Goodbye 2011

Last year I made some New Years Resolutions & I think I did my best to keep most of them. I am especially proud of my last entry where I promised to add to my yarn stash. I managed to do that one so well. In fact I think I might promise to do that one in 2012 as well =D

I don't know about making any new resolutions for next year. Apart from this one - that I will endeavour to keep - I will do my best to keep my Diabetes under control. I know I am doing okay with that so far so I'll just keep plodding along and see what happens. Before I forget I need to tell you that I have now lost 18kg, that's around 39.6 pounds. It's been slow going but at least I haven't put any weight back on. Maintaining my weight was one of my goals.

So much has happened to my family over the past year. Lots of highs and lows. Here are the ones that stand out the most (to me at least).

• Brodie successfully graduated from High School. A HUGE achievement that makes me feel so happy & very proud of what's he has accomplished. 
• I became a great-auntie again when Moya-May was born (she's 2 months old already)
• Mark got his ham radio license
• Angus got accepted into TAFE next year for Automotives
• I got diagnosed with diabetes
• I learnt how to do Tunisian crochet
• Brodie got his scooter (he just needs to get his license)
• Mark & I celebrated 5 years of togetherness last January

I wonder what 2012 will bring ...

My New Baby

Meet my new baby. We picked him up last night. He was a kind of last minute thing. Truthfully I blame freecycle. A lady advertised that she had two ginger kittens available so we phoned her (well Mark phoned). She was out at the time so she told us to phone later this evening. By the time she had gotten home the kittens had been picked up by someone else. Luckily for us her neighbour also had a ginger kitten to give away.

Kitty is 8 weeks old & hasn't been named yet. I'm still trying to work out the perfect name for him but so far I've come up with a choice of three: Rory, Ginger Snap or George (after Curious George he's been investigating everything!) I'm leaning more towards Rory though.

We've had lots of snuggles & kitty has already had a snooze on my chest.

He's already found some interesting places to hide.
Note: check underneath chairs before sitting on them.

Do you have any suggestions for names? I would love to hear them.

Thankful Thursday

First of all I have to get this off my chest .... I am a bit flabbergasted in regards to our internet connection. It gets reset on the 26th of each month. A short time ago I checked to see how much we had used so far this month (we are on the 4th day of the new month)  My chin just about hit the floor when I saw how much of our peak internet usage has been used. A WHOLE 27GB for peak and 12GB for off-peak. We get 80GB for our peak times & 120GB for our off-peak.
I don't know what has been going on. The boys have been told to stop video chats & playing certain games online (I don't think they realise how much bandwidth gets chewed). I was also thinking perhaps that our wireless access password had been cracked so we changed the it. Let's hope that helps. So if I disappear anytime soon its because our internet connection has been throttled back to dial-up speeds again (it happened on Christmas Day so we just waited until 11pm when the off-peak kicks in).

Anyway now my whining is over on to my usual Thursday post ...

Here's what I am thankful for this week:

• My new kindle. I am enjoying reading a lot more. I am currently reading The Ancient Future: The Dark Age by Traci Harding (an Australian author) and its really good :D
• Angus - because he said he is AWESOME.
• Mark because he encourages me to go yarn shopping (You just have to love that!)He told me this morning that he is an enabler & I agreed. Although I am one too when it comes to whatever he wishes to buy for his shed/shack/man-cave!
• Brodie because he helps move BIG stuff that I can't move on my own & he can get things from shelves that I can't reach

What are you thankful for this week?

My Latest Project - A Kindle Cover

Did I mention that I got a Kindle the other day? I don't think I did. Lucky me huh. I love it. I've been reading a bit more than usual but that's a good thing right :) I was very happy to find out that there are eBooks available in knitting & crocheting. I may put them on my wish list. I also like the fact that I can read pdf files too. We have a lot of books (as pdf files) on our server that I haven't read yet.

Anyway, I wanted to keep my Kindle nice and clean and scratch free so I decided to make a cover for it. I looked up some patterns online but I didn't like the ones that I had found. I know I am picky but they just weren't what I was looking for so I made up my own pattern with the help of youtube! I wanted to do a shell pattern but I couldn't remember how to get it started. I ended up watching a video by Teresa from Art of Crochet. I have put the video at the end of this post so you don't have to hunt for it if you wish to check it out.

Of course I had to choose my favourite colour :D

Both the front & back are done :)

I think you can see the colour better in this shot

I even got my sewing machine out and made a lining for the cover.
Mark had to cheek to ask if I was running a fever because I had the sewing machine out :P

With the cover sewn in.

