Suzanne (the cardi).

We walked through the forest, she and I.
She didn't want to go at first but I needed to.
I had to.
So I bribed her with a piece of fairy bread and she came skipping.

I told her that the rules were that we were going to listen instead of speak.
That we would try to hear all the forest's noises.
That we would try to see all the treasures.
And maybe even some creatures too.

And she loved it.
She found handfuls of moss, mushrooms and interesting sticks and leaves.

She listened and heard birds and crackling branches and the faraway dogs.
She heard the wind through the trees.

And of course she heard the camera shutter.
Funny that.

I loved it.
I loved watching her.
I loved the silence.
I loved the stillness.
I felt like I could breathe. Like I could think. Like I was slowing down. Like I was listening.

And the day went on.

Miss Pepper is wearing my latest hand knit Suzanne the cardi.
Suzanne is the most wonderfully, clever pattern designed by the fabulously clever Georgie Hallam aka Tikki.
Suzanne is still in the testing phase but I'll be sure to let you know when it's released.
My Ravelry details are here.

Next I'm knitting a stripey hottie cover and crocheting the last of my motifs.
I like to follow long term projects with quick.
Do you?
What are you making at the moment?

I hope you are having a wonderful week.

Bye!
xx

Listen.

My word of the week is LISTEN.

I've never had a word of the week before but I do like the idea. And to be honest, lately I don't think I've been very good at listening. Hearing the noise, yes. Feeling and reacting for sure. But taking the time to stop and listen to what is really going on is something else entirely.

This morning in the midst of the morning chaos I took a few moments alone to listen. I heard the early morning birds calling out to each other, I heard the girls calling Jo Jo, Jo Jo, Jo Jo, I felt that Miss Indi might need a little extra loving and I felt stuffy and claustrophobic and a yearning for space and time.

Then I really listened. And I heard that I needed to break the routine, to get outta here. To clear my head and get some space.

I suggested a bush walk to my farmer boy and to my surprise he agreed.

So after dropping the girls and sorting a few things out, we walked up the back of our property, climbed over the barbed wire fence and into the bush.

And it was exactly what I needed and just so wonderful to see the reflection of the trees in the lake-like puddles. To breathe in the icy mountain air and have it burn my nostrils and fill my lungs. To spend time with two of my favourite boys. To explore with no plans. To walk behind and watch my farmer boy's cute bum. To start off freezing, but slowly become hot and tingly. To visualise the blood pumping around and healing my sore shoulder. To listen to the birds calling and the water rushing by. To remember how much we loved walking in the bush when we first moved here. To realise that I still do love bush walking. To watch Jo Jo run and jump and leap and climb and to watch as he ran off hunting for minutes at a time but always coming back. To discuss which animal made which poo. To wish so hard to see a wombat. To make a mental note to bring the girls along next time. To find a hundred year old drain under the train line. To marvel at the amazing effort of the men that built that tunnel by hand and imagine what their lives would have been like. To day dream. To chat. To be in silence. In the moment.

And then to return a few hours later refreshed and ready to take on my week. Everything looked different, even our house from the top of the hill.

It's going to be a wonderful week I think.

I wonder what adventures it will hold. I'm listening.

Are you?

xx

Recently...

I....

Took the girls' stuff personally.

Was amazed by Miss Jazzy's slide show.

Marvelled at latest Autumn's beauty, but was not thrilled by her iciness.

Was paid for a lesson in coloured water.

Was shocked by a friend's news and overwhelmed by her generosity.

Was pricked by teeny pins.

Tried to add colour to my outfits for fun.

Received a parcel of wool, a Miss Pepper dolly, a hottie kit and books in the mail. Thank you, thank you, thank you. xxxx

Changed the olive solution.

Was ultra-sounded and relieved.

Had lunch out with R and J. x

Cast off the bottom of Suzanne and started to answer the what's next.

Crocheted a square a day.

Wore a hottie in my hoodie.

Fashioned a masking tape ninja.

Only cooked old fave's.

Scored some great Johnson's, a tizzy dress and a quilt at the oppy.

Drove to the Rat twice.

Asked about the new stove often.

Thought a bit about stuff and foxslane.

Wore Hunters and Campers every day.

Remembered what 11 felt like.

Walked Jo Jo early and dreamed of a doggy door.

Discovered the joy that is vodka and organic ginger beer and mint.

Felt lost in some unexpected time.

Dreamed of the colourful legs that soon appeared in my inbox.

Left a vintage sheet at Vinnies.

Thought often of alpaca names.

Bought bread (come on new stove).

That's me...how about you?
What have you been up to?

The motif journey.

It's a really funny one this craft project with no end plan. This journey with no destination. It's so not what making something is usually all about.

Mostly, when I dream up a new crafty plan, there are all the fun aspects of planning, drafting or choosing a pattern, collecting the materials, and then making, making, making. But always the end result is there: How snuggly it'll be, how great it will look, how functional, how much I'll enjoy gifting it, how much fun...

It's the same with cooking the yummiest dinner, baking the best bread or cakes, building a chook house, and drawing a picture. It's all about the end result.

But this crafty project has been very different. My motif a day in May has ONLY been about the journey.

I am asked so many times a day what they will become at the end of the month. In fact when I see the growing pile of squares on the kitchen table, it is hard not to wonder myself.

I know they will not be a blanket because I have used too many different sized hooks and yarns plies. But other than that I have no idea. And I am trying my hardest not to.

The motif a day is about the doing one thing everyday for a month. It is about discipline and routine. It is about learning new crochet patterns. About colours and stitches.  And it is about taking time.

