Nearly Valentines!

...not that it matters much in our house! LOL Not usually anyway...but this year I am getting a treat :) Cant tell you yet tell after though :))

So..anyway...since the last blog a lot and not a lot of things have happened, if that makes sense?  My dad spent nearly 3 weeks in hospital and then I spent a week at his house when he came home.  He is on the mend but its slow.

I still managed to squeeze an afternoon or so of Snobs & Slobs in though! Good therapy those girls...many thanks!!!  Lorraine managed to finish a quilt she started not long ago (sorry the pics not at a great angle)  Tis different and looks and feels lovely.

I was digging around my cupboard to see what I had and found two tubs of these tapestry wools that one of the Slobs & Snobs had given me ages ago. 

Went on the web and had a search around to see what I could make with them.....

Lynne loved what I had done, so she got her wools back all made up!

Mid January was the bi-annual Encore Lovers Reunion Dinner.  We now have some of the male partners coming along to bring their spouses (otherwise they might miss out), so here is our group this time round.

In a couple of months there is going to be a rose released just for us "Encore" is its name and will be on sale to the public.  I will keep you informed on the costing etc, cos we would love to sell loads as all the profit goes back to funding more women doing the program!

At the end of January we (Snobs & Slobs) went on an outing to one of the local quilt shop openings.  Of course we had to stop somewhere for a refreshing drink and feed some worms....we had a ring-in come along who happens to be rather cute so we didn't mind at all.  He has good taste in fabric and might turn out to be the next quiltaholic in his family!  (In case you don't know this is Claire aka Quilty Gals grandson, Seth, from Wales)

Yesterday the family took a trip to see the nephews new house that is being built in the country and then out for tea.  For the locals, we went to the Tanunda Clubhouse...VERY nice food indeed.  Good job we don't live close cos I would be like the back end of a large charter bus if I did -- would be eating there all the time if the money allowed it!  On the way home, we diverted in to my young brothers place to see his latest pets...Mulcher-mulcher and Ratbag...two bearded dragons. Sooooo cute...and no...I am not allowed one! (They are only about 3 inches long at the moment!)

 Well, till next time, stay safe and happy! x

Happy New Year!

Here I sit, listening to the possum aka the elephant with clogs! skimming across our roof!! Sorry, I digress already!! One of my aims for 2013 is to be more up to date with the blog :) Second is to spend more time on myself/family!!!
Since my last post, we have had one of our 'trees' flower and fruit! This is it...anyone have a guess?? Its a banana tree and we have fruit!!!! The garden centre said it would never do that here in South Australia, but there it is...just waiting for the little fingers to ripen now.

 

Had done a bit of sewing towards the end of November - made this Santa 'sack' for a friend interstate.  Sack being the operative word, ended up being bigger than the child it was made for, certainly will last a life time I think!  

Early December and we went off to a volunteer BBQ - don't win many things in my life - but had a lucky guess...and won 1306 M&M's!!!!!!!

Then we had a lazy day...so did the cats!

Went to the opening of a new bra shop (yes you may laugh those that know me personally at this one!)  Michelle is the owner and is called "The Bra Lady", 99c Prospect Rd, Prospect.  So if you are in the area go and see Michelle (professional fitter of over 25 years.)  There is a lovely cafe next door, so makes for a good visit in the area.

As December approached, I thought I had better get some bits and pieces ready for my Christmas gifts - so here is a little forest ready to be placed in the gifts.

 

A lovely little person (along with his parents) arrived from Wales to spend some time in the Land of Oz.  This is Seth - some of you would of seen him on Quilty Gals blog - he is her cute little grandson!

 

Of course he made his debut at the Thursday Crafties! Here we all are with our finished crazy patch waistcoats that we did as a project last year.

Finally!!!! my big San Fran House is finished and wired and lit!!!  Here are some pics - outside the house and viewing through the windows.

The upstairs balcony.

 

The bathroom.

 

   

The study.

Bedroom One.

 

Kitchen. (Maid is peeling prawns for the party!)

