I love my Mum...

I could do up an endless list of reasons why I love my Mum.  This week though it's because she loves her gardening and I'm a very grateful recipient.

We had some really, really hot weather last week and over the weekend it's been very windy.  It's also very dry and as a result parts of our state are battling bush fires.  Thank goodness there's been no loss of life but a number of people have lost their homes and unfortunately the weather forecast isn't favourable.  

What we need is rain.  Good, soaking rain to help but that's not looking likely right now.

As a result of the heat and the dry weather, Mum's garden started to look a little worse for wear so she harvested as much as she could and has delivered some of it to my sister and myself.

We have cabbage, leeks, zucchini (courgettes), tomatoes, choko, lettuce, celery, parsley and snow peas.  I will admit that the snow peas didn't make it to the fridge as Miss R and I munched on them which means they also won't be making their way into the stir fry for dinner either.

Thanks Mum.  Love you lots!

xx Susan

This weekend I'm loving.....

Crochet

I finished the white shawl last week but have only just got around to taking a photo of it to show you.  

I've also been working on the table runner I started a week or so ago.  It may not look like I've done much but I ended up pulling the whole thing apart and started again, this time using a longer stitch than I was using before.  It's coming together a bit quicker now and we are friends again.

Reading

I re-joined my library recently and have been making up for lost time.  I hadn't visited for about a decade and was no longer on file so I've joined again and am now happily spending about half an hour each night reading a chapter or two.  Although if it's a book I'm really enjoying then that time can stretch out quite a bit!

I'm reading books I would never have thought about borrowing before and have decided that if I'm not enjoying it, I don't have to finish it.  Giving myself permission to do that has opened up a whole new world to me.

The best thing is, it's a nice 5 to 10 minute walk to get to the library so I'm enjoying my little outings.

Keep up your recommendations on your blogs my friends as I'm looking up any that interest me and putting a hold on them. 

Eggs

We seem to go through plenty of eggs in this house.  Luckily there's a poultry farm right next to the primary school so I can call in and get a tray (2 1/2 dozen) when I do the school run.

We often have quiches or omelettes and Master M's favourite breakfast is an egg on toast.  When I buy a tray I usually boil some up once I get home and keep them in a bowl in the fridge.  The kids love them for a snack and they're also great with a salad for lunch so we certainly plough through them.

So this weekend we have a bowl of boiled eggs waiting for snacks and plans to make mini quiches to freeze for school lunches.

Sleepovers

I have no photos of this although Master M had a night at my sister's with his best mate and cousin Master R.  They were apparently very excited and quite noisy (usual when they're together) but had a wonderful time.

Miss R and I had a quiet girls night at home since hubby is away at work and we certainly loved the peace!

I hope you are all enjoying your weekend too.

xx Susan

Back into the swing

I wouldn't say the last couple of weeks have been hectic but they've been very up and down.  I'm not sure how else to describe it really but it seems when we've had the down moments, hubby's been at work and I've had to hold the fort.

I'm used to it but it can wear you down and I ended up crashing down with a bit of a thud last week after days of picking kids up early from school for appointments or because they were sick or because they weren't coping with certain things.

So I've pretty well been away from the computer and dealing with what needs to be done around here.  Thank goodness hubby was actually home for a whole weekend as he was able to take on some of the load and I could start putting myself back together.

I haven't been crocheting much either but on the weekend my mojo started to kick back in and I picked up the hook and started on something easy.  I've decided to make a table runner for our old and scuffed dining table and after a few stops and starts, decided on a simple mesh stitch because it was the first thing I worked on that I could vision on our table.

The above photo is the start of the table runner and is my usual 'start of a project photo' that I take to remind myself of what size hook I'm using.  I can't tell you the amount of times I've forgotten about a project then months later when I find it again, I can't remember what hook I was using.  Now I take a quick snap and I haven't had a problem since. 

On Saturday, while hubby held the fort, I escaped for a few hours.  I took a basket with a picnic blanket, my latest library book, some yarn and hook and my camera.

