Citrus season

Our citrus trees are full on at the moment, one particular orange tree is my favourite. 
Ages ago, I got a bit inspired to make marmalade

 and this lot of mandarins, tangelos, lemons, and oranges turned into quite a few of these

there are considerably less jars now than when I first made them, two people in this household are particularly fond of marmalade, it would seem!
I like making jam and preserves, I like that the abundance of the season can be spread over the year. I still have quite a few blackberries in the freezer from Summer, I have been adding them to cakes, muffins and smoothies throughout the year. This year we didn't bottle enough tomatoes to last us the whole year and now we've run out. I don't like having to buy tinned tomatoes, doesn't feel quite right.

'ello, 'ello

Just dropping in to my blog to say hello- this place feels like a bit of a holiday house at the moment.
Thanks to those of you who have emailed me to ask how I am getting on, it's very lovely and thoughtful. I didn't mean to stop hanging around, it just happened. (Ha, that reminds me of my daughter at the moment 'it's not my fault, I didn't do it!')


Guess what? This time 11 years ago, I had just become a mother. Jack was born, after a few years of trying to get pregnant, and a pregnancy where I had trouble believing that I actually would be 'get' a baby at the end of it...that sounds odd as I type it.
I remember not wanting to get my hopes up- my 'getting pregnant' hopes had been battered and bruised and maybe this translated to my 'being a mum/ having a baby' hopes generally. It meant I was rather under prepared in the 'stuff' department and my children never had a beautiful nursery... they did alright!
I really can't believe that was 11 years ago.  I wish I could work out how to get a photo from my new phone to this blog so I could show you the ace birthday cake I made for him- 'designed' by Jack (a Hawthorn footy club jumper!). 


Our Internet is annoyingly unreliable, just changed modems, but I don't think this is going to be much better. I can't upload any photos at the moment, so can't show you my latest 'Nikki project' or my marmalade, or my great gluten free chicken nuggets. Odd for me to do an all words post.


Nice to be here, I will try not leave it so long next time...but I suspect I have said that before.

Lucky, Lucky, Lucky

I mentioned that we have just had a visit from our German friends...look what came with them.

Reinhild was knitting for months and months before she got here, she bought with her 11 pairs of socks that she had knitted in various sizes and colours. One pair each for my mum and dad, a pair for me, and my crew (4 altogether) , a pair for my brother and his crew (also 4 altogether)  and a pair for my Aunty.

She used that wool that as you knit it up, it makes it's own pattern, it may have a name, being 'not a knitter', I am not sure. What an effort- the wool is really fine, would have taken hours. They are beautiful and warm and toasty.
I was slightly surprised when the 10 year old boy tried his on and exclaimed 'at last, some decent socks'...(like- "I am so glad you've visited and made me these socks, my mum makes me wear dreadful socks that are not warm and have holes in them"- that was kind of the implication! Poor neglected child...)

Rusty

I have been missing my blog...and yours too, actually- there hasn't been much blog reading or writing going on here. 
I was surprised to see 'last post on June 19th' though. Have I been busy trying to keep my head above water since then? I don't think I wanted to know that!


I have finished a few crafty things in that time though- a little cardigan (yes, knitting!)- given to it's new recipient without taking a photo first (because I was still sewing the buttons on moments before handing it over), the hexagon quilt- I love it, also, handed over to its new owner without a photo (still hand sewing the binding moments before handing that one over!)...I will get a photo next time I visit. Such a fun and pretty easy quilt to do.
The wristlet has been found- left it at my friends house- she lives around the corner but I haven't picked it up again yet, will take a photo when I get it back. It now has a big sister, which I also can't wait to show you. 


The mobile phone hasn't been found though. Do I really need one? I think the other one has gone for good and it's time to think about replacement. I am not like 'the young people' who do alot of their communicating via text messages, but I do enjoy abit of 'extra' communication with friends via text, and I have missed that. I don't actually use the phone much. I travel 100km (round trip, country driving) to work two days a week, so it's comforting having a mobile for 'just in case'...most probably 'just in case I run out of petrol!'


The noise makers are still here. It's been hard. I complained. I said earthworking noise, 10 metres from our house (at times, sometimes further away but still loud) from 7am- 5.30pm, 7 days a week (yes, really, and even on public holidays) is unreasonable. We are hoping they are nearly finished. Our channel has plastic lining so I think they must be nearly finished. Dodgy project.


Trees have been sent, markets attended and that will slow down soonish. I still think it's great to see so many people keen on growing their own fruit.

 Paddle steamers at Echuca
It was refreshing to be looking at Australia through fresh eyes, again. 

Amongst the chaos we had a short visit from our friends from Germany.
My parents are taking them to the airport today, their flight leaves in a few hours. These are friendships that have formed as a result of me being an exchange student to Germany in 1989! This time Tom, who is 9 was one of the visitors, he is first of the  '3rd generation' to cross the oceans for a visit.
 Ah, it was sad to say goodbye.

A visit to the Healesville Sanctuary

I am reminded though, that I need to plan better with my crafting, I need some portable craft on the go and accessible at all times. It helps to keep me grounded, sane, and in touch with who I am. 

makin' bacon

The pigs have had their worst day. 
Last year we got a mobile butcher to come and do the butchery type things. 
This year Mr. Apple and the 2 neighbours decided they could handle it...
This year I teamed up with some books, google and Pete (the Italian friend) to learn how to make bacon (pancetta, apparently).

It's been salted, now it's hanging and next week it's going to be smoked (above mentioned neighbour has a home made smoker, I wonder how that will go!).

It's time

It's that time of the year again.

