Baby has a name

My GKB was up and out of the house before I was out of bed today. I was wide awake at 5am and sound asleep when it was time to rise. He saw where the greengrocer had very cheap fruit today and didn't want to miss out, especially on the strawberries. It was all sitting on the bench when I went out for breakfast. I think we'll be enjoying strawberries and ice cream some time during the evening :)

It was a beautiful blue sky day last Saturday when five of us drove down to Gore for an Aglow leaders retreat. I'm no longer a leader but was invited to go, which was really nice. We had a lovely day enjoying each others company and eating lunch out on the deck. It was a bit breezy but warm and with a garden like this who cared? Not me:) During the course of the day I had some personal insights which were then affirmed on Tuesday evening by a lady who hadn't been there and knew nothing about me. Very encouraging.

This is a beautiful garden with several 'rooms', the one at the very end of the section with seats and a swing :) Good fellowship, good teaching and good food! What more could you ask for.

And as per the post title, baby has a name. 

Lucia (with a soft c) Carolitta. Very pretty I think.

This is Lucia after her first bath - which didn't happen until after the cord had fallen off! Things have certainly changed since I had my babies :)

It's been very warm and wet in the past week or so and so the growth around about has been lush. This is down the side of our driveway. The foxgloves are looking a bit shabby because of the wind, which hasn't really let up though it isn't so strong as it was. We're hoping eldest daughter's partner is going to come and cut bushes and hedges back before too long.

 I'm slowly getting what I call my garden into shape for the holidays. With the wind has come the pollen and I can only be out in it for about twenty minutes at a time then need to come in. Hayfever is a real bummer. I blame my lovely wee maternal grandmother :) she used to get it too and spent most of spring and summer indoors due to not having the access to antihistamines that we have today.

On the domestic front I have finally got cracking on my Christmas cakes. We bought the ingredients a few weeks ago but I've only just got started today. This is the GF one for Jacqui. I think I'll need to buy a new cake pan though as this is not quite as big as the normal cake so is not so deep. I think it would be a nicer cake if it was deeper.

And that is about it for now. 

Keep smiling until next time and enjoy this Advent season.

Diana

Random happenings

I've been out tidying up the garden in front of the house today. I started weeding it about a week ago but rain interrupted and I never got back to it until now. It was looking awfully untidy once the jonquils had died leaving just the leaves. They still haven't died off but I managed to get the weeds out and it looks a lot better. 

Peony in bud. It's going to look gorgeous when it flowers. 

 Miniature rose in full bloom. No I don't know what it's called but I love the colour. Sadly it's not scented.

This is the wee jacket I sent our new baby, the grey is lighter than it shows in this picture and it looks quite attractive. They decided not to find out whether they were expecting a girl or a boy and I thought these colours would suit either. And no, she doesn't have a name yet - I just call her Sweetpea at the moment. As my sister said we can't keep calling her 'she'.

And this wee fellow came for a visit at the weekend. Theo was our youngest great grand but now he is a big cousin. Here he's eating chippies and laughing at Great grandad who was pulling silly faces. He's a sweetheart at 18 months.

A couple of Sundays ago there was a plant sale in the grounds of the school where we hold our church services. We were praying for good weather as if it had rained we would have had to move out of the hall so they could come inside. It's an annual event and as you can see the weather was good to us. Several of us wandered around after the service but I never bought anything. I had plants at home I'd already been given and still have to get in :)

And a sunset one night last week. The colours were quite deep, they haven't shown up very well. It's not the Aurora which I forgot all about, and was quite spectacular from the photos I've seen. I thought our sunset was quite spectacular too :)

And that is all I have for this time.

We haven't been out and about much of late 

so not a lot of interest to talk about.

Keep well, keep smiling, until next time,

Diana

January scavenger hunt

It's that time of the month again when we join Hawthorn for a photo scavenger hunt so if you are interested in seeing what others have come up with head over to I live, I love, I craft, I am me 
and have a look.

I'm also joining Debbie at Breathing in Grace for

friday foto friends

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Yellow

I went out one morning to see that one courgette flower was fully unfurled and shining in the sun. A lovely bright yellow. If you look closely you can see two or three others still tightly curled, they came out as the day progressed and the sun heated things up. I've since picked that one and am waiting for the others to become a decent size so we can use them. The courgettes, not the flowers.

