Blossom Hill Cottons

Christmas is coming ....

2011-12-15T11:47:00.000-04:00

The month of December is well under way, it seems to come around faster every year - how does that happen??
November was not the best month for me in terms of physical activity. I took a bit of a tumble on some black ice in my driveway at the end of October! The heavy rain had frozen on the edge of the deck and as I headed out with the good intention of going for a brisk early morning walk around the walking track in town, my feet just disappeared from under me and I wacked both shins on the edge of the wooden deck and skinned my knees, hands and chin!
Craig came rushing out to rescue me when he heard the loud shriek expelled from my lungs and almost slipped himself but managed to regain his balance and help me to my feet. I had deep bone bruising on my shins as it turned out but luckily no fracture or breakage. Maybe the calcium supplements do work!
The recovery time however I have discovered does take longer the older you get and it was almost 6 weeks before the swelling went down and my shins ankles and knees had gone through various colours of the rainbow. It was nice to finally be able to walk properly again without feeling pain.

November was on the other hand quite eventful in my shop and I was very excited to receive another lot of beautiful soft merino wool blend felt in the mail from BenzieBazaar.

I had chosen colours for my most popular animals in earthy tones suitable for deer, squirrels, bears, hedgehogs, puppies and kittens. Also some ivory white and dark grey for the wedding topper birds.

The first order I made up in the new felt was a set of Alpaca's to be used as a wedding cake topper. I designed the pattern to be slightly larger than my usual 2" size which is what the bride to be wanted. Then I had a request for some birds in mustard yellow and golden brown, rainstorm blue and cream, with contrast stitching in silver grey, also for a wedding compliment the wedding decor.

I do enjoy making up these personal custom orders for weddings and am particularly happy to be taking on a project for three sets of mice and squirrels for a wedding planner soon.
When I mention to people that I make up cake toppers in the form of animals they often look a little perplexed. When you are in love and planning a wedding it is often the little details that make all the difference and to have a cute keepsake, especially if it has a special meaning (Craig and I have referred to each other as bunnies since we got engaged over 20 years ago!)

The feedback photos are always lovely to get, you may remember this pair of deer I made a few months ago?
Well, it's back to the land of felt and stitchery for me this morning, interrupted only by the need to put another log on the wood stove to keep my fingers nimble and the occasional mug of hot tea to warm my toes!
I hope you are all enjoying the run up to the Christmas holidays :)

Etsy Pre-Christmas Sales

2011-11-15T09:47:00.001-04:00

Hello to all my followers :)
I have had a little blogging break while keeping busy sewing quite a few orders for my Blossom Hill Etsy Shop over the past few weeks. It can get a bit hectic in the run up to Christmas.
Here are just a small selection of the little felt animals I have been designing and sewing.

A collection of these assorted birds to a boutique in Halifax.

3 tiny deer for a baby's nursery in the US

Scandinavian Christmas felted wool red berry heart decorations

Some little Japanese Totoro wood spirits !

Unicorns and winged horses

A little peach bunny made from a new colour merino wool felt ordered from the US from Benzie Bazaar. I am patiently waiting for another delivery soon with more of the popular brown shades that are running low in my sewing room.

This cute Pitbull puppy was a custom order for a lady who wanted a miniature version of her own little dog.

Plus of course the little bird wedding cake toppers :)

This particular pair are flying off to the UK!

Well Hello Autumn!!

2011-10-14T17:47:00.001-03:00

Autumn is here, which is quite evident in the beautiful spectrum of colours of the leaves on our trees. Craig couldn't resist getting out the camera one sunny morning this week and taking a few snaps.
It's amazing how quickly it all happens from a tree full of green to varying shades of red and gold, before a few windy days come along and send them all falling to the ground.
Don't you just love the feeling of stepping and jumping on crunchy autumn leaves?
It's so satisfying :D

Hazel x

Family Friday - Princess Amber

2011-10-01T11:26:00.001-03:00

GETTING READY

August came and went and the school holidays ended, which was a bit sad but all good things have to come to an end and although the sun didn't shine as much as previous summers, all the veggies and fruit still grow well. We harvested spinach, lettuce, onions, carrots, beets, peppers and courgettes. The tomatoes were late but bountiful none the less by the end of the month and I managed to make a few batches of sun dried tomatoes and delicious chunky sweet tomato soup to store in the freezer for winter.
Sometime in July Amber was asked (as she and Jemma have been every year we have lived here) if she would be willing to take part in the Morristown Princess Tea, where they choose a epresentative aged between 15 and 18 to take part in the Berwick Gala Days celebration. Both my daughters have declined in the past due to the stigma attached to pageants generally.
However this year Amber got more information and discovering that a Princess in the Gala Days festivities is more of an all round representative rather than a beauty queen, with emphasis being on public speaking, good morals, manners and work ethic. Having thought about it she decided to enter the event.
The local ladies in our community were delighted and she attended a special Princess tea where she got her crown and sash. Some of the duties once she was chosen were to be in the gala days parade on a fund raising float. This was decorated and prepared in our barn. All 15 candidates from various villages in the valley got together daily and had a busy week visiting the elderly in a hospice, patients at a rehabilitation home, judging a local desert contest and meeting and greeting young and old at various other events. The main function was a princess tea where Amber had to stand up in front of a room full of spectators, local politicians included and deliver a prepared speech on her chosen subject of being a good role model.
The week was very busy and Amber was chosen as second lady in waiting, a title that she was more than happy with. She found her experience to be a positive one, having fun with the other girls that took part and was happy to end the summer holidays with some great memories before starting her final year of high school.
I am very proud of her naturally and since then she has started grade 12 and now has a part time job in the evenings and weekends so will have a busy year ahead while deciding on her future university plans.

IN THE PARADE ON THE MORRISTOWN COMMUNITY FLOAT

NINE OF THE 15 CANDIDATES TAKING PART

Family Friday - July in Montreal and a bright red car!

2011-09-23T21:52:00.001-03:00

This is a small post for my extended family and friends, especially the ones who aren't familiar with facebook where I tend to write things on a more regular basis.
Each Friday I am going to keep you updated on what we have been up to starting from the month of July after Jem left for Korea and there were just the three of us; Craig, Amber and myself for the summer holidays.
With Craig's new job we soon realised that we really needed another set of wheels as sharing one car was not going to work with his new job being over an hours drive away. After looking tirelessly in the local classifieds etc. Craig came to the conclusion that a trip a little further afield was required and before I could say 'are you sure?' we were boarding an overnight train to Montreal!!
Armed with some felt, thread, stuffing and a few selected patterns I was prepared to make a few tiny animals en-route to list in my Blossom Hill shop when I returned in a few days time. I began sewing them together unaware that I was being closely watched by the gentleman in the seat behind me. After I had finished a couple of them curiosity got the better of him and he asked me what I was doing. I told him about my online business and he wanted the two little bears I had made. When I had finished the fourth and final one he bought those too, so my train journey turned out to be quite a productive one!
Montreal is a lovely City and we managed to find a little car to get us back home again via Quebec City. The drive home took about 15 hours, which worked out well with the three of us taking turns at the wheel.

Above the City of Montreal

Amber in Old Quebec City

The shiny red Honda Fit from Montreal
Our friend Dave came to visit us in July from New Zealand, in fact he gave the car a wonderful clean and polish, which was very kind of him!!
Next Friday I will tell you about Amber's involvement in the Gala Days celebration when she represented our village Morristown as their Princess.

Window Inspiration

2011-09-15T19:41:00.063-03:00

A few weeks have gone by since I wrote this Blog Post introducing Silk Secret. Whilst my new venture hasn't broken any records it has been ticking along steadily and with the Blossom Hill shop of little hand sewn animals in tandem it keeps me busy creating, sourcing new materials and vintage finds, photographing, listing and getting things wrapped up and in the mail to various destinations around the world.
I admire other regular bloggers such as my friend Katherine who's blog Secret's of a Butterfly never ceases to amaze me with her endless stream of diverse and beautiful images and words, so skillfully put together in such a creative way. My biggest downfall with blogging is that I tend to go off on a tangent aka 'surfing'. Trying to concentrate on the reason I came on the computer in the first place seems to be something I rarely achieve and then I end up feeling terribly guilty and non-productive.
I will be putting more interior decorating inspiration in my posts. This week I have decided to focus on Windows. I love unusual and beautiful windows, they can really change a room and are such a focal point, the ones below appealed to me the most in my search among so many images on flickr today. All quite different but equally impressive.

Just wanted to share these with you.

Interior Decorating Diploma

2011-09-04T17:33:00.000-03:00

It finally arrived!! My Diploma for the Interior Decorating course I completed this year through the International Career School (ICS)
It may not be a job, but it will give me the confidence to keep tackling those paint renovating projects I love to do and with the knowledge gained on the course I can put it to good use in our next home. Of course this is all a bit premature as we still have to sell our current house and seeing as I have decorated every room here already I shall have to be patient.
I am going to post some photos that appeal to my sense of style over the coming few weeks. I was originally going to start a Tumblr blog as both my daughters have those, but instead decided it would make more sense to carry on with this blog and just make sure I include the links to my photograph sources.

My daughter in Seoul

2011-08-18T09:49:00.001-03:00

I do miss my daughter Jemma so much now she is living so far away in Seoul.
She is having a wonderful time and we are in contact on skype , telephone, facebook and email, so I can't complain too much :)

She recently started blogging about her life there, which is of course so different to Halifax and the first two years she spent in University after leaving home.
Even though I lived in London myself and come from Manchester originally, It is quite different to the huge City of Seoul with it's culture and people.
http://jemmasseoul.tumblr.com/

I think of her often and am so happy she is living her dream.

Midsummer Madness

2011-07-21T19:42:00.000-03:00

A busy few weeks has meant that my blog has been somewhat neglected so I shall try my best to get back into the swing of things.
First of all our family became official Canadian citizens on June 2nd, it has been a long and complicated process as anyone who has ever immigrated to another country will know. We attended the swearing in ceremony just a couple of weeks after completing our knowledge of Canada test and were presented with our certificates and Citizenship cards along with 47 other new citizens from 20 different countries.

Taken outside the
Cunard Centre where the ceremony was held in Halifax

A few days following the ceremony we bid an emotional farewell to Jemma at Halifax airport, seeing her off on her year long student exchange venture to Korea!!

Hugs from Daddy at the airport.
Our little girl is all grown up and independent now and is loving the many wonderful new experiences that the huge city of Seoul has to offer, certainly an exciting place to be spending her 20th birthday in just a few days. She is making lots of new friends, adapting to the local culture and customs living with a sweet host family about an hour away from the University. In September she will move into the campus dormitories which will cut out the travelling time and be more convenient during her study months. Yesterday she found out that she has been awarded another scholarship by the University of Seoul. We are all delighted and very proud of her. I am loving Skype these days when we can actually see her in her little bedroom as she gives us a weekly update.
Our house is now on the market with Property Guys, we have decided to have a go at marketing it ourselves. We have full control of the live site which is a much more accepted way of selling these days. We don't anticipate a quick sale, but you never know. With Amber still in high school for another year we can't move too far away until she goes to University.
The garden is looking lush and green, the humming birds are back of course in huge numbers now that the fledglings have hatched, it's hard to keep up with filling the two feeders outside the window. The hydrangeas are enormous as are the hosta's and we have salad ingredients coming out of our ears in the veggie patch!! Wonderful and definitely my favorite time of year.
Here is a link to our listing if you would like to take a peek :)
http://propertyguys.com/property/index/id/59634

Sipping some of David's Tea !!

2011-06-04T11:02:00.003-03:00

To remember my last visit to Halifax, staying with my daughter Jemma we took a little afternoon walk up the road to a delightful tea shop called David's Tea. I had passed this venue by on many occasion mistakenly thinking it was just a shop selling ceramic tea pots and cups and didn't realise there were a few seats inside!!
What a lovely surprise when we entered and discovered a wonderful choice of delicious sounding teas to choose from. The shop was laid out so neatly with a large array of items to purchase all The menu was quite mind boggling, with names like 'Three Wishes', La la Lemon', Butterfly Jasmine' and 'Jumpy Monkey' !! The lady behind the counter was so friendly and we finally came to a decision.
Jemma chose the organic 'Creme Brulee, while I opted for the 'Mint Chocolate Rooibos'. Both proved to be good choices and were delicious. We sat and chatted whilst sipping and watching the shoppers on Spring Garden road go by. Before leaving I bought a bottle of Organic agave nectar, a natural liquid sweetener that looks similar to honey. I am unable to have real sugar with GSD, so it will be a nice alternative to Stevia in my drinks.

In keeping with the tea theme I would like to share some related finds on Etsy:

This sweet teacup ring is from Jennifer's shop Bellehibou
I added this print to my favourite items a while ago by Joojoo

Happy Mother's Day 2011

2011-05-07T17:18:00.000-03:00

Happy Mother's Day to all you lovely Mum's out there!!
My own mum lives so far away in South Africa and I do wish I were spending the day with her of course. However, being a mum myself with two very sweet daughters I shall no doubt be enjoying a special day at home tomorrow. Jemma is coming home on the bus this evening and has taken Monday off work to spend some extra time with me. Craig will be running her back into the City in the afternoon, where he also has a job interview lined up (fingers and toes crossed).
Before I show you my own latest Etsy listing here are a couple of shout outs for some recently added items in my 'favourites'
Thanks to my recent involvement in 'circles' I get to spot some different and new items that other etsy sellers and buyers add to their favourites and I look forward to seeing what new activity each day brings. I am even getting added to other peoples circles so it's all good.
This shop Homestead Treasures sells beautiful hand stamped cotton trim in shabby chic and Parisian styles, I am thinking or ordering some to use as tie backs for my curtains.