Don't look at the hand-sewing I did on the lining. I'm not the best at sewing.
Maybe I should have used blanket stitch it might have looked better.

What do you think? Not bad huh and all without (technically) following a pattern. I even surprised myself getting the measurements right for the lining (I wont tell you that I messed up the measurements on the navy blue material & cut one side too short). I guess doing that appliqué and quilting stuff a few years ago paid off :D

Random Mobile Photos

I was looking at the different photos I had on my mobile phone & wondered if there was a way to share them all with you. I didn't use all of them. I chose them randomly.

Top row: Robin Hood, Angus, The Bakers Bean, Maid Marion
Bottom row: Strangely low to the ground car, The Bakers Bean, Brodie

I made them into a collage (a great way to share them I think) plus I wanted to make the overall file size of the photo smaller so that it doesn't take forever to load, cos I'm nice like that :P

Photos taken while waiting for Angus after school & a bracelet that Mark made for me.

Weird Weather

Image courtesy of Sky News

We had a lovely quiet day at home yesterday. Well it was quiet in between thunderstorms and there were quite a few of them! In fact it was the weirdest weather I have ever seen. There was even a tornado at Fiskville, a small town between Bacchus Marsh & Ballarat. We never get tornadoes. Well hardly ever I know of one other one a few years ago. The western side of Melbourne was on tornado watch for a while.

Image courtesy of The Australian

While we in Victoria were being battered with hail and thunderstorms the top end of Australia was preparing for T.C. Grant to make landfall. The news websites made so many comparisons to Cyclone Tracy which hit Darwin on Christmas Day 37 years ago. I felt awful for those in the Territory but at least this time around they are better prepared. The buildings are built to a better standard and the strength of Grant isn't as bad as what Tracy was.

Image courtesy of ABC News

In Queensland some of the beaches were closed as massive waves battered the coast caused by Ex-tropical Cyclone Fina.

We have definitely had a mixed bag of weather these past few days. I am sure that this is only a taste of what's to come.

So what's the weather like in your neck of the woods? A lot calmer than here I hope.

Merry Christmas!

Wishing all those who celebrate Christmas a wonderful day! 

May it be all that you want it to be & more.

Summer Has Arrived ...

Summer has finally arrived along with the heat and humidity as well. I wouldn't mind it so much if it wasn't humid & the fact that I am cooking a roast dinner in the oven tonight. I know I must be mad using the oven in this weather but hey I wanted a roast & no one messes with me when I want one =) yeah I know its the English side of me shining through! Not that I am English but most of my great-grandparents came from the UK.

Maybe I should've nagged Mark to get another gas bottle so we could have barbecue instead. He actually used the gas bottle heating up his shed this past winter (o_0) not bad considering I bought the bottle so that we could have barbecues.

Time to go put the fan on and get the roast ready to go into the oven. Yum. Roast pork, smashed potatoes, cauliflower au gratin, roast carrots and pumpkin! My house is going to smell great in a few hours.

WIP - Knitted Toy Pirate

Angus requested that I knit a toy pirate from one of my Jean Greenhowe books.

With all of the stuff that's been going on at home with days out taking Brodie to meetings, going shopping & installing my computer it hasn't left a lot of time to knit at the moment.

I've sewn the body of the Pirate (while watching Star Trek: The Next Generation - I love that show) & now need to stuff it. 

Thankful Thursday

I know I'm a bit late with posting but I've been busy playing and tweaking my computer getting things set up just how I like it. I'm not quite there yet but I must say that I really like Windows 7 so far :)

Here's what I am thankful for this week:

• spending time with the family. We spent ALL of Tuesday together
• being able to go to Brodie's Presentation night. He received a copy of his VCAL certificate which I have now put in a frame :) just call me a proud Mum
• going shopping and picking up some great bargains (I have photos to share of my booty)
• my knitting. I am currently making a Pirate doll (photos to come)
• successfully installing Windows 7
• Mark. While I slept last night he installed some programs that I wanted on my computer. Thanks hon I appreciate it :) 

What are you thankful for this week?

Wish Me Luck

I'm finally ditching XP and installing Windows 7. If you don't hear from me for a few days you know I messed up and Mark had to fix things (he said he would put Linux on my machine). 

Wish me luck! Cross your fingers and toes ... here goes nothing!

See you on the flip side!

Christmas Riddles

Angus was telling me some Christmas riddles and I thought I would share them. I hope they make you smile :)

What's the best Christmas present ever?
A broken drum. You can't beat it.

Why are Christmas trees like bad knitters?
They both drop their needles.

