Happiness Is.....

1. Finishing the BAS this morning.....because.....

2. I can now start stitching again.

3. Mick got the old BMW bike to start which makes him very happy (but he still has to do a fair bit of work on it before we can take it for a ride).....but.....

4. That means we are one step closer to starting my sewing shed.

Happy dance!!!

Guess what? We stayed at home today!! We haven't had a day at home for weeks and weeks.

It was a good catch up day. My friend Cath always has a go about my overflowing ironing baskets and gave me this plaque for my birthday a few days ago. Well, my ironing will never be up to date, but it is very much under control for a change and the washing was completely up to date until Mick added his dirty work clothes from today.

Did you notice my little quilting sculpture peeking out from behind the plaque. Mick gave it to me for Christmas a couple of years ago. I love it.

I didn't get any of Mick's bookwork done, so therefore got no stitching done either, but that is OK as I was doing other more pressing things.

Yesterday we went to the Oberon Steam and Vintage Festival which is run in conjunction with the local Show. They had a street parade and then lots to do at the show. We ran into lots of people we knew for a chat which was nice. By adding the Steam Festival to the show it has been invigorated, as like many small shows it has been struggling in recent years.

On Saturday night we attended the welcome dinner for the event which had Pat Drummond as the entertainer. It was a really good night and a couple of our Club members received awards which was great for them.

Bountiful Harvest

We are now starting to get a good crop from our vege garden and orchard. Today we picked our first corn, apples and plums. So, for dinner tonight we had our own corn, beans, spinach and overgrown zuchinni. This was followed by stewed plums and icecream. Everything tastes so much better when it was only picked a few minutes before eating.

Yesterday, I ducked up to Orange and collected my sewing machines. They are all serviced and ready to go.

Now, the only hold up is me! I have decided that I am not to do any more sewing until I get Mick's work paperwork up to date. Since Christmas I have paid the bills but that is about it. I need to get everything entered and the BAS (quarterly taxation reporting) done by the end of next week. The joys of being self employed.

Then I'll be back into the sewing.

I have finally finished the second block of Verandah Views and I'm now looking forward to the next installment.

Our trip with the Historic Car Club to the Gelato factory on Sunday was well worth the drive. They gave us a guided tour of the plant and then we all enjoyed taste testing the product. If anyone is in the Molong area, make sure you make a detour to the Gelato factory. They have a nice little coffee shop with good coffee and a great selection of gelato and sorbet. They also sell macadamia paste (like peanut butter) that they grind on the premises. Delicious.

We were lucky with the weather after all. It was cool but dry, so we all were able to enjoy a picnic lunch. I was slack and forgot to take any photos of the gelato - too busy eating it!!

A Saturday Together

What crazy weather!! Today was 30 degrees C cooler than last Saturday. We went to Orange today and the temperature only reached 12 degrees C and there has been gentle soaking rain all day - bliss.

We delivered my sewing machines to the sewing machine magician and they should be all serviced by mid week, when I'll have to make another quick trip up to collect them.

While we were in Orange, we decided to do a bit of tyre kicking. We have been talking about upgrading our car, as it has done just over 200,000 kms. We were offered double what we expected on the trade-in on our old car, so we think we will be making the change over sooner rather than later. They say it is the buyer's market. It will be exciting getting a new car. I've only ever had 3 cars.

We enjoyed a nice lunch on the way home and then went to the movies to see Gran Torino with Clint Eastwood. Well worth seeing.

When we finally got home, we had 22mm of rain in the guage. Perfect.

We are supposed to be going to Molong to the new Gelato factory with the Historic Car Club tomorrow as it is HOT in the middle of February. So much for that. We'll see who turns up to the start in the morning. It may be called off.

A Pleasant Evening

We've just spent a nice quiet evening at home.

We've been sitting in the office with the fan heater on. Yes, that's right, it is cold enough to have a heater on low! They expect it to be very hot again next week, so we are enjoying this.

