I'm So Excited!!!

I've just been for a test drive, and a Putting-Up-The-Roof lesson, and a Making-Up-The-Beds lesson on my friend Jane's campervan!!!!!
Glorious Jane (as she is to be known from here on in) has lent me her Beautiful Campervan for the Half-Term Hols!!!!! I have wanted a campervan since time began, so this is truly a dream come true.
So.....You won't be hearing from me next week, as The Partner, The Son and I shall be off. Travelling.
(I should mention at this point, that The Partner is less than keen, but, bless him, is trying to find his Spirit of Adventure, from wherever he left it last time. The Son has been kept in the dark, so he'll get a fabulous surprise. He knows that we're camping, but is presuming we're taking our tent. I can't wait to see his face, when he realises we have the much coveted camper!)
Now, I'll wish you all some lovely holidays, and I'll meet you back here in a week, with lots of stories about our latest adventures.
Glorious Jane....Thank You...xx

I Feel Another Soapbox Coming On....

Be warned......I'm preparing for a rant. Step away now....it might get ugly.
I have just spent the last two hours writing up reports, backing up with photographic evidence, for six children. These children are not preparing for GCSE's or A-Levels. That, I could perhaps accept more readily. No. The eldest amongst them is just 4 years old, the youngest 2.5 years old.
Two hours of my life, spent amongst my most loathed paperwork, that I'll never make back. And that doesn't even touch on the last 4 weeks of uploading data, and photos, onto a new whizz-bang-wallop computer programme, destined to callibrate every waking minute of the little poppets' lives, into categories such as "Expressive Art & Design" or "Communication & Language". Is it just me, or do they sound like course titles in an Adult Education Evening School brochure?
Please don't misunderstand me. I adore working with children. I love the children in my care. I enjoy the relationship I have with parents. I like and value my colleagues. I JUST DETEST THE PAPERWORK!
I absolutely understand the need to ensure that children are nutured, to grow with their enquiring minds, to feed their natural appetites to learn and experience life. I understand that it helps if notes are made and kept, so that you can support the child as he steps forward on his journey. I just completely disagree that we pigeon hole these precious little ones, pushing and pulling them to fit boxes and tick sheets. And believe me, that's precisely where our pre-school education is leading us.
What happened with getting down alongside the child and simply enjoying shared time together? What happened to allowing the child to lead, while you followed quietly in her footsteps? Perhaps a few Important People in Education Policy Making in Whitehall (who haven't been near an infant in the last 20 years) would do well to read some of Maria Montessori's work....Children haven't changed....Only the way we try and mould them.
There. I think that's pretty much me done now. Sorry! (Sort of!!)
Bet you're glad you popped by!! xx

Problems Afoot....

There are, quite literally, problems afoot. Or should that be "a foot"??
Let me explain.....The Partner and I share a car. When I say "share", what I really mean, is that we both feed and care for it, but HE gets to drive it. But that's another story for another day......
Because of said "sharing", The Partner will often drive me to work, and once there, help me to set up for the day. But the day before yesterday, disaster happened. As he pulled a noticeboard from a cupboard, he managed to dislodge the large A-frame board, which flew out of the cupboard, triple somersaulted, before landing squarely on The Partner's Toe. Ouch!! (I have had to paraphrase just there.....suffice to say that the air went SEVERAL shades of unpleasant.)
Well, The Partner limped (not so) valiently through the remainder of the day, with much huffing, puffing and general groaning punctuating his hobbling, before deciding that the dawn would bring The X-Ray Department.
Morning duly arrived, I was dropped at work -no offer of help, when there's the possibility of proof that every bone known to man, in the general foot region, has been crushed to within an inch of it's life-and off raced The Partner to our local A&E.
A while later, the verdict was in.....With a prevailing wind, and a jolly good squint, there was a small glimmer of a chance (hope??) that there might, indeed, be a teensy crack.....and evidence of.....(please whisper now...The Partner is in denial...) arthritis. Poor old soul...
I, on the other hand, am in excellent (arthritis-free) health, and took the opportunity of a rare afternoon off to make up a couple more stars......

Almost there, I think....

........See you soon. xx

A Little Bit Nervous......

I follow quite a few patchwork related blogs, and have always been a teensy bit envious of various swaps that others have been involved in.
For those of you less fluent in patchwork blogs (maybe other crafty blogs do them too?), swaps are organised and co-ordinated so that people are paired up, make whatever it is that has been agreed upon, and then...Ta-Da....swap their work. I think you get a little profile about your swap buddy, so that you can tailor your project a bit, to suit their personal taste, but as I've never done one, I'm only guessing at this from what I've read.
But all that is about to change. I have put my name forward on an Australian blog that I follow gemini-stitches.blogspot.com , to join a swap for Christmas table-runners, that she is thinking of organising. So now I'm just a little bit nervous.....
What if my work isn't up to scratch? What if I'm given a swap buddy and she hates my runner and only uses it for washing out the goldfish bowl? What if.....what if....what if.....
Watch this space. With my luck, I won't even be picked!
Thanks for popping by. See you soon. xx

Not Quite As I Planned.....

