Playing catch up.

The following few posts are catch up ones because I didn't want to go into the New Year behind the eight ball so to speak.

It's currently 9.42pm on the 31st  . . . Happy Birthday Veronica . . . Dallas is snoozing before we head down to Picton to party on the foreshore and watch the fireworks display.  Sad old Blenheim is not celebrating in the New Year - great disappointment all around!

OK - well - see you all next year . . .

Have a safe and happy New Year everyone.

Something is missing -

Can you guess what it is???  

This is a typical Smith job - things never quite go in the order they should **sigh**

All animals were very helpful with the hole digging.  Nearly had a couple of headless chooks running around.

The girls looking for worms in a newly dug hole.

Do you think they can read??

So what are we doing, I hear you ask.  Well, the plan is to fence off the vegie garden.  It was quite delightful to begin with, watching the chooks shred the vegies to bits.  Not so much now, though.  Especially as I want to plant a whole lot of new seedlings!  I do have to say that they are doing a great job of digging up the potatoes at the moment.  No dig taties - I like that!

25 December 2009

Christmas Day dawned clear and bright.  After doing the usual morning routine - feeding and exercising animals - the boys finally woke up.  It's certainly not like it used to be when the four of them were little - Santa had to bring them a box of cereal each just to make them eat breakfast - they were so excited they usually didn't want any!!!

Then we packed up some food and when to Carlenes for lunch.

Nana, Josh, Dallas & Bruce

Kaye, Lisa, Dallas & Carlene

Nana & Josh

Mother & Daughter - Kaye & Carlene

Bruce (and the answer to the question on the TShirt is YES!!)

Cheesey Dallas

We had a lovely meal and get together.  Headed  home after lunch, made some calls and texts to family and friends, then sister Anne came around and we had a light evening meal with lashings of dessert!

Weekend before Santas visit ~

Karl & Ricki couldn't make it home for Christmas, so we visited with them the weekend before.  On the Saturday we travelled down it was Liams 19th birthday:

Pizza and pressies at the Motel . . .

 

The next day was Rickis 21st birthday ~ a quick pressie opening before he had to go to work:

 

He had been out with his mates the night before - didn't get home until 5am then we got him up early to go and see Avatar.  He was a bit under the weather!!

Then we went out for lunch:

Dallas & Josh

Karl & Ricki

Ricki & Me

Liam afterwards

We came back from Christchurch with some goodies, too . . . a couple of Trade Me wins - 5 Wasgijs for Linda and a hutch for me . . .

I have plans to strip it and French Country it this coming year.

Preparing for Christmas

Got lazy this year.  Couldn't be bothered putting the tree up, so just put some Santas around the place.

The Kitchen display:

The Entry Display (the light doesn't do it justice):

 

 

 

My new (to me)pride and joy

Isn't she lovely!!

The girls!

Being as I am surrounded by testosterone laden males, I thought I would get some more female company, females that I could while away the day with, talk about all sorts of things with, and just sit and enjoy each others company.

My new 'girls':

 

Pudding just loves them:

 

I'm ginger, so of course they'll think I"m a carrot!

 

First time I've done this . . .

Corrie over at retromummy is having a giveaway - some beautiful fabric - grandmothers flower garden - which she will generously give away 12 fat quarters of.

 Check it out here:  The Giveaway Blog

Patchwork

Now as you look at these . . . please bear in mind that I DON'T sew!!  Don't even have a sewing machine - I'm using my sisters one!

I enrolled in a class for one Saturday . . . I was thinking I wouldn't even get the machine threaded in the time I had LOL

First:  I picked my fabrics, and with purple being my favourite colour, it wasn't too hard.

Next came the cutting of the pieces (I absolutely LOVE that top fabric):

Then came the sewing . . . have to quietly admit it got a bit frustrating at times.

Then putting the patches together:

 

 

I will admit here that I made a bit of a mistake in the sewing of the patches together - I think I got one patch around the wrong way and consequently some of the fabrics are a bit too close to each other.   But the final patchwork looks like this:

It's not perfect, but it's my very first attempt and I just LOVE it.  Since this photo it has a dark purple border around the edge and is waiting to be quilted.  I will get someone who knows what they are doing to do that bit - maybe I'll attempt it on my next one  :-)

Oh, and I've now bought a used sewing machine - quite old and very heavy - but it sews beautifully.

My next project is a bag - pics to come eventually!

Where to start -

The vege gardens

 

What we are harvesting:
Strawberries
peas - a handful to eat raw each day  :-)
lettuce
broccoli
silverbeet
wong bok


Thoughts for next years garden:
Plant more strawberries and peas!!!

My last couple of weeks in pictures ~