monday memories

well blogtoberfest has come to an end and i'm glad to say i've hung in til the end. I did miss a few days but I managed to post something most days which has been a much better effort than last year.
so thanks so much to cathy for organising  blogtoberfest once again....couldn't have done it without you xx. thanks to those who have stopped by here and posted a comment or even just popped in to have a look.
I have to say that i haven't got around to looking at everyone's blog who has particpated (there were so many!) but i hope to still do that over the next few weeks. but i have really enjoyed seeing what others have been up to this month.
a final photo memory for blogtober

sunday snippets

you may have noticed that I've added another shop to my side bar. magpie finds is now open on craftumi. I've already had my first sale...thank you Nat!

 yesterday I added these gorgeous frozen charlotte kits. each kit has a frozen charlotte torso, some old lace and ribbons, some very old music and bible papers, flowers and pearl accents, and some gorgeous mother of pearl buttons from my own collection...love these and collect them everywhere.

 and for lots of fun you'll also find games ephemera from my very large collection of old games and toys. these are great for mixed media, collaging, journaling, artwork, etc.

there's also some lovely packs of paper ephemera with over 50 pieces of vintage papers from old books, music sheets, dictionaries, play money, cards, old postcards, punched shapes.....

saturday showcase

do you have green frogs at your place? we do....i've read that it's a good sign of a healthy garden. I hope so 'cause i've been working hard in my garden this last couple of weeks. anyway, these little fellas (or girls - who can tell a girl frog from a boy frog?!!) are showing up on our window sills, steps and railings each evening and sing their little frog songs to each other whilst checking out what's for dinner - usually bugs who are silly enough to come too close. here's a couple of snaps I took tonight with my phone.....do you like the googly eyes?!

thrifty thursday

I found this cute as a button tea set a couple of weeks ago at one of my regular op shop stops. it isn't complete - i'm sure there would have been a teapot with it originally - but I still love it. the china is super fine and its perfect for playing tea parties!

monday memories

hello world...

hi mum....

sunday snippets

today has been very exciting at our place - we have a new arrival and he is beautiful. now, I'm afriad you will have to wait until tomorrow to see some photos of him because we are all just a little too tired tonight to upload the photos from the camera, onto the computer, onto the zoom, etc, etc......
can you guess what "he" is??? check in tomorrow to see if you got it right. nite nite.....zzzzzzz sleep tight little one.......

friday feast

old timber, peeling paint, weathered surfaces.....some of my favourite things

thrifty thursday

I have been on leave this week from work while James is doing his HSC exams. now what else is a girl to do whilst sweating out exam times than go op shopping?! and there have been some good finds.....oh yes there have been many good finds! yesterday I found these gorgeous cotton white sheets with pretty embroidered turn over ends. so soft from many washes but still in lovely condition. today I washed them and hung them in the sun to dry.....and a little cat just had to get in the picture. such a celebrity! and now they are ready to put on my bed....mmmmm!
apologies for the absence of Wednesday words yesterday.....I was a bit wordless after a very long day.

tuesday travels

today's tuesday travels takes us to nepal.....aahh looking at these photos just makes me want to jump on the next flight and go there now....

 these photos were taken in Muktinath which was the highest point we trekked to on our trip last year. they were taken at the temple just above the village. peaceful, spiritual, relaxing, beautiful. prayer flags, bells, running water, stones....amazing landscape

 these towers are houses to heaven built by people who come to the temples to worship. there are many many towers/houses of all sizes

 we built our own and this is my tower with it's little marigold. I wonder if it's still there.....

 and of course there are prayer wheels everywhere...also large and small. we even saw some made out of australian milk tins!

if you have ever thought about travelling to Nepal don't keep thinking...just go. you won't regret it. trust me.

monday memories

many many years ago I took these photos. my Dad was still alive, I was still training to be a teacher, I was learning about photography, I was taking most of my photos as slides

 close to where I live (then and now) there was a match factory....yes they made match sticks. these trees - poplars - were grown specifically for the factory to make the matches.

 I drove past these plantations late in the afternoon and the light was great....golden. the clouds were beautiful.

 I took lots of snaps, not knowing if any would be OK....way before digital photography where it's so easy to edit on the spot.

with anticipation I waited for my slides to be developed...that was so much a part of the process and excitement of photography back then.

I loved these photos then and I still love them today. every time I look at them they remind me of my Dad....he thought they were pretty cool! they remind me of that time and the wonder of light, expectation and creating things to remember. they remind me that photography is not just about the here and now.....it's timeless and can create a legacy for the future.

what do you remember today....I'd love to know.

sunday snippets

friday feast

like these girls i'm feeling a bit blank.....three days of training and another tomorrow. forgive my brevity today.

thrifty thursday

back a little while I bought a noritake dinner set - well part of one - for $5.00. bargain. I love what I thought were two handled tea cups but have since found out they are for soup! doesn't matter....I'll still use them for tea cups.

 now this object is lovely. obviously it's a utensil of some sort, but what? melon balls, ice, dumplings, olives???

if anyone can tell me I'd be very grateful as it's been puzzling me ever since I found it.

wednesday words

mental health and wellbeing. today I have been at training and these words were at the forefront of our day. how important are these factors in our daily lives? given the alarming forecast of predicted rates of depression and anxiety alone in coming years, I would say very important. looking after ourselves and finding support when the going gets tough are both really important to ensuring that we cope with challenges and find strategies to help us get through these times. for young people having a significant adult in their life can be the difference between falling into self destructive ways or coming through tough times well. if I can ask one thing of you today could it be that if you know a young person who needs a little support, someone to listen to them, or just a cuddle, smile or 'how are you today?' could you take a little of your time to be that person for them and show them that someone cares about how they are......please.
thanks.....

tuesday travels

a number of years ago we travelled to china. such a feast for the eyes, especially if you love red as I do...

 precious babies are loved and treasured

 red, red, red everywhere...mmmm

english language can be expressed in funny ways!

day 11 and still keeping up with blogtober....yay!!!



monday memories

in 2008 at this time of the year my son and I were travelling through europe, the middle east and the UK. we have so many wonderful memories from this time. probably our most favourite place was Cornwall where we stayed for a week in a gorgeous cottage in a small village called Newlyn near Penzance. we could watch the comings and goings of the harbour from our cottage. I just love harbours, boats, wharves and all the odds and ends you find around these areas. these are just a small sampling of my very favourite photos from this place. if you would like to see more from our travels you could pop over to my other blog here

 

sunday snippets

playing along with Sunday snippets over at tinniegirl

saturday showcase

playing around with phone apps recently
blogger is doing funny things with my settings at the moment and all my side bar is now down the bottom......grrrr. why does it take so much time trying to fix things......grrrr?