Boxing Day

After a windy and stormy night I drove up to Glenlyon via Daylesford for lunch with Fran. It was just Annemarie and Michael with 5 week old Jarrah.

The other Hartz were working or elsewhere.
Annemarie and Michael were over from Hobart to visit family as well as attend a wedding on King Island. Michael had done some diving there and they had lobster for the local seas!

Michael and Jarrah

Proud Grandmother 

Jarrah is usually a calm baby but the last few days has been having screaming spells so parents are a bit fraught.
But he looks good and they are doing a great patient job!

My craft gifts were well received !

Christmas Eve

As the rest of the family form Melbourne is in New York visiting Celia I am having a quiet Christmas day(but busy few days)
Last night I went to Bridie and Seans for Christmas Eve.
I am regularly going over on Alt Thursday afternoons since Max was born, and this was the alt Thurs. so I arrived at 1pm.

Max now 10 weeks 

Dylan and Sean were at his work lunch, so Bridie and I had Max to ourselves and Bride was wrapping

and cooking and tidying.
Bridie prepared a lovely meal of BBQ meat( Sean did the cooking)  Rice salad boiled potato salad and green salad.

As a starter we had delicious smoked salmon loaf on toasts

Dylan was busy playing with his Lego (all superhero stuff!)

Dylan put my gift to Max on saying 'He looks Handsome!"

Sean squeezed some lemon on the chicken but initially got pips over it Then did it sort of strained through his hand. Dylan was busy(we thought) but then said 'You should use the lemon squeezer" and got it out of the drawer.

We had Xmas crackers that went off with such force the gifts shot out onto the table and floor.

We all had Gold crowns except for Sean; his was silver.

 They kept kidding Bridie because her crown didn't stay on her 'big head and thick hair" But Dylan was thrilled at getting it on anyway!

We had a delicious dessert of Chocolate Ripple cake 

After dinner we watched some of the Carols by Candlelight (critiquing performances, or saying Who?)
Dylan was busy with his ninja toy he got from the work party that Sean spent a frustrating 30minutes while Dylan was in the shower, reassembling it as a different character "never again"

Discussing assembly 

Carols. Lots of families there on a great weather night 

The toy! 'Amazing' is his favourite word! 

Max meanwhile was easily entertained, slept through our dinner then had to be woken to fit in his bath and his late feed.

Loved the moving rattle!

He particularly loves the penguin on the mobile over the change table And also the awful living room lights! Laughs at them! What taste!

Out to the world 

A stretch at last !

He self settles to sleep and started to sleep in his cot. He looks like being an easy baby now, like Dylan was. Still vomits! I was just leaning over to get his dummy (he was in my arms) when he threw up all over the table and floor. Missed me altogether!
Dylan also loves his Collingwood  membership pack. Wore the beanie and scarf to bed, and loves it over his eyes because he can see through!
A lovely start to Christmas 2015

Craft

Our Knitting Group has moved form Spotswood to Williamstown to a cafe.
 It was great the 1st week, but not so sure this week,We may have to keep looking

One of the woman in the group makes dolls (not knitting)

So in checking out the library I found this book ( as well as some others) So decided to try one out 

So i hunted out an old pair of socks

had to trim off loose bits of the spots

then the cutting

And sewing small seams. This is the head 

Then cutting and sewing the legs 

the arms ready to go in 

Then I decided that even though it was old it looked a but grubby So I washed it 

Looks a bit like a cow!

Then when it was all stitched and stuffed I revised the problems 

Miss Pinky

I realise I inserted one arm upside down
 You push them in when wrong side out so hard to see!
But she looks like she's waving!

I couldn't get the thread he suggested and realise why you want fine thread

her tail is too long and her neck needs to be narrower

Miss Pinky's Piggy lips

 The mouth is the writer's special trick They are made by bunching up the heel. But I struggled with the directions and could not get them tight like you see on his book cover 

Also when sewing the stripe for the base of the foot, it needs to be at the edge of the stripe so the base is a solid colour 

But it was fun doing it; realise it would be better with stripes or motif, and also a contrast colour heel (Lips)

Last Year

A year ago today we moved from Footscray to Brooklyn 

The only real change in that time is to the garden 

Part of the herb pot range 

My Lone Orchid

The tree ? Name 

Herb pots 

Today 

The begonias in their prime spot