Category: Home & Family TO BE FIXED

Home & Family TO BE FIXED

Bye-bye car…

Anne S

Today my car is getting towed to a local garage (it’s about a 30-40 minute walk from home … which is of course what I’ll be doing once the tow-truck drops my car off there today).  They can’t get it back to me before Easter, which means they’ll likely have my car for at least a week … guess I’d better start checking out public transport options for the next two nights and Easter Monday … oh heck, I also just realised I finish work at 5am Good Friday, which means I’ll have to wait forever for a train home as well (updated to add:  I’ve just checked and the first train leaves at 7.41am on Good Friday – and I haven’t even checked the connection at Richmond … oh boy, I hope I can get a lift home!!) … oh joy of joys! 😦  Maybe I’ll ask around at work tonight to see if anyone is coming from my side of town so I could get a lift … aside from anything else I don’t enjoy walking the streets alone at either of those times now daylight savings has ended, as I go to work in the dark and come home in the dark – and my home is about a 20 minute walk away from the station, down backstreets hmmm.

If nothing else, maybe I’ll get more stitching done while I’m waiting for trains – I need to do something to get my mojo back … before my work on Bordeaux yesterday, it’s actually been two whole weeks since I touched a needle, and I only did that because I knew I ‘had to’ for the Peacock needlecase.  I still look at my stitching corner and go ‘blah’ … which is totally unlike me … Perhaps it’s other things on my mind that keep distracting me, like knowing I should actually be sorting things out ready for packing up when I move (we’re still doing inspections and househunting the ads every week).  Anyway, I hope I can shake it soon, as there’s too much to be done!

Rightio, time to call a tow-truck then enjoy the walk home – if nothing else it will get me into a bit more exercise again, which I dearly need – and at least it’s not raining 😉  In fact I think I’ll have a small treat on the way home and sit and have a cappuccino at the Elwood shops on the way past … anything to make the day look a little brighter … 😀

Home & Family TO BE FIXED, Travel

The big event (Sydney day 3)

Anne S

Thursday started nice and slowly with a small sleep-in.  I had a couple of ‘stupid’ moments, though, like when I realised I hadn’t brought any styling products for my hair, and I had to wash it, so just had to let it sit and dry naturally.  Then I thought I’d pop out to a hairdresser and get it styled for the evening, only to remember I didn’t have any keys to the house, so had no option but to sit still and relax.  I just spent the day reading until it was time to get ready for the function.  We had to be at the Hotel “ready to leave” no later than 4.45pm, so Brenda had to finish work at 2pm to have us ready to leave by 3pm – Nigel very kindly came home early as well and drove us into the city.  Here’s a photo of my beautiful hosts just before we left the house (jeez, I wish I could’ve done something with my hair!).


Me with Brenda


Me with Nigel

We managed to get to the Hotel at 4pm, so we checked in and took my bags up to the room, then went down to the bar for a vodka for Brenda and a bourbon for me (at the price of $17 for two drinks that’s where we finished LOL).  The Hotel we were staying at, compliments of work for the night, was the Four Points by Sheraton, Darling Harbour.  I’ve included a piccie here of the Hotel that I actually took on Friday, as it made more sense to include it here.


Four Points Sheraton at Darling Harbour

We all had to meet in the Lower Ground level of the lobby where we were given “boarding passes” and name badges.  Here I managed to meet up with the other two ladies from Melbourne that I work with, Mary and Carolyn, and Teresa that I used to work with in Auckland (it was so lovely to see her and here Auckland’s news).  We didn’t have to wait around for long before we were sent on our merry way in two groups for a short walk … down to the harbour.  At this point I was getting a bit disgruntled and jittery – I get seasick, and I’ve been hoping like heck we weren’t going on a cruise, but unfortunately those hopes were dashed!  I’d packed my Sea-Bands ‘just in case’ and popped them on, but that basically meant that I wouldn’t be drinking or eating on board, which put a real damper on the evening for me … the boat started rocking a bit while we were moored, at which point I figured it would be better to get off until we were ready to actually move, so I asked a crew member if I could leave – and he kindly brought me out some homeopathic travel sickness tablets (ginger-based) that wouldn’t affect me and meant I could have a drink etc … that went a BIG way to putting me at ease!  I’m usually OK on boats for about 1/2 hour (which I why I felt OK to try the ferry the previous day), but after that I’m laying ground bait …

As it turns out we were on board that vessel for some considerable time – we had one of the chief managers of the company with us and we each had to go up to to the front and receive a framed certificate from him and have our photo taken together.  There were even people from as far away as our London and Tuscon offices – I thought that was wonderful.  Brenda mentioned to me during the night that “this really is a big thing that you’ve won, isn’t it?”, and I probably had to agree that I guess it was – the whole event made me realise just how big it was.  Out of 7000 nominations, I was one of the 200 around the world who won … wow! 🙂

