Happy New Year

Happy New Year to Everyone!  If you read my blog on occasion, thank you!  

Please indulge me & my need to play with the "fireworks" setting on my camera for the first time!  (next time will be next New Year's Eve I imagine! lol)

Zoo-Riding

 We had a birthday party to go to today.  Was quite fun!  Lots of animals to ride on.

Tricky to get decent pictures of moving targets even at the speeds they were going!  

& yes, I had a turn too!  

Attempt To Finish 2016 Project List

• Complete Christmas Table Runner
• Finish off pieced FG Table topper
• Finish Hats that are cut out
• DJ's Cross Stitch Stocking
• Fairy Cross Stitch
• Knitting my new Yarn for ME
• DONE - Mon Ami Quilt
• DONE - Max New Quilt
• DONE - Reunion Quilt
• DONE - Birdie Quilt
• DONE - DJ's Quilt
• DONE - DJ's Birth Sampler
• DONE - 6 Mill Hill Beaded Ornament

Well that's the list I had up all year.   I did quite a job of completing the quilts at least.  I really have to try to get some cross stitching done in 2017.  

Book List 2016

• The Christmas Surprise - Jenny Colgan : quite nice, not as enjoyable as the first 2.  
• 1st To Die - James Patterson :  audio book.  Had read it before & enjoyed it.  Didn't remember it much so thought I would start over the series again.  
• Christmas at Rosie Hopkins' Sweetshop - Jenny Colgan : enjoyable read.  
• The Rosie Project - Graeme Simsion : got into it eventually, & enjoyed it.  Got my 33 cents worth anyway!  lol
• One Good Turn - Kate Atkinson : audio book.  Good again, but complicated to follow.  
• The Dandelion Years - Erica James : Nice book.  Enjoyed this one a lot.  
• Case Histories - Kate Atkinson : audio book.  Enjoyed this.  Had to keep up with listening else I would have had to start over again I think.  
• The Loveliest Chocolate Shop in Paris - Jenny Colgan : loved this & now need to go to Paris & eat chocolate.
• The Tenderness of Wolves - Stef Penney : Something really different & bought on a whim.  Quite enjoyed it.
• A Deadly Dealer - Ellery Adams :  audio book, again sewing.  A good series of simple mysteries.  
• A Fatal Appraisal - Ellery Adams :   audio book, again while sewing.  
• A Killer Collection - Ellery Adams : audio book.  Another enjoyable mystery while sewing.  
• Rosie Hopkins' Sweet Shop of Dreams - Jenny Colgan:  enjoyable chick book that was nice to read after busy hectic days.
• Mercy Street - Tess Evans : enjoyed this one.  Lovely story.
• The Reader on The 6.27 0 Jean-Paul Didierlaurent:  This was a really strange book.  Thank goodness it was short.  
• A Spool Of Blue Thread - Anne Tyler :  disappointed in this one,  I struggled to read it & have never had this with one of her books.  
• The Husband's Secret - Liane Moriarty :  quite enjoyed this.  
• Before You Know Kindness - Chris Bohjalian :  audio book.  Not a bad story.
• A Pinch Of Poison - Claudia Bishop : audio book.  Sewing again.  
• Eleanor & Park - Rainbow Rowell :  an interesting cheap read I picked up.  
• The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out The Window & Disappeared - Jonas Jonasson : audio book but thoroughly enjoyed this one.  Really laughed a lot.  Will read it properly one day.  
• A Dash Of Death - Claudia Bishop :  audio book another simple one to sew too.
• A Taste For Murder - Claudia Bishop : audio book - mindless fun story to listen too again while sewing.  
• The Irresistible Blueberry Bakeshop & Cafe - Mary Simses:  Enjoyed this one.
• Rainy Day Kisses - Debbie Macomber :  First one in a while as an audio book.  Enjoyable mindless while sewing.
• The Light Between Oceans - M.L Stedman  :  Gift from Stuart last Christmas.  Struggled at first but quite enjoyed it in the end.  

Quite an interesting list this year.  Much longer than usual as I have been able to manage quite a lot more with the inclusion of the books I have listened to at home while sewing or knitting.  The library is a great resource for these to borrow directly online.  What a great service.  

Do you have any favourites that you would recommend?  Or what is on your reading list for 2017?

Resting

With the excitement of Christmas over we all came crashing down in a heap.  Lots of nothing as it was also so hot on Boxing Day...  

Also a play at the beach with the metal detector.  No treasure to be found though.  Just an awful lot of drift wood still on the beach as far as one could see.  It's been there since the floods in June.  A few tepees in a row that DJ made use of.  Lots of fun & of course getting wet through.  

52/52

A portrait of my boys once a week for a year.

Christmas Day happy!

Quilt Top Is DONE!!!