Waiting, waiting, waiting....one son just home from the Geelong/North game with the neighbours...very disappointed with the result, I am as well, (I would have got 9/9 for my tipping 2 weeks in a row!) I am waiting as well, at midnight, for One direct*n to come on the Logie awards...my daughter is so patiently waiting to continue to scream with excitement....oh the joys of teenagerdom! So I'll share the buttons I got on a "buy these bags full of stuff for $2 table" at spotlight...opened my two bags and found all this stuff! Even the singer button for my singer collection!

I would love to say that there is heaps more sewing to show, but it's been a busy week of holidays...with nieces and nephews sleeping over..and great nieces visiting for plays...and two woolshed photo shoots ...and a full day of football photos.

So, I usually always manage to rein in my weight at least once a year, I think in the last 5 years, I would have lost 6 kgs every year...the same 6! Imagine if all that 30 was gone..nah, that would be too skinny...I just want the 6 gone again...so how do you fit it in? I haven't had much time so decided to combine 2 baskets of ironing(=3 hours!) with my stepper! And I would also like to add...why is ironing so painful when it isn't just pretty fabric?? Anyway, better go, hamish has just won the gold logie (YAY!) and one are on! can't you hear the screams!

Of dogs and babies..

A Happy Easter to everyone today, we spent it with the extended family and I found out I am going to be a God mother again, so probably could have saved his quilt for a fortnight's time! He may even get something else now I am on a roll. This will be my 4th Godchild, 3 boys and 1 girl...they get spoilt rotten! Godmothers can do that.

The picture is the blanket my little grand nephew received today in lieu of eggs. I wonder who can guess his name...and by the way, 6 weeks old and doubled in size...a pound a week! His Mum is shrinking as he puts it on!

My niece on the other side loved her new dog blanket.....the dog was not so sure! But as the dog's middle name is "long suffering the dog-addicted-3 year old" that level of excitement was in many ways expected.

And on the dog front, huge news for us...Archie has a buddy! He is coping very well with the new Border Collie addition who arrived yesterday.

My boy is in love!

A safe and blessed Easter to you. xx

Chook quilt all done...next??!!!!

I well and truly have my quilting mo-jo back....The chook quilt is all done-tied and bound and ready to keep me warm on the couch this winter. I am very happy with it. It turned out to be about 2.3m x 1.7 metres in size. I am in a hurry to get off the computer to get a dog quilt done by tomorrow and a baby name one done by Sunday, it's nice to be back!

Also been making Raspberry fig jam...easiest recipe in the world. Just equal parts figs (mashed) with sugar, then add in a heaped desertspoon of raspberry (or strawberry ) jelly crystals to about every 2 cups of sugar. It looks, tastes and sets great!

Lastly, proof that little boys do in fact grow up.(But don't change!) Top photo is my boy playing with the new tractor 5 years ago, and bottom is now.

Better run, have a great day! Tracey

Twice in one day!!...Washing quilts....

Two posts in a day...scary!

As it was looking like the last of the hot weather I washed all the main quilts yesterday, hot north winds, 30 degrees, did a great job. But it took me about 90 minutes and more exercise and mess than i cared for, with washing each in the bath, then carting it to laundry for a quick spin, then back to bath for all of them to rinse. How do you wash your quilts? Am I being too particular? I am afraid I just couldn't bear to see it come out of my machine after a 45 minute mystery trip and there have been some disaster.

Made a couple of 100 Anzacs today to fill the tins and finished off another clamshell project in between oven loads. I started these on the way home from Nundle in the car,have now had enough of them and the colours for a little while, so decided to make my 3 rows something. It is a little chocolate holder at this point.... I just came back from visiting the old people's home and have enjoyed sitting out in the sun with my Nundle cup and clamshells full of chocolate and thinking about all the fun we were having last Saturday! I also noticed that the happy ones at the old people's homes were the ones who were still sitting their crafting...i vote for that retirement thanks! I still vote for an international quilt bloggers retirement home. Now, that would be fun!

Clamshells finished.

Okay,here it is being held up by my little cricket buddy that I've been up watching Aust. v WI with since 5 am! When i say finished, it is finished how I wanted it. It isn't quite the round keepbox it should have theoretically been. I went for a wall hanging, and embroidered one of my favourite verses, "Look to the hills", to remind me of my road trip to Nundle. We thought they looked a bit like hills here, though when i was working on it, both kids wandered in at different times and commented on my "fish"... apparently sideways the clam shells are very scale like. It even, (don't fall over!!)..has some hand quilting on it. The things you do when the football's back on!