Anyway, back to the story … we cruised up the river for a couple of hours, and in fact almost made it as far as I had the day before when I travelled to Rydalmere – eventually, though, we got off the boat at Homebush.  We were then bundled into coaches and taken a short distance up the road to our final resting place for the night – Acer Arena at Sydney Olympic Park.  Here we were ushered to a lobby area where there was a band playing and yet more alcohol being offered (boy, oh boy, they certainly didn’t skimp on providing refreshments!).  We stood there for a while chatting, then all of a sudden curtains were pulled back just behind where we were standing, and the doors were opened into the stadium itself – it was like we were Olympic athletes flowing into the stadium … and when we walked in it looked like something from a fairy tale!  Unfortunately I didn’t take a photo of it all, and the photos in general from now on are a bit crappy due to the poor lighting, my poor camera, and being a fair distance away from the stage etc.  But take my word for it, it was magical!  We were seated in the middle of the arena itself, with formal dining set ups, and a stage with two large screens on each side.


Sydney Olympic Park – Acer Stadium


Brenda and I inside the Stadium about to sit down for dinner

Unfortunately we were all split up at different tables, as they’d already given seating allocations … at each place setting for the winners, though, they’d put a book together as a momento – inside it includes a photo and blurb about each of the winners and what they did to win the award, plus a copy of the menu, and the entertainment schedule for the evening etc.  It was a great touch, and made the evening even more special … although those special touches just kept on coming!

After everyone was seated at their tables and introduced themselves music started in the background then eventually it changed … the lights dimmed and then a spotlight went onto three members of the Australian Girls Choir on stage, who started to sing “I Still Call Australia Home” … then a line or two in spotlights moved to our side of the stadium where a line-up of more girls appeared at the top of part of the stadium seating, then the same happened on the other side of the stadium.  I have to admit it brought a lump to my throat and goosebumps to my arms … that to me was one of the major highlights of the evening.  I’d rather not say in print what the significance of having them there singing that meant … but I’m sure at least the Aussies will know why that’s important 😉


Part of the Australian Girls Choir singing at the top of the stadium

That, though, was just the start of all the entertainment!  We had speeches from top management, and I have to say they really made me feel proud to be sitting there.  They also put together a video set to music of all the photos they took of us onboard the boats receiving our awards from management – it was great.  During the evening we munched our way through the various courses – the menu was (sorry, but no stone is being unturned in this post haha):

 Entree
Salad of chicken breast with sweet potato, cucumber and semi sun-dried tomatoes, tossed with spring leaves and a lime and sweet chilli dressing
or
Goat’s cheese and semi sun-dried tomato tart with Italian antipasto salad

Main Course
Marinated rack of lamb with seeded mustard potatoes, vegetable bundle and balsamic vinegar jus
or
Pan-fried Atlantic salmon fillet with potato gateau and fresh herb hollandaise

Dessert
A trio of desserts:
Lemon tart, chocolate charlotte and assorted desserts served in a shot glass
or
Triple layered chocolate black forest, white swan mousse and assorted desserts served in a shot glass

Tea/coffee … followed by port

During the entrees we had an Aerialist perform, hanging from two strips of ‘fabric’ from the frame surrounding the arena area … that was a bit ho-hum, but the next lot of entertainment blew me away … next up we had, of all people, the infamous Toni Collette and her band performing live for us – wow!!  She performed about six songs for us.


Toni Collette singing

The next, and final, act was someone I’d never heard of, as I’m not a jazz officianado … but now I’ll remember his name as he was the best entertainer of the evening!  It was James Morrison and his band, along with Emma Pask on vocals … all I can say is “wowzers!!!”.  That guy can really PLAY!  He’s also a really fun entertainer and showman – just exceptional!  And what a way to finish the night off!!


James Morrison and his trombone (shocking photo sorry)

Eventually the night came to an end – to say this was a memorable event in my working history for the company would be an understatement … I for one really appreciate all the work and effort that went into such a successful evening, and I’m extremely grateful I was able to attend.  We finished the evening by being taken by bus back to the Hotel again (here, though, I said goodbye to Brenda, as Olympic Park was closer to home than the city, so Nigel came to pick her up from the venue).  It was sad to say goodbye to Brenda, but we’ve agreed I really do have to make the trip more often, finances willing.

When I returned to my hotel room, though, there was another surprise waiting – they’d taken the framed certificates off us again on the boat so we didn’t have to think about losing or breaking them during the night, and they said they’d be waiting for us in our rooms … that they were, BUT they weren’t alone!  There were two black boxes sitting on the bed – when I opened one up there was the certificate tucked in under a couple of straps in the lid, and sitting in the base was a bottle of wine, a pair of the pyjamas designed by Morrissey that people get in First Class, as well as the little First Class amenity pack.  My jaw nearly hit the floor!  What an awesome way to finish off an already perfect night!! 😀

Now I can explain why it was a good thing I bought another ‘wheelie case’ two days earlier … while I loved the gifts etc, they were quite large, and weighed a ton (the box itself is really really heavy!) … and of course because Brenda didn’t stay at the Hotel I ended up with two boxes, with the quandary “how the hell am I going to get them home?”.  In the morning I did some major rejiggling with the suitcase and managed to get one box in the bottom of there, then I asked the airline staff to let me take the 2nd one on board with me (the one with the certificate) – as it turned out it wasn’t an issue, as I managed to get business class home again, and you’re allowed two pieces of carry-on bags anyway … phew!  I almost dumped the second box, but then decided against it, as I figure it will make a lovely storage case for some stitching supplies, or other crafting supplies 😉

So, all-in-all it was a wonderful, wonderful experience that I’m extremely grateful for.  Mind you, by the time lunchtime rolled around the next day, I probably wasn’t quite as grateful for having the Chardonnay flowing so freely as I do have to admit to feeling ever so slightly seedy haha.

