Our new dining room.

I have mentioned here many times that we are renovating. We have been doing it for seven years now. We started by building an extension to our three bedroom home. (Yes, there were ten of us when we moved in!) Then we began renovating the spaces in the original house. Our ideas evolve every other week. This room was originally the master bedroom. It is near the front door. Initially I thought that we would use this room as a lounge room or sitting room, but it just never really worked. We moved the doorway and put in double glass doors togive it a 'living room' vibe rather than a bedroom vibe. Bradley built some book storage, because this room is also our library. Just recently we began thinking about having a dining room rather than an eat-in kitchen and decided that this room would work quite well as a dining room. So we emptied it of all the junk and put our HUGE table in there. We bought the table at a secondhand shop. I loved the size of it and put it on lay-by immediately. It wasn't until we picked it up a couple of months later that we measured it and realised that it was way too big for our kitchen. ( It is 1.25M X 2.4M and extends to 3M) We sighed and put it outside in the shed thinking that it could go on our deck one day. (The deck comes after the house.) The new dining room works beautifully so I thought I would sort through all of our books and tidy up the bookshelves. (There are books behind the doors too.)

They look much better in this photo! This room was named 'The Semaphore Municipal Library', which worked when it was a sitting room. The kids think it's really funny having such a long name for a room. Of course, you can just call it the library, but where's the fun in that? Now that it's a dining room I think it should be called 'The Semaphore Municipal Library and Cafe', but there's a little resistance to that! Do you have names for your rooms? Crazy or otherwise?

My baby!

It's really quite strange when your baby grows a baby. This is Mrs 23 at 39 weeks. Of course she doesn't look like a baby and she hasn't been a baby for a long time. I think she is very excited and can't wait to meet her baby. She is due next weekend. She and her bloke are ready to go any day now!

Happy Birthday! (again)

Saturday June 14 is Miss 21's birthday. She turns 22 today. Two in a row! We have a couple of birthdays in a row at our house. It was quite stressful when I was pregnant with Miss 18, because Miss 22 really didn't want to share her birthday with the new baby! That makes her sound like a monster, but the year before on her 3rd birthday my sister gave birth to her first child. Miss 22 said she didn't mind sharing with her cousin, but didn't want to share with a brother or sister. The baby was due on the 11th of June and I felt quite confident that it would not be born on the 14th. On the 12th I started to get worried, but felt relief when I went into labour just before midnight that night. (It had never taken me longer than 12 hours to have a baby, so I was pretty sure that the baby would be born on the 13th.) So, while it's not great to have your birthday the day after your sibling, it's way better than sharing a birthday! Happy birthday Miss 22! We love you.

Happy Birthday!

Miss 17 turned 18 on Friday June 13. I took this photo today because she was out and out and out yesterday! Miss 18 is child number four in our family and Mrs 23 pointed out that half of our children are now legally adults. Wow! I feel old! It's not too bad because I quite like the adults they've become.

Shelves by Bradley

These are the shelves that Bradley made last week for the girls. They loved them so much and were so desperate for the storage that they decided on the 'mdf' look. (Couldn't wait for them to be painted!) Miss 16's shelf is above and Miss 18's is below. They are now sharing a room. Miss 16 has the pages of a novel (one of her favourites) on her wall. She managed to get one secondhand at a library sale, and since it was falling apart she felt that it was asking to be put up on her wall.

Miss 18 was inspired by the look and decided she would do the same thing on her wall. One of her nicknames is 'dictionary queen', so she decided her book would have to be a falling apart dictionary. (She loves reading and reads the dictionary for fun. I know, I have weird kids. Don't they say that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree?) Anyway, they now have shelves. Which is good because Miss 18 got five books for her birthday !

Homeschooling - covering all your bases.

Just incase you want to run away to the Circus your mother arranges Circus skill lessons for you at Cirkidz. You need something to fall back on and for this homeschooling family - it's the Circus! You get to Cirkidz and meet your trainer. He wears funny clothes and his hair is... well....... shall we just say, 'different'. But he looks somehow familiar, and you know you're going to really like him. Then he gets you to run around like a mad thing and you know for sure you're going to love it!

