We had a great day yesterday ... we do a "big day out" every holidays, it's our one expensive day - the rest of the holidays we'll go out walking, or to the playground, free shows at the mall etc ... but I give them one "big" day, that I must say they look forward to, and even more so I think, because it is a real treat.

So yesterday we headed off to Porirua (about 30mins drive away) and went to the movies (me and the three youngest to Robots and the two older boys to The Pacifier), then lunch at McDonalds, then the pools - which has a water slide and other water blow up toys/slide things, then to the new mini-golf they had there. We had a few bickering incidents where I was ready to take them all home again, but mostly it was a good day - they were all pretty tired and asleep quick last night!

Today I need to catch up on some soccer work, Rhiannon has a gymnastics class from 10 until 2, need to do grocery shopping, a few loads of laundry ... oh the joys of running a household. I'm working tonight and will take in some soccer stuff that I'm behind in, but hopefully I'll get time to stitch as well.

I'm stitching a RR at the moment, it is a collection of bookmarks and I'm not sure what the fabric is, but it is awful - I think it's supposed to be aida, but I think it's very old, or something - it's taking me a lot longer to stitch what is pretty much a simple pattern than it normally would, I'm really have to watch where I'm putting the needle and having to turn it upside down a lot of the time to make sure the needle is going in the right place at the back ... I'll take a scan when I'm finished - it looks okay, but it's not the most enjoyable thing I've done!

Okay ... can't put it off any longer ... time to do the house stuff ...

A finish!

It feels so nice to actually finish something - I seem to have been stitching bits of things for ages.

Here is The Book Shelf by Little House of Needlework - stitched on 32ct Linen hand-dyed from Silkweavers - Golden Harvest.



Not sure how long it took hours wise - it took about two weeks I think. My stitching has been pretty spasmodic lately - I get the odd day where I get a few hours in the afternoon (mainly because its school holidays so not as much rushing around as usual) ... and 2-3 evenings a week where I get to sit for a few hours. At the moment my evenings are scheduled like this -

Monday - soccer meeting or shooting
Tuesday - HOME and stitching!
Wednesday - stitching group or shooting
Thursday - work
Friday - work
Saturday - usually home
Sunday - usually home

Of course that does change - like this week I have a soccer meeting on Tuesday night - much to my disgust, that is Amazing Race night and usually the only night I know I will be at home and stitching. Wednesday night I'm working an extra shift.

It's a holiday here today (Monday) - ANZAC day to remember all our brave soldiers who fought in the wars - the date is an anniversary date of the landing at Gallopi in WWI ... but the day remembers all soldiers, all wars.

It's suddenly turned very wintery and it's raining and cold outside ... a good day to stay home and stitch. I have one leotard to finish sewing, I might trace and cut out the skirts I plan to make the girls as well. Otherwise I'll find time for a walk, and spend the rest ofthe day stitching.

Ugh ... not sure if it is my pc or Blogger - but I'm having really bad lag typing this!

Now to go fiddle with my format here ...

A Quiet Saturday

Middle weekend of the school holidays, a long holiday weekend = no Saturday morning sport, yay!

Of course, we have Rhiannon's soccer tomorrow - they are getting her grade together for a kick-around before the season starts. I have a rep shoot tomorrow afternoon ... and Cameron will have soccer training on Monday - we couldn't possibly go for a whole weekend without any sport - but a free Saturday morning IS nice!

Stitching wise I'm nearly finished The Bookshelf - I should finish it today/tonight and have a picture ready later on. I've really enjoyed this one, I'm hoping to find a frame the right size and frame it myself, otherwise it will end up in my growing pile of unframed things that I can't afford to get professionally framed.

Not sure what to stitch next - I might stitch a couple of ornaments. Or do the next part of The Kiss, or the kit like I should, or ... or ... I dunno. It will be nice to have something finished though - I seem to have worked on big things with no end in sight, or RR's all of this year.

That will do for now ... I need to go have a shower and get moving :)

School Holidays!

I think I'm one of the few mothers that actually like them! LOL ... I love the not having to rush in the mornings, the not having to make school lunches, the freedom of doing what we want, rather than trying to fit in all the drop offs, pick ups, sports training etc etc.

Okay, okay, I don't like the bickering that sometimes goes with it, the having to feed five children plus usual extras at lunchtime ... the no time at all alone ... but on the good definitely out weighs the bad. I've got to say though that our children play pretty well together most of the time, they have the usual arguments (they're definitely not perfect angels) but they also have the wonderful ability of being able to go outside and play cricket on the driveway, or soccer in the back yard, or tag or whatever ... as well as play board games etc inside ... AND include the younger sisters, even if it is just letting the 3yo hold the counters or whatever.

Stitching wise (as this IS supposed to be a stitching blog) I'm stitching The Bookshelf, and loving it - it's nice to stitch something which I know I will finish fairly quickly, rather than a big Mirabilia which I know will take months rather than weeks. I *should* be stitching the Lighthouse Kit, but will go back to it when I've finished The Bookshelf ... I know you stitchers out there can understand the need to finish something!

I'm planning on sorting out my chartes and magazines over the next couple of weeks ... I'm beginning to forget what I've got, I need to catalogue them somehow and then put them in some sort of order of what I plan to stitch, my stash and "want to do's" are out of control.

Okey dokes ... off to tidy the house, then do the soccer banking and send the monthly cheques out ... and then we might go and see one of the free Tweenie shows at the mall.

Saturday Afternoon

:) time to go and stitch!

