Prosestitch

Guilty pleasures

Today is day two of my solo adventures at home. The girls have gone to the beach with their dad to enjoy a sunny four day weekend courtesy of Australia Day and I have stayed in town to ready our house for sale.

Now, I could let you think that we keep our lives in such a state of pristine order that a mere four days is enough to reach the heights required by our estate agent and agency stylist (!) but such deceit might blight our sale prospects. In fact, slow but steady actions have been undertaken by us and others since early December. Although we have declined some of the more extreme suggestions made by the agency, we have laid new grass, groomed the garden until its best face is apparent from any and every angle, indulged in a little remote control painting with the aid of our cheque book and washed down whatever paintwork hasn't been refreshed. Despite all this, it seems that endless little tasks remain before I am willing to let total strangers inspect the ins and outs of our home. It was one step forward and three steps back and not a lot of fun for anyone while the girls were home, hence the division of labour.

It is forecast to be 30 plus degrees all weekend, so I have theoretically drawn the short straw, but that is where the guilt sets in. Yes, I am cleaning and mulching and cleaning and organising and cleaning and discarding and cleaning and so on, but I am doing it to my own rhythm. I am also finding moments to walk and run and swim and to watch my choice of television while I clear the mountain of ironing that is so big it can't be hidden. I am listening to my music or no music, talking on the telephone in an uninterrupted fashion, and even starting to wonder if I might squeeze in some sewing or a bite of dinner with local friends.

I am missing everyone at the cosy, snuggly times of day, and I did feel the familar kink in my heart when the three most precious people in my life drove off without me, but all being well they will be back in two days and we will all be a little bit calmer.

Just for a moment

I've been making plans for 2012. So far the first half of the year is looking rather nightmarish. Right now, the calendar reads a bit like this.

January - tidy up all the niggly bits and pieces which make a house a true home; start training to walk a long way;

February - open our doors to lots of strangers on the offchance that one of them may like to stump up enough cash to buy it; simultaneously help the big girl adjust to a new school and embrace my new life as taxi driver; keep walking;

March - let a loud voiced auctioneer offer our home to a street full of people; keep walking;

April - complete a 100km fundraising walk;

May - move house; sit or drive, don't walk;

June - let more strangers pull apart our new home before they hopefully stick it back together with fresh paint and carpet;

July - see June!

Now, I am quite clear that none of this is a woe and that all of it is of my/our own making. However, there is very little room in that timetable for sewing so allow me my moment of self-pity before I get on with it all.

Holiday planning (or not)

It is hot and sticky here in town and there is no beach in sight. All plans have been abandoned if they don't include a swimming pool.

The school holiday count is three and a half weeks down, two weeks to go. There are a few other deadlines looming too, but I am trying not to think of them.

Water baby

Meet my water baby. It is body surfing which really fascinates her this summer, but she is also willing to give the board a go.

Right now I am incredibly proud of her persistence and growing skills, but ask me again when the skies are grey, it's not 40 degrees and she wants to surf a reef. Luckily there is a way to go before we get to that.

Watching her makes me think of the surfing novels I have read. Puberty Blues is a 70's classic, but not a world I would like her to enter. Tim Winton's Breath took me with him into the waves and told me why surfers surf. There was little that was lovable about his characters, but his descriptions of the waves, the water and the urge to surf still linger in my mind.

Resting

January is for resting. And reading. And recovering. It won't be a relaxing 2012, but for a little while I can pretend.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas. May the season be a safe and happy one for you all, wherever you may be. 

10

The big girl turned ten on Saturday. There are not enough words to describe how proud of her we are. Nor are there enough words to describe the shock and amazement we feel at having a child old enough to be entering her second decade.

I hope she knows how very much I love her, but I tried to show it once again as I made this chocolate upon white chocolate birthday cake to her order.

Class picnic blouse

This is the top I began at the start of the KCWC more than, ahem, a week ago. Fortunately I love it and so does the big girl. You will have to take my word for it that it looks very sweet on her without seeming too 'little girl'.

The pattern is Oliver & S's class picnic blouse. It was very simple to cut out and came together easily. Based on past experience of the Oliver & S range of patterns, I deliberately added an extra two inches to the length and that worked well, bringing it to mid-hip length on my girl. I don't think I would have been so fond of this top if it was any shorter or boxier. The sleeves reach my girl's elbows which is a very sweet look and quite practical but, were I making the top again, I might lengthen the sleeves to three quarter length and gather them with elastic.

I finished the top yesterday and she chose to wear it to school today. I couldn't ask for better feedback than that.

More creative things are happening here.

KCWC

Here is evidence that my commitment to Elsie Marley's kids' clothes week challenge was not in vain and that I may yet produce a wearable piece of clothing for one of my daughters at least.

I'm not promising, mind you, as the extra hours returned to me by the start of school term have sent me racing in far too many directions all at once. 

Did I mention?

Did I mention that it is school holidays here? Sewing has taken a back seat to holiday activities. 

There has been a road trip to visit friends and favourite places.

A childhood favourite has been rediscovered.

 

And now I am itching to get to the beach and see if I can find enough driftwood to create this fab sculpture in our garden.

There has also been a week of intensive swimming lessons for the girls, a mountain of washing and more rainy days than I can count, but somehow we're all still ok. I hope you are having just as much fun, whatever you are up to.