When 2 chickens are no longer enough

Well you see our 2 chickens are slowing down wit their laying, so many suggested that we "put them in the pot". Clearly we will never make it as any sort of farmer, we just couldn't do it, so we had to upscale. Our 'crappy corner', you know... that spot in the back corner of your garden that has the compost bin, the loose pavers etc... That area that is never going to grow grass or look pretty.... well ours is now a chook yard. they don't care about the compost bin, the pavers work great to 'dig proof' the bottom of the fence. So now our 2 old Isabrowns can retire there, we can bring in a couple of new younguns and keep the cycle going as apparently this yard can hold about 10 chooks if needed. No head chopping required.

Now the irony of this is, that once we put our old chooks who hadnt laid in months, into their new bigger yard, they were so happy they started laying again..... so we will just go with the chooky flow with that one.

It isnt quite finished in this pic. the timber on the right of the pic still had to go up and after the worst of winter is over we are going to plant some berries along the exposed side to screen it off a bit. Hopefully this will make it a little more attractive than it is at present.

The yard itself was quite easy, 3 sides were already there, we just had to build 1 (and a bit) and the gate, which id actually bits of our old fence, reclaimed (thanks to Dad and his welder)

so thats that we have a proper chook yard, finally! yay!

When pumpkins are on special

When pumpkins are just 99c a kilo, its only 5degrees outside at lunchtime and its overcast and sleeting, when the kids are snuggled up in front of the heater watching a movie, and ask for something super yummy for dessert that night... Seriously how could a mummy not go and cook up a storm! Pumpkin pie and pumpkin scones. The good were received with nods of approval all round whilst they ate. They even knew about the pumpkin in it... go figure!

There are few things sweeter than a bunch of freshly picked flowers. Except maybe when that bunch of flowers are painstakingly cut, trimmed, and forced into submission, I mean delicately arranged, and handed to me by a sweet 5 year old boy. It mgiht be my parental bias coming through here, but they are the most beautiful vase (ok Vegemite Jar) of flowers (well wild daisy's) ever.

It was 26 degrees on Friday

It is 16 today, and certainly less than that now!

I love the idea of winter, of cracking wood fires, comfy lounges and many hours spent under a blanket knitting away. Sadly that doesn't happen here. No wood fire here, we have forgone the beautiful flicker, the ambiance and that warm that seems to travel to the bone like no other form of heating, for the convenient and cheap natural gas heater, and my knitting is not done on a big comfy arm chair, heck I don't think we would even fit one in, instead it happens on a office chair made from a converted Monza rally chair while I read long and laborious chapters of textbooks.

Somehow, I still love that coziness of winter. It seems that when the heater comes out, so too does the knitting. I cast on a little something today. I am free-styling this baby so it may never see completion, but I am feeling positive.

Oh and this wool is just DEE-vine. I just love garter stitch when it is knit with a lovely wool like this one,

The Academic's Munchie Buster

There are only so many websites a girl can look at in an attempt to avoid study before she gets bored and needs a snack.... Enter "The Academic's Munchie Buster", a super dooper moist and rich, chocolate self-saucing pudding. It is made as a single serve, in a big coffee mug or any container you want. It is quick to make... but once it is cooked, the rule is you have to study while you eat it! Deal? deal? DEAL!


Ingredients
2 squares of chocolate (crumbled or chopped up)
1 tablespoon of vegetable oil
1 egg
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons of cocoa
2 tablespoons of self raising Flour
100mls hot water (from the tap is fine)

Method
Place the chocolate and oil in the cup or bowl you wish to cook the pudding in, and microwave for 30 seconds on high.

Give it a quick stir to blend, if there are sections that are not totally melted it doesn't matter.

Add egg and mix well (the choc/oil mix should only be warm, not so hot to cook your egg, but it is best to check..)

Add the flour, 2 (1tbsp reserved for sauce) tablespoons of the sugar and 2 (1tbsp reserved for sauce) tablespoons of the cocoa, mix well.

Pour the warm water on top and sprinkle over the remaining sugar and cocoa and give a gentle swirl to mix it.

Microwave on High for 2 minutes.

It will rise quite a bit and bubble as the sauce settles to the bottom so you really do want a big cup.

When it is done, top with some cream and HIDE to eat it...

Enjoy, and get back to your studies.

No bullet points this year.

There seems to be so dang many people posting new years resolutions. I don't want to. Sure I have tried to set new years resolutions in the past, both you and I know I didn't keep them. By the end of January I cling to them as they become painful chores. February sees them become twinges of guilt. June.... What new years resolutions??