Well, as I explained on Saturday, I was about to toddle off, armed with plenty of fabric, sew like billy-o, while babysitting, and present you with a finished quilt top today.
Not only do I have a quilt top to show you,

but there's a back, too....

some quilting....

and I've even managed to hand finish 90% of the binding...

.....Not bad, considering that I was working on more of  these....

But at least I now know what these were about to become....

What a busy weekend! See you soon. xx

A Bit Out Of Sync....

It's Saturday. Not Friday. But Friday saw me at The Torturer's Office. Otherwise known as The Dentist. Eight injections and a deep, below the gums, clean later (I'm such a wuss that I INSIST on the injections. It's that or have The Dentist try and peel me off the ceiling. Not pretty), and I'm afraid that I didn't feel much like posting a blog.
Today, as they say, is another day, and I'm back to my usual self, so I thought I'd squeeze in a quick post.
Nothing much to say, other than I have high hopes for Monday's post. I'm babysitting for a friend tonight, and am going armed with sewing machine, and enough fabric to finish a quilt top.
Watch this space!
Hope you enjoy the rest of your weekend. xx

A Timely Arrival....

Just look what Nice Mr. Postman brought along today....

...which means I can get on with my Half-Square-Triangle Stars. Hooray.
I've also got my "Suck It And See" strips to sew together into a quilt top, to see if it's worth carrying on willy nilly, or not!!
And it's all arrived at exactly the right time....the Poland v England match was rained off yesterday....I've never seen so much rain. And for a girl who grew up in Grimsby, that's saying something!!
Which means The Partner and The Son will be glued to the screen of the television, and I can sit and sew....IN THE LIVING ROOM!!!
So I'm whizzing off to do just that....Bye xx

A Leap Of Faith....

(As that's the only type of leap I'm capable of these days!!) But that's exactly what this next WIP is going to be....
I found a few charm packs in my stash, and I'm not entirely sure how they got there, or why I'd bought them in the first place. I'd hazard a guess that they're linked to my innate laziness...I loathe cutting out pieces for a new project; these were ready cut....I don't believe my thought process will have gone much further than that.
So. What to do with them? And that's where the leap of faith comes in. I'm waiting on Nice Mr.Postman to bring me some more fabric, so that I can continue with my Half-Square-Triangle-Stars, but I'm not very good at sitting project-less, so why not just sew all the charm pack squares together, will-nilly, and see what happens? Gulp. (I suppose the very worst thing that could happen, is that I hate it, and the dogs get a new blanket for their basket. Hmmm.)

Well, there went nothing.....I wonder what it'll look like tomorrow??? We'll see.... xx

A Little Lipo?

So sorry I wasn't around on Friday....events overtook me (I wasn't travelling very fast!), namely Daughter No2 home from Uni For the weekend, and A Hospital Appointment.
Daughter No2 had managed to squeeze me into her busy Social Whirl, and invited me out for a cuppa...and I was suitably grateful, so off I toddled. That was the afternoon taken care of.
Then, after collecting The Son from school, I had A Hospital Appointment. I've developed (grown?) a hernia, which my GP had decided was worth getting a surgeon to have a look at. As The Hernia wasn't big enough to go by itself, I had to go along too. Now, I've never had an operation before, so had managed to convince myself that I wouldn't be needing one this time, either. However... Mr Surgeon begged to differ. Well, not so much "begged" as just told me straight. He then went on to explain the procedure, which I managed to block out, from the moment he said "I'll make a small incision....". I said that I presumed that the whole thing would be done under general anaesthetic, to which he replied that, no, it could be done under local. Hmmm. I shared with him the fact that I passed out when I had my ears pierced....He agreed that general would be best. I then went on to ask, if he couldn't do a bit of Liposuction, while he was there. He smiled faintly, and so confirmed what I'd secretly suspected for some time......It's going to take oh-so-much more than a mere hoovering out, to restore any sort of shape to what I once referred to as My Tummy.
Oh well....
Sewing wise, I managed to get a bit done yesterday, once Daughter No2 had shipped out again, using those much loved Half Square Triangles...

....for once all my seams behaved themselves, and I only had one teensy, eensy bit of unpicking to do. Hooray! Just another 6 blocks to go......
See you soon. xx

Time Wasting??

