Sweet baby girl

Dear daughter and her prince celebrated the birth of their precious baby girl last night (30th January). She is gorgeous, cuddly and contented. She weighs 8 lbs 9 oz and has beautiful dark hair and the sweetest demeanor.

Three generations of firstborns are in the above photo, Sweet baby girl, Dear daughter and myself. I had the privilege of being present during the birth - a very special time. Children truly are a gift from the Lord and my darling and I are now experiencing the joy of the blessing of Psalm 128:6

"May you see your children's children!"

"Dreams"

Firstly, I would like to say a big 'thank you' to all those who have been so encouraging and left such wonderful, supportive comments. Since being involved with a challenge like this is new to me, I really appreciate your kind words. Merci beaucoup!

This is number 3 in the "Cabinet of Natural Curiosities" challenge and we were asked us to recall the dreams (as in goals) we had as children, then to focus on a dream we have now.

Initially all I could think of were the many dreams I had that have been so wonderfully fulfilled including ... being blessed with a happy marriage and lovely children, living in England, becoming a teacher and having a little country cottage. I decided to include these on my page (the bunting) but to focus on my desire to one day have a beautiful garden including an orchard. With my hopes and dreams over the years I have been very aware of

"Seek your happiness in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart". Psalm 37:4.

Recently I had been thinking about those who tend the earth and plant for future generations to enjoy. It is such a self-less act and I came across the Greek Proverb:

"A society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit in."

which fits in so well with my ponderings.

I enjoyed this prompt and the focus it gave me and although the image is not the best, as in reality the colours are more vibrant, it gives the general idea of how my page turned out. I'm now looking forward to number 4 ...

Australia Day

Absolutely gorgeous weather to celebrate Australia Day. Many were out walking and I took this photo of the blossom of an eucalyptus ficifolia or gum tree this morning while we were strolling. Families were picnicking and we spread our feast out, delighting in the fresh air and sunshine. Below is my ant's-eye view from the picnic rug after lunch.

Friends gathered together at bar-b-ques, including our boys who are now down at the beach enjoying fish and chips.

All was wonderful and relaxed and I'm glad my ancestors made that long sea voyage all those years ago - even though some didn't have a choice! Being surrounded by such beauty, freedom and space, I think they too would have been thankful to be here.

"Curiosity"

The second page for the Cabinet of Natural Curiosities is Curiosity. After reading the challenge I quickly started envisaging my page but later realized that the creative process, carefully explained with the prompt, was part of it. Oh dear, a little out of my comfort zone! I wanted to try the process as it looked so inspiring but ... with my book?

I decided to make a start by drawing each method out at random and taping them in order on a piece of card:

SCRATCH - MAGAZINE - PATTERN - PENCIL - SMUDGE - SAND - PHOTOGRAPH - DRAW - STAMP - SURPRISE - 3-D - TEXT - INK - WIPE - WRITE - PAPER - PAINT

It wasn't the order I would have liked but beginning by scratching should be easy! Each stage was surprisingly quick and although it was a little unsettling not having any idea how the finished page would look, I did enjoy it.

I used SURPRISE for my 'cabinet' and finished most of the page yesterday evening. I was not looking forward to PAINT as it was the last and I couldn't imagine my whole page covered in paint. I thought of doing a transparent watercolour wash but I had used ink for curiosity and it would run. To avoid that I ended up rag-rolling the paint on and it was a little unnerving as there is no trial run!

You can probably tell I was a little apprehensive doing all this but after going to get the groceries and returning to look at it again with a fresh eye, I quite like my page and I'm pleased I stepped out of my familiar ways.

The preparation of this page was really interesting in other ways too. Firstly it occurred to me that the items I had chosen were all things I was curious about. Actually this was not intentional as I was more concerned with the process rather than the theme. I love gypsy caravans with my favourite being one I saw in Devon with its beautiful polished wood interior with brass knobs and lace curtains; lace interests me and years ago I took a course in lacemaking. I have since found out that my forebears were Nottingham lacemakers; the book plate - what a wonderful resource books are for the curious - and the cat fits in well with the old saying!

The other thing I noticed was the number of times I asked myself "I wonder what would happen if ...?" Curiosity in action!

Sweet rainy days

The sweet sound of raindrops has greeted our waking moments for several days now. I can't remember the last time this happened but it is wonderful and the plants are smiling! We went for a lovely, damp walk this morning and it was so refreshing and I even have a jumper on as I type ... beautiful, cooler temperatures.

