Phase 2

It is now fully 2 weeks since my operation and things are going well.  Yesterday was my return visit to the hospital to have the stitches removed and new casts put on.  Apart from having to wait a ridiculous amount to time to be seen (1hr 10 minutes after my appointment time) it was a good appointment.  I got to see my 'new' feet for the first time and they looked odd.  Not like my feet, admittedly they were/are swollen, but it was a bit like looking at someone else's feet.  Not a pair of feet I recognised.  It was also the first time I got to see exactly where the stitches were.  I've reached the grand age of 41 with the only medical attention, requiring attendance to hospital, being pregnancy related.  So to have had a couple of bones broken and stitches, it is a novel experience.  It was also the first time I've had stitches removed.  It didn't hurt.  I could feel a little tugging sensation, I decided not to watch, but no pain.

I did watch when the nurse put on my new casts.  It was all very fascinating, even seeing the stitches for the first.  A bit Frankenstein-ish to be honest, but fascinating all the same.  So my feet now look like this

 Definitely much better wrapped up than the last effort.  Lighter weight cast and nicely wrapped in crepe bandages.  Quite cosy in fact!

So that's me for the next 4 weeks, Phase 2 - still doing the same - rest, elevate and occasionally walking in my gorjuss shoes.

It's been 2 weeks since my op but it's almost 3 weeks since I finished up work and the first weekend, before my op, was slightly manic.  Over 4 days we had a little person turning 3, a birthday day out, a small family birthday gathering, a Beavers Scout outing, lots of housework, a get-together with friends, trip to hairdressers and final prep for going into hospital.  Oh and I finished a quilt top!

But things have been much calmer over the last 2 weeks.  I've read 3 books (well nearly, I've only 50 pages left on 3rd one), watched 3.5 series of The Good Wife, numerous episodes of Paw Patrol (kiddie programme), done quite a few 'extreme' dot to dots, done this little guy

Which reminded me I still haven't finished this guy, which I started ..... erm ... about .... well let's just say it was over 10 years ago.  So he deserves to be finished.  No excuses now do I?

I'm also being entertained by these two

And the littlest one, who loved the first week at nursery, but cried her eyes out every morning of week 2 and almost had a wobble today has been bringing me home her artwork everyday to cheer me up and to ask if my feet are feeling better! 

Organisation

My main aim at the moment is to be more organised.  In many areas of my life - kids, housework, crafting, eating, work, you name it I reckon it needs to be better organised. 

So to begin this month is my first time at being a Bee Mama!  I mentioned a bit in my last post so I've given out instructions on the blocks I would like other lovely, generous ladies in our Sibling Together Bee to make and they then make their version of my blocks and send them to me.  I've already started to receive some and they are gorgeous.  Can't wait to receive them all and get the quilt all made up. 

Another thing which needed to be organised is some cushions for the kids rooms.  When they are lying in bed getting their bedtime stories, me and hubby end up sitting on the floor next and after a couple of minutes it tends to get really uncomfortable.  We aren't getting any younger so the cushions are mainly for us to sit/lean on, but also to look good in their rooms.

The big mega cushion top is for the Dude's room

 and this smaller one, which involved some pretty cool paper piecing is for Little Miss's room.  Next is some hand quilting I think for both them.  Another first for me! (so getting organised in the way of extending my skills)

The other thing we have been up to this week or so is trying to remove an ugly decking/planter which took up a large corner of our back garden, inherited from the previous owners.  When we first moved, we had ideas of planting potatoes and stuff (there was nothing in it, just a load of soil) but then over the winter and trying to negotiate past the tiny space between the decking and the grass (which was sodden all winter and still is!) we decided it had to go. 

So the mountain of wood has been removed (how many screw/nails are needed to hold decking together?) and now we are gradually removing the mountain of soil.  Which is a slow process.  We thought we'd hit jackpot and there was going to a slabbed area underneath all of this but no, optimistic hopes dashed when we started actually lifting the wood and just more bloody soil.  So the jury is still out on the final use for this corner but lots of options being thrown about.  I'm just pleased to have some more useable space. 