Home & Family TO BE FIXED, Travel

I’m back and feeling refreshed! (day 1)

Anne S

I’ve decided a mini-break is most definitely good for the soul … especially when you spend it with friends that you’ve known for a squillion years (I’ve known Nigel for about 30 years, and Brenda for about 14).  I’m definitely going to have to do that more often – and as well as that I played tourist on my own for a bit, which I haven’t done in a very long time, and it felt really good 🙂  There are a fair few photos I’d like to share, so I might split it up into a couple of posts … I’ll document it all in chronological order, so it makes more sense to me more than anything else …

My trip to Sydney started off quite eventful – I had my little ‘overnight wheelie case’ packed in good time and ready to walk out the door at the planned time, until I flipped over the top of the case to zip it closed … only to find the zip hanging off!  A slight panic ensued as I struggled to find another bag that would suit … finally I found a soft-sided bag that has back-pack straps hidden away, and everything fit in it nicely … not a great start to the trip, though!

I arrived at the airport, after leaving my car in long-term parking, just in time for check-in and wandered through to the gate.  My company were very kind to send lounge passes to make the trip more memorable, and gave me a ticket that was able to be upgraded to business class if there were no paying customers wanting the seat – it was a wonderful way to start being spoilt.  (You may/may not recall that the reason for this trip to Sydney was for the service award presentations to eXcel winners from all over the company, and we were being flown in for a big gala event in our honour, so we got spoilt from start to finish.)

The flight to Sydney was pleasant and smooth, and when I got there I went straight to the train lines to journey into West Ryde, near where Brenda works so she could pick me up and drive us home from there.  When I arrived I had 1 1/2 hours to kill so I just went for a wander and eventually found a shopping mall with a Gloria Jeans coffee shop … I plonked myself down and stuck my nose in my Jeffery Deaver book (The Empty Chair – great book!) with a coffee or two and waited.

I hardly recognised Brenda when she arrived – she’d had her hair cut off short and lightened, and has lost about 30kg … she looks amazing!  She hasn’t changed inside though, and is still the same Brenda we all know and love – she’s so bubbly, and so much fun to be around … it was wonderful to see her again.  When we got home I got mauled by the over-friendly border collie Dusty, and snubbed by the two cats (although we were the best of pals by the time 24 hours had rolled on by … especially with Obi who is totally schizo and normally has nothing to do with people).

We didn’t have to wait too long before Nigel got home from work, and there were more hugs all round … then we did a quick change of clothes before heading off for a short walk to dinner – they have an “Outback Steakhouse” just up the road from them, so we went and troughed out after Brenda and I slugged back a frozen Margarita each 😉  It was a wonderful night – there’s something to be said about hanging out with people that have known you for so many years … there’s a level of comfort that is so refreshing, as you know they already love you and accept you warts and all, and there are so many stories and memories that you share, it’s such an awesome feeling.

We spent the rest of the night watching TV and chatting, then we hit the hay for the night as we had to be up early.  Brenda was going to run me up to the ferry terminal before work, so we had an early start.  I had the earliest start of all, however … I opted against taking my separate alarm clock with me and thought I’d just use my mobile phone … hmmm, dopey me forgot that daylight saving had changed, and I’d forgotten to reset the time on my mobile phone clock – it was amazingly quiet in the house when I got up to have my shower and get dressed to start the day … and has a lot to do with the fact I was actually up at 5.30am!!  What a blonde!!!  Gave us a laugh for the day, though, and I’m happy to say my mobile clock has now been updated! 😉

I’ll continue the story in a new post, as there are some piccies coming.

Gifts TO BE FIXED, Home & Family TO BE FIXED

It’s all about me …

Anne S

Today has been a day of doing stuff just for “me”, and I’ve absolutely loved it!  I know this has all been generated by having this evening function to go to, but I was thinking today that I really should do this sort of thing more often, because it makes you feel fantastic!!

