G'day. I have spent most of the weekend pottering around in the garden. The spring weather here has been just lovely, to nice to be inside.
I purchased this lovely wrought iron, three tier plant stand last Friday and it is just perfect for the three cyclamen that I have had for some years. I think they were meant for it, don't you?
I mentioned some time ago, that I am hosting three of the lovable characters from the Wind In the Willows series. These have been made in fabric and hand painted and they have been winging their merry way around the world. They have been visiting with Troc, Broc and Recup in France trocbroc.blogspot.com and have been having a great time and are now on their way to me here in Australia. I look forward to having some fun times with them and letting you all know what we get up to.
One of the girls at work asked me last week would I embroider a Minnie Mouse on a couple of T shirts for her nieces. After saying that I had only had the machine for a short while and was still practicing on it and didn't feel confident about doing something like that just yet, but somewhere down the track I might give it a try. I would have thought that all of that was plain enough and that I didn't want the responsibility of tackling it and stuffing it up. She didn't listen. Two days later, in she came with two store bought T shirts. I nearly fell off my perch to say the least. I patiently explained once again that I was still learning the machine and embroidering on a T shirt was totally different than just on a single square piece of fabric. She was not to be deterred. So, after asking various people, visiting the shop where I bought the machine, (this is an hour away and luckily we had to go up that way last Friday) I with much trepidation sat down yesterday afternoon and gave it a go.I had purposely stayed out in the garden all day Saturday and much of Sunday, so I didn't have to do the blessed thing, but in the back of my mind, I knew it was waiting and that I couldn't put if off. It took a bit of working out to get it centre, which is not as easy as it sounds and also I had to pull the back of the shirt completely up and out of the way of the needle and hold it with my hands to keep it free. This shirt is a size 4, a small size here in Oz, so it had it's problems. But, I am proud to say, it turned out perfectly. I am sure it was just a fluke, a one off lucky chance. I had spent considerable time worrying about tackling this project. But, it is not over yet, there is still the second one to do, that is a size 7, a bit bigger thank goodness, but nonetheless, still a headache. I must learn to say no and put my foot down a bit harder. Some people just won't accept that you are reluctant to do things for them.Of course it's not all her fault, I am just as much to blame for not being louder and firmer with my "No". Take care. Liz...
G'day. It's just a little over four months until my son and I go back to Paris. I have just heard from the travel agent, in whose capable hands I trust for everything to go smoothly. She has never let me down.
She contacted me with the good news to say that the hotel we booked some months ago, will now serve us breakfast each day at no extra cost and because we have a very late evening flight when we leave Paris, they will let us have the room also at no charge. This will be handy in case we want to have a rest or a shower before our super long flight home. This hotel is costing us quite a lot of money each, mainly because of it's location to the Eiffel Tower and the time of the year, which probably still comes under the New Year period, that's their story anyway and breakfast was not originally included in the price, but we could have it if we wanted to part with something like 20 Euro each and that in Australian dollars is close enough to $38.00 a day. Way too much for us. So at last some good news.
Anyway, enough of Paris. I have been having great trouble with my blog, only for the simple fact that Blogger said I have a problem with something malicious trying to worm it's way in. Though, when I contacted them, my site was coming up clean all the time. Through much angst in trying to sort this problem out, I was advised to remove all blogs that I follow and in doing that, silly, silly me, removed all followers as well. Oh dear, what can I say? Hubby would say that I was having a blond moment. It appears that by removing the sites I follow,the problem has gone, at least I hope so.One of those sites (I couldn't isolate it) had been hacked. If anyone has trouble with my site, can you please let me know, as another blog friend (Michelle) did last week.
Beautiful weather in my part of the world today, gorgeous blue sky, only a few white fluffy clouds. All is well and everything is pointing to happiness.I am going to brag now and tell you that at the Weight Watchers meeting last Tuesday night, I had lost another 1.5 kg. All up, it's 18.1kilo off now and I am hoping for a good result tonight. My goal was to get 25kg off before our trip, if that happens, well and good, if not, then so be it. I am proud of myself. I can even get my favourite jeans down now, without undoing them if I so wanted!!! Take care. Liz...
G'day. Do you ever have one of those days where you just can't be bothered doing anything? I hope so, because I don't want to think it's just me...
