I'm a Terrible Blogger

I've decided that I am a terrible blogger. I haven't even been reading any of the blogs I follow *hangs head in shame* Well that's not entirely accurate I have checked out one or two but I just haven't replied to any of the posts. I've no excuse really. I just haven't felt like it. Call it a vacation from all things bloggy.

Although I haven't been around much I have been busy with lots of different things. I'm still crocheting but not as much as I was. I've done something to my supraspinitis tendon and I've been seeing a physio for the past 3 months. The physio recommended that I take it easy on the crochet front and I have for most of the time. I even went for almost a week without picking up my hook. It was a struggle to say the least. I did however manage to do some extra reading and some crossword puzzles that week so it wasn't all that bad (~_~). The original complaint that I saw the physio about has improved dramatically BUT (and that is a BIG but) I heard another tearing/ripping sound in the same shoulder and I now had more aches and pains that I'm working on and strengthening. I am totally over this annoying shoulder thing. I just want my arm back to how it was so I can crochet for hours and hours of pleasure.

Anyway I'll be sharing some of the photos I've taken of what I have been working on and what I have completed over the past few months. Hopefully I wont bore you to tears with all my crocheted goodies.

Playing Catch Up

I am so behind on my blog reading lately. I guess that's what school holidays do to you. To be honest I am so over these holidays already. The boys have been driving me bonkers! I am tired of their fights. Seriously I thought that now they are getting older that they wouldn't argue so much but it only seems to be getting worse. Thankfully Angus had a bright idea and phoned his bestie. He went there yesterday afternoon. So at least there is a break in the fighting for now.

To top things off I've come down with a bug of some kind. Nothing too bad at the moment. I just don't want it to get any worse than it is. Cross your fingers that it's not what Angus had. He was off school for a whole week with it :-/

Astri's kindle cover

Anyway I mentioned being behind in my blog reading. I did finally manage to make a start on catching up. I popped on over to see Astri at her blog Apple Blossom Dreams. She has made a fantastic cover for her kindle. After seeing it I am feeling inspired to make a new cover. I'm not sure it will look as pretty as hers but I'm willing to give it a go (~_~)

The New Look Blogger?

Don't forget that the clocks went back this morning!

I just switched to the new blogger interface. I'm not too sure that I like it (yet). Have you switched to it yet? If you have what do you think of it? I guess I will get used to it eventually. Right now it reminds me of google docs.

The real test will be the scheduling. I was scheduling posts now and then for those times when I knew I would be busy. I also wrote them when I had an idea I wished to share & I didn't want to forget to post it. After a while the posts wouldn't publish. Blogger was NOT playing nice. In the end I gave up scheduling. I'm crossing my fingers that the next time I schedule a post it will work.

I'm off to annoy the kids do some crocheting and to try and catch up on my shows that I recorded. Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

WIP - Pink Entrelac blanket

The pink entrelac blanket is almost finished.

The baby blankie is slowly getting there. I'll be putting a border around it to finish it off properly. I am hoping to have this finished in a couple of days. I think I should start thinking about my next project. I have no idea what that will be. Any ideas?

Our Poetess mentioned in her post on Sunday about finding an old crochet pattern book in her pattern bag. If you get the chance pop on over and see some of the photos she took of the book. Some of that vintage stuff looks so elegant!

I know I have an old book somewhere in my collection too. When I get around to it (in the next day or so) I'll dig it out and take some photos to share with you. It's from 1939 I think. My niece, Kylie, found it in an Op Shop years ago.

Almost forgot. Happy 4th of July to my friends in the US 

I've Been Tagged ..

I've been tagged by Poetess. Thank you very much :P lol

It's not a bad thing really its not like we are really playing tag. If we were I wouldn't be able to run very far and I would ALWAYS get caught because I am so unfit such a great catch ;)

Of course for this game of tag there are a few things that need to be done, like answering some questions, but this is a fun way of getting to know each other better :)

Do you think you're hot?
We're heading towards winter right now so unless I am sitting in front of the heater I would have to say NO I am not hot :D It's a bit on the chilly side today

Upload a picture or wallpaper that you are using at the moment
I only change my wallpaper last night. I was using a Doctor Who one but changed it to Star Trek Voyager :D


When was the last time you ate some chicken?
We had take away from Seven Noodle the other night. I had Combination Noodle which has pork, chicken, beef and prawns in it. It was absolutely delicious and the best thing about takeaway is I didn't have to cook. You gotta LOVE that!!

