Great book I read today...

I love Erica James and this is her at her absolute best! I could not put it down and have done not a stitch of sewing today! Isn't a treat to find a book you enjoy and to sit in the sun enjoying it. Thanks David and Chrissy for all your work today giving me the day off!

Two more monsters...

The wee fella is called "Georgie" and is for James, his ipod fits in its mouth! The flying pig is for my coach, Mike, because when I first started coaching, I didn't believe I could achieve my goals and have made the first three!

Recycling.....

Take an old dress and shirt (two dollars each)....

and a short while later you have.....Cool eh! I'm really pleased with it.

The biggest sandcastle ever...

This morning after we finished our jobs in double quick time, we went off to the beach to build a sandcastle "big enough to be seen from outer space"! we had so much fun working together, and went home all sandy for lunch!

Home again

Chrissy, Reuben and I came home today. David and James have been doing fantastic work around the place, especially paving and such like. it looks great. I had forgotten that all the Christmas decorations would still be up - shame. Memo to self, PUT THEM AWAY BEFORE YOU GO ON HOLIDAY! Nevermind. Some more great books had arrived from Amazon. I wish I knew how people put links to things in their blogs or I could show you. Anyone who wants to tell me, please feel free!! I've posted all the photos of my very productive two week.

Two more projects....

Here is the beautiful bag (I'm thrilled with this) I made for MYSELF from the pattern by Leanne.

Here is a wee project I 'faked' for one of our staff whose wife is having a baby. I made a bag, change mat and zippered purse thingy. I'm terrible at zips though, I wish i could conquer them. Anyway once I load it with wipes, lotions and nappies it will look fine!

Photos as promised...

Here are the little monsters we made yesterday. Aren't they great? The kiddies love them!

Here is the family holiday quilt pieced ready to go off to Verina.

Here is the blue boy quilt. Actually I have completely finsihed this quilt. But did not take a photo of it. It looks great. I just need to put the boy's name on it (when I find out what it is!!).

Here is the baby quilt for Sarah.

Here is the whole thing, unfortunately she had a boy and I think it looks a bit girly. So I don't know if to finish it or give up and make something else.

Here are the first two monsters. (We made six all up)

Here is the Red Thailand backpack.

Here are the embroideries for the Family holiday quilt before I pieced it.

Here are Chrissy's snowglobes before I packed them up. She gets one each year.

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.