Matai Cottage

From the cottage window we can see the sea in the distance, there is a golf course between the house and the sea.

Saturday was not such a nice day, so we decided to just take it easy and not go far, in fact a quick trip to the local Tesco was our only outing. As usual I was up early, about 5.30 and worked on my crochet for a couple of hours until CJ came down for breakfast.

Today was the day I decided to try my hand at cooking on the Aga, something I had never used before. I actually managed to cook bacon and eggs OK. It seems strange to have the heat constantly there at the lift of a lid!

CJ spent most of the day working on his lap top, or should that be playing? I think he was sorting out the Green Lanes that are now open and those with new closures.

 

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Heacham Norfolk

Here we are on holiday for a week in Norfolk. The journey here in the old Land Rover was very interesting, as the Solar Eclipse took place as we travelled along. A very spooky light as the sun disappeared behind the moon.

A quick stop at a Service Station made me smile, all the garage workers were standing watching the eclipse through welding masks, a very strange sight.

In Kings Lynn we visited Morrison's store to stock up on food and decided to have lunch there. Their fish and chips are SO yummy.

Also on my list of must do while away, was a visit to The Fent Shop in Kings Lynn to buy more wool for my latest crochet project. It is a strange old fashioned shop crammed full of dress fabric and upstairs racks of wool and curtain fabrics. I choose three shades of Lavender Stylecraft Special wool to make the flowers for my blanket.

Heacham is famous for its lavender fields and we made a quick stop to visit the farm shop.

With time to spare we drove a Byway that joins the North shore to the South shore at Heacham, boy was it bumpy and pot holed, but interesting to see the property along the shore line. Hundreds of mobile homes, all empty at this time of year, were next to rows of beach huts. Further along were houses made of wood standing on concrete pillars to raise them above the beach wall and give views of the sea. A few very nice brick houses all seemed to be empty of life, I bet it is a very different scene in the Summer.

3pm we arrived at Matai Cottage to be greeted by Sarah the owner, more about this later.

 

 

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Silver Grey crochet project

I have made a good start on my Silver Grey crochet project.

Eventually there will be cream, lilac and lavender flowers on every other square and it will be a cover for our bed. At the moment I have all the wool except the lilac and lavender colours, I hope to be able to buy them while away on holiday in a weeks time.

As a born-again crochet person, in other words I had a gap of 50 plus years in my crochet habit, it is quite a learning curve, especially to make the flowers which are part of the granny squares.

Ten squares completed goodness knows how many more I will need!

Mothers Day Celebration

The day started with a visit to Church as usual, except it was not usual as Chris came with me. I love it when he comes to Church with me. The children sang at the start of the Sacrament Service and all the females were given flowers at the end. It was a really nice start to the day.

A quite lunch and afternoon until the family arrived at 4pm with flowers, chocolates and a card.
My family are very special to me and I love seeing them and hearing all the news.

Dinner was cooked and eaten, Richard had brought his famous white chocolate and raspberry cheesecake for dessert... yummy.

Jacqueline had brought along biscuit decorating items and we all set too designing our biscuits to much laughter and an overload of sugar.

My "effort" for which I won a box of smarties!

The biscuit designers!

Success is not to succeed, but to try

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY

I love this embroidery saying that I have just finished.
It will be part of a quilt surrounded with hexagons.  I do not get to work on it as much as I would like, the arthritis in my hand hurts too much when I sew fine things for long periods.

Bunny Treat Bags for Easter

The weather has turned Cold / Grey / Miserable, so time to turn the sewing machine on..

There is a free pattern on www.sewcanshe.com from 2013 called bunny treat bags. A friend told me about this and I decided they would be ideal to use for little Easter Eggs.

I thought I would make one each for my Granddaughters, but then found they are SO easy and quick to make [ I admit I did not put the buttonholes in them] that I have made seven. Each has a little chocolate bunny inside.
Most of the fabric I used was the remains of a Kaffe Fassett Charm pack and some odds and ends from another charm pack.

Home made Easter cards and Easter Egg bunny bags

While I am in the Easter mood, I found some lace I had made years ago and made the pieces into Easter cards together with my latest Hedgehog embroidery.

A basket of Bunnies.

More wool

More wool arrived, at this rate the neighbours will think I am having an affair with the courier! He has called everyday this week!

