Whhhiiiiizzzzzzz .....

there went three weeks of my life.

It happens to me every year, part of the joy of being in retail at this time of year.  We had a very very busy season this year which is great and now I get to appreciate 'normal' time and get all of my 'normal things done.  This in a way is a great thing, otherwise I just might not realise how special my life can be.

I have been a wee crocheter in my spare time.  The baby blanket is coming along at a great pace - for a turtle that is.  I am a wee bit nervous of the colours, I have found out that I am going to be a nannie to another boy - which is a very exciting thing.  So now I am a wee bit concerned that this blanket is a bit 'girlie' compared to Rydah's technicolour one.  So as a backup I have started a hexagon blanket in bright cottons.  I am not too sure about this either but I just love the way that this one looks on this blog.  So there, procrastination has struck but I am sure that one of these blankets will be just right.

Then I have been making something for me.  I have always loved these stones on this blog.  So that was my Christmas treat, to sit and cover a stone.  I just loved it!  I have now made two and they look rather fine side by side.

Snacking Seagulls in the

I took these photos a wee while back but they just make me smile when I look at them.

We were out having coffee when this rather lovely seagull decided that the ground was just not up to his standard.  Cheeky thing happened on a plate which was still half full.  Not sure if this occurred because of a fussy human didn't find the meal up to standard or if the chef hadn't put the love into the meal when he/she cooked it.  But anyways the seagull was just totally impressed with the offerings on the plate.

Other folk sitting around were just horrified at the fellow but I think because I was making such a fuss of him there were too scared to chase him away.  I always loved Johnathon Livingstone Seagull - so this fellow became my Johnathon. and if he is a she then she will be my Harriet.  How do you tell if a seagull is a she or a he?  Fascinating question.

Super Amazing Blankets for Super Beautiful Grandkids - part 2

I thought I was going to have a few years off before revisiting the baby blanket marathon.  But no - another call from that darling boy, I'm going to be a nannie again!!  So exciting - but wow, these two kids of mine have got their work cut out for them for the next few years.
So the planning started again.... what to make, what to make.  So many choices I must admit that I jumped from one idea to another - ooooo.... and I must admit to the fact that I jumped from one purchase to another.  So much fun!
First up on the idea was some lovely hand dyed yarn from a local lady who operates under the name of Olive and Emma - here.  I purchased her lovely rainbow yarns and lots of grey - I had intentions of knitting a blanket with rainbow hearts, just like the hottie bottle cover shown here.  But then when I thought about it and remembered that these kids live in the tropics and this is beautiful merino - not the most intelligent idea of the month.
So onto the second idea - I found a beautiful crochet motif blanket in a magazine I sell in the shop.  It is in a warm beige with bright coloured flower motifs sewn around the edges.  Exquisite.  And then I found some equally fantastic yarn in cotton and silk to make it.  I was so geared for this wee one to be a girl that I hadn't really given much thought to what I would do if a wee man appeared on the scene.  Plus I really really love the rug and could see it thrown over my couch.  Sigh.... where to go from here?
Well I have certainly taken the long road of getting to the blanket I would actually make.  I was sorting through some drawers and found some cotton yarn I had bought a year or so ago to make a blanket for my bed.  I hadn't been happy with how the crochet squares had turned out so it had been put into the replanning drawer.  Well here was the perfect use for it.  I already have a ripple rug on the go - I saw it a while back on Attic24 and had started one of my own.  I just love rippling so I finally got to a place to start my own new ripple rug for the new family member.  The photos below show just one weekend of rippling and I am super pleased with the results.  I am sure that the colours are going to be fine for boy or girl - I will wait to complete the borders when I know more.  Brown/Blue for a wee man and Pink/Green flowers for a little lady.  Oh - I so hope it's a girl.... I can just see a mass of flower motifs being worked into a very special flowery border.    But we shall wait and see - only a few months to go now.

So that's the story of the baby blankets.  I do think this wee family will stay at two parents and two kids for a while and I can start making other bits and bobs for these two very special young peoples.  I do love being the Nannie, even if it is from afar.