The song/songs you listened to recently
I had the radio on in the car when I dropped Brodie off at the bus stop this morning. He's on respite today. He's off bowling & dancing. Oops I got side tracked. I have no idea what songs were playing but I did listen to some music last night. Some Rascal Flatts songs (From Time to Time and I'm Moving On ) they are one of my favourite bands ever! I also listened to Jericho Road (Testify To Love)

What were you thinking while doing this?
I'm not sure if it means while I was listening to music of while completing these questions so I'll answer for both. While listening to the music I was wondering what to cook for tea. While completing the questions I was wondering if the washing machine had finished its load.


Do you have any nicknames?
Yes I do. Apart from being called Mum or Hon I am known as Blossy, Bloss or BlossyBoots. All are short or variations of Blossom. Cos I love flowers. What can I say.


Tag 8 blogger friends
Gosh now this is hard. I don't know if I could call them friends (yet) maybe good acquaintances, these are blogs I visit often apart from Poetess's blog :) ... okay here goes ...

Tina from Tina Gray {dot} me
Kate from Picklebums
Maria from Aussie Maria
Corrie from Retromummy
Candy from Candy's Family
Naomi from Seven Cherubs
Marita from Stuff with Thing
Pammy Sue from Scotty's Place

Who is listed as number one?
Tina is at the top of the list. Her blog is one that I read all the time. She is one fun lady! I like finding out what she gets up to with her family.

Say something about number 5
I met Candy on twitter via a #followfriday tweet and started reading her blog. She is one awesome lady with lots of beautiful children.

How did you get to know number 3?
I met Maria via Knit 4 Charities in their yahoo (email) group. K4C was organised by the amazing Pamela Tatt. Its for people who love to knit & crochet that like to donate what they make to charity. If you would like to know more about K4C click HERE.

How about number 4?
Gosh I don't really remember how I met Corrie. It may have been twitter or it might have been through Stumble Upon. I really dislike having brain freezes and not being able to remember :(

Leave a message for number 6
Naomi, you are one super Mum & oh so talented. I love finding out what you are up to with your family. Sometimes I wish I could be just like you or that we met in real life. I am sure that I would tap you for lots of ideas from FHE to cooking. You are an amazing lady.

Leave a lovey-dovey message for number two
I'm not a lovely-dovey kind of person. Just as anyone that knows me. How about .. Kate, I adore your family & what you get up to. Adore is pretty close to love right?

Do number seven and number eight have similarities?
They both have children. They are both creative. Marita likes to create some amazing meals and Pammy Sue creates some amazing crocheted pieces (and food too).

I cannot believe how incredibly difficult that was. I thought I could do this. It seems easy but then I got stumped with the bloggers. Sorry ladies. Its so hard to select only 8 bloggers who you like. I didn't wish to choose the same people who had already been tagged. It would have been much easier if I did.

Anyway. If you are one of the fantastic bloggers mentioned above guess what?!?! You've been tagged too! I would love to see what answers you write for these questions :)

It's Raining Cats & Dogs

What a busy morning & its still early! After the school run this morning (well the Wednesday school run, its different to the regular school run because I drop Brodie off in the next town over from us at TAFE) I had a few jobs to do. It didn't help that it has rained non-stop since I got up this morning. It's made things take a little bit longer than expected, oh well not to worry :)

I had a review with my dermatologist. Not that I talk about my skin much on this blog I usually do that on my Scratch That Darn Itch blog (not that I post there a lot there is only so much you can write about your psoriasis before you run out of things to say, I'm not a very good blogger on that front) Any way, I saw my derm. He is such an old fashioned man. I would have to put his age in the late 60's so he's no spring chicken either. He really isn't into this 'new age' biologics that are available for treating psoriasis. In fact he told me the very first time I saw him that his 'old fashioned' tar preparations were the absolute best thing in the world and they would get my skin under control! I have to admit that he was right. It has gotten it under control. I would say that I am 1000 times better off than I was when I first saw him in November 2009. I have gone from around 85% coverage to around 10-15%. Pretty good huh?!?!
He said that since things are going okay (I am flaring a little due to the colder weather but that is because the sun has gone into hiding & I'm getting the occasional new spot) that he doesn't need to see me until the potions he prescribed has run out or I flare up really badly. Which ever one comes first. I'm hoping that it will just be when the meds run out in a couple of months or so.