It's my day off work and I am in a funk. I just can't get my act together for the life of me. The sun is shining, the sky is a beautiful blue, much better than the cold wet days we have been having lately. I should be outside doing something, but I don't know what.
The back garden areas are now all finished. There are no weeds to be seen. Yeah... I can't do anything out the front until we get a digger in to dig up the whole front yard, mainly to level it out. Our new front fence is not yet finished, why I don't know. The company doing it hasn't been sighted since last week. Until that is completed, the plans for my front garden have been put on hold. I have even been looking at some of the lawn area in the back, wondering if I could make another smallish garden centred around a bird bath.But, that's probably making more work for myself.
I can't even motivated myself to do any sewing, or use my new, you beaut embroidery machine today.I am never like this. I relish my days off to do all the thing I love, like gardening and sewing or reading a good book etc, but it has all gone out the window for some reason.
If I am to be honest, I think I know what the problem is, it's my work, my place of paid employment. I have to go back there tomorrow and face a rather unpleasant task, one that I have dealt with in the past, but one that is never easy. I was laying in bed early hours this morning, trying to rehearse what I was going to say and what was the best way of saying it. This is never easy when another persons feelings are involved. I still haven't found the right words of what I need to say and I suspect I won't get much sleep tonight either.
On a lighter note, the pansy's in the picture are just beautiful, they are a giant pansy and one of my favourites. They brighten my day just looking at them.The ceramic watering can is one I made and painted many moons ago, a craft that I don't do anymore. Take care. Liz...
G'day. Well, as you can see, I am still playing with my new embroidery machine. After all I do have to get to know how to use it, don't I? Why spend all that money and just leave it sitting there. Doesn't matter that the house is overrun by dust and the garden has been neglected, but in fairness, it hasn't been that bad that hubby has to cook the meals and my paying job still has me there on my rostered days on. So all is not lost, yet!
Apologies for boring those of my followers that are not interested in sewing, but it is a big part of my life and it's nice to share. That's my story anyway and I am sticking with it.
We are still in winter here in Australia and last Thursday in my part of this beautiful country, Mother Nature let us know it. Late afternoon saw a massive thunderstorm come through, the streets were awash with water, windscreen wipers on flat out, hail, you name it, we got it. Only lasted about twenty minutes or so, then magically the sun came out, the sky cleared and you would never have known that a few minutes earlier we were in the grip of a full force storm.
I happened to look outside some time later and there was our boy laying in the garden bed near the back door, sunning himself, when only an hour or so beforehand he was hiding under one of the beds. What a good life he has.
Oh bye the way, I am still going to Weight Watchers and have now lost 17.1 kg. It was 17.7 last week, but I had been naughty and put on .6.The team leader is trying to get me more motivated and keeps telling me that she wants to be able to present me with a certificate when I lose 20kg. I should have been well past that mark by now, but I'm not and that's all there is to it. I was hoping to have 25kg off by the time I go to France next January and I will still keep trying. I haven't given up yet.
I also apologise to my followers that have had trouble with the word verification, I didn't realise that it was on. I know that many of the blogs that I follow have it and it can sometimes be very frustrating trying to read the words, even with my glasses on, it is a struggle and after a few attempts, I have had to give up and not leave comments.I have turned mine off, at least I hope it's off!!
That's all for now. Take care. Liz...
G'day. I hope that all my non quilting/sewing friends who follow my blog will forgive me for rambling on in this post about my new plaything. I have just bought myself an embroidery machine. Though the truth is that I have had it on layby for a few months, but it is now home with me, where it belongs. I, off course can't stop playing with it and that is the only way that I will learn how to use it to it's best advantage.
The second picture shows my very first attempt at doing something with it and I must say that I am rather pleased with myself. My next few attempts were also successful, but the tension was not quite right and those attempts have gone in the scrap bin. I can see that I am going to have a lot of fun. The housework may not get done and the weeds will probably grow rampant in the garden, but who cares. I am unleashing my creativity and more power to me.
Now for something totally different. I follow a blog called pompomsponderings.blogspot.com and this lovely lady came up with the great idea of sending three of the Wind in the Willows characters around the world. Ratty, Toad and Mole have been drawn and coloured in, onto fabric and have been made into three lovely small pillows.They have been visiting many countries via the bloggers who agreed to host them. I am one such person and I look forward to them visiting me at some stage soon. They are currently in France and after having much fun there, they will be making the long journey to me, in Australia. I then send them to New Zealand so they can have lots of adventures in that beautiful country and they really will have a tale to tell when they finally get back home to Pom Pom in America. I am not sure what I will do to entertain them at this stage, but no doubt they and I will have a lots of good times. I will be posting all about their visit with me and I hope you will enjoy reading it. Take care. Liz...
