More books to drool over...

I recently had this one from the library but didn't get a chance to do anything with it much & it had to go back of course. Greedy library! It's another lovely book though & included patterns in it of all the projects included.
I haven't had this one from the library yet as it is so new that they don't have it yet. I saw it in Picture Patchwork in Latrobe the other week. I looked at it only. Very good of me not to buy it on the spot. It was lovely.

This one I just picked up from the library yesterday. So I have a couple weeks to drool over this one. I am the first person to get it from the library too as it is only new in. So it is all new & pretty & clean. Hopefully I can keep it that way with out someone getting his little mitts on it! It too is a lovely book & includes patterns in it to make all the things inside. Hopefully I get all inspired soon to do some sewing again. I am still too sniffly to care much about anything but looking at pictures in it! lol

Our aspirations are wrapped up in books

Our inclinations are hidden in looks

Wrapped up in Books - Belle & Sebastian

Paper Clip Day

Did you know that today is Paper Clip day? I bet you didn't!

Fastening papers together started in the 13th century when a short length of ribbon was placed through parallel cuts in the upper left hand corner of pages. It was almost 600 years later before anybody improved on this ribbon fastener. In 1899, Johan Vaaler, an inventor in Norway, patented the paper clip - and it's been used in more ways than you think. During the five-year Nazi occupation of World War II, Norwegians weren't allowed to wear buttons imprinted with the king's initials. Loyal Norwegians wore paper clips to symbolized solidarity and oppose the occupation.

So there you go. You learn something new everyday.

There isn't much else to tell you today as we are all home sick & eating more chicken soup. I think I'm getting better as is Brandon, slowly. He has been quite unwell, poor thing. Stuart at least has the weekend now to get better as well. Nothing like some family time together!

Mandy

(Can you believe there are no songs about paper clips!)

Baby mine, don't you cry,

Baby mine, Dry your eyes

Rest your head close to my heart,

Never to part, baby of mine

Little one, when you play

Don't you mind what they say

Let those eyes sparkle and shine

Never a tear, baby of mine

If they knew sweet little you,

They'd end up loving you too

All those same people who scold you

What they'd give just for the right to hold you

From your head down to your toes

You're not much, goodness knows

But you're so precious to me

Sweet as can be, baby of mine

Baby Mine - Alison Krauss

It's THE sock!

Ok, here IT is... the sock. I really did make it myself. No help from anyone, even though I was going to get help for the silly little heel bit, but I was doing the "I think I can, I think I can" trick. Actually it was more of a "I'm not going to let this sock beat me! I can do other stuff so I can do this. How hard can it be really!" We actually, it was tricky. The pattern wasn't very clear really. It was only that when Joan was knitting my other pair that she pointed out a couple of things to me that she had to do on it, & so I had to do that too somehow. Also I used some tutorials at different points on the net for info. That was right at the beginning actually cos I was getting so tangled in needles. But I got there in the end. I have a couple of wee holes on the heel sides but hey, I think it was pretty darned good for my first attempt. I didn't expect I would be able to even wear it but I think I will be able too.

So I have now started on the second one. & well, I am all in a tangle with those darned needles & trying not to twist up the knitting & stuff that they tell you you must be very careful of! It was worse this time than on the first one! Once you get a few rows going it isn't so bad. I think I have just about got the colours in the right place too so that the second one matches the first. I have started at least 5 times on different parts of the wool to get it close.

I don't know how much I will get done today as we are still a house of Colds so both BJ & I are a bit crappy. Oh well, that's life.

Stuart made us chicken soup last night so I guess that's what we are eating today!

Mandy

Black socks, they never get dirty,
The longer you wear them the stronger they get!
Sometimes I think I should wash them
But something keeps telling me
No, no, not yet!

Girl Scout song

Christmas Ornament in May?

Finally I have got back to some stitching. I needed to get my May ornament done for the JCS ornament challenge. This one turned out pretty cute really.

Brandon & I have both got little colds so we have been keeping home as much as possible. We don't want to share it around. Good chance to get some stuff done. Better get on to sock no. 2 now the ornament is done.

Mandy

Deck the halls with boughs of holly,

Fa la la la la la la la la

Rainbows...

Mandy

I can sing a rainbow,

Sing a rainbow,

Sing a rainbow too.

Mail Call!

We are a bit excited this morning, Brandon & I. The mailman delivered a parcel from Auntie Judy. It contained wool! So now I can knit a beanie for Brandon to match his scarf. Yay! Thanks so much to Auntie Judy for finding some of it at BigW for us.

The parcel also had a cute outfit for Brandon, so that was fun.

We love parcels.

A sock update today?

I am up to the toe part! Trying to shape & finish it. Should be fun - or not! We'll see I guess. That is today's challenge. Along with finishing cakes from yesterday! lol I know which will be easier!