So slowly things are becoming more organised in some areas, not all but hey I can't manage everything at once!

Mojo Rising

No, I haven't suddenly turned into Jim Morrison (although I'm now going to have that running round my head for the rest of the night! But it beats Kenny Rodgers' The Gambler which I've been humming all day!!) but I'm been making stuff.  I know!  I'm shocked too.

It started with this, how to make a quick blocked piece by pressing squares onto light interfacing.  It stayed in this pressed, but unsewn stage for a few weeks then I sewed the seams together and I now have a rough finished cushion top.  (which i do have a photo of, but it seems to have vanished at present!)

Then I bought the book in this picture Lynne Goldsworthy & Kerry Green's 500 Quilt Blocks which I've wanted for a while and it kind of got my mojo going.  Plus the fact that I am part of a bee for the Siblings Together charity and my month was fastly approaching and not only was I behind on my block for others but I hadn't decided what month was going to be!  (I'm also doing some quilt maths in this photo)

So a little visit to the Scottish Quilt show in Edinburgh last month ended with this purchase, a much needed new rotary cutter (which is brilliant by the way) and the need to try it out.

For February Pat asked for bright string blocks.  I think these should do the trick, the photo isn't great.  The rubbish weather is not good for taking decent photos but you can get the gist!

These are the blocks for March for Susy who wanted nautical themed blocks based on nautical symbols she had found on a piece of fabric.  These are my takes on her theme - the colours haven't come up very well but I really like the top left block which is aqua and pale orange.

 So tomorrow is the start of my month as Bee Mama (eek!)  I've never been part of a Bee before so it's daunting and exciting all at the same time.  Will my instructions be clear, will they think my blocks are easy to follow or too complicated, or too boring?

I've gone with green, blue and low volume/pale neutrals as my colour scheme and the economy block as my theme and come up with this

I'm really looking forward to see what everyone else comes up with!

There is some other things bubbling away but maybe I'll save that and maybe blog more than once a month!!

Seasonal Activities

I'll start this by making a statement that we don't normally 'do' seasonal stuff.  I mean, we do the standard traditional christmas 'stuff' and in the last few years we have started doing more easter stuff but the other seasonal 'holidays' to americanise things for a second, we don't really do.  For various reasons, but mainly because I've never really seen the point!

But this year is a bit different, for a start the Dude is at school now so that meant his very FIRST school disco.  Excited?  You betcha!  And what did I forget to do?  Take a photo of him, but he was dressed as Spiderman.

(actually this was him at a birthday party a few weeks ago - the guy is kneeling down, the Dude isn't quite that tall yet!)

I also take Little Miss to a local toddler's group once a week so when they said there was a Halloween party I thought I'd dress her up too

 Not the best photo to be honest but she hardly stays still for a second and the camera on my phone isn't the quickest!  But she was a little cute pumpkin and looked adorable :)

Then when we got home she ended up pulling this face!  She is going to be trouble this one!!

Then to finish off getting into the spirit I popped up a couple of decorations and even managed to carve out these 2 pumpkins.  With only a little help from a couple of stencils (I'm good at times but not that good!)

 

 Then I rounded off last week by completing my Siblings Together2 Bee blocks for Sue this month.  I really enjoyed these and I can't wait to see Sue's giant Granny Square quilt.  It will look fab.

Now to get organised for Christmas (did I just say that?) quickly slap me now!!!

A Quilt Along and a Finish Along?

Following on from my last post about doing different/new things this year I have taken the plunge and decided to join in with the latest round of Old Red Barn Co Quilt Along (or ORBC quilt along for those in 'the know'!).  This is round 15 so it's been going on a wee while now, since 2009 I think.  I've seen lots of people joining in and it looked great fun but I never really felt I could/had the time, etc.  But this round I am, it is called 'Angled Frames' looks a bit like a log cabin but with a twist (ha! no pun intend). 

