the beginnings of...

our vege patch.....this is the before....we have moved the snowdrops to a new location....and a LOT of grass to be dug out....
Carting away the grass etc with the tractor...amazingly the puppy enjoyed the ride!
Veges and herbs ready for planting...a bit premature I think as a fair bit more digging and compost, fertilizer and so on needed...
Missy chasing the rake!
Evangeline helping out too....and hopefully planting and seeing them grow will end in eating them too!!
So hopefully in a few days progress will be made and a vege patch will appear! But we are in for wild weather tonight and tomorrow so may have to wait a bit!
I am still working on the birdie mini album and guess since there is AFL on the TV tonight I will get a bit done as Ben will be claiming the TV!

And lastly a page of mine in the latest issue of For Keeps....

Hope you have a nice weekend planned! I am just hoping we don't have any power failures - Lissy

little things.....

Well I was pretty chuffed with E today.....she ate a ham and salad roll...I made one up with ham, lettuce, cheese, tomato, cucumber and mayonnaise...and she ate it ...without picking the bits out! And she said it was yummy!

I am busy working on Mel's " A little birdie told me" mini album available from Tarisota....it was SO cute I just had to get one! And I am really enjoying making it! I shall show you when it is done :)

The puppy decided this was a comfy way to ride in Ben's 4WD the other day! Or maybe she is safety conscious!!
E and Ben chatting on the phone....Ben was talking to his dad so E was copying!
Hope your week is ending well-Lissy

Prickly Pears

More stitching....this time "prickly pears"....pin cushions! I found this on another blog but cannot remember where so my apologies for that....

I made two...as the first one is HUGE..about 9" tall...lol.....so then I shrank the pattern and made a more modest pin cushion size one...about 6" tall including the stem....cute I think...to replace my sad mouse that I made about 15 years ago!!

I have secretly coveted Mel's tea cup pin cushion but figure the pear will do quite nicely!

Not much else happening here....tying to get started on the vege patch but the weather is hindering that...wet and windy and cold this week! I am hoping if E and I plant veges and grow them she might be keener to eat some more! We have strawberries growing in a hanging basket already!

Ben is off back to work on Sunday so back to just me and E for a few weeks...trying to get some jobs done before he leaves!

Hope you are having a jolly good week! Lissy

Trees

OK so here they are.....the trees like the very cute ones Mel made!

3 for Evangeline's room...using bits of fabric from the curtains I am making...
3 for the baby's room....have yet to work out curtains etc for that room but have found some cute fabric!
and 3 for Christmas time! Colours don't look to good here but you get the idea!
I need some more buttons and will add them later. E was very helpful when I was making with her nose about 2 inches away when I was stitching and then she helped stuff them! So they are not perfect but they are made and rather cute! The felt was a lot easier than the fabric and I need to try and flatten the bottoms a little I think!

Hope you are having a good week - Lissy

a bit of scrapping...

So I have managed a bit of scrapping this weekend...the colours may look a little strange as I cannot tell as the colours on my computer are a bit weird at the moment...this first layout didn't really work out as I had intended...not sure about this pp...but it will do! Struggled a bit with this layout too but it came together OK in the end......I made my own felt buttons for this one! And the circle overlay was made by Alli.... and I was pretty happy with this layout...quite pleased to get so many photos on one page....
I am gettign short on nice pp so may have to go shopping soon...but there is not much out I like at the moment...

Other things...my good friend Penne stopped in for afternoon tea on Friday...she teaches down south so we catch up most holidays...then another good friend Jo came for tea on Friday night...I have been trying out some new recipes....I made a Greek Filo Pie with spinach, feta, coriander and so on in it...it was rather nice...

The other night I made a really yummy Moroccan Chicken Pie with almonds and sweet potato in filo pastry...it was delicious and even E liked it! Yay! Yesterday I just made risotto with pumpkin, mushroom and broccoli....shall try a few more recipes this week I think! Trying to find things that are reasonably healthy that E will eat....so with some veges hidden in there somewhere! She is pretty good at eating salad but veges are a bit hit and miss!

Evangeline's cousins came for lunch today...she loves to have them over to play...3 girls on this side of the family...soon there will be four! I was looking at craft things last night again as I am not managing to scrap at night...so thought I should find something else to do...so will try a few trees with Mel! Maybe some Christmas ones first and then some for E or the baby's room...that could be cute!

Anyway hope you have had a nice weekend...it has been very wintry here...windy, cold and wet -but that is good really! Lissy

a day out....

Today we went to see "The Fairies" at His Majesty's Theatre...a friend booked the tickets and I wasn't sure about it all...this was E's first live show...but she was enthralled!

So I am glad we went! It was FAN-FAIRY-TASTIC ! The girls were dressed in their fairy dresses but I didnt get a good photo of them before hand really...

And we saw Sigrid Thornton being interviewed while we were having lunch before hand! She is in some show playing there soon...would be quite nice to go and see that....

