Memories

The sun was shining and as I was walking around the leisure centre to reach the main door, to go swimming - I had a memory. I was taken back to childhood. During the school holidays mom and dad would give me money for bus fare to the swimming pool and in those days we were issued with free swimming passes if you could swim a length. I loved going swimming and the smell of the chlorine took me back there. If the weather was good then the centre would have the outdoor pool open which I loved. Then quite often I would walk back home so that I could use the bus fare to buy a Midlands County ice cream - yum yum. I would have spent hours in the water and walking home must all have been good exercise.

Sorry I wanted to show you a picture of the swimming pool - but I gave up trying to down load it! Soz.


There has been much talk in blogland re backing up your treasured photographs etc. And I have been busy thinking about this but it all came to a head when I heard someone I know had their laptop stolen. Then I thought about my own laptop with all my precious photographs, the childrens weddings, family holidays, special events. I'd be sooo upset if I lost them. Then busy gearing myself up to buying some sort of a hard drive when Mrs A's hubby informs me he backs his computer up onto DVDs. Well that answers my prayers - at a cheap and easy price! So Tuesday night I started transferring photographs off the old family computer onto my laptop. Thought this would take about and hour but it took me till 12:30 the next morning! Last night Mrs A and hubby came to show me how to transfer this data onto DVDs. I am so pleased with the outcome. I cannot believe that I have enough pictures to take up to 8-9 dvds! This probably means I have about 32000 pictures. Don't think this is strictly true because there are a few short video clips which will take up a lot of space. But still I'm in shock as to how many I have! It's been so tempting to look at all these pictures and not get anything done. You know what it's like - you see an old photo and go "ooh and ah, oh weren't they so cute" etc etc. I am about halfway through saving the pictures. Then I need to make a decision as to where to keep these dvds.

Well I think this will have to be an unusual blog for me with no pictures. But I promise a better one at the weekend! Bye  

Exhausting But Fulfilling Weekend.

Mr P has been away this week and this has led me into bad habits - going to bed late. Friday night I decided it was time to get the second baby blanket knitting finished. So I ended up staying up till 1am to complete it.

7.15 am busy making pudding for the evening. By 8am I was at the swimming pool - this now means I have managed to complete 6 days on the trot at the pool. Then off to Uppingham to buy my dad's birthday present. Then I went off to the village called "Wing" for a quilt show.

It's a gorgeous picturesque English village. I knew I was in the right place when I saw these signs.

It almost felt naughty going to yet another quilt festival.


























This quilt show is held in honour/memory of the Wing's quilters group teacher, who died rather suddenly of a stroke. The money they raise goes to charity. The quilts are draped in the parish church and they used every available space to display them. This first picture is a rather special quilt.

It's really hard not to plague you with all my photographs but here are some of my favourites.

 I love these 2 cushions as I love the stitching.

Again more hand stitching - amazing just by using two colours the effectiveness.

This one is such fun with the dogs and their paw marks..

This was not a quilt that at first I liked, but the more I looked at it the more I appreciated the work and talent that had gone into it. How did the sewer get those circles sooo perfect?

Here's a view of what the church was looking like - quilts draped everywhere!

The next quilt I think was probably the most challenging quilt to make and it was such a shame how it was being displayed.

I'm not sure about this one whether it all goes together - having those small squares and then these sunflowers appliqued on top. Mmmm wonder what you all think?

Lovely quilt for a children's bedroom.

I like the simplicity of this hanging.
























So many different styles - clever use of colour with the next hanging.

Fancy having time to make a quilt just for Christmas!

And then time for a little bit of shopping.

I had such a lovely morning but no time for the home made cake I needed to get home and get ready to go to the choir rehearsal. But just before I got home I did a little naughty!

Well I spotted a traffic warden issuing a parking ticket to someone who had parked on a grass verge. This seemed a little mean when the car wasn't causing any obstruction and in a residential area not inner city. I notice the warden is beginning to walk down the hill to my road. As I turn into my road there was one house having a family gathering and cars too on the grass verge. So I knocked on the door and warn them. Oh it was SOOOO worth it to see the traffic warden's face. He was so confused as to how the cars had suddenly gone. He was looking at the tyre marks on the grass and I could see him shrug his shoulders in confusion and anger!

Oh well back to choir rehearsal for the evenings performance. The majority of the music we were singing was accompanied by a cello. Well the celloist was amazing. She played the cello like I've never heard before and not only was she soo talented but also drop dead gorgeous with a figure to die for. So the men who came to the concert had a double bonus!

After rehearsal one of the singers came back to my home for some dinner because she lives a distance away. By 10pm I was finally lounging on the settee watching a comedy programme with a nice big glass of wine. Needless to say it was not a late night to bed!

Sunday I woke up exhausted but daren't lie in as I was frightened of not waking up in time to collect the minibus for church. Lunch time Mr P returns home and we get a whole 10 minutes together before he had to go out again - having not seen him for a week.

The afternoon was time to play in the craft room. Tried to make another bag with triangles - but it was oh so difficult to get it together. Ended up spending hours making it and not that pleased with it.

I think I'm bagged out now! Also finished completing putting together a granny square cushion.

And now it is time to watch a new Agatha Christie murder.

Quick Tuesday PM Crafting.

