New addition to Our Family

Well after being on waiting lists for months and months we finally have a new addition to our family - a new puppy!

We have wanted to buy another dog since we lost our wonderful boxer Xena last year but didn't really make the decision until mid year to buy one. We decided as much as we wanted to buy another Boxer we felt we couldn't cope with the medically problems that are more often than not associated with them (cancer and heart mainly). Instead we opted for an Australian Bulldog!

I researched all the breeders and information about the breed and finally settled on a breeder. I asked her (the breeder) millions of questions and finally put our name down on the waiting list. Imagine my absolute disappointment when after waiting months the breeder changed the way her waiting lists operated and didn't tell us until after the puppies were born.

I was devastated - we had got ourselves all excited and then 'lost our puppy'. I was really angry with the breeder and she knew it but there was nothing that I could do.

Mind you last week she rang and told me she had a puppy I could have - she was 6 months old but I told her I wasn't interested as we had a beautiful puppy assigned to us from a much more professional breeder.

I went back to my old research notes and settled on another breeder was so wonderful and caring and informative. She took the time to talk about everything related to the dogs and didn't mind my numerous phone calls and emails and then the wonderful news - we had a puppy! I went out to see her when she was 5 weeks old and fell instantly in love. Actually all the puppies were beautiful but being biased I thought mine was the best. She is a wonderful little Australian Bulldog.

Then of course we had to wait until she had a vet check at 6 weeks (the litter passed with flying colours) and then wait until she was 8 weeks old to come home to us but finally last Friday Marrianne and I went and picked her up.

My wonderful labradoodle Fozzie (Bear) was so brave and courageous - he ran and hid in the bathroom and shut the door so she couldn't see him when we arrived home!

All day yesterday he spent alternating between the bathroom and checking to see if she was still around. Finally today he decided that she was okay and could stay. He gave her a thorough sniff and check everything was in the right place and consented to allow her to play with SOME of his toys. I am sure by the end of the week they will be inseparable as Fozzie and Xena were.

We have called her Bella.

Such as great Christmas present - this has been one of the best because as well as my lovely Bella arriving my even more wonderful kids (Ben, Will and DIL Marrianne) gave me a gave me a plane ticket for Christmas - (business class no less) to Albury!!

Next Saturday I am off to spend a week with my middle sister (the one who was up here in July) who lives in wodonga. I take off at 8.30 in the morning and don't come home until the following Sunday morning. The kids all have holidays at the moment and will look after Philip while I am gone. Ben, of course, lives with us but Will and Marrianne will pop over to help and Marrianne will make tea at night a few times to help Ben. The Home Care girls will still come so it won't be any different for Philip except I won't be there.

He is a bit hesitant but after reassuring him that everyone will be here he isn't too bad with the idea. Still a week will zoom away fast but I am soooo looking forward to it. Except for three days at Mudgee and Dubbo zoo Philip and I have not had a holiday away since he was diagnosed almost 14 years ago.

What is equally amazing is that this trip has been arrange since October and none of the kids or my sister have let on!

My niece (Annette's daughter) lives a few minutes from my sister and so we will be able to spend time with her family too. Knowing her she will have found all the patchwork and lolly (fudge) shops in a reasonable radius from Wodonga so guess what I will be coming home with!!

Congratulations

A big CONGRATULATIONS to our 3 winners of the decorated blog competition. It was a lot of fun and, for me, a learning experience. Hopefully we can do it again next year and maybe get more people to join us.



In the meantime - could our three winners -

Susan in Stitches,
Jackie's Jam and;
Puddling Along

please email me with their snail mail addresses so their prizes can be posted off to them.

Thank you to everyone who joined in the fun and a big thank you to :

Birdy (Aubirdwoman) and;
Lindi (QuiltyThreads)

who donated 2nd and third prizes.

Merry Christmas

I wish all my friends a very Merry Christmas and a bright and healthy New Year

.

Time to vote for your Favourite Decorated Blog!!

I have put up a poll for you to cast your vote to see who wins our decorate your blog competition.
The winner will be announced on Christmas Day.

I have made a prize for the person whose blog scored the most votes.

Thanks to everyone for joining in the fun.

