EEEEK... REALLY BEHIND

Humble apologies... I haven't been around the blogs in a couple of days... been BUSY.... but will try and catch up with you all today!

Off to patchwork this morning... but before going I am off to the Fabric Shop in Papakura.. I am going to try and find a...

Friggin THIMBLE! The one above is ADORABLE... but I will probably get a rubber one (or two)... I have an old metal one (not the above one)... but it doesn't feel nice on me finger. And I think I need one for me thumb too! I should be a diabetic... I prick myself so often and draw blood... it would be handy for testing me bloods if nothing else!

I have 4 more star blocks to finish before I have to think about joining them all together... and I don't have the sashing material for that yet... I am thinking of going right outside my comfort zone of BLUE and using either vivid green or orange! The quilt will be for our spare bedroom... which can be any colour.

So, I will leave you guessing what colour I have gone for! Blue, green, orange, or???

Back from class... and I did virtually NO sewing today... we literally yakked the whole time! I tried to sew, but it kept getting in the way of the yakking! lol

I really enjoyed today... some days I really do like being there, some days... not so much.

The material I bought for the star quilt...is on order ... so I can't show you the colour... and I AIN'T TELLING! AND I didn't buy a thimble cos they only had the metal ones. boo hoo.

It is cloudy and we have had a few showers this morning ... it's kinda weird after so much sunshine! I even had to turn on the lights this morning... it was dull inside! Winter is coming.....

End of Day: and it's been a nice day.... I rang my Mum this afternoon... they were being bombarded with dreadful weather.. masses of rain... and as I was talking to her a big slip happened right beside their house! They are on a hill with bush behind them... it didn't sound too good! She was worried they were going to lose their clothesline next! What a worry.... if the slip was big enough it will mean their road will be closed. I will have to ring her back soon to see if they are OK. edit: they still have a clothesline, but it is also still raining! 250 mils rain in one day, and it hasn't stopped yet. Apparently Coffs Harbour (where they live) is isolated by many, many slips.... so it's not too good. Their road is closed.... but they are ok. I suppose I will worry about them overnight.... *sigh*

nite nite.

ASHES TO ASHES...

FINAL RESTING PLACE FOR FIL's ashes....

Today we are taking Stew's Dad's ashes to Hamilton for internment with Stew's Mum.... we are expecting a long day... we are taking the kids with us and of course Stew's sister and Step-Mother are coming too.

As promised... here's the finished quilt for me Mum:

As you can see, I didn't make the border too wide.. it is afterall a 'knee rug' and I didn't want it to get too heavy. I hope my Mum likes it. It's her birthday in May... so now it's done I can move back to the other 'star' quilt I was making. Mum's one took me 5 days! Not bad.

LATER....

I had to go into Remuera to pick up Stew's Step-Mum... a trip that 'normally' would take 20 minutes ended up taking me 1 hr and 25 minutes due to the mad morning traffic.

We got to Hamilton no problems... interred most of the ashes with Stew's Mum... the cemetery people had dug the hole and just left us to it... it was weird! So, we tipped most of his ashes into the hole, said a few words... then filled in the hole with the dirt that was in buckets nearby! Griffin loved that... and he grabbed the spade and leveled it all too... cos he said Grandad liked a tidy garden, so he would want a tidy grave! That was so bloody cute.

Stew found it oddly unemotional...

After that we headed to lunch, then walked into the Hamilton Rose Gardens and sprinkled the rest of Dad's ashes on the rose beds... He had been the person who designed and instigated the Hamilton Rose Gardens ... so it was appropriate some of him went there!

From there we headed home, with a short stop at a Patchwork shop at Gordonton... it was AMAZING!!! I will be heading back there soon for a more leisurely look! I am just gobsmacked at how many different materials there are out there!

So, all in all a really nice day...

END OF DAY: looking forward to tomorrow, when I can go to patchwork again.... though it really is only a place to go for a gossip! The 'TUTOR' isn't really! She is just part of the group. nite nite.

MORE PHOTOS...AND DAY DREAMING

ABOVE: our night sky last night. How cool is that?

ABOVE: This house was overlooking Omaha Bay... apparently it's one of the biggest homes in New Zealand! It sure looks awesome.

ABOVE: seems dead fish are interesting!

ABOVE: a home we saw in Omaha... Stew and I just loved it... it's combination of (almost) Spanish style, crisp clean lines and stone.... just neat!

ABOVE: From this side it looked more 'clinical'... but still nice.