Once I had seen the derm I headed off to Centrelink (for my overseas friends that's what we call Social Security here) I had some forms to hand in. Just a review so that I can hopefully still receive the carers allowance that I receive for looking after Brodie. The money certainly helps go towards running him around & helping pay the bills etc. I swear that kid has no idea what its like to run a household. He may get a rude shock one day when he finds out. Hopefully by then we would have taught him enough so that he can cope on his own.

Then it was over to the Medicare office [thankfully it is now in the same building as Centrelink] so that I could get my refund (what little there is of it) after I had paid for my dermatologist visit this morning. I get a whole whopping $35.15 cents back (that sounded a tad sarcastic). At one time medicare used to cover the whole thing and the dermatologist used to bulk bill. I never had to pay a cent. Gosh I wish those days were still about. We would be a lot better off...

At least all that running around is over & done with. Well except for taking my script to the chemist. That can be done later. I don't want to go out in that rain. It still hasn't let up. It's been like this for the past 4 hours. Time to maybe get some housework done & then onto making some more of that cute little hedgehog!

Guess What?!?

I entered a giveaway at Candy's Family where Candy was giving away a copy of Tron Legacy. Never in a million years would I have thought that I would win. I was pleasantly surprised when I saw Candy's blog post about the winner and saw my name :)

For those of you who may not have a clue about what Tron Legacy is here's a trailer you can watch. This sci-fi movie is the sequel to Tron which came out in 1982.

If you get the chance check out Candy's blog HERE. She's a Mum of seven. Three of her cherubs are on the autism spectrum. It certainly makes life interesting :)

Work In Progress

After reading one of our Poetess' blog posts (HERE) I was inspired to have a go at making my own fingerless gloves. I found a pattern in one of my crochet books and started making them yesterday. I have only completed one so far. I got distracted with other things but I do plan on finishing them today.

Mine certainly don't look as delicate as the ones Poetess made. I think it might be the colour or the fact that they are smaller. But that's okay. I'm guessing mine would be perfect for smaller hands. I might make some longer & slightly larger ones later. I just have to work out how to adapt the pattern I have.

Flood Appeal Auctions

I love the blogging community. I love how there are so many people in the blogging world with such generous hearts. It makes me feel really good.



Toni from Make It Perfect has organised an Auction to help raise money for the Queensland Flood Appeal. Basically its a whole lot of extremely talented & generous people donating something wonderful to be auctioned off. You can find out more about it HERE and HERE. Toni explains it much better than I can.

You rock Toni! And so do all the other wonderful people who are joining in either with items or who are bidding on them.

Look What The Postman Brought Today!

Look .. ALL the way from Massachussetts .. A Wuglyees Original! From our lovely PoetessWug!

Look at the pretty parcel that is inside the box! All wrapped so carefully.

I almost didn't want to open it because it looked so nice. The parcel would have looked so pretty under the Christmas tree. However I wasn't going to wait to open it for a second longer!

Look at the pretty Peacock scarf!!
And do know what's even better? The weather here in Victoria has taken on a rather wintry feel these past few days and its cool enough for me to wear my NEW scarf!

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you Poetess for my lovely scarf! It makes my neck feel so warm and toasty! Did you wash it with something? It just smells so nice!

You can find PoetessWug's blog HERE and her etsy shop with all her Wuglyees Originals HERE
You should really go check out what she has available in her store! What a talented person!!

I Had A Lovely Surprise This Morning

I got the most lovely surprise this morning when I checked my blog. I had a message from PoetessWug. Her blog is The Wug's Backyard Blogspot if you should check it out she finds some truly amazing things to share with her readers. Poetess also makes the most fantastic crochet creations you will ever see. She has such a wonderful talent and is a very creative fibre artist! Not only does she crochet she writes be BEST poems ever! I wish I had half the talent she possesses. I can't crochet anything other than granny squares and beanies. Well not yet anyway.

