Penniedarling

 Boo!

Nerys came around especially to see our Remy.

Remy is very popular around here :-)

Labels: Gwilym and Emily, Remy

That's me, haven't changed a bit have I? 

Well have I???   :-)

Labels: 1/13 Photo a Day Challenge

Looking down on Manly Beach from the roof of the Steyne Hotel.

Labels: 1/13 Photo a Day Challenge

Only two and a half rows to go :-)

Coloured 1/2 inch Hexagons needed = 124
White 1/2 inch Hexagons needed = 83

If I go around the whole quilt one more time in white....
Another White 1/2 inch Hexagons needed = 408

Will I make it to the end?  Will I ever finish this quilt?  Will I run out of fabric/joy/patience?

I think I can, I think I can, I think I can finish this beautiful 8 years in the process... Hexagon Quilt!!   I think I can!     

Labels: Quilts

 My how they grow :-)

Labels: 1/13 Photo a Day Challenge

David and Nerys seen through the garden wall at Mahratta, a beautiful old home in Wahroonga which was the home of friends of ours.  Check it out here... Mahratta

Labels: 1/13 Photo a Day Challenge

The late evening sun shining on the City of Sydney taken from our room at Star City a couple of years ago.  Beautiful!

Labels: 1/13 Photo a Day Challenge

 Wide awake with Daddy.

Sound asleep.

 Awake.

Asleep.

 Awake.

... and asleep... so beautiful :-)

Labels: Remy

45 years this June!

Labels: 1/13 Photo a Day Challenge, David and Pennie

 Our Scottish neighbours invited us to a Robbie Burns Night,  we've never been to one before, we've never eaten Haggis, Neeps or Tatties.  We don't know any of Burns poems other than Auld Lang Syne and we only know the chorus of that, we don't speak Scottish and we only knew 2 of the other 10 people there!   So this was going to be a totally new experience!

Don't get me wrong, we love Scotland, we have several Scottish friends, we've visited Scotland several times, we've driven from the far West to the far North, through the middle and along the East Coast, we've toured castles, sites where movies and TV shows were filmed, we've visited old historic homes and seen many a wonderful thing.   But there is one thing, I in particular, am not enamoured of and that's traditional Scottish food!  I have had several wonderful meals in Scotland, experienced generosity unknown in the rest of Britain... but some of that Scottish food... nah!

After a very nice smoked salmon entree... 

The Haggis was Addressed, here's the first verse.

Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face.
Great chieftain o the puddin'-race!
Aboon them a'ye tak your place,
Painch, tripe, or thairm:
Weel are ye worthy o' a grace
As lang's my arm.

The translation...
Fair and full is your honest, jolly face,
Great Chieftain of the sausage race!
Above them all you take your place.
Stomach, tripe, or intestines:
Well are you worthy of a grace
As long as my arm.

After a plate of Haggis, Neeps, Tatties and Carrot of which I took a miniscule amount of,  there was a reading of 'Tam o'Shanter' which I won't put down here, it is very long and everyone around the table, except me because I just couldn't understand what was written or what everyone else said, read a verse or two each.  I still have no idea what that was all about.


Reading verse by verse of Tam o' Shanta

Conclusion.

I really enjoyed the company, I had many a really interesting conversations and I learnt a great deal about the history of Scotland and Robbie Burns... but would I go to another one?

Nah...  Thanks very much and it was indeed an experience but now that I've been there I've done that and never need to see, smell or taste another Haggis again!

Labels: Robbie Burns Night

Labels: Turramurra

Labels: Tomos

 Charlie rang with the news that at last, after such great expectations because of a very wobbly tooth that seemed to wobble for months and months...

His tooth has fallen out!   His first tooth!

This child is so like his mother, her teeth were exactly the same, her new teeth came well up before her old ones fell out, just like Charlie's as you can see above, two rows of teeth and there is hardly a gap to see :-)  But no worries, the the Tooth Fairy left a massive amount of $2!

My tooth fairy left me sixpence if I was lucky!

Here is a conversation I had with Charlie just before Christmas.

'Pennie, do you believe in God?'

Whoa... do I tell him what I really think or should I pretend...  I decide to be myself, well sort of myself.

'Well Charlie I have a problem with believing in God, there are so many of them out there all called by different names, all telling people to do different things, some good some really bad.
I'm not too sure about a God or anyone or anything else, so I guess I have to say that I really don't know but I don't think so!'

I was hedging...  but he said straight out.

'Well I don't believe in God!'

'Okay.'

'But Pennie, you do believe in Santa don't you?' this said with a very earnest look on his face as he looked me in the eye.

'Oh, I believe in Santa alright Charlie.'

'Yeah!'  says Charlie with a Very Big Sigh...

Oh Yikes!  I've pondered over this conversation ever since and have decided that one day, when he discovers the truth about Santa he will forgive me for my 'little white lie'.

 

Labels: Charlie

Ruins the Landscape a thing like this does...  Rock Fall on Bobbin Head Road after very heavy rain a few years ago.  Closed the road down to Bobbin Head for several weeks it did.

Labels: 1/13 Photo a Day Challenge, Bobbin Head

 You couldn't find a more peaceful little man could you, don't believe it, he can scream like the best of them.