And here is me and the usually mystery man, with the new baby. Should probably call it the new holiday house, but when would we get a chance to go to a holiday house!!

Hope your day is great, we are officially on school holidays here, 2 weeks of no bus...yeah!

More Girls day in the Country ...

Such great car buddies, granny Loz, and Lise, the chocolate cat. See Where little me is squashed in...it got worse!

This is a bearded dragon eating some kind of sack full of bugs...we don't see that at home!

The tree full of the little bug sacks.

We did eventually get to Nundle, here is a lot of Friday afternoon's show and tell..And here is a lot of Sue daly's from the Friday night trunk show. beautiful work, and she still makes them all herself.

We went out for tea on Friday night to Mt. Mysery cafe, Dale and peg were there in spirit, (or in chook form. ) They were the only ones who could fit through the bars to see what the mine shaft was like, there was much anxiety lest they fall!

Lise on the way home...at Grong grong!

And all these last ones are the sun coming up, somewhere about an hour after Narrandera!

The last place I got the camera out was Deniliquin, they had had 185 singles there for the weekend on a meet and greet weekend, I thought that considering singles weekend, this sign was hilarious! I am afraid to show DH in case he decided that's where I actually was!

Girls day in the country...half way home.

Cuddled up in a motel in Narrandera, watching Homeland with Lise, http://thechocolatecat.blogspot.com.au/ and granny Loz, http://grannyloz.blogspot.com.au/We have done over 2300 kms since we left home Wednesday morning. Visited Donna, Chookyblue, http://chookyblue.blogspot.com.au/ at her home, for a big afternoon and night of sewing, and caught up with LOTS of bloggers at Nundle, and boy were they fun! Rarely seen women laugh until they cry before ,Cardygirl.

Sue Daly's paper piecing workshop on Saturday went very well..and very quickly. Saw some lovely quilts, will post them in next few days.

Very motivated now to seek out some more minutes in my week for sewing...and blogging. Realise how much I miss it.

Blogger doesn't want me to move my pics around tonight so they are how they are...

Donna visiting the girls on our table.

Starting our clam shell project.

Granny Loz and Lise getting set up.

Morning view of Nundle.

Does cardy attract mayhem?

All sewing our pincushions at Donna's.

The water coming up to the road from all the flooding, will have to go home the next 100 kms on the detour due to towns being completely cut off.

Have had a great time, but 700 kms to go until i see my babies again!

1053.6 kms later....

Okay, sitting at Lise's (Chocolate cat) auntie's in Wellington, NSW. Full of chicken...and cheese platter...and a few scotches as well, I left home at 5 am to meet the girls, we got here at about 7.45 pm. Big day, but lots of fun. I sewed some blocks, finished my name tag and tied my quilt, so quite a productive day. Off to work on my pincushion...not going to let it beat me!
See you bright and early Chooky Donna!

13 1/2 hours to go!

Right then, if I don't sleep i may get everything done...but I'd better get a good rest as I probably have to share the driving, so I'll be taking a few projects with and DH may have a few less things in the freezer.

I have this ready...finally...and I intend quilting/tying in the car, it's also to keep me warm if needed...or sit on!

It is made from all my chook/red barn fabrics and I love it...nothing was pre-measured, or planned, it pretty much just sewed itself...i love those! I look forward to it soon being off my UFO list. Must get off, food and photos and sewing do not prepare themselves!

11 pm update...and some help please!

Okay, another article and photos done, a name badge made...just needs some stitches, a few other little jobs sorted and ready to stitch in the car, onto the paper pieced pincushion. Anyone who is making it, do we baste 6 of one colour and 6 of another (contrast) to get the thing to look like the pic? It must be getting late but I can't see that on the instructions, just that there are 12 blocks and we make them in 2 colours. There are no spare papers if I stuff up!

took this photo today when the boys were burning off. They atre burnign my usual lambing paddock that is full of tussocks and all uneven, it was the last paddock like that and DH has decided it is time for it to be improved, so by June it will be all beautiful with a magnificent crop on it...we hope...and pray! Can't have a third dodgy season.