As I was saying I had a lovely surprise. She has been collecting names from her readers who comment on her posts. Well guess what?!? I won one of her wonderful creations. I am so honoured to be able to say that I will have a PoetessWug creation! Although I am worried that it might cost her an arm and a leg to send it all the way over that big pond (the Pacific Ocean). I would totally understand if she would rather send it to someone closer.

However that being said, what a great way to start the day! I needed something to lift my spirits a little as our car is NOT playing very nicely and this close to Christmas too. We are going to have to get a NEW engine. Well not new but a reconditioned one. So to hear that I had won something was a welcomed distraction :)

A New 30 Day Meme

I was thinking GOSH what am I going to do for posts once my 30 day meme finishes in a couple of days! Especially if I have a brain freeze and am unable to think of anything. Thankfully I came across another great meme. This one is also from the same blog as my current one. Its from Tina at Tina Gray {dot} me
A lot of it is repetition from the one I am about to finish so I'll just pick & choose some of the ones I haven't done.

If you wish to see Tina's list you can find it HERE

Day 1 – your favorite song
Day 2 – your favorite movie
Day 3 – your favorite television program
Day 4 – your favorite book
Day 5 – your favorite quote
Day 6 – 20 of my favorite things
Day 7 – a photo that makes you happy
Day 8 – a photo that makes you angry/sad
Day 9 – a photo you took
Day 10 – a photo taken over 10 years ago of you
Day 11 – a photo of you recently
Day 12 – something you are OCD about
Day 13 – a fictional book
Day 14 – a non-fictional book
Day 15 – your dream house
Day 16 – a song that makes you cry (or nearly)
Day 17 – an art piece (drawing, sculpture, painting, etc)
Day 18 – your wedding/future wedding/past wedding
Day 19 – a talent of yours
Day 20 – a hobby of yours
Day 21 – a recipe
Day 22 – a website
Day 23 – a youtube video
Day 24 – where I live
Day 25 – your day, in great detail
Day 26 – your week, in great detail
Day 27 – my worst habit
Day 28 – what’s in my handbag/purse
Day 29 – hopes,dreams, plans for the next 365 days
Day 30 – a dream for the future beyond the next year

Cat People

I've noticed that a lot of the blogs I follow, well the crafty, knitty, crochet blogs have pictures of pet cats. Does that mean all crafty people own cats? Either that or it just happens to be the ones I read the most do.

Craft Blog Surfing

For the last day or so I have been 'surfing' or 'stumbling' (what ever you wish to call it) different blogs at blogger. I've been clicking on the Next Blog link at the top of each blog to 'hopefully' find something that may inspire me to create.

I have to admit that I have found some really good stuff out there. There are HEAPS of TALENTED people sharing their crafts. Whether it be knitting, crocheting, quilting, sewing, paper crafts etc. I've even followed a few blogs that I liked. You can check out the list of blogs I follow in the menu on the right.

Hopefully I will be inspired to create some new stuff myself.

Pumpkin Pie

Check out my pumpkin pie that I made today. It smells divine. I can't wait to taste it. Check out the recipe on my recipe blog if you're interested Blossy's Cookbook.

Something On My Mind

I've been trying to work out how to merge two blogs together and for the life of me am unable to do it at the moment so I am just putting a link here to my Psoriasis Blog called Scratch That Darn Itch & a specific post that I created a short time ago in regards to Psoriatic Arthritis and Carpal Tunnel. Go check it out if you feel like finding out what I have been thinking of since Wednesday afternoon.

I've been Tagged

I wasn't too sure what this tagging thing meant but it looks like fun. Plus it gets me posting again which I must admit I have been a little slack on.

Tagging is a way to get to know your blogger friends better, have some fun & discover new Blogs you might enjoy!

I've been tagged by the lovely Jennifer of Wisdom Path Art http://www.wisdompathart.blogspot.com/ who I met via Twitter. She is such a wonderful person with a beautiful soul!