I started the day off with a drive into the suburb where I work (which meant those RAK parcels are also now on their way, as I dropped into the PO Box first), and spent 4 hours in the hairdressers getting a cut and colour done.  I have to admit I was a bit worried when the colourist turned out to be just learning, but between her and Sam (the guy who did the cutting and styling) they did a fantastic job, and I feel wonderful! 😀

When I had my financial woes before Christmas, I couldn’t afford to get my hair cut for a few months, then in January I tried to book in only to find my stylist had left the salon.  Since then I just haven’t had the impetus to find somewhere new … until now (I can’t believe it’s been almost 6 months since my last cut!!).  My hair is now styled a tiny bit differently in that I no longer have the short fringe (it grew out due to not having a regular cut, then a compliment from a girl at work made me decide to try it out that way for a while) … and there’s a lot more blonde in it than I originally had (I can see Mum cringeing all the way from there! LOL) – and I truly love it!  I’ve kept the length in the back, but it’s more shaped in the sides around my face and has more layers … I wish I could get a photo of it for you Mum, but you’ll just have to take my word for it that it’s nice 🙂 

Another great part of this is that during that 4 hours I also managed to get some serious reading in for a change – I took in The Empty Chair by Jeffery Deaver, and managed to get up to page 226, which is not bad going considering the book only has 594 pages, so I almost got halfway through in one sitting … geez it felt good to have the time to read – I usually feel guilty if I’m not stitching at home (which is why I use books on tape so I can do both), and it feels particularly fantastic to have a book in hand again … just a bit more added bliss for the day 😉

From there I went to the local lingerie shop where I was holding a shop credit for some PJ’s I’d bought and returned last year – and bought a pair of black bras by Playtex … something I was getting quite desperate for, as I haven’t bought new bras for, dare I say it, about 5 years.  The extra great news was that they cost exactly the same as my PJ’s so I had absolutely no outlay whatsoever yippee!

Then lucky last I called into Strand Bags where I found a reasonably ‘OK’ smaller handbag that will hold my small digital camera, and a small purse and mobile phone for the evening … on sale at a very expensive $6.99 – I nearly cracked up when she told me the price, as I was quite thrilled with the $14.99 price tag that was originally on it … $6.99 was a steal!!  I also found some jewellery that was lovely, but I don’t see the point of paying $90 for a necklace when I probably won’t wear it that much, so I left it in the shop, along with the $189 black wrap I loved … instead I’ll see if I have time tonight to think about putting something together myself.  If not, I’m happy with the plain gold jewellery I wear every day (ie just a plain gold chain I got as my farewell gift from work in Auckland, and a gold ankh I bought in Egypt), as well as Mum’s gold chain bracelet she gave me last year.

I can’t take a photo of me wearing the outfit, but here’s what my new top and shoes look like.  I’ll be wearing plain black pants with it.

That would a wonderful day in itself today, but the threads arrived that have been on back order from Karen at Dragonfly Dreams, as well as Mum’s aida we ordered for her.  The infamous Rainbow Gallery thread I’m waiting for to start the Laura J Perin canvaswork piece is still AWOL, though … I think they now hold the longest record for the back order of items, as I think it’s almost 9 months since we ordered it from RG.  I haven’t stressed about it at all, though, as Karen has continued to keep me informed along the way, and that’s the key to great customer service … communication! 😀

The other thing that is wonderful is that my ducks came home to roost from Vash – along with a pack of cards and fridge magnet from Cornwall.  Thanks again Vash for getting them finished – and thanks also to Wendy and Lynn for their work on this beautiful piece, it will be treasured for years to come and will be one of the first things I get framed this year! 😀

Lucky last, thanks also to Vee, who surprised me totally by a Random Act of Kindness … I have been stunned by the generosity and love shown by my fellow bloggers, and this gift from Vee is no exception – she sent the most wonderful packet of White Hot Chocolate with marshmallows (a little mini-kit, how cool is that?? – I can’t wait to devour it!), along with a fusible letter “A” that I’m conjuring up wonderful uses for … not to mention a pile of scrummy blue threads – how gorgeous is that little bundle of blue goodness?  Totally scrummy, everything!  Thanks again Vee for truly bringing some joy into a crappy week!  It actually arrived on Friday morning, but I forgot to post about it until today (my mind was pre-occupied with Mum’s farewell).

Well, that’ll just about do me for today – I think I’ve waffled on quite sufficiently for now … see you again in a week’s time, after which I’ll hopefully have some Sydney tourist photos to show, even if there’s no stitching 😉  Now I’m off to start packing … my least favourite part of any holiday, except maybe for the UNpacking ;P

Cross Stitch, Home & Family TO BE FIXED, Works in Progress

A quick update before I fly out

Anne S

It’s been an interesting week in many ways – after the stresses of last week Mum and I cleared the air on Friday morning and went shopping … I found a top to wear to the eXcel function at Target of all places for a very cheap price, meaning I also didn’t have to undertake the lengthy drive to Dandenong.  We then had lunch with Fraze in the city before heading to Myer department store where I found a pair of black shoes for my outfit … I feel so much better now!  I’ll take photos later of the whole outfit if I get chance 🙂  It was a really lovely last day for Mum, and one that we enjoyed immensely.