I was up at 5am this morning and decided not to go back to bed. The sky was the most brilliant red, hope this is not a bad sign on Friday 13th! I managed to make two granny squares for my new project.

Another exciting parcel

Yummy wool

Decision time on our front garden, which having been cleared of plants and treated with weed killer, is now ready for the next stop. It is rather a problem as it slopes away from the adjoining path and is lousy soil. The ideal thing would be to build a little wall to level it off, but the cost is prohibitive. Having stood around looking at it in the freezing cold we have come up with a plan that I think will work. Another job for Chris!

While talking about jobs we have also decided to repaint the bedroom walls to match the crochet cover I am making. At this rate Chris will wish he was back at work.

Clearing the Clutter

Major clear out today. We took a car full to the Charity Emmaus, which runs a home for homeless people and finds them work and a job.  They do such good work I like to support them when I can.

Bags ready to be loaded into the car.

Why cannot I tell any difference around here, there should be lots of empty spaces! Maybe I just have so much "stuff" I need to keep loading the car with things worth recycling and eventually I would notice a difference.

A quick browse round the different charity rooms and BINGO I found a brand new bread maker [ more about it later] that had to come home with me.

The Bread Maker

I have been looking for a new bread maker for some time, as the one I have is on its last legs.
I like a breadmaker that makes the loaf the right way up, not on its side. It has been difficult to find one within my price range.
Yesterday at Emmaus there sitting on a bottom shelf a new Breville twin paddle bread maker. PERFECT just what I wanted and only £40, they retail over £100. The guy in the Charity shop said he had just put it there.
I could not wait to get home and try it.

My first white loaf... yummy

Crochet / Wool mad!

I seem to well and truly have the crochet bug, I hope at some point there is a cure!

A friend sent me this link, and of course I have to have a go at it...

http://www.janeknits.blogspot.co.uk/2015/03/crochet-along.html

I ordered the wool from Deramore's and two packages have just arrived, one with some of the wool for the CAL [ crochet along] that starts April 7th, the other with wool for another project I want to make involving Granny Squares and flowers.

Already changed my mind about the flower colours better order more wool!
Stylecraft Special DK

I know I am probably going to give myself a headache trying these new patterns but I like to keep learning new things.

4 of the 14 balls of Stylecraft Life for my CAL

Help! Before I have even started these projects the "friend" has sent me another CAL
I am trying very hard to resist.

The kitchen makeover

Chris has finished painting the kitchen, and although I did wonder about the bright colour choice, it was beige before! I absolutely love it.
When I went in this morning to make a drink at 5am (yes I am an early riser) it made me smile.

Off today to Ikea to find a new bin, bowl etc. also new kitchen towels. While Chris was painting I got him to paint a piece of cardboard for me, so I have the exact colour to match up for my new items.

The Train

Here is a question? Am I late for last Christmas or early for next Christmas?

I started making this machine embroidered train just before last Christmas but my EM had to pay a visit to the Sewing machine hospital! and I did not get it back until the New Year.
However I have worked hard to complete it and each wagon seems to take most of a day to sew out! I intend to use it as a kind of Christmas banner.

Out of my comfort zone

Saturday a friend and I went to Bedford Sewing & Quilting day. It is always a day we really enjoy.

They had changed the format and the speaker, Empress Mills, was in the morning with workshops in the afternoon.
Christine the Speaker was excellent, telling us about all the different threads they sell, in fact so much knowledge it was hard to retain it in my 70 year old brain! I really like some of their batting and vilene, but I resisted buying any more than a couple of reels of thread I needed.

There were five mini workshops on offer in the afternoon. Penny and I chose to do the workshop Shirley Nash offered, a Raised Embroidered Hedgehog.
This type of fine embroidery is way out of my comfort zone, but I really enjoyed working in the tiny hoop with a single thickness of embroidery thread. I still have work to do, lots of french knots, to finish it. I will then probably mount it in a card.

Can you tell its a hedgehog?

Shirley gets out the crochet hooks!

What a fun IAM day. Clare was not well so Pauline made up the numbers of the IAM group.
Shirley had promised a crochet lesson for those who wanted to learn and quickly the hooks were out and the first chains were made.  It has never been so quiet as everyone was concentrating hard.
Then the laughter started as the chains grew longer and longer! The idea was to make a granny square and I think most of the beginners actually managed to make one, or at least part of one.
Ann and I already knew how to crochet so we decided to have a go at the flower pattern Shirley gave us. You could cut the tension with a knife.... who said crochet was relaxing?

