Community Knitting

Do you want to join in with a good old fashioned Community event?
Saturday 19 June 1.30pm.
$5 entry includes spot prizes, raffle and afternoon tea. All proceeds going to St Johns ambulance.
Baptist Church, Greenwood st Motueka.
Come along and join in for the afternoon. If you're already a knitter bring along some no. 8 needles and have a go at the speed knitting competition. If you're still learning or perfecting your technique come and get some ideas or purchase some lovely new yarn or fibre. I will have a selection of fibre and yarn from Jessicah's shop and sample boxes from Blendy's New Zealand Yarn Sampler Box. As well as some organic, natural dyed yarns from a local crafter and a bit of hand spun from my Mum.
It's getting quite exciting, let me tell you how it started:

I've got to know some of the older ladies who volunteer in the Red Cross, quite well. We talk sewing, knitting and sometimes about the kids, after all they have seen myself and the children quite regularly since the children were born. Some days when I'm not in a rush they have related to me hilarious stories ranging from childbirth to parenting, being a 1950's housewife to local history. I really admire the community spirit of some of the ladies in particular, and follow with interest their contributions towards Operation cover up each year and other charities. For operation cover up they knit dozens of squares for warm blankets as well as jerseys and slippers to send to children in orphanages over seas.
During one of my thrift shop visits I heard that one of the ladies was organising a knitting competition and display to be held in conjunction with the annual winter Festival of lights. She was keen to attract some younger knitters to enter the competition and I suppose, to involve us in the community spirit. I value strongly how much can be learned from our elders so I volunteered to help put some posters up, put a link on Motueka Online and will do a display of some edgy knitting books and patterns, hopefully including a couple of pictures of Urban knitting to really push the boundries. I had great plans to do some "out there" knitting but not alot has come to fruition. I need a team of knitters to get all my ideas completed in time. I tried to teach the kids to knit to pattern but they're not particularly dedicated workers! I will however get a Mohawk hat finished. Watch this space and....
See you there, or stop at the above mentioned shops.

Kefir Soda

Left water kefir, right milk kefir.
A friend of mine loaned me "A change of heart" by Kay Baxter. Having always been a meat eater and raised on a farm to harvest from the land and waste nothing, I really enjoyed the book and it's recipes. I've experimented a wee bit with milk Kefir for digestive health and was encouraged by the easy instructions in the book to convert some of my milk Kefir Grains to make kefir soda. This is essentially the process I used. The results were yummy and really encouraging. The kids even added their approval but don't like it as much as ginger beer. It tastes a tad alcoholic but so does my ginger beer at times. My online research found this good article leaving me feeling reassured that it's Ok for kids at least once in awhile and surely better than bought, sweet, fizzy drinks (which incidentally I refuse to buy, making me a freaky hippy according to some of my children). The success of the experiment led me to wonder if I could get real water Kefir Granules in New Zealand. It didn't take long for me to find this site and I received my grains with excellent instructions. I very soon had the water kefir going alongside my milk kefir. I had to move all my brews to the warming cupboard when the winter cold snap hit and now the cultures are all expanding so well that I can share some with friends and experiment with extra fruits and honey for sweetness.
The lemon tree is having trouble keeping up with lemons for the jar, but the new crop are close to being ripe. Elsewhere in the garden, young citrus are being covered to protect from frost. The ground is far to wet to cultivate for the garlic but weeds and grass of course are thriving.

Desperately seeking Patons Smoothie DK White 1020

A friend of mine is tantalisingly close to finishing a shawl for her first Grandchild. The local yarn shops have run out of the yarn she needs to finish the last peak around the edge of the shawl. If anyone had half a ball or even 20 metres of the white Patons Smoothie DK 1020 that she needs she'd happily cover costs and postage. Please if you can help send me an email or leave a comment.

Think, Today.

Do you? Like me, need a reminder every so often. Please look and do something thought full today.
Thanks Johanna for the reminder.