Unfortunately the flight loadings weren’t looking too fantastic, so Mum had to be dropped off at the airport before work on Saturday – I could’ve cried when the alarm clock went off at 5.30am, and I have to say it was the longest shift in history to get through to my 5pm finish time … but poor Mum was sat at the airport for 4 hours before her flight – I’m not sure which was worse!!  Eventually, though, she got home OK … and I have to admit the flat felt very empty when I got home that evening – but I got busy and cooked up a beef in red wine casserole, did a load of laundry washing, and some parcelling up of RAK’s, and it helped to fill in the time.

 Talking of RAK’s, I was glad to hear over the last week or so that my last lot of post I sent to people have now all been received … I’ve been scouring wishlists and sending off charts from my “I no longer love it” pile and sending them off to someone else that will give it a more loving home 🙂  Some of the recipients have been on the blog-circuit, but others are from The Wagon BB – TW’s Lily Maiden and Spring Faerie are now being loved, as is HIH’s Steeple Sampler, and Barbara & Cheryl’s City Collection, plus Marbek’s Regency Angel … and there is a small pile of the next round ready to be posted out to new homes … plus a few others that yet have to be parcelled up.  I was originally thinking of putting them on Ebay or Trademe, but to be honest I can’t be bothered with the hassle of either (although the money would have been nice LOL) – it feels so much nicer to give them as a small RAK knowing that it will be well received 😀  Here’s the latest round ready to go … will one be coming to YOUR door? 😀

I’ll finish with a quick update piccie of my Peacock Needlecase … still nowhere near being finished, and unfortunately my hissy dramas over the evening outfit threw all my plans out the window, and I’m now waaaay behind schedule with this project as I haven’t touched a needle in just over a week.  But I still have two weeks to go before the class, and miracles do still happen … right? … OK, maybe not 😉 (sorry for the crappy photo … and for those of you with eagle eyes, yes I still have one row of chain stitches on the bottom right-hand side yet to complete)

Only one more day before I fly out to Sydney, then I’ll be out of blogging/email action until at least next weekend.  Tonight I had a phone call from the best friend in NZ – which was a wonderful pick-me-up, and definitely what the doctor ordered … and in two short days I’ll be living it up with her brother and beautiful SIL in Sydney – yippee!! 😀

Hope everyone is healthy and happy … I hope to get back to reading what you’ve all been up to when I get home 😀

Home & Family TO BE FIXED, Melbourne, Works in Progress

Now Mum’s cruel!

Anne S

After telling her this morning that some of you have been Googling for huntsman spiders, she said “ooh, do it for me too, I want to see them!” … seeing as Mum is computer illiterate I’ve had to sit here and Google it for her … the last thing I wanted was the damned things sitting on my computer screen, but she got to see them!  Funnily enough, Mum’s not overly fond of spiders either, especially those that size, so it was a big ask to get her to come to my rescue … she’s not terrfied of them, though, like I am.  Apparently I’ve been like it ever since I was small – I’d scream the place down to get them to remove a ‘money spider’ in my room (you’d be lucky if one of those is more than about 2mm in size!!).  I have to say I can deal with the little ones now as long as they’re not actually on me, but I reckon huntsman spiders are just hideous – you could put a saddle on and ride the damned things! LOL.  My apologies for not putting a hyperlink in here for you to the spiders … I only thought about that after I’d shut the site down again (very quickly after opening it, I might add!), and I really don’t want to go back in again – you’ll just have to Google it from scratch haha.  And I’m not posting a piccie here, otherwise I’ll freak every time I see my own blog 😉

Yesterday, before I went to work, I managed to get a few more stitches put into my Peacock needlecase while catching up on CSI episodes we’d been taping during the week … inbetween listening to the ‘zoom-zoom’ noises of the Australian Grand Prix Formula 1 cars zooming around the Albert Park circuit – I’m amazed how loud it sounded yesterday to say we live a couple of km away from the tracetrack!  It’s a busy week in Melbourne with the Grand Prix, the Melbourne 2007 FINA swimming championships, and (of more interest to us) the Stitches & Craft Show.  We’re sitting on the fence at the moment whether to go to the S&C Show on Sunday, but we’ll play that by ear on the day – neither of us have any money so we’re thinking perhaps it’s best to leave temptation out of it and stay home LOL.

Tonight is my last 6pm shift, thank goodness … next week it’s more civilised with a mix of 3pm and 12 noon shifts, yippee.  Only another week and a half before Mum heads back home again.  She actually offered today to fly back over while the builders are here fixing up the building if I pay for her ticket with my frequent flyer points … she’s a real sweetheart.

Well, I feel a bit more awake now so time to tackle my stitching for a bit … I got woken up from a deep sleep (no nightmares, thankfully) by fighter planes flying overhead, getting ready for the aerial display during the Grand Prix – that’ll be fun to watch over the weekend if we’re around – we were in Acland Street at St Kilda last year when it happened, and it was great to see the formations flying overhead 😀

I’ll finish with a small shot of one of the leaves right outside my lounge room window – as you can see autumn has arrived down under, and it’s awesome to sit and watch the leaves change colour each day … I’m actually thrilled I’m still here to see autumn arrive in Elwood, as my street is gorgeous with all the elm trees changing colour right up both sides of the street … very pretty 😀

I’m now backed-up with the SBQ’s from the last three weeks, so I’ll finish (I promise this is the last ‘finish’) by catching up on the questions:

28 Feb – Today’s SBQ was suggested by Danielle and is:

“Do you find yourself stitching faster when you are getting to the end of a design?”

