Hookie Therapy

I think it is fair to say that I have been struggling somewhat for the last week or two. The Smalls are off school for their winter holiday, Big Trouble is living up to his name and is making up for lost time - packing in the terrible twos now he is three, and the big ones are taking his lead and running with it. It doesn't help that it is, what is known here by the wonderfully descriptive name, Scruffy August. Not exactly cold but, to use another great descriptive expression, dreich.



 

The South Atlantic is out there somewhere in the mist. (And, annoyingly I have fluff inside my camera.)

After a truly awful day yesterday, and a poor start to this morning (three out of four of us in tears by 9am and Tall Girl looking like she might join in, if only not to be left out) I decided that something must be done...

I put the Mr Men on the TV, then retreated to my bedroom and closed the door. I got out my Persian Sweetie Shop Blanket which has been sadly neglected over the last few months and began a little hookie therapy.

The neglect has been caused by my aversion to repetition. I need to make 76 of these little squares but got stuck after about 40. I really want to finish them so I can move on to the next part. I am going to make a concerted effort...

To go along with my hookie, I indulged in another little pleasure which has fallen by the wayside in a house full of Smalls - a spot of Radio 4.

I may just do the same tomorrow...

xx

Yey!

I would just like to say that I completely love my new bloggy look. That is all.

xx

A new look at last.

My goodness, you wouldn't believe the trouble I have had with this. Not the sewing, the technology! Making a header image and choosing a new template and colours using Blogger's not-so-intuitive template creator was really quite similar to pulling teeth.

 

You see, the blue and green off-the-shelf  template was only temporary 15 months ago, and I always intended to sew something.

I could see it very clearly in my mind all that time ago.

It would be made using several techniques all mixed up together and would say Stitches and Seeds in the image as well as with words.

Then life happened, and I started sewing for the market stall, then we decided to move half way round the world, and somehow my vision faded and the blue and green stayed.

Then, a few days ago, I was looking at my little blog with an unusually critical eye, and I was disappointed that it wasn't what I had intended it to be. And the image in my mind's eye came back, complete with a seedling in a teacup which had been there from the very start.

In fact, the seedling in a teacup has been floating round in my head from the moment I started to read blogs. It is inspired by the art work of a lovely friend-in-real-life who's blog was one of the first I came upon, but who no longer blogs. Her art is still beautiful though.

So I sewed and I snipped and I knitted and I stitched and I fiddled until I had something I am really very pleased with.

Then I hit the technology... and I have been working and reworking the template and the header, and wrestling with picture editing software for a week, before I finally got something I am equally pleased with and that does the sewing justice.

Do you like it too?

xx

zero to three

Happy Birthday to my lovely Big Trouble (formally known as Giant Baby).

 

xx

What's in a name?

Tomorrow my Giant Baby turns three and is officially no longer a baby.

 

He will of course always be my baby...

But in most people's eyes he is definitely a little boy.

In his eyes he is definitely not a little boy. "I am a big boy aren't I mummy? Because I wear pants."

Of course he is!

So I am going to spend a while thinking up a new bloggy name for my Giant Baby.

For Giant he most definitely is...

but baby he most definitely is not.

Not really.

Except to me.

xx

Thursday things

It is a misty moisty morning here in the subtropics. I woke up feeling a bit misty moisty too. Not for any special reason, just like you do sometimes. I have spent a couple of hours reintroducing order and cleanliness into the house, and as I did so, I started to feel a bit better: I started to see some of the things that are only in our house because they make me smile. I thought you might like to see a few of them. Hopefully they will make you smile too...

 



My favourite tin which I got from a very special lady who was moving to New Zealand. It reminds me of her smiley face. I keep tea in it, not sugar. I like tea.

Treasure found by Tiny Boy over the last few days. I have some ideas for these but they will have to wait a while. I have a lot of ideas!

A marguerite flower brought too me by my lovely Giant Baby.

One day he will learn to pick some stalk as well...

My box of tiny bits that are too lovely to throw away.

A sneaky peek of something that I am making from them especially for my blog...

What makes you smile on a misty moisty morning?

xx

Slow living July 2013

Hello, hello!

Another mad month in the South Atlantic! We have been busy partying rather harder than usual this month with a bundle of birthdays. Also, my Mum has been here so we have been back on the tourist trail. It has been anything but slow... must try harder to slow down in August.

Nourish

There has been a lot of party food and bring-and-share contributions cooked this month. Usually I try and do nice bread (no artisan bakeries here) and some sort of pud but there have also been feta and olives and popcorn. In between I am afraid it has been quick and easy cooking, although I have rediscovered soup and want to explore this more...

Prepare

No laying down of stores. Hand to mouth this month, but planning for our hols which is exciting.

Grow

I have planted out all the seedlings that I sewed last month into Tall Girl's Garden. She wanted a patch of flowers and veg all of her own which was a good kick up the backside for me to clear away the dead and dying things that haven't worked and have another go. The orange clay soil here doesn't seem to hold moisture or nutrients very well so this time I remembered to add a good blob of composted grass cuttings to each hole. Fingers crossed it all does ok...

Green

We have finally got Giant Baby out of nappies at night as well as during the day so that should boost our green credentials quite a lot!

Reduce

Hmm, maybe the nappy thing should be under Reduce instead.

Create

The Extremely Useful Smiley Bag tutorial was a bit of a highlight for me. I have also done quite a bit of creating for presents which somehow didn't get photographed. I sent off my Yarndale bunting though.

Discover

My flax weaving research has produced a new hat pattern which I have photographed but not written up yet. I have been having my third go at An Ode Less Travelled by Stephen Fry. I want to read it but I am finding it very hard going. The first two attempts I only got as far as the first chapter so I am improving.

Enhance

I have been teaching Tall Girl's Brownie friends some flax weaving which was hard work but fun.

Enjoy

Ohh too too much to say: dolphin watching, karaoke, pixie party, bothy barbeque, posh meal out, family chilled meal out, late night dancing, lantern making, pizza eating....

I think I might mostly be spending August snoozing. Except of course for celebrating the most important third birthday of a certain Giant Baby.

xx