From the garden ...

Fresh from our garden we have beetroot and carrots and yams kindly given by a neighbour.  I've never had yams before, in fact I have never seen yams before, so that will be something new to try tomorrow.  I'm new to growing veggies so was very pleased when everything grew this year.  We had tomatoes, runner beans, dwarf beans, peas, rocket, lettuce, courgette, beetroot, carrots and strawberries.  The only thing that really didn't grow at all was the spring onions.   The first lot of beetroot we harvested I roasted with balsamic vinegar and then mixed with local feta and mint - absolutely delicious!!!!  These beetroot are now much bigger so it'll be interesting to see how they taste.  Especially this one:

Our plum tree had lots of blossoms and lots of fruit but they took so long to ripen that the birds got them first. I think Maia was the only one of us to have a plum from our tree.  Our lemon tree was moved, ultimately for it's own good, but I don't think it liked it very much!  We've had some blossom on it since the move but no fruit yet - fingers crossed!

The other fruit tree we have is the feijoa.  This is a prolific producer but I don't really like them - luckily Craig and the girls do!  Having said that I made some delicious feijoa muffins last year and we just looked up the recipe after tea tonight.  Craig said he couldn't believe that it's been a year already since we had them last.  There's something very reassuring about celebrating different seasons with the foods and looking forward to the harvests.  I can tell you that I'm already looking forward to next January/February when we can go and pick our own blueberries again!

We've also saved some seed this year.  Don't you just love Maia's label "MAGIC BEANS MAIA APRIL 2010"?!  Being new to growing veggies I have once again been absolutely amazed at the whole process.  You take a small seed/bean etc and then they grow.  I love seeing the first shoots of green and wondering what the leaves will look like.  They then grow and,  hopefully, bear fruit and will then give you seeds to plant again the following year to bear more fruit.  I know this isn't rocket science and I know that this IS what happens but it amazes me just the same - it's just like magic!!!!

Bush and beach

Otaki Gorge

We went on an outdoor survival course on Sunday.  It was run by the local home educators group and it was WONDERFUL!!!!  The location, the people, the weather .....  what more can I say it was awesome.

It was intended for 5-10 year olds but families, of course, were welcome.  Cassia became an honorary 5 year old for the day and did a great job of keeping up with the older children.

Otaki Gorge

The day's activities included finding shelter (whilst being a wolf!  Yes they really did go around on all fours with the guy taking the day!!), hide and seek, bush trails, drinking water from the river (as the aforementioned wolves!), drinking water from the river in bamboo cups which the children had finished off, lunch, hunting for hazelnuts and cracking them open on rocks taken from the rover earlier, making a fire and lighting it and then baking damper bread on sticks over the fire.  Sound tiring?  It was, but so great.  The children revelled in the freedom and responsibility they were given and did a lot of things for the first time (me too actually - first time I've drank roof water and first time I've baked and eaten damper bread.  We also were able to go inside the yurt that the people have just installed and are living in.  What a wonderful space it was.)  If you had asked me whether a 3 year old could make and light a fire I would have answered no.  BUT given the right circumstances they can - and the look on her face was wondrous!  

I took lots of photos but because there were lots of children around I didn't like to use them on this blog.

The Monday morning was spent lazily getting up and heading down the beach.  The surf was great, the sun was shining and there was no-one else on the beach - life doesn't get any better!

A rather large post sticking in the dunes that Cassia thought she could knock down

A little smiley crab face!

This is the first time that I've found one intact and I just love them!

How apt ...

that I should find this book at a garage sale this morning when we are off on an Outdoor Survival Course tomorrow!  I know I should have been getting ready to go but garage sales are few and far between in this little town at the moment so I just had to go and have a look!  More goodies to show next week. Now we really are going ..... x

Life is great ...

when your 5 1/2!

Especially when your space hopper has just been fully pumped up again!

Even when you're hopping so high that you lose your hat!

Maia has gone through a HUGE stage of development recently.  The other week she was riding her bike, with training wheels.  We went round to a friend's and on the way home I asked her if she would like Daddy to take off the training wheels and take her up the school to have a go on the playground.  She did.  However, before her dad had even stood up from taking the training wheels she was off riding.

