And the final tally is...

Tomorrow Chrissy, Reuben and I are going home. We've had a great two weeks here at Coalgate. It's the longest visit to our cottage here, and its been fantastic. Because we were keeping Reuben quiet, I have listened to a lot of kids TV while I sewed! I have been so productive. This is what I have achieved....

1. Pieced and quilted blue boy's quilt


2. Finished embroidery and pieced Family holiday quilt


3. Pieced Baby quilt for Sarah


4. Embroidered and pieced bag (for me)


5. Finished the Red Thailand backpack


6. Made baby nappy bag, change mat and bits bag for Jenny


7. Made and helped the children make 6 monsters from the Plush-o-ama book from amazon.

Isn't that amazing? I impress myself!! I'll put all the photos up tomorrow.

Success!

I'm feeling very happy tonight. I managed to completely piece the Family Holiday quilt (by Ani Downs I think). It looks amazing though I say it myself. Still can't upload the photos but will do them all on the weekend when I go home. I left off all the 'girly' bits as it is for my best friend's dad who is turning 70 in May (how organised am I?). I'm going to send it to the lovely Verina for quilting. I am absolutely stoked to have it done so early, when I did the same one for my mother-in-law I finished it the night before! I'm having a very productive time here at Coalgate. It's been a beautiful day here, probably around 30 degrees C, just magic. My neighbour invited us to the school pool for a swim this evening and the kids had a lovely time. Reuben is a lot better tonight, although he still looks like an absolute wreck. We are seriously considering not going on holiday because of his mental health (or lack thereof). I was so pleased to have some time hanging out with our lovely neighbours, it restored my sanity!

Great start to 2008!

I've been busy this year!! I've finished all the embroidery for the Family Holiday quilt. Hurray! I may even get it pieced tomorrow, which would be awesome. Chrissy and Reuben and I came back to Coalgate at lunch time from the Cuzies. Reuben is really bad at the moment and is driving me around the bend. He has just got overtired and his mental health has correspondingly gone down hill. What can one do with an anxious, jumpy, paranoid 5 year old?? Thank God for family TV and a fluffy bean bag. Anyway I still managed to finish the top for Sarah's baby quilt which is great. That's two tops in two days! Yesterday I sewed a little boy's quilt in blues and yellows, its an easy peasy design which I adapted from one I saw on Leanne's website. All horizontal strips. I've put some words on with coloured felt and I like the effect. Also today I pieced the front for the bag I'm making (from another one of Leanne's patterns) and made two monsters! I got this really cool book from Amazon with all these monsters etc in it, so we adapted a pattern and made two. I'll post the pictures when I get home on Saturday, the vodum doesn't let me upload pictures for some reason. All in all a very good day, apart from Reuben that is! Chrissy and I even took turns going for a walk tonight. The dogs could not believe their luck!

Red Toe Nails

I decided that I wanted red toe nails. It seems so silly but i decided that painting my toe nails was a way to show that I cared about myself! so my 14 year old painted them for me yesterday and it’s true, I feel great when I see them.

See more progress on: Paint my toe nails red

I want to make a difference...

“The relationships we have with the world are largely determined by the relationship we have with ourselves.”
- Greg Anderson

“Until you make peace with who you are, you’ll never be content with what you have.”
- Doris Mortman

See more progress on: I want to make a difference.

Christmas is fun...

Wasn't Christmas fun??? we had a great day with our family. It was a beautiful sunny day and we were at our cottage at Coalgate. We sat on the verandah and chatted and ate! the youngsters went down to the river for a while and we all relaxed. Thank you God for a beautiful day. Today we it rained and poured but we still had a good day. Off we went to Ohoka to the 'cuzies' and spent the day there. We watched a movie (dejavu) and ate more good food. The kids watched Hairspray and ate a ton of chocolate favourites! I finished the red backpack we started in Thailand, it just needs a button and one of the embroideries for the bag by Leanne that I am making. I tried to post a photo but with the vodum it doesn't seem to be working. I'll have to do it when I get home!!

Merry Christmas....

Merry Christmas everyone! Give all your friends and family a hug and remember isn't it great we aren't perfect either!

A surprise in the mail....

Look at this wonderful surprise that arrived in the mail today! I'm so excited. I made this wall-hanging top and all around Thailand i worked on the blanket stitch. Whenever we were teaching I would take out my project and work on it. I left it behind and completely forgot about it. I was amazed to find it on my doorstep today, all beautifully hand quilted. I'm so touched by the wonderful effort that has been made for me. Isn't it gorgeous?