G'day. I have been working quite a lot over the last few months or so, not only at my place of employment but at home, just doing the usual things that need doing around here. But, it's been my paid work that has consumed a lot of my time. I very rarely work weekends, but because of staff shortages and one thing and another, I seem to be there at least six days a week of late. Oh yes, the money comes in handy, but being a homebody, I long for my days off.
If I am not planning on going anywhere on these precious days, I have my shower early in the morning, put my favourite PJ's on and just generally enjoy my time, doing some sewing if the mood takes me, getting out in the garden if the day is nice, or just pottering around doing housework, maybe sit in my favourite chair in the afternoon and read a book.
Oh sweet joy, I have not one, but two days off now in a row and wouldn't you know it, I have come down with a cold. I wasn't feeling top notch at work yesterday and by the time I got home in the afternoon, I knew I was in trouble. As soon as tea was finished, I was in bed, only to wake up through the night with the worst sore throat imaginable. I trudged out of bed all aches and pains to take some pain relief tablets and waited for them to work, no such luck.My throat feels like a few dozen razor blades are doing the Can Can in there. Doctors doesn't open until 9.00 am, but as soon as they do, I will be on the phone asking for an appointment. I need antibiotics and fast. If no appointment is available today, as sometimes happens, I will take myself off to the emergency department at the local hospital. After all, I work there one day a fortnight, so I know they will not turn me away.
I had great plans for my two coveted days off, those plans have now gone out the window.All I can think about is going back to bed,snuggling down and pulling the covers up.I think this dreaded cold and rotten throat may have been a result of catching a chill at the wedding I attended last Saturday night. Even though I thought I was dressed warmly, the weather was absolutely freezing. My feet were like two blocks of ice and at one stage I am sure they were so cold that I couldn't feel them. So, some of us ventured inside the home of the lovely lady who lent her house for this event, just to get a respite from the wind and the rain, only to be ushered out again for some toast to the bride and groom.I think this going from cold to hot a few times through the night didn't help.The wedding was lovely, but I will remember it for the extreme weather.It's not a good idea to have a wedding in winter, that's mainly going to be held out of doors and at night to boot.
Well, it's just past 9.00am. Doctors office will be open and I had better make that phone call. Wish me luck. Take care. Liz...
G'day. These three daffodils have been out for a little while now. I was really pleased to see them, as daffy's are a particular favourite of mine. When we owned the farm, I mass planted them and they looked spectacular. Here, all I have are a few, but I will plant many more next year. We hope to start the garden in the front yard at some stage soon and by this time next year, I hope to have a blaze of yellow running through it with the lovely daffodils.Surprisingly, I haven't seen any in the front yards of any of the houses in our street, so no doubt I will have the neighbours all a goggle!!
The next two photos have nothing at all to do with flowers as you can see, but I thought I would show you my latest purchases, only because I got them at such low prices, they were too good to pass up. I have a wedding to go to tomorrow (Sat) and it is being held outside, in a back yard. We are in winter here in Australia and in my neck of the woods it is particularly cold at the moment and tomorrow is meant to be wet, cold and generally miserable. The bride is not only celebrating getting married but also it's her 40th birthday. Being a sensible woman, the bride told people in the invitations not to wear any high heels or fancy clothes etc, but to dress warmly.Smart casual being the go. She has also said she wants to see people wearing jeans. I was a bit concerned about buying a new pair of good black pants as I am still losing weight (17.5 kg now) and any pants will be too big for me in a few months, if not less (I hope), so I have decided to do as the bride says and wear jeans, but I had no jacket that fitted, they all swam on me and looked terrible. Target were having a clearance of all their winter coats and lucky me happened to be there at the right time and I got these two lovelies that were reduced heavily. They really were just too cheap to let go. By this time next year, they will probably be too big, but what the heck, no doubt I will still get some great wear out of them. I am thinking of wearing the burnt orange one to the wedding, though the white looks great as well. My jeans are black as are my stockings and shoes, my scarf is off white. Yes, definitely the orange. What do you think? Take care. Liz...