Starts with an ... O

I was out walking one evening and saw this circular latch hole in a gate and thought it looked like an O. I know it doesn't begin with an O unless, of course, you want to call it an 'ole. Sorry, cringe :)

Light

Dark clouds threatening rain that didn't come. We've been watering our veges most nights. I loved the way the evening sun was breaking through the clouds and the silvery light it threw, but alas, it didn't come out as well as I had hoped.

Found

Walking on the beach a couple of weeks ago we 

came across a big old log. In one little cranny 

we found a mini garden growing in some sand.

Colourful

Don't you love the this colourful display of tulips.

 This photo was taken by my daughter when

 she was in Wellington a few years ago.

My choice

I was browsing through my photos a few days ago and decided to share this one as my choice. Taken on a Kobe Harbour cruise while we were in Japan for our son's wedding in 2008. 

L-R: DIL, son, middle sis, me and my GKB.

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I'm expecting my brother and his partner arriving in the next day or so from Australia. A week later middle sis also arrives from Aussie and then between then and March youngest sister is also arriving from Aussie so we are in for a busy time. Not sure where everyone is staying apart from my brother who will be with us. I hope to catch up with you all during this time, but we'll see what happens.
Brother's partner said they were coming over to cool down but they won't unless the temps fall dramatically, although it is just 25C at the moment and that is a vast improvement on the 40C we had a week ago.

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And that's it for this week. 

Diana

Enjoying the ordinary

The last few days have been gorgeous, 

lovely and sunny with a bit of a breeze.

Well quite a breeze at times if I am being perfectly honest.

I thoroughly enjoy these mornings, 

this is when I get motivated

 to get things done around the house.

Every winter I promise myself that

 I will do all sorts of indoor chores 

so that I don't need to spend my time 

indoors when the warmer weather arrives.

We have a long, usually wet and cold winter.

With a correspondingly short, sometimes hot summer.

The winter chore thing doesn't happen very often 

although I did get my kitchen cupboards

 cleaned and cleared out this year.

So on Monday when the morning was so warm 

and sunny I was primed and ready to go.

Monday is wash day and bed change day, and silly

 as it may sound, I love pegging washing on the line. 

It was all out on the line and back in before lunch.

(folded and put away, as well, if I may skite).

I did my usual big weekly house clean,

 singing away to myself, and finished icing a

 Christmas cake I had made for a function for yesterday.

I drank coffee and chatted with my GKB 

out in the morning sun before the day got too hot

and finished washing down my kitchen walls and cupboard doors.

Then later in the afternoon I spent a little time in the garden. 

I had to find shady places to work though 

as it was really hot by then. So I really enjoyed 

my Monday at home and I hope you can find

 enjoyment in the ordinary, everyday things as well.

joining Stephanie over at:

Roses of Inspiration

Wishing you all a great week 
and a wonderful Thanksgiving 
Weekend to those of you in the U.S.A.
Diana

A window with a view

On Friday afternoon my GKB and I decided it was

 time for a trip down the harbour and a visit to his sister.

We arrived in time for afternoon tea - good timing.

looking up the harbour towards Dunedin

I took the camera because I wanted to get some shots from her kitchen window.

The house overlooks a small inlet in the harbour near Port Chalmers.

Looking across to Roseneath

And even though it was cold I wasn't allowed to take them from the window. 

The reason? It overlooks my SIL's back yard and her washing was out on the line!

Sawyers Bay and around to the right to Port Chalmers

So while the others sat inside drinking hot tea and coffee 

I went outside and took the shots above

with the clothes line at my back and their bounteous garden in front.

In another city you would pay a lot of money

 for the views they have of the harbour.

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Not the cup we had at my SIL's but one we had while out and about one day.

I thought it was quite elegant for a tea rooms but maybe it was because 

the tea room was attached to a garden centre.

joining in with:
Martha's favorites
roses of inspiration

That's it for this week.
Short and sweet. 
Keep well until next time.
Diana