I found a quiet spot to park myself for a few hours and read my book for a bit, crocheted something random, drank tea, ate chocolate and just soaked in the view and the quiet of my chosen spot.

Actually it wasn't really quiet because it was blowing a gale so the wind was a constant companion but it was better than being in an overcrowded shopping centre somewhere.

I chatted to a few people wandering along the path by my picnic table, mainly when I had my crochet out as it's amazing how many people ask what you're making.

I also watched the most gorgeous pelican float around a man with his cast net for about half an hour.  I'm sure it was hoping for an easy feed but no such luck was to be had and it eventually flew off.

So the batteries are recharged again which is just as well as I've just checked hubby's schedule and he'll be away for the next two weekends.

Over the next few days I'll catch up with my blog friends and slowly work my way through my 'to do' list and keep on top of things as much as possible.

All I can say is...thank goodness for slow cookers!

Have a great week my friends.

xx Susan

Random Friday

I've been feeling a little rushed today.

It's the last day of the school term and I've been zooming about trying to get some things done while it's just me and I don't have to worry about organising kids as well. 

 I'm half successful as I've found that I keep starting things then next moment I've got side-tracked doing something else and I'm not crossing much off my list at all.  Hence why I'm now writing this which wasn't on my 'to do' list but seemed more fun than scrubbing the toilet and paying some bills.

Not a lot has been happening here these last few days either.  Hubby went back to work yesterday so it's just the kidlettes and I until mid next week.

I've started a new project using some of the Rosabella Threads yarn I bought earlier in the year.  I LOVE working with this yarn as it's so soft and gorgeous and doesn't split.

I've got a bit of an idea of what I want the final piece to look like but I'm trying to work out what other colours I'll need to make it happen.  For now though I'll continue making the motif's in the Rose so I know how many I can get out of one skein.

Time to rush off again.  I have a meeting at the Primary school soon and then Master M will get an early mark on the last day of the term as I don't really feel like heading there again a few hours later.  

Enjoy the rest of your week and I hope you all have a fabulous weekend.

xx Susan

mid-Winter

The solstice nearly passed me by this year.  I don't usually do much to celebrate except light a candle and reflect a little on the previous six months and work out what bits of my life I might like to give a little polish to over the next six months.

When I think of mid-winter, images of dull, dark, grey, cold and rain usually come to mind.  Those images are pretty well the opposite of what we are experiencing at the moment.  With so much bright light about, I didn't even think about the solstice so thank you to Miss R for reminding me.

I have to say that we are pretty blessed to live in a beautiful part of the world where the winter's are very mild and most days reach around 20 Celsius.  There has been some sneaky breezes keeping the temperature down and making me very happy as I get to wear my scarves, shawls and wraps for a brief time.

We're even putting the heaters on of a morning as the temperatures have been getting down to single figures at night!

The kids keep telling me how freezing they are so I keep telling them that a family holiday to the snow is out of the question then because if they can still walk around in t-shirt and shorts right now, then it's not really cold!  They don't believe me of course.

Enough of the weather, I'm sounding very British aren't I? (sorry to all my Brit friends :)

I've been without a car for the last week as well since hubby's car is still at the panel beaters after the accident about a month ago.

That meant he had to take my lovely beastie to work this week and the kids and I have had to rely on family for the school runs.  Thank goodness hubby's cousin lives in the same street as us and hasn't needed his car during the day so I've been able to borrow it for a brief time of a morning and afternoon.

No car on the weekend meant we couldn't get out and about to enjoy the gorgeous weather.

We had to make do with a couple of meandering walks to the shops for supplies which I always enjoy.  It's not far but it really is a pretty little walk in parts and I love that you can see some of the Glasshouse Mountains peeking above the houses and shops.

Since we weren't able to get out and about, I ended up getting a bit more done on the wrap I'm making.  I'm really enjoying this one and am very happy that the green is starting to subtlety make it's way through.  A few more rows and it should be more pronounced.