Mother Nature's Fury

Yesterday afternoon we got to see Mother Nature's fury up close and personal - we got smashed in a big hail storm that destroyed the roofs of everyone in our small street (of 20 homes). About 3.30 we had a few claps of thunder and then some rain. I could hit a few little bangs and went to the front verandah to see a few small hailstones. They stopped fairly quickly and then I heard what could only be described as a freight train bearing down on us and 'bam' huge hail stones started coming down. They were about the size of tennis balls and then they eased off and I thought "wow, we survived".

Not so - they came back even larger!! These were cricket ball size - average 8cm some larger some smaller but about 8cm was the average.

This time the bounced and ricochet off everything, you could hear things smashing as they hit and bounced off to hit again and again. The funny thing was there wasn't a lot but they were deadly.

Ten minutes later it was all over and the damage down. Our roof was peppered, skylights - destroyed, garage roof - destroyed, our new solar electricity panels - destroyed, entertainment area roof - destroyed, car - bonnet and back of car dented (we were lucky it was under cover. Most of the cars in the street look as if someone has attacked them with baseball bats, no windows intact and covered with huge dents.


We have a small amount of water damage inside - not sure if the cooktops survived because it was under water and I won't turn it on until an electrician has looked at it. We have no lights because water go into the wall near a switch and the wall became alive. We were a lot luckier than some in our street because although our roof was peppered we had sarking under it and it protected the inside in most places. Some people nearby have lots of water damage inside their houses and won't be able to use their kitchens, some rooms etc.

All around in the nearby streets today people are coming to terms with their losses - a house I know had the same damage as us but Mother Nature was still angry and she hit the house with lightening destroying the electricity box - shooting it off the wall of the house!

I will be cooking on the BBQ for a few days until the electrician can get here. There is so much to be repaired just in our street alone. We have had a tiler look at the roof when they moved tiles to be able to get some tarps on the roof. He said I have only a few dozens tiles that don't have cracks in them. He thinks that most of the houses in the street will need new roofs.

Mother Nature is certainly trying to tell us something - guess we just aren't listening hard enough

I leave you with just a small taste of her fury.

Smiling Sunday

Healing Hearts Quilt

Well I finally got myself organised and put all the heart I received recently together to make myself a quilt. My computer was out of action for a while so it was the perfect opportunity to get to work without any computing distractions.

As the quilt is for a king sized single bed I couldn't fit it on the line without it touching the ground so I have taken two photos - one of the top and then the bottom.

I also took one of it on the bed so you can see the finished article. Woowoo another UFO finished!

I would really love to thank once again all those wonderful people who sent me hearts. This has been a rotten 6 months for Philip and I (compared with the last 14 years) and the hearts arrived at a time when I was really down.

Those little fabric squares mean so much - until you actually get one you have no idea just exactly how much they do mean to you. I have often made them and thought it was a nice idea but do they do anything. The answer is a very very big YES!!!

By the way - if you are ever making one could you please sign the front - a had several that were written on the back and sadly, once the quilt is put together you can never read the lovely thoughts if they are put on the back.

So thanks again to you all - I hope you can find yours in amongst them all.


Decorate Your Blog for the Season.
While your here why not check out our blog decorating idea and join in the fun. Any country and celebration in December, everyone is welcome.

The Effects of Gravity

Do you remember when you were a kid and your parents lined you up against the door frame to mark how tall you were and dated the mark?

This cartoon bring a whole new perspective to that exercise!

Retail Therapy

Went shopping last Friday with my 5 hours of respite (Philip's Story) and I really hate shopping and shop browsing so I decided to go to a fabric shop about 35minutes drive away (Craft Depot). A friend of mine had told me they were having a big sale and with nothing better to do I figured why not?

It was soooo crowded but lots and lots of fabrics.

I came out with a couple of metres of backing fabric (the purple); two metres of each of the cream and the purple floral. They will be used as sashing and borders for my 'healing heart' quilt; half meter of red chrissy fabric and a metre of the other cream (which has a lovely gold overprint that is showing up as grey on the photo).

I intend to make a long table runner with the last two, using the red as binding. I have some really lovely poinsettia designs for my embroidery machine that I think will look lovely. Will make it with pointed ends and will put a gold tassel either end.