They are just lovely.
Quite a different style in Poster Pop caught my eye this week. I can see this duck egg blue poster in my pantry,

or perhaps this one in cranberry would be better??
I added some more wedding topper love birds in my shop and am hoping to get some custom orders coming my way.

Hope you enjoyed my finds too.

More pretty finds this Easter weekend.....

2011-04-25T17:17:00.010-03:00

Hello, I'm back again and wanted to show you some more Etsy finds this week. I love the vibrant colours in Janet's paintings, such a talented artist, once again with so many lovely prints to choose from it's hard to pick a favourite, but I do like this one:

Kristee has a sale on at the moment and I have my eye on this one

It's only tiny, but ever so pretty.
Here is a cute little find by Jacqueline , it's just a simple vintage key that has been given a face lift, now you all know how much I love to paint stuff ;)

I hope you are all enjoying the Easter holidays as much as I am.
Having all my family together is priceless, whether we are preparing home cooked food, chilling out over a cup of tea and digestive biccie or laughing hysterically while we play a game of words in different languages; French, Korean/Japanese, Norwegian and Zulu!!! Ok, you have to actually be there to appreciate the humour I suppose :D
The girls are out fishing with Daddy down at the river at the moment, as the sun is shining and I shall be taking Jemma back to the city in a few hours.

Fellow Etsy sellers...

2011-04-17T16:08:00.001-03:00

Spending so much time recently concentrating on being creative with special request orders for Etsy buyers I have been doing a bit of browsing. This week I found a couple of fellow sellers here in Canada and wanted to show you some of their lovely work.

I found this shop Pin Wheel Designs located in Bear River and run by Amy.

I love her words and illustrations and wanted to share a couple of them on here.

With so many to choose from it was hard to pick my personal favourite.

Then I came across Jackie in Montreal, who takes such delightful photographs that would look perfect in my kitchen.

April is Sew busy :)

2011-04-06T17:31:00.000-03:00

Too busy to write anything at the moment so here are some links to a few new items already in my shop or about to be listed :)

Four felted wool heart pops!

Tiny kitten with wings (still to list)

Tiny Unicorn

Little lovebirds - Wedding Cake Topper

Tiny Giraffe

Cute little silky mini dress

A T-Rex called Sue

2011-03-27T17:50:00.002-03:00

It was off to Halifax again this weekend for Craig, Amber and myself, to visit Jemma, who is almost at the end of her second year in University. Now she has changed her major to Asian studies her focus has been very much centred around Asian culture and she has spent many hours socialising with both Japanese and Korean students. She recently took part in a proper Japanese tea ceremony and found it very interesting, I shall have to ask her if there is a link to the establishment where they held the ceremony. I have to admit that I get a little confuzzled as she chit chats away dropping various friends names with such enthusiasm, especially as I don't always have their faces to picture in my head. Her life is good right now and this weekend she was busy at work taking some students to the Nova Scotia Natural History Museum The highlight of the museum is a T-Rex called Sue, who you can read about on the link.
Amber really wanted to visit the museum too as did Craig, there is something quite fascinating about dinosaurs. I dropped them both off to enjoy the exhibits and meet up with Jem, while I went buy fresh bread, ham and salad from the deli for lunch back at Jemma's apartment. Amber had her camera and took a little film for fun
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVYo7aHPDcA&feature=feedu
After lunch Craig and Amber went for a walk in the park spotting lots of dogs (they are both dog lovers) Jem kindly offered to help me re-design my blog layout.
Back at home I have been making, listing and selling all sorts of things as usual, both on kijiji and my two Etsy shops Blossom Hill and Silk Secret.

Some hand sewn pictures on kijiji,

A custom order tiny pink teddy bear

and a very sweet navy silk bustier!

Well there you go, a short little post this week.

Spring is almost here - Yay!!!

2011-03-19T19:43:00.002-03:00

It's that wonderful time of year when the anticipation of warmer days is heightened as the snow melts away and the tiny buds appear on the trees and those first spring bulbs are able to poke their heads up through the frozen ground. Outside the kitchen window we have had dozens of blue jays and little chickadees, fighting over the corn and sunflower seeds we feed them every day. The first raccoons have been spotted on the barn roof after their long winter sleep. Driving home late yesterday 4 deer leapt across the road in front of us and we had to come to a complete stop as they gave us a puzzled look through the windscreen, but as yet no sightings of chipmunks or bears in the garden. Soon I shall be happily folding away my '~~Dreadmil~~l' Treadmill and venturing outside in the fresh air for my early morning march up the hill. Yes I am glad to say au-revoir to the winter once again!
Not to count my chickens though, because although it was beautifully sunny today it is still minus 1 and there were a few little snowflakes blowing around the house, but the worst is over I am sure.
It is over a month since I blogged but I believe I am not alone in neglecting my ramblings, sometimes it can be difficult with nothing to report of real substance.
That said, Craig is still actively looking for some paid employment or a business venture after being out of work for over 5 months. Our house is officially going on the market this week and a signboard shall be planted in the front garden. Mixed feelings on that, as we have so many very happy memories here in this house (many of which I have shared on here over the years) But, with Jemma almost done with her second year at Uni and planning on a years trip to Korea, leaving in June (scary but exciting) Amber going into her final year of high school in a few months we honestly can't justify living out here in the country in a home that is far too large for the two of us. It is time to move on and it is the sensible thing to do. I feel confident that someone will fall in love with the house, just as we did, but it may not happen very quickly as houses in this part of valley are slow to sell.

I have been dabbling in a new venture on Etsy over the past couple of weeks. I opened a second shop called 'Silk Secret'. Selling mainly vintage nightwear and lingerie with a few feminine dresses as I find them. One of my weaknesses over the years has been collecting pretty camisoles, French knickers and nighties - Ooh la la!! Yes I admit to having a collection stashed away in various pretty boxes on top of my wardrobe. I prefer silk of course - hence the name of my shop, but silky type material is also acceptable if the cut is nice. I shall be scouring the thrift stores over the next few weeks too and then yard sales in the summer time. It's quite a process to first find something, examine it properly, gently hand wash, iron and do any minor repairs if need be. So take a quick look and tell me what you think.
Here are a couple of little things I have sold since opening:

Valentine's Day 2011

2011-02-14T16:06:00.006-04:00

For all you romantics out there in blog land
"Happy Valentine's Day"
Not a big day really in our house to be honest, although I did get a little hand made card from Craig and a cup of tea in bed. I am usually the one up and about at 6am putting on the kettle and stoking up the wood stove, so it was a pleasant start to the day.
Another couple of weeks have passed by since my last posting. Nothing very eventful this past week except visiting Jemma in Halifax, which I do enjoy. We did our usual which consists of chatting on her daybed, watching a movie (Tamara Drewe), a hilarious British comedy, cooking a meal together, topping up her pantry and having a little hunt around the local thrift stores. This time we popped into a fascinating Asian grocery store. I found some delicious super crunchy sprouts that tasted delicious in my salad, I wasn't sure if I was supposed to stir fry them, I expect they would taste good that way too. I also bought some coconut milk to add to the next Korma curry I shall concoct sometime in the near future. Jem bought her favourite bubble tea and some extra spicy noodles for her lunch.
Coconut milk was actually one of the ingredients in the cocktail Craig and I made up last weekend when we were once again invited to Bridget and Kirk's annual cocktail competition/party. The ingredients were to serve about 12 people and this was our recipe:

On our original trial run making up just enough for 1 drink we had some banana in the mix but it ended up looking like a brown murky sludge, so we swapped the banana for the coconut milk and crossed our fingers that it would be ok on the night. Happily it was. We named our cocktail Oriental Express and everyone seemed to enjoy it, even though we didn't win first prize, we did get a pretty good score all round and Craig even amused the guests with an impromptu silly speech giving a story behind the name.
You might remember the James Bond themed one I blogged about last year? This year the theme was 1920's gangster, think flapper or Bonnie and Clyde. I do enjoy dressing up and with a few items I already had in my dressing up box it didn't take much to complete our outfits for the night. I hunted down a long cigarette holder and Amber even helped by making a fake cigarette to fit in the end!

The satin gloves and feather boa that came in very handy.

Cocktail making in progress....

Once again I shall give my shop a little necessary advertising. Another custom order came my way for a couple of micro sized Toucans for a wedding cake (a significant special meaning between the bride and groom)
I was also inspired by the Toucans to design a new tiny bird to add to the ever growing menagerie. This is Charles, the rather distinguished looking Peacock. I priced him a wee bit higher as he did take longer to make and I used more felt because of his flamboyant tail!
I also received a delivery of wool felt in some natural shades of brown and beige, so I shall be making a few more wool animals soon. The majority of my animals are made from Eco friendly felt at the moment, which is made from recycled plastic bottles.

Charles the Peacock!!
With love,

Romance for some in February....

2011-02-02T11:00:00.012-04:00

Ahhh the month of February with the promise of romance, hearts and love......
Seems like a few people are making plans for Spring weddings according to a couple of special request orders recently in my Blossom Hill Cottons Etsy shop.

This wedding cake bunting was fun to make using bright tropical colours in fuchsia pink, mandarin orange, lime green and lemon. Two sets of fruity flags to adorn a cake or two in New York sometime soon.

The second wedding request was to make up a couple of deer as cake toppers. My client wanted a Stag and Doe that would stand proudly and convey a sentimental special personal meaning.
It was fun to firstly use my tiny fawn original 2" scale paper pattern as a guide, adapting it so the she would have legs (normally my fawns are sitting) and then enlarging to the required size before making the two forest friends up in different shades of brown felt with antlers on the Stag of course. They were carefully packaged and shipped to New Jersey.

I do enjoy the little stories that go along with my creations, it makes every little snip and stitch all the more special :)

With love

January and I am loving my new Calendar

2011-01-23T14:05:00.002-04:00

Firstly, a rather belated Happy New Year to you all!!!

Not long left of this month, as we have been catapulted into the snowy season.
I always look forward to opening up a nice crisp new calendar on January 1st and hanging it up in my kitchen. This year I was rather slow off the mark as I was determined to find a calendar by Judith Glover. I had to hunt high and low to find one and it turned out to be quite a challenge. I have had one of Judith's calendars up in my kitchen for the past 4 years. Her pretty illustrations are so uplifting and in keeping with my country farmhouse kitchen style. The very first Note Nook calendar I had was invaluable for keeping little notes and cards as well as a few odds and ends in a handy place.
When the end of the year came I neatly cut off the little envelopes at the bottom and continued to use them as a sort of filing system in my sewing room (a little bit of creative recycling).
Last year I had a calendar in a different design in the form of a family organiser which also worked out well with each of us having our own column for various activities and appointments. With Jemma away from home I was still able to keep a record of what she would be doing on various days of the week while she was studying and working in the city.
Anyway, this year after searching in all the local book shops and calendar stalls at the malls I couldn't find a single one. The websites weren't much help either with many in the US unwilling to ship to Canada (go figure?) Sometimes I feel like we are living in the attic above the house where the party is going on, but without an invite (an analogy I heard recently on the radio) often very fitting with regards to the relationship between the US and Canada. (not trying to offend any lovely Americans here) It is just a generalisation you understand.
Finally I did manage to track down a copy of Judith's Chelsea Market Note Nook calendar on Amazon.ca. The postage cost ended up being more than the actual calendar, due to the unnecessary enormous box with padding that it arrived in!
I am really pleased with it, so it was worth the wait and it now hangs in it's rightful place by the window in my kitchen.

Christmas Eve with my family - it makes me so happy :)

2010-12-24T17:46:00.001-04:00

Finally I have my family together for a nice length of time over the festive season, Jemma worked up until the 18th and Craig and I drove in to collect her on Sunday morning.
With Christmas orders for my Etsy shop winding down I have not been as busy sewing for past few days. I do enjoy running my shop, especially creating new things and seeing them off to new homes all over the world. The micro pets and the bookmarks and even one of the cake bunting toppers sold. Trying to come up with new things to list can be quite hit and miss, but I decided that as quite of few of my animals end up on the top of birthday cakes I should do something a little more special with a combination of the flags and an animal of choice.

As you can see above, the cake wasn't exactly the best style for display purposes, but it was the cake Amber chose for her Birthday - just a simple Angel food cake from the bakery. I am going to source some fabric for a special request order for some wedding cake bunting this week in bright fruity colours, that will be fun to work on.
A new animal in my shop is this tiny wool felt lion.

Amber turned 17 on Dec 1st and celebrated a few days later with four of her best friends staying for a sleepover. Her gift from us was a 50mm camera lens for her Canon T1I 500D, which is exactly what she wanted, although it didn't look much to us, she was thrilled. She took a vast amount of fun pics of her friends and they all had a great time.
A fierce hurricane blew in a couple of weeks ago and left us, along with many others without power, telephone or internet for a almost two days. Some families were out for 4 days! The loud destructive winds blew down hundreds of trees in the valley and caused extensive damage to buildings in the area. Our neighbours barn is now a heap of rubble. Craig and I had to 'babysit' the sump pump in the basement to prevent flooding, keeping the generator going every hour. It reminded me of the many sleepless nights when Jemma was a baby!!

