Ta-dah!!!!

African hexagon flower cushion is all done :) And I am SO happy with it! The colours pop the way I wanted them to and I LOVE it!

I had such fun with this cushion!

xx

New Life :)

The call came through "Quick quick they are hatching"! So first thing this morning we raced off to to my in-laws Big G and Chief L's (there are so many 'L's' in our family but she is the boss of them all and therefore gets to be chief) house to see the baby quails :) The eggs have cracked and fluffy little quails have joined the family :) The Rascally Ones were delighted to inspect the eggs that are still to hatch and charmed by the three little quails scurrying around :)

The visit this morning also gave us the opportunity to meet the new baby calf! He was very brave in the company of the Rascally Ones as none of them seem to have a volume control when they are excited :) Big L stayed true to being a three year old and was mostly impressed by the size of the poo on the ground :) Nice :)

I am kicking myself for not getting a photo but we also got to have a look at all the little plants in the newly built greenhouse! What exciting things are happening in there! Yummy delicious exciting things! It reminded me of just how excited I am to get our planter boxes filled and planted :) Also I plan to sneak some orchids into the greenhouse :)

But the new life that is mostly on my mind is in the form of human babies :) Two of my sister-in-laws are pregnant and I am so excited! It never ceases to amaze me that two new little people will be joining our family :) Two new little people to welcome :) Two new little people to love :) Can't wait!

Happy/Hooky/Knitty

All three of my Little Rascally Ones (as well as N and I) have been under the weather this past week but despite this I have managed to steal snippets of time to do a bit of creating :) SO many Hooky/Knitty/Happy projects that I am working on at the moment :) Feeling pulled in many directions but enjoying the flood of creativity!

I have made a start on the ballerina jersey for Little S. Loving the colour, the feel of the wool, but nervous. Even though I knitted shirts for the Little Rascallies for Christmas for some reason this feels like the first REAL garment- with long sleeves and everything! Fingers crossed that it fits! EEEk!

I have also made a start on slippers for the Two Wee Babes. The yarn was an absolute steal at a local Emporium :) It feels divine and the colour is so rich- I just cant get enough of it! I saw this pattern and fell in love, I just knew that the Wee Babes NEEDED some! I just need to find the perfect buttons to go with it- I don't want something plastic, probably a beautiful big wooden button would be just right :) The pics look a bit rough, still have lots of ends to weave in, but I think they will be cute :) I kept having to measure and re-measure Little S's feet- I know the measurements are right but they feel so huge! When did my baby girl get so BIG!

But despite obviously being kept busy with lots of busy/happy little projects, I really am dreaming about this! I have spent what feels like hours on this website browsing yarn... looking... dreaming... salivating... {Note to self must make a bib for yarn browsing} I eventually convinced myself that now is not the time, I have many projects on the go but my mind and dreams are slow to follow....

Happy/Hooky/Knitty Blessings
xxx

Pitter Patter

I had some fun using up the last of the yarn I used for N's slippers making Big L some matching ones! Im thrilled with the result and EVEN better so is he! The wooden floors are really starting to get a bit chilly for both big and little feet so will be working on some for Little L and Little S. I just loved seeing Big L's cozy/warm/slippered feet while he was engaged in some train play/work this afternoon :)

I can highly recommend this pattern! Not only is it a breeze to use but the end result is really practical/warm/cutsypie/manly And even better it is knitted in one piece :)

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/non-felted-slippers

So if your toes are chilly you know what to do!

x

Autumn/Heavenly/Deliciousness Take Two

After spending such a glorious autumn day noodling around at home yesterday we decided today to head out into the world and explore :) But instead of heading out to our usual/local French Bay we decided to venture out and try something new: Cornwallis beach! 10 min drive from our place and a glorious spot!

Clear blue skies, blue water, and warm sea salty air, with a splash of that typical idyllic NZ beach side beauty :)

There was plenty to do for the rascally ones as they explored the beach, fed the birds and climbed the trees :) Big L even got so inspired that he got his kit off and went for a swim "like an eel!" Little L far preferred exploring the trees and picnic tables on his own as per usual and Little S and I 'baked' one birthday cake after the other :)

Although black sea sand is not my favourite, it could not spoil such a fun morning with my little rascallies :) The amount of time it will take to scrub the black sand out of my very blond children's hair however.... I will have to report back.

I have found new inspiration today to make an effort to continue to explore our new surroundings- how lucky are we!

x

Autumn/Heavenly/Deliciousness

::: Surrounded by beautiful blue Autumn skies today and the sun is warming my soul :::
::: Enjoying doing outdoorsy things with the three rascally ones :::
::: Picnic morning tea on a brightly coloured sun warmed blanket :::
::: Sun soaked floors :::
::: Progress on my African flower hooky work :::
::: Thank you Autumn :::

Hard day/ Pretty Material

Long day filled with many tears, mostly mine.

Two things that got me through:
1.) a few mins of hooky time in the afternoon sun on the deck
2.) A piece of beautiful material that I found on special

The photos do not do this piece of art work justice. I am absolutely in love with it but unsure of what it would like to be made into... lining for a bag? cushions? seat covers? table cloth? place mats? a skirt? Im open to suggestions! 

x

Giving credit where it is due

Great outdoors + Handy Skills = Genius N

Beautifully built planter boxes (front edge wide enough to create comfy adult seating) complete with a little bridge and step for the kids over to the trampoline and pavers in under the washing line.

That man has some skills! (And good work ethic!)

