Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Getting There

This week so far has been quite productive. I have managed to get to the gym both days, complete my walk and then run for 6 mins which is good. I have to admit it has been hard to get back into it after three weeks off. We have had some more stunning sunrises this week. Up above was yesterdays sky with all its burnt oranges and yellows.



I managed to finish piecing together the top of Euan's quilt and even with broom lines it went together alright. Next I have to do is quilt it which is the bit I hate. I still need to draw up the Scottish flag for the back but that should be slightly easier than the Union Jack.


This morning we were treated to another beautiful sunrise. Last night the moon was so low in the sky it looked like it would fall out. It was a rich yellowy orange colour and looked quite eery as the clouds blew across in front of it. One of my neighbours was telling me that I had missed the moon eclipse last week which was a shame because apparently it was stunning. I didn't even know it was happening.



On Sunday I finished Maddie's party invites and now I need to get the felting ready for her butterflies and snakes. Thankfully I have a week and a half to go yet before the party.


Today I finished off these two penrolls which have just been delivered. I used up the last of my pink and red spot which is a shame as I loved this fabric, it really brought a spot of colour and whoosh to patchwork.




I helped out with swimming tonight but thankfully there was PT session in after the school slot so I didn't have to stay in with the kids, I am knackered. I am just about to go off and fight in the families shop for fresh fruit and veg, oh how I am not going to miss Tuesday nights!! Right better go and chase the girls up and make sure their hair is dry. Love to all Helen x

Sunday, June 27, 2010

Home Safe

Yesterday I had to go into Stanley for Euan's lesson which meant I had to face "the Road". It is an interesting drive at the best of times but with recent weather conditions it has become lethal. The car would get an interesting shimmy every time I went from tarmac to gravel and back. Thankfully we made it back in one piece and I am not sorry to say I was relieved.
As you can see from the photos it is a rather mucky road to and the once shiny car is now a brown muddy mess. Enter one loving husband who is happy to wield a pressure washer and clean it for me. It may have something to do with the fact everytime I clean it I end up scratching it with the hose which has a mind of its own!

Even my rear gunner didn't have a view yesterday.
Last night I popped over to Jayne's and had a play with her Cricut machine. She has a Disney cartridge and since I still haven't done my album from 2008 i thought I might make a start using this fab toy. After a few duds and trying to work out why it kept screwing up the heavier paper we were well away and I now have a Minne, Mickey, Goofy and Pluto head to put on my pages, plus a rather swish title for the front page. I think Jayne was ready to have me let myself out when I kept saying "just one more thing before I go". So thank you Jayne and I will be back once I have my next list sorted out :)
Today is going to be a lazy day I think, I have some birthday invites to make for Maddie and said album to work on. The house could do with a tidy and then there is the age old dilema of what to make for dinner. Enjoy your Sunday Love Me x


Friday, June 25, 2010

Making a Start

The weather has been very changeable this week. All the snow was gone by Wednesday after a night of very heavy rain and wind. We awoke Thursday morning to this sight, absolutely stunning. I know you will be bored of my sky pictures by now but I love them, definitely a mini book in the making I think.

I have finally got off my backside this week and made a start on something, don't get me wrong there has still been far to much tea and chat going on but I think that is important to sometimes. I decided to make a start on Euan's (Hush Hush) christmas quilt. I plan to make a quilt for each of the kids for christmas and hopefully also a bunny or such to go with it. I am fed up with the kids dragging their big duvets through to the living room in the mornings and hope this will be an alternative. Euan's obviously had to be a union jack and so I set to work trying to plan it out.

Problem number one is that a flag is long and thinish so it doesn't really suit the shape I wanted for a quilt. So the purests out there please look away as I have fattened up the flag somewhat to fit the shape I needed. Problem number two was that I didn't bring my metre ruler with me so a broom handle had to be used to draw out my straight lines. Only hitch with that is, it is round and rolled all over the place as I was trying to draw said lines.

Still I am getting there and just have one quarter left to piece together for the top. I plan to attempt the Scottish Saltire for the back but haven't decided how I am going to quilt the two together yet. All of this also has to be done during school hours as I don't want little people to see it. Please don't spoil the surprise viewers at home.