Now this called for some purchasing of fabric - trauma! - so I duly went trawling through websites, bambozzling myself in the process but did find some fantastic half metres in a rainbow pack.  I've decided I'm going to make this a quilt for Megan so something nice is bright is great.

I've also decided to link up with Katy at The Littlest Thistle and join in the Finish-a-long she does every quarter, so this is quarter 2 (which is kinda messing with my head as deal with budgets and stuff at work and it's actually Q1, but hey that's life!!).

So my proposals for finishing in quarter 2 are my quilt for the ORBC quilt along,

this quilt which started life as a mystery quilt along with Sheila at Bluepatch Quilter in ....... 2011 I think(?).  The plan was to have it finished by last Christmas as a gift for my dad and stepmum as the top is very nearly finished (I've only got 1 and a bit strippy bits and 1 block to do then the borders) but the run up to Christmas was a bit mad, then I was ill over Christmas/New Year which then prolonged into January.  And well it's still unfinished.  So I must get this done soon!!

And thirdly I'd love to get this finished

I started this cross-stitch when we lived in our flat.  We have lived in this house for nearly 8 and a half years.  I attempted to get started again after we had to get our beloved Jacky monster put to sleep last June but I got too upset every time I did (silly woman!).  But the end of this FAL will coincide with nearly 1 year since he died.  So a fitting tribute to aim for I reckon.  Still miss the litte bugger every day too!!

So there we have it a QAL and 3 proposals for a FAL - go me!

A playdate?

Could I call it that?  Probably not, seeing as I'm a grown up and all, but it was just as much fun as kids have at a playdate.  What am I talking about?

An opportunity for me to get out, away from the normal routine of kids, housework, work and spend some time with other like-minded people and play with paper, pens, ribbon, glitter, glue, you name it.  That's right I got myself along to a craft club :)

My friend from work, Ann, runs a craft club in a nearby town once a month and has been asking me if I wanted to come along.  Now she has been asking me for about, oh ...... 2 years roughly, and while I've always thought 'yeah, that sounds like a good idea' I've never actually taken her up on the offer.  Why not?  Well generally because it means organising stuff, like husband and children, craft supplies, which kind of takes the fun out of it a little.  Oh yeah and there the vast amount of guilt I feel whenever I actually set out do something which feels slightly self-indulgent - you know like being away from those that I am responsible for an entire day to basically play with paper, or sit at my sewing machine when I can think of a million bits of housework that I should be doing instead.

But....now that I'm in my 40th year I sort of made myself some new year resolutions, well more of a birthday promise to myself.  That being this year, in the run up to my 40th, if I want to do something 'for me' then I should.  I'm one of the worst procrastinators/over-thinkers I know, I can think about things until I've talked myself out of it, or put it off till whatever it was is too late to do!

Anyhoo, back to the point, when Ann asked me a couple of weeks ago if I wanted to come along to her craft club and said yes.  So I spent a couple of nights planning and ordering photographs of the kiddiewinks, a Friday night hunting through my packed away papercraft supplies (it was all packed away to turn the spare room into Megan's room, so hasn't been looked at in over a year!) and toddled off on a Saturday morning to Dunfermline to meet a roomful of people, I only know Ann, and make STUFF!

This was us being all productive (& slightly messy!)

It was great, I totally over estimated just how productive I'd be, but over the course of 6 hours I did 2 and a bit scrapbook pages, blethered a fair bit and basically had a lovely time.  It's been so long since I did any scrapbooking that I'd completely forgotten just how much fun it can be to play with paper, ribbon and photographs.  Without feeling guilty :)

My efforts (although I did finish Megan's at home, ran out of time)

Roll on next month!!!!

Ooops!!!

I've had a small hiatus!  I knew I hadn't blogged in a while, just slipped my mind the last time I blogged was November.  That was last year! and now we're very nearly, just a kick in the bum away from March.  That's a nearly a quarter into this year.  Flippin 'eck :o

But life has been busy, so it's all good.  The end of last year involved housey stuff (decorating, finishing stuff started ages ago), then it was Christmas and all that malarky, then we had an 'ill house' over the festive period that cleared up for everyone but me (yay!) so the rest of January/early February was dealing with health stuff.  That promptly brings me up to the last 2 weeks, just like that!

