ONE THING AT A TIME

ABOVE:  I had a sneak peek inside one of the boxes from Martyn's Mum's stash.

And realised that whatever I want to keep will have to be washed, ironed, sorted into size and colour and then.... I have to find space for it all!

I think I will need to buy more of my scrap boxes.  And make more room SOMEWHERE for all this stuff!

So, it will definitely be a long job.  But I'm up for it.  I love nothing better than being busy.

Today I am going to work on making spaces, and organising what I already have a bit better.  

Also today... we are expecting Mike and Joyce to arrive for New Year.

Fingers crossed they have a safe trip up from Palmerston North.

Stew's sister Khady left very early this morning, so that she wasn't travelling during the heat of the day.  She had a 4-5 hour drive ahead of her to get home.

She'll be back up in Auckland next week, so we might get to see her again then.

ABOVE:  I got all the magazines and books from Martyn's Mum's stash sorted out last night, and put away.  Today I shall add all my Sewing and Patchwork books in there as well. 

That will give me a little bit of room in the sewing room for other stuff.

ABOVE:  Khady gave Stew and I this stunning, pure Mohair throw for Christmas.  It's going to look amazing on our new lounge suite, once it arrives next year.  It's SO soft, just pure bliss.

Right.  I best get up and start my day. Lots to do.

12.13 pm. Slowly plodding through stuff in the sewing room. I have realised I can't really 'organise' much until I know exactly what I'm keeping of the 'new' stuff.

So once I've finished decluttering my stuff, I will make a start on going through Mrs C's stuff.

One big job done though.

All my finished products are now in one place... out of the sewing room.

MISS MUPPET is having a swim and I'm just relaxing while watching her. 

Stew is at the supermarket getting basic supplies. 

Oh my have I been busy!  Got heaps done.

Then Stew and I went into town on business, then got a few summer clothes for Keera.

Steve, Bex and the kids stayed home and had a swim.

Saved us having to close all the windows and doors in the house.

Contemplating doing a little more work in the sewing room before dinner.

Done for the day.

Too tired to sort any more shit in the sewing room.

Having desserts for dinner.

Totally in eat shit mode right now!

10.56 pm: Well Mike and Joyce arrived mid evening, and stayed and yakked for ages.  They've now gone around to Steve's for a while to play cards.  They will sneak back home in the wee hours no doubt.

Stew and I are off to bed shortly, no staying up to 'see in the New Year' for us.  

Tis just another night/day to us oldies.

Catch ya tomorrow.

BACK WE GO

 Well... Stew and I are going back to Auckland today.

Picking up the final load of fabrics and stuff from Martyn's family home.

This time we have the roof box on, so we don't run outta room.

We should only be away for about 3 hours, as everything is sorted in the house now, and we just have to load it in the car and come home.

Steve, Bex and the kids will be at our place today, having a swim and so on.

Basically keeping the dogs company! 

OH!

Steve did this last night:

ABOVE:  It looks so, so lovely!  I'm thrilled to bits with it.

Funnily enough, Martyn made a 'feature wall' in his parents house about 40 years ago, when he was just 17 years old.  And it's diagonal Shiplap!

If I remember, I will take a photo to show you.  It looks just as good today as it did 40 years ago.

Right.... I better move.  We have to leave fairly early to get there when we are expected.

11 am : fully loaded and heading home.

ABOVE: A more mixed load today. Books. Patterns. Scissors.  Rulers. And FABRIC. 😊☺🤗

3.10 pm:  Well it's been busy, busy, busy.

Up to Auckland, grabbed everything, headed home.  Stopped at the top of the Bombay hills, had some lunch.

Went to the Made In Italy shop there, got a painting!

Home.

Unpacked.

Got Steve and Bex to come around, gave Bex ALL MY WOOL.

I'm decluttering my crafts.

No way am I going to leave so much stuff for my family to have to give away when I kick the bucket!

I'm getting rid of all my knitting stuff and card making stuff.

I shall keep only fabric and painting stuff.

I was going to spend the afternoon sorting out bedrooms, garage etc, in readiness for Lacy and her friend Tarsh to move in for a while.

Don't have to now. Plans change.

We have Stew's sister Khady arriving around dinner time, she is staying the night.  She's heading home to Wanganui, after spending Christmas in Auckland.

Tomorrow we have Mike and Joyce arriving. Something to look forward to!