Mandy

I got your letter from the postman just the other day

And so I decided to write you this song

Just to let you know, exactly the way I feel

To let you know my love's so real...

The Postman Song - B Stevie

Chocolate cake & party time!

Today we had a mini birthday party for Brandon. His Gran & Grandad are away for the next few months & miss his first birthday. These are my teddy bear cupcakes! This was Brandon's birthday cake today & good practice for me in cake decorating! They don't look so bad & boy were they yummy. I got the recipe out of the book Ladies, A Plate (as seen on previous blog entry). Best chocolate cake recipe I have found yet. They are the before picture anyway.

Here is the after.....

This is the first cake Brandon has had. Ok, he didn't actually eat much as just played with it. But we were happy to let him. We just changed his clothes & took the chair outside & hosed it down. Easy clean up. It was fun. Gran & Grandad enjoyed it I think.

On the knitting side of things, I am feeling quite clever. I am nearly done with a sock. I managed some how yesterday to turn the heel & all that jazz. Took a few tries as the pattern wasn't clear to me, but I undid & redid some & voila, a turned heel. I feel very pleased that I was able to manage it though it isn't quite perfect, hopefully the next sock will go better.

Mandy

Can I have another piece of chocolate cake

Tammy bakers got a lot on her plate

Can I buy another cheap picasso fake

Andy Warhol must be laughing in his grave

Chocolate Cake - Crowded House

Favourite books right now!

Ladies, A Plate is one I have from the library right now. Sadly I have to give it back! It's quite an interesting read as well as giving cool recipes for old fashioned kinds of things. It is really nice & well presented.

This one, Cherry Cake & Ginger Beer I also had to give back to the library. I still haven't finished with it. I will have to get it again some time. If you are an avid reader & read all sorts of things as a child like Enid Blyton, you will know how much food featured in those books. This book is looking at things that the children, or bears, in the case of Paddington Bear, used to eat. Paddington Bear ate a lot of marmalade apparently so there are recipes of his in here with marmalade. It is quite fun reading plus it also gives you fun recipes to try if you wanted. I need to get it out again as I forgot to write out the recipe for macaroons. They sound much better than the coconut macaroons that I have grown up knowing & disliking.

The Gentle Art of Domesticity is another book by Jane Brockett & this one is really special. Not much of one particular thing but all sorts of little things. It's a nice read. & no it isn't about doing housework. That's not what she meant by the domesticity bit. Grab it from the library yourself & have a look. Another one I had to give back. One day I will go & buy a whole bunch of big fat books like these just so I can look at them any time I want.

This is one book I do own! Made in France has to be one of the most beautiful cross stitch books I have ever seen. I don't generally buy cross stitch books like it as I hate to work out of books. But this one was just so special. If I never stitch anything from it I don't care. I still had to own it. Of course, cross stitch is my first love so it wasn't a surprise. But I do intend to use it. In the meantime I can actually look at this one any time I want.

Happy Reading. Today I may get a chance to listen to a novel on cd again. What a great way to read & knit at the same time!

Mandy

Love in the library
Quiet and cool

Love in the library

There are no rules

Surrounded by stories

Surreal and sublime

I fell in love in the library

Once upon a time

Love in the Library - Jimmy Buffett

PS... Did you know it is Mary Cassatt's birthday today? Don't tell me you don't know who Mary Cassatt is! If you go check out Google today you will see what I see. Happy Birthday to Mary!

(even if she has been dead for 83 years!)

Eye Spy with my little eye...

These are a couple of my eye spy bags. They are fabric bags with white beads in that you can see through the clear square. Inside with the beads are 30 different things. Basically you have to find them all. They have proved very popular so I have made a couple now. I love them. Kids love them. Best of all, adults have really enjoyed looking for all the things in there.

Going to be a long day today. Brandon has a cold. I have no sleep. Did a lot of in the night so I am ready for a nap. & it's not even 10am yet. It won't be an exciting day anyway.

Mandy

Oh my rockin chair

Rock me tender in the night air

Oh my rockin chair

Rock me back and make me be there

Rocking Chair - Cyndi Lauper

Not much of anything yet!

This is a sock impersonating a ball of wool! That's all I have done so far but at least I have started. It is a trick that is for sure with the DPNs. I can't do this with Brandon around as I am sure I will poke an eye out & I would rather it wasn't his. That little bit took about 3 hours! Quite a feat. Not very good yet but I am trying. Maybe by the next sock I will be better at it. Changing between needles is tricky. So these might not be very good socks but I am going to get it done -one day.

Mandy

Milo’s lost a sock

He’s searched high and low

Odd socks here

Odd socks there

Odd socks everywhere

Spotty spotty socks

Pink and purple spots

Red spots and yellow spots

Do they match Milo’s socks?

