…"I can tell that we are gonna be friends". #1 arrived home from the framers, a very welcome addition to the family on its temporary resting place atop the piano. (The photographer is the very talented Rebecka of Vintage Fairy Tales, and I am glad and honoured to say she is my friend.)  It's actually a dark walnut frame, although you could be forgiven for thinking it's black. I'm sure the sample wasn't quite so dark.


What a week it's been in our little slice of paradise with the constant rain, flooding, and the inevitable slips. We personally only experienced the rain, the slip was around the corner a way, and the only flooding we had was confined to the wood shed from the water pouring down the slope into it, although the old roof sprung a leak in the living room the other night. My beloved was despatched with a ladder and bucket into the ceiling so the problem was minimised quickly. All fixed now and the rain has finally stopped, hopefully for a while, but probably not. A good time to stay home, keep the fire stoked up and sew. The children have had a very confined school holiday, but at least it didn't rain on Sunday for the annual Easter egg hunt. Small mercies… 


xx 

The past two weeks have passed by at lightening speed. What have I been up to apart from the usual work, home, trying to juggle everything stuff of life? Well, one thing out of the norm was a costume for a ballet recital that was made after much procrastination on my part. I have a fear of sewing lycra which I'll have to get over as there'll be a few more costumes to make over the coming years. The two performances of the Yellow Brick Road were performed without a visible hitch last Saturday and I had one very happy little girl. She has no fear of being on stage and I'm in awe of her confidence. Here's Miss M doing a twirl before we rushed out the door on Saturday night in all her Munchkin glory. Today was the first day of the school holidays. Rain, wind, cold, DVD's, and a roaring fire. I'm sure the girls will progress to the dress ups over the next few days where the munchkin costume now lives.

                                                  

And what else has been happening? On a particularly dreary day after my last post I had a wonderful surprise. All that we usually receive in the mail are bills, but on this day a large envelope arrived… 

...all the way from Sweden, half the world away. The postie had gone out of his way and put it on the front porch, out of the rain and I was grateful that he did. Inside was a beautifully handmade card that now sits on the mantelpiece with some other much treasured things. 

                                                

Also inside is something I'll share when it arrives back from the framers, which should be this week. So exciting!

I went fabric shopping yesterday so this week my old, faithful sewing machine (that detests Lycra) is going to be dusted off again. I found some colourful brushed cotton for some new Pyjama pants for the girls, and some other gorgeous fabric for something else, for somebody else. Secret Squirrel…  

xx

We've just had a wonderful child-free weekend away. It doesn't happen very often, so when it does it's embraced wholeheartedly. We escaped to Wellington via the Wairarapa. I've covered a lot of kilometres around the land of my birth but I had never had the opportunity to travel this way before, and I'm so glad we did. The first night was spent in Greytown, a gorgeous, quaint village. History has been preserved in the buildings, most of them lovingly restored. Great shopping and I'm still pondering on a coat I saw in the Trelise Cooper outlet store. Its price being the equivalent of 2 weeks groceries for the family is why I'm pondering and not wearing. Discovered also was a shop that sells limited addition Gary Tricker prints. I've loved his work since I first saw them as a teenager at an exhibition I was helping install and I've regretted not buying one then. Regrets really are a waste of time so I'll be back.

We awoke to a beautiful day on Saturday for the trip across the Rimutaka ranges to the city. Featherston is a little settlement at the base of the foothills and, apologies to any one from there, it's the rough diamond waiting to be polished, compared to it's neighbours of Greytown and Martinborough. We passed an old boarded up building and my heart skipped a beat; I pleaded with my beloved to turn the car around so I could snap this.  In my minds eye I can see this little gem restored. I'll need to win the lottery this coming weekend…

…I digress. Over the hills and far away we reached our destination. The much anticipated first glimpse of the harbour as we sped down the motorway, Somes Island in the middle of the shot…

… Ian Athfield's ever growing house on the hill above the motorway. I'd love to explore it as it's always intrigued me…

… finally we were there, a speeding fine later, but that's another story. The hotel we stayed at was overlooking the harbour and close to all we wanted to do. Roamed Te Papa and spent some time taking in the Brian Brake exhibition. Found a great cafe for lunch, FINC(food inc. I think), and an even better place for dinner, Monsoon Poon, and my cocktail of the moment, an apple martini. Monsoon Poon call it a Jimmy Choo with a lychee at the bottom of the glass, and chopsticks to fish it out with. I'm not advocating drinking alcohol, but it was divine. Our party of 8 walked dinner off and found another couple of bars that weren't populated by very enthusiastic youth. One of them was down an alleyway with men smoking cigars outside, speaking with Italian accents; very Sopranoesque. We didn't, or couldn't, stay long as they had a private party arriving. I wonder who they were, the mind boggles.