ABOVE: the front gates... in sorry need of some love and attention... and it's imposing front doorway! LOVE IT.

We are always driving around admiring houses... DAY DREAMING....

Today is going to be a relax and do bugger-all day.... I might even have a 'nana nap' sometime during the day! BLISS.
LATER...

ABOVE: my Mum's knee rug... getting there, I just have to do the outer borders now.

LIV: *waves*.. HI and thanks for the info in the house! We loved it soooo much! Trelise eh? Don't suppose she will ever want to sell it! Shame... but then.... I'd have to win LOTTO to afford it me thinks!

End of Day: been sewing... I'm full of holes... but... I finished my Mum's birthday quilt.... will show ya tomorrow! nite nite.

GETTING MAD... AND SORE.

My back hurts.
My shoulders ache.
And if I prick myself with ONE MORE BLOODY PIN I am going to scream!

What the hell possessed me to take up bloody quilting? It is tiring, it is frustrating. ... and friggin pin pricks are driving me nuts.

And you can bet your bottom dollar that all the sitting at the machine is making me butt spread even further. pffffft.

Today is Saturday, I did all the housework yesterday. YAAA.
Stew is knackered, he's had a long stressful week.
I am going to let the poor bugger sleep in.
I am going to muzzle the kids so he can SLEEP.

When he gets up I'm gunna suggest we go on another tiki tour.
I have a chook in the oven so we can have a picnic somewhere nice with fresh chicken and cheese sandwiches.

All my kids should remember being taken on picnics with chicken and cheese sandwiches! It's our favourite picnic lunch!

I am quite sure I don't WANT to do ANY SEWING today! AND...
I am quite sure I will probably end up doing some sewing today..... cos that's what I am like. DORK.

There... one cooked chook, fresh outta the oven... we are off to...LEIGH.... it's a beach community about an hour and a half north from home... I have been there once before, about 20 years ago... but never really got to look around. I was there for a funeral... so this time I am gunna have a good look around.

6pm ... we have had a awesome day! Photos ....

ABOVE: heading into the tunnel on the new toll road heading north out of Auckland.

ABOVE: the wharf at Leigh... very pretty scenery.

ABOVE: Still on the Leigh wharf... I loved the inlet at Leigh, but it didn't really have much of an ocean beach. And virtually NO SHOPS.

ABOVE: Matheson's Bay, just along from Leigh... very pretty, gorgeous clear water... sheltered.... not such nice sand.

ABOVE: Griffin on the rocks at Matheson's Bay... quite a few people were scuba diving for shellfish here. The water was amazingly clear!


ABOVE: Omaha beach... We loved this beach, we walked along about half of it... nice firm sand.... gorgeous views, gorgeous water. 1 SHOP, but it isn't far from Warkworth shops... and only about an hour from Auckland. I loved the place.

ABOVE AND BELOW: we saw this octopus in a tiny water pool at Omaha, Griffin would have loved to poke it to death.... or take it home! NOT HAPPENING! lol

ABOVE: Bry posing.... she got very cold in just a few minutes... she doesn't like the cold water.

ABOVE: Griffin on the other hand... won't stay out of the water! He loves it.

ABOVE: Griffin's idea of 'posing' for the camera. NICE..... little shit.

ABOVE: LOOK!!! I got me feet wet! It wasn't that cold really. I really loved being on the beach.

ABOVE: the river flowing through Warkworth... it's tidal... the tide was out.... it was ikky, it smelt..... but it was pretty. Luckily you can't smell over the computer.

ABOVE: heading home we saw this 'structure' up a tree.... it's called REDWOOD.. . we think it was/is a restaurant .... not sure if it's still one or not. Maybe not as there was no way to get to it. Anyway, it was photo worthy.

So, that was our day!

End of Day: we are pleasantly tired... hopefully the kids will fall asleep fast....then Stew and I can have some 'us' time. nite nite.

ANONYMOUS COMMENTOR

I almost never publish comments from Anonymous commentors, unless they sign them with their name... so I didn't publish YOURS.

Now that's said... I'm going to Drury today to drop off Brylee's quilt to be professionally quilted... it will be about a month to 6 weeks till it's back... so on with the next TWO eh? I am doing the next one in a different way...it's called "Quilt as you go"... so that way I don't ever have to pay someone else to do it for me again.

So, there ya go... another day started... sorta crabby... but optimistic my day will only get BETTER.

The COMMENT: was not 'nasty'... it was from someone who thought I should be careful what I say on MY BLOG about my daughters as it can hurt their feelings.