I’d probably have to say that depends on the design itself, but generally I guess the answer would be “no” … when I get that close (for example, the Dratteds) I don’t stitch faster, but I do feel more motivated to stitch “more” on it … I just don’t want to put it down so I can get it finished in its entirety – but then when it’s finished I almost feel let down, expecting fireworks to go off in celebration, instead I feel “is that it?” LOL.

7 Mar – Today’s SBQ is: 

“Do you use your needle, a seam ripper, or something else when you have to frog stitches? Why do you use the method that you do?”

I mainly use my tapestry needle where possible, but I will use the tips of my Gingher’s to snip a few threads if it’s getting tangled etc, or just to speed up the process (I just snip the top cross of the stitch very very carefully).

15 Mar – Today’s SBQ was suggested Danielle and is:

“If you had $500 to spend on stitching-related items, what would you buy?”

Geez, there’s a loaded question … and funnily enough I would answer this one differently now then if I’d answered it a year ago.  Right now I’m relatively happy with the stash I already have, and I’m pretty well set up as far as stitching ‘equipment’ (ie ott-lite etc) – I’d probably rather spend it on a stitching retreat, or ordering the full chart and kit for another Chatelaine design or two (that’d kill most of the money in one hit anyway LOL).  The only other thing would be to buy the threads that I still don’t have to finish kitting up some of my existing stash.

Right, now I’m definitely off to stitch for an hour – then it’s off to work early to pick up my overlocker from the ‘doctors’ so Mum can sew me a top or two … she loves sewing clothes.  Dad’s Mum was a lady’s maid for Lady Winterton in Shropshire years ago, and did all the Lady’s sewing – she taught Mum how to sew … and years later Mum tried to teach me.  I used to enjoy sewing, then learnt embroidery and my passion for stitching started … I’m starting to get the urge to try clothes sewing again, but it might not be for a while yet, there’s too much stitching to be done in the meantime LOL.  Talking of which, I’m definitely outta here now – way too much yapping being done, and not enough stitching! haha.

Cross Stitch, Home & Family TO BE FIXED, Melbourne, Stash, Works in Progress

Squishy mail & lovely visits

Anne S

Well, tonight I ended up having a reprieve from work … we had a wonderful visit out today, but driving home it took us over 1 1/2 hrs to get home from Eltham, and by the time I got home I was feeling decidedly squiffy again, so I called in work and said I’d be staying home for the night 😦  We even had to stop off at a local Dairy (stop giggling my fellow Aussies, that’s our Kiwi equivalent of your Milk Bar … I still can’t get used to calling it a Milk Bar – for you Brits out there, it’s the equivalent of the ‘corner shop’) so I could buy some ginger drink to try to quell the queasiness.  Anyway, that’s enough of me moaning … on to the brighter moments of the day 🙂

Before I do that, though, I just realised I haven’t written anything about our weekend social night out with Sharon and Pete … We went round there for dinner on Saturday night, and had the most wonderful time – dinner was divine and the company excellent.  I took my stitching with me but we were enjoying ourselves so much it came out briefly for a show-and-tell, but not a single stitch was done.  I also received a wonderful birthday gift voucher for Bustle & Bows from Sharon, and very touched with that generous gift … unfortunately the gift I gave Sharon wasn’t quite as good … unfortunately I’d chosen a chart I knew she loved, but she’d just bought it for herself as a kit … oops 😦  I already know what I’m doing next time, and think I’ll be safe with that choice 😉  Before we knew it it was almost midnight, and I felt like we’d just arrived – as always a definite pleasure and both Mum and I enjoyed ourselves immensely 😀

Back to today – we caught up with another fellow blogger and Melbournian for a beautiful lunch and stash drooling.  We drove over to visit Gina today, albeit half an hour later than we planned due to a visit from the real estate agent (which I’ll talk about soon), and then because I took a wrong turn and had to consult the Melways … because of supposedly going to work for 6pm we had to cut short the visit, as we knew the drive would take a while to get home – we would have loved to have stayed longer … next time we definitely have to choose a non-working day so we can have more time 🙂 Thank you again Gina for a lovely day out – it was great to finally visit and see that infamous collection of linens … and see your Indian first-hand 😀  Mind you, if I’d known I’d start feeling sick again on the way home, we wouldn’t have had to hurry off 😉

The other highlight of the day was the wonderful mail I received – firstly Becky’s piece for the Quaker Friendship RR … it looks gorgeous in real life, and I’m looking forward to adding my little bits to it in round 2 of this RR 🙂

Next up was my order from One Star’s Light – my Cat’s Whiskers charts and 17″ Q-snaps … and I have to agree with everyone else that Jenna’s extra attention to detail is lovely with everything individually wrapped in beautiful tissue paper and wax seals … even Mum’s drooling over the Alyssum scissor keeper, and I can see her extra birthday gift being something stitched this year (she already has the main part of her gift in some Gingher scissors etc).

