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a nice cup of tea for my Grandma Betty

September 23, 2020 By corrie 18 Comments

Five weeks ago the whole world changed. My grandma Betty passed away peacefully sitting in her favourite chair. It was her 73th wedding anniversary, she was dressed for the day with a cup of tea (half drunk) next to her and waiting for her son to take her out to lunch at her favourite club. And then she just left this world. I still can’t believe it. She was 98 and we had spoken on Friday and all was well. She had told me she had the card I had sent her and she loved it and we had a normal phone conversation and she was fussing over something and I said I’d talk to her again soon.

It took a huge effort and the help of the media and 5 MP’s in Sydney to contact NSW Health on my behalf to get up to Sydney for a private viewing. If I attended the funeral then it would have been limited to 20 people all up and the priest and funeral home weren’t keen on having someone from Victoria on their premises without 14 day quarantine. We also knew that we would have more than 20 attendees as grandma was still a volunteer with Meals on Wheels and one of the last veterans left and was still active in volunteering and attending events for them too.

And so by a pure miracle I was able to get to Sydney on the Tuesday, it took 3 hours to be processed through Sydney airport (under police guard the entire time) and get to the police quarantine hotel for a nights rest. My friend was texting me while I was at the international airport and asked for a photo – I said if I send you a photo and you don’t hear from me again then you know I never made it out alive and it was due to the photo! I did see a sign no photos to be taken of officials so thankfully I’m still here to tell the tale

Dinner was delivered to my door just before 9.30pm and I was face timing the family back home in Melbourne and eating dinner as I hadn’t had lunch and was starving. I didn’t sleep that night as I was afraid I would miss the viewing time. I woke up at 5, had a few coffees in bed and prayers then headed out to the funeral home for my last goodbye. It then took me 15 minutes just to leave the hotel with the police checking my paperwork, calling up that I was ok to leave and letting me go.

It was so peaceful and special at the funeral home, I did get my very special goodbye and a great sense of peace and closure in that short time. I knew that I needed it to say goodbye and make peace with how everything had turned out due to Covid and the very strict border restrictions at the moment. I know that there is so much suffering at the moment here in Australia and around the world and I will never forget the pain and suffering of others and their losses while I got to say my goodbye. So many people are not there when their loved one passes away or to say goodbye or attend the funeral and I will hold them in my prayers.

Being under police guard and in hotel quarantine was definitely an experience that my grandma would have found amusing. Even when we were on a bus we had a police escort with us and no one allowed to leave the bus except with a police offer. When I got back to Sydney airport for my flight home I had my own personal police offer waiting around until I boarded the plane. I told her you know I’m a homeschooling mum of 7 who goes to church every Sunday and has only been pulled over once by the police outside Bunnings. She told me she knew I was good! The police, health staff, hotel staff, everyone were amazing and so caring and friendly. They really are doing their job to keep everyone safe….meanwhile when I landed in Melbourne there wasn’t one official or important information to let people know about Melbourne and its restrictions. No masks handed out, no checks, no asking where have you travelled from, nothing. Its hard to contrast that with Sydney airport.

Watching the funeral from home was hard but also beautiful, we had organised for live broadcasting and it all went smoothly. OK we had put the responsorial psalm in the booklet in the wrong order as I didn’t check the draft properly and there was no singing or offertory procession so I didn’t get to include as many beautiful hymns as I would have liked it but it was lovely. We all got dressed up and watched together and then had a delicious lunch afterwards and shared memories and had a day of rest. In Sydney it was a very long and busy day for family and friends and so that was nice to have a special day to think about her and how lucky I was to have her in my life for so long.

My grandma was there when I was born in Cairns back in 1976 and has been there in my life ever since.

I have so many beautiful memories – she toilet trained my sister and I and was proud of it, we’d spend weekends and holidays with her and grandad. She’d teach us how to make our beds so that when we went to my nana’s house we were good guests and knew how to make our own bed.

She had a little table and chairs put in her kitchen for us to sit and eat at and then we graduated to the big table and would be given jobs to do for her. Her house never changed and still looks exactly the same as when I visited as a little girl. She would take us to the movies, buy us treats, take us for trips to the park and she was always one of the first people to visit me in hospital when I had a new baby.

She was born in Glasgow and money was short, her father died when she was young and he was in his early 40’s but they were happy. They were old Scots Catholics, I had to promise here that under absolutely no circumstances would we play Amazing Grace at her funeral Mass as that is what the protestants sang back in Scotland, never in the Catholic church! She still went to Confession but admitted that as she got older she only went once a year as at her age she didn’t have many sins to confess!