What do you get if Santa goes down the chimney when the fire is lit?
Crisp Kringle

What's red, white and blue at Christmas time?
A sad candy cane

What does a cat on the beach have in common with Christmas?
Sandy claws

What is green, white and red all over?
A sunburnt elf.

What do you get if you eat too many Christmas decorations?
Tinselitis

Which of Santa's reindeer's has bad manners?
Rude-olph

Meet Me On Monday - Christmas Edition

Meet Me On Monday is hosted by Java at Never Growing Old.

1.Wrapping paper or gift bags? I wrap gifts but I use gift bags too. It makes it easier to carry the presents.

2.Real or artificial tree? Artificial. It's much easier to clean up afterwards :D

3.When do you put your tree up? On December 1st after Angus's birthday

4.When do you take your tree down? January 6th 

5.Do you like eggnog? Love it but only the non-alcoholic version

6.Do you have a nativity scene? No I don't but I have thought of knitting one.

7.Favorite Christmas Movie? I like the Santa Clause movies but White Christmas is good too.

8.Favorite Christmas cookie? I don't have a favourite Christmas cookie.

9.Where will you eat Christmas dinner? At home. We're celebrating on Christmas Eve.

10.Angel, bow or star on top of your tree? We have a big red star.

11.Most annoying thing about this time of the year? The crazy people in the shops and the ones that go overboard with their political correctness. Christmas is for the kids and for family & they tend to suck the fun out of everything.

12.Do you like Fruitcake? Love it!

13.What are you most excited about the holidays? Sleeping in. School holidays officially start tomorrow & I can sleep in every day until school starts back next February.

14.Do you open presents Christmas Eve or Christmas Morning? When I was little we were allowed to open one present on Christmas Eve. I used to get so excited about it. When the boys were smaller we used to open them Christmas morning but now that they are older and we celebrate on Christmas Eve they get to open their presents after tea. That way we can have a lazy Christmas morning.

15.Will you still be wrapping presents on Christmas Eve? Nope I have a couple to finish wrapping and then I'm all done.

Who Doesn't Deserve A Treat Now & Then?

I'm always on the look out for something new that I haven't tried before. Something that I can have that wont affect my blood glucose levels too much. I had seen this particular type of yoghurt in the supermarket before but I never bought it. Mostly because it costs a lot more than the usual diet yoghurt's that I normally buy. So I got this as a treat. I mean who doesn't deserve a treat now & then. I'm so glad I bought it. It was so delicious. I'll definitely be buying this again.

Finished Object - Maid Marion

I have just finished making a Maid Marion doll from the Jean Greenhowe patterns. She looks really good (but I am biased) and was a bit fiddly to make.

Maid Marion

I cheated with the sash around her waist. The pattern called for a twisted cord but I crocheted a couple of chains and twisted them together before I sewed them on.

Maid Marion & Robin Hood

I will be posting them off to Kym, my nephew, next week so that he can give them to his daughters. Now that I have finished Marion I have no clue what to make next. Do you have any suggestions?

He Did It!

It's Happy Dance Time!

Congratulations Brodie! 

Today's the day the Year 12 students can go online and find out whether they passed and will receive either their VCE (Victorian Certificate of Education) or their VCAL (Victorian Certificate in Applied Learning). They also find out their ATAR (Australian Tertiary Administration Rank) scores to see if they can go to University or not.

Brodie phoned up his school to get the log in information from the Yr 12 co-ordinator and he logged in. There right at the top of the screen it said that he got his VCAL pass. He also checked to see if he got a pass in VCE as he had done a few subjects for that as well. He didn't but that didn't matter. He got a PASS in VCAL. Brodie's has successfully completed Yr 12. Woohoo! He is so pleased with himself and so he should be :) It was his goal to finish high school with a pass and he achieved that.

There were plenty of times over the years when I thought Brodie would drop out of school. Especially in the early years when we had all those suspensions. He spent more time at home than he did at school. At one stage we even had a meeting to see if he was going to stay at school. He was that close to being kicked out. But he hung in there and he made it!

WTG Brodz I am so proud of you!! 

Thankful Thursday

Another week has flown by very quickly. Just think in less than three weeks it will be 2012 (o_0).

Here's what I am thankful for this week:

• Angus was a sweetie and cleaned the shower alcove (mind you there was money incentive as he has an excursion to Cowes on Phillip Island tomorrow & he wanted spending money but the bonus is I didn't have to clean it!)
• the weather has been kind so far this Summer and I am truly grateful for that
• telephones! I received a phone call last night from my Auntie Jean (one of Dad's older sisters). It had been such a long time since we had spoken to one another. She told me that she is 85 now! It was good to hear from her.
• Brodie's school & the Special Ed teacher! Even though he is no longer there we are still receiving support for him. He's actually off on a trip to Traralgon today to the GETT Centre where he may be going next year to do some courses. One of the Integration Aides will be accompanying him on the train to show him how to get there.

