Flying on a jet plane

I won't be posting on my blog for awhile, I'm flying interstate to visit my son and his family for my youngest grandson Noahs first birthday.  Wow, a year already, I know I have to say "Where has this year gone", we live such busy lives these days that it seems time goes by to quickly.  I had coffee with one of my girlfriends yesterday, something which is unusual mid week because she works full-time.  She has decided to leave a job that she was finding stressful, where she didn't feel like she was part of a team, she is going to take a couple of weeks to unwind and relax before she goes job hunting again. I wish her luck.  It was a nice morning, the conversation mostly about our kids, we have known each other since we were neighbours and our kids were small.  While interstate this week I have arranged to meet with the woman who is head co-ordinator of "Aussie Hero Quilts". This woman is a hero, she has put aside her home and most of her life lol, for this cause, one she feels very strongly about.  In her words "We care about the people not the politics" her mission is to provide quilts and laundry bags to as many service men and women in the Middle East  as possible. When I contacted her to arrange the meeting she thought we should meet at her house, with a note to mind how much the house has been taken over by AHQ, I laughed to myself when I read this, having memories of my own house when I was part of a group that did charity work.  I am looking forward to this meeting, and of course catching up with my family. Ok, back to packing, I'll be in touch when I arrive back home.

So much to do.....no time

"Peak Hour" designed by Riley Blake for Moda

I really believed that as I became older I would have more time to do the things I love to do, not just the usual mundane things like housework etc.,  but at the end of the day I look back and wonder what I have done and where did the day go.   I seem to be running out of spare time, is it because I am not as organised as I was when the kids were at home or is it that my life is now busier than I expected.   I love catching up with friends, my kids and grandchildren and babysitting when needed but this doesn't take all my time. I have so many quilting projects  I want to sew but I find myself procrastinating over these, I really need some motivation.  My machine is all set up and I have been doing a few things, mostly blocks for "Aussie Hero Quilts" these don't take much time and sewing these lessens my guilt.   I was part of a local quilting group, one that I was a founding member of and also a past president.   I was very active within this group until I became unwell and found I could no longer participate in the many activities I was part of, and so,  I resigned from this group almost five years ago.   Recently I have been thinking of rejoining this group to give me the motivation that I need.   Last week my daughters drove me to a fabric shop, a shop I haven't been to in a long time.   I was surprised to find that the cheap fabrics that they used to supply are no longer available, that wasn't the surprise as much as the price on the fabrics they do stock, these range from $22 to almost $30 a metre.   Needless to say the list I of fabrics I wanted to buy, was scrapped as I searched through the racks.  I did buy a few pieces of  "Peak Hour" by Riley Blake, these would be just right for one of my grandsons,  Isaac. I will add this to the list of quilts to sew, when I find the motivation. lol

Clipped and bathed

Tyler has been to the doggy beauty salon today, he has been clipped and bathed,  my shaggy dirty dog is now looking very up town and clean.   I'm sure he knows this because he has been prancing around with head held high.  The best part of this has been that it hasn't cost me anything to have him groomed.  My son, the one who does everything, did some art work for a close friend who happens to be a dog groomer,  she was competing in a competition and needed a display, my son volunteered to paint this for her in return for a couple of grooming sessions for Tyler.  She was very pleased with the result, as a matter of fact she placed third in the competition.  My son, of course, thinks this was all due to the display, Haa Haa.  I am very lucky and grateful to take advantage of his thoughtful gesture, and so is Tyler.

Testing the soil



Blue Rosemary

When buying something for the garden never listen to a man who isn't a gardner, never.  When I purchased the soil and mulch for the raised vegetable beds the man at the garden supplies told me their blend of mushroom compost was very good for growing vegetables.  I have just learnt a valuable lesson,  a couple of the plants that Tyler dug up were'nt looking so good and I was concerned that it was the soil,  so today I bought a Soil ph testing kit  and was shocked to find that the ph level of the beds were  8- 81/2, an alkaline level to high to grow vegetables.  I have just treated the soil with Sulphar and now have to wait a few days for this to settle.  While in Bunnings I found they have heirloom seedlings from Diggers, what a bonus, I've purchased capsicum, beetroot, silverbeet, tomatoes, cucumber, spring onions.   I also picked up some packets of carrot and bean seeds, in the mean time the little punnets of seedlings will be cared for under cover till I can plant them out into their new beds.  While in the mood for gardening I have planted a few companion plants, lavender, marigolds, rosemary, basil, thyme.   I can't wait to see everything growing.   I'm also watching Tyler, if he ventures over to that side of the yard he looks up to see if I'm watching and if he spies me he slinks off, oh, yes he knows.  Tomorrow is forcaste rain, might be a good day to do some quilting.

