By Myself

My DH Ian left last Wednesday afternoon to take some of Pete's welding equipment to Gladstone. While there he's trying to find a cousin of his Ken Edwards, the last address we have is Boyne Island. So far no luck, he will be home again by Wednesday, fingers xrossed.

Of course while the cat's away the mice will play.

Guess where I've spent most of my time. You guessed it! The sns shed.

I've finished the quilting on Evelyn's queen size quilt. Practise makes perfect. I've made this months, next months and December's churn dash blocks ready for Kraft Klub's swapping. I've made November's cobblestones and posted them to Stephanie in WA. I've finished zigzag-ing round the leaves and am halfway around the roses on my 'Rose Trellis' quilt. I've got to get a move on with this one as I'm giving the quilt to Marg on our travels. It's only 3 weeks until we leave and I have to quilt DSIL Lyn's quilt first. Actually I would like Lyns finished so that I can take it with me next weekend and give it to her then.

We're off to a family 3day holiday. Not Ian and I and our tribe, but my Mum and Dad and their tribe + spouses. Ian and I, DB Ken and Lyn, DB Trev and Karina and DS Jen and Steve. The only problem is that the weekend starts on Sunday and ends Tuesday. Ken and Trev are both shift workers, Ken with ACI making beer bottles and Trev with the fire service. Luckily it doesn't matter with us 'cause we're retired. But it means that Karina and Steve can't be with us. I wish it could be otherwise but that's just the way it is.

20+ yrs ago DD#2 Robyn gave me a cactus. Until 2001 it lived on the windowsill in the laundry, where it copped the western sun. Every so often I would remember to give it a drink. When we sold our house and moved across the road into the shed it came with me but for the life of me I can't remember where we put it, but put it somewhere we must have because when we moved to Gin Gin it came with us, it then sat under a tree and the main cacti nearly died until one day I was repotting (not something that I do too often, brown fingers that I have) and decided that the pups deserved a second chance. Naturally with my logical reasoning (ha ha) I reckoned it would be happier in sand not soil. Well I was cleaning the kitchen this morning and through the louvres I saw my cactus in flower and I know Ian won't believe me so I took a photo to prove it.

This Weeks Happenings

Each day I endeavour to get out to my sns shed for the afternoon and most days I'm successful.

So far I have made my blocks for October and November for my club's churn dash swap and scquilters cobblestone swap. I am thanful that there is only a couple of months to go in the year and then I can start thinking of ways to put the cobblestones together. So far I am putting them into a quilt for my grandies. Next year I've given myself a goal of making each one of them a quilt. Right now I'm wishing my girls hadn't been so prolific. 10 I will have to make the first one due in Feb - Tanee's, one in March, 2 in April and so on.

The churn dash blocks are going into a colourwash - I have never made one and years ago I saw a churndash colourwash quilt made by a Samford patchworker and have wanted to have a go at making one ever since. I will have 108 blocks to choose from.

To date I've almost finished the 'rose trellis' top and I'm in the process of appliqueing the leaves and roses on the last border. No photos yet as I keep forgetting the take the darn camera with me.

I've been busy on Tanee's first birthday quilt. Its taken from one of Lynette Anderson's patterns which is covered in appliqued butterflies. Early this year on one of my many trips up and down the Bruce Highway I called in and fell in love with the pattern so just had to have it. At the time I had no plans for the quilt just knew that I had to have the pattern. Well now it has a purpose - Tanee's quilt. I've altered it a little (of course, I hear you say) the pattern is for a square quilt and I want it to fit a single bed. After a lot of thought and trying different things I have just decided to add a couple more rows of butterflies.

On the 29th of Sept DH Ian and I headed south for DSIL's 40th birthday party. I couldn't get over that this party was is very first birthday party ever!! It went all day and he had a wonderful time and there was food everywhere. Shane and Sharyn did a wonderful job and we had a lovely time.


My Mum and Dad were there as well and Dad's eyes were like circles when he espy'd his favourite food — lollies. We had a terrible job getting the container back off him. Just like a big kid. Love him heaps.


My problem is that I try to do too many things at the same time and I want to learn every craft known to man and beyond. These little santa heads are 5" high and will eventually be tassells. They have a central hole drilled all the way through for the cord. I still have to finish the gold work, varnish, buy the tassell and trim, glue them on and then I can wrap one of them. The other one is mine, all mine.

I'm exhausted!

It's midnight and I should have been in bed hours ago, but I sat up watching Mr. & Mrs. Smith with Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. Quite a good movie, a little far fetched but good to watch while I got my vliesofixed leaves for my 'Rose Trellis' quilt cut out and then did a little more crocheting on my zigzag quilt.

I have finished 'Trev's Quilt' even down to the label. Just have to sew the eyes back on and it is ready to be wrapped. Would show a photo but you know what happened when I put a photo of the top here. He hasn't looked at this site since, I scared him that much. lol. Must get onto DSIL to see if she would like to get the card.

DH Ian has been terribly sick for the past 4 weeks, starting with a head cold that of course went to the chest. After xrays it was found that the chest was infected so onto antibiotics he went. He spent the whole of last weekend in bed just coming out to watch the start and end of Bathurst. Now for him that's sick!!!

I have my first outside quilt on the longarm. Thankfully EJ doesn't mind how I quilt it, she will be happy with anything. The quilt is beautiful a single irish chain with a (sort of) log cabin border all done in pinks and burgundys with green and brown as highlighters. It took my about 4 hours to load it onto the machine. I think it is queen sized. Boy is she trusting. We're talking learner here with a capital L.

Retired????

Whoever said that when you're retired you'll have the time to do what you want is obviously still working full time. I feel like I'm being pulled in six different directions and feel really uptight.

DD1 Sharyn arrived this morning with 4 of her 6 littlies in tow and will be here until Friday. Now I know what you're all thinking and saying and yes I do love having my grandies here, but what a full week I had planned. Plus DD3 Katie has now got a date for her gall bladder operation — Wednesday. Now on Wed I'm supposed to be going on a shopping excursion with my craft group and I have a list a mile long (of course) but I shall do the mother thing and be good (can't you see my halo).

No, I'm really just joking, I remember when I had my first operation, my DH Ian had to leave me and milk the cows so I had to head to theatre by myself and back then it was the full cut from neck to knee, no such thing as keyhole surgery and I remember that I was totally terrified, so I will be there if Katie needs me and even if she doesn't.

Marg and Hans are still in Gatton after seeing her doctor and when I spoke to her last week she is trying to contact the PA in Brisbane for an appointment to a vascular surgeon.

Ian is sanding off the stairs in preparation for painting. We tried to buy the rods for the hand rails but I think we bought out Bunnings last time and they still haven't replaced their stock.

This morning Ian headed off the Gladstone with Pete DH of Katie to help with the welding of pipes. They were going to be away for tonight, coming back for Katie's operation and then heading back up for 2 weeks. The company they will be working for hasn't even started drilling yet, let alone be ready for them. Oh well, as Pete said that little trip cost them $1000.

We also picked up our new caravan today. We have gone back to single wheels and a pop-top and we both agreed that it towed a lot smoother than the Roadstar. Next month we hopefully head south taking a boat and trailer on the ute and towing the van. We will visit Marg and Hans and then head to Melbourne and spend a week with the owners of the boat. Then we are heading along the Great Ocean Road, a trip that we have been wanting to do for ages. We will be gone for roughly 2 months and will be spending Christmas on the road. I got onto the website for house sitters and one couple are free for this time and we will be meeting them next Monday. Hopefully we both suit each other.