NUTS ABOUT TREES !

I have a confession to make.
I'm  NUTS  about trees !
I'm always happy if there are  trees around.
They give me shade.
They make me feel cool. 
They sway in the breeze......
and, if you live in the sub-tropics like I do, Summer is the time when the tropical flowering trees are at their best.

So ....

if you don't mind ........

I'm going to show you some of my favourites

#1 the Poinciana Tree

You know Christmas is near when the Poincianas begin to flower. If you drive through the older parts of Brisbane you can see some very large specimens of this glorious tree.
Like this one.
It takes up a whole house block. Shaped like an umbrella it covers a large area with shade.
It is just beginning to flower .

Now look at these!

They come in two colours - red red ......

....... and orange red.

Lovely aren't they?

More on trees later ...................

GARDEN ROOM

Entertaining in Queensland involves lots of time in the outdoors.

Usually it's cooler.
We like to be in the fresh air.
We love to BBQ.
That is, unless you can't hide from the scorching afternoon sun.

That was the problem when we moved into this house. It is right on top of the hill and very open to the west where the afternoon sun pounds us relentlessly 'til sundown.
And our lovely patio was just too hot to use.

Then we found a solution - SHUTTERS !

Wide open to let in the light and the view to the mountains.

Closed to keep out the searing heat in the afternoon.

Inside became "The Garden Room " with shutters closed when the sun is a problem ......

...and shutters open to let in the light and view.

FANTASTIC!

QUILTING

Look at these lovelies.

They are going to be made into a quilt.

No, not by me.

By a group of clever ladies I know.

The quilt is a memorial quilt - a memorial to all those women who have lost their lives as a result of domestic violence.

It will be one of seven created for the Memorial Day in 2010.

It started off like this.

Then they "tweeked" it a little ......................

.

.......... and a little more ................

My job was to supply morning tea so I did a little baking.

I think it looks quite beautiful.

I'll show you the finished product when it's done.

MAHJONG

When I was younger I was a great fan of Agatha Christie.

I devoured all her books.
I loved the murder mysteries ( still do ) but most of all I loved the window into life in the England of those times.
I lapped up tales of life in tiny  villages - the intreagues, the church, the servants, the upper classes., the weekend parties in country houses.
And it was in those pages I first read of   Mahjong !
From then on I wanted to learn to play Mahjong.
It was on my "bucket list " of things I wanted to do when I retired.

And now I'm doing it !

Every Friday morning I take myself off to my Mahjong Group. The kindly ladies of this group gladly took me in and were happy to teach me the game I had always wanted to play.
And you know what? ...........

I   LOVE  it  !!!!!!!!!!!!!

I  KNEW  I would !

The patience they showed while I stared at the tiles and tried to work out which hand I was going to try for. Would it be this one?

Dragonfly

or this one?

3 Philosophers

or this one?

5 Odd Honours

or this one ?

Crazy Chows

 
Oh, how I look forward to my Friday Morning Mahjong.

THREE THINGS THAT MAKE ME HAPPY

Thing #1:

Look at this gorgeous thing - a perfect little  daffodil  ( a real one ) - preserved in this lovely paper weight.
 It reminds me of the daffodils we saw growing near Chipping Campden in Spring last year.
I had always wanted to see the daffodils that grow in cooler climates in the Spring.
THAT makes me very happy!

Thing #2:

This delightful little fellow is an   INUKSHUK. 
These man-like structures have many meanings and were originally built by the Inuit people in Canada.
Most travellers to the Canadian Rockies will have seen the little piles of stones throughout the countryside to show that others have passed that way.
They say " I have been here. "
The meaning I like best is the one adopted by the upcoming Winter Olympics - the INUKSHUK is seen as a symbol of friendship by the Inuit and their fellow Canadians.
THAT makes me very happy!

Thing #3:

My WIP is coming along nicely, don't you think?
Still quite a bit to do 'til it is finished but it's looking good
and
THAT makes me happy too!

HARD AT WORK

As you can see I was ready to get started on a card making frenzy today.

 My good friend, Linnie, came over and we were having a last burst of card making before we take our wares to the Hand Made Market on Saturday.

Soon we were hard at work - cutting, gluing, labeling, packaging.

 No elaborate, intricate designs just simple hand made cards for Birthdays, Christmas, Weddings,

Valentine's Day, New Baby.

All blank inside for personal, hand-written messages.

We chatted and worked, stopped for coffee and lunch and altogether enjoyed ourselves.

See you on Saturday, Linnie.

PLEASANT SATURDAY STUFF

As I sit here today pondering on my blog there is a lovely breeze wafting through my study window and with the breeze comes a delicious perfume....... oh it smells so good. It is coming from this....

This lovely gardenia is absolutely covered with flowers, .. laden with them in fact.

They start out so perfect.... pity they don't last too long in the heat and wind ..

but they sure smell nice.

Today we have a birthday in our family,  a special person called Sophie.

She shared her cake with us ... yummy!

Happy Birthday, Sophie

MY THURSDAY

I don't want anyone to think I have food on the brain.
I don't want you to think I'm obsessed with food ...
BUT
look at these beauties!!!!!!!!!!

 I had them for breakfast. ..

and we ate this for dinner last night.

 Only healthy food for us!

Today I started a Christmas project - a table runner for Christmas Day.
My friend Kathy said it would be easy but I'm new to patchwork and it wasn't long before I was confused.

I even managed to get Kathy a little confused until she took me firmly in hand and we managed to get the first stage completed.

So at the moment it is my WIP.
It feels good to have another project on the go.

DIETING

OK, the secret is out! I'm trying to lose some weight - well a lot of weight would be good but slowly, slowly.

You know that as soon as you begin a   diet   ( the dreaded D word ) your social life suddenly jumps up a notch or two!!

From now on 'til the New Year it is going to be deadly.

So today I've searched my recipe files for a "Bring a Plate " end of year break-up luncheon for my Craft Group.

Finger Food required.

So this is what I've chosen - cut from a magazine at least 10 years ago

I've calculated points. My estimate for the whole mixture is 36.

I'm cooking it in tiny muffin trays for bite sized pieces.

 



The mixture made 36 so the tasty little morsels are only 1 point each !!!

Now all I've got to do is keep count!