My New Cushion Cover

I meant to share these photos with you last week when I finished making my cushion the other night. I love how it turned out. I wanted it to be like a rainbow with lots of different colours. It looks a lot brighter than the other cushions I have on the couch which are in desperate need of a wash. That's why they aren't in the photos. Who wants to see tatty old cushion covers anyway?

At least I got to use my new Tunisian Crochet hooks. I used the 5.5 mm but I am wondering if I could've used a larger size.

The best thing about this project was the fact that I got to use up a bit of my stash. You know all of those little bits that you have left over from other projects.

If you pardon the pun: I am really HOOKED on this type of crocheting! I love it :)

Angus would love me to make him a black and white blanket using the same pattern I did for the baby blankets. I would love to make it for him. There is only one problem. I don't have enough black wool/yarn to make it. Looks like a shopping trip may be in the cards ;) not that I need an excuse to go to Spotlight or anything :D

Op Shop Bargains

I went Op Shopping with Mark the other day. In fact we've gone a couple of times this week. In our town and the next one over from us.

How cool is this marble lazy susan? It was practically a steal.

I found some lovely plates too but I forgot to take a photo of them :(  They have these pretty flowers around the edge. 

Brodie modelling his safety gear. I don't know if he looks good or scary.

Mark found some safety gear for Brodie to wear while he rides his scooter. This stuff is ridiculously expensive when its brand new. So when Mark found it in one of the op shops he took Brodie there to try it on to see if it would fit. It was an absolute bargain! All Brodie needs to do is get his helmet, sit for his learners and do the riding course & he'll be able to go out on his scooter. It's a bit of a scary thought but I know that it will happen eventually.

It's Like The Tardis

Mark's a bit of a neat freak when it comes to his shed (also known as "The Man Cave"). I suppose that's kind of natural when its where he spends a lot of his time. Well apart from bed where he seems to sleep a lot some days (sorry hon but it is true).

Mark can watch TV on the top monitor.

or he can spend some time just watching his fish

Would you believe that if he moves his chair that there is even a space for him to lie on the floor to sleep or just watch TV. Although Mark never sleeps in there because he is in the dog house but there is always a first time :P

Everything has a place to "live"

You don't think he is a little bit OCD do you? Sometimes I think he might be.

everything is labelled
(if I can't find my labeller inside I know it is in the shed!)

Each tool box is organised carefully to fit EVERYTHING in

I swear that Mark's shed is like the TARDIS (from Doctor Who its that blue police box he travels in). Its much BIGGER on the inside! I honestly don't know how he manages to keep ALL his stuff in there!

Mark says I can borrow his tools but I never do

Look how tidy things are.

There really IS a place for everything!

Now if I could only get Mark to tidy up the backyard or even better inside the house (the kitchen cupboards need organising) on a regular basis this home would be fantastic. I'm not picking on you Mark, honest! xoxo

Thankful Thursday

It's been an interesting week this time around. Here's what I am thankful for ..

• Brodie going to TAFE yesterday & school today even though he didn't want to go
• for the glorious weather we have been having. I think someone forgot to tell mother nature that we are in the middle of winter. (It's been t-shirt weather for the past few days)
• for my postie, he will be very busy over the next week or so :D (yes I have been buying online again)
• for Op Shops. I found quite a few bargains over the last couple of days
• for Angus doing the right thing (so far) this week and actually doing his homework!

What are you thankful for this week?

Wow

Mark sent me a link to this youtube video. It's so good that I just had to share it with you. It's a police officer riding a motorbike.  How is this for precision driving? He doesn't even put his feet on the ground.

All I could say at the end of this when I saw it was WOW!

What Would You Do?

What do you do when your 18yo Aspie kid decided he doesn't want to go to school? Do you tell them they have to go? Do you give in for the sake of keeping the peace? Do you remind them that it is their senior year? That completing Year 12 is important? That passing is the outcome they agreed to achieve? Do you also remind them that if Centrelink (Social Security for my overseas friends) contacts the school or vice-versa he may lose his Education Allowance due to not being at school often enough?

As you can probably guess Brodie didn't want to go to school today. I often think its so he can spend more time on Facebook talking to his friends but I would love to be wrong on that one. I have told him that if he is NOT sick and doesn't want to go to school I WILL NOT phone them and lie to them. If he wants to stay home he needs to phone them himself and explain why he isn't there.

Even though Brodie is 18 and officially an adult he still isn't mature enough to always be treated like one. He hates that but its true. His maturity is probably equivalent to a 15-16 year old and some kids that age are very immature. Having Aspergers is hard enough but to heap a lot of 'adult' responsibilities on to him as well. I don't think I can do that to him yet.

I often wonder if I do the right thing? There are times when I have to play peace-keeper. I just don't need the stress. Its the only way to remain sane (well, my happy pills help a little). There are enough arguments in this place without me creating another one. I jus thope that one day Brodie will realise that I am not always a mean person who makes him do things. I do it because it is in his best interest and I am just taking care of him & helping him to learn to be more independent.

Around The Neighbourhood

I went for a walk this morning *shock horror* all on my own too! In order to prove that I went for a walk I took photos (again) but at least this way you get to see a little bit more of my neighbourhood. Not that I needed to prove I went for a walk but hey it gives me a reason to take photos to share. Something other than what I have been knitting or crocheting.

You can tell spring is on the way. Look at those pretty blossoms!

I needed to get some scripts filled at the chemist so I decided that I could walk there. Wait for the scripts to be filled, that would give me time to rest my hip a bit, and then head home. Just in case you are wondering no I haven't hurt myself recently. My hip has been hurting on and off for a few years now. My anti-inflammatory that I take for my carpel tunnel seems to have helped my hip tremendously. Its only when I do a lot of walking that it flares up a little but resting it for a few minutes makes a huge difference.

Those houses in the distance are a recent thing. There were only a small handful when we first moved into town.

Yes another hill for me to climb up. Thank goodness I turn at the corner here and miss the need to climb back up that hill!! I walked up the Coles hill (I think I mentioned that last time I talked about going for a walk. You can see the photo of the hill in this post here). I don't know why I thought I would walk home that way. It is steep! Oh that's right it takes off an extra 5 minutes walking home that way. I do end up paying for it by being out of breath and it makes my legs find muscles that I had forgotten about.

An unusual plant.

I came across this unusual plant. It looks like it's growing really well. I have no idea what it's called. You don't happen to have any ideas do you? The plant looks kind of harsh but it isn't really.

Here's a close-up of the same plant. It looks like its getting ready to flower.

 I met some lovely people during my walk too. I don't know if its the fact we were all walking or its because we live in the country but they were very friendly. Maybe it was a bit of both.

I know that walking is good for me but I sure do get pooped afterwards. ALL of my healthcare workers want me to do at least 30 minutes exercise a day (I don't do that every day) but at least I am doing some :) I have lost about 5 kilos (around 10 lb) since being diagnosed with diabetes. I'm not sure if I will continue to lose weight. In fact I would be happy to maintain the weight I have and not gain any extra. I even tested my BGL after my walk today and its lower than it normally would be 2 hours after breakfast. So that's a really good thing right?

I'm going to put my feet up and crochet for a bit. I think I have earned that today.