ABOVE:  the new painting.  She is drinking DIET COKE.  Not grog.

THERE IS MORE.

Steve, Bex and the boys just left.  It's just Stew, Keera and me for now.

Sorting out dinner.  Left over meats, and Stew has gone to buy some salads.

I'm too tired and grumpy to do anything.

I've not felt this ANGRY and frustrated IN A VERY LONG TIME.  

Crying now.  Just so over other people messing with my life.  Not that they can see that.  Cos it's ALL ABOUT THEM.

TIME TO STOP... and just focus on me and Stew, and the kids that don't fuck us around.

Stew's sister arrived safe and sound, and we have spent the past couple of hours just catching up and yakking.

Time to sign off for the day and start fresh again tomorrow.

PAINTING

 It's going to be a boring day on this here blog.

I'm just going to be painting the wall panels again.

ABOVE:  1st coat is on, and it already looks awesome!

If I get the 2nd coat on early enough this morning, it will be ready to put on the walls tomorrow I think.

ABOVE:  If I get too  hot, I just have to look at where the dogs are to know where to lie!

lol

Those two are feeling the heat, poor things.  Their next groom isn't for another two weeks, so they just have to lie where it's coolest.

Right, I am going to just lie here and grab another 40 winks.  If possible.  It's already stinkin' hot.

9.25 am:   And it's finished!  I rolled the first coat on the panels, but brushed the 2nd coat on for a more realistic 'wood' look.

Now.   WATCHING.  PAINT.  DRY.

I hope that is the very last painting job I have for this year!

I hate it.

Well.. I love acrylic pour painting of course, but walls and doors and all that?  Yeah, NAH.

Shit. I've still got all the doors in this house to paint, and the wet room too.  *sigh*  That can wait until next year for sure.

We have a glorious cool breeze today!  So much cooler and bearable.

ABOVE: On an unexpected trip up to Auckland.

More later.

ABOVE:  3 hours later.... Loaded up... heading home.

6.10 pm:  we are finally home from our unplanned trip.

What happened?

Our friend Martyn's Mum passed away recently.

She was a sewer/patchworker like me.

So, Martyn offered me a lot of her fabric.

He rang today to say he was going through her stuff and would bring a load down tonight, on his way home to Tauranga.

That was going to be quite a detour for him, so I offered to come up and collect it.

He was thrilled at that idea.

So, Stew and I jumped in the car and took off for Auckland.

To say we got 'a bit' would be an understatement!

ABOVE:  Boxes and Boxes, and Bags and Bags of fabric and sewing paraphernalia!!!

But wait... there's more:

ABOVE:  We are going back to pick up THAT load tomorrow!

Yep.  Mrs C had as much 'stuff' as me!  And she kept all her scraps, colour sorted in boxes, JUST LIKE ME!

Everything was methodically stored, sorted, and kept forever and ever.  OMG she could have been my mother.  lol

It is going to take me a few months to sort it all out, wash it, and decide what I shall keep, and what I shall donate to other quilters like me, or the Salvation Army.

It was lovely stepping foot inside Martyn's family home.  His parents had lived there for 62 years! 

ABOVE:  On the North Western motorway, heading home today.  It was a hot, hazy day.

It's now 8.15 pm, Steve, Bex and the kids have been here having a swim.  Now... time to wind down for the day.

It's been a lovely day.

BABIES

 Lacy lives on a farm just out of town.

There are two pigs there.  A girl and a boy.

Guess what happened?

ABOVE:  Nine little babies.

Very cute.

ABOVE:  Ouch!  Sore nipples in about 9, 8, 7, .... seconds!  lol

ABOVE:  Paper wasp nests by the front door.  Stew dealt to them last night.  We will have to wander around the section and find more before they get too big and bothersome.

Bloody things are a real menace at this time of the year.

ABOVE: Our pig weather vane is getting moved today, from there to the back side of the car port.  Then you will be able to see it better.

Not sure what else we shall get up to today.

I might just paint those shiplap panels, so they can be put on the walls asap.

I did a test piece last night, just to see how well the paint went on, how long it took to dry etc.

So, I'm geared up for doing the panels today.  Yaaaa.

11 am:  We've been out to Mitre 10 for paint.

Called into Para Rubber and bought a floatie for me.

Countdown next, where we got supplies to make club sandwiches for lunch.