She went to Mass every sunday but never liked a long sermon or uncomfortable chairs. I have so many funny stories of taking her to Mass as she never minced her words. Once when I took her to the Easter Vigil we were up to the 6th reading and she let out a ‘Oh God’…..’not another reading’….I elbowed her and gave her a look! She would have been in her early 90’s by this stage and didn’t care too much if anyone overheard her. And she got away with it!

She worked at David Jones for 30 years and most of it in the toy department. I thought that the toys she bought us were so special as she must know the best toys to buy. She also knew that a lot of toys were junk as she had to do returns of toys as well. She then went on to serve Meals on Wheels for 30 years until Covid hit and we didn’t want her delivering meals as we wanted her home and safe. She hated that she couldn’t volunteer but she did understand.

She would fuss over us and worry and especially once my mum (her eldest daughter) passed away. I knew it was because she worried about us all just like a mother would. I dreaded telling her I was having a 7th baby because she would worry about me and any complications. As it would turn out our Lottie looked exactly like my mum as a baby and she treasured her and adored her. I knew she would but she would always worry so much.

She loved reading, volunteering, lots of cups of tea and shortbread biscuits, marmalade on toast, she still had a thick scottish accent despite being in Australia since the late 1940’s. She married into a big Catholic family and they welcomed her in and she ended up outliving them all being the last surviving one of that generation left. If you asked her what was the key to her long life sometimes she’d say I really don’t know and then she would say but I think its lots of fruit and vegetables, porridge for breakfast, tea and the occasional whiskey and beer.

The day she passed away I was just inconsolable…some people might say but Corrie she was 98, surely you knew she would pass away one day but its the shock of it. I really thought we had one more Christmas and one more birthday. She was so fit and healthy and was so excited about seeing us all again soon, when I told her we were moving back she said it was the best news she had heard in a long time and we could stay with her if needed to till we were set up. She was just such a big part of our lives and not just me and my family but everyone. She still had her friends of over 60 years who have cried at her loss. They’ve known her for so long, volunteered with her, been to Mass with her every Sunday.

She’s still with us though and I’ve definitely felt a closeness to her and to God the past few weeks. Not the first 2 days, the first 2 days were so sad and hard and I just didn’t feel her anywhere. But since then there have been so many little things. Just yesterday I was sitting and doing some knitting and watching a Hallmark kind of movie. My aunt texted me and said heh corrie are you still a knitter as I just found grandma’s knitting needles. I texted her back a photo of what I was doing and that I would love them. Another relative is trying to get back to Melbourne to see her Mother in a nursing home and missed her father’s funeral due to the strict border restrictions. As she was watching the funeral service she received her email advice that she can now travel to Melbourne. Just little things that let us know Betty is with us and keeping busy in heaven. She never rested here and I can see she’s going to need to slow down upstairs too.

The last book that she read was ‘Lantern in her hand’ by Bess Streeter Aldrich. It is a lovely story about one woman’s life, an american pioneer who raised her family through very tough times. Grandma loved the story and it was on the top of the pile of books I had sent her during lockdown. She would tell me to stop sending books as it was expensive to post but she loved reading them. At the end of the story her husband comes and takes her to heaven…………..and we think that on my grandma’s 73rd wedding anniversary that perhaps that is what happened to my grandma too.

We are grateful to God for a life lived to the full, for someone who was so generous and so involved in our lives who worried about us probably until the morning she left this world. We are grateful that she left this world peacefully with no suffering but our hearts really haven’t accepted that she’s not with us anymore.

Thank you to everyone for your kind messages, to my two sweet friends who delivered meals so we didn’t have to worry about dinner for a few nights and to my family and friends who have listened and been there. Thank you so much to everyone for your comments and for your kindness when I really needed it xx

Rest in peace, Grandma Betty. What a long life you lived and you will never be forgotten.

p.s I called this post ‘a nice cup of tea’ as grandma had written a story for a book published about war brides and her story was called a nice cup of tea. When she passed away she had a nice cup of tea beside her….

Filed Under: everything else, family

48 days at home…

May 10, 2020 By corrie 6 Comments

Happy Mother’s Day! I woke up to breakfast in bed – well after I called out to the bigger kids and hubby to help the younger kids who really wanted to make me breakfast but wouldn’t know how to boil the jug or turn on the oven! I was lucky enough to receive a surprise bottle of my favourite perfume, some chocolates, a mug and a craft light to help me knit at night time. I’ve spent the day in my craft room, took a long walk with hubby and Lottie looking at some of the beautiful houses in my neighbourhood and am hoping to have a quiet night knitting. I hope you’ve enjoyed your special day too!

