A return to childhood

Last night I didn't feel like watching the box and sewing, so when my son had gone to bed and husband was busy doing work on the computer I decided to get out the sketch book again and work on the design for the quilt that is in my head.  The other day I had done some preliminary drawings so I combined them into a bigger piece to get the feel about how the design will come together.  Then when I had finished the sketch I decided that I would get my new paints out and have a play with some colour.  

I must say it was 3 hours of pure bliss finishing this.  The ipod was plugged in I listen to an endless array of music and just made art.  I don't think for one minute that it will win awards but I had fun creating.  I would always draw as a kid and I think it only stopped when I became a teenager and became more  judgmental about myself and my abilities which didn't meet my expectations so I stopped (how stupid we are we we are young).  

Off to buy some more paint brushes this week I think some more pages just might get filled while I am home with the tonsil boy.

A little bit of drawing

I did some shopping yesterday, I just had a feeling that Hetties would have some bolts of fabric that was after.  The fabric was Swanky by Chez Moi and I gave myself a jelly roll and layer cake at Christmas so I thought now would be the time that the bolts would be arriving and I was right.  You don't get the full picture when you buy jelly rolls, it just isn't the same but the fabric on the bolt well....mmmmmmm love it.  Well I just loved some of the bigger prints so i decided on one and got 2m of it then a couple of half metres of two others....might go back for some more after I finish the quilt in my head.  As I was getting the fabrics ready for the picture I spied the stripe that I bought last week when I was at Patchwork by Sea and I think it will work very well with the fabrics as well.

I think the quilt will involve hexagons.  The background is white on some of the prints so I am going include lots of lovely white which I am really into at the moment... thank you Janelle and Don't Look Know.  Then I have to work out what other types of blocks to do might have to crank up EQ which I haven't used forever.  

With all this in mind I did a little drawing last night, I have been scared off drawing  because my last efforts weren't what I thought good enough.  Although the page turned out quite messy in the end I was happy with what I came up with.   

Is there a Dr in the House

I don't know if I have mentioned this but my son is scheduled to have his tonsils out next Friday and we have been battling to stop tonsilistis since the operation was scheduled. Last week he got what I thought was a cold, he had a day off and I thought that he was on the mend then he came home from school on Friday he complained that he was cold, so I upped the dose on the preventative antibiotics the dr had given me as it was too late to get him back to the dr and he doesn't work on the weekend. By Monday he was getting worse so back to the dr and he has a chest infection as well as the tonsil problem.  So know he is on stronger antibiotics and ventolin, last night he still had a fever but this morning he has sprung out of bed and is getting ready for school so maybe we have turned a corner.  Now we just have to clear up that cough by next week and hope that the tonsils don't flare up again.

Valentine Swap

I don't feel like I have been achieving much lately but I guess I have been doing a few swaps. Here is my effort for the Valentine Ornie Swap. Below is what I got in return.  They look fabulous as always.



Here is the latest birthday swap item that was sent of for Mill who's birthday is today.  

Quick Visit to the Beach

I also took some photo's of the Jetty pillions always some interesting bits and pieces that will come in handy for some mix media studies one day.

It was pretty windy and there were a few guys with these kites moving really quickly down the beach.  Managed to get a few good photos.  This one of one of them in the air should of had it on continuous shoot because this was just before he went splat flat on his back.

Very Spoiled

As I said in the post yesterday I spent the first part of the morning lying in bed finishing off a book that I had started the day before.  The book was "The Guernsey Literacy & Potato Peel Pie Society" by Mary Ann Shaffer.  It is written in the form of letters between the main character and the other characters in the story and it tells the story of the Occupation of Guernsey by the Germans in the WWII.  It is a very heartwarming story and just made me feel all warm a fuzzy, kind of just what I needed at the time.  Unfortunately the author became ill shortly after the sale of the manuscript and died before see the book published so we won't get to see another novel from her.  Dymocks has the book on sale as part of its buy 3 for the price of 2 romance offer until 28/2 (but only in store).

The family gave me a Lovelinks bracelet for my birthday.   Just a few charms at the moment but they have something to build on in the future and mothers day is just around the corner.

If you have been following my blog you will know that I am involved with a number of swaps with the P4P (Passion 4 Primitive) forum and they usually run a birthday swap which I love to be involved with.  So it was my turn to get some goodies and what a wonderful collection I received....lots and lots of hand made goodies.

Aren't they a very talented group.  

Enough with pressies.  How did I spend my day.  Well I had a wonderful time with lunch on Jetty Road at Brighton and some shopping along the strip.  I managed to buy a dress from a second hand clothing shop run by an OTT platinum blond, who Knew her stuff.  The first thing she said to me was "For Boobs you need to look down here".  She was right found a flowy number in black with a splash of purple which I just had to have.  Then found a secondhand book shop which I looked in for a while and we returned straight after lunch for some more looking.  We visited Patchwork by Sea though I wasn't really in the mood for fabric shopping (that didn't stop me buying though) but they have a good selection of Kaffe Fasset fabrics and jelly rolls so will probably go back again soon.  There was a great jewelry shop as well, the earings I liked were a bit expensive but there were others that I could have bought home with me but I was being restrained which doesn't happen very often... just ask my partner in crime.