Recent days have also been social days with relatives and friends. A cousin and her family from Perth arrived on Wednesday and we enjoyed having them stay. It was so relaxed and easy and it reminded me of when we were children and our families would stay in each others homes making use of all available space (I clearly remember having to 'top and tail' in a bed).

Yesterday we went into the city and met up with old friends who were visiting from the south coast of NSW. We ate a picnic by the Yarra River, the rain ceasing during our lunch. With only a week of holidays left I am going to miss the ease and freedom of using our time as we wish.

Dear daughter is looking wonderful as she awaits the birth. She is a little impatient, understandably, but has only just over a week until her due date. I am growing more and more excited as the day approaches and half-expect a call any time now. Life is a joy.

"Explore"

Hooray, I've completed the first page of my Cabinet of Natural Curiosities and had such fun doing it ... but first of all I prepared the book.


I chose an old diary, removed most of the pages and covered it in fabric. I had been thinking about the challenge title and the strongest images I had were of my grandmother taking me to the Sydney Museum when I was a child. The cabinets were old, dusty and full of intriguing exhibits so I decided on a faded appearance to my book with a 'cabinet' on the cover displaying labeled items. (I placed a piece of acetate as the 'protective glass', so some images are not as clear.)


The first theme is "explore" and as a prompt the poem "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost was included. This made me think about life as a journey, choices we make, what I want to explore and how wonderful yet scary exploration can seem. I thought of myself as a child taking paths through a dense forest and what I might encounter. I imagined the encounters as tall flowers, delightful and harmless but a little frightening to a small girl. On my page I placed a photo of myself (with less flowers than I originally envisaged), part of a map representing unexplored territory and a verse to show the Bible as a guide book for the journey.


I didn't want my pages to be dusty and faded, but I did want to include an 'exhibit' for each theme as if it was on display in my cabinet.


It was thoroughly enjoyable with constant inspiration and ideas - I could probably do a book just on 'explore'.

A creative life

It’s been all fun and activity here for the past few days as we have visitors staying and with every space of our little house abuzz it is difficult to find a place let alone a time to write. The spare room is filled and the overflow is sleeping on mattresses on the lounge room floor. We’re having a great time and it all adds to that wonderful, relaxed, holiday feeling.

After a late night, everyone is still asleep so I’m taking the opportunity to catch up - I didn’t realize we had so many creaking floor boards until I just crept out to get my laptop – as I want to write about creativity.

For as long as I can remember I have always crafted and this is the earliest example I have of my stitching. I was four when I carefully sewed three felt flowers onto a piece of hessian. Mum did the stem stitch and made them into a pot holder and an apron which were never used – I think only blacksmiths or saddlers would use aprons made of hessian! I love having them though. All my life I have continued to stitch and an instant de-stressor for me is having a needle in my hand and a project at the ready.

Another early love was coloured pencils, in particular my small tin of Cumberland Lakeland pencils. They were only the little-half length pencils which I don’t think are available now, but I loved them and was especially enthralled by the picture on the tin – it was so beautiful! My four-year-old self couldn’t imagine that such a place really existed and I wanted to find that lovely land where the pencils were made (many years later I did make the pilgrimage to the Cumberland Pencil Company in Lakes District of England).

Over the years I have learned new crafting skills, been exposed to other media, had times of intense creativity and other times of just following the pattern. Recently I have been ‘just following the pattern’ but would like to use a little more imagination, so after a lot of thought and knowing what a myriad of other things are going on in life at the moment, I have signed up for a creative challenge. Now challenges are not new to me, but on-line ones are and I really don’t know what to expect. I have also added an extra clause … in this year of celebrating the wonderful abundance in my life I am not purchasing any items for this project; I am sticking with the ‘make do and mend’ motto.

Initially I thought that perhaps I should establish a separate site to tell of my crafting journey, but as it is part of my nature, of who I am, I realised it is appropriate to include it all here. So although the challenge is unknown at this stage, I hope you’ll enjoy discovering with me what will be in my Cabinet of Natural Curiosities.

Contented times

Well I'm feeling a little 'plummed out' at the moment. I've had a successful blitz on our bounty and have a year's supply of jam and bottled plums in the cupboard, as well as delicious Worcestershire sauce to last much longer. I had to process the plums quickly as once again the temperatures are soaring and I don't like cooking in the heat (the fruit doesn't keep well either).

Dear daughter's baby is due in two weeks and she is starting to feel a little impatient. It is a very exciting time as this baby is a 'first' for many. The first child, first grandchild, first great-grandchild. Our boys will be uncles for the first time, there will be new great-aunts and great-uncles as well as great-great aunts. Dear daughter married into a family with an Italian heritage and a large extended family. So cousins are waiting and Nonna and Nonno are already experienced grandparents.