I did take some pictures of my penguins that I made to brighten up my bathroom. Please excuse the appalling light, they are much brighter but it has been so dull here that I haven't been able to get good light in which to photograph them.

we have the Magellanics

the Gentoos

Mr Rock Hopper

and Sir King.
I still want to do a few more bits to my bathroom and then I will try to take a before and after picture.
Yesterday I went into Stanley with some good friends and had lunch at the Malvinas. Unfortunately it was a very average meal, the starter was lovely, fresh spring rolls with chilli sauce. For mains I chose thai green chicken which should have been good but the sauce had split and half way through I couldn't eat anymore. I felt rather queasy for the rest of the evening and my friends didn't fair any better. We did however manage to do some damage in the Stanley shops, the girls got a new pink sledge with Euan having a black one. I picked up some new gloves for Ellie and Euan but Ellie's don't fit her so Maddie is very happy! and now Mum has to get another pair for Ellie. A few new candles as my others have just about run out. Two new baking tins as my spring bottom ones are so rusty now and then a big food shop. We had a very loaded and dirty landrover of Jayne's on the way home. Sadly we did see quite a few rolled cars in the ditches and it is a rather sobbering reminder of just how treacherous the road can be. Although clear of snow and ice now it has lots of potholes and is very muddy and slippery still.
Tonight I was going to head to happy hour but due to a function it wasn't on. A quick phone call to Jayne and off to Oasis with us all for toasted sandwiches for tea. We did try to go rock climbing but the instructor didn't turn up so we went back to Jayne's for more tea. A phone call from Alex and we headed up to hers for Pimms and Wagon Wheels, what more could a girl ask for? My back is really sore at the sides now so I think I might go for a bath and have an early night as I am off to Stanley again tomorrow for Euan's lesson weather permitting.
Oh and to give all of you a laugh, jumped in the bloody car this morning to take the kids to school and completely flat battery. Jayne took great pleasure in driving her older car around to jump start our shiny new one, John will be teased for some time to come I think by the neighbours for that one!

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

What a difference a day makes

This was the view out my office window on Friday morning. The wind was blowing a hoolie and it felt like we were in Dorothys house out of the Wizard of Oz.

The view out of our living room window at lunch time.

when J came home for a late lunch.


Wake up to Saturday and brilliant sunshine with no wind. I had promised the kids that I would take them sledging again if it calmed down. This time we tackled the big slope. It has a rut at the bottom which causes theeee most spectacular wipeouts and faces full of snow.

The older two loved it.

This one not so much, she really wasn't up to it so I took her back to a quiet spot away from all the raucous boys with a gentle slope and no jumps. She had a few slides and then decided she really wasn't feeling so hot and would come home with me. She has been rather clingy lately and I am hoping she isn't coming down with any of the bugs that are going around.

We of course had to have the mandatory silhouette shots, they are a bit like the sky shots now.

I am not quite sure what all the lumps and bumps were, I had a camera bag over my shoulder and a sledge tucked down my jacket in my defence!!

This one reminds me of the old books Meg and Mog can anyone remember those?

heading back over the field to home with big skies and clean views.

to our own personal home from home.

and this boy sat at the door howling his head off and very excited that I was going to take him across the field for a quick walk. Please note the tongue and not a lick of seaweed in sight.
Maddie and I spent the rest of the day baking, mincepies; lemon cheesecake; toffee meringue; gingerbread with phili icing and then puff pastry tarts. She is such a wonderful help in the kitchen, no fussing just doing whatever I ask her and she never seems to get bored bless her.

The Beach

Two trips to this spectacular place.

A lot of time is spent on this beach, relaxing, contemplating and generally getting away from it all. The dog out of all of us loves it the most. Sadly the land owner has decided to shut it to dogs after somebody let their animal chase the penguins. While I totally understand their decision I cannot lie I am saddened that Fergus will not be able to join us there again.


Especially when you see pictures of him like this. He LOVES seaweed and J can usually be found tormenting him with a large root ball of it.


Fergus usually wins eventually though and runs off with it to a safe distance and shreds it.



We find it makes a fabulous skipping rope as well. Maddie definitely needs some more practise.


Euan wasn't bad but apparently the wellies were to blame for the wipe out!


Ellie as usual was Miss Determined and lasted the longest. Even Mum had a go and managed to spin round several times before collapsing in a heap out of breath!


Aaaah and just when we thought it was safe Fergus spots a tasty bite to eat on the shore line.


This time he fancied something with a bit more of a crunch to it.


We walked down to our favourite rock outcrop and today the tide was completely out. Euan and I followed Fergus out to where we wouldn't normally go. The whole rock area was covered in mussels, absolutely thousands of them.



Looking back this is the view we were treated to. The sun was so strong that most things almost came out in silhouette and I love it.


somebody else did to.


Mum loves the textures and patterns the sand and seaweed make together.


We also had a visit from our favourite animals down here. There must have been 8 or 9 dolphins out that day just playing off the shore line. You can just see their fins in the above picture.

They were darting in and out of the surf happily racing one another.


The steamer ducks were out in force to, leaving their tell tale signs on the sand.


This one was in funny mode and wouldn't give me a straight face today.


This one was still eating seaweed :(


and then heading back to the car we came across this handsome fellow. It is a crested caracara and we don't know what he had in his mouth but he wasn't about to show us.


And yes for those that were thinking it, we did pay for all the seaweed eating later that night with some absolute stinky smells. Plus just to keep me on my toes I woke up the next morning to the sounds of him wrenching up the remains on my bedroom carpet - nice!


Lets hope that the Landowner may review things in a few months time so we can all have our switch off space back together.