This tree fell right across our own road just a few yards away!
Well I shall bid you all a goodnight now as it gets dark and I have just turned on the Christmas tree lights. Wishing you all a wonderfully happy and healthy Christmas.

Christmas Preparations

2010-12-12T19:55:00.001-04:00

Christmas is getting so close and this week I have started to feel that warm fuzzy pre-Christmas feeling. Jem came home for the weekend having finished all her exams. We had decided to hold off any decorating or tree finding until she was home, because it just wouldn't be right without her!

Amber had heard from a friend of a nice family who own a special Christmas tree farm not too far from us, so we bundled up and headed up the mountain on Saturday morning.

The snow was falling and there was quite a chilly wind blowing as we drove through the trees. The girls jumped out of the car and after some rough measuring, chose 'the perfect tree' Out came the man with the chain saw and chopped 'Towering Tim' down, leaving behind 'Stumpy Stan' in his place :(
"Not to worry" said the man with the chain saw. "The trees re-seed quite quickly and a new one will start to grow in its place".
He then took us down to the barn where we stood and chatted with other tree purchasers while his wife made hot chocolate and we ate home made cookies specially baked with the help of their 3 young daughters.
After a little manoeuvring in the back seat of Craig's car with J & A cramped up very close we took our tree home and spent the afternoon going through all our decorations collected over the years and hung them up, remembering when and where they were either made or bought. Quite a challenge in itself now the girls are 17 and 19!!
We tried egg nog for the first time ever, played festive music and took a few photos of course.

Happy pre-Christmas Greetings to you all!!

Sitting Pretty

2010-11-21T19:59:00.002-04:00

Craig was so clever to spot this rather neglected piece of furniture tossed out by the side of the road awaiting the fall clean up truck back in early October. I admit I turned my nose up when I first saw it. However, upon closer examination we discovered that there was really nothing wrong with it at all and I knew it was a perfect candidate for a make over.

Our own kitchen table at that time, although lovely it was barely large enough for four adults to sit around comfortably without banging elbows and no room for condiments or napkins. During the winter time we seldom use the big dining table and tend to eat most meals in the kitchen.

I have always fancied a round table in my kitchen, but it wasn't high on our list of requirements for the house. Still, always keen for a paint project challenge we sanded it down and I gave it a couple of coats of oil based gloss paint.
Once the paint was dry, a hunt around the house for four white chairs to go with it and voila! My new kitchen dining area is complete.

Sewing, sewing, sewing.....

2010-11-15T19:23:00.001-04:00

Keeping busy stitching again this week so my Etsy shop is stocked up for Christmas with a few new items for you to take a peek at :)
Like these new woodland themed bookmarks, handy little stocking fillers for children or grown ups.

A new design chubby bird - I have called him Cyril :)

For collectors of miniatures I made these teeny weeny ones...

I hope you like them.

'"It's a rather blustery day", as Pooh would say!

2010-11-07T11:44:00.002-04:00

My darling husband Craig has a love/hate relationship with the weather at the moment. Having been bombarded by torrential rain and wild winds (no complaints about the double digit temperatures) over the past couple of days, made me think of the lyrics to Winnie the Pooh's song . Poor Craig is forever running out to the barn and up to the attic to check for leaks! Luckily only one was found needing a bucket to catch the drips. Two days ago there was an almighty crashing sound in the driveway as the metal chimney cap took off, rolled down the driveway across the road and ended up in the corn field. It looked like a battered old hat by the time Craig managed to retrieve it!! He has since bought a replacement, but finding someone crazy enough to climb up on the roof to install it could prove to be a bit tricky until the wind and rain die down a bit! On the other hand he does enjoy driving out and observing the overflowing rivers and streams by going on a 'flood watch' as well as keeping track of the happenings all over Canada on the weather channel.
Being unemployed at the moment after the company he worked for was restructured, he is a state of limbo, whilst looking out for something new to get his teeth into.
We have been in worse situations before, so are remaining calm and patient. This has lead me to get active on Kijiji, a local site, where I have been listing all sorts of things for sale in an attempt to 'downsize' in preparation for moving to a smaller home in the next couple of years when Amber finishes high school.
English Antique crockery, old suitcases, woolen blankets from the Cotswold's and even a vintage sewing machine have gone to new homes in the valley recently. My heavy oak framed mirror is still listed for sale and with a bit of luck should get snapped up soon.

The Etsy shop is ticking along nicely with Christmas orders coming in including special requests for new animals and personalised pets and my mind is constantly trying to come up with new ideas in a competitive on-line craft market.
Now, as I head down to the basement, what else can I find to sell.........

Pumpkins, pumpkins everywhere !!

2010-10-31T22:38:00.006-03:00

The Canadians certainly do enjoy the Autumn, particularly Halloween. There are pumpkins literally everywhere!! Fields full of them, as well as pumpkin people, pumpkin decorations and of course pumpkin pie. From memory, it wasn't really a big deal back in England or in New Zealand come to think of it. Here in the valley however, remote as we are, we do get one or two visitors come October 31st, looking for some treats.
Jemma was home with us for the weekend and Amber fancied doing a bit of pumpkin carving, so they drove down the road to a farm stall and bought a couple of suitable specimens to hack away at!

Amber downloaded a bat template from the internet and Jemma drew freehand onto her pumpkin. After lots of experimentation with various sharp implements they completed them.

In the meantime I had salvaged the cut out bits for dinner, as well as the seeds. These I rinsed, tossed in some olive oil and roasted until they were golden brown. They make a great addition to salads.

Once it started to get dark our first little visitor arrived, so cute in her little red devil costume, jumping up and down with excitement she chose a chocolate bar and headed over to the next house with a big smile.

Jemma has now gone back to Halifax with Daddy this time while Amber and I are home alone to keep the fire going this evening.
This weekend we remembered our little Archie, who left us this time last year. I said a few words to him under the tree. It still don't feel ready to get another cat yet, but maybe one day.

Thanksgiving weekend

2010-10-19T08:44:00.028-03:00

Thanksgiving weekend (in Canada) came and went. At this time of year there is plenty of activity on the farm with all the apples making their way into crates to be taken off to various sellers near and far. With the early morning grass covered in dew and an eerie mist in the air we wake to the dunk dunk sound of apples hitting barrels as the pickers collect the 'drops' for juicing.

Thanksgiving was one of those family weekends that I enjoy so much. Where I get to be Mother Hen for a couple of days just enjoying my family and living for the moment.

With a nip in the air and the Autumn leaves falling we drove out to Lunenberg for a walk around the streets, which were quite deserted with the summer tourist season now over. Many of the buildings in Lunenberg are really pretty ;

A Doctor's surgery,

Bed and Breakfast?

... and a School on the top of the hill.

Jemma spotted an Archie look alike cat chilling on a table and couldn't resist making friends with him. Craig and I taking a rest half way up the hill!

Driving through Mahone Bay, there was much more going on. People walking around, a busy flea market and a place to have a cup of tea.

The locals annually decorate their gardens with 'Scarecrows' at this time of year. With various themes, a little bizarre perhaps, but some of them really do go all out with their imaginations and creativity.

The girls thought it was fun to spot some hilarious scarecrow groups and Amber had her camera with her of course.

In the afternoon we played a game of Scrabble.

Monday was a 'put on my pinny day', preparing a lunch time feast of roast pork, mashed turnip, sweet potato, broccoli, cranberry sauce, Yorkshire puds, stuffing and gravy.

No room for the apple crisp until much later in the afternoon when I was on my way to the City to take Jemma back to her apartment.

Here we are a full week later (where does the time go?) I can hear the tractor activity outside the window as the harvesting is still ongoing, the temperatures are in single digits now but the sun is still shining.

Happy Autumn days everyone :)

October is here!

2010-10-06T13:03:00.001-03:00

I really should have come up with a better title I suppose, rather than just stating the obvious!
I'm keeping it simple this week with a few little 'makes' and 'finds'
A retail therapy trip down to my local thrift store over the weekend with Amber, we found a few treasures:
Amber spotted this adorable dress by Zara for only $4.50. In perfect condition and in her size! It was a little too long, so I chopped off 14cm's and hemmed it.

My finds were a super soft merino wool sweater by Gap in a warm oatmeal colour and this 100% heavy cotton sheet, washed and ironed all ready to turn into a table cloth. The rest of it can go in my fabric collection.

While busy on the sewing machine I made more bunting, a couple of elephants, an owl called Oliver and a few more pocket pets for my Etsy shop.

Browsing through the many many other etsy shops (of which there are soooooo many since the early days when I joined the site) I found some lovely items for sale here:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/KitzieG
http://www.etsy.com/shop/danglingjewelry
http://www.etsy.com/shop/lamixx?ref=seller_info
There are so many I could list, but after browsing the treasury collections I started to feel terribly guilty and overwhelmed by the huge choice in Etsy land. So I made myself some tea and got back to some felt cutting :)

Peaches and Pink Pillows

2010-09-29T10:10:00.010-03:00

Another few weeks have passed me by since I last posted. Firstly I finished my Interior decorating course, which I thoroughly enjoyed and whizzed through it faster than I anticipated. I will only actually receive my Diploma once the monthly payments are completed, which is a few months away still. Not that I am rushing out to find a new career, it's just something I have wanted to do for a very long time and has given me plenty of knowledge in the field, to use in my own home and hopefully one day to earn some money too decorating for other people.

Now that Autumn is in the air and the fruit is being harvested I did some baking over the weekend. Having been given a large quantity of fresh peaches from my neighbours' tree I googled up this recipe for a healthy peach upside down cake, found on Sumi's blog: http://sumiskitchen.blogspot.com/2008/07/healthy-peach-upside-down-cake.html

Substituting granulated cane sugar for fruit sugar I was even able to have a piece myself, warm from the oven and it was delicious!

With my course completed I decided to give my Etsy shop another go. I do believe I have said that before, but this time I am determined to make a go of it. Having taken a year off while working at Wheaton's and then another long break as I concentrated on my studying and enjoying the summer months with my family it is about time to get back to the sewing machine. I have been making curtains for a friend recently so everything was set up and ready.

I had to come up with something that was flat enough to be posted from Canada as a 'light package' this means it has to be no deeper when packaged than 2cm. Not always easy to achieve, my poor birds and elephants have been squished into zip n'seal bags many times to achieve this dimension! The new trial run I decided on was 'Bunting' or otherwise known as a garland. A series of fabric flags to be strung up either indoors or out for Birthday parties, garden parties, weddings etc. Or to decorate a pretty bedroom. It was most likely a fluke, but I listed my first one pictured below and it sold the next day!

Now I am off to buy some more tape to finish another one in more of a Cath Kidston colour scheme this time, as opposed to the Rachel Ashwell style of the one sold. My latest CK catalogue just arrived in the mail from the UK, so that will give me even more inspiration.

In my last post I briefly mentioned Amber's new camera. The one she has been saving up for over the past two years. The Canon Rebel T1i is her pride and joy and she loves it. She has been taking photos since the age of 12 and has a following on Deviant Art (link on the right). Of course with her sister Jemma living in the city, she is a little stuck for subjects to take pictures of, with people being her preferred medium to photograph. So apart from photos of herself and the odd family picnic snaps she has been a little starved of inspiration and subjects.

One project she had been wanting to try for a while was to use a painting I have in my bedroom as inspiration. The painting entitled 'The Pink Pillow' by the incredibly talented artist Francine Van Hove, I bought the print many years ago in England.

Amber asked if I would be her model for the first time, while she attempted to re-create the painting in a photo. I agreed to but only if I could do a less revealing pose than the original!

It was a bit of fun I have to admit!

Long hot summer days - I love them

2010-09-01T20:05:00.010-03:00

YUMMY!!

Having just finished the above lunch outside on the deck under the brolly. Home grown and organic of course from our garden, well mostly ;) I am now in the mood to write a little post, which is long overdue.

If there is one thing I have learned over the years we have lived in Canada, it's to make the most of the warm summer days while they last. This year has been one of the hottest on record in Nova Scotia and we will remember June, July and August 2010 seemingly going on forever. But, as we all know all good things come to an end and as I write this, storm Earl is heading up the coastline towards us, predicted to hit sometime on Saturday morning.

Securing the roof tiles, tying down the outdoor furniture and hoping the hydrangeas don't get completely flattened with the predicted rain and wind. Who knows, sometimes these storms skirt around us and head back out so sea.

Now I can't cram everything into this page, but I can give a quick summary.

Apart from the usual summer activities of wood stacking, fruit picking, mowing, catching racoons and skunks by mistake (I could write an interesting post on that one!), feeding the hummingbirds, squirrels, chipmunks, finches and spotting the occasional groundhog, well I could go on and on......

We have tackled a few painting projects, after working at an auction centre several times in July and August. Assisting the auctioneer throughout the nerve wracking bidding process I spotted a few nice pieces and my hand just flew up in the air of its own accord! In fact the girls have both taken a liking to sanding and wielding a paintbrush this summer (wonder where they get that from?) Amber sanding her new/old dressing table picked up at the auction for $30.

Jemma painting her table (mentioned in a previous post) now in use in her apartment.

Several BBQ's were had making the most of the balmy evenings, usually finishing off with special friends gathered around an open fire under a starlit sky.