Last, but certainly not least, is a wonderful RAK from Linda … she very generously sent me her copy of Just Nan’s Dragonfly Scissor Purse, and I’m just over the moon about that – I was seriously drooling over Linda’s blog every time she put a progress piccie up, and I’m thrilled that I now get chance to stitch one of these beauties!  That was enough on it’s own to have me grinning from ear to ear, but she also sent another chart from my wishlist, M Designs’ Snow Wonderful – I fell in love with this after seeing this on another blog, and yet again Mum’s eyeing it up too because of the snowmen and snowflake!  Linda also sent another chart which I hadn’t seen before – Winter Getaway, and I just love the little cabin scene, so it will definitely be stitched up as well.  Thanks again, Linda, I truly adore everything 😀

On a different note, we had a visit from the new real estate Property Manager, and she was dumb-founded by the cracks … I’m really impressed by her attitude – she took loads of photos and said she was calling the landlord immediately as the cracks were very serious.  As I said to her, I’m happy someone from the agency is finally taking me seriously, as my previous chasing phone calls were doing nothing at all.  Within an hour we had a phone call from her saying the landlord wants to visit tomorrow morning, and she’s trying to get someone from the Body Corporate out here immediately as well, because it’s that serious!  Hallelujah!!!  It will be interesting to hear what they have to say tomorrow! 😀

And to finish this very lengthy post, here’s the progress to date of my CA Wells’ Peacock Needlecase … not too much to show, but I’m not touching any other stitching until this one is finished in its entirety.  I’m feeling a bit brighter than when I first got home, so I just might be able to get a thread or two into this tonight … fingers crossed 🙂  Which is exactly where I’m heading now … off to watch House and Medium with Mum … aside from the squiffy tummy, it doesn’t get much better than this 😉

Home & Family TO BE FIXED, Melbourne

A Walk on the Wild Side & an unexpected gift

Anne S

Actually the title should probably be “Animal Quackers” ‘cos there are a few birds in these shots (surprise, surprise haha).  We survived a day at Healesville Sanctuary yesterday in the sweltering heat (38C), although we were exhausted by the end of the day.  We finished the day off with a quick stop at Emerald Lake Park, but we were so tired from the heat by then we just took a couple of duck photos and left again.  Anyway, we thought we’d share a couple of our favourite shots of the local wildlife from yesterday … makes a change from stitching 😉 (all the piccies are clickable for bigger versions)

 
An Aussie wildlife park just wouldn’t be the same without a Wallaby or two!


A Lace Monitor – he chose the time of our visit to clamber around, so it was hard to get a photo of him sitting still … but I love the pose in this one!


The pelicans reminded me of a holiday in Greece – two were casually walking among the visitors … I went a bit pelican-mad photo-wise, so I’ve just chosen one to share.


A male Lyrebird – first time I’ve managed to catch sight of one – the last time I visited I couldn’t find him in the aviary!


A Kookaburra taken through fine mesh wiring, so it came out really well considering … I really love this shot.


I’m not sure what type of duck this one is but she’s cute!


Awwww, I just love this one – my favourite type of all ducks, she’s just beautiful!!

Today we braved the elements outdoors for a shorter period of time and just walked up to the local Video Ezy store to pick up a few DVD’s to watch – even with just an hour in this heat and we were ready to retire in front of the electric fan for the afternoon.  I had an unexpected birthday gift left by my apartment on our return, though … it decided to give me a piece of the architraving – such a generous gift, but I really wish it hadn’t!  So tomorrow will be spent giving my real estate agent a kick in the pants, as well as phoning the landlord directly because the agent is doing sod all about these cracks … I took a few other piccies as well of cracks that are worsening, but I won’t bore you with those.  I will, however, share the lovely birthday gift we came home to … or at least where it “used to be” 😦

Cross Stitch, Finishes, Food, Gifts TO BE FIXED, Home & Family TO BE FIXED, Works in Progress

A sip of Bordeaux (updated with finish info)

Anne S

Seeing as Carol as published her progress piccie of Bordeaux, I can now show my week’s progress as well – it’s a good thing I did my night’s stitching a couple of days ago, as I’ve been too busy yapping to Mum to concentrate on much else 🙂  This week I just managed one more little ‘man’ and a few more Rhodes grapes to complete the hanging vines, plus a couple in the border … I’m now exceptionally close to being halfway, and hopefully in about 2 weeks I’ll have met that milestone!