Yes, I'll write that again - SHE WAS RIDING.  She was riding her bike around the garden.  Not just in straight lines, she was riding and turning and going around things.  We asked her how she had done it and she just said her feet knew what to do!

How does this happen?  In the past I have always been somewhat sceptical when I have heard people say "Oh, little Billy just did x, y or z" you always think "Yeah, right sure he did!".  But I give you my word, Maia DID just ride her bike!  And she hasn't stopped since!

Jokes are also featuring a lot in our household.   Most of them of the "knock knock" variety and not making much sense to mum and dad but cracking up the girls!  However, Maia came out with this beauty the other day:

Why did the banana go to the doctors?

Because he wasn't peeling very well!!!!!!

Well it had both her dad and I laughing!

We're away to the beach for a couple of nights and an outdoor survival course on Sunday.  Wishing you all a great weekend. x

PS I've also managed to cross another of the undone quilt projects of my list but no photos yet so will share next week. x

It's all about quilts ...

I took a night class in patchwork and quilting at the end of last year and I am now officially addicted!  How do I know?  Well last week we had a get together of the class at the tutor's house to see what we had done and to continue sewing.  I jokingly said asked the tutor how many quilts she had on the go (Answer: she couldn't quite remember!) but then realised the joke was on me when I counted up patchwork/quilting projects I have on the go (not even mentioning those I have in my head!).  Answer: 7 (and I only started in October!).

So this week I have been doing a lot on the quilting front.

 

I was lucky enough to sneak a place on the ANZAC Bee, run by the lovely Amy over at Seven Stitches, after someone had to drop out and so these are the blocks for Margaret.  They are going to be made into a Paintbox Quilt inspired by this one over at Oh, Fransson!  So now I have another one to add to that list in my head!

Having enjoyed my first two months of the ANZAC Bee so much  I felt I needed to join another one.  I was  happy to spot another Aussie/Kiwi alliance run by Jo at Sparkly Green Knickers (don't you just love that name?!) and so the Australasian Bee was formed.  Last month Viv set us this challenge and having made my blocks for her I was keen to make some for myself.  So a variation on a theme resulted in:

One is destined to become a wall hanging and the other cushion cover.  Pretty cute eh?  

So lots done but obviously none of the aforementioned quilt projects!  Well I have now got one of them crossed of my list.

 

I was browsing the web one day (as we are all prone to do) and saw this tutorial for a crazy nine-patch on Oh, Fransson!  I had to give it a go and I had to give it a go there and then.  The top was cut and pieced in a couple of hours and then sat on the shelf until this week.  The end result:

This is only the second piece I've quilted so I was pretty pleased with it.  You can see it's got a border on it because I didn't quite measure the initial square quite right and I've just done outline quilting along the seams and then echoes the triangular shape of the pieced blocks on the plain blocks.  I love the way the original is quilted all over but I thought if I was going to get it finished at any stage this year then it would have to be straight lines!

1 down 6 more to go - watch this space!! x

The day started with making this:

Inspired by a bag I received in my first ever swap I wanted to make a pattern suitable for children for the homeschool sewing group at my house today!

Pattern decided, people arrived, 3 adults, 4 girls, 2 toddlers and 2 babies later we ended up with these:

Maia was the youngest girl who wanted to sew and I was so surprised at what she could do although I guess she's seen it enough times!!! It was great to see all three girls working at the bags. Lunch called and so we decided to leave the finishing off for next week when I think we'll have 3 very proud little girls. x

PS The other thing I'm all about at the moment is quilting - one of my blocks even made it onto someone else's blog today - check it out!!! From one very proud newbie quilter!

I want to come back if I may?

It's been quite some time but I think I'm ready to come back here.

I tried a few other places but never got into my stride so then I thought why not go back?

So much has been happening but if I dwell on that I'll never get a post done. So I'll start today. The blog page needs some work but why let that put me off - if I do nothing will ever get done.

I have to admit I have got so much more done since I haven't been blogging but then someone mentioned that they kept up on their blog reading by google reader (thanks Amy!) so I've decided to give that a go and start up mine in the process.

It's going to be lovely to catch up with some old faces (no offence intended) and see what they and their families are doing and making.

So that's it - no pictures, no fanfare, just a return. x