Exploring Halifax on foot while visiting Jem (and feeling needed as a Mummy again when I stay overnight). Amber even spent a whole week with her and they enjoyed their familiar sister time together, while Craig and I got a taste of empty nesting :D

Amber learned how to play tennis and started to really enjoy it by the end of August winning all her games in a final tournament. She also managed to save up enough money to buy her fancy Canon camera.

Jemma has changed her focus from Science at University to Business and Asian studies and feels much happier about starting her second year, having registering 40 foreign students she has been kept busy with enrolling and admin.

Hazel x

Bonjour!!

2010-07-23T16:38:00.012-03:00

My school girl French is not what it should be I'm afraid to say, having returned from a little visit to Quebec recently.

We are quite an impulsive family sometimes and a quick bit of planning saw Craig, Amber and myself packed up and en-route in the car to Quebec City. I wasn't quite sure what to expect visiting this province for the first time, which is less than a 12 hour drive away, still being in Canada I didn't have my hopes set too high on the scenery and lifestyle being vastly different from here in Nova Scotia. Well how wrong I was. It felt like we had been transported to somewhere back in Europe. As we got closer the forests got thicker and thicker, plenty of warning signs for Moose on the motorway and then suddenly everything was en Francais!

Quebec city is an amazing place, pretty, clean and well maintained. Of course it helped that the weather was perfect and unbeknown to us we arrived smack in the middle of their summer festival.

Staying in a modern hotel on the outskirts, we drove into the old city every day and parked up so we could walk around the pedestrian friendly cobbled streets.A combination of beautiful architecture, dozens of happy people in flip flops, sneakers and summer clothes, open restaurants and cafes lining the streets, the atmosphere was so vibrant. Buskers, free entertainment and live music everywhere, there was no shortage of things to look at and take in during our short stay.

Just a couple of the many cute little shops

We saw the band Rush playing live much to Amber's delight, a consolation for just missing the black eyed peas who performed the day after we left! Driving home late one evening we spotted performers from Circue du Soleil practicing on the side of the street and did a double take!!

Despite our lack of French language skills we managed to get by between the three of us and most of the locals did speak some English, with some creative hand gestures and facial expressions we were able converse successfully, most of the time!

So romantic by night too!

It did feel a little strange and sad not having Jemma with us, a first family holiday without our complete family of four. She was busy working, plus having been recently to China and New York she had to remain in Halifax this time. I would love to take her there in the future though as she loves architecture and still considers being an architect on her short list of chosen career options.

Now we are home again it's all mowing, weeding, mowing, weeding.... as I said to my friend Terri recently. No complaints from me though, the pleasant outdoor life is pretty short lived here, so we take what we can get. Although I am not a big fan of tanning myself, it is uplifting to feel the warmth of the sun on my back and gaze up at the vast blue sky. The humming birds are still flitting around and the family of raccoons have vacated our barn again (we missed their escape this year) I often think of little Archie, but have noticed a huge increase in the birdie population in our garden, which is nice to watch as they peck away at the bird feeders and pinch the odd ripe cherry from the tree :)

Au revoir my friends

Hazel xx

Sunny Sunday

2010-06-27T09:36:00.020-03:00

Just a quick post on this Sunny Sunday morning, my comment form seems to be working again finally (something to do with the third party cookie setting?).
Having got back from an early morning walk to the top of the hill with Craig (he rarely joins me, but today, out of the blue decided to which made me happy) We chatted on the uphill, took in the panoramic view of the valley at the top and then half jogged down the hill trying to outrun the hungry deer fly, black fly and mosquitoes!! Once they get the scent I'm sure they signal to their friends and family that breakfast is being served!
Picking a punnet of slightly warm strawberries for our breakfast, from the garden and some fresh dewy crisp romaine lettuce leaves for a lunchtime salad, we sipped bowls of cafe au-lait on the deck - what a perfect start to a Sunday morning.
Now as Craig is planning his painting, gardening and other daily to-do stuff I am catching up on here before making a start on some sewing, mowing, hanging out the washing and helping Jemma with her furniture painting project.
Yesterday we both helped out at a friend's first auction, serving tea, coffee and grilling hot dogs, it was an interesting morning. Jemma bid on two items for her apartment, this little table on wheels, for her walk in closet and a picture frame.

Now she only has to find a small dining table and a couple of chairs to be all set furniture wise.

Meeting up with Brian in the city last week to sign all the rental papers and finalise insurance.

Here is a little sneak peak at her new humble abode, before she makes it look pretty and personalised.

The walk-in closet,

the lounge/bedroom,

the kitchen,

and finally, the bathroom (sorry Amber!)

Hazel x

A hunting we did go....

2010-06-17T10:17:00.008-03:00

It was all go on the apartment hunting front this week for Jemma and I.

Heading into Halifax early Monday morning we stopped at Brian's house and he kindly volunteered to do the inner city driving and parking, while we managed to view several different bachelor apartments (otherwise known as bedsits in the UK). It took me back to my flat hunting days as a single girl in London as we viewed the Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Or perhaps that should read the Tiny, the Messy and the Mouldy!! With a tight budget to stick to and a location radius within a 15 minute walk to the University, our options were limited, but we hoped we would be lucky.

Our favourite by far was a neat, plainly decorated first floor unit in a 1920's building close to Spring Garden, a popular spot in downtown Halifax. This was the only one Jemma liked enough to apply for, in the hope of being chosen amongst several interested applicants. The caretaker who showed us around was a friendly lady and the building was well maintained, warm and secure. Fortunately our wait wasn't too long and today Jemma heard that she will be able to move into on July 1st! She is thrilled to be out of residency and very excited about the new independent chapter in her life.

On Saturday Jem and I, once again (well I have to make the most of her month at home) were busy selling our unwanted items at the Port Williams community yard sale. Friends Bridget and Kirk, who live on a housing estate in the area kindly offered us the use of their driveway and we managed to get rid of plenty of things. The day was glorious and brought out lots of happy customers with their money to spend. I didn't intend to go home with anything myself, but couldn't resist a chandelier that a friend was selling. Not sure quite where I am going to put it, but it is rather lovely, especially when I give it a coat of paint at some stage. A future blog post topic perhaps. On the way home we decided to see the matinee showing at the cinema. We watched 'Sex and the City 2' a typical chick flick. We had the whole cinema to ourselves, which was hilarious!!

Another project since my last post was this very sweet desk I spotted for sale in someones front garden.

It was only a few dollars. Once the holes were filled and the surface had been sanded and primed it painted up a treat. Now I have a perfect place to start my next Interior design unit, which involves quite a bit of measuring and drawing.

No need to clear my sewing desk each time I want to write now.

On the sewing side of my craft room I had another project on the go. I was asked to make up some special curtains for my dear friend Terri. She runs a Tea Room along with a gardening school, yoga classes and now offers holistic treatments too, she even writes a blog as well as being active on facebook. The floor length curtains were made up in a pretty Laura Ashley cotton fabric called Morning Glory and they help pull together the relaxed fresh summery feel to Terri's new Holistic room.

Our garden is blooming in a palette of purples, blues and pinks; the hanging baskets of lobelia are trailing nicely, the bright blue stocks stand tall, purple flowering chives and lavender as well as some pretty pink weigela flowers that the humming birds enjoy.

Hazel x

Back from China!!

2010-06-01T15:28:00.008-03:00

I am so happy to have Jemma home again after her month long adventure in China. As well as being a homebody and mummy I am guilty of being a bit of a 'worry wart' I admit. Without being in contact for several days at a time my mind did run away with me at times. Now that she is sleeping in her own bed, sitting with us for meals and cuddling up on the sofa during the evenings I am like the cat that ate the canary :D It's a wonder she has any voice left at all after all the interesting tales, facts and experiences she has relayed to us. I can tell it has been quite a life changing adventure for her. The two week biology course took place at a field station in a remote mountain village. This is actually someone's home!
The residents live in poverty, but are extremely happy with life. She spent many hours playing with the little children. A couple of the local school children
Quite a humbling experience and she has hundreds of photos as memories, all duly downloaded onto facebook.

On the 'Great wall of China'
The student group spent time in Beijing, Shanghai and Xian doing all the touristy site seeing stuff as well as plenty of gift shopping and a day at a theme park, which had the scariest rides. Being a huge fan of terrifying rides she went on everything, usually with front row seats! Jemma and her boyfriend Brian in the theme park
So with this little snippet of update I shall sign off and be back with my usual ramblings next week.

Hazel x

Tweet Tweet....

2010-05-19T20:25:00.015-03:00

I haven't gone over to tweeting on Twitter (not yet anyway). With my blog, Etsy, flickr, skype, msn and facebook, I think I have enough to keep up with!! The twittering here is to announce that our dear little hummingbirds have arrived for the summer - yay!! So far just one bedraggled looking male and a rather sprightly looking female! They appeared on schedule May 11th, and have been guzzling on the rich sugar nectar in the strawberry feeder pretty much constantly. Yesterday I went out and bought the customary hanging baskets full of blue trailing lobelia which our wee feathered friends also enjoy feasting upon
Continuing on the same birdy subject, I had a request over the weekend from a lady in California to make 5 tiny felt ones for her daughter. I decided to add a little extra touch to the Cardinal, so he sports a little Mohican hairstyle (or crest) After making the basket liner for my car-basket last week I went on to make another one. Using a remnant of cream linen with a red 'toile de jouy' design. I have so many bits of fabric that I have collected over the years and never know quite what I am going to use them for until the time is right.Finishing off with something Craig said that gave me a lump in my throat.
He asked me 'not' to mow over the little patch of grass where we buried dear Archie under the tree in the garden. When I asked him why, he said he likes to carefully trim it with a pair of scissors because Archie was always scared of the Tractor Mower.

A Basket Case?

2010-05-07T11:10:00.015-03:00

Hello again,
Ahhh the lovely month of May, which brings hope of warmer, longer days for us. The first veggies have been planted in our garden, just lettuce varieties so far and a few herbs. The leaves are on the trees and Craig has been out mowing and chasing away the raccoons in an attempt to stop them making a home in the barn again this year. Apart from some pesky black flies it is quite enjoyable to be able to get outdoors again. Hanging out my washing a couple of days ago I got bitten 12 times in about 10 minutes, so I really have to be careful. I seem to forget every year just how tasty I must be to them!!!
Indoors we have spent a few hours sorting through stuff for the Spring clean up next week and also items for a 'garage sale' at some point in June or July.
My topic today 'Basket Case'

You see I am rather attached to my shopping or picnic 'basket'. This is the place I throw all sorts of random paraphernalia which I like to carry with me in the car. My handbag (or purse as the locals refer to it) contains only money and one or two personal items. The rest belongs here where I can see everything clearly: The contents changes depending on my destination and time of year of course but it works for me and helps me remember the library book I need to return or a last minute shopping list.

Feeling a creative moment coming on yesterday I decided to get reacquainted with my sewing machine and have a go at making a basket liner. After measuring up and making a paper pattern I chose this fabric.Although I would have preferred a Cath Kidston design, the colours and print on this were almost as good and as it was my first attempt I really wasn't too fussy.Jemma has now been in China for over a week. Her first email was so upbeat and full of excitement as she told us of all the places she had been to visit in Beijing; The Great Wall, Forbidden City, Tienanmen Square, and the Summer Palace. She loves to shop and had visited an indoor silk market and pearl market where she had a go at bargaining which was a little scary but fun!! Sadly just before they left Beijing everyone ate at a restaurant in a dodgy part of town and she got really sick. She managed to email me from the field centre up in a remote village following a long overnight train journey to Xian and felt terrible. I have been so worried about her and was relieved to get another message this morning saying she was feeling better - phew! She suspects that the water she drank was not bottled as she had been told, a few fellow students also got affected. With very little computer access at the station and no other means of contact, you can imagine how my mind was running away with me for a few days.
Amber is in Halifax at the moment, staying at Dalhousie University for a drama fest, so things are pretty quiet at home.
I promised myself to keep my posts shorter. So, until next week...

ps. If anyone knows why I am getting random line spaces in this post, please enlighten me.

Giving my blog a rest for a while

2010-04-16T14:10:00.003-03:00

I have decided to stop blogging for a while as my posts recently seem to have turned into a sort of diary, which is really only relevant to my family and I don't think many of them actually read it! Jemma is off to China on May 27th for a whole month and I have put decorating, painting and sewing on hold recently for various reasons.
I will keep my blog active though so I can stay up to date on all the lovely blogs I follow every week.

Flowers, Spring, Easter ......