Tummy Time Mat

I spent yesterday making a "tummy time" mat for a friend who is expecting a baby soon. I used vintage flannelette fabrics from my Grandmas era and combined more recent Kiwiana themed prints to suit the special baby. My friend has been great support to me during the past year so I focused on sewing blessings in for her and the new babe as I worked.

I loathe walkers, bouncers and activity centres for babies. I think colourful textured tummy time mats are perfect for growth and development in the early stages. I'm going to make a few more of them so I can gift them to the other expectant mothers I know. Perfect use of all those lovely fabrics I've been collecting for so long too.

Not an Epiphany

The teen is back, safe and sound.
Yay.
It seems neither of us has had an "Epiphany" in his absence.
I'm still public enemy no.1
Otherwise though I had great fun dancing at the primary school disco tongiht.
Happy kids and community.
Pig hunting and netball tomorrow.
Got some cool fabric on the washing line.
Hope I can squeeze in some creativity this weekend.

Busy days

Neither gardening or crafting are being done. Pictures? Nope.
I miss them a bit, but equally important activities are taking place.
The youngest child in the family is being supported at school with weekly visits to his classroom. 5 years is feeling like a complete blur and I'm starting to think how much I'm going to miss the faces I see at Montessori and Playcentre on a regular basis. A smile and "Hello" at pre-school is often the only adult contact I get in a day.
Soooo..................
I'm making a little effort for me too, with a little support from some very loyal friends I might add. Now don't laugh, when I say I've been going to ZUMBA!! (I would link, but come on, you've all heared of Zumba right?) Exercise dancing!! I'm still as "unco" as my bro told me I was about 25 years ago, but it's good to get the heart pumping and the face smiling as well.
With that and other things, there doesn't seem to be alot of time left over each day at the moment.

PJ and the Red do dancing in town 2 nights a week and Pj is doing netball on Saturday morning. Skatey needs to be driven over the hill at 5.30am for weekend pig hunting and freaky evening "weigh ins " where I stand uncomfortably supporting him marveling at dead pigs, deer and rabbits lined up and shown off by the local hunting "tribe".
Then the teen also needed a bit of extra attention this week to prepare for some tramping with his outdoor Ed class. They're in the bush at the moment with maps and compasses on a trip they planned themselves. I wouldn't be a good mother if I wasn't freaking out about the swollen rivers after the recent rain and the cold while sleeping under a tarp. Has he taken enough food and warm clothes? I bought him some merino socks from Potters Patch to make sure his feet are warm and tried my best to walk past his room to see what gear was going in the pack. New tramping boots too. Did he wear them in? No. Did I nag him to do so? Yes!! Am I having nightmares? Yep quite a few.
I squeezed in a little preserving. Sweet chilli sauce: 6 bottles. Swapped one for wild duck breasts and took one as a gift for the hosts who had us to dinner on Saturday night.
Tomato puree: done.
Figs and Fejoias: waiting for me to do something with them.
Garlic: a little bit planted.
Weeds: quite tasty in salad.
Chooks: one laying.
Dog: ear might be getting better, touch wood.
Knitting socks: The second sock curse has taken effect.
Kindness: Feeling good about considering other peoples situations and feelings.
Reading: a selection of knitting books and mags + Jean. M. Auel, in hope that there'll be a new one soon. All my favorite blogs too, with the teen away the computer is MINE.
Listening: Still to the "Black Eyed Peas" and "Marianne Faithfull" probably because that "Lucy Jordan" birthday is looming fast.
Windows, lawns, housework, washing and wood: Waiting for a WOOFER or a visit from Granny.

Arrivals by post

Finally I've finished the "sweet pea" silk fibre from my friend Jessicah's shop . I spun the wool as thin as I possibly could, then I washed a black lambs fleece from my Dad. I thought it might be perfect to ply with the silk, but it wasn't as luxurious as I wanted it to be with the silk. Then I tried a bit of the grey fleece that Mum was spinning when she visited but that wasn't right either. I've since plied them together though and they work well.