I’m so glad I started counting the days when we had everyone at home because they’ve gone quickly…or have they? 48 days at home and only going out for groceries, walks and essentials is a long time to be together. I’ve been madly knitting away any chance I can get and I think it has helped me keep any worries out of my mind. I’ve finished one jumper for myself and I love it but wish I’d made the sleeves a wee bit longer. I’ll have to fix them by unpicking the ribbing and just making the sleeves a bit longer and then redo the ribbed cuffs. This was a fairly quick and easy jumper, made in 10 ply cotton and I know that it will wash and wear really well. The pattern is called the Super Simple Summer Sweater by JOJI. I’ve already cast on my next project which is a poncho style jumper in 12 ply which hopefully won’t take long but its all garter stitch and I only ordered 3 large balls of wool instead of 5 balls so I’m guessing that actually it will probably take me a while if it requires over 800g of wool!

We’ve been keeping busy with homeschool – I have 2 kids in school this year and they are both doing their work every day via their laptops and keeping in touch with their teachers. Then I homeschool my homeschoolers and that is going well, we are taking it a little bit easier than usual and they miss the library, our homeschool friends and our sports and activities. We are loving our Fitzroy Readers and they have been so good in helping teach 2 little people how to read.

I’m running out of things to watch on TV so would love to hear what you’ve been watching! So far I’ve loved The English Game, Unorthodox, I’ve started to rewatch Schtisel, rewatched the Bridget Jones Diary movies, loved Hidden Figures, watched both series of Jack Ryan on Amazon with my hubby but not really a fan of too much violence. I haven’t done too much reading as I’ve been knitting but have been sending my favourite books to my grandma and she’s really been enjoying them. And I’ve been finding time to finish more quilts – in the next few weeks I am sending quilts out to Mallacoota, Ulladulla, a large family in NSW and some out to Wingello. If you know someone affected by the bushfires who would love a quilt please let me know as I’d love to send them one!

We really are living in a weird world at the moment. I did have a dream a few weeks ago about getting pulled over by the police for being too far from home. Well wouldn’t you believe it but a couple of days later (near home) I was pulled over by the police because they thought I ran a red light when I had turned left at a give way sign. I just about had a heart attack when I could hear a siren and see lights flashing behind me. I thought to myself oh I better get out of the way for the police, oh no wait its me they are pulling over! Two police men got out of their SUV and asked for my license, asked if I owned the car, and said they weren’t 100% sure but thought I ran a red light and I didn’t want to argue and explained I was so sorry I thought it was a give way sign. They were so serious and I was stressing out so much and they said we won’t fine you today because we’re not 100% sure if it was a red light. So after they let me go I did a lap around the block and it was a give way sign and I felt better but still needed quite a while to calm my nerves! Let’s hope I don’t get pulled over again any time soon as I’m pretty much the most conscientious driver of a 9 seater van out there!

Stay safe and I hope you are keeping well xxxx

Filed Under: craft, family, knitting Tagged With: family, knitting

Day 17 at home

April 9, 2020 By corrie 5 Comments

Well how are you all going in isolation? I decided that on the 1st day when our entire household was staying at home to document it on instagram each day. And I’m so glad I did because the days are going by so quickly and I can’t believe that it’s been 17 days since life has been like this. We decided to take a week or two off the school books and will go back to homeschool next week and will have 2 new members of the household doing school via their computers with us too.

There has been a lot of baking….I picked up the latest book by Monday Morning Cooking Club and its just baking and desserts and is amazing. So far we’ve made an apple and jam cake and lemon bars and on Sunday we’ll be making coconut and passionfruit cake to have after our Easter Sunday lunch.

There has been some crochet, some knitting, lots of long walks and bike rides, a lot of cleaning and laundry (too much if you ask me), we have been lucky enough to have our carers still come in and help out which is making life easier for our Elodie who now does all of her therapies online. Having someone here to help her do her therapies and take her for a bike ride and do some craft keeps her happy but it is hard. I know having everyone home can be hard work and I am really missing our swimming lessons, library trips, shopping centre visits for donuts and a walk around and all the lovely people we usually get to see each week.

Take care and I hope you are all getting through these difficult times. I never could have imagined that I would wear a face mask to do the weekly shopping or that a trip to target to pick up my order of Easter pjs for the kids would be the highlight of my week!

Filed Under: baking, family

homeschool days

March 14, 2020 By corrie Leave a Comment

We are having a very quiet weekend here with most of our usual activities cancelled due to the current coronavirus. We actually went to Studley Park Boathouse with the 4 youngest members of the house to look at the ducks and get out of the house this afternoon as they were going a bit crazy. This year we are homeschooling 4 and we have 2 in school but I am sensing that in the next few days I will have my 2 at school home with me if/when their schools close down. They were encouraged to bring their books home on Thursday and Friday and I just feel like they’ll be home soon.