Here is a beautiful quilt I have just made...

I've been 70fying jeans for James' class, here are Carly's which are so cool I think.

All the Christmas presents ready for wrapping!

Whew! The sewing is done. The machine is packed away and the dining room has been reclaimed!

Last week's effort....

A very productive week!

I'm so over being sick. I'm still taking antiboitics for my strep throat and I have another cold and sore throat! It must be nearly Christmas and holiday time. I can't wait.
Yesterday I made costumes: three wise men, one shepherd, Mary, Joseph, an angel, the innkeeper and his wife.
This week, apart from working full time, I've made two lap quilts, put the binding on seven others and nearly finished a very pretty pink quilt. This will be my most productive week ever I think. I have made nearly all of the presents this year, I'm so pleased. I hope all the people that get them will be pleased too!
Today I have about ten pairs of old jeans to put flares in for James' end of year concert. Then I am going to pack up the machine till after Christmas!
I'll post some photos of stuff tomorrow.

100 Dreams

Here are my 100 dreams all ready to go....
1. Do the Akaroa three-day walk
2. Eat cake in France
3. Touch the great wall of china
4. Visit with Dutch Blue in Holland
5. Learn to paint
6. Write a book about my story
7. Write a receipe book for kids
8. Learn to ride a motor bike
9. Collect more enamelware
10. Learn to swim!
11. Be happy in my skin
12. Be a fantastic grandmother
13. Go to Jo Seagar's Cooking School
14. Plant more flowers
15. Go to the Bay of Islands
16. Travel in a camper van
17. Learn to play the saxaphone
18. Sing in a choir
19. Stand on the top of a mountain
20. Beat David at chess
21. Visit the Greek Islands
22. Eat pizza in Italy
23. Go to Morocco
24. Take bibles to China
25. Visit the Amazon Jungle
26. Swim in the dead sea
27. Go to the beehive and watch parliment in session.
28. Learn to light a fire by rubbing sticks together
29. Learn to recognize native flora in the bush
30. Master foundation piecing (patchwork)
31. Go scuba diving in warm water
32. Go to Canada and visit SusanE
33. Walk the Milford track
34. Sleep under the stars
35. Learn to recognise the constellations
36. Learn the names of the planets
37. Teach boys how to cook
38. Run a drop in centre
39. Ride/walk the Otago Rail trail
40. Be a mentor to others
41. Going to build an enormous sandcastle on the beach
42. Going to write a story with Reuben every day of these holidays
43. Going to bake Christmas shortbread and give it to my friends.
44. Going to plant at least one new rose in my garden.
45. Going to lose 10kg in three months.
46. Going to look after my skin by putting moisturiser on every day.
47. Going to read at least 5 good books this summer.
48. Going to visit the Art Gallery.
49. Going to cover my son's books with fancy covers for the new year.
50. Going to spend time working on my projects.
51. Going to clean out the garage and KEEP MY CAR IN IT.
52. Going to cook delicious meals for my family.
53. Going to have at least three families over for dinner over the holidays.
54. Going to reconnect with my friend Nicola.
55. Going to make my brother's birthday present.
56. Going to enjoy camping with my family.
57. Going to get some story tapes to make a long car journey more fun.
58. Going to read to my children.
59. Going to walk the dogs at least once a week instead of just sending the kids!
60. Going to paint my fingernails!
61. Going to paint a picture that I'm proud of
62. Going to declutter the hall cupboard
63. Going to Akaroa to lie on the beach
64. Going to sell some of my work
65. Going to create art works with my patchwork
66. Going to always have fresh flowers in the house.
67. Going to buy a new duvet cover for my bed
68. Going to stop wearing ugly underwear!
69. Going to only buy clothes I really love
70. Going to master using my overlocker
71. Going to do a patchwork class every term
72. Going to have coffee with a friend every week.
73. Going to watch a movie with David every term.
74. Going to have family night every sunday.
75. Going to make the job roster work.
76. Going to get a new cleaner.
77. Going to motivate women to make a difference in their world
78. Going to master the ipod and download things I WANT to listen to.
79. Stop wearing "don't come near me" pjs
80. Hug David every day.
81. Manage our business and steer it forward.
82. Look after my team.
83. Know the names of the team's wifes/partners and children
84. Send our team a birthday card.
85. Acknowledge work well done.
86. Set structures in place for accountability in every area.
87. Make sure that I can always be relied on.
88. Have a clear vision for our company's future.
89. Always have a spare bed in our home.
90. Get a budget for our family.
91. Encourage my children to make presents for their friends.
92. Keep a scrapbook of all the special things that come my way.
93. Write poetry.
94. Find a way to express the feelings I have that others can understand.
95. Cry at sad movies.
96. Cry when I feel sad.
97. Find good jokes to tell the kids.
98. Write notes for the kid's lunchboxes, at least once a week.
99. Get Reuben eating fruit.
100. Love the way that God created me unique.

