another week is nearing an end.....

....and i have been busy at the sewing machine again, as much as my aching body permits anyways.

yesterday, i sat down and worked out the cot quilt design and how much  fabric i would need to make the quilt blocks.  this process took quite some time even though the quilt i'm making is fairly simple and i have certainly developed a new-found respect for quilters who plan and make intricately patterned quilts.  i can hardly wait to see this cot quilt all sewn up although that part will have to wait until next week.

for now, the sewing is on hold while i set my mind to tidying, rearranging and cleaning house.

this saturday, my home will be the venue for a baby shower which michelle and alex are hosting so it's all hands on deck at the moment.  michelle made up some lovely invitations for the occasion...click here to see them.  we will be having a barbecue lunch, sweet treats, goodies and games for family and friends so it should be a lot of fun.  i'll try to remember to take some pics to show you.

on another note, i thought i'd show you a pic of my corsage from michelle and alex's wedding.
i dried it out simply by hanging it in a cool, dry spot for a few weeks.

 

isn't it lovely?!

it's totally dried out yet it's amazing how delicate the petals still appear

and just in case you forgot what my corsage looked like when it was fresh, see below

 i'm holding the ring pillow which i made as well as the celtic wedding tie box that i painted

this sunday, i plan to have a lazy day so i will be kicking back and relaxing...maybe even watch some DVDs or read a book.

do you have anything special planned for the weekend?

it's not an australian holiday but i'd like to wish all my blogger friends a Happy Thanksgiving if you are celebrating it in your part of the world this weekend.

~ love, light and peace ~

Sew, sew, sew......

only five weeks now until the expected arrival of my first grandchild!  

michelle, alex and i have been busy preparing the nursery for our precious, little angel - mikayla rose.  i haven't even started her cot quilt yet...YIKES!  i guess if i managed to sew a wedding dress in two weeks, i should be okay with a simple and small quilt, right? i sure hope so anyways and i do seem to work better under pressure of time restriction even though i hate it.

technology nowadays is amazing.  check out some 3D images of little mikayla on michelle's blog here.

these are the colours michelle has chosen for the nursery with a splash of turquoise/aqua also and these very fabrics will be transformed into a cot quilt, pillows, cot valance, change mats etc.

yesterday, michelle came over and we spent the day sewing and made two small, rectangular pillows with frills. i LOVE the citrus appeal and they will accent the magenta beautifully.

i made this little pin cushion way back when the kids were little....it's something like 20 years old!!

it's the only pincushion i have and i use it faithfully every time i sew. maybe some day i'll get around to making some fancy pincushions but this one has sentimental value and it serves its purpose very well so it's a keeper.  i made it from left-over fabric that i used to sew a little skirt and top for michelle when she was little.

since the wedding preparation and subsequent wedding, and now preparing for a new baby in the family, i haven't had a lot of time to blog so i want to thank YOU.....all my faithful and beautiful readers for hanging in there and supporting me with your wonderful comments.  you truly mean a lot to me!  i have been trying to get around and visit blogs where i can as i do love to see what you've been up to.

i'm feeling very nervous today because reece has another MMA (mixed martial arts/cage fighting) fight tonight so please think positive vibes that he will be okay.  reece fights in the light weight divisions and his opponent tonight started out in the heavyweight division and is much older than reece so it's a little scary.  win or lose, reece will always be a champion in my eyes but it's injury that i worry about.  below is a photo of him with his girlfriend, sarina, at michelle's wedding last month.  

on that note, i'll finish up this post and wish you all a wonderful weekend!

~ love, light and peace ~

Coming Up Daisies

I'm beginning to feel like pain is just going to be a part of my daily life so I may as well just grin and bear it. I'm still waiting to hear back on the MRI scan results but I'm sure, if there had been an abnormality to be concerned about, they would have been in touch by now....so I'm thinking, no news is good news.

Do you remember the feet matching contest I ran way back in March?

Nobody won so I did a draw from all the contest participants at this post and the lovely Rita won.

It's been such a crazy year for me with medical issues for myself and two of my sons as well as family events, including my daughter's wedding, and Rita has had the patience of a Saint in waiting for her painted gift.  Thankfully, she won't have to wait too much longer as I'm just waiting for the varnish to cure a little before popping the daisy painting  (pictured below) in the mail. I hope Rita will think it was worth the wait.

CLICK ON ANY IMAGE TO ENLARGE AND OPEN IN A NEW WINDOW

Coming Up Daisies  

Acrylics on 12"x16" canvas frame

© Serena Lewis

I've included a couple of the work-in-progress shots below so you can see the process behind the finished painting.  I like how the first stage looks in the photo and I'm thinking it would look nice as watercolour on paper but sadly, a first wash of acrylics on canvas just looks messy when you're up close and personal.