My darling and I are very much looking forward to this new stage in our lives. We had our own children while we were young, hoping we would be healthy and well to enjoy life's continued joys when our children were grown. Planning all of this in our youth, we didn't take into account how attached we would be to our lovely adult children, so the plans for lengthy travel and long-distance adventures are not as appealing as they once were. This is not to say I do not enjoy exploring this beautiful world - walking the Thames Path this past English summer is one of the most special things I have ever done - it is just that I am equally contented to stay close by and with a precious grandchild soon to be around who would want to venture far?

"Godliness with contentment is great gain."

1 Timothy 6:6

Bountiful abundance

After four very enjoyable days away we have returned to our city home and with us a bountiful supply of plums. Along the roadsides near our cottage, hundreds of self-sown plum trees, their laden boughs drooping, are feeding the birds as well as dropping their fruit all over verges. The above picture shows where we pulled up to pick some (you can probably see the cows in the background - and notice how the paddocks are drying off).


Every tree seems to be different. I guess the bees have been cross-pollinating over the years to produce these non-commercial delights.


First of all I stewed some to have cold with yoghurt, then I bottled the rest so we can enjoy them throughout the year.


This afternoon on our return journey we picked some more which I will once again stew and bottle as well as making into the most delicious jam. I also want to try Jenny's recipe as our family regularly uses Worcestershire Sauce but I've never thought of making it before.

I love standing in the sunshine with a gentle breeze blowing, breathing in the fresh, country air while picking the warm fruit with its gentle bloom. One of my favourite movies is The Gleaners and I and I often think of myself as a gleaner when making good use of this plentiful supply of fresh fruit.

Let us continue to consciously celebrate this year of abundance ... the roadside apples should be ready in a month or so!

Summer days

The dips are ready, salads are made, meat is in the esky, chocolate mousses are done, fruit platter still needs to be prepared, drinks are cooling ...

A bar-b-que with friends tonight, craft with fellow-stitchers tomorrow and a few days at the cottage...

The long, (hot, smoky), relaxing days of summer continue.

"Sweet are the thoughts that savour of content:
The quiet mind is richer than a crown."

Robert Greene

Holidays

We're having a respite from the hot weather - hooray - it is so nice to be able to sleep under a quilt again, even if we also have the mosquito net over us to keep out the mossies. I love a little cool, freshness in the air.

I really feel in holiday mode now. It is the quiet time of year when one can head off, on a whim, to some wonderful destination. Our delightful son has just left for a couple of days at a beach-house with friends, the charming one set off about an hour ago for a few days with mates at Echuca on the Murray River and dear daughter and her prince are coming around this evening for a bar-b-que. It is all so relaxed and easy.

It is a time for pottering, and yes I am making progress with my celebrating. To start I have I have sorted through the abundance in my pantry cupboard and kitchen drawers. Above is a picture of the abundance of blooms on our hydrangea - some blossoms now grace our mantlepiece which I will leave to dry so they will keep through the winter.

More time for browsing through the blog-world is another bonus for this time of year. Even though I visit and do not often leave comments, I do receive great encouragement from reading others' happenings. As yet I haven't mastered placing a list of sites I regularly visit but I may be one of your many silent visitors, your writings are inspiring. Thankyou.

A few days away

We've been at the cottage for a few days resting, reading, walking and painting the outside. It's not the "little white cottage with the thatched roof where Milly-Molly-Mandy lives" but a little white cottage with a green tin roof ... I've been painting the green trim around windows etc., while my darling paints the white walls - we work well as a team!

Temperatures have been in the mid 30's and although it is not as smoky as it was, fires are still burning and depending on where the wind is blowing from, smoke is in the air. It particularly effects the sunset and the moonrise with spectacular deep colours spreading across the sky.


The above photo was taken from our back fence at sunset on Thursday, the colours were just stunning. The moon was a golden orb rising above the mountains at the front of the cottage a few hours later.

I've been doing a little more thinking about the year of abundance I've joined in celebrating. I have always been fascinated by the 1940's, especially the home front in Britain during these years. Can you imagine a whole country being encouraged to carefully use all they have? I was reminded of this on Thursday as I called into the butcher a few miles from the cottage. I always try and buy my meat here as it is free-range and it is important to me that the creatures have had happy lives (I may write further on this another time). On one occasion I was even told the name of the pig, the paddock she lived in and the food she was given. The history of the breeding pig whose bacon I bought on Thursday was similarly described but I digress ...
The only pork sausages available were actually pork and ham. I'd never seen these before but realised that post-Christmas the left-over ham was being used in the sausages, this little butchery as well as caring for its animals also follows the waste not, want not ethos.

