listening in

I've had one of those days. Some days are wonderful, some are crappy and some days are just blah, blah-di-blah-di-blah. Today has most definitely been the latter. You know those days, nothing is quite wrong but nothing is exactly perfectly right either. It's like I've used up all my energy, and have nothing left. I've been sighing a lot.

This morning I woke up, got everyone dressed and ready and then I took myself back to bed with my knitting. I never do that. I have way too much to-do, to do that. But today I did.

At the start I felt guilty and a bit embarrassed. Especially when my farmer boy came in from fixing the tractor and my Mum came over to show me her new hair. But I couldn't help it, I felt heavy and stuck.

But then I sat there under the blankets and knitted a few rows and thought about kindness and being kind to myself and realised that I had to stay there. I had to look after myself and honour the way that I was feeling. I had no choice.

And then I felt a bit teary thinking about some of the stuff that has been going on in my world lately. Some huge life changing stuff, some house rearranging stuff, some changing of the seasons stuff, some sickness, some excitement and a lot of other bits and pieces in between. Sometimes I find having a little sob by myself feels just so sad, but also so cleansing. It's nice not to have to explain it to anyone else and just to let it all wash over me and then off and away.

After a while I got out of bed and did some things. Nothing big or bold and nothing that meant I had to get dressed. But doing nice stuff made me feel a bit better and that was good.

First I made a rainbow out of lots of odds and ends of wool. Making tidy and making pretty at the same time was always going to make me feel a bit better.

Then I picked some celery from the garden for a snack. This is the first year that we've been able to grow such great celery and eating it and running my hands over the tops of those lush green fronds is a wonderful thing.


Then I finally wove in the ends of my face washers and popped them in a parcel to post to Cath for the Bellingen ladies to pop into their Day For Girls packs. What a honour it's been to play a little part in such an important project. Thanks for organising it Cath. x



Then I looked out and found this dead bird outside my window. Poor little, tiny bird. When I went outside and picked it up I was amazed at it's weight. For some reason I had thought that it would be light as a feather but it wasn't. It felt heavy and earth-bound. I hope it had a wonderful life flying about our farm being free and fabulous and died in its sleep and not from hitting our window.




Then I took some pics of all my motifs so far. What a wonderful project it's been. The crocheting time, the thinking time, the zoning out time, the patterns and colours and cottons. 21 motifs made, 10 to go, I'm going to miss this project when the month is done.


Then I did some clearing and cleaning up of my new crafty office space, more on that later, and came across this photo of another time and place. Only about seven years ago but a lifetime ago all the same. I miss those times and those smiling faces. (I'm sobbing again…..)


Then I picked some leeks for dinner. I planted so many leeks this year and now we need the space - every 'what's for dinner?' question works its way back from leeks.

And then I ended up back where I started, writing my blog in bed with my knitting for company when the words needed time.

In the end I had a difficult but surprisingly lovely day. The outside jobs never happened, I didn't do nearly as much as I'd hoped to inside either, but I listened to what was going on with me internally and I honoured that and was kind. Tomorrow I'll be better off for it.

Sending love and kindness out to you guys wherever you are, whatever you are doing.

xx

Rainbow beanie.

The days are getting colder and wetter and I have a gazillion practical things on my to knit and crochet list. Scarves and beanies and jumpers and legwarmers and gloves and and and... But when I found a picture of this hat on pinterest, I just knew it'd have to jump the queue and take the number one spot.

Who can resist a rainbow granny beanie??

Not me! That's for sure.

I used this wonderful pattern.
I used a 4.5 hook.
I used lots of scrappy bits of yarn.
I added the ears just because I like ears on beanies.
I crocheted it last night and sewed the ends in this morning.
It makes me happy.

What's making you happy at the moment?
What sort of things jump to the top of your to do list?
What are you making?
Are you going to crochet a rainbow granny beanie?
Have you ever used a recipe/pattern/idea off pinterest?

Happy Sunday lovelies.

See ya. x

Yarn bombed!

So there has been a little craft going on in the background of this little caravan adventure we're on. A little bit of rainbow hooking here and there.

Can you guess what I've been making??

This is the before shot. Its the back of Frankie Blue, our caravan, and a clue.

Yep, you guessed it! It's a yarn bombed spare tyre cover for the caravan.

So much prettier than the boring old black tyre right?!

I was totally considering stitching 'Kate, Bren and the gang. Carpe Diem!' or maybe 'Say G'day channel 18 and 40' but I didn't.

Frankie Blue insists we drive pretty slowly so there's often trucks, road trains and other vehicles stuck behind us waiting to pass. Oh how I would love to hear what the drivers and their passengers say about our granny van.

The details are Raveled here and the colours go around and around in a spiral because that's the name Miss Pepper insists on calling our van.

We are in Darwin at the top of Australia. It took us one month and 16 caravan parks to get here. I think we'll hang out for a bit.

Happy adventuring!

xx

Rainbow Sunday.

Hello! How are you?

I'm good. I'm happy. I'm having a lovely day.

My folks have been staying here for a couple of days. After breakfast this morning, we rolled out the surveyed map of their block of land and talked about it. What's going to go where and how and when.

We often dream excitedly about what it will be like when they live across the lane from us, but its has been a long time since we've lived near by and I can't really imagine it. Shared meals, a break in their fence for my girls to ride their bikes up, company, extra hands, extra ears, extra drivers, extra cuddles, sheep, a place to run away to...it all feels so exciting.

After they left Farmer Bren went off to be a farmer and I took the girlies to the Sunday market. I'm on the hunt for floral china crockery for the caravan.

Soon after we got there Miss Pepper met a friend and went off for a play at her house. I think this might be the first time she has ever done such a thing. She must be feeling so grown up and independent right now. We feel a bit strange without her.