Another Christmas present done...

This is with the new moda charm squares. I've never used them before. I started this quilt before work and finished it after work. Chrissy worked out the pattern. Isn't it great. So simple, but so pretty. Hope mum likes it! (Lucky she doesn't read my blog anymore or the cat would be out of the bag. I've put together one for my dad too, I just need to get some fabric for the border tomorrow. I'm on a roll.
Talking of cats out of bag, finally our puppy, Pepper, (maltese terrior cross) has gone off heat. Gosh that was an education for the kids. I wonder how long it will take till this happens again. Anyone tell me???

The finished Canteen quilt...

In the last school holidays, one of the boys at the children's school died from brain tumours. It was very sad. My eleven year old was very touched at the memorial service and realised that Saul had really made his 15 years count for a lot. Saul was an only child and James wanted me to make a quilt for his mum. So this is the quilt we made out of Canteen bandanas...
Canteen is an organisation which supports young people with cancer. Every year they sell bandanas designed by the cancer kids, to raise funds for Canteen. James helped me cut out all the circles and I sewed them on turned applique.
This is the back which James sewed all by himself. Yesterday it came back from the wonderful Verina, who made a great job quilting it, and I sewed the binding on last night. Another project finished and one we are truly proud of!
And this is the beautiful star which Corry made for me, hanging on my desk. Everytime I look at it, I feel like I get a hug from Corry!

Two more quilts find new homes....

This is a quilt I made a couple of years ago when I had my first hip surgery. I gave it to Heather on the weekend. She is one of my boy's brigade mums. Its her birthday on Christmas day and she will be all by herself. So I gave it to her so that if she feels sad she can wrap herself up in it and have a hug from me! Aren't quilts cool.

This is the gray day quilt finished. It's on its way to its new home...

Boy's Brigade weekend...

We had a great weekend. Not what we expected. We were booked into go to Journeys end, which is a great campsite in North Canterbury. There is facilities there and a great place to pitch tents. But there was a mix up and some people who don't wear too many clothes were going there! Not so suitable for our boys. So at the last minute we took them to our cottage at Coalgate and we had a great time. The boys went on a walk up to the old coalmine, went swimming, went to the river and collected firewood and had big fire and cooked marshmallows. I was not feeling great, so lucky me I got to stay inside and do all their meals. That was perfect for me. I made them all sorts of yummy things, one of the boys said "Deb is the best cook ever" but he's being kind, because it was just good boys food!

No I'm not faking it!

Whew I am actually sick!! I've been to the doctor I have a step throat. I cannot believe how sore my throat is! Now I have DRUGS hurray.

Plans for the weekend.

I'm off on Boys Brigade camp this weekend. I'm Camp Mother!! I've got two buy the food for 20 people today and deal to it all weekend. Usually I really enjoy it, but I've been sick all week with a headache and sore throat so am hoping to manage camp as well... didn't you know mummies aren't allowed to get sick! I love all my boys though, especially the naughty ones. They are the ones that need an extra hug as they are just trying to get your attention. I'm going to try and sew the backing onto the Grey day Quilt so I can do the finishing touches while I watch the boys. I plan to sew loads of grey toned buttons on it to give it some texture!

20 Things I want to do...

Why not dream?? Someone dared me to write 100 hundred dreams. Well here's the first installment! Who knows how these could happen, but if we don't dream they WONT.
So here is my first 20...

1. Do the Akaroa three-day walk
2. Eat cake in France
3. Touch the great wall of china
4. Visit with Dutch Blue in Holland
5. Learn to paint
6. Write a book about my story
7. Write a receipe book for kids
8. Learn to ride a motor bike
9. Collect more enamelware
10. Loose 20 kgs!
11. Be happy in my skin
12. Be a fantastic grandmother
13. Go to Jo Seagar's Cooking School
14. Plant more flowers
15. Go to the Bay of Islands
16. Travel in a camper van
17. Learn to play the saxaphone
18. Sing in a choir
19. Stand on the top of a mountain
20. Beat David at chess