I thought I needed to save up for some smokey grey alpaca fibre which would have worked perfectly, but my impatience got the better of me. I dyed some merino from my Aunt, using this method, with raw fleece instead. The resulting yarn is destined to become a lovely scarf for me.
After I finish a few other projects I have lined up.
The letterbox continued to be quite busy all week, it's lovely to go out and find a surprise waiting there. A cook book and garden book from my sister in law. I burnt my favorite cookbook on an element (did I mention that already??) So M sent me a shiny new copy full of all the best recipes for thrifty cooks. Thanks M.
A little treat for the soil too, seeds and a membership to Koanga.

Career choices

PJ loves monkeys.

She wants to work in a zoo, with monkeys.

We"re all very sad to hear that Ricky the Natureland zoo monkey has died.

I talk alot about how important it is for monkeys and other animals, to grow up in their own environment. Hoping I guess that one of the kids might grow up to be a radical environmental campaigner (because I didn't.)

Whoops we shouldn't live vicariously through our kids should we?

But my goodness it wouldn't be a bad idea for her to be a vet either. So far I have spent at least one weeks food bill, at the vet, on the dog who has earache, for goodness sake!!

RIP Ricky.

And Willow, the drops I'm putting in your ear will help you get better soon ( the least you could do is co-operate)

Jester House

A couple of folks enquired about the whereabouts of all those eels I showed recently. It's a favourite cafe of ours called Jester House . It has a special significance to me because when I was about 11 years old, long before it was a lovely cafe setting we lived there with our Mum. My brothers and I would walk across the bridge to catch the school bus each morning and in the weekends we climbed the hill with our wet weather farm gear on to slide down the waterway as if it were a hydro slide. Though a great spot we all longed for the freedom of the farm where we had left our Dad and a thousand unfinished adventures.
If you visit there now you'll be able to feed the eels for a couple of dollars, they even accept old 1 and 2 cent coins! While the kids feed the eels there is plenty of local produce to sample off the lunch menu in a garden full of fruit trees and herbs.
It is one of my must see stops in Motueka.

Old letterbox

Something lovely arrived in my letterbox this week. I'll be busy for a couple of days.

Food supply

Time for a little seed saving.
Recently I have ventured back into the garden after a summer of mostly neglect. I'm hearing that alot of people have had that kind of season. It's been our season to nurture ourselves as a family, with trips to the beach, bike rides and making efforts to spend time with extended family . Natural disasters around the world however are making me mindful that we should never take things for granted, especially our food supply.

So with that thought in mind I'm back to the soil with renewed enthusiasm. I have some seedlings started and am busy clearing swathes of weeds which are going to seed in order to make way for the winter food crops. We'll have leeks, broccoli, celery, spinach, lettuce and cabbage fresh from the garden this winter if the season is favorable. I'm sure it's not too late to get all these seedlings into the garden. As well I'm planting peas, they survive quite well overwinter if they are a couple of inches high and it gives them a good little head start in spring. There are broad beans too, not my favorite vegetable, but they have planted themselves dropping out of their dried pods where I left the plants standing since the spring. There are millions of parsnips self seeded too, if only I could grow carrots as well as I grow parsnip. Coriander,radishes, nettle and chickweed are popping up everywhere so I guess it's not so bad to neglect the garden for a season. If I keep my eyes open and clear up carefully we'll have a good selection of nourishing food for the cold months.

My Skatey boy is initiating his own learning in the area of survival by finding role models to take him pig hunting and hopefully duck shooting soon. He experienced his first real pig hunt and kill last week so if push comes to shove we'll be right for meat too.

Just quietly though , I hope he goes for deer as well because I'm not very partial to wild pork.

Blatant self promotion

School holidays always spur me on to have a bit of a tidy up.

I've filled up my shop with some of my favorite bags and booties.

I hope to add a few newer creations later on this week.