Tonight has been an evening of combining choir homework and making a bag. The Bach choir concert is this Saturday so need to keep up with the rehearsing. But also time to make another shopping bag - you can never have enough bags when you go grocery shopping!

So using some charm packs from the Fabric Guild I set to work sewing them together.

I lined the bag with more of the gingham fabric from Belfast - still got plenty of it left! You can see some on the handles.

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The other side of the bag. Farewell plastic bags.

I must show you my pin cushion. It must be one of the biggest pin cushions going! You never loose it. No 1 made it for me a couple of Christmas's ago - isn't it fun!.

I use it all the time when I am sewing.

Time for a final picture - me declaring war on any feathered friends!

That should deter them! Well good night everyone or maybe it's good morning to some of my readers.  :)

Creative and Satisfying Weekend.

After doing some jobs at home I headed back to Stamford.

Thought I'd have a mooch in the posh charity shops but I didn't see anything in my size that I liked:(  That wasn't the only disappointment this shop was.

How can you call yourself "The Woolroom" and not sell one ball of wool? Decided to head back to the car and go for a mooch in Uppingham. On my way back I saw this vehicle - made me laugh as they couldn't park it without having to push it into postion. What a hassle!

Anyway more joy at Uppingham - managed to get two shh cookery books and a quilting mania magazine for a few pounds. Then off to the garden centre where I think I found the rest of Leicester! There I got a strip of runners beans, some French beans, carrots and onions. Whether they grow remains to be seen (there's always a danger the chickens will escape and eat them). But last year I did well with the runner beans.

So with the end of the afternoons sunshine I planted them out.

Today Mr P headed off early to Northumberland and I headed off to The Fabric Guild. Here's a picture of my naughtiness. I find it so much easier to buy fabric and books rather than clothes!

I just fell in love with the owls, some of this fabric has just got off the boat from China. So back home to start playing. First creation was this apron. The blue and white gingham was a kings size duvet cover set that I got for £2 from Belfast and squeezed into my small rucksack to bring back onto the plane.

I kept the buttons from the duvet to add as extra decor. Only trouble is that the material isn't that thick.























Then it was time to play with the owl fabric and make a bag. Mrs A churns out masses of these bags. Think everyone at church has one!

Ironically as I was sewing the three rows together I realised that I had put one row in the wrong place! But I am happy with the outcome. In fact prefer the layout!

This is the other side of the bag.






















Then time for the next creation. We have one of those stools from Ikea but the fabric, over the years, has got horribly dirty. It has been in the wash a few times but still comes out looking like this.

Some time ago I bought some material going very cheap from the fabric guild with this project in  mind. So finally I got around to recovering it.

It looks sooo much better now. Won't be ashamed when visitors come now.

It's not identical fabric but I think it goes reasonably well.




























Then a final creation - a second apron. This time I decided to double up on the fabric to give it some weight. Prefer my heart on first apron but happier with the quality of the of the second one.

The study looked like a bomb had hit it. The carpet covered in bits of cloth and threads, fabric strewn everywhere, ironing board up, extension lead across the floor, sewing machine out etc etc. A good clean and tidy and then time to cook a yummy dinner for me - Mr P would hate it. Full of garlic, anchovies, capers and olives - yum, yum. Oh and plus a glass of red wine.

Wish you all a good week ahead.

“Walking on Sunshine”

Tuesday - rain.
Wednesday - rain.
Thursday - rain.
Friday - sunshine - whoopee!

So after work and Mr P at home I suggested we went for a walk in the sunshine. This weekend in Leicester it is the river festival, so I thought it might be fun to go and see what boats were moored up in town.

Mr P and I have never walked by the river in town before, so it was all a novelty. There were lots of cyclists making their way home from work, drop outs and students who live by the water in the flats.

Of course their is plenty of bird life - of the feathered kind!

This boat takes people with disabilities or illnesses on trips.

I found it fascinating seeing the city from a different angle. There were just loads of swans. Perhaps Leicester council has borrowed them for the boat festival!

Sadly there is a lot of rubbish about but the birds don't seem to object. These ducks Mr P spotted nesting in the far wall. Had to get my camera on full zoom to get this next picture, but I think you can see the ducklings.

I had forgotten what bizarre looking feet the coot has!

Amidst all the buildings and rubbish the river still seems to hold a beauty.

Thought this mummy duck looked adorable with her babies.

Back home to cook dinner and watch Judge Judy. Decided to cook from a book a recipe that used pork fillet in a sauce made from creme fraiche and caembert cheese.

Then back out we went again but this time to Foxton Locks! "Walking on sunshine"

It was getting a little dark and perhaps not soo much sunshine but still lovely to admire the boats.

But it is around this point that I realise I am going to be ill. Every now and then I have a problem that some food disagrees with me. The first signs are feeling as if I have overeaten and this is then followed by waves of tightness going across my belly. So we made a dash for the pub. Guess if you are going to feel unwell might as well be at a nice pub sitting next to the canal. Won't go into anymore details other than after 30 minutes later I have recovered - just left feeling very tired.

We then make our way back along the canal and suddenly notice this field - we missed it coming because I guess the angle we were walking at. I think it is covered in campion.

Sorry it was dark at this point, bit of a breeze and just recovering - so couldn't work out how best to take a picture. But it looked so beautiful.
























Then just as we are almost back at the car, admiring the very last boat when we see these three ducks having their sleep on top!