Home.

An hour later the club sandwiches are done.

And I'm contemplating doing a tiny bit of painting... on the 'test' piece to see how I'm going to do step 2.

ABOVE:  Step 2 was painting inside the grooves.  I'm not sure I like it.

What say you?

ABOVE:  LUNCH... Chicken and Ham club sandwiches, done in me Tupperware Jel Ring.

ABOVE:  Steve, Bex and the boys came for lunch, then Griffin and 'T' arrived, closely followed by Lacy and Keera.

So a nice couple of hours with kids visiting.

I'm experimenting with paint effects, but seriously, I can see those panels staying completely white!

I 100% LOATHE enamel paint!  The clean up is horrendous.  What a friggin mess it makes.  And the smell of Mineral Turps is bloody ikk.

But I'm happy to say the undercoat is now on both panels.   1st top coat will go on this evening.

Tomorrow the 2nd coat, then it will be ready to be up on the walls.

NO PAINT EFFECTS.  No blue stripes.  Nothing at all.

I had to try it to be sure it wouldn't work eh?

5.53 pm:  So.  Far too quiet on here today!  But... I'm sure it's because you are all having a wonderful time with family and friends.

On holidays?  Visiting fam?  Eating yourself into a food coma?  Or all of the above?

Good on ya.

As for us... not going on holidays just yet (probably in a couple of months we will), so just enjoying being homebodies, and having family pop in constantly.

I had pavlova for dinner!  And early too.

Then I put the 1st top coat on the panels.

Now?  Chilling out and watching TV.  Till bedtime.

We've had a little bit of rain just now too... so it's cooled things down nicely.

Catch ya tomorrow.

COLOUR!

 Lacy finally sent me a photo of her bright socks late yesterday:

ABOVE:  I saw these amazing socks in a gift shop months ago, and grabbed them then.

Several girls in the family got them for Christmas.

Stew and I went to Mitre 10 yesterday afternoon, we were looking for strips of wood to make my shiplap wall(s) under the kitchen bench.

We didn't end up getting anything because Steve told me to wait until he could help me suss out exactly what we need.  

Anyway... on our way home we spotted a car.

NOT just any car.  A car that had Lacy's name all over it!!!

ABOVE:  It was PURPLE, her favourite colour and it's number plate read LIL HO !

Like.... could it be any more HER CAR?   

But, it isn't of course.  

So, today?  Probably going back to Mitre 10 to get some wood, the RIGHT nails and wood glue.

With STEVE.   Cos I can't do it right on me own it would appear.  He's probably right, but let's not tell him that.

ABOVE:  So Steve went to Bunnings this morning to get the V-Groove panels.

TOTALLY SOLD OUT the moment they arrived in the shop.

So he bought MDF panels and is going to use his Router to put the grooves in the panels.

Then I can paint them in the garage before they are attached to the back side of the kitchen benches.

Handy that he has lots of drop cloths in his van... no need to be taking your shoes on and off at the door.

Stew has a little job too.  Covering an area out the back with concrete.  Right now it's got bloody annoying stones there.

Me?  I'm supervising.  Getting in the way.  And generally just being ME.

But a very thankful me for having such lovely men in my life.

Bex hasn't escaped getting a job either!

Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer is staying out till June.  And he needs hats to match the bedding right?

So I've put me order in.  lol

ABOVE:  Cut to size.

ABOVE: Setting up the router.

ABOVE:  Choosing what size and shape of groove we want.

ABOVE:  We chose a deeper 'V' groove over a shallower V or a square groove.

ABOVE:  And there ya go!  A few hours later, and it's done, except for painting and gluing to the walls.

I absolutely LOVE IT.

Thank You Steve, you are amazing.

Not to be outdone, Bex was busy while we were in the garage...

ABOVE:  And now.... Rudolf has a pink hat.  Thanks so much Bex.

NOW... time for a swim!

4 pm:  OMG that swim was SOOOOOoooooo good!

We were all melting, so to be able to just jump into the pool  and cool off... SO THANKFUL.

Getting the pool  was at the very TOP of my 'to do' list when we first moved here, and I'll never regret it.

8.21 pm:  seriously too hot!  Between about 4 and 7 it just SETTLES and it's stinkin', stinkin' HOT.

Now it's starting to finally cool down a bit.

Dinner was left overs again.

ABOVE:  I might have.... painted something.