Also on next weeks agenda:

Pj would like to make the doll for her princess and the pea mattresses which we made together a month ago. You will know the pattern I mean if you have the More Softies book.

Holiday near home

There is nothing wrong with having a holiday near home. We stayed only 30 minutes from our house and experienced the contrast of autumn near the beach for a school holiday getaway.Seaside negotiations with a 4 year old:

( Fill in the blanks)

"My baby starfish,

I found it down there under the rocks.

I want to take it home.

It can live in sea water,

we can put it in the bucket and take it home,

but it's my friend,

it's a baby.

No I don't want to put it back in the sea,

it can live with me in water.

Ok I can look at the photo when I miss him"

Seaside negotiations with a 13 year old:

(fill in the blanks)

" Mum look at me,

up here.

Look I'm higher now.

Nah I wanna go higher.

Why?

No it's not.

yeah but we're not at Playcentre."

Finally a last word from Mum

"Ok if YOU get out of the tree, and YOU put the starfish back we'll go say hi to the goats and feed the eels"

Tussah Silk

I want to win the "spinning a yarn" Tussah Silk! Thanks to http://spinayarn.felt.co.nz & www.blendy.co.nz You could have a chance to win too if you go here, but just so you know I'm feeling pretty lucky.

New Season accessories

The onset of the cooler weather is excuse enough for new accessories I think. Brown and black to suit the winter wardrobe. A "dapper day bag" the pattern from Sew Liberated by Meg McElwee. I omitted the piping ( too lazy and impatient to fiddle around with that), used lovely chocolate coloured leather for the gusset, strap and top of the bag and added an inside pocket with a zip so I can compartmentalise my stuff (separate my knitting from boring bits of paper like bills to pay)

Also for me, a new orange wallet because I like orange and wanted to make the "perfect" wallet that doesn't drop change, can accommodate receipts, allows me to quickly find my library card and coupon card with out having to search though dozens of compartments. I'm pleased to have found a use for some smaller bits of leather and fabric in this project. It' s only failing is that it doesn't hold a cheque book, but how often these days does one need a cheque book on hand?

I think it's spot on, so I have some to offer at the Mapua Easter Fair this weekend.

* Some of my comments have been lost as I try to publish them so please don't be offended if yours are not showing up. Please email me when you have time, if you notice your comment not appearing. I love getting the feedback and am annoyed that it is happening. Hoping it will be resolved soon*

Blackboy Peaches

Three trees is probably two too many, they all came ready at once on the weekend. I think everyone else in the district may have them in their back yard too because I can't even give them away. Skatey takes about 6 to school everyday, the other children maybe have one a day. I collected as many as I had the time and patience to deal with and got the dehydrator out in desperation, the other kids seem to like them better dried anyway, they will probably only last a few weeks dried unless I hide some. If I lived closer to my brother I would go to his house to dehydrate, he creates his own electricity with a water wheel and windmill. He has so much power he's thinking of building a heated pool.
May be one day he'll come and create free energy for me!! Other things we have done with them is put them into fruit muffins, make a peach chutney, bottle them in syrup, stew them and freeze.
Maybe I should try a little wine making or brandied peaches....
Anyway Black boy peaches, so easy to grow form seed (stone), almost disease free, low maintenance - just give a winter and summer prune. Plant comfrey underneath.
Walah, fruit in 3-4 years.
I have plenty of seedlings if anyone wants one.

Thrifty finds

Vintage curtains
Our little town sometimes yields great thrifty finds. We have a Hospice shop, Red Cross, and a Salvation Army. The Red Cross ladies are my favorites but I often find the best things at the other shops. I love to see what Jannelle has found each month, her finds usually make me wish I was visiting the thrift stores in her neighbourhood. This last month I think my finds are worth a mention. Boy's room, re-created warm curtains
Warm thermal curtains, too short for the window so I added a striped fabric and a wool backing to make the boys room cosy for winter. Skatey helped me hang a new curtain rail, he's better on a drill than me. He has a quilt on his wall for warmth as well.
A spiral bound book of Enid Gilchrist patterns

Merino off cuts

Probably my favorite find this month, Merino fabric off cuts at the market one Sunday. Perfect timing for making winter clothing, hoodies and long sleeve tops for the small children. We all need an extra layer in the morning when we do our outside jobs. Picking fruit for school lunches, with warm new tops.

