and The Angry Chicken Award goes to...

Have you ever watched a game of football (soccer) and the referee hands out a Red Card when a player has really done something wrong?

Well in this house it's The Angry Chicken card.

Yep, The Angry Chicken card lives in a pocket of the bill holder on my fridge and my family know that they are in deep, deep doo doo if they get given The Angry Chicken!

It has been a very hectic couple of weeks with the end of school and college for my children, my husband is on holidays and I've been working to meet various deadlines.  There has been every kind of graduation ceremony, awards ceremony (congratulations Master Twelve on getting top of the class!) and excursions.  Phew, I can't wait for Xmas so we can rest a little *roflol*.

We are all very tired and very cranky.  My poor Angry Chicken has been in and out of his pocket like a demented yo yo this week *lol*.

Who got The Angry Chicken Award this week?  My poor, long suffering husband :o)

Miss Nine requested yesterday that I make a doll for her school teacher for Xmas (one day's notice *lol*).

I'm starting to get the hang of softie making, I've never made anything like them before so it's been a bit of a learning curve.  Miss Nine's doll does have hair, it's just a little hard to see in the photo :o)  She has a button necklace too.  I think I've finally got the level of stuffing right in this one.

I've also been making bears for my friends.  I couldn't get their ears right, the bears not my friends, and I'm a bit cranky with myself (where's that Angry Chicken?) because of it.

Did you know I'm a perfectionist?

After making all these bears I finally worked out (the simple) mistake I was making!  *lol*  After having sat and looked at the finished bears for a week I really toyed (no pun intended) with unpicking all the ears and fixing them but I thought that it might be taking my OCD a bit too far *smile*.

Miss Nineteen and I took some time out of our busy schedules this week to go to a Green Day concert last night.  Green Day are my favourite band.

It was probably THE BEST concert I have ever been too.  They played for three hours and it simply wasn't long enough :o)  Green Day, Green Day, Green Day... oops, sorry, I forgot myself for a minute there *vbg*.

Miss Nineteen and I have also been nuturing some old fashioned carnations... the ones that SMELL DIVINE.  Don't you just hate it when flower growers breed the smell out of your favourite flowers so that they get bigger, better blooms?  I would rather smaller, less perfect flowers that smell like heaven.  I had forgotten just how thoroughly beautiful carnations smell. 

This post is becoming a little bit odd like I am feeling this week *smile*.  We decided to get out of the house last weekend and went for a drive.  We stopped at a picturesque park beside a local dam and after reading this sign decided NOT to stop *roflol*.

And because I started this post with poultry, I'll end it with poultry.

This sign was posted at the next park we stopped at.  Maybe the poultry is of the angry variety?

Have fun,

toni :o)

xxx

ps. the burn on my hand is healing nicely and not giving me any trouble.  If you drop your iron, don't catch it!  *lol*

Juggling irons...

is BAD. 

Iron's are hot, iron's burn, and it is MOST unpleasant peeling burnt skin off the base plate!

I was rushing to get this quilt done for Xmas.  You know me... the ultimate White Rabbit ie.  I'm late, I'm late for a very important date!.  The blocks are set on point.  I'll upload a full picture next time I post.

I'm using the nine patch blocks from Christine's Nine Patch Swap.  A big thank you to everyone who participated in this swap!!  I think I will end up with two or three quilts using these blocks.

My SSCS09 parcel arrived on Friday!   I'm being very, very good and not opening my presi's until Xmas Day...  if I can wait that long *roflol*.  Another BIG thank you to Chookyblue and Julz!

These are the gorgeous ornaments I received from Julz at JulzDezign!   Miss Nine has put them on the Xmas Tree!

This has to be the quickest blog post ever - I'm supposed to be meeting Miss Nine's school class at the Museum... erm, half an hour ago!  Eep I'd better run.

toni :o)
xxx

calling all cat people...

Miss Nine would like a pet.  A kitten to be exact and I need some advice.

I'm not a pet type person.  Don't get me wrong, I love animals.  I'm just not sure I need the responsibility.  But I don't want to be a parent who won't let their children have the joy of a pet.  I grew up with cats, dogs, birds, fish and any other living creature my parents would allow and probably a few that they weren't too keen on too.

I've never owned a cat as an adult.  After a great deal of thinking and google-ing (and checking of the budget) we think that Miss Nine's request for a kitten could be the way to go.  Cats are clean, self-sufficient and are probably suited to our hectic, don't have time to walk a dog, lifestyle.

Any advice on cats and cat ownership?  Help me out here... please...

toni :o)
xxx

sunny sundays...