I have had a very luxurious 2 weeks off work, luxurious in that work is hectic at the moment and who really takes 2 weeks off in February?  One week for school mid-term but 2 weeks is a bit cheeky :)

In my defence I had annual leave to use up (ain't losing that for nobody) and the week after our mid term was my little pumpkin's first birthday.  Yes it's hard to believe, but our little girl has gone from this (where frankly she looks like a little doll)

Euan trying to look enthusiastic about his baby sister!

To this little person, who is constantly on the go.  She really is the giggliest little munchkin, it's a rare sight to see her upset thankfully.

I'm also massively thankful that her big brother loves her to bits.  I don't know what I'd do if there was any jealousy to deal with.  Parents who have to deal with that must have the patience of a saint.

So the last two weeks have involved 2 birthday cakes (2 separate birthday teas!), lots of attempts at cake pops - not as easy as I thought they'd be! and my first ever attempt to make macaroons (or macaRONs according to the Great British Bake Off!).  They weren't as scary as I'd expected them to be and even seemed to impress my very own Paul Hollywood (ie my dad - fussiest foodie ever!) who asked if I'd bought them ;) 

I've also managed to squeeze in a little bit of sewing

 (granted it doesn't look like much but it will become a revised Mariner's Compass!)

 (playing with hexies)

and even a visit to the Spring Quilt show at Ingliston yesterday where I picked up this fantastic panel - 'Hello Tokyo'

It's a rubbish photo, but you get the idea and I discovered while 'surfing the 'net ' that there are coordinating fabric too.  Yay!!!  This will be made into a quilt for Moo but I'm in 2 minds what to do with it - keep it as a whole panel, or cut it up and do some applique or something.  Needs more planning!

Right off to have a quick cuppa for me but I will be back soon :)

Scrappy trip

I've had a bit of burst of sewing mojo in the last week!  Don't know what has come over me.  I know what hasn't been done (housework!) but all the blocks for my scrappy trip around the world are complete - 24 blocks all done.  Yay!!!

I should really have been catching up with housework or even playing with my daughter this morning, y'know being like a proper housewife/mummy.  But I decided to play about with the layout of the blocks instead.

There's a lot of yellow and green.  (apologies for the rubbish quality photo - bad combination of rubbish light, phone & fabric colours not coming through properly)  Not sure if I'm entirely happy with this layout, might need to fiddle about with it in a day or two before I'm happy to finish the top off.

Next on my sewing To Do list (I'm a woman of lists, I feel uneasy when I don't have a list!) is to catch up with the Mystery Quilt that Sheila started a couple of years ago.  I got about half way through then it just fell by the way side.  So that NEEDS to be finished and soon.  Actually after a wee trawl through previous blog posts, I found this post which is from 2 years ago and that was pretty much the last time I worked on the quilt.  I had better look out all the instructions and get cracking.  Might even end up as a christmas present, now there's an idea ;)

Right some parenting it called for the dude needs his lunch then it's off to his swimming lesson!

Progress at last

My sewing machine has been in use!  Wonders will never cease :)

The partially started cathedral windows have progressed.  I pondered for a couple of nights on the layout of the inside bits (my rubbish with technical terms) to make sure it looked just right.

 Version1 - Just wrong - too samey

 Version 2 - Better with the blue but still not happy with it

 Version 3 - Still liking the blue but the middle 3 are just wrong (they look almost yellow but are green!)

 Final version - much happier with this layout and combination.  Much more pleasing to the eye.

All sewn up and finished.  No idea what I'm going to do with it now.  It's FAR from perfect, at the moment all I can see are flaws but I've done it and I'm reasonably happy with the results.  Might try the technique again with a bit more thought as to the end use!