Autumn snuck up

while I was sewing and performing my other role of children's taxi driver, teacher, confidence booster, reminder er, bed maker, cook, washerwoman, and nurse. Wet beds, a trip twice to Nelson for a teen's broken finger, Skatey for two dental visits with the burden of paying for braces, bigger shoes and teaching to tie laces, reminding to go to math tutorials and to take instruments to school, covering up a guinea pig at midnight in the rain, figuring out if hay fever warrants a visit to the Dr, treating the dog for fleas, cleaning the chookhouse and organising someone to clean the chimney.

Autumn arrived, while I was busy. It hasn't been my best year for gardening, the weekend breather has revealed fresh weeds after rain and the summer crops setting seeds. A storm skirted by us, but we got enough wind to blow the corn down and cause us to look for some extra warm blankets and clothes.

Thankfully I might save some grocery money for (skateys) braces from the peaches, grapes, apples, berries, tomatoes, cucumbers, herbs and eggs from the garden.

Meanwhile we're going to grab every last whiff of summer that we can. When did summers start to pass so quickly?

Kids clothes

"Sewing clothes kids love" is a book having a good influence on me at the moment. My colour combos and trims and not as daring as those in the book, though the patterns are truly delightful weather embellished or plain. The Capable of flying blog is written by the book's author and has some great links to other peoples creations from the book.
It has given me the confidence to try some great colour and pattern combos, with great results. Also influencing me has been Carefree clothes for girls, as yet I haven't made up any of the patterns provided, but the use of recycled hand stitched linen and crochet is adorable and inspiring, the colour palette using lots of linen and natural colours is a complete contrast to the other book I mentioned.
So the two youngest kids now have some good autumn additions to their wardrobes for school and Montessori.

I think I'm all sewed out for now, my temperamental over locker and I are calling it quits for a bit while we are still on good terms with each other, but what a productive week. Quite proud too that out of all of those fabrics only three pieces were bought new all the others have been sourced at the local op shops or as gifts from sewers downsizing their stash.

For a total change of scene and pace this weekend we'll be hanging out at Taste Tasman.
It looks as if it will be a great event.

Our house

I loved Melissa's question "Do you have an imaginary house somewhere?"

I do.

There is even a picture of it on our fridge.

Next to the gold cards that Skatey is very proud of.

We even have a story about our imaginary house. It is a ramshackle old villa within walking distance of the sea. There's fretwork around the veranda with saplings growing up through the decking and creepers winding up around the pillars. Some sweet jasmine sneaks it's way into the kitchen where baskets of herbs and vegetables are stacked waiting for preservation. Lemon verbena, thyme, Echinacea, and walnuts drying, a cat is watching a mouse. Herbal tinctures and dried herbs in dark glass jars line the shelves alongside picked onions and brandied cherries. An ancient coal range bakes bread, heats water and in winter we warm our feet in it's oven while coffee peculates on top. The attic has spiders, creaky floorboards and sunlight streaming in, a family quilt covers the bed. There are secret passages and a dark and creepy staircase. Outside the grounds are full of native birdsong because the cats and dog are too old to chase. There are beehives and a goat out back near a stream with a water wheel. Silly old sheep come when you call them and possums eat my roses and apples. Wildflowers do their own gardening as the sound of the waves crash and whales are sighted in the distance.

For Skatey there's a shed where he's restoring an old car, for teen there's Internet connection, for Pj Granny lives there too and for the red head there are monarch butterflies and books.

Do you have an imaginary house somewhere?

Berry buckle

I'd always rather be crafting than cooking. Had you picked that up already?