A stop for lunch was followed by show and tell, always a delight.. Among the items were my machine embroidered train, three Linus quilts, a quilt ready for hand quilting, a 70th birthday card, a hand made star, a knitted waistcoat, machine embroidered cushions, a crochet lap blanket etc etc.. I have probably forgotten something so apologies..

Brilliant day full of fun and laughter and learning something new, not to mention the great dessert.

Pauline's quilt in progress

Shirley's latest lap blanket

Getting "hooked"

We all love this.

My attempt at a flower in a granny square

Redecorating the kitchen

Delayed by a week due to Chris not being well, the kitchen redecorating has started.

First everything had to be moved into the dining room!
Considering the kitchen and cooking are not my favourite hobbies, where on earth did everything come from and why do I have it! Plus we did not empty any of the cupboards so all this "stuff" came off worktops and shelves.
It is now a nightmare trying to find anything, even making a cuppa is a problem.

this was once my tidy dining area

With the kitchen empty Chris tackled the cleaning and resealing the window and generally getting ready for the paint work. The kitchen certainly looks bigger without anything on the worktops.

the yellow has to go!

We both worked hard all day, as I have been tackling my Happy Room having a de-clutter session and moving things around. The Charity shop is in for a car full next week. I will also be listing a number of items on Ebay later today. Mostly games and lace items.

The Cyclamen

I am hopeless with house plants and they never last long in this house.
A few weeks before Christmas I was  given a cyclamen plant that is still going strong. It seems to like where it lives on the windowsill above a radiator so I dare not move it.
Although while we were away in Spain the friend looking after the house kept it alive by taking it home as our boiler packed up and the house was too cold for it.

Nine more blocks

I managed to make NINE more blocks for my Black and White with a dash of Red quilt on Thursday at Poppy Patch.
Twice a month I attend a Sit-n-Sew day at Poppy Patch Gt Doddington near Wellingborough. The same group of people have been meeting there the ages, and it is so nice catching up on all the news, and getting inspiration from each other.
It was the first time I had met the new owners, Sam and Mary, they have lots of new workshops on offer and have made a few changes to the shop but the atmosphere remains the same, happy and friendly.

Had a surprise visit from two members of church in the evening. They had heard I had not been well in Spain and just called to see I was OK or if there was anything they could do. I am feeling fine now, but it was really nice of them to call.

Linus quilt #2 2015

A week ago I made five machine embroidery blocks at BSK Bedford.  Having been in rather a slump as far as sewing crocheting or in fact doing any other craft work I decided to make the five blocks into a Linus quilt to get me back "in the mood". It worked I really enjoyed making this little quilt, using fabric from my stash for the alternate blocks and border, plus wadding and backing also from my stash. Hopefully a child somewhere will get pleasure and comfort from this Koala bear quilt.

Linus quilt #2 of the 4 I have promised myself to make this year.

IAM group 15th Anniversary

15 years ago five of us started meeting once a month to make lace, sew quilts and generally do craft work. We are now up to eight with lots of different crafts taking place and often small workshops.
To celebrate our 15 years together I organised a day out.

Made 16th July 2013!

I made eight bags from a sari to give to everyone.

We started by meeting at Threads and Patches in Fenny Stratford, Milton Keynes, where Sally the owner was kind enough to arrange for us to have drink and cake, plus a nice discount on anything we bought. It was fun looking around all the different rooms and trying not to buy too much!

Threads & Patches Tea room

Cake and a cuppa!

Our next stop was Tudor Rose at Oakley, Bedfordshire where lunch had been pre-ordered in the "O for Coffee" cafe. We all agreed it was delicious. The shop had offered us a small discount that most of took advantage of.

Lunch at the O for Coffee cake

Tudor Rose

A drive back to home where I had arranged a celebration cake, funny how even after all the food we had eaten we could all still manage to slice of cake. We then had a show and tell of the things we had bought in the different shops, plus Shirley had brought along a finished quilted bed cover that had us all gasping! She has offered to teach the members of the group that do not crochet, how to crochet, next week at our regular monthly meeting.

