the way back from our picnic I DISCOVERED the site of the plant....

 Just beautiful!!!

We also have a new grandson, haven't seen him yet but fingers, toes crossed we see him this weekend. This little fellow is E's first blood grandson so I suggested he goes off by himself and buys something just from him.

 

The most beautiful, soft cuddly Eeyore, with a gorgeous soft tickley tail, a tail which his cousin Hugo, from greedyforcolour.blogspot.com would thoroughly approve of. He has TedTed who has a very worn out tail that he tickles his nose with when cuddling TedTed. Hugo has made, with Kate's help, a rabbit for the new little fellow and this rabbit HAD to have a ticley tail! E was so happy with his Eeyore, as were we, the audience waiting at home!!

I have been busy too and have made a little friend for Eeyore.....

And a cardigan and a little beanie. I am a bit worried as they might be a bit small for him as he was 9 1/2 lbs and the days are slipping past! Never mind, I can do some more!!

 

Two friends!

                                                                      

I am hoping to write more regularly, life just gets in the way as every-one knows. However school holidays are over, yes they can be a busy time for grannies too! I have nearly caught up in the house and then it is into the garden. It is the most glorious day today and it is almost a crime not to be outside. Have a good weekend every-one and I will see you very soon!!!

WINTERWONDERLAND

Well, I am trying to convince myself that it is all wonderful and of course I do believe it is ...wonderful that is....apart from the odd moment, such as the wind coming from the Antarctic makes the temperature plummet even more! and my fingers are cold, or suddenly wood has to be put on the fire. I know I shouldn't complain as the wood is brought to the door by my loving husband every day and all I have to do is to walk out the door.

This is this morning, beautiful flowering apricot with it's delicious fragrance, the first blossom in our garden every year. However the photo doesn't show the rain  drizzling, the water everywhere. Again I am not complaining....I love the rain and remember very clearly how it felt to have no puddles lying around!!!

BUT this was last week!! Blue skies, cool but all beautiful!

Last week I went to the new Aldi store in our local town, just to investigate as you do. I find it all a bit bewildering with the different brands but have come to appreciate their chocolate. Also their flowers. I came home with a bunch of lillies, not scented sadly but still lovely. FOR $5.00!!!! I told my dear husband, even commenting I would not be averse to receiving cheap flowers from Aldi's. 

On Friday he came back from town, walked into the sitting room with the biggest smile on his face, hands behind his back and asked me to guess what he had behind his back!! Not difficult at all!! A lovely bunch of yellow roses. Do you know, I love the roses but it was the smile that really did it for me!!  He was so pleased with himself, as he said, taking the hint from me!

 Normally my 'bunch of flowers'....called that by me...tends to be the firewood every day, the cups of tea in bed every morning, the car serviced regularly, etc, etc. all those thoughtful things that are done on a regular basis for my benefit. No fuss, he just does it for me, all to make my life easier and to flow better. An ode to my husband, how lucky am I.

CATCHING UP AGAIN.

I have been having problems with this new computer and had thought everything was ironed out until yesterday when it tripped me up again. It is amazing what a rest can do, not only for the computer but for me as well. Today the computer isn't giving me the nasty messages such as 'bad request' when it has to save material which is what happened to me yesterday.
It has been catching up time here since Kate went home, layers of ash dust from our wood heater and accumulated 'stuff' needing to be put away. The vacuum cleaner has been busy too and then there is the garden crying out, needing attention.
While she was here we had some lovely crafting times...

I finished this vest and beanie for our beautiful grand-daughter in Perth .

I knitted the beanie for my eldest girl who is now knitting a scarf to match, her first knitting for a very long time. Of course I am delighted to see the needles being used!

And the beanie and hippo are for a friend's new grandson, they still have to be packed up and sent so I am still enjoying the colour combination.

And there was a jumper in these colours for my beautiful smiley grandson , nearly 6 months old. It won't last him for long though as he seems to have a long back and he is growing at the rate of knots, before our very eyes!!

 

If you look closely you can just see the 'fairy sign post ' in the grass! In reality it is half a black mushroom/toadstool half eaten! I don't think we will be eating any of these fungi any time soon.....they don't look as they would do us much good!

We have water in our dams now, thanks to all the rain we had over the last twelve or more months. I never fail to see the beauty in all that water lying there.....

and if you look carefully there were two ducks enjoying it as well, 'doing what they oughta, swimming in the water', do you remember the lovely gravelly voice  of Burl Ives singing this song?!! Probably too long ago for most people!!
 

Our dairy cows, here on adjistment for 2-3 months munching happily outside our garden. There is something very satisfying listening to the munching, connection to nature, to the earth.