Tonight for dinner was rooster soup. None of the big kids complained at all , they know better. The red head is difficult at dinner time. I called them to the table with a wink to the big kids,
"noodle delicious" for tea tonight. They all played along, if you give it a jazzy name the red head just might eat it.
Half way through the bribes start. "better eat your noodle delicious if you want some pudding"

Pudding:
I only make it sporadically, the black berries inspired me tonight.
"Berry Buckle" from Alison Holst's Dollars and Sense cookbook.
My copy has seen better days, I almost burnt the house down awhile back when I set it down on a hot element and went outside to collect beans.

The butter, egg, flour, Cinnamon base with fresh blackberries, plus one extra with frozen red currants to have cold for the school lunches tomorrow.
Now here's why I don't bake much. Chopping butter into the topping till it looks like breadcrumbs!

Bah, I'd really rather be finishing my sewing.

Add whipped cream and it's all worth it. YUM

Welcome Autumn 2010

I LOVE AUTUMN.

All my favorite fruit and vege are ready for harvest and it's not too hot to get things done. "Skatey" told me this weekend is the last of summer, though for me it's felt like autumn for a few weeks already.

When I go out to feed the chooks in the morning I get covered in dew from the lemon verbena plant, also I'm not so keen to go to the school pool for an evening swim these days, firewood needs to be collected and stacked and bottling on the stove starts in earnest. Scoffing blackberries also signals autumn, as does the influx of seasonal workers to our town to pick apples, pears and kiwifruit.

However my shin is bruised from kicking myself!

I haven't planted enough pumpkins and am already craving pumpkin soup. The soup pot is not idle thank goodness, tonight it brews young rooster soup with corn, shallots, celery and carrots from the garden. There are already several containers of tomato soup in the freezer, as well as a good batch of tomato sauce in bottles. I added about a pound of redcurrants that were still hanging on the bushes, they were lovely and ripe, I just had to wait for the earwigs to run away before I put them in the pot . I'll need to pick more tomatoes this weekend before the stink bugs suck them to death .

My garden is about neck high in weeds, mainly fat hen and pas pallum grass, I'm surprisingly not bothered. I can find fresh food and herbs every night even if they are hiding. I've noted where the Elecampane and Echinecea are so I can harvest their roots for winter ailments. I probably should be venturing into beer making as well with the hop plant trying to take over the neighbourhood!

We're eating the Nashi today after noticing the neighbours chooks have started eating them through the fence. Willow the Jack Russell is getting the hang of chasing them off which I don't mind, though she's been a bit naughty lately going to the school to look for "skatey" almost every day, she knows he's not there I'm sure. How do you explain to a Jack Russel that he's OK he's just at High School now. I'm sure the teachers are getting fed up at sending PJ home with Willow. She's never been tied up in her life, so I don't know what to do?

Lastly my favorite plant stall has closed down for the season so I may have missed my flip on a whole lot of winter vege plants. I'm hoping that amongst the weeds that are seeding all over the garden that there's a few parsnip, kale, celery, coriander, leek and lettuce to tide us over. I do have some yams , leek, potatoes and broad beans to look forward to, as well as three trees of black boy peaches dripping with fruit...

Black boy fruit chutney, jam, dried- anyone?

Suede, Brain

The teen is getting quite good at juggling, but I'm sick of hearing the four of them fight over the juggling set so I made a trio out of suede. I sort of traced the pattern from a tennis ball, that turned out too big so the red head scored the first one. I made it smaller, tracing round the bottom of a glass. Very fiddly to sew but stuffed with sushi rice they are "spot on " according to the teen.
It's nice to see him juggling while he waits for the dial up to load. Good for his brain I'm sure.

Speaking of good for brains,
You'll recognise me in the supermarket because my kids, especially the red head will be saying "mum coke's not good for your brain eh? Are rice crackers good for your brain?
I probably refer to what I think is good for their brain a little too often, do you think?