10 years of (mostly) joy!

The sun sets on 10 years....

10 years of often very hard labour!

10 years of constant cuddles..

10 years, the first 4 years of which he did not sleep all night for!

10 years of blonde rascal cuteness

1 year (the last) of being able to raise one eyebrow to get his own way!

10 years of constant activity

10 years of love

10 years of preferring not to wear clothes, or as few as absolutely physically and legally necessary!

10 years of noise, now often focussed as singing...and the ability to remember the tune and words to every song he hears.

10 years of the muddiest knees I have ever seen!

10 years of preferring to not be separate from his mother!!

10 years of forgetting me once he's with his friends!

The last few years of attempts to 'work" me with frequent compliments of, "have you lost weight, you sing beautifully mummy darling, wanna cuddle on the couch gorgeous..."

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Where'd those 10 years go???When did I stop having to watch Bob the Builder (and start doing it just by choice..hee. hee!!) Now I want those small years back, it all went too quick, did I make the most of it? Who knows, with no sleep, 'twas all a haze!

Happy birthday DS, I'd do it all again...well, not now!!! But theoretically 10 years ago!

Remember, this week you have a chance to win some cards....off to wrap presents, boy, hope I have a card!!LOL!!

Introducing my new giftcard range!!!

Hi, yes, finally getting to this! Lots of school holiday distractions at present.

These are the new giftcards, about half the size of my normal cards, 10.5 x 7 cms or 4.5 x 2.75 inches. Still professionally printed on glossy card. No envelopes with these. The pictures show how they look before they are folded. I am stocking these in 5 shops, in packs of 2.

Big news...anyone who commented in the last week since I began posting about my Quilt retreat, wins at least 4 of these cards posted anywhere in the world, I will try to email you all in the next few days. If you have missed out, don't worry, i will choose a few commenters between now and the weekend to win a pack of 10...or two!

So today, tell me why, in this day and age of instantaneous communication..why you send and /or like to receive a card..... or even what one you like.

For a closer look, these are all over at Tracey's country cards, along with the normal notecards with envelopes.

Ed's note: oops, forgot to say that for this week, you can buy 5 of these giftcards and have them posted anywhere in the world for $5!!! An extra card thrown in for Aussies to make up for the postal difference.

My quilts made on the weekend...and a chance to win!

I think we have seen all of the girl's quilts from the weekend, so here are mine. Three made from scratch, and then Kael's and the stack and whack were over half done when i got there. Lise, janine and Anne are helping me hold them up.

This is the stack and whack, with Heather Bailey fabrics.

Took a scrap bag of Robert Kaufman strips with. There were 30 x 2 and 1/2 inch strips in there, with a black border it got to quite a sizeable quilt top, I love how it looks like the black is curved. The colours are magnificent in real life.

In a previous post you saw Anne's daisy quilt top, this is mine, as different as could be. All blacks and reds, with the white contrast. I cheated, of course, cutting up charm squares was not on any agenda I held, so I cut out 5 inch strips instead, it ended up a good size as well, a good groovy baby size.

And finally, had the other things done by Saturday night so i tipped out my collection of chicken fabrics, (well, the ones I had managed to locate in the mad rush before I left anyway) and started putting them together into something for me

This was the layout about when the socceroos were starting their Saturday night game against Ghana...(was it?) I watched it until Kewell was red carded then decided the game was too technical for me, I like a free flowing and scoring game, kinda like my patchwork, nothing too "quilt policey"!!

A chook quilt was the intention when I began collecting these fabrics 10 years ago, and i have noticed more and more disappearing into other people's quilts, so this one is my turn. As you can see, by the time we left at lunch the next day, it was together...sort of...the sides aren't even, it will grow in width now it's home, there is more fabric to addin and I am determined to get a taste of it all.

The other thing I noticed when I was putting these photos on is how handy the backing width black on black was that I threw in the car...it has got in all the quilts...bar Kael's red and white.

So, what do you think, pick your favourite, tell me about your most productive quilt weekend or just say Hi here, or on any of this week's posts, and go in the chance to win some of my new card range, being launched later in the weekend. Yes, emails are accepted from my non lurking readers, I'll put them into the draw for you.