 When I think of daisies, I often think of the old and beautiful 1970's song written and performed by Jud Strunk and I start singing it out loud.  It's a nice story about a couple growing old together and his commitment to give her a daisy a day, even after she passed.  I thought I'd include the YouTube video here for you.

and the lyrics -

A Daisy A Day  
by Jud Strunk

He remembers the first time he met her
He remembers the first thing he said
He remembers the first time he held her
And the night that she came to his bed
He remembers her sweet way of sayin'
"Honey has something gone wrong?"
He remembers the fun and the teasin'
And the reason he wrote her this song.

I'll give you a daisy a day
Dear I'll give you a daisy a day
I'll love you until the rivers run still
And the four winds we know blow away.

They would walk down the street in the evenin'
And for years I would see them go by
And their love that was more than the clothes that they wore
Could be seen in the gleam of their eye
As a kid they would take me for candy
And I'd love to go taggin' along
We'd hold hands as we'd walk to the corner
And the old man would sing her his song.

I'll give you a daisy a day
Dear I'll give you a daisy a day
I'll love you until the rivers run still
And the four winds we know blow away.

Now he walks down the street in the evenin'
And he stops by the old candy store
And I somehow believe he's believin'
He's holdin' her hand like before
For he feels all her love walkin' with him
And he smiles at things she might say
Then the old man walks up to the hilltop
And gives her a daisy a day.

I'll give you a daisy a day
Dear I'll give you a daisy a day
I'll love you until the rivers run still
And the four winds we know blow away.
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Have a beautiful day!

~ Love, light and peace ~

A trip to Berrinba Wetlands

Yesterday was a fabulous day so Aaron, Brad and I went for a walk through the Berrinba Wetlands. We've actually been there a few times over the past few weeks so the following photos are made up from more than a day's visit.  This beautiful spot is only a four minute drive from our house.

CLICK ON IMAGES TO VIEW IN A SEPARATE PAGE

Surprisingly, the Berrinba Wetlands are man-made and were created by sand and mining operations after World War II.  It has pretty much been left untouched since the 90's although there has been selective work done to make it as natural a habitat as possible.  There is now 80 hectares of natural beauty and it's protected so the wildlife can flourish and enjoy their habitat in safety.

There are picnic and barbecue areas around the outskirts and there is an information centre which has interactive LCD screens.

I was over the moon the first time we visited the wetlands as I discovered there are pelicans living there!!!

I LOVE PELICANS!!

Btw, those are turtles, not rocks, sitting beside the pelicans on the sandbar.

There are concrete walking paths and pedestrian bridges through certain areas.

They also have concrete benches along the walking trails so people can rest and take in the views.

Here, Aaron rests with Jack.

One of my favourite spots at the Wetlands is this stone circle...man-made yes, but it feels magical to me.

We sit and rest here on every visit.

My little Cody monster has a lot of fur and these hot days can take their toll, especially when we go for walks, so he enjoys the rest at the stone circle too.

I was happy to spot some magnificent specimens of Banksias along the way too. I think these may be of the Banksia Roburs variety but not 100% sure.  They look almost black with their seeds still in tact.

We had a great time and it felt good to get out of the house as I haven't felt the best lately.  Unfortunately, I'm still dealing with a lot of head, neck and shoulder pain, however, our trip to the wetlands certainly made me feel much better.

What did you do this weekend? Feel free to share in the comments.

~ Love, light and peace ~

It's Blog Lovin' Time

My darling daughter, Michelle, has been busy preparing for the arrival of her baby girl and, in a recent post, she shares a step-by-step tutorial for making reusable baby wipes. Check it out here. These have to be so much better for baby's bottie than the commercial baby wipes.

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Dawn tempts our tastebuds with a decadent cheesecake recipe - Kahlua Cheesecake w/- Kahlua Fudge Sauce. YUMMO!!

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Years ago, I had some interesting books on craft creations using salt dough but, unfortunately, I had to sell them before our move to the States. I was tickled to see that Anna over at Anna Rosa Designs has made and painted some tags from....you guessed it....salt dough! Check the tags and the recipe out here.

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Do you like homemade pizza right down to the dough? Well, hop on over to Rhonda's blog - Down To Earth - for a step-by-step recipe including a Jam-Roly-Poly recipe. We always loved when Mum made Jam Roly-poly from her left-over apple pie dough. I adore Rhonda's blog! It's all about getting back to living a simple life.

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Perpetual Chocoholic does the most amazing coloured pencil paintings. Be sure to check out this latest work-in-progress. Sandi is an incredible artist and, to think, she had a tantrum recently which involved literally throwing her art out of the window proclaiming that she 'hates art'.  Thankfully, her muse always wins the battle. Read about that here.

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Sorry I haven't posted over the past couple of weeks.  

I've been feeling out of sorts with health issues and life in general.

I'll post soon to let you know what I've been up to.

I hope you all enjoyed a Happy Halloween!

~ Love, light and peace ~