Mum and I just popped over to The Needle Point (old Bustle & Bows in Malvern) to find a couple of buttons, seeing as they have probably the best selection I’ve seen in Melbourne to date … unfortunately they didn’t have what I had in mind, but I managed to find a couple of charms that fit the bill quite nicely, so now I can put the final touch to my best friend’s belated birthday gift, and the last ornie I stitched.  Vicki’s birthday was in November, but that was when I had my financial meltdown and couldn’t afford to buy bread and milk, never mind parcel postage costs, so I’ve been unable to think about mailing it until recent times.  I don’t know if she reads my blog regularly, but I don’t think she’ll mind a sneak preview anyway, as it’s been long overdue … I’ll post another piccie when it’s finished-finished, as I want to make it into a quilted wallhanging (which’ll be a first for me).  But here it is, with all the stitching completed … I ended up choosing a silver heart charm instead of the recommended button/bead, and it seems to compliment the design well (you can click for a bigger piccie on this one).  On the whole I enjoyed stitching this one, but it took a lot longer to stitch than expected … the only part I didn’t enjoy was the outside borders of smyrna crosses in #8 pearl cotton (yuk!).


Friendship by Calico Crossroads
Stitched on mystery 28ct linen with recommended threads
substituted silver heart charm for Mill Hill glass treasure

You can tell Mum’s in the country … from my meagre pantry offerings from the last few months, the following plate is definitely NOT the norm, and probably won’t be seen throughout the rest of Mum’s stay (after that, that is haha) – but it was a wonderful treat for our first night 😀  Yep, we’re both prawn MAD … don’t they look scrummy? 😀  That was our snack in the afternoon … then the rest of the prawns for dinner along with some Turkish bread and a selection of dips (Tzatziki, hummus, spicy capsicum), stuffed green olives, Kalamata olives, stuffed bell peppers, grilled mushrooms and artichokes … yummo!!!

 

Now on to the awesome gifties Mum brought with her … I received a lovely sarong from Auntie Trudy in Auckland – even though it’s not blue haha, I love bright colours, so the orange has gone down a treat, especially as I love all the Hawaiian/Fijian style prints like this. 

Then of course there was the usual ‘Red Cross parcel’ from Mum – this time she came loaded up with Twisties, Griffins Gingernuts (sorry, but they beat Arnott’s gingernuts hands down in my eyes), and Malaysian style noodles packet mix that you can’t buy here … and to top it all off some NZ Cadbury chocolate – believe it or not, it’s very different to the Aussie Cadbury chocolate, and is actually a bit creamier.  Bang goes any thoughts of a diet I might have been having! haha. 

Last, but certainly not least – this is my Christmas present from my very best friend Vicki … my jaw hit the floor when I opened up this gift, and I actually felt quite overcome.  I absolutely ADORE this photo of us at Vicki’s wedding – we just look so ‘in tune’ with one another and completely at ease and loving the moment … I have to say it has been my favourite wedding ever, and it brought some wonderful memories back.  I’d just become a poor student before she got married, so I never could afford to buy some of the official wedding photos from the photographer at the time – it’s just wonderful to have one to grace my walls now.  I have to say out of everything, I adore this gift the most … it has a very special place in my heart!  Thanks so much Vicki, with all my heart!!  (Sorry about the poor photo, with the reflections from the windows etc – but it should be clickable) This is also the wedding that I promised the “Dratteds” (Dolphins Domain) as a wedding gift 😀  Also very special is the necklace I’m wearing – Vicki made that herself … the dangling part is from an earring that was her very favourite pair she bought at the Vatican – she lost one of them, and chose to give me the remaining one as part of my necklace … something I’ll always treasure, as I know how much she loved them!

The last photo I’ll show is of a few of the small gifts I gave to Mum … a couple of Christmas XS mags full of ornies for her to stitch, plus a pair of Gingher’s shears for her dressmaking (an early birthday present, even though her birthday isn’t until May it’s unlikely I’ll be seeing her again before then), plus some small Gingher’s scissors for her embroidery.  I also had a pile of Christmas fabrics for us to share, but we haven’t divvied it up yet, so no piccies. 

And on that note I’d better sign off … I’ve managed to get tomorrow off work, thank goodness, as I’m still really struggling to get over my night shifts this week, even more so than normal.  Even Mum commented how dark the circles are under my eyes today, just to cheer me up haha.  Now we’re off up the road to pick up a few more fresh groceries ready to cook dinner … the final lot of prawns we bought (we’re making a Thai Green Curry from half of them, and Garlic Aioli Prawns from the other half).  Then we’re back to having cheap food like spaghetti bolognaise for the rest of the week LOL. I actually received two other birthday parcels, but I haven’t opened them yet … I think the temptation may finally break tomorrow though! LOL.

Home & Family TO BE FIXED

The Dragon has Landed …

Anne S

Mum’s flight arrived in good time this morning, and after we picked up some grocery shopping we headed home for the rest of the night. Not much else was done today except for an awful lot of show-and-tell with both of our stitching, and swapping of gifts … and lots and LOTS of talking! 😉

This is just a really short post to say that all-in-all this has been a wonderful day! 😀  I’ll post more later when I get chance, as I have some lovely gifties to share! 😀