2010-03-30T15:52:00.011-03:00

It's fast approaching my most favourite time of year when the snow will be gone for good, the snowdrops, crocuses, daffodils and buds start to open with the onset of warmer Spring weather. Here in Nova Scotia it does seem to take a long time for Spring to arrive and I will have read numerous UK blogs in the meantime with all the lovely photos of colourful spring happenings, but that's fine. It adds to the anticipation factor and I am a pretty patient person generally speaking.
I had been messing around on my blog settings lately and had changed to the new comment options, which unfortunately opened the doors for some anonymous users, who were leaving unsavoury spam comments that I had to delete rapidly!!! Hopefully going back to the old style settings will have sorted that issue out.
I am busy studying again and have just finished the unit entitled 'decorating with furniture'. I found it very interesting and once I had armed myself with some sharp pencils, tracing paper, a scale ruler and a good eraser I was ready to start dabbling in drawing some rooms to scale. I drew and placed furniture around in different formats to create harmonious, balanced and pleasing arrangements on paper. Fun stuff!!
It's a short week this week for Craig and the girls and I am looking forward to having them all at home for a few days over Easter, especially as the sun is promising to shine and we are planning on getting the outdoor furniture from the barn where it has been in storage for a few months. It will need to be oiled again and in a few weeks the BBQ will make an appearance and Craig can take on the role of Chef occasionally, which he enjoys.
Jemma soon starts her end of year exams and will just complete them before she has to move out of her first year accommodation and then heads off to China on her month long Biology field trip. When she returns the hunt for her own apartment in the City will begin. She is very excited to move out of her tiny dorm room and won't miss the noise, filthy shared bathroom or rude fire alarm awakenings at 3am thanks to the inconsiderate party goers who find it so funny on a regular basis!!
Amber recently started her drivers education course and will be getting her learners licence soon. She has been quite busy taking photos recently, getting in touch with her creative side. Her deviant art page is getting more popular now that she has resumed it after being banned as a member a few years ago for being under the required minimum age. She was only 12 when her love of photography began. Her current goal is to save up for a fancy DSLR camera either Nikon or Canon.
With plans to list our home this Spring there will be quite a lot of activity going on, making sure the maintenance is all up to date ready for any showings we may have. It's early days but we are planning well in advance, as properties can take forever to sell in the valley and in a couple of years Amber will be off to University somewhere and the two of us will be rattling around in far too many rooms.
It hardly seems possible that it was just 5 years ago when we first arrived and were blown away by the breathtaking beauty of the valley. The girls were only 11 and 14 during our first summer here.

Things have changed and we now feel the need to move a little closer to the City and Craig's office.
Well until Easter time, bye for now
H xx

Home Sweet Home

2010-03-16T17:38:00.019-03:00

Back home again after my two weeks holiday in South Africa and it feels like the sun has followed me. I probably shouldn't feel too smug though as I'm sure we still have another snowfall due before winter bids us a final farewell.
It's was so exciting to see Craig and Amber again and even Jemma was able to escape working in the City to spend the weekend with us. Feeling just a little jet lagged, I slipped back into my role of Mother hen :) I feel relaxed, regenerated and happy that I was able to spend so much time with my mum, dad, sister, brother and auntie, as well as meeting quite a few extended members of my family for the first time too.
It was my birthday just a few days after I arrived and my sister Heidi was very sweet and organised a little get together at her beautiful home to celebrate.

The two weeks flew by so fast and were filled with fun times, delicous lunches, and interesting African sights. Johannesburg is booming with many new businesses, buildings, roadworks, traffic and people! Quite different to where I live now in Nova Scotia.

My little sister Heidi, spoiling me on my birthday

The day and night at Sun City can only be described as pure luxury, in our own suite at The Palace!! (very swanky) My mum, sister and I had some precious girly time together followed by several pampering treatments at the Gary Player Spa.
Below is the spectacular view from our balcony!

Another lovely place we visited a couple of times was a restaurant called Bellini and alongside is an old style home that has been converted into several little shops. It was all so beautiful I just had to get my camera out to try to capture it.

Lunch at Bellini with mum and auntie Joy

A week into my stay my auntie Joy came over from England to stay with Mum for a month and I was able to spend plenty of time with her too, it must be about 15 years since we have seen each other!

My little brother Kevin

Well all good things must come to an end and I have some great memories to treasure and will not be waiting so long until my next visit. It's a long way to travel, but well worth it.
It's also good to be 'home sweet home' back in the valley ready to start some serious Spring cleaning. The Canadian geese are already back and I have spotted a few squirrels and chipmunks awake from their long winter sleep looking energetic and hungry.
Hazel x

Heading for South Africa!!

2010-02-20T18:47:00.014-04:00

I can hardly believe it myself, but it's true!
Just a few days ago Craig convinced me that it is time for a long overdue visit to see my family in South Africa!! Now that Jemma has left home. Craig and Amber are quite capable of managing a couple of weeks without me. Craig has done the same long journey to SA three times alone to see his dad, who was not very well at the time.
My mum, dad, brother and sister all live in Johannesburg having emigrating, oooh about 25 years ago and I haven't seen them all for literally years and years, it's been over 10 since I saw Heidi and Kevin and I haven't even met my little 5 year old nephew Luc. Nor have I met Kevin's wife Christine yet. Even my aunty Joy is coming over from England while I am staying, so we get to overlap our visits for a few days before I fly back. It feels like a lifetime ago that the four of us, Craig, Jem, Amber and myself left Jo-burg after living there for 18 months when the girls were only 4 and 6 years old. My mum and dad did come and visit us here in Canada in 2007, but the week they stayed with us flew by so fast and it seemed like they had only just settled in when they had to leave us again, so they didn't really get to know Jemma and Amber properly at all.
I will be travelling 'solo', something I haven't done since the days before I met Craig, so I will admit I am a bit (a lot) nervous, but excited at the same time. Not too thrilled with the prospect of waking up at around 2.30am to get to the airport at 4am on Thursday, but once my journey has begun I expect it will be fine. Plenty of water to drink, a good book and some earplugs! Just in case the compulsory in-flight baby or toddler is in the seat in front of mine. (a sleeping pill would be a great idea, but I don't have any of those)
What will I be doing in SA? Very little I imagine, I have no expectations apart from loads of nattering. Looking forward to visiting both siblings in their new homes, sitting under the shade of a tree, taking in the familiar scents of grenadines, oranges and other summery African smells, perhaps a dip in the pool when the heat is just too much for my winter white Canadian skin! I will be reminded of the many visits to my parents home back in my early 20's and again in in my 30's as a much younger mum.Taken just before we left SA in 1998!
I intend to get unit 5 done on my course before I leave so I can justify a break from studying. The freezer is jam packed with meals for my own little family of two and fingers crossed they will become closer in my absence :)
So for this week I shall sign off on a happy note with only 4 more days left of looking at the deep snow in the back garden for a while. Having said that, today was spectacular and did almost feel warmish, well at least driving around in the car. Blue sky and pristine snow everywhere - will I miss it?
Nah, mosquitoes and tall iced drinks - here I come!!!

Groundhog Folklore

2010-02-03T19:00:00.016-04:00

On Tuesday Feb 2nd, after hearing the Folklore Groundhog prediction that there are another 6 weeks of winter left I felt a little disheartened. The thermometer in Craig's car read -22 degrees C as he left that day for his evening of darts, so I suspect Mr Groundhog is correct again as he has been for the last 11 years locally.
However, that was two days ago. Yesterday the mailbox contained the second installment of my home study course - Yay!! So, today here I sit, having a computer morning, bundled up in the study finishing lesson 3 entitled 'Meeting your Client's Needs' I am enjoying being immersed in reading material, scribbling down notes, researching and putting together a portfolio of clippings and samples as I go along.
During my waiting time between study units a copy of the latest Cath Kidston catalogue arrived in the mail from the UK. It was like an injection of Spring as I leafed through the pages of pretty kitchen ware and fabrics. Obviously Spring is a while away yet, but it will come along eventually, usually about a month behind the UK.
Despite the hibernation inducing weather we have managed to get out and have a little social fun in the evening. Friends of ours hosted their 3rd annual Cocktail competition party on Saturday. The theme Casino Royale meant we could dress up 007 style! I love parties, especially when there is an excuse to dress up too! Taking along ingredients for a cocktail of our choice for 8 people we chose the Rum Rollover and came a respectful second! It was a lovely evening and certainly a welcome break from the mid winter blues. 'Shaken, not stirred'
Hazel x

Decorating Diva

2010-01-19T10:40:00.014-04:00

Well not quite! I just thought the title sounded rather snappy :)

I have been waiting patiently for the first study unit of my new course in Interior Decorating to arrive in the mail and I'm happy to say that this weekend it did - Yay!!

In the meantime Craig and had been itching to work on a couple of small rooms in our home. I know this is 'putting the cart before the horse' but when the mood is right "Get your painting shirt on!" is my motto.

Our walk in pantry was looking a wee bit 'shabby', which is in keeping with the farmhouse kitchen look we have, but a facelift was required for this little room that we hadn't painted properly during the 4 years living here. Also a great excuse to do a major sort out, chuck out and re-arranging in the process.

As the dining room table became piled high with Lock n'lock and Tupperware containers, followed by mixing bowls, baking ingredients and breakfast cereals I was beginning to wonder how it would all fit back on the shelves again. Empty plastic food containers and glass jars were sorted into recycling bins, one or two expired items hiding at the back were put into the compost bin along with an unidentified powder in a zip lock bag?? Those odd ingredients that you use for a new recipe experiment, but never seem to need again.

Craig did the filling in of nail holes and small cracks that always appear during the winter due to the stove drying out the wood. Sanding and a lick or two of paint really freshened up this little room .

Once the paint had cured I had the fun task of putting everything back a different way, this time nothing on the top shelves (so no step ladder required) I can reach everything now.

I'm happy with my new look pantry.

Here is a close up of some measuring spoons, hand painted by Jemma and given to me for Christmas. If you look closely you can see our family initials on them :)

Yesterday I began studying unit one of my distance learning course. I got so immersed in it that the time flew by and was interrupted by a phone call from my Mum in South Africa. Her timing was perfect as it was time for a tea break and chat across the miles.

Hazel x

What's in a name?

2010-01-08T15:28:00.006-04:00

Swiftly into mid January we go......
What's in a name? Well the story behind my blog title is the confusion I encounter on a daily basis with my own second name. Obviously Hazel is easy, a nut, sludgy brown colour fairly uncommon but easy to spell. However, my family name, Rethman is not so easy. Wherever I go; in stores, on the telephone etc. no longer can I say "It's spelt the same as Rothman, but with an 'e'. The company name Rothman is not a household name it would seem (do you remember the tobacco company?) Instead it seems to create an even more puzzled reaction, hence I now automatically begin by responding in a slow steady voice; R-E-T-H-M-A-N. The many different variations of our name on the mail we receive is hilarious and actually quite creative sometimes. I am sure I'm not alone on this subject. I have a few friends who also have names with a difference. Wouldn't life be simple if we were all just Smith or Jones (lol) Jones being my family name prior to being married!
On the same topic, a few weeks ago when Jemma introduced her boyfriend to us as Brian, she went on to explain that it isn't actually his real Korean name, but the Canadian name he is known as, having lived here for over 10 years. Along with Brian aka Tae Hyung came his little dog Romeo, aka Bpapi (not even sure if that's how you spell it as it is pronounced differently) Yes it's his Korean Canine name!! No wonder our little furry friend was a tad confused during his short stay with us. Not only was he expected to answer to another name, but we couldn't speak to him in Korean, the language he is used to. Perhaps that would explain the extreme hyperactivity and little accidents. If only I could have told him "no, that's a table leg, not a tree!" Actually it wasn't all his fault, what's a dog to do when there is 3 ft of snow outside and your only a foot tall!
This week I am so excited to be starting down a new path in my life. I have signed up for an Interior Decorating course with ICS (International Career School) Canada!!! Anyone who knows me will be aware that I love decorating, painting, arranging furniture etc. I am hoping that this online correspondence course will expand my knowledge and teach me new skills while introducing me to different styles, terms etc. At the moment I'm not exactly sure how I am going to put them to use. Whether it's just for our own home or hopefully to one day have clients to work for, time will tell. I am awaiting my first package in the mail that will get me started this month. I shall be blogging here to tell you how things are going if you are interested.
Hazel x
I don't have any relevant photos this week, but will add some later if I can find a couple :)

HAPPY NEW YEAR - 2010!

2010-01-01T16:00:00.012-04:00

A brand new start to a new year. I hope that 2010 will bring all my friends and family happiness, good health, new experiences and memorable moments.

The month of December has passed by in a whirlwind since my last blog post.

Following the play, Amber finally had her 16th birthday party celebration a couple of weeks late, having a few of her girl friends over for pizza, a movie and some fun time in the snow.

Darragh, Lindsay, Emily, Serena, Amber, Tanisha, Jen, Marcy, Amy, Hannah

The Christmas decorations were up and the snow kept falling....Jemma came home for the holidays on Dec 20th and we had a few special family days together, playing board games, piecing together a puzzle, going out for coffee and a little bit of last minute Christmas shopping. These are days I savour now with Jem away mostly and Amber in her last few years of high school, I know how fast the months and years go by.
Craig and I don't get out and about very much so were excited to be invited to our friends' Terri and James for a 'bring a dish' get together just before Christmas, where we met lots of new interesting people. Their flourishing tea room business was the perfect venue for a crowd of guests, young and old, mingling and enjoying the lovely festive pre-Christmas atmosphere. They manage to make entertaining look like a doddle even though so much preparation and ongoing work goes into it, such a skilled team :)

Jemma's boyfriend drove up to see us on the 27th and the two of them headed for New York by car early morning on 28th, bundled up in preparation for an exciting 6 day trip. They are staying in the Hilton Hotel and planned to be in Times Square for the 31st. They were originally going to take Brian's little Yorkie 'Romeo' with them. We felt that dragging such a little jumpy dog all the way to the US didn't make a lot of sense, so Craig and I offered to take care of him for a few days. He has settled in nicely and enjoys plenty of running around in the snow and likes to be with one of us at all times, whimpering when we are upstairs and he hasn't mastered stair climbing on bare wooden floors :) He gets super excited when we return if one of is gone for a few hours, goodness knows how he is going to react when Brian gets back after 6 days away!!

Even though I am a cat person, this little dog is seriously cute!