No they don’t!
From the kids show Tweenies

Blocks

It's late, I'm tired & can't really be bothered doing anything but going to sleep! I know, that's nothing new! lol

So I thought quickly I would show my blocks. They were on the Martha Stewart site one day when I was browsing. See Baby Blocks here!

So the next day I went & bought a lump of wood & proceeded to have a bunch of blocks made within the next week. There are 12 in all. They spell Brandon Jonty on one side of them. The alphabet if over another side. The numbers 1-10 are on another side. There is also one block about our dog Juneau. It was only when someone saw that block that they believed I had made them! They are pretty groovy I think. I will make some more one day but I need the tools on hand to do the sanding more quickly than I did on these!

Did get a bit of knitting done today so that was good. I've been playing with blocks too though, inbetween! Amazing what you can do with blocks really! & how quickly someone will knock them down.

Mandy

It's build a house where we can stay,

Add a new bit everyday

Its build a road for us to cross

Build us lots and lots and lots and lots and lots

Build - Housemartins

Wow! I think we have our first frost this morning! Looks all white out there. That will teach me to get up so early! Actually I got a sleep in as I got Brandon to sleep late too! Yay!

Below we have some fun at Jungle Gym the other day. We went there on Saturday late afternoon for a play with Brandon. There wasn't much he could really do there yet so it will be a while before we need to go back. It was nice watching him play a bit though. He didn't know what to make of all the balls.

They had a ride on thing there with Oscar the Grouch. He doesn't really know Oscar yet so this was a good intro for him. After poking those big eyes out he was OK with him. He didn't sit & have a ride in the Oscar car though. Can you believe those rides are now only operated on $2. We didn't have a $2 coin so he missed out.

OK I have finally got him in his scarf too. It looks really good if I do say so myself. Looks very warm. I am happy too as Judy was able to get me some more of the wool at BigW so I will attempt a matching beanie. He is enjoying his Hawthorn beanie as seen here also, especially after the Hawks got a win again! Woo hoo!!!

& here is a picture of us taken on Saturday. We don't have many pics of the 3 of us like this. Played with the timer on the camera! How cool is that thing!

That's all for now. Stay tuned till another day!

Mandy

Sunny Day Sweepin' the clouds away

On my way to where the air is sweet

Can you tell me how to get,

How to get to Sesame Street

Come and play Everything's A-OK

Friendly neighbors there

That's where we meet

Can you tell me how to get

How to get to Sesame Street

Theme from Sesame Street of course!

Million Paws Walk today!

It's the Million Paws Walk today. We have been & walked & are home again. Doesn't seem to have been as big a turn out as last year but it was good all the same. Nice for all the dogs & other animals to get out. We saw a dolls pram & it had guinea pigs in it on their walk too. Didn't see the goat or alpacas that we saw last year though. Just a whole lot of different dogs! Every breed imaginable turns out there. Also every mixed breed imaginable I think! lol

Here are Stuart, Brandon & Juneau in her Paws walk bandana. Ok, ummm... I will go & tackle the sock again shortly. Took me a few hours to do a few rows yesterday. But it is getting there. I nearly undid the other scarf I started too but it is going ok so I will keep on with it. Another rainbow one. Can't post more pics today though as it is just not co-operating so I give up. Have a nice Sunday.

Mandy

I love my dog as much as I love you

But you may fade, my dog will always come through.

All he asks from me is the food to give him strength

All he ever needs is love and that he knows he'll get

So, I love my dog as much as I love you

But you may fade, my dog will always come through.

I love my dog - Cat Stevens

Happy Anniversary to Us!

Wow, I can't believe it. It is our Wedding Anniversary today. We've been married 17 years! Far out!

Not sure yet what we will do - whether we go out for lunch or tea. Depends on Brandon at the moment as he has just gone for a sleep.

I finished his green scarf yesterday. Looks really nice. Will have to get a picture of him in it later on. Started another one just because I could.

It is blowing a gale again today so I don't think we will be doing much else.

Definitely no footy for BJ later on with Dad anyway.

Guess it will be a quiet day. Might go have a bash at a sock while he is asleep.

Have a lovely day!

Mandy

And I'm gonna keep on lovin you

Cause it's the only thing I wanna do

I don't wanna sleep

I just wanna keep on lovin you

Keep on Lovin' You - REO Speedwagon

Bags & Cake!

The days are flying by aren't they? Where has the week gone already! Looks like it is going to be an ordinary sort of day anyway. Probably rain & most likely a lot of wind.








Here's another bag of mine....

This is the same pattern as the previous bag, the Amy Butler Swing bag. I think I got this fabric from the USA. It is kind of retro, & called "Paris... Now" for Marcus Brothers. I've been using this bag to drag around my knitting & stuff. I was quite pleased with my efforts on this one as I put in a pocket & also a magnetic clasp. They are so easy to use. I haven't used it as a handbag yet as I bought one a little while ago that I am using. I will have to take a pic of that to show you I think cos the fabric is just so cool. In fact, someone in a shop even asked me where I got it from.

