PS...

Nearly forgot...

A (giant) Tea Towel Tote

Cheap & perfect for the beach...

These are back on the Supermarket shelves

Eeeek!

(Good Eeeek... mouthwatering, greedy guts kinda Eeeek)

Roasted Beetroot, Gouda, Olive Oil, S&P - Yumbo Mumbo!!

And a blissful visit to our local park with Young Prince.

All in all a SPLENDIFEROUS weekend.

Happy Monday peoples :-)

xxxx

I'm a Grandmother!

Presenting the latest additions to the JAm family

Cute, cuddly and...

VERY hard to photograph.

We have given our girls 6 chicks to raise in an effort to...

A - help out our good friends who'd like more chooks and 

B - encourage our two to stop being broody

For those new to the whole "chicken thing" 

(as I was only a short while ago)

Chickens who go broody sit on their eggs hoping of course for a hatching.

Thing is if there are no Roosters around well then clearly there can be no baby chicks.

As well as ceasing to lay eggs they often neglect their own health.

We tried a few tactics to stop the broodiness but none of them worked.

Our good pals suggested that we might want to allow our girls to raise a few chicks in a bid to help them move out of their "motherly coma" -  as well as for the delightful experience.

So with chicks in a box and torch in hand we head up to the run....

(chickens are quite docile at night, 

so this was the best time to gently introduce them to their new family)

We remove the unfertilised eggs they've been sitting on so dutifully for the last few weeks; 

and we place 3 chicks under each.

 In the morning I found that Daphne 

(above on the right) 

had four chicks under her and Roz only two. 

We were told to keep an eye on them just in case they started fighting.

Well I am so proud of my gals. 

They have taken to their motherly duties with grace,

 enthusiasm and amazing protective instincts. 

They will allow me near them but their eyes and their warning clucks say

"Nick off we've got this sorted"

Already the chicks follow them everywhere and imitate their every move.

It's actually very funny to see these little bundles trying to do things that big chickens do, 

especially the scratching and the pecking. 

(Reminds me of little girls in their mums heels)

If you're thinking about keeping Chickens 

(but you're not sure)

I would HIGHLY recommend you do a bit of research

 (just to check you have the space, your council allows it, how to shelter etc) 

and maybe start small, like we have. 

Two chickens are ideal for a small backyard and little children will love the experience - I guarantee it. Then there's the bonus of the eggs, the recycled scraps and the endless hours of

amusement watching them forage... or maybe that's just me?

Lucky find...

A very dear family member celebrates a birthday and we are invited to High Tea. 

Deciding to make an effort for this fellow

"Austen appreciating, tea imbibing lady"

 I investigate the feasibility of hiring a fancy costume.

Think Mad Hatter tea party or something say.....

Victorian?

Can you imagine my delight when I drive past a 

Salvation Army store and spot this in the window?

Brakes screeched, heart raced.... 

"probably won't fit me though"

(she thought)

Well not only did it fit 

(like a glove)

but the lovely ladies even had this in store ....

A tulle underskirt made for a wedding dress!

Mmmm .... meant to be methinks

And just look at the detail.

I imagine it was made either as a wedding dress 

(for a fellow period drama enthusiast such as myself)

or a costume for a film/play.

So for a fraction of the cost of hiring an outfit, 

I am now the proud (if somewhat obsessed) owner of

a small piece of period perfection.

I might add that I have been wearing it around the house (when no one's home of course)

and, I think, doing a Maaaarvelous & Sooooper job of...

... walking up straight, swishing and swirling.

So...

 Good day to you my lovelies. If you'll kindly excuse me, 

I have some rather pressing matters to attend to, calling cards to deliver, 

ribbons to acquire... 

*********

In the Garden

We spent most of Sunday in the garden.

Total bliss

We had the most divine weather for it & I was able to 

get quite a few things done.

(This is the view form our back patio - pretty special yes?)

Of course if you were to look a little closer you'd find an army of weeds.