Well, that's kind of what it's like on Thursday mornings. When our older children were younger, and we were homeschooling them, we took them to a homeschool Cirkidz class. We enjoyed joking about the kids needing something to fall back on. They had great fun and learnt life skills like juggling, stilt walking and unicycle riding. Mostly it was a chance for them to hang out with homeschool friends. Very often we would go for a picnic or to someone's house to play afterwards. Some of the kids took it more seriously and formed their own Circus troupe and became trainers for Cirkidz. In fact, one of those kids now runs the homeschool Cirkidz class that I take our younger children to. We kind of thought that we should offer our younger children the same educational opportunities we gave the older kids. Afterall, everyone needs something to fall back on! They enjoy the Thursday morning class a lot. They started this term and will be finishing this term too. It is just so expensive! I don't remember feeling that the classes were expensive last time. Maybe it isn't the classes, maybe it's everything else. Food is so expensive and fuel keeps going up every week here. Anyway, I'm here to tell you that having the Circus as a backup is a lot less affordable than it was before! Hmm....... gotta go find another backup!

Blogging - be nice and make it pretty!

I am a 'big blog' addict. I love meetmeatmikes and mellyandme and leanneshouse and all sorts of others. I get so excited reading their blogs and looking at all their comments. I used to sigh a lot when reading them and wish I lived in Melbourne, cause then I could meet them all and be their best friend and talk crafty things to real people in real life. But then I would remember how much I like Adelaide and realise how crazy I am. So I started looking out for Adelaide bloggers and it turned out there's quite a lot of them! And they're cool! And they craft excellent stuff! And some of them will be at Hettie's Patch this Sunday (biggest morning tea) and it's getting exciting!

I have been reading Pip's blogging hints at www.meetmeatmikes.blogspot.com and I think my blog is due for a prettiness overhaul. I think I'm going to try some things out. Stay tuned!

Teeny, tiny nighties.

This is what the teeny, tiny nighties I'm working on this week look like. The flannelette is so soft! These are nighties two and three (number one escaped the house without being photographed). Some have buttons and buttonholes, and some have snaps.

This is a snap one. Wow! They are so quick and easy to do. I'm really loving our snap press purchase. So worth it. I'm thinking of taking a photo of the snap press to post here in order to memorialise it. Wonder where the camera is?

A long weekend

This is what Bradley spent his time doing today. On Saturday he made shelves for Misses 17 and 16 and a change table for Mrs 23. Today he made a new doorway into my laundry. The old doorway has yet to be closed in, but Brad will be working on it in his spare time this week. Don't you just love a handyman? I have been sewing. I have sewn tiny little nighties for the new grandchild, but haven't taken any photos yet. Soon.

Lego

It was a lego kind of day today. I love a lego kind of day! It's one of the great joys of homeschooling. Having the time to spend a whole day building, dreaming, imagining, creating and playing.

Busy!

I have been taking my camera with me everywhere this week, but haven't managed to
remember to take any photos! I love the photo of this tree!

I have been busy running around this week. Appointments. Physio, doctors, x-rays, school councellor, Cirkidz, bookshops, you know the type of thing! Tomorrow I hope to get back into my sewing room. Today the only thing I did that is anything remotely like sewing was to visit Hettie's Patch. It is such a pretty shop! Next time I rob a bank Hettie's Patch will be my next stop! Well, okay! I don't really rob banks. I guess I would just like to take a wad of cash to a fabric store and spend it! Strange goal, huh?

What I did yesterday.

Finished this hat. It's little. And it has no seams. I like that a lot. Hopefully it will fit the grandchild.
It's made from leftover Cleckheaton Country. Leftover from the rug I knitted. I love this colour.
Finished another nightie for Mrs 23. Flannelette is so soft and warm. I love sewing with it. More flannelette looms in my sewing future.

Rugs and other things.

