Taking Stock - October

Hello again! I have just come back from a glorious weekend in Tassie at our Close To My Heart Business Builders and then a week on the Eyre Peninsula with my family so I kind of feel like I need a holiday to get over the holiday but my love cup is certainly full!

I realise it has been such a long time since I updated the blog and to be honest, like many bloggers, I've been thinking about whether I let it go or not.  Photos have been my big issue (Samsung at home/Apple at work - Luddite girl in a digital world etc) but I think I may have worked out a sneaky way around that so we will see what happens. 

I have missed the accountability of regular Australasian Blog Hops so expect to see them making a comeback!

Anyhow, along with a few photos, here's what I'm up to:

Making : a mess - actually multiple messes all over the house as I try to do lots of last minute things before school starts tomorrow
Cooking : pork roast for tea
Drinking : copious cups of coffee in my new CTMH mug (love it!)
Reading: "The Expected One" - kind of similar in style to "The Historian" with shades of "Da Vinci Code" - not hooked yet but it is well written
Wanting: a holiday to get over my holiday
Looking: at the lavender outside the kitchen window which seems to have gone nuts while we were away
Playing: Stacy Julian podcasts on my phone
Deciding: to be more intentional (about my teaching and my business and my relationships with the teens)
Wishing: I had just 2 more days of holidays 
Enjoying: the blackbirds' antics out the window
Waiting: for lots of lovely new teaching resources to turn up in the mail
Liking: that I got to see a little bit of Hobart before I flew home last night
Wondering: how I got so lucky
Loving: That we are all home under the one roof and that hubby washed and changed sheets while I was away (it's the small things!)
Pondering: whether I will get some spinning time tonight
Considering: how to make the most of my day off this week
Watching: in between shows at the moment - just finished "Afterlife" and loved it, now not sure what to watch next. I haven't seen Better Homes and Gardens for a couple of weeks so I am wondering if I may finally have kicked that habit? Is it time for a new Friday night routine (gasp!)
Hoping: for an uneventful week at work (although it is a full moon!?!?)
Marvelling: at the unexpected strength of individuals in our community
Needing: to regroup and find some quiet reflective time
Smelling: pork roast (yum)
Wearing: skirts and t-shirts (my unofficial Karma East Summer uniform)
Following: teaching ideas on pinterest
Noticing: the weeds that have invaded with the warmer Spring weather
Knowing: my limits
Thinking: of the term ahead
Admiring: my friend Mel (an extraordinary human being)
Sorting: spelling sheets and lists of high frequency words
Buying: timers and counting games and big dice online
Getting: over a headache
Bookmarking: crochet shawl patterns
Disliking: waking up with headaches - think it might be time to go see my remedial masseuse.
Opening: Scotch Finger biscuits (nothing like them with a cup of tea for the ultimate comfort food)
Giggling: over Dan's "tick tock" that he created while I was away
Feeling: grateful for so many wonderful holiday memories
Snacking: on roast almonds
Coveting: beautiful wooden toys from Lyrebird
Hearing: gentle hum of the oven and the sound of Bathurst racing in the background
Knitting: trauma teddies for the charity project, a beautiful stranded yoke test knit, and hats for the market stall (slight addiction to Helix knitting at the moment - I seem to be a bit obsessive when I learn something new!)
Scrapping: a delightful new Christmas project from Close to My Heart
Grateful for: all of it; this beautiful life!

Until next time, I hope this finds you well, happy and living your best life!
Keep smiling,
Nell

This crazy chick got her "pirate teeth" in 3 separate dentist visits this holidays!

Helix knitting - the new obsession - perfect for using up precious scraps of sustainable merino

Coffin Bay - so good to finally get my Dad here even if the fishing wasn't great!

Close to My Heart Business Builders Australasia - how funny was it that my two lovely friends and I all turned up in the same Saffron colour! Love these girls and the positive influence they have on my life!

Mum and Dad brought my niece with them - such beautiful holiday memories for these two sweet cousins

Saying goodbye to these two never gets easier but we did have such a glorious time!

I got to play "tourist" in Tasmania last night (thank heavens for daylight savings!) This is the entrance to St David's park

Our beautiful Close To My Heart President, Monica Wihongi - I couldn't resist a photo when we are both wearing matching colours for this month's Hawthorn paper pack!  Monica has the rare gift of making every single person she comes into contact with feel special and unique. She frequently uses her presentations to tell me exactly what I need to hear at that moment in time! 