Our new friends Edna and Bo invited us for a Hogmanay celebration on the 31st (two events in the same month!!), Edna is a Scottish lassie. Bo's loves to cook, his speciality is a delicious curry which he made. Joined once again by Terri and James it was a lovely cosy evening. We ended the new year laughing and reminiscing, surrounded by their 5 lovable pets!! Two huge German Shepherds and 3 Siamese kitties. All the animals were so very well behaved (can't say the same about some of the husbands!)

Little Romeo came along and stayed in his own quiet room with a heated kennel and was as happy as Larry. We stayed until the wee hours and being the designated driver I drove home, getting to bed at around 3am!! An unheard of hour in our house where we all get up so early. I did managed to lie in until 9.30 when at minus 12 degrees C, it was getting a little chilly and the wood stove needed some attention. Amber was staying with a friend so the house did seem eerily empty for the first time, a taste of empty nesting !

Well it's now well into the afternoon and Amber is safely home again and I spoke to Jem on MSN and all is well in NY. A storm is brewing again and I am a little worried about their two day return drive home, I will be happier once they are safely back in Nova Scotia again.

This morning I put up my new calendar, illustrated by a friend Judith Glover. (linked on the side of my blog too) I have been displaying her calendar's for the past 3 years in my kitchen and love them. This year it's a very pretty organiser one called ...Spice of Life...

Hazel x

Amber in Wonderland!!

2009-12-08T20:45:00.012-04:00

What a whirlwind of a week it was for Amber!
After many hours of rehearsing and learning over 300 lines opening night was on Thursday. The West Kings High School production of Alice in Wonderland was a huge hit. With 6 performances in total. The make up and costumes were wonderful, Back stage in the make up room

The children played their characters perfectly and it was a thoroughly entertaining production. The Mad Hatter's Tea Party

Three young stars after the final performance on Saturday
Craig, Jemma, Brian and I went along to watch the finale on Saturday and were a very proud family :)
After Alice in Wonderland we woke the next morning to find that a Winter Wonderland had descended upon us! Somewhere between 10 and 15cm's of snow had fallen during the night and covered everything in a thick layer of the white powdery stuff! Jemma and Brian left for the City later than planned as they had to wait for the roads to be ploughed first, being a Sunday nobody was in a hurry. Today and yesterday the sun has been shining making the snow glitter like millions of tiny diamonds and it looks very pretty. The fire is constantly stoked now adding to the cosy pre-Christmas atmosphere.

Amber had her 16th Birthday on December 1st, because it was a dress rehearsal that day, she was at school until 9.30pm. I suggested she go into school a little later in the morning so she could catch up on some much needed rest and we decorated the Christmas tree together. Sweet 16!!
This week it's preparation time for her postponed birthday party. Eleven of Amber's girl friends will be arriving on Sunday to celebrate. I'm not quite sure where Craig and I are going to hide? At 16 they won't need much supervision, just plenty of food, drinks, music and freedom to giggle for hours on end!!
Some less happy news is that my Mum and Dad had another break in at their home outside Johannesburg very recently. Luckily they were not harmed, just pretty shaken up by the whole ordeal. The thieves took off with a TV and a few other smaller items. They knocked some photos off the wall which woke my Dad, who went to see what the noise was (not a wise move). Thank goodness the baddies scarpered before he discovered the break in and sounded the alarm. Now a special metal security gate has been fitted to their bedroom door so they can lock themselves in at night. Several perimeter beams have been installed in the garden and some ugly but necessary razor wire! At least they feel much safer now and can relax in their own home.
I can clearly remember how frightened I used to feel when we lived in South Africa for a couple of years when the girls were toddlers. It has become a way of life there, panic buttons, alarms, security gates and razor wire are all deemed necessary unless you are living in a gated community where armed guards protect the residents and their properties at all times. A high price to pay for what is considered an affluent lifestyle and perfect climate. I think I'll just be content with the long winters and rely on the internet and telephone to keep in touch with my family so far away. I do miss them, especially at Christmas :(
Brrrrr, time to put another log on the fire!!
Hazel x

Advent Calendar

2009-11-26T19:46:00.013-04:00

It's almost two weeks since my last post which was on my friend Terri's birthday. Craig and I joined her for an impromptu drinks get together to celebrate, and guess what? I had my camera with me :D The festive atmosphere has begun this week and I have been out shopping more than once to find the perfect something something. Of course I have also been busy making stuff, which I enjoy just as much.
One of the projects I started making was an advent calendar. The existing hand sewn one was looking a bit worn out, I probably made it when the girls were only about 6 and 8 years old! I had seen a pretty Scandinavian looking one on a blog a couple of years ago, but never quite got round to having a go at making a similar one myself until now. I used some off white wool fabric and a bright crimson embroidery thread. First I cut out 24 envelope shapes from the wool fabric and sewed them together before attaching them to a length of red bias binding.
Just a couple of mistakes were made along the way. I 'should' have drawn the numbers on before embroidering them freehand, hence some are slightly bigger than others! The second mistake I made was sewing the buttons on 'after' I had made each little envelope! Quite a tricky bit of maneuvering was required with my needle and thread for those. I got a little impatient trying to find some red buttons, which was my first colour choice but I wanted to keep sewing in the meantime as I was keen to finish. I looked everywhere for red ones without any luck, so I ended up using these little white buttons instead, which I already had in my button stash. A length of embroidery thread wraps around the buttons to tie them securely closed once I have put some assorted wrapped chocolates inside. To finish off I tore strips of red and white polka dot fabric and tied little bows between each envelope. I have attached the finished product to the chest of drawers to see how it looks, but should probably take it down until the 1st Dec. In case it's unlucky or something??
With Christmas decorations in my mind as I was browsing in a local hardware shop (looking for the elusive tiny red buttons!) I found this lovely cotton runner that I wanted to show you. It is by Martha Stewart and is quite Scandinavian themed too. I think it will look great on the dining room table for Christmas dinner and also for Amber's birthday party. This weekend I shall be working on altering and adding to Amber's costume for the play, the dress needs to be taken in and I was so lucky to find the perfect petticoat or crinoline in my local thrift store for only $3!!

It is a full length one made to go under a wedding dress, the top is tiered cotton with netting layers underneath and it fits Amber perfectly. I still need to shorten it quite a bit so it just peeks out from under her blue dress, giving it plenty of fullness.
Tomorrow is Craig's company 'do' which should be fun. Christmas dinner and a live band with possible dancing with a bit of luck.
Amber is just a few days away from her 16th Birthday on Dec 1st. The planned party has been postponed until after the school production when she can relax and celebrate with a few friends from school and I can decorate the house for the event.

Hazel x

Snipping and Stitching

2009-11-15T15:55:00.010-04:00

Before I get onto the subject of sewing, I have to admit that I was a bit of a plonker a few days ago. I'm not a particularly hairy person, but when I discovered a couple of tiny WHISKERS on my chin the other day (cute on kittens only) I had to take action! So, I decided to try a nice 'gentle' facial hair remover NOT! I won't mention the brand, but after following the instructions carefully I ended up with a nasty chemical burn about the size of a penny right in the middle of my chiny chin chin! It was so painful and resembled a bright red traffic light for a few days. Anyway, lesson learnt and I am thinking that a discrete little pull with tweezers in future will suffice.
This week I have been scratching my head thinking of ways to improve my shop and income, which is not looking too healthy right now, and at this time of year it needs to be. I received some very sweet polka dot cotton fabric in the post, ordered from another Etsy seller. I decided to try it out on a new slightly different birdie design. Inspired by the colours associated with the lovely Cath Kidston I made a set of three, this time adding little felt wings and elongating the tail on my pattern a bit.

I have put one in my shop so far and shall see if it sparks any interest. I just love polka dots, they make me smile :) Also made some more white doves from super soft fleece, which are filled with a mix of poly fill and vanilla scented aroma beads. They represent a Peaceful Christmas and hopefully will be flying off to new homes soon.

It won't be long before I shall be getting out our Christmas decorations, this past time always fills me with excitement. I love to unpack them all and lay them out, remembering when and where we made the very special hand crafted ones. When Jemma and Amber were young we would try to work with a new material each year whether it be paper mache, salt dough, embroidery or felt. Those decorations are the best ever as each one is filled with love, nostalgia and wonderful memories.

The question this year is whether to have a real tree, as we did last Christmas or to use our quite realistic one stored in the attic/basement? Less mess and more environmentally friendly versus lovely fresh scent of pine and a natural element in the house. I am leaning towards the former at this point, mainly because Amber is having a birthday party and would like the decorations up by Dec 1st. I am not sure a real tree would survive for that length of time over Christmas and into the new year looking fresh and remaining intact.

Other sewing projects I have on the go are a little something for Jemma's dorm room and a couple of surprise gifts, but I can't tell you about those just yet.

What other news do I have this week, not much I'm afraid, I seem to be spending more time on the computer these days with regular conversations on MSN with Jemma, face book chats/comments and looking for inspiration in numerous craft sites and blogs.

This time last year I felt that I had no time for myself at all. I missed out on all the pre-Christmas excitement and planning, everything was a last minute rush. This year is much better and I have my daily lists that I can tick off throughout the day and have a sense of achievement. It sounds trivial but it's just the way I am.

Hazel x

Now where did I put that bit of paper........

Moving on again ....

2009-11-10T08:22:00.016-04:00

It has taken a while for me to get back into a routine again after Archie's sudden departure from my life, but it really is time to move on. Not a day will go by that I don't think about him and all the happy times, his quirky habits and soft white tummy, that smelled so clean :) I always say a few words as I am hanging out the laundry by the special tree, where he has been laid to rest underneeth the branches. Craig planted some snowdrops there which will remind us of his frisky little spirit that was always awakened in the Springtime.
Amber has been reading her many lines (over 300!) for the school play and I feel as though I have an 'Alice' in the house. Jemma is slowly winding down after a couple of hectic weeks of exams and tests. She still has another 3 scheduled for December, with her last one on December 19th when she will come home for the holidays. We spent this last weekend in Halifax to attend the scholarship presentation after she was awarded the Coy Family award for Science. With continued good marks it will be renewable for the next few years which is wonderful and she certainly deserves it after all the years of hard work she has put in throughout her school days. My little shop is picking up slowly, but of course after a years break it will take time to establish some more fans of my tiny felt animals. It as been ages since I made a 'new' animal design, I am waiting for some inspiration or a special request to add to the designs I currently make, any suggestions?
I started sewing with cotton fabric recently, My friend Terri, who owns and runs a delightful Tea Room, kindly offered to display a few of my items alongside her pastel enamel and polka dot pottery ware.
I made some little wash bags (previously sold as doorstops), tea cosies, egg cosies and cotton birds that all blend in nicely with her pastel colour scheme.
The apples are all gone now and it is so quiet around us with no sound of machinery, moving crates or the steady thud of apples hitting the barrels.
A burst of winter brought snow falls to us last weekend 10cm's in the city, but it has warmed up again to a seasonal average this week so my jumpers have been put away again for a few days.
I really appreciate everyone who reads my ramblings and all your comments (so many for dear little Archie last post - thank you)
Hazel x

We will always love you Archie

2009-10-30T16:52:00.024-03:00

Nothing can prepare you for the heart wrenching pain of losing a family pet.

My eyes are raw from crying and my heart feels like it has been shattered into a million pieces. Our very special cat Archie was tragically hit by a car yesterday and his injuries were so bad that we had to make the hard decision to have him put to sleep. Archie came into our lives in 2003 when we lived in New Zealand he was just a tiny 7 week old kitten that I could hold in one hand.From day one he craved affection and gave an abundance of love in return. Crawling up on to us at any given time for a cuddle, to nestle down, purr and have nap. There was no question that he would come with us when we decided to leave NZ and head back to England the following year. We had to leave him behind with a friend for 6 months due to the rabies requirements, having microchiped him, had all the necessary vaccinations and filled in endless forms, We chose this option as opposed to the alternative of having him put in quarantine. The 6 months seemed like forever, but when he finally joined us after the long wait and ridiculously long flight, there was no doubt at all that he was pleased to see us again. Nuzzling up to each of us in turn, it was as if we had never been apart. Anyone who says that cat's aren't loyal should have met little Archie. Due to unforeseen financial circumstances our stay in England was short and we were forced to move once again, this time to Nova Scotia, Canada. Luckily because of the paperwork and formalities already completed we were able to bring Archie over just a couple of days after. He arrived well in advance of our belongings, which took 4 weeks to get to us! He loved the land around our property and outdoor life we had chosen, exploring the garden, running in the orchards, climbing the trees and enjoying the fresh air and space during the day. He never objected to the routine of being brought indoors at night for his safety and happily watched the nocturnal activities from his vantage point at the window of his own little room every night. Having encountered skunks, raccoons and the feisty cat next door over the years here, with only minor injuries. I hoped he had a few more of his 9 lives left.
Until yesterday, when my world came tumbling down as I heard him crying outside on the deck. In a state of extreme shock, dragging the crumpled lower half of his body my heart was wrenched with emotion and love for this poor helpless animal. I will never know how on earth he managed to get from the road to the house, but he came home to us for the last time.
The vet who treated him was nice, but with internal injuries so bad and broken bones the kindest thing to do was to put him out of his pain and suffering sooner rather than later.
I can't ever imagine getting over the loss, I miss him every minute of the day. I keep expecting to see him in his bed, at his window, by my feet, watching me sew or sniffing the cat nip growing in the garden. He has been my companion in the house every single day that we have been here in Canada and part of the family for such a long time.