 

I've also done some more of my scrappy trip around the world blocks (go me!) so 11 blocks done out of 24 - almost half done.  Isn't it odd how taking a photo can make things look different - I just randomly laid out these blocks with no intention of creating any pattern and now that I'm looking at a picture of them there is a slight pattern.

I'm going to publish now as I started to write this post about 10am (it's now 2.50 - thankfully Firefox has restored my last webpage both times)  Since then my laptop has crashed twice since then, I've collected Euan from nursery, made lunch and taking him to his swimming lesson.  Now Little Miss has just woken from her nap, I need to do other things that don't involve fighting with a laptop!  I'll finish with a little snap of the kiddiewinks from yesterday when I was doing my monthly photo of Megan - 7 months old.  I think I blinked!

Strictly Saturdays

My Saturday nights are now feeling back to normal!  I'm not a big reality tv fan - can't be doing with X-Factor, Big Brother or whatever else is on but I LOVE Strictly.  I even like Craig (at times).  It feels like the start of autumn/winter - nights get darker, husband is generally out working (although not tonight so I've got a night off bedtime duty), ideal way to spend a Saturday is to snuggle up on sofa and watch Strictly Come Dancing.

The rest of my night is planned to consist of settling down with a cuppa and a donut and doing some more of Jack's cross-stitch.

Redesign, Refocus, Relaunch

Welcome to my new bloggy home :)

A new home to record all aspects of my life - family, home life, making stuff!, work - if I do it, then I might just end up blogging about it at some point. 

It's been another period of change in the last few weeks as I've only just returned to work after being off on maternity leave after bringing Little Miss into our wee family.  So me and him (that'll be the husband Pete) are finding our new roles and getting ourselves organised.  We are in a very lucky position where due to how he works (guitar tutor - so mainly late afternoon into evening) and me being part-time, we juggle childcare between us with a little bit of assistance from grandparental units.  It's taking some time to readjust our time management skills.

It's a bit weird being back at work - somethings have changed but somethings have remained exactly as they were when I went of at the end of January.  I shouldn't really be surprised but as there was basically no-one covering my mat leave so a huge chunk of things have been on hold waiting for me to return!

Other than returning to work the end of August was busy with the Dude returning to nursery, he's a pre-schooler now - eeek!  Less than a year til he goes to the 'big' school.  I dread to think what I'll be like next August, I'm already stressing about it *facepalm*  However, he loves it and is definitely thriving because of it, this was him just before he ran off on his first day back (I have no explanation for the 'jazz' hands!)

Now that Little Miss is 6 months we have started down the road of weaning, which I know there have been various approaches to over the years, but I'm stuck to the current recommendation of waiting til babe is 6 months.  However, unlike what we did with the Dude (purees) I'm attempting to try 'baby-led weaning' - basically babe eats pretty much what we do and no purees.  Basically I'm reminding myself of the motto 'food for fun, before one' every time I give her something to try.  She's getting the hang of food and finding her mouth more often than I expect.  This is tonight's dinner, some pasta and homemade tomato sauce and a bit of rice cake - she seemed to like the sauce :)

It's also been my dad's 70th birthday.  It's weird to think of him being that age, part of me sees 70 as an old person.  But give him is due he's still working (3 days a week in a supermarket bakery - his preferred shift if 5am-2pm!), he's getting a bit more forgetful these days but hey, my memory is shocking, so I can't really comment and he does loads of funding raising for his church including making approximately 200 jars of jam and marmalade for the christmas fayre every November and runs a cafe at the church every Monday.

I've even managed to do some making and decided to try my hand at cathedral window blocks.  As ever it's not finished yet but I did the immense ironing task which is involved, and actually found it quite enjoyable, so currently it looks like this  (actually it's a bit further on than this, there's 16 sewn together) just need to pluck up the courage to do the next bit of adding in the 'window' fabrics.  Procrastination is a wonderful thing!

That's a bit of round up of August.  Blogging will happen more frequently (well that's the intention) so I hope I didn't bore you too much and you'll pop by again to see what else we get up to :)