Moments like these make my heart soar - my Mum playing checkers with Mads and her cousin - just an ordinary, everyday moment made so precious by the fact that we don't get to spend much time with these two very often.

family time

Not a lot of crafting happening here lately because we have been having family time.  First my sis and mum and gorgeous little China Doll of a niece down from Queensland for a few days and now James' brother visiting from the UK.  Lovely time.  Family time.  Makes me miss them all so much more.  Makes me so very, very grateful for all that I have.

And while we are talking gratitude.  Tonight I started work on my soon-to-be-born-niece's quilt only to find that my quilter's pins all got left behind at our last quilt gathering so I had to hand-baste.  You know, we modern day quilters, we've got it pretty good!!! Thank goodness it was only a cot quilt!!!

Getting into the Groove

This dear boy started school this week.  He went off happily and confidently.  It felt good knowing that he has an awesome teacher, and a great group of classmates going through from kindy with him.

He was extra happy to see one of his favourite people, Kathy (who volunteers at our kindy and had popped in just to help settle them all - Kathy is one of the sweetest people I have ever met so I can understand Dan's crush on her!)

It has taken Maddie and I a while to get used to being "home alone" just the two of us!  I worked Tuesday and Wednesday but today I feel like we have truly found our new groove - just the right mix of housework and playtime.  I took Maddie to Spinners and Weavers (how very strange to just have one little person with me!) and she played quite happily so that I could actually get some spinning done!  There may or may not have been a little bit of adding to the stash (but I figure I have earned it with all the destashing and finishing and purging I have done lately!

Look how organised my storage looks in the new craft room!

On the weekend I also managed to finish my last project for January - my gorgeous ex-pat SIL sent me this tea towel last Christmas and I thought it was much too nice to use as a tea towel.

So now I need to start thinking about February projects (including the dreaded caterpillar quilt!)
Happy Thursday to you,
Keep smiling,
Nell

Two, and my new favourite photos

I know I am wildly biased but how seriously damn cute is this 2 year old?  Not sure if it is the piggies, or the soft lighting, or the soft pink cardi or just pure nepotism but this is my current favourite shot of the birthday girl.

And this one, well it is just my current favourite shot of my current favourite people!
Hope you are having a great week!
Keep smiling,
Nell
xxx
p.s. got my scrapping mojo back saturday night so will have some recent layouts to show you next time!

Too Busy to Scratch ...

Long time no blog... It has been crazy busy around here.  Too crazy busy.  Since last I blogged there has been a Creative Memories Conference in Sydney (with a flying catch up with my dear friend Ness) then a flying visit to my sister for some squishable time with this sweet little eskimo baby:

This was such a quick visit that there was no time to catch up with Brissie friends or extended family.  I am trying really hard not to feel guilty about that (still love you Gerty and Jen and Helen and Katherine and Kylie-Anne I promise!)  It was lovely for Mads to have some quality time with the grandies

And I finally got to play Auntie to that sweet little niece.

She is every bit as divine as she looks and living vicariously through my sis is truly the next best thing to having a fourth child which unfortunately is not likely to happen :(

In amongst all of this there has been school photos, preparations for a school concert and a Kindy Jungle Dance Party and I have been doing a few days of Temporary Teaching at kindy (3 days a week) while my dear friend Margot is unwell.  There have also been quotes for the new scrapping studio (building in the garage LOL), a mammoth pile of mulch, 6 adult sized zebra costumes, a brief calzone cook-up and too many winter lurgies to mention.  I have been dreaming of Spring, and a slower pace to life.

Maybe next year I will learn to find more of a balance.  Maybe next year I will learn to say "no" a bit more (and maybe not open my mouth quite so much)  Maybe next year I might even get back to my sewing machine?

May your September be full of Spring flowers and quiet days.

xxx

Right at this moment I'm loving...

The cheekiness of this wee one - the joy she gets from peek-a-boo, pantry raids, stacking and unstacking absolutely everything/anything, and her food philosophy that everything tastes better if you throw it on the floor (we have coined a new phrase here; "floor toast" as in, "Maddie, what have you got in your mouth??? Oh, only a bit of floor toast!")

Playing with some felt embellishment and needle felting (except I broke my last two needle felting needles yesterday - thankfully it is Spinners and Weavers tomorrow so I can get more then!)