Have a wonderful week everyone.  I'm off to do a speed run of housework so I can get back to my wrap.

xx Susan

Time management

I'm the first to admit, and it probably won't come as much as a surprise to any of you that I'm a fairly organised person.

In a previous life when I used to head off to work each day I would have my routines and to do lists and get through my days easily and happily (mostly), even if there were deadlines or last minute changes.

So when you finally realise that a big chunk of your life isn't organised and your time management skills in that area are pretty crap, then it can drive you a bit batty.

That area is between the hours of 9am and 3pm each day when the kids are at school and is something that I usually just flit my way through trying to fit in all the things I need to do, procrastinating on a lot of things (mostly housework) and not getting to the things I really WANT to do because I tell myself I can't start them until I've achieved some semblance of order elsewhere.

(Valentines flowers my lovely hubby surprised me with)

A few weeks ago I had another one of those light bulb moments.  It was an idea that seemed so obvious that I wondered why it has taken me so many years to work it out.

I've decided to treat my day like a work day.  Just because I'm a stay at home mum, which is something that I really, really love, doesn't mean that I can't look at it as a job.  I mean, when it comes down to it, it IS a job that you do 24/7.

So I decided to get myself organised and use my time better during the day in the hope of creating a little more order and a little less chaos.

Virtually the second I thought of this I headed straight down to the newsagent to buy a diary because I knew that was going to work best for me.  I need something visual that I can scribble in and I found the perfect sized one that I can look at one week at a time.

I'm not putting appointments in this diary but crossing out sections when I'm not home.  It won't be intricate, flash or detailed.  Most mornings I walk the dog after I take the kids to school so I'm not home until at least 10am.  So my day really doesn't start until after then.

Each week I first cross out when I won't be home and then I look at what needs doing and pencil things in.  I'm not filling my days up either so that I feel like I'm rushing around all the time.  What would be the point of being your own boss and managing your own time if you put pressure on yourself by saying that you just have to get things done.

The other day I had pencilled in just two things that were my priority for that day.  I had procrastinated on them for months and in the end it took me a little over 15 minutes and I had both jobs completed.  I then had the option of starting on one of my other jobs for the week if I felt like it or dipping into my crochet basket and working on a project I had been putting off.  (I bet you know which one I chose to do).

So now I'm finding that I'm getting more done, I'm procrastinating less and I also seem to have more time to do other things.  Oh and it's not like I sit around all day when I've finished something either.  There's still washing to be done, floors to be swept, toilets to be cleaned, grocery shopping to be done and the hundreds of other little things that are a part of home life.

I'm a lot less stressed about things because I realised that the only person who was putting pressure on me to get things done was ME.  Now I know that it's okay, that things will get done even if I don't do them right now and the bonus is that I'm a lot calmer, not as frustrated and definitely not as cranky (the kids are loving this one!).

(My new tealight lamp that sits in the middle of my table)

I'm not organised to an inch of my life and my new schedule leaves a lot of room for change and is working for me.

The best thing I can say to others is that nobody knows you or what works for you better than yourself.  Work with what you already do most days because when you really look at your life, you'll find regular routines everywhere and you probably don't even think about half of them.  

(The buds from my Valentines flowers that I can't throw away but have no idea what to do with)

Thanks for listening to me ramble.

The cyclone which was heading our way late last week ended up heading away from the coast so the torrential rain that was predicted didn't eventuate.  We stayed true to our plans of doing not much at all over the weekend and loved it.

I hope you are all having a good week.  I've already had a few changes to my schedule with hubby being home but I'm okay with that as I'm just re-arranging things in my planner. :)

xx Susan

What to make with some of my stash?

I'm slowly going through my house decluttering at the moment.  I say slowly because I don't want to crash and burn as I have in the past and am trying to get into the habit of maintaining the clean areas before I head onto the next section.

More on that in another post but I have started to go through my yarn stash.  I did last year too and made a good dent in it and then of course ended up buying more yarn to add to the stash.  I know I'm not alone in doing this as we all seem to have a magic stash of yarn that never seems to go down no matter how much you work your way through it.