Come June the motifs might find them selves tucked into a drawer, they might be given away, they might get stuck up on a wall, they might become face washers and dish clothes. I don't know. We'll see. Time will tell.

This week in my over emotional state as all my children started to take giant leaps forward (Miss Indi with her high school orientation, Miss Jazzy with her slide shows and sculptures and Miss Pepper with her school preparation), I have tried to take deep breathes, to not cry too much and to focus on the right here and now. The journey.

The destination is inevitable...unless I tuck them up into a drawer with the squares...

In the last few days I have crocheted the Stained Glass square.

 The Red Heart square.

 The Daisy Chain square.

And the Sunray square.

All the details are on my Ravelry project page.

I wish the happiest of happy weekends to you and yours.

It'll be wet, wet, freeeeeeezing cold, wet here.

We'll be snuggling inside mostly, but venturing out on occasion to get to know our newest farm hand alpacas. A black boy and a white boy. They'll be guarding a flock of chooks, but also growing organic fleece for me to spin and knit. Hooray!! Welcome boys. (As yet unnamed).

So how about you, are you destination obsessed?
Or can you just sit back and enjoy the ride?
Do you ever make things just for the sake of the creating?
Are your children growing up too fast?
Are you having a great May?

Later. xx

PS. For my record: My big girl nearly had a heart attack this morning when she read ultrasound on my calendar. She was VERY relieved to hear that it's for my sore shoulder and not for a baby.

my week in squares.

In a way this little pile of squares represents a week in my life. Seven squares - seven days where I knew in the back of my mind that sometime that day, or that night, I would stop and sit down, choose a pattern, gather the yarn and crochet up a square.

So far a motif a day in May has been a pleasure.

So far there hasn't been a single day where I've not looked forward to my motif.

Last Monday I hooked up the Subtle Hearts pattern. Can you see the four hearts?

I made it sitting up in bed with my farmer boy next to me listening to a TED talk on his ipad.

It's actually a dishcloth pattern but I was dreaming of a hot water bottle pattern as the one warming my feet was burning me.

On Tuesday night I crocheted the Alter Ego square.

Once the girls were in bed, I sat on the floor in front of the fire and hooked up this trippy pattern.

On Wednesday we got our poodle Jo Jo and I took turns crocheting rounds of the Kata square and stroking his woolly coat. I forgot how comforting it is to have a warm, fluffy dog sleeping next to me.

I crocheted the Sunshine Lace square last Thursday in the car outside Miss Indi's first ever ballet class. It was freeeeeeezing in the car but oh so lovely to crochet away uninterrupted.

I love this square, it makes me think of the bright sunshiney autumn days we've been having. And she loved ballet. Yay!

On Friday I crocheted the Waterlily square in front of The Hunter. I love no TV during the week but I love movie night even more.

I love being able to crochet in the middle of the day on the weekends. In between taking Indi to singing and collecting the eggs, I sat on the couch and hooked the Colourful Bobbles square.

I did not enjoy making this square and I don't particularly like the outcome either. I guess it's OK to have some failures in my motifs month but I'm glad there aren't many.

To be honest, I think I like the back of the Colourful Bobbles square better than the front.

And last night, Sunday night, we watched some documentary about a horse whisperer and I crocheted the Tulip Square. Officially another dishcloth pattern. I love this pattern. I'm thinking I might have to crochet it again in another colourway on another day in May. But then again maybe not, I am loving the different square every day thing a bit too much.

All the pattern details for these squares are on ravelry - here.

So that's me, all caught up. And it's the start of a brand new week with another seven squares to come. And Miss Indi's high school transition day is tomorrow and Miss Pepper's prep orientation is too. Yikes. Might be a bit of an emotional week for me I think.

How about you?
What are you up to this week?
Anything exciting going on?
Are you liking my squares?
Do you have a fave?

See ya later square crocheter!

xx

Oh and I almost forgot, I'm guest blogging over at Christie's today.
Why don't you pop over and say hi.

Same dress-another season.

Thank goodness it still fits her.

I get so emotional about their clothes. Sometimes I get teary when they are too small and I have to fold them up and put them away, or hand them on. I think about where they came from. I reminisce about all the times they were worn. The stories they tell; the whens and wheres and whys.

The more girls that wore a piece of clothing, the harder it is to part with.

And if it was hand made, it is the hardest of all.

I knitted this little dress almost two years ago when Miss Pepper's plaits barely brushed her shoulders. She  wore it all through that winter and for the few cold months before we left last year.

I've looked at it hanging in her wardrobe most days for the past month. I've looked at it but left it hanging. I've been scared that I'd put it on her and it would be too small. That she's squeal as I'd try to get it over her head. That she'd be so big now that it would be a midriff top.

But thankfully today we tried and were rewarded. It is more of a tunic than a dress now, but I'm pretty happy with that.

And to make matters even better, I was rummaging around for a ball of yarn before and found a half a ball of the very same Noro colourway. So now when the dreaded day comes that it fits no longer, I can add some length to the bottom. Yay!

In the mean time I've made a promise to myself to let her wear it all the time and not save it for good. A well worn, loved, dirty dress is so much better than a clean, pristine dress I think.

The Ravelry details for Miss Pepper's Eve are here.

Do you do that?
Do you get attached to clothes?
Do you try to extend their wear by saving them?
What do you do with the clothes you made that no longer fit?
Are you having a lovely weekend?
What are you up to?
Ours has been pretty quiet so far, but pretty lovely...fires and knitting and movies and lots of playing with the new puppy. There's so much cooking to be done but we seem to be holding back, waiting for the new wood cooker. Possibly this week?

Have fun. xx

PS. Oh and I've still been going strong on my crocheted motif a day in May. Show and tell really soon, ok.