I have also started sewing out the designs for my new quilt. And yes I have finally finished the two quilts for my sisters' Christmas presents.

Surprise, surprise my new quilt (for me) has purple designs.

This is the original from Skeldale House but I have changed the colours to cream for the candlewick, mauve for the flower, soft green for the leaves. Also I am only using the full designs and putting them on point. Probably only one or two long strips with patchworking either side and in the sashing.

Have already got the fabric for that - the mauve for part of the sashing is similar to the cream fabric for my table runner except it has a silver overprint. Also have some pastel green floral almost a tone on tone that I will use as a peeper on the sashing (I think). The blocks themselves are done on cream.

Remember

Decorate Your Blog for Christmas

Why not get into the festive season? Decorate your blog for Christmas! We decorate our houses so why not decorate our blogs.

Email me for the html. code for the clumsy Santa banner and then put in a link back here so we can keep tabs on who has joined. Maybe we could all take a virtual tour of decorated blogs mid December. We could nominate those decorated blogs that we like - I will send a small hand made gift to the blog most liked.

As we get more blogs involved I will put up a poll for the finalists.

Come on get into the spirit of the season and join me!

Wordless Wednesday - "Harry" Birthday Nathan

Catch up.

Well, I have only one side of hand sewing on the binding and I have finished both the quilts for my sisters .... yeah!

Now I am looking around trying to decide what to start next, probably will be the quilt for my bed.

In the meantime I have been making Christmas ATCs - one of the online groups I am in - Aust & NZ Art Quilters - have arranged a swap. Sets of four ATCs in a theme of Christmas. I have made two sets so far and fiddling with a third.

As you can see from the new look on my website I have been playing around with Christmas 'decorations' for my blog. My blog friend Sheila keeps telling everyone how many days are left till Christmas so I thought I would get into the swing of things for the season.

By the way Sheila there are 49 days left till the big day!

Nearly Purr-fect

Well it has been a fruitful week - I managed to finish my three cat panels and they are hanging up in the kitchen/family/dining area.

I was very happy with how they turned out. There were a few things that I could have done either better or different but overall I am pleased. I learnt a lot during their making and hopefully, I can put it to use in future quilts.

I also got stuck into the two quilts for my sisters' and have one almost finished, only need to do one more side of handsewing on the binding. The other is almost finished with the quilting side of things.

Unfortunately I struck a problem when I was about 30 or 40cm from the end, the ratchet on the take up rod parted company with the rod and so I could not get any tension to finish quilting.

I ended up pin basting the remainder while it was still on the frame and then I will finish it under my machine instead of on the frame.

Still 80% of the quilting is done so it won't be too bad. A quilter I am not - I am a reasonable patchworking but the quilting side of it is not my forte. But I have to admit I am getting better. I even managed a whole two rounds of free motion fern like things - sort of a cross between feathers and ferns - and it doesn't look too bad.

Now I am starting to look around for my next project which is a quilt for my bed - have a few ideas in my mind but nothing definite yet - will keep you posted on that.

For Tanya who asked about my WW dog - its is my own Fozzie Bear, a labradoodle. He spends most of his days in my workroom with me - usually under my work table - and he has learnt to move quickly when I slide around on my chair (I have ran over his tail twice!!). He is a great companion and listens carefully to my ideas for new projects.

In the new year we are getting another dog as a friend for him but I imagine they will both take over my workroom. The new puppy will be a femaile (but we will get her desexed) and she is going to be an Aussie Bulldog. We have our name down on a waiting list for her so come late Jan or Feb I will post some pictures of them both.

Wordless Wednesday - Smile!

A Plague of Bogongs

Like all of Sydney's residents we have been plagued by Bogong moths.

Each evening they come out from wherever they have been hiding during the day and fly a bit further on their journey to cooler climes down south. They actually travel over 1000 km each spring to escape the hot weather. Usually in Sydney we only get one or two as they usually fly inland on the other side of the mountains but some years if the winds are right their flight path takes them over us. This year is one of those times.

Thousands of them fly over each night - feeding on native plants (and we have lots in bloom at the moment) and then resting each day before continuing on.