Spring blooms

white azalier with rain drops

I ventured outside this afternoon, to look at what damage the dog had wreaked on the garden over this past week while I have been unwell.   He hasn't been walked,  so I could only imagine what he had been up to.  Back to him later,  I had the most wonderful surprise, one of the potted azaliers was in full bloom and covered in flowers, so beautiful,  I had to get my camera to take a photo of this.  This azalier is one of the potted plants that died back after the move here,  I had no shelter for them when the temperature hit the mid forties and everything wilted.   I purchased a piece of shadecloth and covered all of them but unfortunately I lost a big percentage of my plants.   In Autumn I cut everything back and then hoped for the best,  I was rewarded with new growth on a few of them, but surprising me most of all  two of the azaliers had survived.   Getting back to the dog, I will have to erect a fence around the new garden beds, he has had a wonderful time,  I know he has been bored having missed his walks but, I can't keep planting just for for him to dig them out.  Part of the yard will have to be out of bounds for him.

Stage two in the garden

Today was stage two of the redesigned backyard,  early this morning I ordered the soil and the mulch, the garden supplier has a mushroom compost blend that he says is great for growing vegetables.  We spread a thick layer of newspaper  over the area, wet this and then,  my youngest daughter and the son who does everything filled the raised vegetable beds with the soil mix.  There is an area in the garden that has sunk, I'm thinking this is due to the sewage pipes and all the rain that we have had this winter.  We filled this in with soil to build it up and then covered the whole area with mulch, all this was done was in a couple of hours.  I left them to finish off while I made lunch, chicken and salads with fresh pita bread that I'd made this morning.  After lunch my son used his Karcher to clean all the paving, while we put away the tools   The yard is looking really good now.  All it needs now is for me to decide what I'm going to plant, and then, hope I can keep the dog from digging everything out.

Blocks, for Aussie heroes

Over the Christmas holidays I became aware of a small group of women who are sewing quilts for our service personell who are fighting in the Middle East, particularly Afghanistan.     This small group, "Aussie Hero Quilts and laundry bags" that started in New South Wales has now spread to all the states of Australia, and I'm not sure how many women are now involved, but I do know the list is growing fast.   Women who are giving of their time and resources to provide as many quilts and laundry bags to as many service personnel as possible.   From humble beginings the current total of quilts that have been sent has reached over five hundred.   Every month there is a new block pattern provided on the website that you can sew and donate, these are then sent to Jan-Maree, who co-ordinates this team,   the blocks that arrive are then sorted and sewn together to make quilts.   Last night I cut and stitched twenty four blocks, these will be mailed off to them today.   It's times like these that I wish I had a longarm machine, to be able to finish every quilt that I make would be wonderful.   This group now provides quilts  not only for troops in Afghanistan but for our soldiers in all parts of the Middle East, and now those serving on HMAS Anzac as well.   These women,  especially Jan-Maree need a medal for the work that they do to make the lives of our forces personell a bit brighter.   I am proud to be able to do the small amount that I do for this cause.  There is a donation button on the website, this is a secure sight and  is provided by Westpac bank,  if you cannot sew then maybe you would be generous with a donation.  You can find Aussie Hero Quilts and Laundry bags on Facebook or at Aussieheroquilts.blogspot.com.au. where you will find a long list of thankyous from the people that have received these quilts and laundry bags.   Oh, by the way do you want to know why the laundry bags, well, it is very difficult to find one laundry bag in amoungst a pile of plain blue or grey bags, with a distinctive bag it makes this an easy find.