I hope that somewhere he is enjoying a new kind of freedom, this time with wings and that he will remember the happy life he had here on earth as part of our family.

Sleep peacefully Archie xx

A is for Apple!!

2009-10-18T16:04:00.017-03:00

Being that apple harvesting is well underway in our neck of the woods there has been a hive of activity all around us with plenty of pickers scattered amongst the trees, picking all the different varieties of apples. We wake up to the thudding noise as each apple hits the collecting bin before being tipped once full into a wooden crate. These will be the apples for juicing as the eating apples get collected very carefully in special picker bags worn like a baby carrying sling. There are so many varieties again this year;

Royal Gala, Golden Delicious, Red Delicious, Gravenstein, McIntosh, Jonagold, Cortland, Ida Red, Cox's Orange and Amber's favourite, Honeycrisp. To give you an idea of the size of the Honeycrisp apples we pick, here is a photo of one taken beside what I would consider an average sized Golden delicious.

Crisp, juicy and very sweet. This year it has some fierce competition though in the form of a new variety from the US called SweeTango .

Because there have been so many apples available I have been baking a few batches of apple muffins, which seem to disappear almost as fast as I can bake them! On the topic of food, we went out for a family celebratory lunch last Saturday, which just happened to coincide with Canadian Thanksgiving weekend. Jemma heard a couple of days previously that she had been awarded a substantial scholarship. It will help her so much in repaying the student loan she has taken out for her first year at SMU.

We visited a very posh restaurant at the Grand Pre Winery, the food was delicious and the girls both had fancy deserts that we just had to take photos of :)

A little after lunch look around the winery shop to view the various wines for sale, well there's no harm in looking!

Monday brought some more good news, this time for Amber. She has been chosen to play the lead part of Alice in the school production of Alice in Wonderland!

She is so excited and just a bit nervous at the prospect of learning over 300 lines off by heart over the next few weeks!! I expect that once she gets into the swing of reading the script along with her fellow drama students, she will feel more confident.

On the decorating front, after finishing the laundry room we moved into the adjoining mud room, otherwise known as Archie's room. Previously painted a moss green colour. It's the little room he sleeps in at night and watches the nocturnal goings on outside from his vantage point beside the window. No prizes for guessing my chosen colour scheme :) Craig and I worked as a team to finish off this little room last Sunday, I am still working on sewing the curtains.

Ahem! some of us take our painting quite seriously!!

Well, that's an update for this week. I can report that it is getting decidedly chilly outside though. There was even a threat of snow earlier in the week. Shock, horror and it's only mid October!! It wasn't so bad, more of a frost really, but it is coming soon I can tell.

Hazel x

The laundry gets a facelift :)

2009-10-08T17:58:00.020-03:00

Here is the laundry after a bit of a 'lift' and change of colour.

The bench is an old one rescued from a yard sale, which got a few coats of paint a couple of years ago. During the summer it stays outside on the front veranda, but each Autumn we bring it indoors for the Winter months. A made to measure padded box cushion came from the local fabric store. Covered with 100% cotton red buffalo check fabric from Etsy seller Honeybeehumble. The red and white striped oxford style pillow is a shirting fabric, also from an Etsy seller 'Vintage Urban Girl' . I was still missing some plain co-ordinating red fabric, which I managed to find at a local thrift shop in the form of a torn red wool blazer that was hiding in a box, for just $1! Once I had used the pinking shears to cut up it up I was surprised at the amount of fabric I could use, more than enough to make the little square pillow below. The rest has gone into my fabric stash to be used at a later date. Inspiration for the hand embroidered birdie pillow came from a wonderful book called Sew Pretty Homestyle, mentioned in a previous blog post last year.
It's now a nice cosy place to sit and read with a cup of coffee or glass of wine by the fire.
Of course Archie couldn't resist jumping up and claiming a spot immediately!

Hazel x

Beautiful Autumn Colours

2009-10-03T11:32:00.019-03:00

October is here, which signals the arrival of Autumn or Fall .
There are pumpkins everywhere, all shapes and sizes and the shops are full of Halloween costumes, face paints, wigs, nails, spider webs etc. Summer is becoming a distant memory, but who can complain when the sky is this blue?

I can never resist taking a few snaps of the trees in their rich colours, before all the leaves sail to the ground leaving the branches looking bare and a little sad, until then we can admire their beauty.

Craig and I took advantage of the warmth of the sun on Saturday morning, taking in the beautiful scenery across the Annapolis valley.

I have been warned once again by the people working on the apple farm not to walk up towards the woods at this time of year. A bit frustrating as I do like being outside in the early morning walking along with my latest i-pod tunes playing. Apparently, there are quite a few bears out and about at the moment, stocking up on food ready for hibernation and I don't want to become a 'tummy filler' thank you very much!!

We are adjusting to life without Jemma around during the week and really look forward her coming home for the weekend. This weekend she decided that it was better to stay at University. With upcoming exams already she needs to study and finds the 8 hours spent in the car to get out to us and packing etc. is quite disruptive and the last thing she wants to do when she comes home is study. So, we keep in touch through facebook, msn and skype. The wonders of technology! It will be extra special having her here for Thanksgiving weekend in a few days time.

I try not to spend too much time on the computer as the hours quickly disappear once I get immersed. I feel terribly guilty and should be concentrating on sewing orders.

Today I finished making these 8 tiny animals for a lady in California. As for my laundry, well I am still awaiting some fabric, so that will have to wait a wee while yet. I keep looking out for the raised red flag on the mailbox, but until it arrives, I shall have to busy myself with other projects.

Let there be more light!

2009-09-27T14:51:00.013-03:00

Last week I made a 'light tent', in preparation for the winter days when there won't be as much daylight to take decent photos of my 'sewing projects'.

First I had to find a sturdy cardboard box.

Then came some careful measuring .....

Some tricky cutting out .....

Finally I covered the inside of the box frame with white card and the holes on the outside with some polycotton sheeting, taped down with cellotape. The final step was to find a suitable light to place over the top so as to eliminate any shadows.

I am still in the process of finding the best way to position the light and I could possibly do with another one, so I can have one on each side. I found that the light from the energy saving bulb worked best, as it gives a white glow rather than yellow.

The tent (or box) definitely eliminates most of the shadowing but with an extra light source it should be even better. I shall try it out with coloured card too, as I prefer a soft blue background, especially for the felt animals, the white card looks a bit grey.

This week I am working on my laundry room, having ordered some fabric online from Etsy, I am very excited to get measuring and snipping once it arrives in the mail box :)

At the moment I just have a bare canvas, Craig repainted the bench as it was a teensy bit worn from being outside all summer. The blue accessories have been moved elsewhere and it is ready for a make over .....

Hazel x

Getting Crafty :)

2009-09-19T12:30:00.020-03:00

I'm not sure exactly why, maybe it's because the daylight hours are shorter and I can't spend as much time outside but I have gotten itchy creative fingers again. With Jemma off at Uni and the house looking neat and tidy after my housekeeping had become a little 'casual' while working outside my home for a year. Anyway who wants to be pedantic about the housework when the sun is shining? The Canadian summers are far too short to spend indoors cleaning all the time!

I do enjoy creating things, but it seems to come over me in waves. Back when the girls were small I experimented with textile paints sewing and painting hats, waistcoats, pillows and nursery pictures which I sold at a local market in South Africa. The sunny climate and white walls of the modern homes went well with the very bright colours I liked to paint with.After a few years teaching primary school children, where any art work seemed to involve glue, paper, glitter and fuzzy pipe cleaners! I lost my enthusiasm for painting and sewing in my spare time. I dabbled ever so briefly in painting in New Zealand, once again using really vivid colours.

Here in Canada starting an online Etsy shop rekindled my love of sewing and from the little cotton birds and bags in the very beginning I found that it was the tiny hand sewn felt animals that seemed to be most popular. My shop has been put on hold for a year while I worked in retail, getting out meeting people and being part of a team made for a nice change. Sorting through all my craft and fabric supplies this weekend, now that everything has been relocated to a new room, I came across some forgotten stock and have been thinking of new ways to improve my designs and think about different outlets to market some of these forgotten items.

They really are quite a contrast to my previous work, much softer colours and pretty fabrics which are more in keeping with my current home decor style and more suited to a shabby chic Victorian home with a touch of Scandinavia :) Little cotton hanging birds and doorstops.

One of my 'to do list' jobs over the next few days is to make a 'light tent' I have found an online tutorial which I shall follow and let you know how it turns out (good or bad). The need for a light tent is so I can take more professional photographs of the small items I make. With the lack of natural light in the winter months it is often a challenge to take good photos for listing purposes and I am hoping that the home made light tent will enable me to improve my winter photos.

Hazel x

Last days of summer

2009-09-02T16:03:00.019-03:00

With the sun still beating down on us as a new school term began today, it's sad to think that summer will soon be over, but it has been such fun. Waving goodbye to Amber this morning as the familiar yellow school bus pulled away from the front of our house I felt a small lump in my throat. (just cos I'm a soppy mummy!)
On Sunday Jemma moves into her tiny dorm room at University two hours away, it will be a day of mixed emotions as she leaves the nest to become independent, studying and working part time. She has now met all the other Cultural advisors she will be working with, so feels comfortable and is quite excited at the prospect of starting a new chapter in her life.
We have tried to make the most of the last few days of the school holidays, which always seem to speed up towards the end as we cram as much as possible into the last week or two.
Nothing fancy, just simple memories like the day we had an impulsive lunchtime picnic in the field at a local elementary school. Watching my grown up girls laughing on the climbing frame and sliding down a children's slide, was something I didn't think I would ever see them do again, it was so funny :D
We did a bit more blueberry and blackberry picking, had some 'Paris tea' at the Telegraph Tea Room.Coffee at Starbucks in Halifax, trips to the mall, watched a couple of chick flicks snuggled up on the sofa and had some crazy face pulling sessions??? Well you had to be there :)

The next few weeks I will be immersing myself in household jobs that have been put on hold and getting back to my sewing room, which has been neglected for far too long! Watch this space for new animals in the making :) With the big change around, swapping the study and craft room over it will be refreshing to start up again in a new space.

Hazel x

Hurricane Bill

2009-08-23T21:31:00.005-03:00

Hurricane Bill was predicted to arrive with a vengeance earlier today, with the threat of flooding, major power cuts and destruction to buildings and trees. Luckily he just skimmed by our area, with only a heavy downpour and a fairly strong wind. We were well prepared, having kept a watchful eye on the local weather reports for a few days prior to the storm coming inland. All our garden furniture had been put safely away in the barn and Craig secured a couple of the younger fragile fruit trees. We had been especially concerned as we had a family weekend booked up at the lake and were looking forward to spending time in a little cottage, but it looked as though we were in for some stormy weather during our stay. I was able to collect the boys, Curtis and Adam and we headed up to the cottage by lunchtime on Friday and the weather was lovely all afternoon and all day Saturday too.

The children had so much fun on the water, either in the canoe, pedal boat or just swimming out to the floating deck, diving and jumping in the lake, getting along well as a group of four.

Archie hardly knew we were away as Craig stopped in on his way home from work and then I was able to pop down the road early Saturday morning to feed him and let him outdoors so he could spend the day in his current favourite spot under the shade of the Hostas.

Craig and I had the opportunity to get to know the boys a little better too.

It won't be long before the girls are back to school and university as we head towards the end of the summer holidays. I'm glad that this weekend was a special memory point for them.

Hazel x

Enjoying the sunshine

2009-08-23T15:49:00.002-03:00

This week I am a single Mum while Craig has gone off to London for a week. Snapping up a cheap ticket, his bags were packed and he was on his way to the airport before I could say "Jack Robinson" (who is he anyway?). Nobody could accuse my hubby of not being impulsive!

The morning after he left two painters turned up on the doorstep with one 'very' long ladder awaiting my instructions! After a quick hunt in the garage, double checking codes written in the decorating notebook it was confirmed that the paint was indeed the right one for the tall end of the barn. The last section to be painted, it was looking pretty shabby but at 3 storeys tall, Craig has no intention of painting it himself. I left the eager painters to do their thing and when I returned from work it was completed and now matches up with the rest of the building. Craig took on the mammoth job of painting the side barn during our first summer here 4 years ago when we were both not allowed to work in Canada. It was a back breaking job that took hours of preparation, but regular maintenance is required to keep the buildings protected in such a harsh winter climate.

With the peonies about to burst into bloom any day now we have all been making the most of the beginning of summertime. The grass is growing at a rapid rate and I am still fighting off the blood thirsty black flies (the NO BITE ME soap kept them away for about 30 minutes I can report) The sticky residue on my skin was quite gross and I couldn't wait to wash the stuff off! I have decided to just take some non-drowsy antihistamine pills to relieve the symptoms as bite prevention seems unlikely. Tried the Listerine again, but the little flies seem to love it!

Some pics taken 'before' the dandelions got chopped:

Amber sitting pretty :)

Don't you think that's taking sun protection a little too far girls?!!

Happy week everyone :)

Hazel x

L is for......

