WIPW

This weeks Work in Progress is decorating the house for Christmas.

The big tree is going to take a few days to assemble so that is the work in progress.  The rest I sort of have under control.

The nativity and my cross stitched table runner are in place.  ( I notice one of the wise men is missing, hope he isn't late!)

There are ginger thins at the ready for visitors.  I bought an extra tin this year as last year they were all gone long before Xmas.

The little Xmas trees are in position.  One on the back verandah and the other

on the wall unit.

I have all the Xmas fudge packaged and the gift cards written.

BUT I have quite a bit of sewing to do.  As if the wedding wasn't enough?

 

Dressmaking

In the middle of getting ready for the wedding I got a panic phone call from my grand daughter.  "I need a costume for my English/Drama presentation for Monday."  This was Thursday night and I had to leave for the farm on Friday morning.

Panic stations!!!

So in the midst of everything else I sat up late and made a costume for her.  She had to be a convict child from 1790.  I'm not sure this is very original but I know the bonnet is the same as those issued at the time.  I didn't have her to hand to do a fitting it was just do the best you can.  I sewed on fake patches and told her to rub it in the dirt.  (I don't think she has done that.)

Here are my two girls all dressed up for their job as ring bearers at the wedding. 

As I have said before Monique is on the Autistic Spectrum so I knew that if I didn't have this costume finished to take to the farm she would freak out.  The moment she saw it I saw her mentally draw a line under that problem and then she was ready for the next.  "Would Aunty Laura and Uncle Shane really get married without any problems?"

Bear's Big Day!

Well now the wedding is over and all I want to do is sleep.  My husband and I left all the young ones down on the farm and drove back to our island retreat.  I was so glad to get my car on the barge.  My husband had to stop on the way back because he was so tired, so he missed the barge and had to get a ferry.

The big surprise was Bear, he really stole the weekend.  Everyone loved him.  I had to make sure he stayed on the verandahs of the house because there are lots of wild dogs and dingos in the bush around the farm and he would make an easy meal.  But every time I looked for him someone was giving him a cuddle.

My grand daughter Jasmine just loved him and as you can see he isn't trying to get away and he and Monique are now old friends.

My new step-grand daughter, Jemma would have kept him if she could have.

As would my new son-in-law.

Ever time I looked for him there he was being cuddled or just completely relaxed.

By the time we left he was just worn out.  He slept all the way home in the car and then slept most of the next day.  I have only had him a week but he has made himself part of the family.

 

WIPW

This week is just a mess.   Home schooling takes up most of each day and having a child in the house means that it is never clean.  Monique has ADHD, so she is constantly on the move and constantly touching things. Nothing is where it should be and there is sand through out the house.  She bought me this card for my birthday and it about says it all.

My daughters wedding is on Saturday and I have all the catering to arrange and to travel down to Canungra for the service.  The mind boggles.

But in amongst all this , mainly when supervising lessons, I have managed to nearly finish another portrait.  This is Daphne.

I have taken a different approach to this class lately.  I know that I can stitch portraits so I am just progressing with my own thing, working without really thinking.  For the class I am working through the exercises with the aim of learning new techniques.  Thinking about each technique and then adding what I have learnt to my own toolbox.  Hopefully this will improve my work.  Only 14 portraits to go in this series but I have so many others I would like to stitch.

A new member of the family

I  was visiting my daughter and we went to collect her wedding rings and then decided to have lunch.  It was so noisy in the shopping mall that she said we should go to a little shop in an industrial estate where the coffee and food was good.  So off we went.  When we got there it was busy, like any place that is any good can get.  We had to share a table and then another group of people arrived as well.  I saw that they were from the RSPCA and asked if they had a place near there.  Yes, just down the road.

I got the strongest feeling that I had to visit straight away.  Oh goodness, all those poor animals.  Most were so sad and a lot of them will be put down.  Then I saw 'Bear'.  A small dog, very old, 12 years, and I knew I had to have him.  Things have changed since last time I got a dog from the RSPCA.  Such a process you have to go through to check that you are a suitable owner.  There were 4 other applications in front of mine but I was chosen.

So this is Bear.

He doesn't look like it but he is a Pomeranian and should look like this.

They told me that someone had reported that he was neglected and he was brought in in the ambulance and his coat was in such a terrible condition that he had to be put under anaesthetic to remove his fur.  The Vet didn't think he would survive.  But, he is a bright little man and we are just getting him settled in.  So we are at the beginning of a new relationship.  I am sure there will be lots to tell.