I have been stitching away at Verandah Views and reading blogs, while Mick has been on Youtube checking out what crazy things blokes get up to with motorcycles and snowmobiles in the snow - he now wants to take the bike to the Snowys next winter!

I'm enjoying doing these stitcheries.

Meet Stella and a USO

Meet Stella. She has been with me since I was 16. She ran out of warranty in 2006 – yes, she had a 25 year warranty!! She is the best little machine, fits nicely in the linen cupboard, sews beautifully. I’ll never part with her.

I have since bought my Janome 6500. I love the way this machine has all the bells and whistles for doing patchwork and appliqué etc. However, she has been giving me some grief. She gets all rattly in the bobbin housing area. It was fixed twelve months ago, but when I was doing the machine appliqué on Red Delicious Block 2 it started again.

Last year, at the Swap Meet, I bought a little Singer Featherweight 222. It goes fine, but I don’t want to use it until I get it properly serviced (I know it is twelve months ago, but you can’t rush into these things).

Anyway, the three machines are going to visit the sewing machine repair man in Orange next Saturday. He does a great job. I will be machineless for about 4 days, so will have to plan around that. It will be good to have them all going well.

On another note, here is a pic from the party on the weekend. Mick is on the right with the birthday girl and Mick’s brother. It was good for them to catch up.

Now for the Once Project a Month Challenge. This has been a USO for some time. “USO” stands for “Un-Started Project”. I have more of these than UFO’s or WIP’s. Most are not listed in my side bar.

Anyway, Mick’s mum gave me the fabric when she downsized to a unit – that was about 13 years ago – I’m not really a satin person, so it sat in a box. (Zoom in on the photo to see the pretty pattern in more detail.) About 3 years ago I bought the pattern to make some pyjama pants from it…….but didn’t get started……so, last night I got in and made a start and finished them today. A very simple pattern, not even a side seam. They wouldn’t have taken long at all if my machine was not playing up. There was just enough fabric- just as well I’m short.

However, when I put them on they are HUGE!! Yes, I made the correct size. Mick assures me they will be comfy, but I think I will run them in an inch and a half on the legs and the crutch and they will be much better. Mick couldn’t believe that I wanted a photo for my blog, but as I told him, I have to have photographic evidence. They’re good for a laugh at the moment, anyway.

Bushfires

So much for my comment on Saturday morning hoping for no bushfires. Victoria has experienced Australia's worst loss of life from bushfires. So far 108 have been confirmed dead and it sounds like that number will increase quite a bit yet as they check burnt out homes. It sounds like nearly 1,000 homes have been lost as well.
Our thoughts and prayers go to all affected.
We have been lucky with no fires in our area. A "cool" change came through last night. It is only expected to get to about 32 degrees C today. It was over 40 degrees C here for the last two days. There is a pleasant cool breeze here at present.
On a personal and lighter note, it was a great party on Saturday night. Where the birthday girl lives they get a sea breeze in the evening, so it was a very pleasant temperature. The party was a very casual affair in their yard on a rural property. There was a band who were family friends playing, so that set a great backdrop.
We got home just after lunch yesterday to enjoy the heat (not!). We stopped at the little antique shot at Taralga again. This time I bought a child's ironing board. It is covered with what appears to be 70's floral sheeting. It is really cute.

Despite the heat, I was determined to actually do some sewing. Firstly, I traced the second block of Verandah Views ready to start stitching. Then I made another bib.

Next I thought, as the Complete a Project a Month is all about WISPs, I'd better do one rather than start something new. I started the project last night, did some more this morning in the cool, and after a visit to Spotlight to buy some elastic, it will be finished tonight. I'll tell all about it then.

All The King's Horses and All the King's Men....

Our little flowerpot and straw lady met with an accident. Her beautiful face is unmarked, but she has broken feet and body. She has sat in the laundry for about the last 15 years and was made by a girl I used to work with. I will try to find replacement pots, and mend her as it would be a pity to not try and save her. She just wouln't have a painted body.