For me no school means business as usual with 2 extras at home. For some families this is going to be a big change having kids home from school and the days will feel long. If the kids have to be online from 9-3 it won’t be so long and you can get some work done during the day but if you are required to help with work and entertain younger kids (kindergarten/year 1) and not so independent learners then it’s going to be a big change. So here is how we spend our days…………..

We try to be dressed and ready to start working by 9am. I have usually set out the work that needs to be done – my 7 and 11 year old work independently most of the time and come and ask questions or for more work but don’t need too much attention during book work. My prep/kindergartener has a lot of trouble sitting to do work so I sit with him and we get about 1 hour of work done and then he likes to create his own Star Wars cartoon books and play Lego and will then join in other activities with the rest of the kids. My little one with special needs starts most days with 2 hours of therapy which is when we do our book work with the others. Overall we can get all of our book work done by 11 for the younger ones and lunchtime for my older one. I am also teaching 2 kids to read – we are using Fitzroy Readers and Teach your Child to read in 100 lessons as well as Letterland. I do this one on one during the day when the other kids are busy.

For record keeping I have an Officeworks diary with 1 day to a page and I jot down everything we do during the day. The kids keep scrapbooks to put in Science experiments and stick in any worksheets or art and we also have a plastic leaf binder per child which is their portfolio and one piece of work from any subject goes in each week. It is much easier to create portfolios as you go than do one at the end of the year or before review time – trust me!

After lunch and a play outside we usually do board games, a puzzle, art, music, read a book, do a craft project or watch some Horrible Histories on YouTube. We usually keep the TV off all day but if motivation levels are low towards the end of the week then its time for a good movie in the afternoon and some quiet time- think old school like Mary Poppins, Annie, Roald Dahl stories, Disney classics and so on. The recent Pete’s Dragon had everyone very quiet one afternoon. We go to the library once a week and love it – this week we went twice!

We also love online learning and have a subcription to ABC Mouse and IXL for English and Maths. During the week the kids will 1-3 hours of online learning.

If you are going to be at home its a really good time to learn to play an instrument (piano, keyboard, recorder – ha ha if you’re brave enough for the recorder and have headphones), to learn a craft like knitting, sewing or crochet, to get a stack of library books or read a book you’ve always wanted to read, work on your baking and cooking skills and have the kids help you organise cupboards, toys and wardrobes.

If you have a couple of balls we like to take a few to the oval nearby with some witches hats for soccer and tunnel ball and then go to the park afterwards. By 4pm we are usually doing our activities like kumon, choir, swimming and basketball but since most have been cancelled we will probably have some quiet time until dinner and then its bathtime and a bit of tv or a play upstairs before bed.

A couple of our favourite games to play at the moment are Monopoly Deal (we love it so much and our 5 year old keeps beating us!), Go Fish (we have Toy story and Disney editions), Monopoly, Guess Who and Twister. They are great for turn taking, having some fun, speech and passing time.

And that is how we spend our days! We are going through a crazy period right now which I’ve never seen before in my lifetime and I know it feels like everything is up in the air but keep smiling and I’m sure positives will come out of time spent together and a quieter way of living for a while. I really love being at home with the kids at the moment, I don’t have to worry about what I am wearing for the school run because I don’t have a school run and we have settled into our rhythm for the day but it took some time so I know how crazy it can be at times.

Filed Under: everything else

Making quilt blocks and quilts for bushfire affected areas

January 3, 2020 By corrie 1 Comment

It really is such a devastating time in Australia right now. I’ve been searching around on Facebook trying to see if anyone has been organising quilts for people affected by the bushfires. If you have a finished quilt that you are ready to send shortly then please look at Ladies from the Land Facebook page as they are collecting finished quilts for distribution in NSW and QLD and have done a lovely job packaging them up and distributing some already. I have just checked with them today and they are still taking quilts for donation but please only new finished quilts – not quilt blocks or quilt tops. If you have a finished quilt, knitted or crocheted blanket you would like to donate then Crafty Adventures HQ have listed details of their collection on FB here.

I know at the moment it really is still an emergency situation in some parts of Australia but I know that quilters and crafters love to get started on a project to help. If you would like to make a quilt block or a quilt top or need a bit more time to make a quilt then I would love to organise the collection of them and then can send them directly where they need to go – at the moment I’m thinking East Gippsland and the South Coast of NSW as they are closeby and easy to obtain contact details for distribution.

Quilt blocks are inexpensive to mail and a finished size of 10 or 12 inches works nicely. Last time I organised a charity quilt drive we asked for a 12 1/2 inch size block that would be 12 inches when finished into a quilt but we made it work with the blocks we received. So this time I think aiming for quilt blocks of 10 1/2 inches or 12 1/2 inches when it comes to me. Quilt as you go blocks are also welcome if you prefer that style.