After over 100,000 hits and 450 posts I could probably do with a little motivation to keep posting!

As thanks in anticipation, here's some cute farm shots, just in case you have been missing the sheep!

Traceyxxx

Gratitudes...that I wasn't given 4 at once!!

Retreat quilt show, part 2

Ok then, more progress for the quilt weekend.

We were invited to join in group projects if we were interested. Three girls completed their shnibbles one, myself and Anne did the Daisy one, (shall have to check the name!) They were recommended for charm packs.

Jane's version
Helen and Heather's versions...all very different.
...but the same!

Anne's is here, light is abit harsh, but it's in beautiful pastel florals.....mine comes next post...

Robyn chose a very intricate pattern that would have been the death of me, I could never be this detailed and precise, she got 2 done for the weekend. The blocks were very time consuming, 3 to go for her horse loving daughter.

Chris worked on her Kaffe fassett jelly roll quilt, the colour organisation took a lot of time.

Jane has retired this year and is enjoying the extra quilting time, she added borders to this on the weekend.

Almost forgot to show you what I made for my 5 yo niece's bday a week or two ago.

II copied the Russian doll from a colouring book and appliqued it to lightweight interfacing, then ran around it with normal machine stitch to put it on the shirt- much easier than machine buttonholing onto a readymade top. I like the paper doll "M" one, she is at the age when it's all about her name and letters.

Remember, big card launch coming and comments this week could get you something....

See you soon with my retreat progress, Tracey

Retreat quilt show Part 1.

Wow, 2 posts in two days! You can tell I actually have some quilt content for you...I will go through some of the show and tell before I get to the weekend's work. I thought these were very nice and you may be interested. The Japanese one is showcasing japanese fabrics..I think from a trip to japan by Jenni. She was trying to decide the best quilting, not sure what the final decision was but heard a fair bit of "fan" discussion.

Anne had also worked long and hard on this beautiful red and white quilt. She has the name and pattern, but not at the retreatm so i could probably get it for you.

A lot of stitching really adds to this.

Ten year quilt group member, Chris, has moved to the big smoke. We had a farewell for her and she received her stitched hearts quilt to remember us by. I also searched back through the archives and made her a photo book of all her quilts and quilt group memories.

Robyn was cuddled up under her thimbleberries quilt.

And finally, sharing a photo I may get in trouble for.... This is Lise, the Chocolate cat blogger, who was relaxing on retreat in front of the ocean view...she needed a good rest after weeks of winter flu.
Better run, spent the day drafting cattle and am tired to the bone but the housework fairies STILL have not come...sigh!
Also, noticed I have gone over 100,000 hits and 450 posts. I am launching a large range of new cards this weekend...when they arrive! Quilt ones, farm ones, native animals, flowers, etc, etc. Just a heads up that comments this week when I actually have a lot of posts to do may be more than worth the effort!

A change of scene at Quilt retreat!

Headed to the historic fishing town of P*rt fairy this past weekend for our quilt retreat. Went with the best of good intentions to blog progress at frequent intervals, managed to get my online footy tips on before the power ran out and I realised I only had half the charge cord!! So much for that plan, but I still took lots of photos! And I now have a justifiable reason to post for the next few days!
The scene was fabulous, right on the beach, we even had these dolphins swim past,



and gorgeous oceanic rainbows...it is very cold and winter down here!

It was cold, under 5 degrees in the morning, but so appealing that I actually swam! Didn't stay in for long, but it invigorated me for a few big days of sewing.


This is what the house looked like shortly after we started moving in, lots of trestle tables starting to be added to the beautiful house, I think the neighbors thought we were some kind of cut and run sweatshop! But 13 women with a mission need space!

This is my spot...also a few minutes after moving in. It did not look this good for very long! Nowhere I work ever stays clean for long!

I couldn't start anything new until I finished off my Quilts for leukeumia quilt, so it was first, I am hoping to get it all finished off and in the post soon.

Back to the real world today, groceries, lamb marking, feeding kids and workers, it's now after midnight and I have been watching to see if Roger comes back from 2 sets down but I may have to give in...just as he seems to be! So I will just leave you a snippet of the many quilts you will see in the next few days....

Hope life is good, have agreat day, Tracey

Lambs and scrap play..

