Packing our bags.....

.........or at least we should be!  We leave on Saturday for our trip to the Gold Coast, Australia.  Everyone is super excited about this holiday, first time in a really big plane for the girls, they tell me there are only two sleeps to go. Yippee!!!   If there are any Aussie stitchers reading who could point me in the right direction for stitching/quilting shopping in the Gold Coast/Brisbane area I would be most grateful.  I recall a stitching shop in Pacific Fair about fifteen years ago, but it may or may not still be there now. 

Well, it has been a busy week here, I had the most wonderful time at our family reunion last weekend, catching up with relatives, and meeting a lot more that I never knew existed.  Some of the old photos and stories were amazing, and it was such a neat feeling to be among a huge group of people and know that you were all connected, via the same ancestors.  Lots of fun! 

There hasn't been a great deal of stitching by me, only a small start on my A Gardener's Journal stitchery.

but look what someone has been stitching(or knitting I should say!). 

Pretty good effort, don't you think?  My girls, Miss 7 and Miss 9 asked if I could teach them to knit.  The idea bought me out in a cold sweat, as I can remember learning to knit at their age, and I can distinctly remember tears, and lots of holes and runs in my first attempts at knitting.  I did eventually master the basics, but was really worried if I had the patience or skills for teaching my girls.  The colour of the needles seemed to be more important to them than the size, so now we have one project growing quicker on larger needles than the other.  There have been a few dropped stitches and repair jobs made by me, but overall they are doing great.  At this stage they are thinking a scarf, however Miss 7 is losing interest a little, so maybe this will be a little peggy square instead.  Perhaps I should have had them knitting with cotton, and they could be making some dishcloths for me!  It was lots of fun, and lovely that they are keen to learn.  They have both already had a go at cross stitch and stitchery, with pretty good results.

I want to say a huge thankyou for all of the kind comments that have been left for me recently.  I love reading your thoughts, and really appreciate you stopping by.  I will be AWOL till the end of the month, but will catch up after that.

Till next time..... Nicky

Finally some Lizzie Kate pics

It's been a gorgeous day here today, so have finally taken some outside pics of my progress on Lizzie Kate Christmas Spirit Flip-it Series.  It has been a pretty quick stitch for me - when I started it seemed so big, but it's come together fast(so far anyway).

     

Won't be too much stitching for me in the next couple of days, I'm attending a family reunion over the weekend, where we are commemorating 135 years since my paternal great-great grandparents and their family of 7 children left Ireland for New Zealand.  My older brother is flying in from the UK tomorrow, so it will be great to see him again. I've never attended anything like this before, so am really looking forward to it.

Till next time - happy stitching!

It's been a while ........

Since I had an update here.  I hope you had a fabulous Easter, our girls are now on school holidays for two weeks, they are both due for a well-earned rest.  In about 10 days time we are going on a family holiday to the Gold Coast, Australia with another family.  Everyone is very excited, it is the girls first time on a plane since they were babies(they're now 7 & 9), and they are also anticipating lots of fun at Dreamworld, Seaworld etc.  Their passports arrived recently, and that just raised the excitement level a little more.   We are leaving right at the end of the school holidays, so they are also pretty pleased to be getting an extra week off school! 

During Easter we visited Te Anau, a lakeside town in Fiordland.  We took our jetboat and got a couple of days in playing on the lake.  It is getting pretty cool down South now, but we all rugged up to keep warm and had lots of fun.  Friends of ours were there as well with their boat, so all the children had a great time too.  A bit cold now for waterskiing and tobogganing but the kids had a go at  fishing(with not a lot of success tho!)  Boats look a bit squished in this pic - oops!

Fiordland is one of the most beautiful parts of New Zealand, and one of the most popular places for overseas visitors is Milford Sound, which you get to via Te Anau.  If you ever get the chance to visit there, it is unforgettable scenery.  We didn't drive into Milford this trip, but will take the girls there one day soon.  

In stitching news, in a moment of madness yesterday, I signed up for a Stitch Along for A Gardener's Journal quilt, designed by Anni Downs of Hatched and Patched.  I have had this book for some time, and am hoping that the inspiration of others all stitching the same thing at the same time will give me the encouragement to get this quilt finished.  It really is so beautiful, with lots of stitchery and simple piecing.  Below are the fabrics I intend using.  The fabric under the book is the gorgeous floral border fabric I purchased for this a couple of years ago.  

Over Easter I have continued stitching on my Lizzie Kate Christmas series, sorry still no pics though, but I am about half way done now.  I am determined not to abandon it now, and to actually finish it. Wish me luck!!

OK, time to get some dinner for everyone, catch you again soon.