Thoughtful Friday No. 65

"Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful,

arrogant or rude.  It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful;it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth.  It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love never ends. "

I Corinthians 13 v1-7 from the Bible.

Piccadilly Circus!!

I just need to look at this lovely image and get some calm!  It's been a crazy weekend.  So many comings and goings.  Saturday began with a lovely breakfast with daughter no.2 (croissants and homemade fig jam) then daughter no. 4 arriving; daughter no.3 and fiance arriving and then daughter no.1 arriving.  This was followed by the dressmaker arriving to fit the bridesmaid dresses - beautiful!  Just said goodbye to the dressmaker and the doorbell went and it was the hairdresser who came to do daugther no.2's hair and also daughter no.1.  30 minutes later the doorbell went again and a friend arrived to see daughter no.2 and so it went on.  I was busy with coffee, then lunch for 8, admiring new haircuts, finding necessary accessories, talking through plans, putting shopping away, making homemade soup and so on.  By 3pm those left in the house were exhausted.!!  Time to sit down and catch up with daughter no.4 who was busy working on her Uni assignment for her menswear design course.  I picked up my knitting - "oh Mum, you wouldn't make a little swatch for me would you?"  "Sure, what do you need?"  There followed two little swatches in handspun yarn and variegated yarn and before you know it, it was time for supper.  This week is going be a busy one!

She's back!

It was just soooooooooo exciting on Friday.  Daughter no.2 was making her way back from Uganda for the wedding and all day I was preparing and thinking about her.  We set off for Heathrow around 2.30pm to pick her up just after 4pm.  I just love waiting at the arrivals barrier.  I always get there far too early and strain my eyes to see who is coming through the door.  You know the scene, I am sure.  You stand at the barrier, having first made certain that you are in the best place to be seen by the person arriving through the door.  You keep looking earnestly, not daring to turn away for fear you will miss that important moment when you spot them and they spot you.  The excitement mounts as you watch loved ones great each other after time apart.  Your eyes are straining, shouldn't they be through by now? Must be patient.  Then, suddenly you see them, you wave frantically and run to meet them, throwing your arms around them.  It's been a while you see, ten months actually since we have seen daughter no.2 although we have talked often on the computer but without video as where she is in Uganda doesn't have access to the internet except intermittently.  At last we are together again and talk all the way home in the car, catching up on news, stories of what's been going on and thinking of the big day ahead in a week's time.  Oh, it's so lovely to see her again.  Each daughter is so precious in their individual way. These will be treasured moments, these next two weeks while she is here.  I feel very privileged to be a wife and mother and to know these moments of joy.

Thoughtful Friday No. 64

"There can be no knowledge without emotion.  We ay be aware

of a truth, yet until we have felt its force, it is not ours.

To the cognition of the brain must be added

the experience of the soul."

Arnold Bennett

A crafty update

It's been a while since I told you about my craft endeavours so here we go:

A nice woolly hat for daughter no.4's boyfriend's birthday, knitted from hand dyed and hand spun yarn given to me by a kind friend of the family!  My first time knitting with this type of yarn.

A crochet scarf in a new pattern I am trying (Queen Anne's lace I believe) and crocheted using a Noro yarn which I bought last year - only problem is I didn't buy enough so am waiting on another ball coming in the post. So while I am waiting I got on with another one, this time in yarn from a giveaway from the lovely Tracy.

Fancy a closer look?

A variety of papercrafting using rubber stamping, alcohol inks and the like.

Then we have the wonderful quilting project for daughter no.3.  I have chosen to handquilt it so lots of tiny stitches everywhere and it will take quite a while....

The back of this quilt is in a delightful blue with tiny white dots - I absolutely love it but unfortunately the photos don't do either side justice.

Then there is some knitting with more of the hand spun wool given to me and this time I am knitting some handwarmers

And a lovely crochet project that is unplanned - let's just see how it goes, what might happen, go with the flow...

There are other things but I will stop here - that's enough for today!!  I love having so many projects on the go and doing what I choose at any one time; a little bit of quilting and a little bit of crochet or a little bit of knitting.  I think (actually I know!) I am an options girl!  I just love to have options - what about you?

Just two weeks to go!

Yes, things are getting busy round here wedding-wise!  Lots of shopping for ribbon, centre pieces for the tables, paper and card for orders of service and place cards.  Lots of playing around with ivy, candle lanterns and somethingto contain coffee beans for the tables - a novel idea don't you think?!!.  Lots of making of place cards (rubber stamping by me) and designing orders of service (hubby's role). Lots of talking about logistics - who will take the bridesmaids to the church, who will take me and mother in law to the church?!! How many tables are there?  Who is going to do the table plan?  Numbers or names for the tables? And I know you won't believe it but what shall I wear?!!!!!  But it's fun and I love my family very much and this really is just SO exciting.

Thoughtful Friday No. 63

"Wherever you go, go with your whole heart"

Confuscious

Log cabin in a a day!

The madness continues here - another day course had been booked back in June, this time for Log Cabin in a day!!  I have to say that it was great fun.  We made 16 blocks altogether using quick piecing methods and just sewing, sewing and sewing.  Here is a close up of one of the blocks

And see here for two of the lovely samples in the shop

It is a really great technique and I am so glad I went.  Take a look at some of the other lovely quilt samples in the shop:

Ahh, don't you love it all?

Thoughtful Friday No. 62

"Life may not be all that we hope for, 

but while we are here, we can dance"

Anon