Update

My fatigue levels since having Dengue Fever seem to have increased tenfold and I seem to only have energy for the necessities of work and home life.  Although I feel under pressure all the time as if I always have a million things to do/chasing my tail/not getting anywhere.  The end result has been anxiety and fatigue.  I'm limping over my work finish line next Tuesday.  I have until the 5th of January off.  I'm staying close to home.  I swing between getting excited about some days spent sewing and reading, walks at the beach, catching up on things and then telling myself not to put any pressure on myself to cross anything off a list. Perhaps what I really really need is complete rest - both physical and mental. No pressure on myself to achieve anything.  Needless to say the blog has gone by the wayside.  I've had no time to read other blogs and feel quite cut off from my creative world.  Don't worry my list of craft and quilt projects keeps growing, even though nothing is being done to finish those.  Daydreaming is what keeps me going.....honestly I am the best daydreamer ever...solidly grounded in reality ...ha!  Some are ridiculous Hollywood happy ending style daydreams, although George Clooney managed to shatter one of those by getting married.  LOL! Others are very very ordinary daydreams, that I hold dear and no-one can shatter, that's the wonderful thing about daydreaming, isn't it?

And because I don't have any quilty/crochet pics to share here a some random Christmas photos from the last few days at my house....

Sweet happy pics from my little corner of the world.  The deer is one of my newest decorations, from a darling sister on the other side of the world. The fairy is my oldest decoration and arrived on my first ever Christmas stocking, er-em just a short 50 years ago!!!

Wishing each and everyone of you dear readers a blissful time over Christmas and a wonderful 2015.

xxxooo

Tilly the Christmas Elf...

Christmas Jam

This year's batch is Berry Raspberry Jam.  Made with mostly raspberries, but a few mixed berries thrown in.  It's quite sharp, but I think it's a good batch.  Hopefully recipients will too!

Christmas cake

 

 

Oops....I forgot to take a picture before I cut the Christmas Cake.  It is yum.

 

On Saturday, I spent a happy hour and a bit cutting out this simple quilt top.

 

Two days later that's exactly how it still looks!

Shame I'd really hoped to sew it up.  Maybe one night this week.....

 

 

ttfn.... x

It's Christmas Time

The tree is up!  How I love it!  How I LOVE it!

Here's panoramic shot of the room.  We were getting ready for a celebration on Sunday.

A day time photo :))

Cross Stitch Work in Progress

So I'm continuing with my list of works in (stalled) progress.  Next is the Cross Stitch Category.  Only 1 item in this category.... (lots of patterns put aside for NEW projects though) but that is going to be another category after I catalogue all my WIPs.

One unfinished - in progress - cross stitch.  It's a Christmas one.  I have 3 other Christmas ones completed and framed and hung on the walls for each festive season.  This is another one to add, when it is done.

And this is what it will look like when it's finished.

And it will join these....

Terrible photos I know, but you get the idea.  I have worked on these erratically for years. I began the top picture when I was pregnant with my first daughter (who turns 19 this May!) EEEeeeek! I remember so vividly teaching myself to cross-stitch.  I will share those in another post one day.  I'd like the entire history of my creative life here in my diary.

Talking about "chronic-ling" my WIPs takes me back to my days at Primary School as a Junior Librarian.  I volunteered in the library and learnt how to catalogue books in the dewy decimal system.  I was such an avid student I catalogued all my books at home. Wrapped them in protective plastic and stuck stickers on their spine.  Mostly F for fiction and the first 3 letters of the authors name.  Who'd have dreamt I come to live in such chaos?  Am I going back to my roots. Do I secretly long for a catalogued house?  Mmmm, dunno, but I think my blog is an online diary and it does serve to chronicle my life.  To that end I think it should not be restricted to one aspect of my life, but encompass many aspects that make up my life.

I'm a traditionalist at Christmas. Really!! You'd never guess would you? Ha.  Yep very traditional.  One of my daughter's wrote in her Christmas card to me this year, how she loves that I steep Christmas in traditions and hopes she can mimic me 'cause it makes it really, really memorable and fun and exciting.  I was touched, because I'd begin to wonder whether my teenagers, weren't really rolling their eyes and thinkin' "GAWD...here she goes again!"  behind my back and just putting up with their dotty mumma. (Don't worry it wouldn't stop me - no way.  It's my thing you know) But at least I'm conscious of the fact that I can be a bit embarrassing.  But just between you and me I like to be.  I mean if you can't have a bit of fun with them...what's the point?