Maureen, Clare, Dorn, Jenny, Penny, Shirley, Ann and me behind the camera.

BSK Day

Oh what joy to be back in the old routine and feeling better.
8.30am saw me picking up friend Penny for our drive to Bedford
Every month six of us spend the day at BSK Bedford "playing" on their embroidery machines.

I decided to make a set of five Koala blocks that I thought would make a nice child or Linus quilt.
It was very restful and just the sort of day I needed to get back into the swing of sewing after all the events in Spain recently. Penny also choose an easy project.

Christine and Clare chose to make bags and they seemed quite frazzled with all the small pieces of fabric and instructions, but the final bags looked really nice. Glad I did not chose to make one.

Jackie was working on a cushion cover and Carol was absent.

Arriving home I was tired but Chris, my Knight in shining armour,  had prepared dinner which was really nice.

Teddy Money Bank

The girls came for the day on Wednesday and it was decided it was time to empty the Teddy.

Whenever we have spare coins they are put into a mug which is then emptied by the girls when they visit into an old Teddy, I think it held Leggo type bricks originally.
The Teddy was so heavy we had to get Grandad to bring it downstairs.

Having emptied it onto the dining room table the girls loaded the money into bags they could carry and the rest went into a bag for Grandad to carry.

Off to the bank with a machine that counts the money for them, great fun emptying all the bags into the chute and watching the totals tick up on the display, just over £82 to share.

After all this exercise we went for lunch at the Toby Inn, the girls restaurant choice. Then back home for a game of French Monopoly. I used to collect monopoly boards from our overseas travels so it was fun playing in French!

Home Sweet Home

What can I say about our month in Spain... the first two weeks were great, lots of sunshine and meeting old friends.. the second two weeks not so great as Chris had his wallet stolen and the hastle of cancelling credit cards, notifying the police, who were most unhelpful, replacing his driving licence and store cards etc was a real headache. Also I was taken ill and spent a day in hospital where the fact I could not speak Spanish was very scary plus the cost of prescription medicines! and feeling really poorly with Bronchitis.
Valentines day we came home, luckily I did not feel too bad and returning the hire car, catching our flight and arriving in England went very smoothly. It was then we realised the ticket to get our car back from Meet and Greet was in the stolen wallet, the EMA airport staff were great and by producing my passport let me have my car back.

Today [Tuesday 17th] is a new day, the sun is shining and for the first time I have been into the garden to see all the new shoots appearing and even the Camellia showing its first flower. There are lots of snowdrops and Spring must be just around the corner.
The unpacking is finished, the insurance claim has been sorted, a new driving licence and credit cards etc. applied for and I am in my Happy Room again.

From bad to worse

Over the weekend Chris took for a little drive along the coast, I had been going stir crazy in the house.

We drove to Torre de la Horadada where the coast road runs along the top of the cliff. There is a pretty yacht club at the end of the coast road.

Then things took a turn for the worse and Monday saw us at San Javier Hospital built only 4 years ago.

My coughing was so bad I was really worried as my chest now hurt. Arriving at 11.20 am we left at 7.30pm. The results of blood tests and X-Rays showed I had Bonquitis aguda. I was given oxygen treatment, a paracetamol drip and injection of something ( anti-biotic I think ) it was all very scary not speaking any of the language and being left alone not really knowing what was happening.

On dismissal I was given a prescription for three items that cost me €77 (I'll never say anything about the NHS in England again! Where at my age all prescriptions are free). To make sure I understood the instructions for taking the stuff I had been given, which of course we're all in Spanish, I googled them when we got home. Three cheers for the Internet.

It is now Tuesday morning and I had a sleepless night, mostly due to living the ordeal in a foreign land not speaking their language, but I feel a bit better and hope to meet friends for a late lunch.

 

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Where have I been?

Where have I been since my last post a week ago?

The answer is mostly in bed or asleep. The flu bug that seems to be going around decided it would like me for dinner! Two days I had a terrible high temperature and thought I was on fire. Chris managed to get me medicine from the pharmacy, not easy when you do not speak the language, but a phase book helped.

The one containing paracetamol, and goodness knows what else seemed to work on the temperature but it tastes vile, the cough medicine is sticky and I hope helping.

I am still feeling weak and have a chesty cough but have decided I am going to live!

 

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