I've pulled out 4 lots of yarn that I want to work on before I buy any more.  Wishful thinking maybe but I've decided to give it a go.  The only problem is that I have no idea what to make with them.  I know inspiration will come to me but I am getting close to finishing my other projects and really need to start working out what to make next.

I have one 200g ball of 8ply yarn from the Bendigo Woollen Mills.  I can't remember if this one is pure wool or is a mix so I might have to do a bit of research as I've lost the tag that came with it.  I love the colours and am thinking that a scarf may be the best option.

I vaguely remember buying the next lot of yarn years ago.  I know I started making something with it as I'm sure I had about 6-8 balls of it but I can only find 3.  I can't even remember what I made and who I gave it to, if I even did give something away.

I do like the colours though and will ponder on what to make with this for a little longer I think.

I have 4 balls of Drops Delight which I think will make a lovely shawl so I might have to work on a pattern which will highlight the lovely colours.  It is a sock yarn (I think) so you never know, maybe I'll have a go with the pointy sticks and try and knit some socks.

I'm not sure if I'm that brave yet but you never know what I'll end up doing.

The final group of yarn that I'm wanting to work on are 5 balls of Stylecraft Special DK.  They're not my usual colours and are leftover from yarn packs from other projects.

I really want to make something with this first, mainly because they're the ones that take up the most room but I'm stuck for ideas.

I've looked through Ravelry to get some inspiration and find a pattern that I think will work up well in these colours, as well as making sure I have enough yarn for it.  A couple have caught my eye but I haven't been able to decide on anything yet.

Hopefully inspiration will come soon as we have a cyclone coming our way and are expecting it to be raining a lot over the coming week. It's really windy here today but we've only had a couple of small showers of rain early this morning.  That will change in the next 24 hours no doubt.

So since it looks like it's going to be a bit of a wet weekend, I'm hoping to snaffle myself plenty of crochet time and will be ready to start on a new project.  

I'll keep you posted on what I decide.

xx Susan

Calendars

It's the time of year when Calendars of all descriptions seem to fill our lives.  Advent Calendars are popular of course and there are so many amazing ones out there.  It's also a time when we start thinking about wall and date calendars for the looming new year.

For the past decade I have given a calendar as a Christmas gift to Grandparents and Great Uncles.  They're loved by everyone as they're full of photos of the kids from the previous 12 months.  They're also a practical gift for people who don't really need anything.

Around October or November I start collating the photos from the year, picking out fun ones as well as beautiful ones.  Sometimes I realise that I don't have a photo of both kids together then I have to try and organise a happy photo of them together which is not always successful.

Below is a sneak peak of this years gift.  I won't show you more in case the recipients read this and we don't want to spoil it for them.

Lots of websites these days do photo gifts including calendars so you can pick which template you like, upload the photos, add them and faff around with them in the calendar then order it.  It's a great thing to do when you can't sleep at 3am.  By the time the sun comes up, half your Christmas shopping is done!

Last year I tried Vistaprint calendars for the first time and I was really unhappy with the quality of the calendar.  The cardboard was thin and cheap and as you'll notice in the next photo, the corners curled in rather quickly.  

This year I've gone back to my usual Snapfish site which is an Australian site.  They do great quality calendars and often offer discounts so you just need to be on the lookout.  For those in other countries, I'm sure there are some great local sites there too.  Just beware of cheap priced ones, it usually means cheap quality cardboard.

Advent calendars are also being opened every day here.  It's all chocolate (Master M) and candy (Miss R) for the kids.  I found some other ones that I thought they would like until I realised the cost of them and stuck with the sugar rush.  The kids love having a treat at breakfast at this time of the year!

In past years I've used the Advent Reindeer line which have pockets in the back of the stockings for treats.  When the kids were little I used to put in a rubber ball, a Christmas stamp, a lollipop or any other small (cheap) thing that I thought they would like.  By far the best year was when I printed out a Christmas colouring page and rolled it up like a scroll with a piece of ribbon.  They loved having a special colouring page each day.