Many thanks for the suggestions left in the 'comments' section. I do appreciate them and I will certainly try your ideas. I'll let you know how I go.

Celebrating a Year of Abundance

Recently I read of this exciting proposal and similar views to my own were being expressed. I have been blessed with so much and I would like to be more responsible and consciously aware of how I use things. So for the first time I am venturing into the web community and joining a cohort who aim to make 2007 a Year of Abundance.
*This is also the first time I've tried to add a link so I hope it works!

After using the word 'cohort' I thought I should check the definition and found it is a "company of companions or supporters" - how appropriate.

Already these holidays I have been trying to USE what I have more productively and the old "make do and mend" motto of the war years is a good one. I am also trying to NOT USE things.

So to start The Celebration here is my first USE success...


This is a 'found' object and after scraping off the blue, green and yellow paint the beautiful coachwood timber was exposed. I decided to oil the top and the drawer knob and re-paint the rest using left-overs. After searching, I discovered the remains of what we had used to paint dear daughter's bedroom ten years ago. It was perfect.


I lined the drawer with some paper I had bought using a gift voucher, gluing it in place and then using some watered-down PVA to seal it. I finished this yesterday and the all-up cost was only effort and pleasure.

At the beginning of the holidays I had made the decision of NOT USING the car for anything other than long distance trips. So I have been walking or cycling for any shopping and using public transport when travelling further afield. The car is used to go to the cottage. There is an abundance of advantages in this ...
* Exercise
* Serenity (I don't have to battle the traffic and can greet people)
* Increased strength and muscle quality (carrying the groceries!)
* More aware of my surroundings
* Kinder on the environment
* Minimal cost, if any.

So a good start but I do have one question though ... keeping things in case they come in handy (eg. the paint) leads to clutter, the need for storage etc. How does one maintain a happy balance, deciding what to keep or pass on? This year I would like to also focus on an Abundance of Simplicity and to decrease the number of possessions we own ... it's a challenge!

All the best to my fellow Celebrators.

Old Year's Night

Years ago I met an elderly lady who referred to 'New Year's Eve' as 'Old Year's Night'. I had never heard the expression before but now have been pondering it as, for the first time, I felt yesterday was 'Old Year's Night'.

2006 has been a most wonderful year which started and then continued with thankfulness. My darling's thumb (and fingers) had been saved. His circular saw accident put much into perspective and the extra, unessential and unimportant aspects of life fell away. We then had many family and friends gathering and celebrating as THE WEDDING approached. What a joyful day! It was only a month or so later that dear daughter and her prince found they are to be parents. Joy of joys! Soon after, a dream was fulfilled as beautiful summer days were spent walking in the English countryside by the River Thames while sleeping on the ancient river at night. The blessings continued as the delightful one and his brother became involved with Student LIFE at their university campuses (my darling and I met at a SL conference) and our charming son spoke at a special service when he was confirmed. Throughout the whole year I have felt immersed in love. Often I have acknowledged that right here and now I am experiencing happiness, it is not some recalled emotion that I can recognise with hindsight but a real and present joy.

So 'Old Year's Night' ... did I want to enjoy 2006 just that little bit longer and wait for 'New Year's Day' to arrive before greeting 2007? Hurrying 2006 along didn't make sense when there is so much to savour. 'Old Year's Night'.

I do look forward to the future. This year my darling and I will celebrate 30 years of shared love and our children bring much joy and gladness into our lives and to watch them grow is very special. In a few weeks our first grandchild is due to be born - how wonderfully precious. We have the delight of the open countryside where our cottage is nestled and enjoy good health. I think what is at the core is I am learning to enjoy the present and not wanting to rush to the next wonderful experience as I used to.

We spent the last evening of 2006 with relatives in an old goldmining area of Victoria. We picnicked on a hillside with spectacular views over the surrounding countryside, enjoying the company while watching the changing colours of the clouds and paddocks as the sun set. Sadly, I did not have my camera but often such occasions cannot be captured by a lens so I will close by including a photo of the moon just prior to midnight as I said a last farewell to the old year.

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"I trust in thee, O Lord,... My times are in thy hand... O how abundant is thy goodness ..." Psalm 31:14,15,19



HAPPY NEW YEAR! MAY 2007 BE FILLED WITH MUCH JOY, BLESSINGS AND THANKFULNESS FOR YOU ALL.