a catch up

Finished: Some mitts for me! Pattern is Reading Mitts on Ravelry.

Maaike's fourth birthday started bright and early.

results of a painting morning from us four that are home during daylight hours.

They really enjoyed the painting, though at times the process overwhelmed me!  Note to self:Next time have it all set up before toddler starts washing hands in water jar and 4 year old paints the table! Also art smocks would be good!

 I am tired but inspired this week after hooking up with some other home schoolers and talking about what they do. Actually just knowing there are others like us, even if we all do things our own way is good. There are even other homeschoolers down the street! ( Believe me our road is so rural, its surprises me sometimes there is anyone down the street, especially on foggy mornings!)

So inspired I am and have to knuckle down and provide more for the children, and do it alongside I think. Not lessons as such but definately experiences with variety as the spice of life?

My W.I.P s are some homespun socks for Anoushka ( two at a a time on circs, how hard can it be?), spinning some raw fleece in the grease and trying to learn to handcard from  googled sites; videos aren't any good for slow dial up like this!

The blanket for girls is taking some time out and I am trying to find time for sewing overpants , new cushion covers for  lounge, an obi belt for me and more pants for the young lad. 

what inspires you and what are you making?

Birthday preparations

 Seeing as I hadn't realised just how fast a fourth birthday has crept up I have been rather stressed and busy!
Last weekend we were lucky enough to have my father visiting too so lovely busy times.  Have more cooking and baking to do for tomorrow....

so far

So far...  we have got a cat and 5 chooks! Dug over some vege garden, planted broad beans and transplanted strawberry plants and a rosemary bush from poole st house. We have unpacked everything except all the books and the adults clothes. today we read a story about the letter P ( in a very roundabout, Oak meadow curriculum way), and did pictures of P in our workbooks,  divided and planted a  clump of daffodils, baked bread from scratch ( though not sourdough so none for me).

                                

The cat called mittens or slofjes came from the spca and  is very tolerant! She came from a family with children and is about 12 months, they moved I think? She is very loved! ( all sorts of lessons happening here... how when animal s hide under the bed they might need some space....), the chooks are brown shavers from the BUy, sell,swap, a local  mag, very interesting to read, actually!
There is lots more to do!

A place of our own ( well kind of)

We are here!!!! Finally! Well we've been  here a week but they only connected our phone line today, so I couldn't communicate till now! And it snowed on the mountains close by us last night! Our move into our home ( a converted woolshed) seems to have coincided with the arrival of winter, which is great as I have been looking forward to a Dovedale winter for a while. We feel like we've come home. ( we lived in the house next door when I had Maaike, she tells everyone she was born there, in the kitchen. it snowed in our valley that night too). The kind of? Well we don't own it. But we can stay as long as we like and we can use the land ( about an acre?) as we like.

I have forgotten how slow dial up can be, and how many photos our digital camera can store.Expect some retrospective shots over coming weeks, he he. And now some pictures.

The children spread out and  play with new-old toys, outside the house, and the snowy mountains.

more yarn

 Maaike started trying to knit earlier in the year, but needed a bit of help, but yesterday, while I was untangling bits of wool she found her knitting and polished off four whole rows with only a quick reminder of the rhyme we use. the shot is a bit grainy though, woops!I had a play on my spinning wheel ( a new to me one, donated by a colleague of my husband, rescued from her garage), playing with how skinny I could make the singles, using scrap bits of fibre that a few months ago I couldn't spin, plying them together etc. Fun!

 The two fibres used here are in natural colours but I have no idea what sheep they came  from. Finally confirmation of moving day! This friday we finally move our stuff into our rural rental and start to make it our home!

Opshop finds and knitted things

In between holiday (though of course we are not on holiday) accommodation on Monday we went into Richmond and it was one of those good days for second hand and junk finds! Great even!

Some lovely old copies of one of my favourite series of books; little women by Louisa M. Alcott, a great vintage book called Pookie and the Gypsies. Some old cot sheets, a beautiful tea tray, some old half finished linens and rolls of embroidery floss. Not pictured, some old cups and bowls.

This week I finished some mittens for Maaike using some of my prettiest yarn  leftovers and some of the samples from my Blendy yarn sampler box. But don't look too closely, as I obviously didn't conccentrate hard enough making the second mitten and she has two the same.... the pattern is playground mitts from Ravelry. she doesn't seem to mind...

In April was Tobin's birthday and I think i forgot to post photos of the things I knitted for him ( that he hasn't the patience to wear yet), so here they are!

A hat from tot toppers, and more playground mittens, but adjusted for a smaller size. Just fewer rows really , all the shaping I kept the same. His I managed to get right!

On the house front, It seems that we will get to move  into our rented Dovedale home, but we are still not sure when... It was supposed to be today, but we are kind of lucky its not as it is actually raining here in sunny nelson today! Pouring!Have a nice weekend, I'll be knitting, off to the nelson library and baking fresh bread today. You?

breathe out

Hedgerow socks from Ravelry.

Saartje-inspired bootees also found on Ravelry. ( The whole family now have a pair each, mum and dad included! watch out you could get a pair next, they are addictive and quick!)

Still life in kitchen.
A change of scene this week ( we really are gypsys at the moment!). A bach in Kina Beach near Tasman, kindly organised by a friend and just in time for my sanity. Even better, just 50 metres from the beach!Its the little things that make this resting space wonderful: grass, trees and tuis(native birds with beautiful song) feeding from them, a full size fridge, and oven, space for the children to play away from my feet.
Its been good for the whole family, for even though the change is hard particularly for the smallest in the family, the space has been good for everyone's creativity. Anouhska has started to read books on her own ( fiercely on her own), accepting help only on her terms. not surprising really as that is how i find most children are about learning new skills. How often have we heard wee toddlers saying emphatically "I Do it!!!"