We shared some little pancakes, chatted with friends, I bought a jar of antique lace scraps and three china plates for a dollar and then we came home.

On the way home from the market we stopped and took some pictures with my new Grandma's Rainbow cushion. Its Michelle's latest pattern.

I finished it last night and realised I didn't have an insert for it. So I walked through the house pulling all the inserts out of other, shop bought cushions. I felt a bit like Goldilocks: this one's too big, this one's too lumpy, this one's too round. Eventually I made one myself and stuffed it with some quilt wadding. I'm still not thrilled with it but it'll do for now.

Grandma's Rainbow Cushion details here.

So now we're home. The big girls are making robots on the craft table, Bren is reading the paper on his ipad on the couch, Miss Pepper is still at her friends' house, I'm about to hit publish and then decide what to do with the enormous crate of pears my Farmer Boy just brought in and then maybe do a few rows of my knitting on the couch. Its cold, wet and windy outside. Perfect baking and knitting weather.

What are you up to?

Have fun out there.

XX

Auction prep.

Armed with my 3.5mm hook, a rainbow of wool generously discounted by Andy at Purl's Palace (who are having a massive closing down sale right now) and the most gorgeous cushion pattern donated by Michelle @ TheRoyalSisters (thanks so much Michelle), I am about to get started on my item to be auctioned for the Queensland Flood Relief.

The auction for my cushion cover will kick off next Monday morning.

My auction will be part of a long list of blogger auctions and raffles that will go up on Toni's blog next Monday.

To all those affected by floods or fires, we are thinking of you and wishing you safety, dryness and relief from it all.

Gosh, let's hope I remember how to crochet.

Loving...

The Rainbow Eden Dress!

I love this wool! I love how the colours bleed into each other.

I love this pattern! So perfect to show off the fancy colours.

And I love how soft merino wool is.

Raveled here.

I love that Jazzy loved her new Rainbow Dress so much, she was happy to brave the icy wind for a photo shoot.

I love that none of us has gotten dressed today. Lazy daysies.

I love, love, love the puppies. Puppy love - I totally get the full meaning of that term now. They are all huddled up together asleep right now in a bundle after a day spent feeding voraciously.

I loved scripting, casting, rehearsing, shooting and editing The Friendship Movie this morning.

I love the way Indi is moving into the spare room and the touches she is putting on it to claim it as her own.

I am not loving the sore pimple on my chin.

I love having my farmer boy at home with us all day long.

I love that the girls are all working together as I type this to make a batch of chocolate balls. Oh my goodness the mess!!

I love that her sticker chart is making Jazzy behave like an angel.

I love coffee and salad with haloumi and salty pop corn and summer fruit.

I love it that the girls are working through a book of fairy tales. The little girls take turns choosing and Indi reads them one each night before bed.

I love that there are no plans, no time-tables, just slooooooooooow summer days.

What's going on at yours?

What are you loving??

See ya later alligator

XX

Slow puppy Sunday.

At our house today we are all tired and slow after being up most of last night watching Willow the Maremma give birth to her six puppies, three girls and three boys.

It was such an incredible and emotional and humbling part of life to witness.

Willow has been napping on and off all day while her still closed eyes pups guzzle hungrily at her teats. She is such a great mama, so attentive and patient and adoring. And we have all been drawn to her like magnets, watching and stroking and checking and admiring.

I've been knitting a few rounds of Jazzy's rainbow dress here and there.

And taking lots of pics of it too.

We have been doing the farm chores and picking raspberries, strawberries, currants and gooseberries.

We have been making cubby houses and sand tea parties and we have been drawing, colouring in, dressing up and stirring yet another frothy pot of strawberry jam.

What are you up to?

I hope all is merry and happy and bright at yours.

Naughty girls.

Good morning!

How are you?

I'm good. I'm enjoying the first slow day of the summer holidays. We've got nowhere to go and no schedule to keep. So far the only thing reminding me that time is passing is the requests for more toast and more toast.

Indi and Jazzy are doing illustrating lessons on the computer, Pepper, Bren, Pierre, Liam and his kids are in the shed processing garlic and I am sorting photos and stirring my strawberry jam pot.

You guys were so wonderful and helpful with the title question I asked you the other day, so I thought you might help me with something else.

How do you deal with other people's kids when they misbehave on your watch????

The other day I took a whole lot of kids to the playground. They played for a while and then they noticed a young guy cleaning up the place. He was collecting rubbish and tidying up. They kept playing and watching him and giggling and I kept knitting. All of a sudden they erupted into laughter. I looked up to see one of the girls tipping a bag of our lunch rubbish all over the ground. There were food scraps and tinsel and bits of wrapping paper and confetti and glitter that we'd been careful to collect. It was a real mess.

I was horrified. I apologised to the man and asked him if he could get the girls to help him clean it up. He said no and that he'd seen worse and that it was his job and that he'd do it.

I turned to the girl who had done it and had no idea how to deal with her. She is not my kid. I gave her a bag and told her to get the big bits. I told her she had behaved badly and wrongly and disrespectfully. I told her that one day it might be her cleaning for her job and how would she feel if someone did that to her. I probably went on about it too long and then when I got them in the car to take them home I went on about it some more. To be honest I had no idea what to say or do though and I'm pretty sure that I made no impact on her.

So how do you discipline other people's kids? Is it my responsibility to teach them right from wrong? What would you do in that situation?

The photos are of the Rainbow Eden's Eve I am knitting. Oh how I love this wool. I wanna eat it. I am staying up waaaaaaaaaay too late watching each colour blend into the next. Love!

Oh and for those who asked, I bought the wool off a woman who was having a destash, she had bought it off a destash a while back and I have no idea where it came from before that.

Have a fabulous Tuesday y'all. XX