The 2 rules of tagging are: (this is what you do)
1. respond and rework; answer the questions on your blog, replace one question that you dislike with a question of your invention,
add one more question of your own (don't feel obliged as it's quite long already!)
2.Tag eight other people (and, let them know, of course!)

Here goes :

What is your current obsession?
I would have to say I have stacks of obsessions. Mostly twitter at the moment but I do go overboard with my knitting & crochet.

What is your greatest achievement?
I don't think that there is only one. My kids would be one of my greatest achievements. Getting my Diploma of teaching would be another. A lot of hard work went into getting that.

Coffee or Tea?
I no longer drink coffee. For some reason I find it tastes weird. I do drink the occasional cup of tea. I prefer Earl Grey :)

What’s for dinner?
I gave the kids chicken nuggets and tinned spaghetti. I wasn't really in the mood for cooking tonight.

What have you just made?
I just finished a very pretty fluffy pink scarf for one of my nieces.

What are you listening to right now?
The TV. Home and Away just started. I know what you're thinking ... she watches that?!? Yep ever since it started in the 80's.

What is your favourite ice cream flavour?
If I had to choose it would probably be caramel or something with passionfruit.

What do you think of the person who tagged you?
I think I said this bit already. Jennifer is an awesomely talented artist. She has a beautiful spirit and is full of encouragement. I love tweeting with her!

If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go?
Oklahoma! I want to see my Spirit Sister! I love my Diva!

Which language do you want to learn?
I learnt Indonesian as a kid. I wouldn't mind being able to speak it more fluently.

What’s your favorite quote (for now)?
Every little bit helps said the little old lady as she widdled into the ocean.
I have to thank my Mum for that one.

What is your favourite colour?
I don't have just one favourite but I love purples and blues.

What is your dream job?
I had my dream job. I was a teacher. Over the years though it has changed to Librarian. Although I don't think I'll get there at this moment in time but I still dream.

Do you admire any one’s style?
Not really. I don't tend to think that way.

Describe your personal style?
Sloppy. Well maybe not that more like casual & comfy.

What are you going to do after this?
I'll probably tweet for a little bit and then go do some knitting. I found a really nice cable pattern for some fingerless gloves.

What is your favourite fruit?
I don't just have one favourite. I love nectarines, peaches, mandarines and bananas.

What inspires you?
Other peoples creations. There are so many talented people out there!

Your favourite book?
Once again I find it hard to choose just one. I loved the Witches of Eileanan Series by Kate Forsyth & the Harry Potter books. I also love reading The Magic Circle by Katherine Neville.

Your favourite film?
Still having problems choosing just one. I always watch The Sound of Music when its on TV and I love Seven Brides For Seven Brothers (it was Mum's fave)

Do you collect something?
I used to collect cat ornaments. Now all I seem to collect is wool and fabric.

What is your favourite smell?
I love the smell of freshly baked bread & the smell of rain on a hot day.

What are you most proud of?
My boys. They surprise me with how thoughtful & helpful they can be. Although this afternoon I didn't think it .. oh well.

How many times do you press the snooze button before you get up?
I don't normally turn it off because I have it set to radio.

Cats or dogs?
I love cats. Although I do like dogs. We just don't have the space for one where we live.

Complete the following:
Love is: amazing!

What would you like to make next?
The fingerless gloves I mentioned earlier and perhaps I could finish my Noah's Ark quilt.

What the best piece of advice you have been given?
When my boys were younger someone told me that everyone has advice on how to raise your kids. Listen to them all and disregard anything that isn't relevant to you. I don't know if its the best but it certainly hasn't hurt.

How important is networking with & supporting other artists in your own work / How has it helped you? (emotionally, creatively, business wise, etc.)
It's been great being able to connect with people who are in the same boat as me. I have gained some wonderful friendships with some great people all over the world who are so supportive & inspiring too.

My added question .... Where would your ideal vacation/holiday spot be? Why?

Now for the people I shall tag ... although I don't think I know Eight but I'll give it a go!

here they are:
Katie of Good Life Eats
Jenna of Tilted Pirouette
Christie of Pigeon Pair
Garden Gnome of Mom's Cafe Home Cooking

Sorry I can't think of anyone else at the moment but I will add some more as soon as I can.