Is it just me?? Or perhaps I don't really want you to answer that particular question!!!
It's just that I type away with this little muse of mine (I've never had one of those before!!) and then share it onto Facebook, so that it may reach my Loyal Fan. And that's where the trouble starts....
I think to myself, that I may as well have a quick look at who's out and about, while I'm there, so I start scrolling down.....
......Days later I can be found, still staring blearily at the screen. Well, perhaps "days" is a bit of an exaggeration. But not by much! Many of my Friends are involved with needlework, and post on my wall (such 21st century speak!) with links to shops, tutorials and fabric offers. And I'm just far too weak to resist a little click here, and a little click there....one thing leads to another, and time just snowballs away!
Perhaps this is my New Guilty Pleasure? The world over knows about my love (need?) of chocolate, so maybe that's becoming a bit old hat now? So.... I shall continue scrolling and clicking....but sshhh....I'm not telling anyone!
See you soon. Thanks for popping by. xx

Yum Yum Yum.......

If I ever questioned that my needlework workshops were worth doing, tonight I had my definitive answer. Putting aside the fact that a lovely group of ladies are learning new skills.Also putting aside that we chat and giggle our way easily through the designated two hours. Obviously, these are important and valid positive reasons for continuing. However, neither of these tipped the balance one way, or another, for me. (Sorry ladies-I adore you all, and enjoy our time together.....but there REALLY is no contest!)

THIS is what it's TRULY about........

Need I say more??? (Thank you, Melanie....yum, yum, yum!!)
xx

Sharing is Caring.....

A mantra, not so very long ago, in the preschool world, was "sharing is caring"....and that's just what my little darlings have collectively done. They have shared, if not The Mother, then certainly The Big Sister, of all colds. With me. Bless them. Oh the joy of working with children.....
But I'm made of stern stuff, and have sewn away on my little projects, with boxes of Kleenex close to hand, and just look at what those gorgeous Tanya Whelan charm squares have turned into.....

......two sets of mug mats. I think they're really pretty.
And this is all that's left to do, to finish the Birthday Bunting.....

.....so you might get lucky, and see the finished article tomorrow. Bet you can't wait!!
xx

Must Dash.....

Hello! And goodbye! I'm in a bit dash I'm afraid, and can't stay and chat. I'm making bunting, with a self-inflicted deadline of Wednesday. So I'm on a bit of a hop, as this lovely pile of self-backed triangles, is not going to bunting itself together without me.

See you soon. xx

Surgery Of A Delicate Nature...

For my day job, as many of you know, I run a Preschool. Nothing out of the ordinary there, except I'm Montessori trained, and it's not a Montessori school. "Is that a problem then?" I hear you ask....(that, or The Voices have started again!!)...Well, no, ordinarily it isn't. Nowadays, most schools have adopted a lot of Montessori ideas ....each child is an individual (there's a radical thought!), each child will learn at his/her own pace (yet another radical idea!!), and so on.....
For the most part, my (non-Montessori) staff and I rub along very well. But in the case of The Whale, we had to agree to disagree.It is one area that I simply can't get my head round. Or, rather, I do try but it is the one SPECIFIC toy I can't get my head round....
Meet The Whale.....

...I cannot STAND the darn thing. Never have liked it. Never have I been the one to remove it from the cupboard where it lurks. And for one simple reason...
Montessori believed that children need things to be real. And if you think about it, you'll realise this to be true. They'd much rather brush Mum's hair with Mum's hairbrush, than Barbie's with a plastic one, much rather sit in the family's real car, behind the steering wheel "driving", than in one of those machines that you pay £2 to be rocked to and fro in, while listening to dreadful music.
Now, as a mum myself, I happen to believe that in today's world, there is room for a bit of both....for the real, and for the make believe.......Except for when it comes to that AWFUL whale.
The problem you see, is the purpose for which The Whale was made. In his insides hide all sorts of geometric solids, because obviously, if you were able to slice open a Blue Whale, you would find wooden cylinders, spheres, square-based pyramids and the like.
But that's not the half of it. And certainly not the worst bit to offend my Montessori sensibilities. No. That would be this....

....You are now looking at the behind of The Whale. Quite literally. And this is the bit where I COMPLETELY draw the line. The children are supposed to shove their hands up The Whale's bottom, and extract said cylinders, cubes and spheres.
It's wrong. Just wrong. And I could stand it no longer. Something needed to be done. So I did what I should have done a LONG time ago......

.....Surgery is complete. The Whale is now settling into his new home, along with the other cuddly toys.
Have a lovely weekend. xx

A Milestone....