I do not tell lies on this here blog, I call a spade a spade... get used to it. I will not change myself to suit anyone else, I am how I am. I do not set out to hurt people... I can and do REACT to certain situations though... I am HUMAN.

Stew is kinda ANNOYED that I am once again considering deleting my blog due to 'someone' getting their tits in a knot over it. He believes that I should put on MY BLOG whatever the hell I want... and stuff anyone else. I agree.... but I am still pissed off.

What fun! I went out the the Quilter's home.... we yakked for 2 hours! She showed me how the machine worked, showed me lots of stitch patterns she could use on my quilt ... it was neat! She was expecting to see a 'traditional Cathedral Widows Quilt' that I had made... and was very surprised to see mine as it was so 'different' from the 'norm'. She loved my quilt.... and I don't think she was just saying that either!

ABOVE: her studio... and my quilt. She had said she wouldn't be able to start work on my quilt till the end of April, but now that she's seen it she wants to get to work on it straight away! Awwwwww.

ABOVE: this was her outdoor Chess set... I thought it was really awesome! They are made from a thick polycarbonate material and filled at the bottom with sand.

I have been doing a little bit of sewing... and a LOT of housework! *sigh*... some bugger has to do it!

Now.. I have to sort out dinner....

End of Day: can I just say that "quiting as you go" is not that bloody easy either! pffffft. nite nite.

NEED....MORE...MAGNETS.

There ARE benefits with having to sew in the bloody garage!



Hee heee, I'm a clever Tart! ..... and I await your accolades... whenever you are ready...

UNTIL THEN..... I will piss off and do SOMETHING.... probably bloody housework.... OH and I shall go buy some more magnets... I ain't go enough! (AND YES, those are all chooky blocks I did yesterday)

Whooo hooo.... I got me first ACCOLADE... after a bit of 'prompting'....lol

I am heading out to Manukau this morning... going to have a wander around the mall...it is EXERCISE... and because I was so busy sewing yesterday I have ummmm... run outta material! And so I might just GET SOME MORE!

And .. YES... I will remember to take the blocks off me car!

I've been sewing all day... I havn't even stopped for lunch... I took some crackers down to the garage with me... and of course I have the (ah hemmmm).. chocolate in the bottom drawer too... so I was 'set'.....

I've taken a 'pit stop' cos I have to go and get the kids soon... just as well really... otherwise I wouldn't stop till it was finished!

Obsessive compulsive? NO NEVER! I just like to be busy doing something I enjoy... and once I start something I like to get it finished asap... so I can move on to the next thing! I can't be the ONLY one like that!

End of Day: getting lots done on me Mum's small quilt.... the car has been a great help! Stew is home late tonight.... he's bringing home Kebabs from Remuera, there's a shop there that makes the most AWESOME kebabs, almost as good as the shop in Bulls makes em! Yum, I can't wait till he comes home. All good. Kids are almost in bed.. time to relax. nite nite.

BLUE....BLUE... AND MORE BLUE.

Well...not long ago I was reading this gorgeous girl's blog, and she showed a photo of her new re-usable shopping bags... and I commented that they were JUST BEAUTIFUL.. well hell, they were BLUE! The one's we get here are green, I don't LIKE green!

You will never guess what that rather lovely girl did! She up and bought me some and posted them to me! All the way from America!!! How bloody cool was that? THANK YOU SO MUCH Lesley!
ABOVE: see? PRETTY. Oh ... and the card said : "Chris, enjoy your pretty blue bags, ya Tart!"...... ahhhh, LOVE IT! I. AM. A. TART.

Today I am going shopping.... for some material.... I am well and truly hooked on the darn patchwork. It's crafty... colourful.... purposeful... and a clean and tidy hobby! What more could ya ask for!

****DAUGHTER No# 3: "HAPPY 27TH BIRTHDAY!" Hope you have a lovely day.***

I bought ... chocolate.... so there! I am so in the mood for chocolate... been craving it for days...AND...

I also got this gorgeous material.... my Mum loves Chooks (slang for chickens)... and I can just imagine making a small knee rug for her birthday with it.

I'm thinking of cutting around each chook and then making a star block with the chooky in the middle! I will do it soon, as her birthday is in May......

So much for me vowing to only have one thing 'on the go' at a time! Best laid plans and all that eh?

ABOVE: Chooky star blocks...OK...OK... I couldn't wait!

ABOVE: the 'work station'... chocolate... bottom left drawer if ya ever visiting! ha ha ha!

