A new week...

Mothers Day at home was lovely and relaxed. Blossom dropped over after lunch and stayed for the afternoon so her and I and Mr E kicked back on the couch to chat and watch some Midsomer with cool drinks and a delight in just being together. 

Look what she gave me. I've been waiting five years for a bottle of Vera Wang Princess, and aren't the earrings perfect too?!

Mr E also made a fuss by giving me a beautiful bouquet of pink flowers...

Monday morning came and as Mr E walked out the front door he made me promise to take things easy and continue allowing my sciatic nerve to heal. Truly, I never knew nerve pain could be so horrid. 

I've found that as well as sitting very straight in a firm supportive chair the pain is also eased by walking and periods of standing, so I did a lot of cooking through the day as kitchen time is happy time.

I roasted a pumpkin and its seeds in Morrocan spices for salads this week...

 Baked Mr E's favourite cake (Date, Ginger, Banana, Cacao and Pumpkin)...

...and made big pots of Chicken Korma and Spicy Lentil Dhal to serve on rice for dinner.

I made sure to cook enough for a couple of meals plus extra dhal to take to Blossom's later today...

Blossom is now in her third trimester and is following the doctor's orders and resting as much as possible. She still has some health issues which leave her exhausted and in a lot of pain much of the time, so being able to cook something extra for her and her DB once a week makes me feel as though I'm helping in some small way. Blossom is such a delight to my life and I know her own little girl will be just as precious to her.

The mailman arrived yesterday with my "A Year in the Garden" quilt back from Dawn who did the machine quilting for me. She's such a blessing! 

Originally I was going to finish this quilt top with ties and hand-quilting but now a few of my fingers are experiencing the effects of osteo-arthritis so large areas of hand quilting must be avoided.

The binding strips are ready to be folded, pressed and sewn down...

...so after I visit Blossom this morning and gather some fresh veggies from the grocer I'll finish the quilt, make a big pumpkin and haloumi salad to serve with some steak I'm marinating steak for dinner, and THEN I may just kick back and read one of my favourite English magazines with a big pot of Prince of Wales tea. The British mags arrive two months late in Australia but I don't mind...

Do you have something special to do this week?

I hope every day is simply wonderful for you!

hugs

Interactive and useful things...

I thought I'd share a few good links with you today; things you can participate in and things that are useful for monthly or yearly planning.

The Splendid Sampler:

When Jane Davidson and Pat Sloan invited me to be one of the 83 designers contributing to their brilliant 2016 sew along project, The Splendid Sampler, I couldn't refuse. 

Over a year there will be 100 free blocks shared with a mix of patchwork, embroidery, applique and paper piecing. No surprises that my block is an embroidery one, right?! 

You'll have to wait till late May to see my contribution to this project, but my goodness, what a bounty of gorgeous blocks you'll have to play with from other designers before then!

Click on THIS link to read all about The Splendid Sampler, and bookmark the page because there are two free blocks shared each week from February 14th....

Stitch-In Days:

Susan Nixon asked me last year if it was okay for her to open a new blog for those of you who stitch Elefantz designs, a blog where people could have link parties and build a sewing community.

After I picked myself up off the floor and the blush from cheeks faded, I said yes. 

Isn't she lovely!?

Now please remember, Stitch-in Days is not my blog  - it's Susan's - but it's built around her plan to sew one Elefantz design at a time and she asks you to join her. (and I think that's really cool)

Visit Susan's new blog HERE. The first linky party is up and running, too, so you can show your work from day one!

 2016 Planner Pages:

(free download) 

Kerryanne English of Shabby Art Boutique shares a new set of monthly planner pages each January, and they are always a feast for the eyes as well as being beautifully useful.

If you head over HERE you can download her set of 2016 pages. 

The new issue of The Stitchery Club was emailed to all members yesterday (completed on time by the grace of God) but if you're not a member and would still like to stitch the 'A Year in the Garden' project, I've uploaded the complete January issue HERE to my shop. This issue also includes the full quilt pattern for a final display.

 

Till tomorrow,

hugs

Family, and a finish...

It's been the most wonderful blessing to have two daughters and two granddaughters close by to hug and love this week.

Aisha and her family arrived on Tuesday and though we only had about 40 minutes together at the airport before they continued their travels across the waters to Magnetic Island, they returned by ferry on Wednesday for the best ever family dinner with Blossom, Ross, Mr E and I.

I had spent two days cooking a feast and had wondered at the time whether I'd made too much, but three men around the dinner table assured me there is never 'too much' food! Actually, the girls did a mighty fine job at clearing their plates as well. 

