Christmas Blessings

We hope you are all having........or like us - have just had a very Merry Christmas. We all celebrate in our own personal way while thinking of those who may not be so lucky. We are fortunate to have our family close by so it was a wonderful day of sharing time together.........and of course the little star made it very special........

Below was the bargain gift of the day.....so much fun for just $12!!

Christmas is warm in Australia but today was quite mild (after a very hot day yesterday)............but we still sat outside for lunch. Last night I made these "healthy" trees......

And these were the bases......aren't they just gorgeous?

Thankyou Emily and Brett for the use of your home.....

Enjoy this holiday season and stay safe ......... take care till next time xx

A "Christmassy" birthday

Now I am sure there is no such word as "Christmassy"....but having a birthday in the week leading up to the big day is always a challenge. You go out for a quiet birthday dinner and everywhere are decorations and celebrations for all things Christmas....but it is time I stopped moaning about that as every birthday is a blessing and every year a bonus....and the date could be worse!! My heart goes out to those born on Dec 25th and also for my brother who was born on Dec 27th. We spent our lives hearing the moans of..."You cost me a fortune this time of year"!!  And do you know here in Australia stamps are a little cheaper this time of year for posting Christmas cards......so we even save friends a little money on posting those birthday cards!!

Well you will be pleased to know I didn't complain and I had a lovely day! Lots of lovely cards, phone calls and lunch with two special friends - Faye and Jude. Judy had been busy sewing as you will see on her Blog and look what she stitched for me.....a gorgeous bag and matching journal cover.......thankyou Jude xx

Then after a full day of looking after Beau it was out for a birthday dinner with the family.

From Beau this framed memento......it seems so long ago now........

And lots more goodies which I won't bore you with...except for these two sensational books which came all the way from the UK. Our gorgeous Helen from Whitecroft Tours managed to find some 'out of print' copies for me and they are just divine. Thank-you Helen - I am so spoiled and I am lapping it all up!......

And check out this incredible embroidery which I am hoping to see one day in the flesh......

And this little package was hand delivered by the postman today....every year Maree always finds the most gorgeous handmade cards.....

And divine little gifts.......

They arrived safely Maree! Thanks ever so much xx

 So to all of you reading this ......I hope all your Christmas plans are as you want them to be. We have had a busy time this past week looking after the little man.....he likes to "chill out" when I am working at my desk.....

And is zipping about the place and finding out how to get stuck under chairs!

Stay safe wherever you are xx

The best Father Christmas!

I get quite teary at this time of year......it is a sad time for both Larry and I as we both lost our Mum's within a few days of Dec 25th....but I also find I get quite emotional whenever I see Father Christmas!! If I walk past Santa anywhere I well up with tears - especially if there are little one's perched on his knee! Well it happened again today! The photographer getting Santa's knee all ready!!...........

Now this is by far the sweetest Santa I have ever met....he was so gentle and so good with Beau and the photographer was also patient and incredibly kind. He noticed me having a little emotional sniffle and asked Emily to take a photo with my camera as well........

So it was a wonderful afternoon to introduce Beau to that big hearted man from the North Pole. A few more scenes from our mall........

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.....and then time to take one incredibly tired little boy home. Enjoy your preparations for Christmas xx

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Procrastination!

I am so good at "putting things off"........but I have finally collated and organised the DVD's for those of you who came on the William Morris Tours this year and asked for a copy of my photos! It has taken me a while as there are over 2,000 photos on each disc (I think!). We did a trial run last evening and it took 3 hours and 20 minutes to see them all!! Makes you remember those slide nights the relatives would make you sit through all those years ago! Anyway girls...the DVD's will be in the post tomorrow just in time for Christmas!

It was so wonderful to revisit the tours..........it was certainly the best tour we have ever been on (and Larry and I have done several of the big names tours!). I think having a limit to numbers and staying in the one place was widely appealing....but on top of that the dinners were superb with wine included....and each day we were treated to more and more....but I am not giving anymore away! Oh and we mustn't forget all things William Morris along the way! I know all those who came will never ever forget the experience. The feedback we got was overwhelmingly positive - the one negative was that all other tours will be 'second rate'!! This tour under Helen's leadership and organisation was 5 star and beyond and you can join us next year by visiting HERE!

The photos above and below were from Bourton House Gardens and it was a treat for the second tour as we had experienced some rain and Helen wanted to reward us!  It was so popular that we are going back next year for afternoon tea!

The photos reminded me of a quilt that was buried under the pile (as you can see by the folds in the photos!) This was a quilt I did about 15 years ago and it is based on Woodford Hall - the childhood home of William Morris. He lived there from 1840-47 (from the age of 6 - 13yrs). I had quite forgotten I was also trying to capture the knot gardens of Britain when I did this quilt way back then! Don't look too close though......I was quite a beginner at applique back then!

And in my rummaging I also came across these wool felt pieces that I purchased in Budapest in 2003! This was the first time I had seen felt used in appliqué and I just did a Google search and found the co-operative where I purchased these beautiful works of art.......have a visit by clicking HERE. I treasure the miniature jacket complete with hat, the needle-case and the book cover......

Now I can't leave you without a progress photo......Beau has learnt that he will get a reaction with this squinty smile and he also recently learnt how yummy apples are!

But sadly the last two days he has been suffering from a gastro bug. Along with him having a slight fever it has been a very hot day here in Adelaide today, and the temperature is not expected to go below 26C overnight (78F)....so I will leave you with a "cooling down" image of the little man having his first experience of an ice block (it also helped with some rehydration!!). Dear little man makes us smile everyday......

Take care wherever you are xx