Happy New Year!

OMG!! December passed in such a rush.  Our Christmas Day was lovely, and the week surrounding it wasn't dull.  Trips to the hospital emergency room on Christmas Eve and Boxing Day with my elder daughter.  On the mend now but suffering a nasty infection - she spent the night being pumped full of IV antibiotics.  Then another day spent fixing tyres after my younger daughter - a learner driver - popped a tyre on a kerb!  Consequently she had her first lesson in changing a tyre.  She and I managed it together and B is very proud of herself.... "Girls Rock!!" 

Now onto the second week of my Christmas break I'm hoping for a more relaxing finish to my holiday, although today started with poor Gypsy having one of her seizures on the floor beside my bed.  I don't seem to by managing her medication well enough, but I've dosed her up now and hopefully she will have a restful day snoozing in her favourite spot on my bed.  I'm worried she needs higher does of pills.  The vet has said it will cause liver problems in the long term and her life will probably be shortened by being medicated. :((

The dog is on heat so is banished.  That is a job for the next couple of months...off to the vet for her op!  I braved the dog beach yesterday with her.  I say braved because I have a love hate relationship with the dog beaches.  It's so lovely watching all the dogs have such a frolicking good time, and the beach is so so beautiful, but it goes hand in hand with the dogs that run straight over you - the ones the owners have no control over because the hounds are just so so excited.  I came home crunching sand between my teeth!!  Tilly did a number 2 in the back of the ute on the way down!!! and then jumped and walked it all over the place.  Then there's the ablutions of the dogs at the beach...right beside me yesterday.  Picked up, but there's a lot that aren't picked up and lie hidden in the sand. 

Tilly is so incredibly excited in the car, the whole car rocks around as she leaps in circles all the way along the ride.  Holding her on the lead is exhausting and you come back with rope burn on your hands.  Any tips on training a blind dog, gladly welcomed.  Trust me food doesn't work!!  She goes ballistic trying to find the treat!

Anyway here's a couple of pictures of Gypsy sound asleep on the kitchen bench....

Mirrors how one often feels after the over indulgence in food over the festive period, don't you think? 

That's exactly how I would like to spend a few days before the return to the out of control treadmill of my life......

Christmas in Australia!

Somewhere on the road around Townsville.  Taken today by my sister, Helen, making a long drive from Cairns, Queensland, to Birregurra, Victoria.  She hopes to make it in 3 days.  She is moving to Doha, Qatar for 3 years.  Another destination to add to my travel list.

Fantastic to see the Christmas Spirit alive in the middle of nowhere!

Snow

I think a lot about snow.  I don't know why this is so, because I live in a snowless zone of the world.  I have experienced snow and found it to be truly magical.  I simply marvel at the way it transforms a view.  I would love to live where it snows.  I'd love to wake up to that magical transformation.  I love the smell of snow, sparkling snow in sunlight.  It's soft, silent, flurriness as it falls. I imagine sitting in a window and looking out and never growing tired of the view.  Marvelling at trees, mountains, fields, cottages hidden under snow.  I imagine sitting and crafting, cooking, reading in my snow covered cottage.  Friends crunching up the drive or path to visit.  Talking off their wellies or shoes and scarves and welcoming them inside with warm drinks and delicious bakings.  I love the idea of the warmth inside the house nestled in amongst the coldness of the outdoors - I can feel it glowing and oozing comraderie.  I imagine walking in it, my cheeks and nose ruddied by the cold, hearing if crunch underneath, sinking in my wellies across fields, shaking branches and having snow rain down on me, leaving footprints (like you do in the sand here).

