I love spring....

I love spring..my garden, which unfortunately lives it's life very neglected, in spring looks half-decent, just through the magic of self-renewing bulbs and my three climbing roses over the front fence. My favourite is my Banksia Rose - it is a wild, Day of the Triffids kind of thing, but it blooms for my girl's and my birthdays each year. She loves it as the blossoms are like miniature bouquets in each blossom

And so often I have a little 'bouquet' of flowers that someone has presented me... usually the vase is whatever someone has laid their hands on...empty jam jar, egg cup,empty yoghurt container. Better than a dozen cut red roses any day!
Have a great week!

One lucky duck...

Recently I had a birthday. I am now on the downhill track to 40 - I am often tempted to tell people I am in my late 40's, as then I would look good for my age! :-)
I belong to a lovely group of online quilters, who, amongst other things, have a secret sister birthday swap. Well, I received a wonderful package in the mail, which contained...
These wonderful fat quarters, two pincushions and a Singer tin (I've always wanted one of those!)
A lovely bag, with a cute stitchery on the front! This is going to get an outing to my sewing class soon..
AND this gorgeous necklace..how funky is this??
AND this gorgeous bracelet. I am so in love with those red polka-dots!

I feel so lucky to be a part of this great group. Thanks secret sister!! (I actually know who it is, as I do the draw, but will keep it a secret to keep others in the dark! LOL)

So, I'm feeling very blessed. Hope you're also having a good week!

Didn't anyone ask for more frogs??

Are you over the frogs??? Frog PJ's, frog cupcakes and now a frog cake for Gorgeous Girl's birthday party tomorrow. I must confess I bought the frogs and all I had to do was stick them on the cake (and make a few reeds)


And we have lots of froggie things for the party bags. (and for my daily rant - when did party bags become a "must have" at birthday parties?? I have had kids , two minutes after getting in the door, ask, "When do I get my party bag?"!! And also, when did pass-the-parcels have to have a "surprise" for every child at the party? - in my day, there was one surprise in the middle...anyway enough of that..just thought I'd share my deep thoughts for the day! :-))
And, assuming you are sick of frogs, here is a local native who has returned now the weather is starting to warm up. Nice to have him keeping down the insects in our garden but must say, he does give me a little scare every time I see just his head dart thru the grass! (this is a blue tongue lizard, for the non- Aussies - so called, obviously, for his bright blue tongue. Sorry, no picture of said tongue, as he wouldn't poke it out on demand!) Hope you're having a good day!

More frogs...

So you spot one frog...

..and before you know it, you turn around and they're everywhere!! LOL..



(cupcakes for Gorgeous Girl to take into her class tomorrow..oh, and some extras for friends who aren't in her class..and an extra for the teacher and the teachers aide...oh, and can there be one for the school librarian??... it was at this point that her mother said enough, as there are over 500 kids at her school and I had visions of cooking all night!)

10 years??

My baby girl turns 10 next week! (Wow, ten years of parenting...does that mean I'm due for long service leave?)
My girl loves frogs, so when I saw some cute frog fabric on sale, I decided to make her some Pyjama Pants for her birthday. Sadly, even though I like to sew, I rarely actually do any of it for my kids...to the point Gorgeous Girl has been walking around with a hole in her school sports pants for 6 months. When she was little I didn't have time to sew for her (3 kids under 4!)and now she is 'too old' for cute little dresses apparently!..*sigh*
Anyway, back to the PJ's...here are the pants...

For a top I grabbed a $5 T-shirt from K-Mart. I did debate making a shirt out of the same fabric, but I thought that might be a bit of frog overload...or maybe, frog plague?
I then chose a favourite frog...... Using Heat and Bond I then added it to an oval background, and then ironed it onto the shirt, sewing it on using clear monofilament thread. (using stabiliser on the back)
And this is the finished product. I cut them out the night before and they took less than 2 hours to sew up.... so it would have been a quick project if I hadn't taken 3 hours to choose the fabric for the cuff on the bottom (tough decision, fabric all over the floor, unhelpful suggestions from non-sewing husband...you know what I mean...)


It was nice to do a "quick' project. I seem to be in the midst of several big quilts at the moment, and the end is a long way off, so it's very nice to have a finish.

Just hope my girl likes them!

Have a great week!

In a rash moment...

In a rash moment I signed up to do a one day workshop with Sue Daley, queen of Paper-pieicing, at my local quilt shop. I'd love to show you the finished version of the quilt we started, but not sure on the ethics of stealing photos from someone else's blog so if you're interested head here (it's the Faith, Hope and Love one)

A bit of an ambitious start to my life as a hand piecer, I guess, but heck, who can go past a day out with quilters and fabric...

Here are my nearly finished blocks..

A paper-pieced flower..\

And an appliqued hearts block..

Sue did a mini-trunk show of some of her quilts which were divine and inspiring. Not sure I'm about to set out on a 1000 hexagon quilt, but definitely glad that I've now learnt a new skill! Wish I had taken a camera, but that would have required a level of organisation that I just didn't have that morning!

And here's Sunshine Boy's new cast. Now, isn't that a nice shade of blue?


Have a great week!

What a week..

What a week! It has included:-
* A fall off a bunkbed..2 days of wondering..a trip to Accident and Emergency..conclusion - two broken bones in Sunshine Boy's wrist and now one plaster cast.
* Review of my baby's heart condition - one ECG (which needs to be done whilst they are perfectly still..eekk), made possible by a new Thomas the Tank Engine book and then one chest x-ray, made possible by the traditional pin-em-down method.
* a leaking dishwasher - puddles on the floor - now waiting for the repairman so I now have three days OF ACTUALLY HAVING TO HANDWASH MY DISHES....
* and then the usual, rain, piles of washing, fighting children, workaholic husband, and the start of terrible twos for my littlie...*sigh*

But before you start to feel sorry for me, look where I went for the weekend...
"The tanks" Forster


My family have had 48 hours at Forster, staying at my Parents- in-law's unit, across from 'The Tanks". It's such a terrific spot - a little sheltered , near waveless area, courtesy of a big line of rocks. Lots of rockpools to investigate, sandcastles to be made...and if you are lucky you can see whales making their way down the coast. (and if it's cold or rainy there is an indoor heated pool nearby!)

It's a gorgeous spot for young kids..we decided we really must come back for longer next time.
Anyway must get those plates in the sink. Have a great week!
Sheryl
PS. My Parent's-in-law rent out their three bedroom unit, so if you are ever interested, just drop me a line!