I was thinking about the 'hello June' post from earlier. I do sew just about everyday. There seem to be so many things to sew, other than clothes. Like rugs for the new baby. Early in May Mrs 23's sewing machine had a health crisis (a breakdown, in fact!) and had to be at the fixit shop for ten days. She missed it so much. Not just 'oh no, I can't sew', but she was surprised at how much she repairs and quickly uses her machine for all sorts of bits and pieces. She wondered how people who don't have a sewing machine get by. I guess I'm the same. I frequently have repairs and alterations to make. Some kids need hems taken up (Miss 16, shortest girl) and some (Mr 19, tallest boy) need hems let down. All the kids seem to rip their clothes. Young ones rip clothes at the knees, but as they get older they outgrow this tendancy and rip their clothes in all sorts of places. And then some mother fixes the rips. I am also busy making bags and covers as part of my 'declutter the world and get organised' journey.

I make basket liners, cushion covers and I sew curtains too. I just love to sew!

It's June!

I know I've said it before, but this year is really racing away! It's June already. Almost half-way through the year. Time to take stock I think. I had all kinds of goals for 2008. Some of them you can see in my side bars.

1. Knit six items.
2. Sew 52 items of clothing.
3. Finish 6 quilts.

I'm cruising along with the knitting thing, as you can see. Thanks mainly to the promise of our first grandchild (due in three weeks!) which has inspired me to knit some small, achievable projects.

I'm way behind with my sewing goals. I should be up to garment number 22 to keep the clothing goal real. The idea behind this goal was that, being blessed to have a permanent sewing space, I should be able to sew an article of clothing each week without really trying. Perhaps it's the "without really trying" phrase that's letting me down! Perhaps I should begin trying! I have spent a lot of time sorting things, though, and my sewing supplies are more organised than they have been for years. I guess I decided sometime in February or March that I needed to get rid of some stuff that I was never really going to use. The resulting purge has been wonderful. It's such a relief to get rid of things! Especially things that have no home. This feeling has led me to embark on an organisational/purging binge of the whole house. Something which is going to take the rest of 2008 I think, but well worth the time I'm investing!

The quilting goal has gone by the by, but there's still hope! Now that I'm more organised I may get to the quilting.

This is a pictureless post, which doesn't happen very often here, but I was keen to assess my progress. More photos soon!

Another Beret

Miss 11 liked Miss 16's beret so much she requested one for herself. I used a different yarn for this one. A New Zealand yarn. I can't remember the name of it now! I don't like it as much as the Cleckheaton Country. It's okay. It was cheaper, hence the difference I guess.

I finished this beret on Friday afternoon. It took me longer to knit than the first one, I think I was sick of the pattern with the second one.

Things at our house

This thing (a victorian sponge cake) was made by Miss 11. It was delicious! She is such a cook. It is the result of our visit to the library yesterday. Miss 11 borrowed a great book called 'Baking for children' (maybe) and decided on the sponge cake straight away.

Okay, here's the disclaimer! The following photos were not taken at my house, despite the title of this post. I just had to make that clear, least you think that my home is this wonderful! I took these photos at Mrs 23's house this afternoon. Her house is great! In this photo you can see all sorts of things that make her home wonderful. The quilt, the cushions, the softie elephant (obscured by the nightie, seen more in the pinafore photos), the watercolour of the water bird on the far left of the shelves. Mrs 23 is 36 weeks pregnant now and is very uncomfortable. I sewed the nightie for her last week and finshed the pinafore off today. She sewed the pinafore at our house a couple of months ago at one of our sewing days, but got stalled because it was too big. Not any more! So I finished it off for her, because it was at my house. (See, there is some validity to the title of this post!)

I delivered them so that I could watch Mrs 23 attach the snaps with our latest aquisition - the snap press! It's brilliant. So quick and easy. The idea of never sewing another buttonhole or sewing on another button is a really tempting one. If every future item of clothing is covered with snaps instead of buttons, you'll know I've succumbed.

This past weekend we have been changing rooms around. It means that I am now sewing in a different room. We ended up having a fateful conversation a week or two ago. You know, the one that starts off, 'Thinking laterally and forgetting all the present uses for rooms, how could we change the house to make it work better.' Or maybe you don't know. Miss 16 says that people with shiney houses don't change the traditional uses of their rooms. (We don't have a shiney house, obviously!) Of course we are pretty much stuck with the kitchen, bathroom and laundry, but just about everything else has been changed. When we get something finished a bit more I'll take some photos.