Each day they find some nook or cranny to hide in and for some reason they like my car! I drive a RAV and when I lift the back door open each morning there are literally hundreds of moths jammed tight along the weather strips.

It's hard to get a photo because if you touch the weather strip they get frightened and fly off to the nearest shade (usually under the car). I tried to get some photos but it was really hard. Believe it or not the photos on Wordless Wednesday show a groups of about 30 or 40 packed tighted together!

If you want to read about them more and read a recipe using them then have a look at this ABC's site. I certainly wont be using them in my cooking but I know that our aboriginal people find them tasty - they are supposed to have a nutty flavour - rolled in the ash of a campfire to cook - yuk!

(the group photo courtesy of Andy Readman)

The moths rest in thick clusters, each moth with its head under the wings of the one in front. Guess that is how they manage to fit so many into my car!

They get everywhere and we always have at least 1/2 a dozen in the house each night - beats me how they get inside. At least we are luckier than some caves in Alpine areas. "There is a carpet of dead moth bodies 1.5 metres thick on the floor of some Alpine caves, built up from thousands of generations." Bogongs Migrating South was written by Abbie Thomas.

Wordless Wednesday

Panel one

Well I'm off to a flying start (or should I say a vliosofix) one the first panel of my Morning Mews set. I have finally finished cutting and 'pasting' panel one and panel two and will get organised to tackle panel three. (Panel one is shown in Wordless Wednesday and this one is actually panel three; when I looked at the designs I decided one was the hardest then three and two the easiest. OK - I know you think there is strange logic in doing the hardest first but my thought was if I could do the hardest the others would be a breeze... my brain does work in mysterious ways!)

I am very pleased with the results. The kits used the correct fabrics suggested by the designer so they are turning out well. The only down side is tying to cut around some of the little fiddly bits - some are very tiny with squiggly edges!

I decided to get the three panels all stuck down before I tackle the quilting side of things.

The designer (McKenna Ryan) suggests free motion in monofilament. She outlines each piece, with free motion, that you stick down then free motions the background however you like. Then because it is a wall hanging and not washed it is not necessary to go around every piece with satin stitch or zigzag. If you look at her high resolution views you will see what I mean.

I have often wanted to make a wall hanging from a scene but have never been quite sure ow to go about it and now that I have tackled these panels I have learnt a lot about the technique. I won't tell you how many books I have on the subject but physically doing one has taught me so much more than from the books.

I have to tell you Sheila - I did four years of Engineering back when I was a "wee slip of a gel" (oops never a wee slip) .... so it does help when you have about 30 little pieces cut out and have to reassemble back together again to end in the right shape but it doesn't help when I am trying to calculate how big to cut things. I am afraid my use of a slide rule is long forgotten!

Wordless Wednesday - Construction

WW was younger son during a birthday party held here last year.

Wordless Wednesday - how to wear a party hat

2000 Visitor's Reached.

The 2000 visitor milestone has been reached - Congratulations to Lindi from Quilty Threads and Other Things!!

Lindi can you email me with yoiur snail mail addy so I can send you a little something - haven't actually decided what to make you yet but you will receive it in the next month.

I have succumb to buying a kit - well actually it is three kits for McKenna Ryan's Morning Mews



















- http://www.pineneedles.com/SuperStore/SuperStore-Assortment.asp?AssortmentID=37 I love her work and love her coffee series and the new Sea Breeze which is so pretty. I have been looking at these three panels for over a year and really like them plus I love doing applique. Decided to bite the bullet and buy them. I hope mine turn out as lovely as hers.

Actually they are ideal for me because I am restricted by how often I can get out and these will arrive on my doorstep without me ever having to leave the house!

Isn't it amazing how quickly we have taken on the internet - I often do my grocery shopping on line , I do my banking, buy and sell all sorts or goodies through Ebay. Scour the world for embroidery designs and quilting fabrics. It really has made the world a smaller place.

What about email!!

With a few keystrokes your letter is read by someone on the other side of the world before you even have a chance to close your email browser.

But what I think is the best thing about the internet is the wonderful friends you can make - you may never meet them in person but they soon become some of your closest friends!