Its my birthday and I'll Cry if I want to....

NO I WONT.... love birthdays even if it is 40 + 1.

Stayed in bed and finished a really lovely book might have to read it again as I rushed over the last few pages because I had to get up shower do the hair get the kids to school by 8.30 and what not but could not put it down. Have just been opening my birthday swap pressies and they are all gorgeous also got delivery of Valentine Swap OOOOh still my beating heart they are all divine and the only Valentine pressies I will ever get.

Of to Lunch with my friend Sue to fossic in patchwork shop and blow the diet down by the beach....  Will post pickies soon.  From the family I got a Lovelinks bracelet with 5 charms love it.  Now must go.  Will fill you in on book and day later...

Welcome Relief

We have a break from the heat at least for a few days.   Many of you would have either seen or read about the awful events that have happened in Victoria.  South Australia was spared these events this time but we are being told that a large fire event is inevitable due to the ongoing drought and the amount of fuel (trees and undergrowth) in the Adelaide Hills.   I remember the Ash Wednesday fires that hit both SA and Victoria and standing out at the back fence when I was maybe 12 or 13 and seeing the fire on the hills face burning into the night (we lived at the time close to the foothills) this they said was the worse ever loss of life and property that has all changed now for ever.  Our thoughts are with them in this time of loss.

We had the same hot weather on Saturday but we got the cool change a lot earlier than they did so by Sunday it had cooled right down here we are taking a walk down the windswept beach (unlike Saturday when there were hundreds down here we had the beach to ourselves) and we needed jackets.

I finally finished a couple of pincushions on the weekend I think the deadline that Sarah gave us was the 12th (my birthday)  so here is the finished product.

  

New Toy

Got myself a new mobile phone the other week.  My old one (which was less than 12 months old had a few issues apparently and mine had about all of them lol).  So I bit the bullet and got one a bit more upmarket that does more than I need.  The one thing I love about it is the camera which is pretty good and takes reasonable pictures (as good as my old digital camera before I got the SLR) so it will be handy for all those picture opportunities that I come across and find myself without the big guy.  The one thing that I wanted it to do was to download my calendar from my mac and I was assured it did that, but guess what it doesn't do it to a mac only from a pc  so I ended up spending a couple of hours going from apple help to nokia help (continually in a loop) to finally emailing nokia and finding that it didn't do it though previous models did but they do not have any plans for software to be written  ughhhhhh.   So I have to manually put my appointments in the phone as well as the mac but I can live with that ... the written diary just doesn't work or me you have to look at it and take it with you.  Having the alarm go off is great so this year I shouldn't miss any hair appointments, lunch dates or drs appointments etc lol.

Don't you love it when the kids pull a face when you are taking a photo.  Lighting was pretty bad as the house is shut up for the heat which we are expecting again today but we are looking forward to a week of mid 20's next week HEAVEN.

Memories Happy Birthday Mum

Today would have been my mother's 67th birthday...but then who am I kidding she would have only admitted to being maybe 55 if that.  My mum always lied about her age when she died at 49 she always said that she was 39 and she got away with it.  Many people were shocked to discover that she was as old as she was and they only found out about it at her funeral.

So I was thinking the other night as I was not able to go to sleep that she has been gone pretty much all of my adult life and nearly half my life has been without her and it did make me a little teary about it.... not something I have been for a very long time.  

The picture above is of her family just the 3 of them all gone now.  We lost Nan 3 months before mum from cancer, mums death was sudden from a brain hemorrhage in the February a week after my 23rd birthday and Pop survived until he was 92(15 years as a widow) I think happy to be reunited with the two loves of his life after being separated for so long.

At the time you think you will never get over it, I know Pop never got over the sudden loss of the both in so short a time.  I now forget about the things that use to upset me and have learnt to live without them.  Like ringing her a couple of times a day, sharing the major milestones in my life and getting help when the kids are sick....just being able to ask what did you use to do when such and such happened.  You get sad about the wealth of history that has been lost that is no longer passed on and having someone to go shopping with and sharing things with, that just doesn't happen anymore and the unconditional love that Mum's always have.  

I truly believe that what doesn't kill you makes you stronger and I know I am a stronger being for having had this loss and probably have a different attitude to life than what I would have had if Mum had lived to this day.

So Happy Birthday Mum hope you are having beer with Pop as you use to do on this warm day.

Lots of Love Mandy

Yes it's Hot Here

Like everyone else I am over the heat but it looks like its going to continue till next weekend.  I am afraid the pool is no relief the water is like a bath now.  We are only letting the kids out early morning and late evenings for a swim and a quick dip in the middle of the day and they have to stay under the shade.  I am not bothering as I think a quick cold shower gives more relief.  We have aircon but it is struggling and at least we haven't so far had any blackouts unlike others her in Adelaide and Melbourne. 

A couple of weeks ago I sent of the first birthday swap for the year.    Here it is, I used hand dyed embossed velvet, lace, organza, grunge board, calico, vintage images and Lutradur to make the cobweb effects.  I had quite a bit of fun putting it all together and one or two sleepless nights over it.