If you would rather make an entire quilt or a quilt top then there are no restrictions just something that someone would want to receive and treasure. If you have a quilt ready to go then do get in touch with Ladies from the Land who are collecting right now and ready to send them off but please don’t send them blocks or quilt tops, only finished quilts.

Please message or email me for my address and we will keep this open throughout 2020. I will host a quilting bee or two during the year to help put the quilts together and I also love to machine quilt so will be busy putting a few together myself.

If you have any questions or would like further information then please leave a comment, message me on Facebook or email me.

Filed Under: quilting, quilts for queensland

A Christmas market this Friday

November 27, 2019 By corrie 2 Comments

Just a little note if you live in Melbourne and love Christmas markets, I will be doing a school market this Friday 29th November. You can find me at Camberwell Girls Grammar School from 3.30-7.30pm before carols begin. I have Advent Calendars, lots of Christmas fabrics including glow in the dark fabrics, Christmas hair bows, pencil rolls, advent calendar panels, small gifts and more! Hope you can make it…………unsold stock will be listed in my etsy store over the weekend. Prices range from $2-$50 on the day………….

Filed Under: markets

Flower Sugar fabrics back in stock

August 11, 2019 By corrie 1 Comment

Well I can’t believe I haven’t posted since May! I do still post on Facebook and Instagram. Life is always busy but everyone is happy, we are braving the arctic Melbourne weather this weekend (5.5C when we headed out this morning) and still loving Melbourne life. I’ve been volunteering at school, homeschooling 1 who wasn’t doing well at school, trying to keep on top of the washing and chasing 2 little ones at home who never stop!

Last week I took delivery of these beautiful Flower Sugar fabrics by Lecien. This is their latest range which I got to order late last year and I just love having them in my house. I’ve included a few photos of things I’ve made from Flower Sugar in the past. It’s so pretty and this year’s range has some sweet gingham, cherry blossoms and stars scattered across the range to make it extra special.

I have listed them in my etsy store here but if you’d like a custom order just message me on etsy I will organise it for you. I find it tricky pricing the 1/2m due to postage so any postage has been included and I will refund any excess postage if you get charged it

Now to find some time to sit at the machine and enjoy using these fabrics.

Filed Under: fabric, fabrics

A few finished projects

May 26, 2019 By corrie 3 Comments

Well it really was the week for finishing off projects as I had 3 projects all finished and ready to be used. First up is this very sweet baby blanket for my sister and my new nieces, Indigo and Willow. The pattern is from 60 More Quick Baby Blankets and wasn’t really a quick knit for me but was an easy pattern. There were a couple of errors in the pattern which are always annoying when you have to work out why the pattern isn’t working and I will share them in ravelry. I used Caron Simply Soft so it could be machine washable and I did have good intentions to make 2 blankets but that is just not going to happen as I lose motivation with blankets so I’m working on 2 pink baby cardigans instead.

Next up was my first smocked dress which is another not so quick project but a very enjoyable one. I decided this year was the year I would learn smocking. I have done 3 classes at Bustle and Bows in Warrandyte which is a gorgeous store with old fashioned service. My teacher Ann has been so patient and I started with a pre-pleated kit which meant I could learn the smocking stitches during class time and put the dress together faster. Although there is nothing fast about putting this dress together as there is a lot of hand stitching and basting before you take it to the machine. But it turned out beautifully. A few boo boos but I love it and I learnt a lot in the process.

And while I was on a roll finishing off projects I finally got a little cardigan for Lottie finished. This is from ‘Knitting for Little Sweethearts’ a Norwegian book translated into English. I love the patterns in the book but the instructions were not as straightforward as they could have been. I had to make a few guesses of what I needed to do but it all worked out in the end. I used Bendigo Classic in 8 ply and the colour was just what I was looking for although Melbourne is cold and I probably should have gone for a warmer wool. Lottie loves it and I’m glad I finished it time so that it would fit her this winter.

And now I need to get back to crafting and make more things as its so satisfying getting things finished and worn! I also have some beautiful new fabrics from Japan perfect for sewing and quilting and all with free shipping so I hope you enjoy having a look at them here. The florals are so beautiful and I’m looking forward to making some smocked dresses with some of them. I’m also waiting for delivery of Flower Sugar by Lecien and some fun glow in the dark Christmas fabrics too.