2009-08-23T15:48:00.003-03:00

Lilacs, Lupins and Lobelias!
In my favourite shades of blue and purple. I am particularly fond of the two lilac bushes in the garden which, although they only flower for a short time give off the most wonderful scent.The lupins are everywhere this time of year, growing like pretty weeds in all the ditches on the edges of the roads.Craig picked a bunch of them for the dining room table.Our trademark dainty blue lobelia trail delicately in baskets outside the kitchen window, flourishing as they do every summertime, much to the delight of the hummingbirds. My hubby arrived home safe and sound, armed with a few little goodies and special treats for the ladies in his life. He couldn't resist the English sweeties, minstrels, Rowntree's fruit pastilles and wine gums :) The Twilight four book set was a huge hit with the girls, including the latest release 'Breaking Dawn' . I was thrilled with my M&S cotton T-shirts and a copy of Good Housekeeping UK magazine. Craig enjoyed his trip and was able to meet up with his niece and nephew in Buckinghamshire. Casey, Craig and Brendan
He took numerous snaps of the places we lived and visited when the girls were young, post office, school and parks. It took me on a little trip down memory lane just looking at them. Not much has changed really, except that the trees have grown to an enormous size and the roads seem ever so narrow :D The familiar lane leading to our old home in West Clandon, Surrey. I walked down here many times while the girls rode their bicycles
Back here in the Maritimes, we were invited to a local wedding on Saturday. Friends of ours Brian and Jess tied the knot on a perfect sunny afternoon at a local hotel. The reception that followed was lovely, with so much attention to detail and foot tappin' music from a live band. It made a nice change for us to don our 'glad rags' and even get up on a dance floor! I haven't been to a wedding in years and felt a little sad that I have missed both my younger brother's weddings, my sister's and Craig's sister's too :( The downside to leaving South Africa is that we haven't been able just pop back for these special occasions, even though we would love to have done so and shared their happy day Craig and I were even colour co-ordinated in sky blue :)
A visit from our English friends Terri and James on Sunday morning made a very pleasant start to the day. Inspired to do a spot of baking I mixed up a quick apple tea bread, which we ate outside on the deck and drank cups of tea. They couldn't stay very long as they had their own tea room to open up to the public in the afternoon.
This week is a busy one for the girls, with all their end of year exams, for Jemma the end of her high school lessons forever! The Graduation Prom is on Monday and then the Graduation ceremony on Thursday - crikey, it's all so final and my baby is growing up fast.
She is off to Prince Edward Island with the International students on Friday. A wind down after exams before the summer holidays begin. She is very excited to be meeting new foreign students, some of whom will be going to the same University in September. As a 'helper' she gets to go for free, which makes it even better.
Hazel x

Happy Birthday to my Special Hubby!

2009-08-12T09:58:00.010-03:00

I wanted to write an extra post this week to let my darling husband know that we are all thinking of him on his Birthday, today :)
It will be the first time that we have ever missed each other's birthday in the 20 years we have been together!! He is celebrating with his family in SA, his sister Tess in the morning and then his other two sisters' Cheryl and Bev in Cape Town later in the day. The Cape Town families haven't seen him for 3 years, so will no doubt spoil him a little. I do know he has enjoyed being with his Dad very much.
Before leaving here, Craig did a great job of installing a new light fitting in the kitchen He then went on to replace the old taps with a new kitchen faucet and veggie spray hose (just out of the pic) I keep admiring his handy work, which looks very professional. The sun is shining once again, August has been a great month so far, yesterday I took Amber and her 3 friends up to the lake for a couple of hours so they could get their feet wet and look rather gorgeous in their bikinis :) Bathing Beauties: Marcy, Jen, Tanisha and Amber
Jemma got a happy phone call yesterday informing her that she had been chosen for the job she applied for at St Mary's. The position is a cultural advisor in the TESL centre on campus and the hours fit in perfectly with her study schedule. Being based on site means she doesn't need to travel to work and with most weekends and holidays off, she can come home. She is so excited and will enjoy the independence of earning a few dollars.
Today Amber and I collected our very first batch of wild blackberries from the bushes up the lane, not overly sweet at this stage, but with a few more days of sunshine to ripen them, they will be delicious.We have only been to pick blueberries once so far this season, Amber's boyfriend Adam came along (they are celebrating 6 months together tomorrow!) Well, it's getting late now so I shall finish off by sending Birthday wishes across the miles to my best friend.
I hope you have had a lovely day
Goodnight
xxxx

Craig visits his Dad in SA

2009-08-07T14:22:00.026-03:00

Basil at his 80th Birthday party in 2006

As I write this post my wonderful hubby is on his way to South Africa to visit his dad. Basil has not been very well recently, following a heart attack. We are all very worried and encouraged Craig to get over to South Africa to spend some time with him. Basil is one of the kindest people I have ever met, always keen to help out, putting other people's needs before his own without a second thought. He has been writing long, newsy letters to Craig on a regular basis for many years, often more than one a week. Usually typed on a typewriter that has seen better days, or hand written and bundled into an envelope along with interesting newspaper clippings from Craig's hometown Pietermaritzburg. I am sure that having Craig spend some quality Father/Son time will mean a lot to both of them. Taken 3 years ago on Craig's last trip to SA.
Earlier in the week I drove the girls to Halifax to finalise Jemma's paperwork before she starts University in less than a month! Fees, meal plans and book lists, as well as general familiarisation all need to be sorted out before then and I am sure there will be many more trips over the next few weeks/months.
Now, although I have driven Craig to the airport and back before and done a small bit of city driving (with Craig as a passenger giving me fierce instructions!) I have never been a great fan driving in unfamiliar surroundings, so I had a tummy full of butterflies before leaving on Wednesday morning. As Jemma quite rightly pointed out, she's the one leaving home and has reason to be nervous, not me!!
Anyway I managed to stay surprisingly calm, even though we did miss just one turn off, we ended up taking a different route than planned, luckily there was a map on hand and Jemma is a pretty nifty map reader as it turns out :)
It must have been the relief of finally getting to St. Mary's campus that led to Amber and I having a mild case of the 'Giggling Gerties' while we ate our packed lunch and waited patiently for Jemma to do her stuff. Amber had brought her camera along and took a few snaps as we sat under the trees on the campus grounds. There were quite a few students milling around, much to Jemma's delight many were Japanese and Korean. She will be studying Japanese in her first year at St. Mary's. The Loyola block in the background, Jemma will be living on the 9th floor

Heading home (via the shopping centre of course) we were soon back on the motorway again. Switching back to a manual drive after my automatic car was fine and my fear of stalling at a traffic light in the middle of the City turned out to be unfounded after all :) I suppose using a stick shift, as it is referred to here, is a bit like riding a bicycle, in fact I find it stranger going back to my automatic when I have borrowed Craig's car and find myself wafting my hand around wanting to change gears!
The running around since then to soccer matches, doctors appointments and other local trips, as well as fitting in all the little extra jobs Craig does on the property has meant that my days are going by really fast. I needed to make time to catch up on my computer by taking a little down time over a cup of coffee this evening.
Hazel x

Jemma celebrates her 18th Birthday!!

2009-07-30T15:02:00.017-03:00

It scarcely seems possible that so many years have gone by since I held little Jem in my arms for the very first time back in 1991. Now at 18 years old, she is a grown woman ready to take 'flight' or perhaps 'peddle' into the big wide world. For her 18th birthday gift, she requested a bicycle.
The request was specifically for a vintage one, or at least a vintage-style. We found this lovely green bicycle with big wheels, it's in great condition and she loves it. After a bit of a hunt around for a wicker basket to put on the front (lined and attached with two cat collars!) a bell, chain lock and mirror and she was all set. So far she has been riding around the orchards and back roads, but hopes to be able to use it on campus when she starts university in just over a month and possibly make a few shopping trips into town too.

Jemma's boyfriend Curtis has been to visit often during the summer holidays and after a little cross questioning, I mean 'friendly chats' at the dinner table, we feel like we know him quite well already. They have been friends since the beginning of grade 12 and had every class together during the last semester. He makes Jemma happy and that's great.

The proper summer weather arrived with a vengeance this week with the temperature soaring to a sticky 30+ degrees with a very high humidity level. A storm is brewing as I write this post and I can almost hear the growing veggies crying out for a bit of rain. You may remember a few weeks ago, Craig with Amber's help designed and made three little beds and planted summer veggies which are coming along a treat. Each morning I pick a few carrots, onions, baby spinach leaves and romaine lettuce so we can all enjoy a really fresh salad every evening, often eaten on the deck when the sun is not so harsh.Earlier this week I took the girls to one of our favourite places, Dempsey's Farm. It's cherry season and we picked a couple of punnets of sweet cherries to take home with us. The usual farm animals were running amok, especially these hungry chickens, that apparently eat all day long!

It'a nice to be back at home full time. I will miss the money, but am glad to be actively keeping things maintained in the house and garden. Today I have been busy swapping over everything from the craft room to the study and vice versa. Except every time I open a box or drawer I have the uncontrollable urge to sort, tidy and throw out stuff. This is making the whole project quite time consuming. It will be worth it in the end, when both rooms are ship shape and functioning properly. My sewing room will double up as the guest room and the computers will be closer to the wood stove in the winter.

We are hoping our friend Dave will come and visit from New Zealand in September, he hasn't been for a couple of years and we do enjoy his company and listening to his tales from Havelock North.

Back to my sorting now as I hear some teenagers arriving downstairs, a common occurrence these days and nice to have youngsters around enjoying themselves and making the most of the holidays before they begin a new chapter as they all start various universities, colleges and jobs.

Hazel x

Soccer Season

2009-07-19T16:15:00.005-03:00

I am so pleased that Amber is enjoying her very first soccer season, after joining the Greenwood team this summer. She was somewhat nervous and aprehensive, as most (possibly all) of the other team members have been playing for quite a few years and are familiar with the techniques, moves and soccer lingo. Trying her very best to be accepted she has managed to attend every practice, game and tournament so far, come rain or shine. This morning the heavens opened up and a heavy tropical like downpour soaked everyone to the skin in the middle of a tournament game. While I made a run for the shelter of the car, the players had to keep going until the end of the game.

I have been trying to capture her on the field amongst her team, while playing, but my camera is not very good at the combination of distance and action shots! Hence Craig took these of her practicing in the back garden the other day.

Amber kindly reciprocated by capturing her Daddy and his ehhhhh....... BBQ/Dance skills??!!!

Craig has been able to offer a few soccer training tips, although rugby was more his choice of sport as a youngster he has been quite happy to kick a ball around with his daughter.

With the continuing soccer activities as well as Jemma's university preparations I have decided to give up my part time job at Wheaton's. My current number of hours are ok right now, but once we hit late July there will be more demand for us to work all day Saturday and Friday evenings, often the precise and rare time I get to spend with Craig and the girls. It was a decision I thought long and hard about and have decided it will be for the best.

I shall miss my colleagues and friends, but hope to stay in touch with them as they do all live close by. In fact this week some of us got together after work for very pleasant 'high tea' at Terri's tea room.

Not sure whether I shall hit my Etsy home business with gusto yet, but I do have a few ideas brewing and am looking forward to getting in touch with my creative side again after neglecting it for the past year.

Hazel x

Jemma's Week

2009-06-27T17:17:00.005-03:00

Well this week there is no question as to the subject matter of my (fairly) regular blog post.

My baby is all grown up having completed 13 years of schooling, she graduated from high school on Thursday 25th June - wow, what a milestone!!

Prior to the Graduation ceremony was the Grade 12 Prom Dance on Monday evening.

Sadly for Jemma it was a bitter sweet event. Her relationship with her boyfriend Takuto, came to an end just the week before, but as they had already arranged to go as a couple they decided to go as friends, taking the gossip and rumours on the chin. Tak looked very smart in his Tuxedo and Jemma so elegant in her floor sweeping dress. The Prom theme was the James Bond movie 'Casino Royale' and they both looked the part.

Jemma designed and made her own dress, enduring a fair few frustrating hours at the sewing machine before getting it just right in the short space of time after finishing her final exams.

The graduation ceremony held at a local Arena was long and very very hot, as the weather has been particularly humid over the past few days. With so many people packed into the building for over four hours it was a little stifling. All the certificates were presented along with various scholarships and bursaries. Speeches were made and my hands were smarting with all the clapping for each student! Amber was armed with her camera and quite excited for her big sister and the thought of her own graduation in 3 years time. An evening for parents to be proud and students to congratulate themselves on completing many years of schooling before moving on to bigger things.

Jemma can now take a few weeks off, before planning her move to St Mary's University in September, where she will be studying Science and Japanese for the next four years.

Well done Jemma - we love you

Mummy, Daddy & Amber xxxx

Strawberry Season

2009-06-21T15:45:00.012-03:00

Yummmmmy Strawberries!! The fruit of early summertime, so deliciously sweet, picked straight off the bush, still warm from the sunshine.It's hard to believe that two whole years have gone by since Jemma and Amber found this vintage sign for their Daddy on Father's day 2007.Craig had just planted his first crop of strawberries in the garden. The arrow points to 'the spot' It was a lucky find at a yard sale and one of those inexpensive but 'perfect' gifts that you occasionally stumble upon which gives you the warm fuzzies, knowing the recipient is going to like it!

On the same theme, this is the recipe book that where I keep a tried and tested recipe for some shortbread that goes well with the strawberries, served with a little cream. It really didn't matter that the rain was pouring as we ate them this afternoon. The garden was in need of a good soaking after a bit of a dry spell. Last but by no means least, our tiny birds get another mention, well they are only here for a few weeks. Hungrily drinking from the strawberry nectar feeders.They are currently flitting between the feeders and the Pink Weigela outside the dining room, which have just come into bloom and obviously taste delicious to hummingbirds :)

Hazel x