Monday 24 June 2013

TAKING IT EASY

A King Parrot sitting in my leafless Silver Birch.  We very rarely see these in our garden, although they  are  often seen in our area.  They are absolutely beautiful and I wish we could have got a better picture.
This last week has seen me taking it easy, trying to get on top of the back pain and anxiety.  I've been working at a slower pace but not completely idle.  Saturday saw hubby and I head out to look at project homes and cars.  We are going to downsize, but not ready for a retirement village, we are sussing out what we can get.  Sunday morning I made hubby a black fleece neck warmer to wear when he is riding his motor bike.  It's not too flash, but wearable.  Sunday afternoon, I decided to bake a couple of slices.  I made an easy shortbread slice and a new recipe (white chocolate and ginger blondie).  Now the new recipe seemed to be easy enough, but the ingredients sounded way too much for the tin they advised, so I cut it back to 3/4 and it still overflowed whilst baking. I cleaned up the oven , and have decided to only make half the amount next time, as it is quite yummy.
I have made a start on "A" is for applique block that I am doing along with "Lucie the happy quilter".

This is Home is where the Heart is block.  It still needs to be appliqued and have the embroidery  done.
At night I have been finishing this rather old embroidery I found lingering in my sewing basket and am now crocheting around the edge.  Not sure where it will end up.  I have been alternating this with hand sewing the binding on my Dahlia quilt.  Also this week, I received a parcel. which was Gardenalia that I ordered as we could not get it here.  I love it.  The Quilt Sampler (which is one I still buy), appeared at the newsagent.  I allow myself this one as it is only published twice a year.  The other I have a subscription for is Quilter's Companion.

Well that has been a part of my slow week, and now I am going to try and put some backing on the machine, ready to  get another one of my UFO's completed.  I'll post pictures later in the week.  It has not been a good week to take photos as it is so overcast most days at the moment.
Have a lovely week bloggers.





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14 comments:

  1. Jo24 June 2013 at 20:57

    How wonderful to see parrots, I'm thrilled when I see goldfinches in the garden, so imagine my delight if I saw something as beautiful as a parrot. You have so many lovely projects on the go, always something new to show us. Good luck with your house search, I hope you find something suitable.

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    1. Susan Smith25 June 2013 at 07:01

      Thanks Jo. I'll admit to loving our birdlife over here. I'll try and take more photos with this new camera, but sometimes they are just too quick.

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  2. Joanna24 June 2013 at 23:04

    You must love seeing parrots in your trees. I am happy when I spot a cardinal. I love your old embroidery piece. It looks like a keepsake item. Very pretty.

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    1. Susan Smith25 June 2013 at 07:03

      I must remember to have the camera ready more often now that I have this new one that is quicker to start up. Thanks about the embroidery.

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  3. Anonymous25 June 2013 at 05:33

    I am really impressed with your Home is Where the Heart is block. I love to see other peoples interpretation of a theme. Well done. For someone whose been taking is easy you've done quite a lot. I bet you're looking forward to downsizing and making things more manageable. Good luck with your search. I'm really chuffed with your progress. Happy stitching.

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    1. Susan Smith25 June 2013 at 07:06

      Thanks Lucie, I actually can't wait to start stitching on it and getting on with the others now that I have them sketched out. For me, crafting is taking it easy, but working on my garden which I love so much is the hard work, but hopefully something smaller and flatter will mean I can "potter" to my heart's content.

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  4. Anne25 June 2013 at 07:28

    How cool to have a parrot in your garden! Makes our magpies seem a wee bit boring! :oD

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  5. Susan Smith25 June 2013 at 07:40

    Thanks Anne, I'll try and take a pic of one of our magpies and see what you think of them. They are a lot larger than the UK variety.

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  6. Anonymous25 June 2013 at 17:54

    That is cool to have parrots in your trees, my Mom gets the bright red cardinals and birds are much bigger else where than here in the UK. We do get some lovely ones in the garden though, lots of finches, a woodpecker and of course mischievous squirrels! Your 'home is where the heart' block is nice I like the greens. Enjoy taking it easy, the sun is out over here today, hurray! Yesterday was chilly and grey.

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    1. Susan Smith25 June 2013 at 19:22

      Thanks Gail, I'll try and take some more photos of our colourful birds if I get the chance. I adore squirrels and got so excited over the first one I saw down in Cornwall, but it was the grey variety.

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  7. QuiltSue25 June 2013 at 18:46

    Hmm, so that's your idea of a "taking it easy" week. Wonder what a busy week would be like?

    The chocolate and ginger blondie sounds wonderful. Do you have a link to the recipe?

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    1. Susan Smith25 June 2013 at 19:24

      I don't have a link but I am going to email you later about something else, so we'll see whether I can maybe post it to you. It is yummy.

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  8. Gillian Roe29 June 2013 at 02:56

    I hope you are feeling better now, and that the back pain and anxiety are easing up a little. It sounds like you're doing all the right things, pottering and staying active but not doing anything stressful. The ginger blondies sound delicious. x

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