Filed Under: craft, knitting, sewing

getting to school on time

February 20, 2019 By corrie 1 Comment

I was asked to write a blog post on getting to school on time for the Catholic Weekly and here it is. I do want to point out that not everything goes to plan and the week that this was published my eldest took my car keys to school and texted me at 8.20am just as I was heading out the door. I couldn’t find the spare key but thankfully my van was open and I could swap over car seats and we still managed to get to school on time. She had netball tryouts early in the morning and had gone to the van to get her sports jacket and then tucked those car keys into her pocket and gone on her merry way. It was funny (afterwards) and she wasn’t in trouble!

I hope you enjoy the article and if I missed anything let me know. Everyone is very settled in their new life down here and I’ve been making more friends and keeping busy. People ask if I like living down here and I say yes and then they remind me I haven’t done a winter yet….so let’s see. I have started knitting for winter but just need to knit faster.

Filed Under: family

straight back into routine!

January 19, 2019 By corrie 10 Comments

Well I’ve been spending this morning organising stationary lists for some of the kids, checking everyone has sports shoes that fit and thinking about getting uniforms out and sorted. I realised this week we were straight back into routine as I raced around between swimming lessons, kumon and playdates. And we usually don’t do that many playdates because we have plenty of our own children in this house. But as kids get older and since we moved we’ve been doing a few playdates.

We had a beautiful Christmas with my dad and grandma visiting, we had 30 people here for Christmas lunch which was crazy busy but fun and ended in the pool and it was a special time for us focusing on the real reason we celebrate.

Christmas Eve Mass was beautiful, I had 2 shepherds who unfortunately (or fortunately for them!) were out of my sight for all of Mass. I was really hoping that my active boys weren’t being too active and well behaved. They encourage each other and are very cheeky which is cute but thankfully they were on their best behaviour (well that is what I was told!).

I’ve got great plans this year for more craft in a cleaner craft room! I’ve been watching the Tidying up show on Netflix and done the little boys room, toys and bookshelves. The folding method really does take up less space and wardrobes that were overflowing are really looking spacious and neat and tidy. Although half of my wardrobe is still on the floor as I realised it was a bigger job than I could achieve in naptimes!

I’m booked into a smocking class to learn how to smock and bought my own smocking pleater from ebay. Some of my readers who have been around for a while might remember that I did buy a smocking pleater at a garage sale and then hung on to it for years and sold it on eBay. The going rate in australia for a 2nd hand one seems around the $150 mark and I ended up in a bidding war and got to $170ish but it arrived in immaculate condition. A new one is $400 and so I’m pretty happy with my buy and hope I have the time and patience for smocking.

I’ve been knitting a baby blanket for my sister who is having twins. Very exciting news for our family and I can craft for other people’s babies now. The pattern is fairly easy and fun to put together BUT the disappointment when I found out there were 2 errors in the pattern after I’d knitted it and couldn’t work out where I was going wrong. I’ll have to let the publisher know. Apart from the errors it’s going well and I’m up to the middle section.

And life in Melbourne is going well. I’m getting used to the weather and I’m not talking about as much as I was when we first moved down. The kids are very happy and I only have a couple of boxes still to unpack. I still find driving a bit tricky as I don’t know where I’m going and the lanes seem narrower (as do the parking spots) and there are a few tight streets I drive down but apart from that it’s going well. We have no regrets moving and are starting to feel like it’s our new home for a while.

I hope everything is going well for you and that you’ve all had a great start to the year. I’d like to write a bit more on the blog as I tend to rely on instagram and FB but want to use less of my social media this year so I can stay away from my phone! When I’m out I just see everyone glued to their phones and think it’s really sad. I’m pushing a pram so my hands are busy and I’ve got to have my eyes on everyone but we really are so attached to our phones and now that my eldest has one it’s been a battle to limit her time. Hands should be kept busy with craft I think so I’ve been doing some sewing and baking and hoping to give her some new hobbies!

Filed Under: family

Our review of the Vuly Ultra

December 12, 2018 By corrie 6 Comments

I don’t know who was the most excited in our house to receive a Vuly trampoline just before Christmas. A few months ago we had to leave our Vuly Thunder at our Sydney house before moving to Melbourne. And the kids were really missing having a trampoline in the backyard. For quite a few years we didn’t have enough backyard space to have a trampoline and it was only when we moved to acreage that we finally bought our first trampoline. I did a lot of research before buying one and selected the Vuly Thunder for its safety and excellent reviews and it was a great decision. It’s still going strong in Sydney and in excellent condition a few years on.

We love trampolines because they help kids let out a lot of energy, they are great for keeping fit and getting off devices, they are amazing for kids with special needs and helped our girl learn how to jump and use her core muscles. I also find for kids after school or when we were homeschooling that getting out on the trampoline helped clear their minds and any worries they might have. And when friends come over playtime always ends up on the trampoline.

