And......back home again

These few weeks have flown by!  We had a fun time down south (which would have been better had the weather co-operated, it was either cold or wet or cold again) and it was so good to catch up with family and friends again.  The One And Only Grandkid is shooting up, he's up to my chest now.....we enjoyed the autumn colours, and indulged in a little bit of shopping.  Well, perhaps slightly more than a little bit....here in the Small Smoke our options are limited, so we take the chance to stock up when we can.  We also took in a few exhibitions.

On our way south we stopped off at Sofala, an interesting little town made more so since we learned that Kevin's great-grandmother Eliza was born there back in the gold rush days of 1863.  This is the Turon River, quiet and peaceful now, which would have been a hive of activitity in those days.  You can see where branches have been carried along and left behind as recent high water receded, the Turon River in its steep valley can become a raging torrent when flooded.

We stayed at a caravan park north of Canberra as our regular park is currently closed.  It meant a bit more driving, but was quiet and peaceful with plenty of autumn colour.  This view was just behind our van site late one afternoon.  Don't be fooled by the blue sky.  It was cold.

A stop off at a favourite cafe provided entertainment on a wet day - the sulphur-crested cockatoos and galahs are fun to watch.  We were told these were all juvenile males, a teenage gang.  The galah with its back to the camera took exception to something it heard, flapping its wings and sqwarking.

Not all fallen leaves in autumn are autumn colours.....this plane tree leaf was still bright green.

We had ducks and rabbits regularly visiting our spot, each and every one of them incontinent; there was plenty of 'fertiliser' around.  I had to zoom in to get this shot because bunnies and ducks would disappear if we walked too close to them.

On the way home at a stop - one of many - for roadworks, on the Mid-Western Highway between Cowra and Blayney.

It was so chilly that we probably won't go to Canberra between the end of April and September/October in future.  If we weren't in a caravan - if we were in an insulated bulding - it wouldn't be so bad, but there were times when it was really unpleasant.  Our outdoor chairs and table weren't taken out of the car at all and my ukulele didn't leave its case either; it was just too cold to sit outside and plink away, my usual preference.

Some fabric shopping was indulged in, and some home-made jam shopping, and chocolate shopping (we found a place to have a birthday chocolate lunch, and very yummy it was too), and book shopping.

Now we are home, clothes are unpacked, washing is done, but my shopping is not all unpacked yet.  That's always the worst part of a holiday, isn't it?  Unpacking and putting away Stuff.

Some diamonds were stitched - a pic will be taken - and knitting helped to pass the long journey, the back of my latest jumper/cardy (still not decided but leaning towards a jumper) is done and one sleeve has been started.  It will probably become a TV project this winter, when there is something worth turning on the TV.  Which there frequently isn't, we find.

Continuing on with General Rules for Balls:

"The lady with whom a gentleman dances last is the one he takes to supper.  Therefore he can make no engagement to take out any other, unless his partner is already engaged."

Well, yes.  This is indeed so.

Enjoy your days!

Sixteen years ago......

Way back in early 2006 we were planning a trip overseas - a cruise, no less!  Our older son was working on board a cruise ship playing in the orchestra so we booked ourselves a flight to Vancouver, did some tootling around Vancouver then Victoria on Vancouver Island, cruised for seven days to Alaska on our son's ship, then spent a few more days in Alaska going as far north as Fairbanks before eventually flying home.  It was a very busy three weeks.

Because all those flights entailed much sitting and waiting I decided to do something I hadn't done before - piece quilt blocks by hand.  A six inch flower basket block was decided on and a few blocks cut from floral and white-on-white fabrics; these were first taken to Canberra for our annual Easter trip, and some stitches were actually sewn.  The original plan was to make 169 blocks to be set 13 rows across by 13 rows down....good heavens, I said to myself, that's a lot of sewing.  However I kept plodding away and after a few years was enjoying the process so much that I thought to make the quilt bigger, so ended up making 225 blocks.  There are fabrics from several trips to Canada, as well as that Alaskan trip, in it.

Once all the blocks were made several years ago they were joined nine at a time, three rows by three.  The original Cunning Plan was to do them quilt-as-you-go then join those blocks to make a quilt but I couldn't decide which quilting design to use, so they sat....and they sat.....and they sat some more until last year when the hand-piecing on my tumbler quilt was finished, and I thought "blow it - I'll finish the flower basket top and have it quilted".

On Friday night the last stitch was taken on the top - and it's done, sixteen years after it was first a bright idea in my brain!  I'll try to get a photo but it is so big that may be hard to do, so here are some progress pics.

The last block was made and photographed on 20th August, 2014.

One of the 25 blocks of nine; white and floral backgrounds were alternated.

This was taken just six months after the first stitches were taken, when enough blocks had been made to cover the top of our dining table.

There won't be a border, it's already large enough....90 inches square, 4,500 individual pieces.  It will, of course, shrink when quilted.

You probably heard my sigh of relief and achievement on Friday night from your house, wherever you are.

We will be going away on Tuesday so my knitting will come along, as will the diamonds which were recently cut for hand-piecing.  And some books to read, and a book of crossword puzzles - Kevin likes Sudoku, I prefer crosswords - our little caravan doesn't have TV.  When we come home, quilting on the border of my Canadian quilt will be done....it's time it was finished, and there are other machine projects to fill in the rest of this year and probably the next year as well.  And to start off the following year after that.....

Last night's concert went very well, it was so good to sing to an audience again!  The choir songs were well received as were the ukulele group songs, and my solo was much applauded; while I was packing up my uke a man from the audience came to compliment me and to say how much he enjoyed my song, which I thought was really nice of him.  I sang a parody - in French, no less! - of words which have crept into English, to the tune of 'La vie en rose'.  Other audience members also complimented me as we were leaving, saying how much they enjoyed my funny song.

Of course my uke will go away in the caravan too.  As will warm clothes, because Canberra's forecast is for some fairly cool weather.  My birthday will be a few days after we arrive and I had decided that Kevin could take me out for chocolate lunch.  At a chocolate shop/café.  Which we have now found out is closed, yet another victim of business downturn due to the covid plague.

Sigh.....

"General rules for balls.

A young man who can dance, and will not dance, should stay away from a ball."

Indeed.  The whole point of going to a ball is to socialise and to dance, so if you will not dance there is no point in going, is there?

We'll be back at the end of May.  Until then.....

Enjoy your days!

Jennifer