Have a good Friday. No real plans for me today. Phew. Need a rest, & time to eat all the left over cake from yesterday!

It will be a struggle!
Eat cake & be merry!

Mandy

My lovely cake

Sitting on the shelf.

My favourite munch,

You're so perfect for lunch

or any time.

I want to sprinkle you with chocolate chips,

And eat you with whipped cream.

Put some jelly along the side.

You taste like a dream.

You're much better than a pie.

"My Lovely Cake" by Dame Del-Boy Trotter

Wheeeee......

I love to play on the swing!

This is Brandon at playgroup yesterday. Was a bit chilly out so he had on the beanie that Gran knitted for him last week. He actually kept it on too! I think it was only because he was too busy to think about the hat!

I finally finished my ornament for the April/May CYO ornament challenge! Phew! Finished it off last night. Now I really need to get into the May ornament for the JCS challenge. The one above is from a Dimensions kit called Christmas Paws Banner. I have had it in my stash for ages. Don't know where or how I got it but most likely I bought it once cos it has a dog on it! It's nice to have it finished after all this time of looking at the kit in a box.

Happy Day!

Mandy

Swing Low, Sweet Chariot

Coming for to carry me home...

It's a horse of course!

Just another Wednesday going on here in my little corner of the island! But that means playgroup for us shortly! I will see if I can just put Brandon out in the playground & see if he will just explore. He likes to be outside! It's good as it wears him out!

Anyway, here is my horse!

This horse is from a pattern by Melly & Me. they are great patterns. There are lots of nice animals in the range. I would love to get some more to make more of them but better not right now. There is a dog one that I really need to have. (like we don't have enough dog stuff in the house already! lol) But if you want Melly & Me patterns just google the name & I am sure there are plenty of places around that sells them online if you can't get them locally. For those that are interested in fabric, (how can you not be!!! ) is by Robert Kaufman - Pimatex Basics. I just fell in love with it when I saw it though I am not really a brown fabric kind of gal. But when I saw the horse pattern I could just imagine him wearing these spots. He does seem to look quite perfect in this outfit anyway. We love him. Yes I will definitely have to increase my fabric animal family. Oh & they aren't hard to put together. I had him done over 2 evenings. The worst & slowest bit was handsewing the hole up once he was stuffed. Very tricky with 4 legs in the way. But I got there in the end & if you don't look too closely it doesn't look so bad! hahaha

Happy day everyone!

Mandy

Wild horses I wanna be like you

Throwing caution to the wind

I'll run free too

Wish I could recklessly love, like I'm longing to

Run with the wild horses, run with the wild horses!

Oh yeah, yeah

(wild horses - Natasha Bedingfield)

More Knitting!

Coffee Break!

This green striped scarf is the one I am knitting for Brandon at the moment. It is really cute. I have actually finished the whole ball now & need to join the next. Bit bummed though cos I would have loved to make a beanie to match it cos it is such a cool combo of colours but I won't have enough. It is really nice wool but the stuff that is making me sneeze a lot! It's Sean Sheep wool from BigW! It is weird stuff cos it is 70% wool & 30% Soybean! How about that! Who would have imagined they would knit with soybean products. I really must google that to find out more info about it as I find it quite intriguing. This scarf is a simple K2, P2. Looks good I think. I thought a beanie to match would have been really cool, not that I have ever knitted a beanie but I was going to try. But don't need to now with this sneezy stuff. By the time I ever see a BigW again he will probably have grown out of his scarf!

Now we have some very funny feet! Mine I'm afraid. At least they are covered! These are my cool socks that Joan my mother-in-law knitted for me just the other week. I got the sock yarn from Spotlight. (one of about 6 different balls I got!) I am determined to make a sock at least. I will probably suffer from SSS - Second Sock Syndrome, once I have done one. Or I will be sick of the colour I am doing & want to start one with a different colour. S0 I could end up with MSSS - Mismatched Second Sock Syndrome!!! The pattern for the socks - I keep wanting to call them recipes! - is on the label of the yarn. It is self patterning so very cleverly designed by the Turkish! (sorry this isn't Aussie made - I'm bad! But apparently the Turkish economy needed some stimulus this year too & their PM isn't as generous as ours! lol )

Ok, I better get back to the other room where I have made a big mess in the effort of cleaning! Shame really, but at least Brandon is napping now so I can make a run for it & do it without his assistance. Better just finish this cuppa but!

Happy Tuesday!

Mandy

Loose, footloose

Kick off your Sunday shoes

Oowhee, Marie

Shake it, shake it for me

Whoa, Milo

C'mon, c'mon let go

Lose your blues

Everybody cut footloose