I usually do a candle for myself but have found that in years past I would forget to blow it out and then two or three days would burn down at once.

No such problem this year as I found a tea light advent which has been perfect.

Behind day 1's little door was a sweet glass candle holder with gold stars on it.  Each day there's a candle with the loveliest Christmassy smell that I light and then let it burn out to its hearts content.  I don't have to worry about remembering to blow this one out!

The other calendar taking up my time at the moment is my financial calendar.  It's very simple really and is just a cheap one from the local discount stores.  I like to get a paper one each year as they're so much easier to write on and then start adding when bills and things are due.  

Only financial things go on this so I can keep track of when not only loans are due but our rates, electricity, water, car and boat registration as well as dog registration.  In the top corner I jot down what bills are due in that month so I never have any nasty surprises.

It certainly makes keeping a track of our finances so much easier and I can quickly look at it to see what's coming up in the future.  I also started keeping track of it this way because hubby's not the greatest when it comes to finances and it's quick and easy for him to see what's going on too.  Not that he usually looks at it though, he still asks me!

What calendar things do you have going on at the moment?  I like being organised so if you've got some ideas please share!

I hope you are enjoying your week my friends.

xx Susan

Random moments

This last week and weekend has been filled with all the normal family things as well as organising school stuff in the lead up until the end of the year.  Only 3 weeks left before they're home for the summer break and I find myself desperately looking forward to them being home and wondering how long I'll actually cope with them underfoot every day.  Sometimes it's such a fine line.

Until then, I'm busy concentrating on what's in front of me and not thinking too far ahead and I'm finding that I'm slowly getting through my 'to do' list.

There has been sewing in the household of late.  I have finished the teacher's gifts but won't show you until after they have been given as I'm not 100% sure if any of them check in on my blog from time to time.

I also made some little Ouchie (or Owie) packs for one of the kids former teachers.  They're mini wheat/rice packs which go in the freezer instead of warmed up in the microwave (although you could do this too).  

I always had a couple in the freezer when the kids were little for those moments when they would get a little bump and it would be such a big crying drama.  The ouchie packs aren't as cold as ice packs for a bump you really can't see and gives them just a little comfort.

I made some for one of the teachers when Master M was in grade 1 and the other day she asked me to make some more as she loves using them in the classroom for her little charges.

Afternoon play fun has also been had with cousin R.  These two are not only cousins but best mates and are trying to spend as much time together before the school holidays as we won't see R for the first half of them.

A small, basic set of mittens has been made for Master M's school friend.  His friend loves the ones I made for Master M years ago and wanted a pair for himself.  Despite the heat he apparently wore them ALL day at school when he got them.

I've started a crochet commission for a friend too and have decided that some of this project will be worked in the day time only as it's black.  I'm finding that my eyes these days need that little bit of extra daylight to see the black stitches but I'm fine working the other colours at night though, thank goodness.

My lovely Uncle took my sister and I out for lunch the other day.  The company and conversation was wonderful and the food at La Dolce Vita restaurant at Bulcock Beach in Caloundra was superb.  Watching the stormy skies and moody ocean was a bonus too.

The only down spot of our lunch was the fact that I closed my thumb in the car door as we arrived and I sat through most of the meal with my throbbing thumb stuck in a glass of cold water and ice!

A few days later and I now have the loveliest deep purple and black colours halfway up my thumb.  I'm hoping that I'll still keep the nail.

A note from Master M to hubby (and hubby's reply), left on the fridge.

The weekend has been a bit of a revolving door weekend.  That's what I call it when Master M and his mate N from across the road trade their time between the two houses.