What are you thankful for this week?

Recycled Clothing

I was doing some catching up on the blogs I have in my Google reader when I spotted this amazing Sweater Coat on Selvage Blog. The Sweater Coat is a creation by Katwise who recycles sweaters into new funky clothes.

Check out the video Katwise has created. I love the music she used & the colours on that coat! It's just amazing!

You can go to visit her etsy shop HERE and check out what stuff she has to offer (both patterns & coats)

Getting Things Sorted

I bought myself a new container the other day for my button collection. I was hoping to find a purple box but I settled for pink. I don't know why I didn't organise things sooner. In fact Mark said that I should have done this ages ago :P

My buttons look much better now that I can actually see what's there. Well most of my buttons anyway. I still have a small container of buttons that I had trouble sorting. They're in a little box hidden away at the bottom of my sewing basket.

At least things look nice & tidy

I think I may need to go button shopping now (o_0) what do you think? I may wait for the Boxing Day sales. I'm sure I'll find a bargain or two then.

Meet Me On Monday

Each week Java from Never Growing Old asks 5 questions in getting to know you blog hop. 

Here's this weeks questions

1.  Tomorrow I'm going to _________?
visit the egg farm to pick up some fresh eggs. Possibly do a bit of grocery shopping. Maybe some Op Shopping.

2.  Pudding or Jello?
It depends on what you mean by pudding. Whether its a custard style pudding or a self-saucing pudding. I don't mind either of those and I certainly like Jelly just as long as it isn't green :P

3.  What book are you currently reading? 
I had to go and check the name of the book as I couldn't remember what it was :-/
Curveball by Bob Drogin. I picked it up at an Op Shop, where I get most of my books.

4.  What is the first concert you went to see?
It was Spandau Ballet when they performed at Memorial Drive in Adelaide. I was so in love with Tony Hadley!

Tony is the one in the middle :D

5.  What is your current weather?
It's currently 18.7 °C (65.55 F) and overcast. Although it's a bit on the cool side it's not that bad outside.

Laughing Baby

I went to youtube the other day to look for a video. I got distracted by other things and I had completely forgotten what I was originally going to look for. Don't you hate that? You go to do something and then draw a complete blank. Mark said its because we are getting old and going senile. 

Speak for yourself Hon :P 

Any way I stumbled on this video and decided to share it.

This baby is super cute! His laughter got me laughing too.
I love a good belly laugh. Don't you? 

Finished Object - Robin Hood

*Looks at clock* I almost forgot today's post but I think I'll just make it. It's not midnight yet :D

I finished that Robin Hood toy yesterday.

Brodie likes it that much that he wants a Robin Hood of his own (o_0) Personally I think he may be a tad too old to have a new soft toy but he really likes the idea.

Anyway I think Robin looks pretty good. I started making Maid Marion tonight. 

Hopefully it wont take too long to finish her. Although my hands seem to be a bit on the achy side at the moment so who knows.

I'm off to try and see if there's a break in the clouds. There's a total lunar eclipse tonight & I would love to see it. I don't like my chances though as its been overcast since this afternoon and its been raining too. Looks like I may have to wait to see photos on the web or on the news tomorrow night.

He's Holding A Torch For Me ...

This torch is nice and heavy weighing in at 3.1 kg (6.8 pounds) and is 48 cm (18.89 inches) long

Mark has a thing for torches. He likes them about as much as I like knitting & crocheting. Mark also likes maglites. Mark had been looking at these torches on ebay the other week and was saying how he was going to buy himself one next pay day. So when I got that extra money from Centrelink this week I decided that I would buy the torch instead.

Of course the torch isn't complete yet. We've ordered some accessories to go with it but they are coming from the US so they may take a while to get here. I have no idea what they are but Mark wanted them. As I said he likes torches as much as I like knitting & crocheting but it's really not something that I am that interested in. Now if it had been some fancy new skein of yarn or needles & hooks I would've paid more attention (sorry Hon )

I wonder how many torches we have in the house now ... not that I have ever counted them all but I bet there's quite a few. (edited update: Mark rattled off how many torches we have and there are at least a dozen. I lost count lol)

Thankful Thursday

Is it just me or are the weeks flying by at the moment? I know they days are feeling a bit longer but I'm thinking that perhaps that's because its daylight savings here.