Sunny, sweaty, grumpy Sundays! *lol*

You would think that at 43 years old, and having been born in North Queensland, that I would be used to the heat and humidity. (This is the beautiful place where I grew up).




But no matter how much I look forward to the warmer weather, this time of year makes me yearn for the cooler months *smile* and it makes me grumpy.

I've been wondering why it makes me grumpy when I do like being warm. This is the list I came up with:

(a) I don't like waking up sweaty, it makes you feel grubby! The solution? A cool morning shower which leads to...

(b) Getting out of the cool shower and grabbing your towel - which feels like it has come out of the clothes dryer which has been on the HOT setting, which makes you start sweating again which leads to...

(c) Not being able to enjoy that life-saving (both mine and my family's because I'm most decidedly NOT a morning person) coffee because you sweat the caffeine out before you've even drunk it and I want a hot drink in the morning dammit! which leads back to (b) - wash, rinse, repeat!



(d) My garden get so very sunburnt and the plants curl up their little leaves and die - this makes me VERY grumpy!




Mostly we adapt our lifestyle to this weather. I wash our clothes and hang them on the clothesline at night, praying that the bat brigade doesn't choose my clothesline to have their target practice on!




We don't go outside in the midday sun, unlike some mad dogs and Englishmen; and we take advantage of the BBQ (because cooking in the kitchen is akin to Dante's various levels of Hell) and the cooler shade of the verandah.

Unfortunately the verandah has been out of bounds at night because of the biting midges, mozzies the size of bloody pterosaurs and flies! They seem immune to the mozzie zapper, mozzie coils and citronella candles this year... maybe I should try the old fashioned bushy's remedy and go and collect some cow dung and burn it? *lol*



So. What I am going to do on this hot sweaty Sunday? I'm going to get an ice cold Pepsi and continue making (Christmas present) bears.



Then, when the sun goes over enough for the back hill to be shady, I'm going to pull up a chair and sit under the macadamia nut trees, admire the agapanthus and have one of two of my all-time favourite summer drinks, a Green Ginger Wine with dry gingerale and tons of ice!



Have a great weekend everyone, regardless of whether you are hot or cold, cheery, or grumpy like me!
toni :o)
xxx

Blue Bear Too...

Blue Bear has a new Big Sister...



toni :o)
xxx

Blue Bear...

I'm finding that these soft toys are incredibly addictive to make *smile*.

This is Blue Bear. Miss Nine requested that I make a bear for her best friend's birthday present.



His tail is less provocative than Miss Kitty's :oP



This one has a firmer stuffing than the previous ones. There seems to be a fine line between under-stuffed and over-stuffed.

Happy Hot Summer Days (and nights) everyone,
toni :o)
xxx

Hot Days and Even Hotter Nights...

I'm not sure what it is about this time of year, when the days and nights are both hot and sweaty, but I always seem to find myself sweltering under flannel quilts and getting the urge to knit! Maybe I'm a machoistic personage?

Does the hot weather make you grumpy? I find my temper is very short at the moment.



The said flannel quilt is winging it's way towards it's lodgings for the next few months at Homespun Magazine. I'm sorry I can't show you a photo at the moment but these things tend to be secret squirrel stuff until the magazine is published.

Now that I've met my deadly deadlines I am left with the world's messiest house to clean up. Oh brother, is it a pigsty?! My sewing area is so messy that I've lost my machine foot and ankle attachment and I can't find them - which means I can't sew!

But I can knit - so I made Miss Kitty a scarf.





I know, it's hardly worth any fanfare, but it's been fun experimenting with these soft toys.

Remember when I said Miss Kitty has a most unfortunate design flaw? Her, erm, tail was unfortunately placed. Well I couldn't get her to sit upright to take a photo of her scarf so my loving family found a way and laughed themselves silly about it. If you are easily shocked don't scroll down! Her legs are at the back and her tail is acting like a bike's kickstand *lol*.




My Secret Santa swap is in the post, winging it's way across the ocean to it's new home. A big thank you to Chookyblue for organising everything so well! This is my first time in this swap and I'm hoping I've done everything correctly!



Is anyone else out there in Oz having a mozzie problem? This little beauty was buzzing me in the loo at 1am this morning! The coin is a five cent piece which is, I think, the same size as an American nickel (that's your tiny coin isn't it?). Sorry about the blurry piccy but it's too hot and I'm being too lazy to get out the u-beaut camera with the macro lense *smile*.



I am so glad that it didn't get to bite me before I swatted it! I think it would have sucked me dry!

Take care everyone, for those of you in Oz - try not to melt!
toni :o)
xxx