I had to go and pick up Brylee from school an hour ago...she fell asleep during class... I think it's a delayed reaction to the bump on her head she got yesterday while playing on the school playground. She is ok, just tired and hot.... don't think she slept well last night.

I am gunna have to wake her up in a short time to go and get Griffin, that's a shame. No choice, I ain't leaving her home alone!

FROGGY: I left you a comment, I hope you get it 'cos it came back to me as "undeliverable"...

End of Day: another successful day done and dusted. I have only had a LITTLE chocolate. nite nite.

WHAT ?

TODAY:
- kids to school... then....

I WILL LET YA KNOW LATER..... I am so looking forward to it to!

So... 'we' went walking... it is a beautiful day out there.... we could see the ocean from here....

We walked OVER the motorway to Manurewa....

We went past this weird structure nestled amongst the trees.... ( I will find out what it is one day)...

Until we got to Nathan Homestead... where MY SEWING MACHINE AND I... went inside and made some more Bushfire Blocks to send to Australia!

ha ha ha... now wasn't that fun!

One of the ladies had this neat thing with a shit-load of block patterns on it.. so now I'm on the hunt for one myself!

Stew picked 'us' up after class and we went home so I could sign documents so we can 'fix' our mortgage for 5 years at the lowest interest rate possible. We have been waiting for weeks until the rates came down to their lowest .. but we see the rates are starting to rise so we thought....better do it today!

Poor Stew.... I sent him back to work with a "PISS OFF NODDY"... he thought he might get lucky! HA! He should have known better... stooopid man! I like it to be DARK outside..... it's a 'hang up' from my super fat days when I hated him seeing me naked!

So, he's gone back to work with a flea in his ear... and I can do some friggin housework now. OH JOY.

End of Day: *smiles*... I have enjoyed today. nite nite.

A PLACEMAT? NAH....

Well... I had planned on using that new material to make placemats... but once I got cutting out I realised I had enough for another quilt.... so there ya go... I'm making a Star Quilt for the spare bedbroom now...the first block is above. *sigh* I did want to make one for our bed next.... but as I only want to be doing ONE at a time... mine will have to wait.

Today:

Kids to school, catch up on blogs... leave lots of lovely comments... then do some more sewing. I am going to PACE myself.... no more sewing for hours on end and getting a friggin backache!

And I INTEND to get on my treadmill and exercycle too.... make some small steps to getting my fitness back... Gym will be happening this week too... but that will be tomorrow I reckon. Too much to do today!

LATER.... and I've been busy! Spent an hour re-arranging things in the garage to make my sewing area more user friendly.. then before I could start sewing my Aunt rang... 45 minutes later.. still on the phone... a knock at the front door... it's my neighbour over for a yak.... 30 minutes later... bye bye neighbour... and the phone rings AGAIN... it's one of my nieces ringing for a yak... so I havn't had much time to do anything!

I am now going to try and do some sewing before I have to pick up the kids! I just DON'T know where the day has gone already!

WHOOP! I have found a quilter to quilt Brylee's quilt for me... I am taking it to her on friday... and it will be about a month till she can get it done. That's fine.. I'm not an IMPATIENT person... no, really, I'm not! lol

ABOVE: I've made quite a few of those star blocks this afternoon... happy about that. Not sure how I will join them all together yet... thinking....

Sewing is GREAT for the diet I might add... you can't stuff your face AND sew eh?

End of Day: and we are going to bed early! it's only 10.15! And no... not going to bed early for any 'reason'... just tired. nite nite.

I REALLY SHOULD...

DRINK MORE! It sure helps the mood... it's lovely in the right quantities eh? lol

Some photos from yesterday:

Me and Rena, today is her actual 1st birthday ... it was Huston's 7th on friday.

One of the HUGE wood carvings on Tokoroa's main street..... my Dad was a 'bushman'... he lived and worked almost all his life in Tokoroa.... I love this carving. It must be at least 20 foot high! (Tokoroa is where my family members are buried)

I spied with me eagle eye a patchwork shop in Tirau too... so we stopped and Stew got me these 'fat quarters'.... I am thinking they will make lovely place mats.

TODAY: probably a quiet day at home, do some housework, watch me man mow lawns.... you know... the USUAL weekend stuff.

LATER...

It certainly has been a quiet day... we went and got a few groceries.... I bought a bit more material... then home to muck around doing bugger all!

End of Day: one of those days where nothing spectacular happens... not boring.. just 'normal'... nite nite.