X

(Thanks to N's helper- Old L/Oupa)

Saving Grace

Sandwiches, sandwiches, sandwiches... everyday! That is a bit what my life feels like at the moment. Weekdays, weekends and holidays are the same, the kid's needs are so constant. Housework never ends. Do I sound enough like a winging housewife? In attempt to curb this behaviour I decided to fix something that really gets to me every day.

When I walk down the hallway to the kitchen in the mornings the first thing I see is the space above the fridge, which is a notorious dumping ground for everyone. Being a lady that likes order and neatness it immediately makes me feel like I am not on top of things. So I decided to fix it once and for all- and I am so proud/happy/delighted with the result. The colours are perfect together creating a sweet/happy/light picture for me when I walk into the kitchen in the mornings now- yay!

The windmills are just perfect/bright/loving and this space now houses some of my most treasured items, my cook books :)

I wouldn't dare show photos of what the rest of the house looks like but this sure is a picture perfect saving grace don't you think?

x

Happy Easter!

Easter this year has been a treat from beginning to end! Complete with a Easter egg hunt for the Little People. Big L was a bit confused about the bunnies and the eggs and kept inquiring about where the chickens were... however confusion disappeared completely once he realised there was chocolate involved!

I do feel like I have been struggling slightly to get to the true meaning of Easter this year. I was remembering today filling in a job application when I was 16 or so at a local grocery shop for my first job, and while I can't remember the question I can remember writing something along the lines of ' I want to honour Christ in everything I do'. Oh how innocent I was. I know that Easter is the BIG one, the reason that I believe, the event that proved that Jesus was the real deal, yet I have never felt further from this truth than I do at the moment. I really do hope that this will change. But it doesn't mean that Easter has been a complete write off this year. This weekend has been filled with love, family, laughter, fun quality time with myself as well as others, particularly some special self indulgent hooky time! What a treat!

I found this pattern a little while ago and it has been swimming around in my head- developing... developing! African hexagon flower! And as an extra special eastery treat the pattern is written in Afrikaans :) It has been a long time since I have had the opportunity to read Afrikaans, which along with finding the crochet baptismal dress that my Ouma made me in a box of hidden treasures, made for a blast from the past! 

So while the kiddies were having a fabulous time in the outdoors I settled down in a little comfy/sunny hooky spot :) Complete with beautiful views! Aren't my parents lucky to see this everyday!

Here is a little preview of what I am making with this beautiful flower :) Isn't it so pretty! It is such a happy pattern and I am completely in love with the colours. I found myself laying them all out on several occasions just to admire them- love love love! Thanks to the Small Adoring Fans for helping me count :)

However now that we are home I will have to temporarily have to put these beauties to the side :( But lucky lucky me, I have returned home with only one child! My darling parents are having the two little rascally ones to stay for a few nights! Wooohoooo! So I am aiming that upon their return I will have organised cupboards, a clean house, jobs ticked off the to do list, and my work space properly set up, as well as fitting in a few fun train trips with Big L.

But before any of that can start some garden fun tomorrow! I am feeling so so so excited by all the exciting and creative things that are happening in our garden at the moment. As usual N is doing all the hard work really while I dream dream dream of the colourful, flower filled end product. I think he mildly resents my big dreams with not enough practical application :) You should have seen his eyes roll when I excitedly told him about my plans for a beautiful cape cod chair under the big macadamia tree creating the perfect knitting/crochet spot... Ha he wont have time to roll his eyes so much when he is building me that chair!

x

Hip Hip Hooray!

Finished slippers and cupcake flags shortly before midnight last night therefore they count as birthday goodies :)

Happy Birthday to my muse and foot model! Best husband so far :)
x

Near 'successes'...

Currently suffering from having too many ideas, which in itself is not a bad thing... but the few that I have tried lately are shall I say, yet to be successful :)

We have gorgeous wooden floors in our home but in winter they do tend to get a bit chilly. And with the combination of winter approaching (YAY! I loooove winter!) and having some gorgeous bamboo yarn I decided to try my hand at pattern writing and to make some great little girly slippers for myself. Pattern making was great! Love the cute slippers and they are very comfy :) Not so great was thinking that I had bought two balls of the yarn when in fact I had only bought one... therefore I only have one great/cute/girly/comfy/warm slipper- not so great... This project is going in the too depressed to think about it at the moment pile...

Then slippers strike again! N's birthday is coming up and he requested a handmade present. After much looking/thinking I decided on slippers, due to again the combination of winter (YAY!) and wooden floors. Found a pattern, yarn and set to work. Currently on my third try at getting the size right- grrr! Turns out N's feet are a lot bigger than I thought... Anyway finally think that I have the sizing right and with only two days to go he might well have a present after all. Love the yarn... very N.

But on the up side look at these goodies! Big L is about to get a life lesson in delayed reward, ie. sticker charts! Yes, I sure know how to sniff out a crafting opportunity. So imagine these goodies turning into a fabulous sticker chart, full of my expectations of Big L as well as a lot of fantastic sticker reward opportunity for Big L!

And in big weekend news. It is that time of year where the Waikato is filled with gorgeous hot air balloons! So on Saturday morning when we first spotted them Big L noticed a kangaroo hot air balloon! Im sure that is also what Little L and Little S were trying to communicate with their crazy squealing :) So we hopped in the car in our pj's and chased down the kangaroo, made for some fabulous conversation in the car about the BIG CHASE! And here are our result- young and old were delighted! 

 X