 Gwil and Em now have a lovely treescape to look out on...

Emily can even reach the clothes line with ease.  I don't think it will stay though, there is still some work to do around the place but what has been done is brilliant, turned an ordinary dark terrace house into a lovely light and airy home.  Well done you two :-)

Labels: Gwilym and Emily, Remy

This is my Kambrachallenge for 2002 which was 'Stripes'.  I did reverse applique which means putting the stripe fabric behind the blue, then cutting out the shapes, turning in the blue fabric and securing with an applique stitch.  It hangs in my Kitchen.

Labels: 1/13 Photo a Day Challenge, Kambrachallenge, Quilts

24 Solar Panels plus two Hot Water Solar Panels on our roof making Electricity for us and to share... we pay for our household usage plus we bank about $1,200.00 each year.

Not pretty because the Hot Water panels have been up since we built our home back in 1981 and they couldn't be moved when the new panels went in.

Labels: 1/13 Photo a Day Challenge, 333

Q - Plant = Quince.  I used to cook up Quinces, delicious they were but they take so long and are so hard to peel I don't bother anymore anyway one can buy the best Quince Paste from the local supermarket and we do love Quince Paste.

Q - Night Time = One night time soon one of both of these Quilts will be on our beds keeping us warm.  The one of the left is the one I bought from Bernadette Thomas about 10 years ago, I mended it and have started hand quilting it.  The one of the right I started in 2005 as handwork to take OS a the time, the top is almost finished with only 5 1/2 more rows to go.

Labels: Scatterdays

On the corner of Cooper and Roberts Streets, is 'Nar Vale' in Stathfield, the home of my beloved Grandparents Poppa and Mama, I was born in a hospital just around the corner and spent lots of time living here on and off in my childhood.  Wonderful to see that it's still kept in tip top condition.

Labels: 1/13 Photo a Day Challenge, Old Homes

For 20 or so years David has had this dream of growing his own fruit and vegetables and keeping us supplied in fresh foods, and that's exactly what it's been... a dream...  he's planted seeds for years but that's all he's done, planted them, he hasn't remembered to water them, weed the garden bed or fertilize his crop, until the last few months when he's become serious and he's built raised garden beds, he's fertilized, he's even watered regularly and a small dribble of fresh beans and cucumbers have been enjoyed.

But today he went to pick the cucumbers he'd noticed were almost ready yesterday and low and behold they were gone, vanished without a trace David was all for calling Pymble Police who I'm sure would have rushed straight over LOL... but eventually he found this above! 

In the meantime, after becoming inspired by young Jack Douglas, our local butchers son who cold smokes salmon out the front of the shop each Saturday morning, David decided he could do that as well, so he set up a smoky thingy in the garage and here is the result.



Well that's lunch sorted says he :-)

His dream is getting closer I reckon!

Labels: David, Food

Pretty isn't!  David and I have enjoyed this Terrace and the views of this little part of Hampshire, don't know that I would venture out on days like this though. 
Thanks Gay for the photo :-)

Labels: England

One of the conversations I had with the Grandchildren recently was from the back of my car driving to the airport.

What job does David do?  What job does Nerys do?   We also discussed Gwilym's Job, Emily's Job, Briony's Job and so on... then it the question came to me... 'What is your Job Pennie?'

'Well my Job is to be the best Grandmother in the whole wide world!'   said I.

'Yay!' came the reply from the back of the car.   No wonder I love Grandkids so much :-)

Labels: 1/13 Photo a Day Challenge, Grandchildren

The closer I get to the end the more I wonder if I 'really' need to go around the whole quilt in white, impatience isn't a virtue is it :-)

Labels: Quilts

Charles Dickens looking down on Miriam Margolyes in Hyde Park, Sydney.

Labels: 1/13 Photo a Day Challenge, Sydney

 My goodness who can it be, the Paparazzi are out already.

 It's the first visit from our latest member of the family, one week old little ????  in the arms of Briony with Kate and Jackson.

 Charlie adoring his new cousin.

 The very proud parents with Elizabeth,  Emily's Grandmother admiring her 7th Great Grandchild.

 Even David had a cuddle.

 Pennie :-)

 Nerys and Briony get front row seats for the feeding session.

Then it's burping time...

 What's going on here?  You may well ask  :-)  I'm taking these photos from outside through the fly screen and window of the sewing room, I didn't use the flash because it reflected off the glass.

Nerys and Briony changing a dirty nappy belonging to their new nephew.  Look at the proud parents in the background  LOL!

 Daddy does the bathing honours.

 The audience grew.

 Charlie got to nurse the now fed and clean baby, Jackson did as well but I missed that photo.


Then I got to put my newest grandchild... to sleep before his trip home.

By now you may be asking... where is the Tim that the family got together for to celebrate his birthday????? 

 Much to my shame I didn't get a photo today so I've used an old one here... and as Tim kept reminding us, he was even wearing his Ralph Lauren birthday trousers as well... shame Pennie shame  :-)

Here is a picture of Tim's new Ralph Lauren pants... if not, very close to it.  You know this isn't  Tim in this picture of course, but it could be  :-)

Labels: Birthdays, Gwilym and Emily, Remy