My new blue suitcases - an impulse buy from Mathilda's markets on the weekend - I'm thinking these will be so good for WIP in my scrapping/quilting room.

That these two will be going to find good homes in Pip's Softies for Mirabel drive (and yes, I deliberately parked them in front of my new red spotty suitcases which I also LOVE)

Reading more crafty goodness (business has been so good the last two months that I am afraid I have spent cosiderable profits on online bookstores and craft patterns and impulse buys!)

Really not loving that I am procrastinating big time over writing my two upcoming public speeches, and that the floor needs sweeping (again - sigh) and that Mt Washmore is getting taller every day (go away rain!)
Happy Wednesday!
Keep smiling,
Nell

Who knew vacuuming could be this much fun?!?

Okay, so the sun is shining brightly and there is lovely Spring breeze here today so we have thrown open all the windows and aired all the mattresses and generally banished any leftover lurgy germs that might be lingering.  With us all down with the virus I'm afraid the house looked a bit of a tip (as is wont to do when the kidlets spend too much time on the couch in a lethargy of very average childrens television while their parents heave and snuffle - yes I know BAD MOTHER ALERT but this was not a normal week LOL)

Anyway, even the kids must have sensed how great it felt to be up and doing stuff because this spot of vacuuming turned into a great play opportunity. 

My two girlies are so alike.  I have a similar photo of Hannah at about the same age sitting on the vacuum cleaner!  The funny thing is that my small son, even as a baby, would go into hysterics the minute the vacuum cleaner came out.  He was TOTALLY freaked out by it and it got so bad that I could only vacuum when he wasn't around.  This photo reminds me of just how much he is growing up - even 6 months ago this would have been his worst nightmare!

Last photo is more of Hannah's block art.  This was what she got up to before breakfast this morning.  Anyway, gotta go, more washing to hang and sunshine to enjoy!
Keep smiling,

Nell

p.s. anyone else having trouble getting photos to go in the right spots at the moment?

September... the month that was....

Well, it feels like September has passed by in a bit of a blur really! Hard to believe I've not blogged at all!  The last week has been spent in a gastro/flu bug haze of washing and mothering.  I'm hoping that we are all on the mend now!

Before that September was about waiting on a winter that never ends, dreaming of Spring:











Picture courtesy of my children who crept away to play quietly one rainy day - I love it when they produce something so exquisite without any adult intervention!

September was surprising; Father's Day (Dan was so chuffed to surprise Daddy with his handmade tie!), Maddie surprised us with more teeth, and we had a HUGE Creative Memories month where we added 5 team members, promoted my dear friend Meredith to Unit Leader, and I had my best sales month in a long time!

September was also a little bit silly: Hannah had her school concert and had to dress as a sheep (would have loved to show you photos of the whole flock of sheep as they looked too darn cute but I am funny about putting photos of other people's children on my blog)

 We also had a lovely lunch out with our dear Mum's group friends - the bigger kids have known one another since they were 6-`10 weeks old, the littlies have known one another all their lives.  This is such a special group of friends and we always have so much fun together!September was also a little bit scary as I had my first public speaking gig in way too many years (and have been asked to speak again at our Christmas Luncheon so I must have done alright!)

September was largely craftless (unless you count 5 sheep costumes!)  September was also thriftless (the only time I got to the opp shop was to find a basket to fill with pressies for a friend) 

Let's hope for a crafty/thrifty/bloggy October (with at least a hint of Spring sunshine!!!)

Keep smiling,

Nell

Loving these moments!

Today I am loving the sunshine (after SOOOO much rain!)
I am loving:

this little one's current enthusiasm for cooking (and that he is becoming more capable and responsible in the kitchen!)

the gorgeous randomness of notes left by our emergent writer; I had such a "treasure forever" mummy moment when I found this note with a fistful of flowers left on my pillow!  And I'm still in shock that she actually apologised to her brother LOL!

I am loving the delightful chortle/chuckle/squeal that accompanies this little one up the hallway as she sets out to find someone; the closer she gets the more she laughs until at last she is so hysterical that she almost can't crawl - such fun!  Since she has been crawling properly Maddie is just a little ray of sunshine - not quite so frustrated and ever so proud of herself!  I am learning just how unbabyproof our house is LOL

Cleaning beckons, paperwork beckons, my garden is singing to me "come out and play in the sunshine" and there is washing to hang...
Happy Monday!
Keep smiling,
Nell
xxxx