IT IS A SPECIAL DAY...1 YEAR OLD ...AND 10 YEARS AGO

ABOVE: my adorable niece Christina ... this photo was taken late last year when she popped over for a visit from Melbourne. I love her like a daughter.. she rang me yesterday for a lovely long chat... it really brightened my day.
Griffin adores her too... she was his most favourite person (after Steve) when he was a baby/toddler/preschooler, when we lived in Palmy. It's a shame she now lives in Aussy. I miss her.

TODAY: might be difficult.

We are going to Hamilton for the 1st Birthday celebration of our granddaughter Rena... and it is the 10th anniversary of my little brother's death. We will be visiting his grave... he is buried with my older brother Peter, who was Christina's Dad. Peter died the same way as Vern..... big truck versus little car....BIG TRUCKS will always win. I still find it hard to believe that I lost both my brothers in the same type of accident... two seperate accidents... same result.

Yaaa hooo...today went really well... no Drama's at all.... We spent a bit of time with Kelly, Gordon and their two kids, then left for Tokoroa where my brothers and Dad are buried.

I felt good going there today... it wasn't as hard as I had thought it would be ... I'm happy about that. It is the unexpected moments that get you... when you least expect to be reminded and have one of those "Why?" moments.... but today it was good.

We stopped on our way home and had dinner at a Cafe' at the top of the Bombay hills... which overlook Auckland City.

It was (as I have been remined) another grandchild's birthday yesterday... so if you ever get to read this Huston, HAPPY 7th BIRTHDAY! I hope you love the present your Grandma and Grandad dropped off at your Mum's today.

End of Day: relaxing at home now... going to have a few drinks in memory of my brothers. Stew MIGHT get lucky! lol
nite nite.

I'M LIVING FOR THE DAY:

I'm living for the day... my dog doesn't have to wear this friggin cone on his head! He's had it on for 6 months now!

I'm living for the day.... These two play together nicely EVERY DAY!

AND....
I'm living for the day.... that the one who greets him at the door and gets the first kiss....

Is not the bloody dog! pfffffft.

TODAY:
- kids to school
- Stew to work

Me? ... hanging around the house waiting for the SKY TV man to arrive (which could be anytime) ... cos we are getting SKY installed on a 2nd TV, so HIM INDOORS can watch rugby all winter and I don't have to!

Stew is sports MAD.... I swear he would watch rugby/cricket all day long if he could. It drives me nuts (well hell, what doesn't?).... but I digress.... at least after today he can watch to his heart's content .... knowing he's not stopping me from watching something else. Yaaaa.

When I met Stew, he was the coach of an all-girls netball team, it was their annual Prizegiving evening and I had been dragged along by a girlfriend. It was the very first night I had gone out without my kids in 9 months! I was seperated from my 1st husband... and I met Stew that night.

The very first words I said to him were "Don't get interested, I'm a solo mother with 4 kids!".... ummmm... he got interested anyway. I reckon it was love at first sight for both of us.. ... or lust..... ha ha. He moved in with me 10 days later and has never left!

Nice story eh? I still remember that first night... it was magical.

So, I'm in a much better mood today.... I have a lot to be thankful for.... my life is in my hands, how I want it to be in relation to my weight is in my hands too. I have done it before, and I am sure once I finally get my head in the right place it will sort itself out.
I don't know why I have lost the plot for so long.... no idea at all. But I do know that I can and will sort it out.

HANG IN THERE WITH ME.... I may be a grumpy old tart.... but I'm a nice one!

MR CHOO: as only a woman can say: "WHATEVER"!

The SKY guy just rung.. he's coming this afternoon 'sometime'... and it took me a good 20 minutes to get our location across to him and to explain where I wanted the new decoder...he could HARDLY speak english! I get sooooo bloody mad when I have to deal with people in this country who can't speak our bloody language! WTF are companies doing hiring people who can't speak the language, yet have to deal with customers all day long? I don't want to come across as RACIST...cos I'm not... but this really pisses me off. This afternoon should be fun.

This morning I spoke to an Indian man, this afternoon the man who came to our house was from Iraq... and he could speak quite good english... so that was really good! His wife came with him... she hadn't been here long and couldn't speak much... but I did get that she was 15 weeks pregnant and really excited to be having a 'KIWI' baby! So cute.
I now have SKY TV in the family room.. and it's EXCELLENT! I can watch telly while I cook... love that!

End of Day: and... I'm not cooking dinner... it's takeaway night! LOL... this is after crowing about being able to watch telly while I cook.... YEAH RIGHT.... not tonight sunshine! nite nite.