We are in for another scorcher this weekend with the temperature expected to be about 40 degrees C.

We are going to a 50th birthday at Nowra tonight. Nowra is about 4 hours away and is expected to be even hotter than here. The original plan was to take the bike, but Mick has decided it is just too hot. I must say I'm very pleased with that decision. It will be much more pleasant in the air conditioned car.

We are camping overnight and coming home tomorrow. Tomorrow is expected to be really hot again, but windy before a cool change on Monday. Let's hope there are no major bushfires with the wind.

I'm currently roasting pumpkin pieces (before it gets too hot in the kitchen) for the yummy pumpkin and chickpea salad for tonight.

Red In the Morning Shepherds Warning

This is the lovely sunrise we woke to this morning. Some storms were predicted and we hoped we might get some rain to cool things down and give everything a much needed drink. In the late afternoon we received just on an inch of rain in a storm. We were lucky, as the storms are very isolated. The rain was beautiful. It is much cooler tonight. We have to make the most of it however, as it is forecast to be very hot again for the rest of the week.

Also, I have finally finished the first block of Verandah Views. I just varied mine a little, in that I used stem stitch for the main part of the tree. I'm happy with how it has turned out, as I don't generally do much hand embroidery. The silly thing is that once I start I really enjoy it. I'm very bad at finishing things and embroidery takes too long. This year is going to be different!

Now I have to get the second block ready to start. I also have to get going on the third block of Red Delicious. I'm already starting to run behind. Hopefully we'll actually have a day at home in the near future so I can just sit and sew.

Have You Ever Seen One of These?

This was a new one to me. The mystery will be revealed......

I have finally found time to sit down and update my blog.



This weekend our Historic Car Club hosted the Bathurst Swap Meet (similar to an Auto Jumble). It is primarily for car and bike related "stuff", but there is also lots of general bric-a-brac. We always seem to bring home some treasures.
As we are on the organising committee, Mick and I have been doing lots of running around in the last week and were down there all weekend. There would have been about 3,000 people come through the gates. This keeps the Club going through the year and we make a substantial donation to local charities. It is a lot of work, but also a lot of fun.
We had a little stall and sold a bit of excess "stuff". Funny though, there doesn't seem to be much more space in the shed. Our best seller was doilies at 20c each. I had a big tub full of them. I bought a bag full at a garage sale a while ago and had selected the ones I wanted to keep and these were what was left. I also sold some fabric I'll never use. (Now I can fit some more in.)



We didn't bring home too many treasures. I found a needle book with racing cars on it, a few old quilting magazine and a quilting book.

And the mystery object..... It is an "Evans Rapid Tru-Line Hemliner". I've never seen one before, so it had to come home with me. Who knows where I'll put it.

As promised, here are our treasures from our trip to Kiama. The local church had a book and garage sale. Mick found the Birthday Candle Train. Each carriage has a different circus animal in it. The little boat is a nice reminder of our visit to the coast and I found a Margaret Rolfe patchwork book. We also found a few other old books.

In Robertson I found this tea strainer. (I don't collect tea strainers either - I just have quite a few.) I had to bring this one home as it has the old insignia of "Municipality of Bathurst". I know, I'm hopeless!!

The most interesting shop we visited was in tiny Taralga, between Goulburn and Oberon. We could have brought many things home from there. We treated ourselves to this 50's toy typewriter. The keys are just printed on it. You turn the daisy wheel to the letter you want, press the big button and it types that letter. Very labourious. It is in wonderful condition and even comes with its box.

They also had this very kitch table cloth that has never been used. I think it will be ideal for our picnic table on Historic Car Club outings.

On the home front, I have been doing a few stitches of the first block of Verandah Views. I hope to finish it tomorrow night so that I can start the second block with the bird bath.