Sport Shorts

I spent this afternoon in my sewing room trying to reproduce some shorts for Miss 16. She has a favourite pair that are slowly dying and she wanted me to replicate them, but better. The legs a little longer, the waist a little lower. When I sew I feel very grown-up. I think that equates to feeling confident for me. I look at her old shorts and think, "Sure, I can make a pattern from this piece of clothing!". When I was a little younger this seemed like an incredibly scary thing. I wouldn't have even considered it. Fortunately, I had Mrs 23 to teach me. Yes, I did teach her to sew, but she has taught me so much about sewing too. And being brave. Having children has taught me so many things that I never dreamed I could learn from being a parent. Anyway, back to the shorts. The pair above (dark green) were my first attempt. The waist was too low. Miss 16 says she will wear them, but they weren't perfect. Back to the drawing board.

This navy blue pair were my second attempt. I'm hopeful that these are perfect (or close to it), she hasn't had a chance to try them on yet. If they are right I will have to make a bunch more for her. Strange to be making shorts in this cold weather, but basketball happens all year round.

A quiet month blogwise.

It has been a quiet month blogwise for me this month. Not much has been happening here. Not much blogworthy anyway. (I'm figuring no-one is really interested in the washing I have done. Clothes, dishes or floors.) One of those times when just existing seems to take all of my time. I read the blogs of those who have recently had babies and marvel at all they do.

I did finish the rug for Mrs 23's as yet unborn child. I am really pleased with it. It's a great pattern and I just loved all the knitting and the complete absence of purling. (You see, no matter how many things I knit, deep down I'm not a knitter! I hate to purl! It just doesn't come naturally to me.) I crotcheted an edging which I was really pleased with too. I used Cleckheaton Country 8 ply, a 5.5mm circular needle, and a 5.5mm crotchet hook. I enjoyed knitting it, but did get sick of it. I think that's why I like to have lots of things on the go at once, but I was determined to finish it so resisted the urge to start another project. It doesn't take much to distract me!

As soon as it was finished I rushed to my local yarn shop to buy this Cleckheaton pattern book. Miss 16 fell in love with a cabled beret at the shops. She loved the cables, but not the colours they had, and asked if I could knit her one like it. I had a look around on the wool company websites at their patterns and discovered a pattern close to the one she liked in this book.

This is a brilliant book! Heaps of hats, berets, socks, mittens, scarves and even the odd pair of slippers and hottie covers! Most of the sized items come in four sizes. 6 months, 2-4 years, 6-8 years and woman. This week I knitted the cabled beret and I'm sure I will be using this book a lot more!

Here is the cabled beret. Sideways. I don't know how this happened, because when I put this photo into blogger it definitely wasn't sideways, but there you go! I think you can still see what it's like, so it stays sideways. Fortunately Miss 16 loves the beret. She is off on a school camp next week and wanted to take it with her and was anxiously awaiting it's completion, so I'm not sure if she REALLY loves it or is just relieved that I finished it.

It has been raining here again in Adelaide. So far this month we have had 45mm. We are still excited! I don't think that rain's novelty has worn off yet. Maybe it never will.

Skeletons Rule!

According to Mr 7. This is his drawing of a skull. I have had a good week so far. My sewing room is teetering on the brink of organisation. It's a very happy feeling. There are still some things to sort, but I'm almost there. I have made lots of trips to the Salvos and was very surprised to see a piece of my 'Salvo-ed' fabric hanging on the line on one of my favourite blogs. It made me feel very happy to see someone else enjoying something that I loved, but just didn't have room for. I have even done some sewing this week. A curtain for Mr 19's new wardrobe and a liner for a basket. I have also managed to finish the rug I was knitting. I will take some photos and show you tomorrow!

Baby Shower!

Yesterday we had a baby shower for Mrs 23. I think she had a fun time and enjoyed catching up with friends. Miss 17 helped her organise it, so there was lots of food. We played a game and Ooooooed and ahhhhhed over tiny little baby clothes and Jess' favourites - board books by Eric Carle, Allan Ahlberg and Lynley Dodd. I think it's all becoming more real for her now. Everyone at our house is really looking forward to seeing their new nephew/grandson!