After dinner we walked by the beach and enjoyed ice cream on deck chairs overlooking the ocean until it was time for their ferry ride back to the island.

The funny thing is that we had such a wonderful time together that nobody remembered to take photos. The next day I lamented this, but only for a short while. We like to keep special moments a bit private, you know? And that evening was indeed a very special and memorable sequence of moments we each cherish.

Thursday I was sick. Migraine, body felt like it had been slammed into a wall, and tired like I couldn't remember being in years.  

Friday my body felt a wee bit better but the head continued to pound and my eyesight wasn't the best. A planned ride on the ferry to visit my girl and her loved ones had to be cancelled, and because my sweet Blossom was also unwell she could not go either. 

It's now Saturday and I'm on the mend, but Mr E has confined me to home so I can be 100% well for our final hours with the family on Sunday before they fly home again.

This wasn't what I'd planned or hoped for during their holiday in our region, but life often takes you on a path you'd rather avoid and I'm okay with that because I trust God knows best and can sort life out for us if it needs to be different. 

They needed a break away from home, from my son-in-law's six day work week, as a family unit with no distractions...especially as baby number three is due in April. They have rested, done lots of swimming, and today have a hire car to roam the little island and see different beaches and the markets before sitting back and watching the moon rise above the water from their harbour side balcony for the last time.

Tomorrow we'll pick them up from the ferry and head back to the beach for ice-cream and a cruise around the shoreline before their plane trip home.

I might even take photos.

 With so much happening this week, and then my mystery illness, I've been very slow at getting the final work completed for this month's Stitchery Club. In fact I'm still writing the last pages, but I shall put my nose to the grindstone this afternoon and get it ready to email Club members on Sunday afternoon.

The project sheet this month is a quilt pattern for displaying all twelve "A Year in the Garden" blocks...

The quilt top is still a flimsy but I shall endeavour to quilt it over the coming month or two. 

I'm thinking a mix of hand quilting and ties as I've never made a tied quilt before and I love the look of hand quilting, so using both techniques will be interesting. 

Hope your weekend is a happy one,

hugs

Barefoot in the kitchen...

I wasn't born to wear shoes.

Barefoot...that's my thing. And the kitchen is my thing too, so yep, I'm always barefoot in the kitchen.

Last night, barefoot in the kitchen, I baked the best loaf of spelt bread ever.

I tweaked a recipe from Paul Hollywood's book "How To Bake" (excellent by the way) by adding a little olive oil to the mix as well as a good helping of seeds - pumpkin, sesame, sunflower and flax. 

Mr E gave me his seal of approval over breakfast when we toasted freshly cut slices and lathered them with crunchy peanut butter, banana and honey...

If you'd like to try this bread I've just shared the recipe over HERE on my Cooked Simply With Love blog. There is also a download for you to save or print up.  

You'll get the recipe for my focaccia next week. Promise!

I'll be back in the kitchen today because my daughter Aisha and her family arrive on the plane from Sydney and they'll be wanting some of mum's home cooking while they're in town.

Well, actually, they're not going to be in town - they're catching the ferry over to Magnetic Island for a holiday but will be here for dinner with Mr E, Blossom, Ross and I tomorrow night. 

This will be the biggest family dinner since Christmas 2011! Rather excited.

I'm running behind in writing the Stitchery Club patterns this month and only just starting on the quilt piecing for A Year in the Garden...

...but it will get done in good time, so I'm pretty relaxed about it all and just doing what I can when I can.

Family comes first, you know?

Here's the final six blocks for A Year in the Garden, heading via email to members on the 17th along with the quilt pattern...

There's still time to join before the 17th.

Information is HERE on the Club page.

Have a lovely day, whether barefoot or in shoes...

A Year in the Garden : special offer...

I'm doing something new this month!

Today all my Stitchery Club members received their December patterns. This month they have the first six blocks of "A Year in the Garden" to stitch...

...and next month they will receive the July to December patterns.

But perhaps you're not a member of The Stitchery Club but would still like to stitch "A Year in the Garden"?

Each month I add the Club stitcheries to my shop as six single patterns for non-member purchase, but this month I have the full December issue available for instant PDF download, and I shall do the same next month.

Please note: This is a temporary offer.

The current issue containing the January to June blocks will only be available until January 16th.

On January 17th I'll have the remaining six designs for "A Year in the Garden" available for one month. 

Go HERE to my shop if you'd like to start stitching your own calendar blocks!

Oh, and I should mention that there's also a project sheet included with a tutorial for making a mini-quilt display.

Bless you heaps!