Other than that not much happening around here...have nearly finished a couple of layouts after having done nothing for a while due to the flu....shall hopefully have them finished and share them tomorrow!

Hope your week is going well! We are in for a wet few days here - Lissy

Finally....

We have had our fetal anatomy scan today and all is well so I can introduce our Baby Girl....due December 5th...
3D is a bit scary looking isn't it....lol...

I was sure it was a boy as I have had morning sickness and had none with E...lol...so was a bit shocked when they said it was a girl!

But we do not mind...a healthy baby is all we want!

E is happy it is a girl...we only told her today as well and took her to the scan! She was rather excited! We said we were going to see the baby on a TV using a special camera but that it was too little to come out yet!

I should not be surprised it wasn't a boy though as I have been looking at names...as you do.... and there were no boy ones I was keen on....We only had one girl name for E at the time...no boy names...so shall have to start looking at girl names again! But we shall keep that a secret!

Ben is feeling out numbered and wants to take the puppy back and get a male...lol...

I am used to pink now and have been wondering what on earth I would do with a boy! Now it is decided!

So about 20 weeks of growing to go now! Have a great weekend - Lissy

did I say I wanted.....

sleep...surely not! I was on night duty!

A puppy is worse than a new baby! In between the puppy and my coughing I didn't sleep much last night!

Ben has de-bunked to the spare room while I am 'diseased'...which suits me as I do not have to worry about keeping him awake! And figuring he would sleep through anything regarding the puppy I decided it was my job...it whined and whinged a fair bit and snored and had dreams! I took it outside a few times and she did go to the toilet twice so that was OK..and it was quite warm last night....10C I think...

Anyway I feel a bit worse for wear today...think I over did it yesterday and so have spent most of today in bed! This is a bad flu!

The puppy is having longer stints outside in the yard by herself but she is not very impressed! She did have a snooze in her kennel though! She is getting good at staying on her mat inside.

Lucas, the cat has been very wary of the new addition today but has finally succumbed obviously figuring it was worth it to share the mat! Anyway Missy and Lucas are sure to be friends now! So that is it from here - Lissy

Here she is....

Burnside Sicilia.....a very gorgeous black German Short Haired Pointer...
We had planned on calling her Missy...then today we decided based on her official name that she should be Sissy....but I am afraid Missy has stuck! So Missy it is....
She has already established her self as E's dog....following her around and whining when she leaves ( Secretly I think Ben is a bit miffed...lol) And she has a new kennel..all from recycled wood and tin! Made by Ben! She wont use it much yet though..too little!
Anyway she is a lovely little dog and has settled in very well! Needless to say E is loving her to death! Lissy

work those abs......

yes...the perfect way to work out those abs....a good old fashioned cough...after a couple of days you will be cringing when you feel a cough coming on! And you will intimately know every last muscle in your entire torso!

oh look..I have managed a second post before Mel has visited...lol...

I have spent two days in bed...a major for me so needless to say this has been a bad dose of the flu....I feel more human today!

We are about to set off to get Missy...our new pup....Ben has been busy building a kennel for her! No walls or floor yet but a very sturdy frame! So stay tuned! Bound to be a few photos later!

Lissy

sunshine again.....

Yes...another nice day here - only about 17 - 18C but sunny :) Yesterday was wintry and wet though! We were at my aunt and uncle's to catch up with my cousins who were visiting from Melbourne. It was lovely to see them and we had a delicious lunch! My aunt always makes great curries and things :) We had sweet potato and red onion soup, Moroccan chicken, a curry and then orange souffle...all yummy!

Then I got sick....and was in bed by 7pm....so today I was feeling miserable....a cough mainly....so spent most of the day in bed..and didn't get to enjoy the nice day.....poor me :( and I had to cancel a facial, lunch out for a friend's birthday today and a play day with my mum's group tomorrow! Hopefully E and Ben won't get sick!

Ben did some fencing for the arrival of the new puppy on Wednesday....we are on a large 5 acre block so we have fenced off a small part of the "house yard" as it is about 1 acre....and we have to sort out the kennel.

I did manage a coupe of quick layouts before succumbing to illness...lol....

Now I am off to bed....at 7.40pm! And hopefully I am not in trouble for a lack of updates....lol....Hope your week has started better than mine! I plan to have another lazy day tomorrow! Lissy

nice day....

Weather wise it was lovely and warm here today! Not sure of the temperature....but 20+C I would imagine...so I had windows open...love that! Winter yes but we are spoilt here in Perth!

I spent most of the day clearing out the spare room and sorting clothes and toys! It took quite a bit longer with E's assistance! My gorgeous friend Jen visited yesterday with her gorgeous 6 month old Imogen...so I loaned her some toys and clothes!
Then this afternoon we went up to Alli and Michael's....E loves the boys and they had a great time playing...including rolling down the front lawn into a pile at the bottom!
and pretending to be trees!

The joys of childhood!

I enjoyed having a chat to Alli and Michael, having a great iced coffee and yummy fresh chocolate cake for afternoon tea....and going home armed with some more freshly roasted beans! I can't remember the varieties but they smell fabulous! YAY! I should have nicked the chocolate cake and bought that home too...lol...