Thanks for all the info and emails about the neck and shoulder troubles, going quite well this week, but haven't done much sewing to test it out.

Instead, I've been busy with these....there are 9 now!

This is my newest little one, with uncle Arch, the japanese spitz, who is a photo hogger!

Deserved a solo portrait..

Then Uncle Arch moved back in!

I am liking these photos, reminds me of the lion and the lamb. I am thinking of a blurb for a card with the photo, feel free to help!

Time has been short this week...well, time is the same as usual, just not enough of it for me! I actually cleared my ironing basket yesterday, amazingly enough, and when I had done the non essential items..ie the family's clothes, I did some essential ironing....fabric scraps!

I pulled out green and pink ones to make some bigger, pretty log cabin chooks for my nieces....more birthdays this week! I had a lovely time making wonky log cabins, didn't trim any of the strips, just put them together as they came...very therepeutic!I have 2 ready to put together, was tempted to keep making them, 4 only took 42 minutes, so around 10 minutes a block, but i have so many 'have to' projects, i can't afford a 'like to'! They just need combs and beaks and I can get them together.

Have had an online book buying epiphany this week. Found my new all time favorite site for this, it is called the Book depository. It is based in England and it has, wait for it, FREE POST to Australia and despatches usually in 48 hours1 The other,"wait for it" moment is over 1500 patchwork books, including gwen marston's liberated quilting 2 which i have had my eye on and some of her older, hard to get titles. Noticed 'This old Quilt' there for a fabulous price as well-love that book. we are talking $10's of dollars cheaper than anywhere else for some of these books. Also Audio books, great kids books, all the Janet Evanovich catalogue, all the updated georgette heyer...the list goes on. i had been wanting 'the Pioneer woman cooks' but couldn't justify the amount of fabric it cost, well, in the twenties (Australian dollars) on this site. Have a look and tell me if it isn't great, do some comparing online, that's when you really get excited! Well, the most excited I get when it's not fabric play!

Have a great day, Tracey

Quilter's back exercises...

A few little chickens, log cabin and plain, that I have made lately for gifts and fetes,





After 6 weeks of not being able to exercise, this week I am back!! I have been having more than the usual back and neck problems in the last year or two. My hands, especially, the left have been going numb of a night and getting painful and with less maleability generally
...the things I have broken would stock a house! Needless to say, stitching and keyboarding have moved to the backburner as well.

The shoulder pain is scoliosis related and has been going on since I was 13 but the rest is the last few years, I have often thought it could be the start of MS but when it got really bad recently I have seen 2 chiros, a doctor , a couple of masseurs, had x-rays and am now at the physio who is achieving great results. The x-rays were because they thought it was a pinched nerve or spinal cord, everything has come up clear so the physio is hard at work at

1. fixing the constant shoulder and neck pain.

2. fixing the numb fingers

3. stopping it all coming back

Has achieved #1, it all feels great and I am back to pilates, boxing and circuit training, but I have to do a range of specific exercises and the main two are really exercises for all quilters so I am showing you. DD is the exercise model.

This is a tennis ball in circulation stocking with knot at the bottom. This is for getting right into the shoulder blade and muscles around there. You just rub that up against the wall, working both sides.

These are stretchy physio bands. Grip these, with nice soft knees, not locked up, and pull your shoulder blades together, effectively sticking your chest out. This should be done very regularly when you have been sitting sewing. I have to do it 10 times +(x50) a day!

Nice easy ones, that may help your quilting back pain as well. yell if you have had similar trouble.

Have made a few things of late, My little niece, Daisy is two already, I had her bday last week, she scored an eyespy of all her favourite animals as her baby quilt. She is also wearing the little pik tutu I made her. i made her a couple of other little denim and applique skirts as well. She loves wrapping her babies!

She is cat mad and got a pretend cat for her bday, she wrapped and unwrapped that about 20 times!

i made her a little pram one with the scraps.

The rest of the time I have been chasing sheep and lambs...the head count for lamb pets was 9 this morning, but I conned 2 more onto a foster mother so I am back to 7! Thanks for the spider assitance, a banded orb weaver seems to be the consensus, with perhaps slightly unusual banding.

Have a great day, Tracey