Latest Additions....

The garden is producing more then we can eat at the moment. This basket full which was fetched this morning is an example of what we get on a daily basis.... We truly are blessed.... :)

With days full of outside play the girls are savouring the company of the latest additions to our family, 3 little kittens. They're just starting to eat something other than what their mum has to offer and as you can see they are loving every bit of it....

Here's hoping the start to your week is just as perfect....

Hugs...... Jodie............ xx

For My Readers...

I'm lucky enough to have some of these little leather coin purses to give away to 2 of my readers....

It's simple to make one of them yours, just tell me a story about 'bunk beds'. The two stories that make me laugh/cry the most will win, easy hey...

Looking forward to hearing your stories.... Hugs...... Jodie :)

p.s.... thanks to buyster for this great giveaway offer....

'Sunshine Shrug'

Can you remember this washer, I made it a little while back??? Well the lace pattern has been stuck in my head ever since and I've been dying to turn it into a little something for my girls....

So with a head full of plans I set to work last night and after an evening of 'tweaking' the 'Sunshine Shrug' was born.....
I love the simplicity of this pattern and how quickly it knit up, definitely perfect for all skill levels!!!! I'm also loving how totally delicious it looks wrapped around my Millie's teeny little shoulders....
Even if she'd prefer to run away than co-operate in a photo shoot... LOL!!!

Hugs........ Jodie.......


For those who emailed and asked, I made the little overalls back here and the pattern was from Ottobre....

'1 on 1'....

We've been pulling in some long days of late with crutching our sheep the latest task on the list.... Waking up before the Sun really is unhealthy, did you know that??? I'm so looking forward to the end of day light savings.....

(Little Millie, in amongst all of the action, following around whoever stood in one place for long enough, oh and doing it barefoot too..... LOL!!!!)

With Millie now mobile and able to preoccupy herself Connie has taken to sneaking cuddles at random times throughout the day.....

And you know what?????? I'm really loving this special '1 on 1' time we get to share...

Hugs........... Jodie....... xx

Egg-y Goodness....

I'm undecided...... Do I like them best first thing in the morning when Miss Connie collects them and they're still warm as I sort them from their bucket......

Or......... Do I like them best all mashed up and lathered between thick slices of homemade bread with a generous helping of homegrown lettuce and homemade mayo?????

It's a tough one, what do you think?????

Here's how I like to make my egg mash : : a dozen eggs boiled rapidly for about 5 mins, cooled slightly, peeled and then placed in a LARGE bowl (this large bowl is important so that you can get a good swing of the arm happening when the mashing process starts). Add a big tablespoon of softened butter, a large pinch of freshly ground black pepper, an equally large pinch of salt and a big dollop of mayo (I like to make my own)..... Mash this egg mixture with all your might, really get those arms a swinging, until they resemble scrambled eggs..... Enjoy!!!!!

Hugs............................... Jodie.....

Girly Dress....

A proper girly dress is a necessity in any girl's wardrobe, right???? Well that's what the very clever ladies Mason-Dixon from 'Knitting Outside The Lines' thought when they created this gorgeous 'Jane Austen' dress....

 

And you know what, I think they were right!!!!!!!

 

I loved knitting this dress and Miss Connie loves wearing it..... I love that she picked the fabric and the yarn to make it too.... It's going to be her Easter dress so after tonight's try-on we'll be putting it in a special place until then..... A little note about the pattern though - I made the size 2 -3 and the arm holes were way too small so I increased the length at the front and back by an extra inch...

Something a little special about this dress, to me, is that the fabric skirt is hand sewn on to the knitted bodice... I enjoyed this part of the dress thoroughly, it really bought me back to the basics of sewing. I couldn't help but think of how women would of made clothes before sewing machines became a common accessory.

 

Hugs - Jodie :)

Preg Testing......

This morning we preg tested 800 old ewe's that were to be sent to market..... Can you see that little tent up to the left of the race next to Millie in the pram??? Well that's where all the magic happens.... In there a man sits on a little chair and scans each and every ewe as she goes through the race, determining weather or not she is pregnant....

While all of this action was happening at one end of the yards Connie and I had the job of fetching more ewe's to keep the yard loaded at the other end.....
Connie sure does love this dog????? She never leaves him alone and secretly I think he really loves all of the attention too.....
That is until he's needed to do his job and leaves her for dust..... LOL!!! I hope you're enjoying this gorgeous time of year as much as we are here at 'Darling Downs'..... The nights are just becoming cool enough for a snuggle and the days are still just warm enough that you work up a sweat when working outside, I really love this time of year!!!!!!

Hugs................... Jodie....................

Pack A Punch!!!!!

This little bundle looks pretty harmless, right???? Well not when they're in the hands of a 15 month old, let me explain.....

This arvo while picking veg for dinner Millie stumbled upon one of the well hidden HOT chilli bush's growing amongst the tomatoes and decided to have a little taste test....

