You may laugh... I sure did!

I have finished the quilted bag I was working on and I'm pleased with the result, even though sewing the ends in took twice as long as it should have, literally. First, I sewed one end in the wrong way. Then, instead of unpicking that end, I unpicked the one that was sewn in the right way. What can you do but laugh? That'll teach me for keeping one eye on the tv while I'm pinning and sewing! Oh, and to add insult to injury, when I put it on the floor to photograph my mistake Scooby thought it made quite a nice mat to lie on. Never mind, it's all done now and I really enjoyed the process. I'll have to take it over to show Mum but I might not tell her about why it took so long to finish  ;-)

One cream end, one pink end but Scooby can't see anything wrong with it...

In fact, he thinks it's quite comfy...

and he settles right in.

Here's the finished product, both ends cream, as they should be.

Floods 2011

Well, the south east corner of Queensland did not miss out after all. This has been a disaster, especially for the people in the Lockyer Valley. I’m sure everyone has seen it on the news... many lives lost... just tragic.

I will post some pictures I took in Ipswich the other day when we went for a walk. Most of the water in Ipswich and Brisbane has gone down and a big clean-up is under way.  Thankfully, my house is on high ground but I do know people who have been affected by the floods. It’s like 1974, all over again.

On the home front, all is well. I have been visiting Mum and I enjoy hearing about the goings-on at the nursing home. I’ve just looked around and realised my Christmas tree is still up. I must get around to putting it away.

I used to work at the shop behind this house, many years ago

Cnr of Roseberry Pde & Elizabeth St, Ipswich

Intersection of East St & Brisbane St, Ipswich

Looking across Timothy Maloney Park, towards St. Mary's Church

Bremer St, Ipswich

Riverlink shopping centre, taken from David Trumpy Bridge, Ipswich

Floods 2010/11

I have to say, I still don’t know how the South East corner missed out on the worst of the flooding and I really feel for the people in the affected areas. I was out and about last week, taking some photos but it’s nothing like what they’re experiencing in Central Queensland. I haven’t seen the grass so green here in a long time and doesn’t it grow fast now?!  I’m thankful that our boarder doesn’t mind mowing the lawn for me.

I spent some time with Mum today and she gave me some tips for completing the bag I’m making. It’s coming along well and I’d forgotten how satisfying it is to make something with my hands. I stalled for a while because I had to rethread my overlocker. The threads were VERY tangled as a result of over-zealous vacuuming to get the dust off it... oops! Full steam ahead now, I can see the end result in my mind...

Roxy seems to have developed a skin condition so it’s off to the vet with her soon.  

In the meantime here are some pictures I’ve taken of the flooding in our area. Most of the water has receded now, unlike other parts of the state.

Youngs Crossing, Petrie

Young's Crossing, Petrie

North Pine Dam, Brisbane

Bremer River, Ipswich

Wivenhoe Dam: all 5 floodgates open

Spray and mist at Wivenhoe Dam

Water flowing out from Wivenhoe Dam

Making progress, zipper and end panels are next

Boxing Day . . . so quiet

Yesterday was most enjoyable, spent with family and friends. We had breakfast at home then opened our presents. Adrian gave me a gorgeous garnet ring. No, not the engagement type, for those of you who may be wondering. We are very happy as we are. My boys went their seperate ways to see other family and we headed off to pick up Mum and have lunch at my sister's place. Only 30cm of water over the road to her house so no problems there. The food and company was the best, as always. Unfortunately, I forgot to take photos this year . . . better luck next time. After taking Mum back home we were all here for a fairly quiet night. Funny, we were all complaining about how much chocolate we'd eaten and how much was still in the fridge. What I wouldn't have given for a salty packet of chips last night! I'm not complaining, life is good.

There are some young lads still asleep here so I decided to finish pinning my quilted bag. This is my first foray into quilting since my oldest was a baby. Back then I made a very simple quilt for his cot and the person helping me did most of the work. I haven't made much progress so far but now that Christmas is over, I should have a bit more time. I swear this thing is pinned to within an inch of it's life! I ran out of pins and had to buy some more. The next stage is the sewing, wish me luck. I can see that I will have to get a few tools of the trade if I keep this up. The first one will be a nice, long ruler.

At least I took a photo of our tree, decorated by our temporary resident, Sam.

Cloudy and raining...

Here's a couple of photos of the spoilt dogs. One from last year, taken on a bright sunny day when the weather was hot and dry. I'd forgotten how small the plants were then and how dead the grass was. The second photo was taken this morning and the dogs were looking out but not wanting to venture out in the rain. Someone once said to me "There seems to be dogs in every photo taken at your house". I think they're right!

Assignment done!

I actually enjoyed doing my last assignment and I feel confident that I'll get a good mark.
I just have to study for the exam now... but not today. I'm having a bit of a clean-up in my house. There's already two boxes of stuff to go to Lifeline and one to sell on ebay.
I'm gradually putting descriptions with my holidays photos. It's a nice distraction from whatever else is happening. Now, to see if I can include one with this post...

                                                         Me and a London phone box.


Ok, it worked. There's loads more to come but that's all for today. Have a nice day!

                                                           

Well, it's a start...

I should be studying but I could not resist the urge to get this started after seeing a friend's holiday snaps on her blog. Posts may be few and far between as I am still in the process of getting aquainted with how this works. One of my lecturers told me to be more succinct in my writings but I'm afraid that will not be happening here :) If you drop by please feel free to leave a comment.
Cheers,
Sharyn.