Master M spent Friday night at Master N's place then they turned up at ours early Saturday morning and spent the day going between the two houses.  Master N then had a sleepover at our place on Saturday night so I made pies to keep the hordes happy. (I did cheat and used bought pastry)

X-box was played, the trampoline was jumped on, a ball was kicked and movies were watched.  (Miss R is hiding under her well used blanket on the floor)

Despite my sore thumb I have still been able to hold a hook so I've been able to work a little more on my commission project as well as my granny blanket using my stash.  I'm pleased to say that the stash is dwindling rather rapidly.  Yay!!

I hope you've all had a wonderful weekend and the weather is kind to you wherever you are in the world.

xx Susan

The ants go marching

We've had a little trouble with ants marching through our house in recent months but haven't been able to find where they were coming from.

Mystery solved.  They were making a lovely nest in my fabric which I haven't touched since Christmas.

I was thinking about a future project so decided to sort through my fabric to see if I had anything that would suit only to find myself confronted with THOUSANDS of ants.  Not one of them was visible from the outside of the fabric but once I unwrapped it then it was game on.

I thought I was very ingenious years ago by wrapping the longer pieces of fabric around some corflute so I could stack them up like soldiers and have nice, neat shelves rather than a teetering mess.

Apparently the ants thought it was ingenious of me too as they made nests in the centre of the corflute.  The above and below shot shows you the last pieces that I tossed in the bin and they were the least infected which is why you're getting a photo.

I had about 15 other pieces that every hole you see was full and literally thousands of ants running over each piece of corflute.  There was more black from the ants than white corflute!  I was not taking the time to stop for a photo shoot with the ants running up my arms.

Apparently squealing and running around tossing fabric is a normal thing for me too.  The kids didn't notice a thing.  I'm not sure how concerned I should be about the fact that me acting like a lunatic doesn't hit their radar.

The dog noticed though but he just stood in the yard looking from the pile of fabric to me and back to the fabric like he was at a tennis match.  

I think my lesson is that I need to sew more. :)

I'm also pleased to say that our ant problem seems to have been solved and I now have clean fabric and tidy shelves.

I also took the time to declutter my fabric and took a really good look at what was there and what I thought I would use.  About a third of it will now go to a new home where hopefully it will become the perfect project for someone else (yes I washed and ironed it first).  I find it so much easier to declutter when I think of someone being happy or excited about getting something of mine that I may love but no longer have a use for.

I hope you all have a lovely week.  I will be enjoying an ant free one. :)

xx Susan

Friends

If you've heard of the term Pen Pal then you are a minority in the world these days it seems.

With our lives full of instant messaging via twitter, facebook, Instagram and so many other social media sites, the days of putting pen to paper are well and truly over.

Can you remember writing about what was happening in your world and taking the time to really explain things properly, especially when you sometimes had weeks worth of your life to write about.

 When you were finally done and signed off with a flourish there was a  ceremonial sealing of the envelope (or the old thin, blue airmail paper), and wondering if you had forgotten anything that so desperately needed saying.

Once you had put that precious letter through the sometimes freaky and sinister looking post boxes, you knew it was out of your hands.  You could only then wait for a reply, sometimes months later before the whole cycle would begin again.

If you remember that then you might be interested in this story.

I would like you to meet my sisters.    

Liz on the left.  Sandy on the right.

Everyone I know recognises Sandy and thinks that she's my only sister because...well basically she is my only blood sister.

I also have another sister who has been a part of my life since I was 6 years old.

Sandy and Liz have been pen pals for 38 years.

On the left you have Liz.  She grew up in Yorkshire, England.  On the right you have Sandy.  She grew up in Queensland, Australia.  

Oh how I wish I had a photo of each of them at that age to show you but sadly I don't right at this minute.  (I may in the future.. be prepared girls!)

Through mutual aquaintances (thanks Aunty Alison on our side) and an introductory letter passing hands, I don't think either of these wonderful women realised at that age just how long their friendship would span. I have also just found out that Sandy still has the first letter she ever received from Liz.  How lovely and extraordinary is that!

Every part of their lives has been lived alongside each other, sometimes delayed depending on the postal service or just the reality of living your own life half a world away.  

The one constant is that they have always been friends and know that each of them are there for the other, if only in spirit when it's physically not possible to have a shoulder to cry on or a friend to laugh with.