Our 'season'. That is, the bare rooted fruit tree season. The trees are dug and now orders are being collated and sent. 
Our first market was on Saturday, in Violet Town (who does markets only in Winter?!). It was a good 'ease in' because it was gorgeous and sunny.
It was exciting to get a little mention in the 'Organic Gardener' magazine (page 19 if you read it).


My craft room is no longer my own, I am sharing it with the overflow of  parcels being packaged!

The last of our apples are on the trees, persimmons and pomegranates are fruiting.
It is great to grow your own fruit.

My creative space

There is a bit of sorting through fabric (that's a pretty fun thing to do), ironing, cutting and sorting into piles going on here today.

I am making a quilt out of Anna Maria Horner's 'Handmade Beginnings' book...I am just not sure whether I will crop the triangles on the sides to make in a rectangle...I might be more inclined leave it as a hexagon, or add bits (technical term) to the corners to make it a square. I will re-evaluate as I go I think.

This idea is it will end up looking something like this

.
I am still abit narky that my wristlet hasn't turned up and now my mobile phone has gone to join it, where the lost things are. 
Anyway, the most exciting thing is who this quilt is going to be for...I'll tell you soon, but at the moment, it's not my news.
Loads of other creativity going on- have a look over here.

Cushion arrival.

My postie brought me something special today.
It came all the way from New Zealand.
Leonie made it, for me. Actually this is the cushion living at her place, I haven't taken a photo of it living at my place yet. She worked out that I am in love with apple fabrics- and introduced me to that white and red one, I hadn't seen that before. 
What a bright, fun and happy cushion. I really like how cheerful it is. It's practically yelling- take me outside, sit on a seat in the sun with me, grab a cup of tea and the newspaper, some stitching or a jolly good book- don't you think?
Thanks Vic for organising a fun swap, I have been coasting around looking at other peoples cushions and it seems to me that people have put a lot of thought and love into their creations, which makes me smile and enjoy some goodwill in the world.

Swapped

I haven't participated in a swap for ages. Then Vic announced she was keen on a cushion cover swap and I decided I was quite keen on that idea too.
So mine has been sent off to it's new owner, and my fingers are crossed that she likes it. It's always a bit of a gamble! Surely she has it by now- I did send it off on Monday at 4.30pm but was informed I had already missed the post (I think it's a country thing!). 
I wanted it to be a surprise and thought she might guess it's for her (I am hoping there are a couple of favourite things in this cushion), but I think it will be in her mailbox before she reads this, if she ever does!

and the back...

I was umming and ahhing about whether to add a zipper closer or pillowcase closure. I ended up going with pillow case because, if she really doesn't like it, it's reversible (with more rounded corners)...this is the back, the front is the purple all over. 
It's quite a heavy cushion cover because I added batting and lightly 'stipple' quilted it, but that's hard to see in the photos. 

I wish I had better photography skills...or maybe I should blame my equipment?!
Cross your fingers with me that my cushionee likes it, wont you. It's kind of nerve wracking. 


Oh, OOPS,  I nearly forgot to say, the patchwork block is out of Elizabeth Hartman's book The Practical Guide to Patchwork, it's a pretty nice book! This is the first thing I have done out of it- and only one block, not the whole quilt...hmm, I'll just add it to the want to do list.


Speaking of which, the Tanya and Nicole project is boiling along and I have a wristlet to show you...but, well, it's kind of a long story, and well, I have misplaced it. There, I have said it.
I took it to Melbourne to show a friend (and forgot to show her!) and haven't seen it since. I have the strap. So, if I don't find it before to much longer I will be grumpily showing you my wristlet strap!
Does anyone else lose things? Drives me crazy!

Free range

Seriously, these pigs are taking the concept of 'free ranging' too far for my liking...

This is my front yard...

Front deck (poor puzzled Pippi dog- they are not scared of her!)

And my front door!
Usually they have a generous piece of paddock fenced off by a solar powered electric fence...but it hasn't been that sunny and well, obviously the battery backup is rather ineffective.
I am abit scared of them (they are pretty big!), Mr. Apple is away today (he's bringing home fence adjustments).
So I have shut the gates and am trying to remain 'alert but not alarmed' while the 3 little pigs have a jolly good forage in my space.


Note to dear friend Tan- do you still want to abandon your city life for a week on the farm- playing in the garden, enjoying the quiet and drinking cups of tea? The reality is not all sunshine and may involve some pig wrangling! On the other hand, if you were wanting to practice your circus skills this may just be the place for you!

As we speak

Welcome to my house.

Oh- wait, did I say welcome? I must have been mistaken...

As I sit here there is a lot of noise around me.
Chainsaws, trucks and other nasty loud things.
'They' are chopping my trees down.
Someone 'just doing his job' is chopping our trees down. 
And creating a lot of noise pollution in my usually quiet neck of the woods.

I don't like it.

A neighbour had 8 over 50 year old eucalypts cut down by the same people last week...no permit required. 
next post...the therapeutic benefits of having a blog?!

For those it's hard for

This blog post has written itself really, I wasn't planning to write today, but here I am.

I wanted to be a mum for a few years before I got to be one 

(I have PCOS, if anyone is familiar with it, it's a tricky hormone thing that can affect fertility)

Mothers Day was always hard.

Now I am a mum, and I feel thankful and grateful and I appreciate my two.

I don't take them for granted. I don't take being a mum for granted.

Today, I am enjoying being a mum.

I am also holding in my heart my friends (and those in general) who want to be mums, but aren't for various reasons.

I also don't take having a mum, alive, well, living 20km away, for granted.

During Uni, 4 of my friends mums died over a few short years.

Since then, some of my friends mums have died, some have got dementia.

Today, I have seen my mum and made a lemon tart for her.

For those of you whose mum isn't around, I am thinking of you, and holding you in my heart too.