She nibbled through almost 6 chillies before the burning sensation really kicked in... So with tear filled eyes and high pitched squeals poor little Millie learned rather quickly that chillies can really pack a punch........... :(

With an arm full of freshly picked veg and a glass full (oops, half full) of wine we all sat down on the grass for a little veggie garden 101..... First I told Millie that the purple beans in the garden were yummy and definitely o.k. to pick and eat.... I then explained that the skinny green looking beans are not to be eaten.... They are called chillies and are very, very, spicy.....And then Connie said...... "the green tomatoes are alright to eat Mil-Mil cause they're not hot like the chillies even thought they're green too"....

So hopefully a little of what we talked about sunk in, you never can tell especially when half your audience doesn't speak... LOL!!!

Hugs................... Jodie................

Happy Dance..........

O.K... The lucky winner from last post was Lissa Jane... Email me your snail mail Lissa and a special something is headed your way.... ;)

So here they are, in all of their glory, Millie's Crawler/Walkin' pants with extra padded knee/scruff pads, to stop those damn burrs burrowing in........
After an afternoon of fencing out in the paddock with Dad yesterday I can firmly say that they have definitely passed the quality assurance test....
Little Millie played and crawled and and played and crawled and even through in a bit of walking and dirt eating for good measure too... This all took place in the roughest of terrains, my big back yard, and at the end of the day I'm happy to report...... NO BURRS, YIPP-EE!!!! (now, that's a first)

That's definitely worth a happy dance, don't you think.... LOL!!!

This little pants pattern was so easy to draft up I was thinking of doing it as a tutorial, what do you think????

Hugs............ Jodie.............

'free time'.................

While DH and Miss Connie took a load of goats to town this afternoon, little Millie and I got to work utilising our 'free time'....

First up we made a lined dress for Connie. She goes to town on a Monday for 'school' and being St Patrick's Day this Monday coming a new green dress was definitely on the cards...

We then worked on something super cute for Millie.....
It even has a little hand stitching in a couple of spots........

Can you guess what it is???? The first person who does will get a special little something.....

Here's' hoping you have a chance for some 'free time' this weekend...

Hugs...... Jodie..............

Pumpkin-y Goodness.....

Today growing in my cedar tree I found the most perfect little treat..... It was a golden nugget pumpkin just right for the pickin'.........

Not being able to help myself I chopped it open straight away and to my surprise it was just perfect....... So tonight we'll be feasting on delicious homegrown pumpkin with our dinner, YUMMO!!!!

I can't wait for the rest of my pumpkins to ripen now!!! I have visions of tiny little jars filled with pumpkin-y goodness lining the shelves of my pantry in the not too distant future.... I have a recipe for pumpkin jam that sounds divine but that's it... Do you have any great pumpkin preserving recipes???? I'd love to hear them if you do....

Hugs....... Jodie.....................

New Found Obsession!!!!

I'm absolutely loving ric-rac at the moment... Not the kind that you buy in the shop, no, this stuff is extra special!!!! It's handmade, well hand crocheted to be exact, and sooooo TOTALLY ADDICTIVE!!!!! (Oh and super simple too)

I'm attatching it to everything but am loving it most of all when I sew it on to the bottom of super cute little skirts for my girls....

For those crochet minder crafters out there I'll share my little pattern with you...

Crochet Ric-Rac : : 1st row - Chain 3, into first ch (DC, ch2, DC) turn. 2nd Row - ch2, in ch2 space from previous row (DC, ch2, DC) turn. Repeat 2nd Row until ric-rac is desired length....

How easy was that????? If you're having troubles working out my 'crochet' talk let me know and I'll try to make sense of it for you.... :)

I don't know if you can remember but back here I talked about making some Grape Jam..... Well I made it alright and it was super simple and super delicious....The jar on the left is green grape jam and the one on the right is black grape jam... How gorgeous is the green grape jam now that its turned a heavenly deep pink after the cooking process...

To make your own grape jam just rapidly boil 1 cup of sugar to every 1 cup of grapes... To prepare the grapes just rinse your grapes and don't worry about the seeds, they'll float to the top as the jam boils, I then just scoop them out with a small sieve.......

What's your favourite jam recipe???? I have one that I'm going to give a go in the next couple of weeks for pumpkin jam, sounds very interesting doesn't it???

Take Care........................ Jodie....................

Chance Meeting.....

I got the chance to meet up with the sweetest blogger over the weekend who just happened to be passing through my town, Janice....

She even bought me a pressy, can you believe it???? Some gorgeous thrifted corduroy that I'm dying to turn into matching skirts for my girls.... If you can see it past my pesky ginger cat that you're doing well... I love cats and with another kitten arriving in the wee hours of the morning over the weekend I now bring my running total to 6... I know, I know, I really am becoming a bit of a cat lady these days... LOL!!!

Anyway, back to Janice... It was so great to put a face to the name!!! Janice has joined in on every one of my washcloth swaps so I've gotten to know her fairly well via email.... We have great plans of meeting up again soon in her home town of Bathurst and I just can't wait, especially after she told me that she loves to 'collect'... Boy are we going to get along well as I'm a bit of a hoarder as well, oops I mean 'collector' (hehehehehe).................. :)

Here's hoping you're having a great week thus far...

Hugs................. Jodie..............