Counting down

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Running a bit behind with our little 'advent' tealight calender - we lit ten candles tonight to play catch up!

It's a simple idea, not fancy at all. This year I'm really striving for some simple, handmade, thoughtful touches for our first Christmas in our new home.

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Two landmarks in one weekend

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On Saturday, Keira played in a piano graduation concert at the Opera House in Sydney. The children learn the piano following the Suzuki method and each year they are invited to play in concerts at the Opera House if they have passed their level during the year.


This was the third time that Keira has played in one of these concerts and I think it's the first time I have ever seen her anxious about it. The concerts are great in that they are meant to be a celebration of the hard work the students have done. They need to be dressed very smartly (lot's of boys in mini tuxes!) and they play on a grand piano in the Utzon Room which has a large wall of glass that makes you feel as though you are right in the harbour.



But, the standard is very high and Keira was worried that she would make a mistake (which many kids do and it isn't a big deal but Keira is quite tough on herself). Of course when her turn came she played beautifully and I could see that she felt good about herself afterwards.


After the concert we made a very quick dash back up the Mountains, because Keith and I had a school function at the very beautiful and historic Collits' Inn to get to.


This used to be run as a restaurant/b&b, but a family from the school bought it recently and now it is their home. They opened it up to us on Saturday night for dinner and I can't tell you how wonderful it was. We all arrived in the late afternoon when it was still light and could have a good look around. The Inn was built in 1823 and has been lovingly restored right down to the original room that the Governor would stay in when they were moving convicts through the area. In fact the previous owners who had done a huge amount of work in building up a library of the history of the place, left everything intact on the property when they left.


We had a guided walk around the cemetery before dinner, where there are 62 people buried from the area including the poet Henry Lawson's father. Apparently one of Lawson's poems is about the murder of one of the Collits' daughters (some sort of love triangle back in the 1800's!).


Then it was on to dinner which was served in the original barn and afterwards the owner and another father from school played their guitars and sang until late into the night. By then everyone was in very good form and thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

Sunday saw me a little tired and weary, but the weather was fantastic so I sat in the sun and watched Cal and his friend learn how to put up a tent for their first overnight camping expedition with the school this week. Listening to the patience in Keith's voice as he gave instructions from the side was a little amusing as well!

(Photos of Collits Inn from the National Trust, I of course forgot to take my camera . . .)

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Surprise mail

Not long ago I decided to put on my sidebar a book recommendation from both Keira and Caley. Keira was raving about a book that she had just finished so I thought I'd include some of their favourites along with mine.  I asked Cal for the name of a book that he had read recently and liked, and he said Samurai Kids, White Crane.

Then out of the blue we received an email from the author, Sandy Fussell.  I have to say we were very excited by this! For the kids, who read and read and read, it was wonderful to have an author directly contact us like this.

But that wasn't all.  Sandy very generously  offered to send Cal a copy of her latest book, Polar Boy.  As she put it - "its about an Inuit brother and sister - lots of whales, polar bears and Vikings".  Which of course sounds just right for Cal!  

The package arrived in the mail today, along with a special note from Sandy and some posters from Samurai Kids for Cal's bedroom.

Cal is a great reader, but I have had to work quite hard to get him interested in fiction.  He loves his facts, on nature, history or science.  He's always loved listening to the stories that I've read to them but hadn't been drawn to them for himself.  So I looked for books that I thought he'd like if he gave them a chance and got far enough into them.  We've built up a little library for him with books of his own in his bedroom (as opposed to reading 'Keira's' books) and over time I'm noticing that he's reading more fiction that non-fiction these days.  

Don't get me wrong, I don't think there's anything wrong with reading non-fiction, and I'm sure Cal's knowledge of reptiles, the Elizabethans and Tudors, and Elvis Presley would rival most 8 year olds!  It's just that I know how much pleasure reading fiction can bring and I really feel that the earlier that you 'get' it the better.

Of course, now the kids are expecting great things from my blog, and Keira keeps asking me if I've heard from the author of her book . . .

(a very big thank you Sandy!)

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This time last year

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I was walking to -

Base Camp, Mt Everest

Staying here -

Gorek Shep, last stop before Mt Everest
(we stayed in the tea house on the far right,
the upmarket end of town!)

and looking at -

Mt Everest, Nepal.

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Usefull skills

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I now have experience in all sorts of building jobs, and can add gyprocking and cornicing to the list. My arm and neck muscles are aching, but luckily the bath has finally been installed so much soaking and relaxing in the evening has been happening.

Cornice in my new bedroom - Gyprocking the carport

I've learnt two things; Keith is very lucky that I'm not scared of heights, and life would be a lot easier if I was just a bit taller . . .

Along the way I found some time to finish my scrap challenge. I decided to make a little zippered bag and use the different scrap fabrics as decoration.

Each one was cut out in a hexagon shape and sewed together. I used a piece of felt as backing to give it a padded feel.

The back is a piece of linen with one of the fabrics highlighted.

It's a little wonky and a bit smaller than I had in mind, but I like the way the fabrics look together and the patchwork feel of it.

There are some really clever things being made, it's well worth a look at the flickr group. A big thank you to Jennifer from JC handmade for organising this swap!

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Scrap Challenge

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My package from JC Handmade arrived yesterday. I've signed up for my first ever blog fabric swap. It appealed to me because I liked the idea of receiving a little parcel of fabric scraps and then the challenge of having to make something out of them (if your not a fabric person I get that this probably just sounds weird).

Not sure what to make, when it's quiet after dinner I'll have a good look at the fabric and think of something. The finished pieces can be seen here.

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The herb garden

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I have a large and fairly grand plan of the vegetable garden that I'd like to have. But as it involves constructing large walls and clearing some land (& Keith has a house to finish...) it will have to wait.

Making a start

So a much more achievable and really useful project was finished on the weekend.

Made from besser blocks

Finished with some capping

It is outside the kitchen window, just a few steps from the back door, making it perfect for collecting from when cooking.

Some render and gravel around the outside to finish

Planted and watered

There's a great Growers Market here in Blackheath every second Sunday and we went there to get the plants. Parsley, Oregano, Sage, Rosemary, Basil, Chives, Thyme and Lemon Thyme. Plus Spinach, Leeks, Capsicum, and four varieties of Lettuce.

Cal helped out last night, picking parsley for our pasta.

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