The front entrance.

Dining room with the tables laden with food (lighting is pink cos the shades are pink)

 

And of course it Christmas so there has to be a tree and nativity scene! 

There are another couple of rooms, so will post them later when I take a better pic of them :)  Some of them need a couple of bits and pieces in them. 

Then it was on to Christmas Day.... 

as you can see, one of our guests was thoroughly tuckered out after his meal! ( Had nothing to do with the fact he works night shifts and was exhausted...lol) 

 

So this brings me to 2013, and I would like to wish all of you the best for the coming year.  Hope it is a happy, healthy and fulfilled year for you all. xx

So 50 came and went....

...there was a small urge to have a blue rinse and perm done! Also the thought of purchasing a frock while I was in London...but thought I might leave that for my 60th!! LOL

Anyway, the birthday week was spent in London. Lots of sightseeing and walking and dodging lots of other sightseers in the process! Our first stop was the British Museum.Lots of things to look at here and lots of pics were taken, but will not bore you with too many! As in previous places we have visited, there were miniatures of buildings etc to be seen. Here is a miniature of the Parthenon as it would have been when completed in 432BC.Dad measuring up with one of the statues in the museum.
The Roman section had some fab mosaics on the walls.Night time fell and we strolled around London for a while, the Queens Theatre have this lovely rather large show on their roof advertising a long running show there.
Next day it was Madam Tussauds. Packed with visitors was an understatement. I have to say that I thought Morgan Freeman was one of the best on show.Then it was off to Ripleys Believe it or Not. Some very strange things here to be seen. Here is one of the shrunken heads that were on show....and yes it is real!A tiny, fully working camera.After lunch Dad and Dave went on the London Eye. However, due to my lack of interest in heights, I had this view! LOL The hot chocolate in the cafe near was delightful though :)We took a cruise up the River Thames. Very interesting commentary from our steward on board the boat. There is lots to look at along the Thames, including Dame Helen Mirrens house, Michael Crawfords house (they live opposite each other), David Bowies house, the 'boat' owned by the chap who owns Tottenham Hotspurs Footy team - it is said to be worth £1million per metre!!!! This next pic though is of the oldest pub in London, 'The Prospect of Whitby'. Quite quaint against all the high rise apartments and development that is going on along the Thames.This is the OXO building and is a very expensive place to dine out so I am told - cousin and wife went there and it cost them £170 for two for lunch!!!!
At the end of the cruise up, we got off at Greenwich and had a walk around the area. We stopped to watch the 12.55pm clock go off - this is where Greenwich Mean Time is marked. The ball on the 'T' spire is at the bottom of the pole and works it way up till it gets to the top which is then 1pm and then falls back down.We walked through the Queens House - and of course there was a miniature of that to be shown.
The staircase inside was magnificent. It houses art work on the walls and was quite interesting to walk around.
This picture was just fabulous!!!Birthday night!
The Imperial War Museum was on the agenda. Very good, but too much to see!! The Science Musuem was great too, but once again, way too much to look at. This clock was very different, don't know if I would like one in the lounge but was worth a picture.There are many sections to the Science Museum, and of course I took many pictures, but thought this one was one to share. It is a miniature room box of someone giving birth in the Victorian era ----I know, I am a sick puppy!!!
Harrods was next!!! Who could resist???? This is a resin model that was for sale of the Hogwarts Castle.The Christmas section in Harrods opens rather early in August and looked magnificent as always.The last morning in London we walked around the park near our hotel, and guess what??? There was this cute little grey squirrel waiting to have his pic taken! LOLOn the way to catch the train home we met up at Libertys with a friend for lunch. Very nice little store with heaps of atmosphere...and the lunch was great too! This is Tinks, David and Dad.
Well, back to the home town now! It was Davids Auntie Eleanors birthday while we were away so thought it would be nice to celebrate with her when we got back. Her choice of eating was one of the award winning fish and chip shops in South Shields - 'Colemans'. I have to say it was award winning food!
Well, here we are at the end of another posting. So till next time, happy reading!