Luckily we are not waging a war against them - it's more of a peace treaty with land rights.

Truth is you couldn't win that war in our rambling garden so it's always best to 

put up a fair fight and then concede defeat when the referee rings the bell.

(The beer o'clock bell that is)

Our pooch Eddie had other ideas as well...

My faithful companion.

Our vegie patch is looking promising too....

I cannot wait to sample our snow pea sprouts

(Did you know the leaves make a great addition to a salad?)

as well as our baby beets... I plan on roasting them and having a 

Beetroot and Gouda Panini... crazy I know but so darn tasty.

Apart from the weeding I managed a few other menial tasks like

cleaning all the chicken feeders and...

planting these Peace Lily bulbs

(given to me by my surrogate grandparents - Thank you Jilly & Buppa)

Altogether it was a most productive day....

... & I even squeezed in a spot of sewing.

Highlights though would have to be the heady scent of Jasmine

(which literally fills the air since it covers our entire back fence)

and finding this...

Brought such a smile to my face to think of 

some young lad (or lass) playing with this in our

garden and having as blissful a day as mine.

*******

Your weekend peoples? Busy, quiet, productive, sleepy, lazy, adventurous?

Heredity...

HEREDITY 

(A poem by Thomas Hardy)

I am the family face

Flesh perishes, I live on

Projecting trait and trace

Through time to times anon,

And leaping from place to place

Over oblivion

The years-heired feature that can

In curve and voice and eye

Despise the human span

Of durance - that is I,

The eternal thing in man

That heeds no call...

.... to die

***********************

My Ouma's doilies 

Hand made with care when eyesight was stronger

Tiny stitches of love and patience

Weaved within and without

I said good bye to her 

Long before I began to stitch and sew

I wonder now.... does she look on and know?

As we ladies make

Do we not create for those who can't?

Are we stitching and painting and writing for the angels?

A gift complete...

Hooray!

 I have finished my handmade/homemade gift.

(For the lady who conjures the magical jams)

I had the idea that I would repay her kindness with a 

selection of things that I too had made. 

Now since I'm no good at jams 

(have yet to master the art of that one)

I thought it best to stick to the more crafty arena.

So here's all that I made her.

String tags to label pressies - I bought them in bundles from the news agency and 

hand stamped them on one side leaving the other side for her message.

Then I sewed an envelope from thick brown paper to house them in.

The envelope is decorated with left over bits of fabric and ties up with twine.

Then I made some cards for her to use - also using leftover linen

(from the tote bag) and stamps, ribbon & twine.

I'm still looking for a good fabric ink 

(any suggestions?)

I believe Versa Craft make one so I'll investigate this option.

Still the images that I did stamp came out quite clearly.

Then there are my clay tags.

I'm really happy with the way they turned out.

I've used this clay before for Christmas tags.

It's very easy to work with and you can paint or varnish it if you prefer.

My little muslin food covers should come in very handy for outdoor

entertaining or picnics. I finished them in the same material I used for the trim on the tote.

Some miniature bunting to hang in a little window

or above a work space.

These hand stamped labels took me quite a while to do.

(I stamped each letter individually)

However I think they'll come in very handy labelling her wares.

Along with some self seal bags 

(I bought them from a supplies store)

I have put them all in a homemade envelope - which I sewed and decorated with

stamps and vintage dictionary paper.

They have a young son so thought it might be nice to make a little something

for his room. I have been making paper bunting from vintage children's books.

This one is made from a Little Golden Book called Make Way For The Roadway.

I love the colours but...

.... hopefully he loves all the cars and trucks.

And then to finish it all off, and add a touch of luxury,

I've included a French Pear Candle by Wicked Wix.

(I know - not exactly homemade but in fact these soy based candles are 

hand poured in Western Australia. The company began with two mothers

looking for a job that would give them flexibility with family - too cool)

I'm so excited. 

I cant wait to see her face when I give it all to her! 

********

PS - It's Friday Peoples!! 

Hope your weekend is filled with ...

AWESOMENESS!