Super Amazing Blankets for Super Beautiful Grandkids - part 1

Now anyone that knows me well knows that I like nothing better than starting amazing beautiful projects that I get totally obsessed with.  The success rate for completing these projects is relative on a few things.  First up is whether or not another bigger obsession appears that totally obscures the previous one.  Then there is happiness factor - whether I just LOVE the project and can't put it down because it is so goddamned fantastic.  Then there is a responsibility factor - whether I am going to be held accountable for completing a project.  That last one doesn't happen too often as usually the projects are for myself so I can tell myself that there is no hurry and tomorrow is another very beautiful day to think about getting back to a project.

So anyway - where is this post leading?  Well 15 months or so ago my very precious son rang to tell us that we were going to be grandies.  Yikes!  Was he ready - hell, was I ready?  Well once the dust settled and I got to know his lovely gal and decided that yep he was ready and I was ready - well then the planning all about what I was going to make started.  Well I hummed and harred until I settled on this lovely blanket on Ravelry found here.  The next issue was what colours - these kids of mine weren't making it easy by not finding out whether they were having a boy or a girl.  So I settled on bright and found some bamboo/wool mix in delicious colours.  And I commenced knitting….. and I kept knitting….. and then I knitted some more…. until the day arrived when all I had to do was sew in the ends.  WOW!  For a day I was no longer a procrastinator - I was a FINISHER!!

So here is the finished product next to my kiwi's (just to remind young Rydah of his kiwi roots) and here is the young man himself under my beautiful FINISHED project.  But the story does continue - more in a moment or maybe a day or two.

Whiizzzzz! There Went A Week!

Can't believe how that week just passed me by.  I achieved a bit, thought about achieving a bit and missed out on achieving some things.  But all good at the end of the day because I can just add those slipped things to the list of things yet to be achieved ;)
I have popped a picture of tonight's dinner on this post because it was such a simple thing to make but the taste value was out of this world.  First up I roasted some squash pumpkin in the beloved coconut oil.  Roasted it in their skin and did them really well till they were crunchy but so soft inside.  Then I diced up some carrots, celery, zucchini, broccolini, asparagus and I'm sure there was something else but for now what it was escapes me.  I stirfried them in some avocado oil till they were cooked but still had a wee bit of crunch.  I removed them from the pan then poured some cream into it and reduced that down to white sauce consistency.  Oh my!  I simply popped some pumpkin and vegetables onto my plate and poured the cream over the vegetables.  On VERY scrummish dinner in a very quick time.  So easy to get your plate of veges with this dish. 

Shearing Time!

Spring has arrived today so all excess baggage needs to be dropped off at the door.   Time for the girls to shed their woolly winter coats and enjoy lots and lots of sunshine.   I always worry a bit about how they are looking under all that wool - no need for worries this year, these girls are looking a-ok.  I was going to post pictures of the girls getting shorn but really it doesn't show them in a good light - all dignity certainly flies out the door on shearing day.  Needless to say that there was a bit of ruckess, lots of spitting and generally argy bargy for an hour or two at The Farm Up The Hill.  I have ended up with six beautiful fleeces all sitting in bags in the shed.  Weather permitting I intend to clean all the foreign matter out of them on Sunday and get them off to the spinners asap.  I have decided on two-ply and I have found the perfect singlet pattern that I just need to knit.  I am sure the girls will just love it when I go and sit down in the paddock with them - they won't think I'm at all nutty I am sure.   I love the way they look after they have been fleeced. All sleek and racy and ready to go.

Tastes of summer

The weather is finally getting warmer and there are more and more seasonal veges coming into the shops.  I am really really lucky in that one of my customers makes her way to the Farmers Markets and buys me bags of seriously good tomatoes every Saturday.  I really appreciate these sweet bombs of flavour.  I also bought my first bunch of asparagus this week and they have all come together to make one heck of a tasty dinner.

I made a tomato sauce by frying a red onion, two stalks of diced celery and lots of garlic.  I then added heaps of diced fresh tomatoes and seasoned with salt and pepper.  Simple.   I already had some diced pumpkin roasting in some coconut oil.  I then simply baked the snapper in fresh lemon juice and steamed the asparagus adding a smear of butter towards the end. 

So simple, so tasty and so easy.  I certainly did enjoy. xxxxB