We chose the large size in the Vuly Ultra and assembly took a couple of hours. It always pays to read the instructions and watch the video before you try to put up a trampoline and don’t leave it until Christmas Eve unless you know what you’re doing is also good advice. We found putting the Ultra together was easier than the Thunder as the springs and mat were easier to attach and it was a 1 person job. The springs are covered by thick padding that is secured the whole way around the trampoline so it won’t come off.

The kids were ‘helping’ assemble the trampoline and then the fighting began over who was going on it first. We do have rules in place for the trampoline – we don’t let big and little kids jumping on the trampoline together, if little kids are on then only 1 is allowed to jump and only when supervised. Once the rules are set it’s easy just to remind the kids those are the rules or you go inside and no more jumping.

Overall I’m really impressed with the Vuly Ultra, yes it does have springs but I’m very happy that they are on the outside and there is no way anyone jumping inside the trampoline would land on a spring. The net is very firm and the openings on the Vuly’s are one of my favourite features. No zips just a clever opening that you slide out of making it much safer. I do want to buy the ladder to help my younger ones get on the trampoline and the tent as the weather is warming up. And I think the mister is on my wish list for those really hot summer days.

You can find the Vuly range of trampolines here, the Vuly Ultra’s start at $649 and I’m really happy to have one here at our house for the kids to enjoy. I know it will last and the kids are safe playing on it too. If you want one with guaranteed delivery before Christmas then be quick and order by tomorrow (13th December) or check the delivery times by calling the sales team at Vuly on 1300 667 514.

A very big thank you to Vuly for sending us the Vuly Ultra and the hours of fun that are going to be had at our house. You can find the Vuly range of trampolines here.

I received the trampoline from Vuly and was not paid for this post. The opinions contained in this post are entirely my own.

Filed Under: everything else, review

back into the swing of markets

November 25, 2018 By corrie 2 Comments

Well I have my first market under my belt after a few years away from markets. It was a little quiet as it was a school market, cold and raining and election day but I made some good sales and met a lot of families I hadn’t met yet. I also met our country’s treasurer but had no idea who I was talking to. I just must be so out of the loop of politics right now (maybe a little annoyed at politicians and so not following along).

Anyway before my market I found some older fabrics in my craft room and have listed a few in my etsy store here. I have another market in 2 weeks here so need to get cracking on topping everything up (especially my tissue packs as one lovely lady bought 9!) and making more advent calendars which proved very popular.

I forgot how fun markets are – probably because I get out of the house – but also a rollercoaster of emotions. Yay I’m booked to do a market, let’s start making stuff, I’m never going to have enough stock, that’s it I’m not doing it, I’m going to pull out, help I need a float and paper bags, packing everything up and getting excited and that’s all just before market day. I went through all the emotions and still have a few things to iron out but had a great day!

Filed Under: sewing

Christmas sewing time yet?

October 3, 2018 By corrie 4 Comments

I’ve been ordering a bit of Christmas fabric lately and thinking about what to make as I want to do a Christmas market or two before the year is out. I found one of these coasters as I was unpacking last week and I have to say that it’s still one of my favourite Christmas projects and you can start now making the little hexagon flowers while watching TV.

Instructions can be found here…….and another favourite that is super easy are these santa sacks that double as a pillowcase. You can find the super easy instructions here…..the fabric I used is by Michael Miller and I’m happy to report that the gold dots have survived the wash (many times!).

Any sewing or craft plans for Christmas. Now is the time to start………

Filed Under: sewing

Our 3rd Kitchen Renovation

September 27, 2018 By corrie 8 Comments

We are now living in Melbourne but the packing and moving took up all of my time so I’m a little late with this post all about my new kitchen but here it is. This was a budget friendly renovation so that we could rent out of our house for as long as we are away. We were at first going to paint the kitchen white, replace appliances and the benchtops but the existing cabinetry was on its last legs so we decided a new kitchen (on a budget) was a better choice.

Here is how it looked after rip out. The team come in and pull everything out and are in and out in a few hours.

We chose Kitchenworks Belrose (again) as I knew they’d do an excellent job and they offer budget kitchens using melamine cabinetry and laminate counters. Their tradespeople are very experienced and reliable which is important and you are given a timeline with each trade and contact details and everything runs very smoothly. We had a very tight deadline as we wanted our house photographed and ready to show so we are glad that everyone kept to schedule. I don’t get any kickbacks from them for saying good things about their kitchens but I can honestly say Kitchworks do an excellent job, have attention to detail, keep up to date with the latest trends and deliver on time and budget. For the 3rd time they’ve delivered a really great kitchen and so much better than what I had in mind.