Here's what I am thankful for this week:

• ebay - and the fact that I have been able to get some of Angus's textbooks for next year. So far I have bought three books and I have saved around $70.
• my postie, Luke, for bringing me my ebay items 
• my doctor, we had a really good chat yesterday. It's good to know that he & I have a good relationship. It makes life so much easier when we are on the same page :) and that we can talk about anything.
• Angus. He's been a pretty good helper on and off this past week. Thanks cutie!
• Centrelink (that's our name for Social Security) for paying me the money they owed me for my over estimating my income. It's just like getting a tax refund.

What are you thankful for this week? 

24 Christmas Questions

I am borrowing this Christmas meme by Olivia from Simply Sunshine and Daisies. She borrowed it from someone else too :)

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? We wrap gifts but I have put them in gift bags afterwards. It makes carrying them so much easier.
2. Real tree or Artificial? Artificial 
3. When do you put up the tree? The day after Angus's Birthday on December 1st.
4. When do you take the tree down? January 6th
5. Do you like eggnog? Yum although I haven't had it in years. We used to be able to buy it in the fridge section of the supermarket. I'm not sure if it is still available.
6. Favorite gift received as a child? To be honest I can't really remember if there was one I didn't like but the best one would have been the organ/keyboard that I got when I was 9. 
7. Do you have a nativity scene? No
8. Hardest person to buy for? My Dad because there really isn't all that much I can someone who pretty much has everything he really needs or wants. 
9. Easiest person to buy for? Mark & the boys, especially if I buy them clothes :D
10. Mail or email Christmas cards? I love getting cards in the mail. You can make so many interesting things with them. 
11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? I can't think of one for me but my sister sent my boys these cute little poncho towels one year but they boys had grown so much over the year that they didn't fit them. 
12. Favorite Christmas Movie? Any of the Santa Clause movies. 
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? December 26th at the Boxing Day sales. 
14. Ever recycled a Christmas present? Yes but don't tell anyone. 
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Fruit Mince Pies. 
16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? We don't have any lights on our tree.
17. Favorite Christmas song? Leroy the Redneck Reindeer. I LOVE singing that one. I also love Rascal Flatts version of God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen.
18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Stay Home.
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? Doesn't everyone? They are Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen and Rudolph.
20. Angel on the tree top or a star? We always have a red star on the top pf our tree.
21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Christmas Eve after dinner. That we can sleep in and be lazy on Christmas Day. 
22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? The crazy people in the shops and the ones that go overboard with their political correctness. Christmas is for the kids and for family & they tend to suck the fun out of everything.
23. Favorite ornament, theme, or color? I have these really nice cross stitch ornaments that I made before the boys were born. I really love how they look. 
24. What do you want for Christmas this year? I get asked this question every year and I never know what I would like. Although this year I do. I would love to get a record player that plugs into my computer so I can rip all of the old vinyl albums I have. I don't think I will get it but I will certainly keep an eye out for one.

Craft Linky Love

Here are some links to some wonderfully creative& crafty people.

BobWilson123 has a youtube channel with lots of crochet videos. It's worth checking out.
The Wug's Backyard Blogspot - Poetess Wug has a wonderful way with words & with crochet. She is amazing!
The Royal Sisters - Michelle is from New South Wales & has shared some great projects. You can also find her on ravelry
Craft Gossip - has some great crochet stuff as well as other crafts like cross stitch, felting, knitting, scrapbooking and more
Foxs Lane - Kate and her family have been on a caravan trek around the top end & the west coast of Australia. She's shared some great photos as well as her projects that she has created while on holiday.
Retromummy - Corrie is an amazing crafter who is currently having her kitchen redone.Corrie knits, quilts, bakes & blogs and she has 4 small kids too. I don't know how she does it!

Meet Me On Monday

Hosted by Java from Never Growing OldEach week Java asks some "getting to know you" questions. Here's my answers for this week :D

1.  Monday's are _________?
The days that the kids go back to school. Well it used to be but Brodie has finished school now & the summer holidays begin in a few weeks. I guess that means I get to sleep in for a few weeks :D

2.  What is your favorite kind of milkshake?
Caramel. It is the BEST flavour EVER!

3.  What monthly bill do you most dislike paying? 
I don't have a problem paying bills to be honest. We budget for them & each pay we put some money on all of the utilities & any other bill that comes in regularly. That way by the time the bill actually arrives we are usually in credit or only need to pay a small amount extra. Although that electricity bill seems to be sneaking up on us ...

4.  How many email addresses do you use on a regular basis?
I use three addresses :)

5.  What color lights are on your Christmas Tree?
We don't have lights on our tree. In fact we haven't used lights for a few years now.