I do see the appeal though. I am honestly finding it hard not to say to myself in my head "this year I will..." and it is probably best I restrain because honestly when I think of it, all my declarations really only bring forth an image of me being some demented reincarnation of the perfect 50s house wife.. making more clothes, baking more, meals from scratch, my perfectly renovated 50s house and sure I want to do all those things but public announcements made in bullet point format are not going to get me that.

So it has been a while since my last post. I do have some Xmas wears to share with you, some baking, and I am sure a few other things.. they will come later. For now I just want to share my op shop purchase... a whole whopping fifty cents worth
To be honest though, I cant see myself using any patterns really soon except for maybe the sun hat, it is divine. I hope to attempt one for Moo very soon :D Otherwise, some of the designs will make great starting points for a few of my on ideas.... hmm.... Talk soon guys

here comes another commitment

In 2002 I trained in acrylic nail application. I worked in a salon and then from home, but eventually with a little one under foot it became too much and I finished up. I don't think I have done a set of nails in, ohhhhhh, 3 or 4 years! until my brother's girlfriend insisted I do a set for her. Boy'o'boy I forgot just how much I enjoyed it. So with some prompting from those around me, and with quite a bit of interest from people about becoming a client, I am starting up again.

Sooo.... here goes again, from next week I will be working from home as a Nail Tech. I am quite excited about it. I really enjoy doing it. Times will be flexible and heaven knows the money won't go astray....

Perfect Points.

Perfect points really are the (dare I say it?) single most important element in a 'good' quilt.

I was working on a quilt today. Now this quilt is by no means my normal 'style'. It is very reminiscent of the 1930's quilting era. In fact the design is very similar to the "Shadow and Sunshine" design that was so loved in the '30's. The colours are not really my 'thing' either, they are not '30's repros but they do have that '30's feel to them. They are small prints, floral an the like... very '30's. So while I worked on this quilt who's design and fabric palette was not appealing to me... it made me smile. why? because perfect points give me inner peace!

Thinking about why I was so happy every time I opened out another freshly sewn seam, it was obvious. A quilt isn't made wonderful by using hideously expensive designer fabric, a beautiful piece of fabric is one that makes your heart sing and when you know it just has to come home and live with you. It doesn't matter who's name is on the selvage, we cut that bit off! A quilt isn't made wonderful by the expensive pattern, or by the intricate pattern. It wont matter if your quilt has thousands of minuscule pieces, not if they don't have perfect points! the simplest designs when pieced with perfection will outshine an uber expensive, million piece quilt if it is poorly pieced.

So this is why I smile when I open seams on this quilt. Not because of the expensive fabrics, because they aren't. They are run-of-the-mill, Spotlight quilt section cottons, but the person receiving this quilt will love them. I don't smile because I am working on a piece that is a triumph of patience... but because the simple, humble quilt I am making, I am making well.

Now I don't claim to be a master quilter.... not by a long shot.... But I am very particular about precision in quilting because this can make or break them. Some may call me OCD about this, and they are probably right, I don't care.. When I say perfect, I like perfect. I accept that there will be the odd seam that may be a few threads of the fabric out. I will allow these to exist, but with hesitance and annoyance. anything beyond that, and I am talking about a full stitch of your machine, so say 2mms out, and it is time to find the seam ripper. So, over 6 square metres in a queen size quilt, and I am going to stress about 2mms... YES. Yes I am. It all contributes to the final effect, and that 2mms here.. there... it adds up. It adds up to a sloppy and haphazard looking quilt, certainly not what your hours of work aims to achieve.

In short if you are going to do it people, do it well. It will make you smile. It will be your inner peace, and then you will realise that perfect points are chicken soup for the quilters soul.

ahhh nice....

Hmmm... not so nice..... Seam ripper, Stat!

hmmm..... who has a sweet tooth?

Firstly, please excuse my dodgy iPhone photo.... it is really not doing these little bundles of yumminess justice....

What you are looking at there is my Tiramisu and Cherry Delight fudge....

Just thought I would share :D

Sometimes...

... counting sheep really is the only way....

The Dubbo Show 2010

This weekend was show weekend. As a child show weekend came second only to Christmas. Naturally I have been quite excited myself about enjoying this event through the eyes of a child. We didn't stay long, only 3 hours and $100..
This year was a bit of a family event, my parents came with us and so did my brother and his girlfriend, who made excellent ride chaperons, for my thrill seeking boy.
I will let the pictures tell the story...

They say you can't make omelettes...

Without braking some Eggs...

Well here is my broken egg of a hallway...


The floor sander man, a family friend, comes on friday to polish the floors, which Despite their appearance here, are actually in fantastic condition and should come up great!

its been ages..

I am a bad blogger, ok, post a day till I am caught up... this is todays...

My Creative Space..