I've had 5 wintery, snowy Christmases and been absolutely thrilled by every one of them.  It fascinates me as an Australian growing up with hot summery Christmases year upon year why I dream of snow and wintery landscapes, when it is not my norm?  Am I displaced?  Shall I go and live in the Northern Hemisphere again and live through more cold winters.  So many people emigrate here for the weather...why am I thinking the exact opposite?  People crave my Australian lifestyle/weather.  Is it a case of wanting what you don't have.  Do people who move away from snow miss it?  Do people who live with it, love it, hate it?  I know people whinge about it and it has its ugly side in slushy, mushy traffic snow.  But I've even found that fun... I have never tired of it when I've lived in northwest Iowa or the UK over those 5 winters. Today I was googling snow images and the ones here are some that I found courtesy of Google images....

Imagine skiing across that!

If you love snow leave a footprint and say hi and let me know what you love about snow let's share snow joy...x

look what I found today - http://sbmillefeuilles.blogspot.com/ - this post about winter and including a wonderful picture of a girl dreaming of snow!!!

Lavender Hearts

December is rushing away from me at a very scary rate of knots....the tree is up, I've been to a carol service, one parcel has gone, the fruit is (still) soaking for the Christmas cake.... a few gifts have been made... not a scrap of shopping has been done, no menu decided upon.....and this is my first post for the month! Doesn't sound too bad when I list it like this, but I'm not feeling organised at all.  8 more days of work until we break until the 9th of January....

Yesterday I stole a couple of hours at my sewing machine and made up these lavender pouches.  I've used scraps of fabric of which I have an abundance!! No surprise there! Family and friends are all going to get a couple for Christmas, either as their gift or adjunct to.  I am staying true to my using up resources commitment.  It is amazing what I've found stashed away in all the different boxes that have been packed away for years while we renovated (the still-in-progress 7 year renovation).  I am slowly sorting them into 1. rubbish, 2. garage sale 3. usable/giveable!  I will be free of clutter and junk. I will, I will, I will....

It was so lovely to sit at my machine for a couple of hours and I'm planning on getting quite a lot of sewing time in on my break.  Finally making headway on several quilts and aprons I have planned.  Also a couple of bags....I am really excited about being at home for a couple of weeks. Normally I long to get away, but I think thanks to our European adventure, I'm happy to hang in Perth and my home and the beach!




Group shot of heart shaped lavender pouches



A pretty floral ....

Amy Butler scraps

Oh my, oh my!

I'm having palpitations!  Look at this Christmas tree skirt from anthropologie!!  So exciting - it has caused major creative stimulation of the brain.  For years I have had the odd thought of making a Christmas tree shirt.  I've seen some gorgeous ones in shops, none I've felt compelled to buy, because I really want mine to be home made.  I've been accumulating Christmas fabric for years now with no particular projects in mind.  I've used some of it to creatively drape around the bottom of the tree for the pressies to sit on which has been perfectly fine....every year I choose something different and if the pets have a field day with it - it's no stress - just wash it and fold it an put it away again. But I never ever thought of a knitted or crocheted one!!  It was a slap to the forehead - this is my style!  Doh!  So now the journey begins, pattern, style, colours..... There's no time frame, no pressure...I am in my year of deleting wool reserves so no new wool can be purchased, but that's fine - I can design and plan away which is such an exciting part of the creative process.  I'm all tingly!

Thank you Anthropolgie - I do love you! 

Please share any other Christmas Tree Skirts or links to - I am on a mission to look at what wonderfully crafty blogland has to reveal...here's one I found today on a short blog browse The Hood: A Christmas Tree Skirt over at Fresh Lemons; so inspiring and providing lots of food for thought and idea generation for my own skirt. I mean how serendipitous is that!!! Spooky!

Pet participation at Christmas

Boy did we have fun!!

More from George

A couple more of the tree....

Thanks to George

Flicking through photos with my daughter George, little did I know she had taken her own Christmas photos on the day we put the tree up. And being a much better photographer than me, she took a decent few. Here's the view past the customary mince pies and eggnog that we enjoy as we decorate and admire our handiwork and the "magicalness" of a twinkling tree. It is without a doubt one of my all time favourite things...a sparkly tree at night.

Decorations

Decorations

Christmas cake

Little Birdie

This is one of a set of 2 I bought at Ikea. The photo doesn't do it justice. I love them they are a delicate tin very scandinavian which is a style I love.

Soft spot for bunnies

Another bunny - I have a set of six of these little wooden treasures.

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree

Looks like I'll have to wait until next year for a decent tree photo :(