The cabinetry we chose is melamine and the colour is strata grey (by Polytec). We chose grey as the white melamine can show its age quickly (apparently) and the greys seemed popular. Now that I’ve lived with the grey kitchen I can say that it makes the space more interesting. The grey is lighter during the day and darker at night and its nice seeing it change. It worked well with the laminate benchtop, white tiles and stainless steel appliances.

The countertop is laminate (looks like wood but it really is laminate) and is a real showstopper. The whole lot came in about $800 and is beautiful to look at and work on. Its called Natural Halifax Oak and is available in Australia through Nikpol.

For the appliances we needed to keep it cheap and cheerful, all electric and thanks to some great sales on I paid $1200 for the oven, range, cooktop and dishwasher from Good Guys Castle Hill. They all work really well. Cooking package was by Omega. Installation was included in the kitchen quote.

Handles and pulls are from Marina Isles in Castle Hill who have a beautiful range. I’m so glad they were close by because I didn’t count how many knobs I needed so did a mad dash back there on installation day to grab a few more.

The sink is from Bunnings and around the $150 mark. Tap was from Restoration Online (Single Lever Mixer Tap from Bastowe for $183) and not expensive but not too cheap.

Tiles were from Beaumont Tiles Castle Hill – I had a last minute change of mind with the tiles and the longer tile in this style (called Agrestic) really does work better (if you’re going to lay in a subway style). These came in about $200. The colour is ivory (was just a bit softer than the white) and the size is 300×75.

These beautiful chopping boards were kindly sent to me by Byron Bay Chopping Boards and are beautiful to look at and beautiful to use. I had seen photos on Pinterest with the boards stacked up and just love how they look in the kitchen.

The flooring needed to be redone throughout the back half of downstairs as the cork was falling apart and was missing bits once the kitchen was ripped out. We went with a vinyl from Harvey Norman called Novocore which was the closest match to the flooring in the front half of the house. It went straight over the top of the cork and is easy to look after.

All up the kitchen, trades and appliances (not including the flooring) came in under $13,000 which was a great result. The space is really open and fresh and a big difference from the falling apart brown kitchen (which I’d still be cooking in if we weren’t moving interstate). We knew that a new kitchen would make the house easy to rent out and because we had to pay our own rent and bond down in Melbourne it was really important to have it rented out quickly and for the right price.

And I’m happy to report that we moved out on the Monday and new tenants moved in on the Friday. It was a great result and we are really happy with the finished kitchen. If I had more money I would have put an island in but we really had to keep to budget as we had other work to do on the house as well as the painting and flooring. The best part of pulling out the old kitchen was that we had more room to make a kitchen, living and dining area whereas before half the space was taken up by a kitchen.

Filed Under: kitchen, renovation, renovations

a new kitchen is coming

July 13, 2018 By corrie 2 Comments

Well I’ve shared a few things on social media and a new kitchen is coming. Not for me to enjoy but to rent out our house easily and update our very tired and falling apart kitchen. If we weren’t moving I’d probably still be cooking in my original kitchen for a few more years. So we have a tight budget for this project and I looked at a few options – ikea, bunnings and then turned to Kitchenworks who have done our other 2 kitchens and they are able to deliver on budget. Just a word of warning this is not going to be a white top of the line kitchen……this is going to be something different but still I’m trying to keep it as country style as I can.

There won’t be any country style cabinets and I’m doing without an island as well (to keep to the budget) but so far it’s coming together nicely. Installation is in 2 weeks and I’ve just got to buy my appliances and empty all of my cupboards and I’ll be ready to go. The kitchen will be grey with a laminate counter that looks like wood, called Halifax Natural Oak (image source) which is supplied by Nikpol Australia. It’s gorgeous and came in at $800 all up which is great.

Kitchen cabinets will be melamine in a colour called Strata Grey (matt finish). I’ve seen a few english country kitchens with the grey cabinetry and wooden benchtops so am trying to create a country style kitchen within budget. I started with a much lighter grey but decided to take a risk and go a bit darker as the kitchen gets a lot of sunlight and I didn’t want it to look too light/almost white. (Image source)

The sink is a simple one bowl sink from Bunnings and I managed to pick out the tap from Restoration Online (which I didn’t think I’d be able to afford) for about the same price as Bunnings. The tap is a Single Level Mixer from Bastow and has just arrived and looks beautiful at $183. (Image source)

So I’ll be sharing photos each day of the renovation on Instagram and Facebook and can’t wait to share the finished kitchen with you. It’s going to be fun cooking without a kitchen because we’ve always been able to use a kitchen with our last 2 kitchens but I have my trusty Thermomix and a new Instant Pot so think I’ll be fine.

Filed Under: kitchen