Anyway that is about it here! Off to my aunt's for lunch tomorrow as my cousins are over from Melbourne. Hope you are having a good weekend! Lissy

Meet Missy

Well here she is.....Missy....our soon to be newest family member...there were 9 puppies...all gorgeous! We will get her in about a week. Evangeline was not keen on leaving her behind!
And today was the end of term concert...E was the Fox in Hattie and the Fox....a last minute change as up until yesterday she was was Hattie but the little boy who was to be the Fox changed his mind! So E did a great job although she had a wardrobe malfunction when her ears fell off while hiding under the bushes! Then then sang a song about a bird....amazing effort for 3 year olds! My photos weren't great but better than nothing!
And Happy Birthday to Mel...looks like she was spoilt rotten as you should be on your birthday!

Hope you have had a good week and have nice things planned for the weekend! Lissy

a few pages.....

Hmmm...well....not much going on around here...have done a few more pages though...

Another scrap lift of Mel Goodsell...this time of her Slurp it Up layout...I tried really hard to scrap lift this one almost exactly...lol...but didn't manage it! And this one is pretty simple but happy with how it turned out...colours look a little washed out here...
Another plain one...a scraplift of a layout by Jamie Waters....except that hers wasn't crooked...lol..but once you put that tape down it is stuck! So it had to stay crooked!

A really simple layout....not sure if I like it or not...maybe too plain....and I did not paint the buttons well enough! Too impatient!
And this one worked out quite well...really love this patterned paper...colours don't look quite right here...
And I did do one other layout but gave up on it...I think it was because I needed yellow and purple and I don't like these colours much as so my supplies are limited...and it didn't quite come together....I shall share it anyway...

So that is about it....a bit of dodgy scrapping! Oh well!

Other news....Ben is home!

and we are going to look at the new puppy tomorrow! Another German Short Haired Pointer...A new Lulu...but black this time... She was such a fantastic dog :)

Anyway hope your week is going well! Lissy

scraplifting.....

After not having managed to do anything creative for ages, I decided to scrap lift Mel...and I told her I was going to do so, so I thought I had better actually get on and do it...lol...

I love how she uses interesting combinations of patterned papers and colours and layers on her pages combined with stitching and distressing! And she scraps everyday stuff! One very talented girl!

And this first one is a lift of her page "Vintage"...I loved her black and red colours so much more than mine but you have to work with the photo!

the next is a lift of "Laundry Love"...loved how she used torn patterned paper and then squared it up with the stitching.....perfect for these school photos...
Then I managed a page mostly on my own....lol...I put down the scraps of pp and photo and did the stitching ( some more of Mel influence there) and then figured I could actually use Megan's Sketch...which she did for the Scrapbooking Sketches Oz Style site....and so finally use these flourishes which have been sat here for at least a year if not more....so this is technically a scrap lift too...the stitching is a bit wild as my machine is not cooperating very well at the moment...really happy with this one! The colours are looking a bit odd on here as the purple is a lot lighter....oh well!

I have a big mess on my desk as I am in the middle of making a mini album...but thought I would leave it for a bit and just get on with some scrapping...so pretty productive today! The album might actually be done and ready to share in a couple of weeks...just mulling over a few ideas for it!

Next I might actually get on with the curtains for Evangeline's bedroom! I think I have gradually nutted out what I want to do for these...I should have just sewed some plain curtains but no I had to come up with something creative that is proving a bit tricky to actually orchestrate as yet!

And finally on this wet Sunday E had an absolute ball out side in the really big puddles...eventually she abandoned her boots and clothes too....oh the joys of being a child!

Stay tuned - Lissy

a recipe

I just thought I might share one of my favourite recipes....

It is Pasta with Roast Sweet Potato and Feta...by Donna Hay in her Marie Claire book Cooking ...it is totally delicious and I make it quite regularly...it is pretty quick and simple to do as well!

750g sweet potato (kumera)
sea salt
olive oil
3 leeks, chopped
1 TB fresh rosemary
500g pasta
2 TB butter
185g marinated feta, chopped
250g baby English Spinach leaves
cracked black pepper
Grated Parmesan cheese

Peel and chop potato into 1" chunks , toss in oil and salt, place on baking tray and bake at about 200'C (400'F)for about 30 minutes until soft and brown.
Place oil in frying pan, add leeks and rosemary and cook for about 7 minutes until leeks are soft and golden.
Place pasta in large saucepan of boiling water and cook until al dente
Drain pasta and place in a large warmed bowl
Add sweet potato, leek mixture, butter and feta and toss to combine.
Place piles of spinach on warmed plates and top with pasta, pepper and Parmesan (the spinach wilts under the warm pasta)

note - I use the oil from the marinated feta instead of butter...yummy!

It is a nice dish to serve for an informal meal with friends too - very tasty! No meat but men even like it....lol...

Enjoy....back with some layouts soon....Lissy