I think I've had A Milestone! And it slipped me by, completely un-celebrated and un-bunting-ed, as I hadn't even noticed, until just now....
When you write blogs, you have to sign into your account. Well...I have to anyway. Maybe I'm unique? Maybe I'm on some Not-To-Be-Trusted-Without-Verification List? I'll never know, as A) I'm not brave enough to ask and B) I'm not daft enough to start another blog, with another site, to see if they demand the same.
Anyway, as I was saying, you sign into your account, and there in front of your eyes, are all the statistics for your blog. And yesterday's post was my 50th! Ta-Da! Drum roll. Etc. Surely that's A Milestone? And I hadn't realised, because I'd been tired yesterday, when I wrote my post, and hadn't made the connection that Milestone 50 came after Humdrum 49....Feeble. Just feeble. A wasted opportunity to break out the bunting....I'll pay better attention from now on.
So. This evening I'm being left to my own devices (quiet hooray) as The Partner is going on some Important Football Business, and THAT means I can use my sewing machine AT THE TABLE!!! (Loud HOORAY). And as serendipity would have it, just look at what the kind postman brought me....

....Creative Quilting's ( www.creativequilting.co.uk ) monthly package of charm squares! This month the collection is one from Tanya Whelan, and I absolutely love it! I can't tell you the name of the collection, as in a fit of tidying up, I got a bit over zealous, and threw away the little note that Creative Quilting always send with the fabric. However, if you use the link, you'll be able to find it.
Watch this space, to see what an evening alone can achieve with this prettiness. Bye for now. xx

A Night Out....

I was absent from my post last night, and for this I apologise, but I was Taken Out! For those of you who don't know ThePartner, I'd best explain a little.
The Partner and I go out quite a bit, mainly together, sometimes with family and occasionally individually. But on all of these outings we tend to go Dutch. A few times, on special dates (my birthday, Valentines Day etc) we go out, and I don't pay a penny, and am treated. Just not by The Partner. Oh no.... The Partner takes great pride in being able to pay for our meals....with vouchers. One year, my birthday treat was thanks to Burger King......I kid you not.
Now don't get me wrong-I'm happy with these arrangements. My needs are simple. I love going out, having good company(The Partner is always good company), edible food, and no washing up. But, I can't deny that I do LOVE it, when he sees fit to treat me to something a bit special.
And last night was just such a treat, and I was Taken Out, to see "42nd Street" at our local theatre.( And for those of you who don't know me, in a previous life, before children and age thwarted me, I was a professional dancer.) I was thrilled! I love the whole theatre experience. The auditorium filling,the orchestra tuning up, the "no photography" announcement, the lights dimming....It stirs some lovely memories from deep, lost places in my mind.
Needless to say, I hummed (VERY quietly) along with the music, and tapped away to the choreography. It was a good production, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The Partner sort of enjoyed it, but said I should have told him that it's all tap dancing.....Hmmm....Education not quite finished yet....After all, he didn't need to tell me, when he took me to my first opera, that it would all be singing.....

Thanks for popping by. See you soon. xx

SSHHHHH........Listen......

After that title, you'll need to humour me, and read the rest of my ramblings in a whisper. It's okay to read it in your head, if you don't want those around you to think you're doo-lally. Just so long as you use a Whispering-in-Your-Head voice.
Hang on a minute, while I go and finish making my cup of tea-I'm fast heading from brewed (yum) to stewed (not so yum).......
Right, I'm back, and ever-so-slightly anxious about reaction from Daughter No1, when she gets in later. Her chocolate cake, that she left in the safe keeping of my fridge,seems to have shrunk.Quite considerably. Obviously, I've NEVER doubted the existance of Fridge Gremlins, but after she discovered a few MINOR discrepencies in tales of Father Christmas and the Tooth Fairy, she may take a little convincing about the Gremlins.....Hmmm....
But back to the title, and need of hushed tones...I'm alone!!! Daughter No1 is still out, Daughter No2 is (presumably) studying hard at Uni, and The Partner has just taken The Son to his football training. Complete with his new astro turfs. Time Off!
I know I usually get dragged along to the training, too, but tonight is my night off for Good Behaviour, and I get to go to the quilting group I joined. Hooray! And the bonus is, that I've got the place to myself for a couple of hours, before I get ready and go.
So much to do......read, snooze, sew, flick through magazine, watch soppy DVD, have a cuppa....Can you even remember what you did before partners and children? Well, I've got just over an hour to do it all in!!
So, before I tiptoe off to do quiet things, I shall show you the Flying Geese Quilt that was finally hand finished over Downton Abbey, last night.....

There's a little bit of hand quilting in the middle row of triangles.....

This is the back (and I love the texture here).....

And I even remembered to sew in one of my new labels.....

All in all, what with the vintage blanket wadding adding extra weight and coziness, and the autumnal snuggly colours, I'm really pleased with the way this quilt has turned out.
I would "hooray" and "hallelujah" a bit, but I'm still in Whisper Mode. I'll content myself with a little Tiptoe-y Dance instead....
See you soon. xx