 For me, Liz has always been a part of my life.  For as long as I can remember she has been mentioned and I can remember being so excited when a letter would turn up in the mail.  Not only would my sister get to hear from her friend but if I was lucky, she would let me know (or even READ..sQUeaL!)  the latest letter and I would get to hear about life on the other side of the world.  

The first time I met Liz was when I was 20.  Sandy had already had her first trip to the UK to meet Liz and her family a few years before that.  

I also have so many fond memories of the time she first came out to Australia.   I mainly remember putting her in a car and the three of us driving to Cooktown and back visiting the Great Barrier Reef and plenty of other places in between.  It was well over 4000 kilometres in total and many memories made along the way.  

Then 4 years later I had the amazing opportunity to travel to the UK with Sandy and got to not only see Liz again but to meet her family.

That was 20 years ago and even though Sandy has been to England numerous times  since then, this is the first chance I've had to catch up with my other sister.

She's out here with her partner and son who is a similar age to my two cherubs, so it's nice to see everyone catching up and a new generation mingling. 

For now I'll leave you with a photo that I will always cherish and that's with my sisters.  Plural.

Love you both and thank you so much for being incredibly amazing women and so much a part of my life for as long as I can remember.

I have Kleenex or Poise available, whichever is most appropriate at this time in our lives. 

xx Susan

Slow

Sometimes I really feel like I need to give my life a bit of a re-boot.  

You know when you feel like you've been stuck in a rut for awhile even though you're reasonably busy.  

Well I feel like I've been in that rut and am slowly crawling my way out and I'm doing that by appreciating the normal and everyday things in my life.

Things like my daily walk with the dog.

We go most school days after we've dropped the kidlettes off at their respective schools.  Not only is it good exercise for both of us (I've lost 15 kilos in the last 18 months - yay!), but it's sometimes the only time I really get out of the house during the day.

The weather has been gorgeous lately too which has made for really enjoyable walks and we're into the last month of winter here so the mornings are still cool and the days are lovely and comfortable.  Pretty well perfect really.

We go at a time and place where it's wonderfully quiet and you don't often see anyone else on the track with you.  We do see plenty of golfers out on the nearby course and get to know some of the regulars on their particular day of the week so we're not entirely isolated but the track is ours the majority of the time.

I love going where we go because it also means I don't have to have my boy on a lead.  I don't really feel like being dragged behind him on our walks so he can run and 'open the throttle' as much as he likes and then keep coming back to me which gives him some great extra exercise too.  

It's also some quiet time out in nature where I can recharge my batteries and ponder things over as I plod along.  Sometimes I just want to zone out and listen to music and other times I need the quiet.  It all depends on how I feel and what I need that day.

I've been crocheting a little too.  Not as much as I would like as I'm STILL working on Miss R's blanket that I started at the beginning of the year.  (She's in High school now so I've decided to drop the 'Little' from Little Miss R).

Somedays it feels like a bit of a slog to pick up the crochet hook and do a few rows and crochet should NEVER, ever be a slog.  It's something I enjoy and I've decided lately to stop feeling guilty because I'm taking some time for me to sit down and do something I love.

The fact that my girl has been cold and is harassing me to finish her blanket might also have something to do with that as well. :) 

I am happy to say that I'm over three-quarters of the way through it so hopefully it won't be too much longer now.  

I'll keep you updated on the progress as blogging a little more regularly is another of those 'me' things that I want to do to help me get out of my rut.  

Just thinking about and remembering to take some photos has already changed how I'm looking at my life again so we'll see what other changes will come about over the next few weeks.  I sometimes find that when you decide to do something and make a conscious effort to change something in your life then it can be like a rolling stone gathering momentum.

I hope you all enjoy your weekend and the coming week.  Our family have plans to do some things with friends from England who are out holidaying at the moment.  They have a boy the same age as Master M and the kids all get along wonderfully so they're looking forward to spending time together.

xx Susan