I've been to my first shooting champs for the season and shot miserably ... losing weight has meant my jacket is too big, I need to do something about that, I'm hoping moving the buttons will fix it. We have trials for our big North Island match next week, so I'm hoping it fixes it ... fingers crossed.

Stitching wise - I haven't been doing a lot ... still plugging away on the Lighthouse Kit ... it is getting there. I also started The Bookshelf (Little House of Needlework) for a little light relief.

Otherwise life is the usual ... too busy with soccer things, too busy with running around after kids ... just plain too busy. This afternoon I'm going to go sit and stitch, then go for a bikeride, then a quick dinner and stitch the evening away ... my idea of a great Saturday night! LOL

April Goals

Here we go ... nearly half way through the month already, but that's okay.

This month I plan to work on the Lighthouse kit ... a lot, I really want a good chunk done, I'd like to get it finished but I think that is being a bit hopeful.

So -

Lighthouse Kit as much as possible - definitely finish right half, and start a good chunk of other half.
Bookmark RR
2nd piece of Sleeping Beauty
3rd piece of The Kiss
Little Needleworks - Women Writers (Can't remember the proper design name, I'll change this later).

I don't really think I'll get SB or The Kiss done, but figured I'd put it in for inspiration!

March Round-Up

These were my March goals (seems so long ago!)

Carry on working on the Lighthouse Kit until end of Sunday - I didn't really do this, I did work on it a wee bit, but nearly much as I should have.
1st section of Sleeping Beauty - Done!
Stitchers Haven RR - Done!
2nd section of The Kiss - Done!
Xmas Mystery - Done (Part 3 and 4)!

... and maybe if I have time - start Petal Fairy - no time to start this ... not sure when that will happen :(

I didn't keep track of time this month, I just don't seem cut out to be able to do that ... too much getting up and down and other things happening in my life me thinks.

Shhhhhhh ...

Charlotte is asleep, the other kids are at school, it's all quiet!

Tuesday 9.55am here - I've dropped the kids off at school, been for a 40min walk ... and promised myself I would work from 10-12 on soccer lists and accounts, then I'll go for a bike ride ... I want to keep the ticker at the top here moving downwards :)

Then! this afternoon I plan to stitch, for at least an hour ... I used to stitch every afternoon, more unusual if I didn't than if I did, lately I'm lucky if I get one quiet afternoon a week ... so today I'm making an extra effort to get through the work so I can reward myself with a quiet afternoon ... I can't wait!

Some stitchy pictures -

I've got about five minutes before I pick up the kids from school ... so just quickly, here are some pictures I've just uploaded -

Parts 1-4 of Chatelaine's Christmas Mystery II -



The Kiss - two of eight parts completed -



and an updated on my never-ending lighthouse kit, once I've finished the corner I'm doing (righthand corner looking at the picture), I'll have done about half of it - the other half is bigger blocks, it includes a big sailboat, so I'm hoping it will work up faster than the bricks and greenery have on this side!



Catch you later :)

A to Z about me ...

I've seen this from a few blogs and copied it from the lovely Katrina's :)

Accent: Kiwi (New Zealand)
Bra size: 38D (going down though!)
Chore I hate: Any cleaning, I never seem to have the time ... and it always seems to be a rushed job.
Dad's name: Jack Watson
Essential make-up: local - none, work - mascara, eyeliner
Favorite perfume: Don't know ... nothing to flowerly or chemical smelling, they make me sneeze
Gold or Silver: Gold
Hometown: Paraparaumu, New Zealand
Interesting fact:
Job title: Job 1 - Word Processing Operator, Job 2 - Administrator (Soccer), Job 3 - Mother (not necessarily in that order! LOL)
Kids: Five - David 13.5, Josh 10.5, Cameron 9, Rhiannon 6 and Charlotte 3.
Living arrangements: 4 bedroom home with DH and kids.
Mom's Birthplace: Taihape, New Zealand
Number of apples eaten in last week: About 4?
Overnight hospital stays: 5 (for each of the kids)
Phobia: Getting trapped between the sea and a cliff.
Question you ask yourself a lot: Why have I never got any time spare?
Religious affiliation: None ... but consider myself "Christian" (grew up in a very Athiest family)
Siblings: 2 older sister (Aileen 44 and Dianna 43), 1 older brother (Willie 38), 3 younger sisters (Julie 34, Stephanie and Georgina 30 - Steph and George are identical twins) and 1 younger brother (Joel 24)
Time I wake up: 6.30am most mornings.
Unnatural hair color: Blonde with terrible dark roots that I need to fix up.
Vegetable I refuse to eat: Silverbeet
Worst habit: Needing to snack while I read.
X-rays: About 20yrs ago for a fractured ankle - unless ultrasounds for the kids counts?
Yummy food I make: Dunno ... I tend to cook what we need! LOL
Zodiac Sign: Capricorn

Back into it ...

Back into blogging, I hope ... the longer I left it, the more I didn't know where to start - so I've decided to start over LOL

Life has just been plain busy, the start of the soccer season is always busy, plus we just seem to have become a very busy family.

I have been stitching, I will up date my March Goals and write out April's sometime later, maybe this afternoon.

We've only got two playing sport this morning, DH has gone with David for his final cricket match, a parents vs kids game, and I'm taking Cameron to his soccer game - he is playing in the top team in his grade and therefore in the Wellington Promotional League, rather than the local league like Josh, Rhiannon and David will be - they start in a few weeks. So for a couple of weeks we are only split between two children, much easier than usual!

I'm hoping to start making some leotards for Rhiannon and Charlotte this afternoon ... maybe I'll have pictures later :)

Lets see if I can keep this blog going this time ...