Breakfast in the morning at another one of the many to choose from cafes by the water, and then another stroll. Wherever you go throughout the city there is sculpture of one form or another and it makes it a very interesting and inspiring environment; this is one of my favourites. It appears to float midair and is so delicate looking.

I'd like one of the Nikau palm sculptures in my garden, aren't they grand. So we left fair Wellington on another sunny (slightly breezy) day, eager to return soon, and have more time to wander. To steal the words from the Monsoon Poon steps, love u long time.

Glad to be home though. Hope you all had a wonderful weekend too.

xx

There's a connection I feel with Brooke Fraser. It stems back to being an eleven year old, at what we call intermediate school. A horrid boy, who thankfully I don't remember the name of, said to me "are you related to Bernie Fraser?" who was an All Black(Representative NZ Rugby player) of the time. My innocent and dumbfounded reply was "No". His answer "well your thighs look like his". It has stuck with me and I have gone through periods of loathing my ample thighs. They have come in handy for climbing steep hills so I'm at peace with them now. Brooke is a gorgeous, talented and intelligent Kiwi girl and I'm sure she would be proud to have her dad's thighs, although I think she would be tall enough to carry them off regardless of anyones comments.

Miss R and Miss M and I were trawling Youtube this evening. They and I love this and "Betty" by Brooke. They also love Lady Gaga (although Miss R said she never wanted to watch the video of bad romance again as it was scary) who is the complete antithesis of Brooke, but both hugely talented. The chorus of something in the water reminds me of the Finn Brothers (Split Enz, Crowded House). Enjoy

xx

Miss M is in her third year at school and came home with the sad news that her book bag needed to be replaced. It started to fall apart after the first 6 months, so after a few patch ups 3 years isn't bad.  She was quite keen on a full plastic number like one of her classmates has, because "you can see right through it". Mum had a different idea.

It got off to a bit of a bumpy start. When I flicked the switch in my workroom to turn the sewing machine on, the switch made an ominous buzz and ants appeared from it. Turned it off quickly and relocated the sewing machine and myself to the dining room. I'll deal with the ants tomorrow. Here is what I spent the afternoon creating, in between blowing bubbles with Miss R and checking on the whereabouts of a certain escape artist canine. It's made of upholstery fabrics from a sample book that has been deleted, so should stand up well to being thrown in a school bag and everything else my poppet can do to it. It can be washed, and above all it will protect the books which is its main point of being. Above all, it's PINK; very important to both my girls.

But the back is green. You have to make do when you're dealing with sample books. Best of all Miss M loves it and hasn't mentioned the plastic one since seeing it on her arrival home this afternoon. That is better than a "thank you" but I did get an unsolicited one of those too, a hug and a "you're the best mum in the world". I'm not, but I'll keep working on it.

From the GGG granddaughter of Margaret from Mullingar, Beannachtai na feile Padraig! Have a Guinness for me, I much prefer a glass of Gewurztraminer.

xx

Over 100 years ago. The Cathedral Tower now lies in ruin. 

A week of profound sadness has almost passed. So many have been deeply affected by the earthquake last Tuesday, many lives taken, homes and livelihoods damaged and ruined, a city brought to its knees. Like many others I watched in disbelief the images on the news, and contacted family and friends there to make sure they were okay. The wait for their replies seemed to take an eternity but we knew they had survived within 48hours, or as one put it "shaken not stirred". A huge relief; for others less fortunate this has not been the case. 

It has made me pause and appreciate the things I'm grateful for; having a roof over my head, food in the cupboards, electricity, a toilet that flushes, but most of all the people in my life. I'm thankful I have children that are healthy and happy, for having my beloved to share my life and love with, good and bad, and my dear friends for their love, patience and encouragement. 

It will take years for the pain of some to heal and for the city to be rebuilt. It will never be the same, it will evolve because it has to. Hopefully the outpouring of love and generosity that continues to be shown will go some way to help in that healing and recovery. 

Acknowledge the past that shaped us, live in the present with gusto and look forward to the promise the future holds. Never lose hope.

xxx

  

Some of the lovely things about living in an old neighbourhood are the history of the homes, the plants that have survived many generations and the mature trees, and sometimes making new discoveries.

Hanging down above the clothesline was this mystery that I had never come across before. At first I thought it was a pear, but thanks to the wonders of Google I found out it's a Quince. The crop isn't huge, only six fruit hang down ripening in the sun, so I think I'll just admire them this season. Can you make anything with six Quince?