I have been meaning to do this for a while... so here goes a tour of my creative space... Note, Its not pretty, or spacious, but i love it all the same. It looks cramped and as though there is way too much stuff in there.... thats correct :D

If you take a quick little walk along the garden path, past the herb garden, this side of the the fish pond, you come across a little door at the back of the shed..... look inside..

and you have my sewing room. so working my way aound clcokwise...

The heating and cooling lol, obviously and not very exciting,

the 3 tubs are all my wool..

and my "for me" sewing area.

I keep a seperate area for sewing for myself and for money. I find that important.

The shelves are stacked with my quilt books, embroidery cottons and projects on the go or in waiting

I keep my domestic Overlocker, sewing machine and embroidery machine here.

the Drawers stock all my notions

the tub you see there is my quilts on the go.. (4 of them eeek.. me bad) and the blankets for them next to it..

My storage cupboard, this is actually the old pantry that we took out when we renovated the kitchen

Inside is (line per shelf)

Stationary and machines, inc my knitting machine

fabric, cottons, some small random craft items

nappy fabrics and my airbrush setup

Quilt fabric

Other random fabrics and patterns

Acrylic nail stuff and old text books

This is my 'for money' sewing area. what you see is my Rimoldi overlocker and sadly atm I am forced to use my domestic sewing machine on this same table till I collect my industrial sewer

This is my snapping table and cutting area,
underneithis my scrapbooking stuff...
the black cabnet hold snaps and other stuff
the crap you see in the corner is, well, crap, DHs that I am waiting on him clean it all out, thats where my sewing machine needs to go :D

so thats it... my humble little sewing room, studio, whatever you wanna call it...

Birthday Boy!!!!

The big 0 4 today for my georgous boy Bryn...

There has been alot of impatience surrounding today for a certain 3 year old who has been ready to be four for months..

we have had a quiet day, pressies this morning and lunch at the Pastoral, following that was the spectacular crash and burn you see here. I am sure the warm weather helped too though.

The Big Par-tay is on Saturday - will bring you some AWAKE pictures from there....

My "something for Mum" swap

This is what I received for my end of the Nappycino 'something for mum' swap.

I love it.

Its a 'sock box'. A little project bag, the perfect size for a sock project, or any project that only takes 100gms I would pressume (inc nb woolies :D)

The colour anf fabric is totally me!! and I dont have a small preject bag, even though I tend to take a small project with me where ever I go :D

Thank you swapper !!!

the sorting of the stash....

Just so happens to be more then just an afternoons sorting, This has been a 2week ongoing project, and I am about half way there... this is what I ahve sorted so far...

This is the poor little shelves holding my nb/small stash... so shelf by shelf I have...

NEWBORN STUFF

first 2 rows, front and back. All lotus AIOs, some normal PUL some minkee and some poly print AIOs

Third row back is home made fitteds

Third row front, is XS bubblebubs

fourth row back, is snappiable fitteds

fourth row front, is lotus fitteds

Fifth row back, is all swaddlebees fitteds

fifth row front, is mostly Kissaluvs with some cuddlebuns on the bottom

There are about 15 -20 more fitteds to be sorted through and about another 20-30 aios to be done aswell

Ok this middle shelf is a mix

Left is mixed small prefolds, and some fitteds

middle is small covers

Right is nb covers

I am sure I have another Doz or so dyed flats to dig out and some more small PUL and wool covers too...

on the very bottom of the right is a few woolies that went astray, I havent actually gotten to the small woolies box yet.

SMALLS

First row, front and back is Bubblebubs

second row back and front, is just assorted AIOS, mostly minkee

the rest, assorted fitteds

I still have a good 30 odd nappies missing here from memory lol

MEDIUMS

This is all I have come aross so far for the mediums... All my nappies are still in several removal cartons, being there is only a handful of smalls and NBs left to account for, the rest are mediums. So I could barely hazzrd a guess how many are in there, DOZENS of lotus aios I know lol, a few Fuzzibuns, some ittis.... oh god it will be like Xmas time again... as for larges.... there are none, Bryn never got into larges

This one is for you Mel...

Firstly
omg 2 food posts... whats the go...

Pics for mel who asked about lunch sandwich ideas and reminded me of my brushetta addiction, now I have been eating it almost daily....

Last nights Dinner...

... was so devine I had share...

Thai beef salad of our own design, Craig (aka DH) made the dressing, I did the rest.

There is a tonne of dressing left and it will keep indefinately so I can see this dish coming up often... mega quick cheat dish..

Where I say where??

did I put my blasted camera after taking some Mei Tei sewing pics..??

not only do I haveother photos to take.. but the photos that are on the camera too... I took step by step picsof making a 15/15mei tei with intentions of writing a tut... well we shall call today... hunting day....