We have a winner!

Well, we have a winner of the Ladies who Lunch mini competition..... but oh, I need to tell you that I had a very good Australia Day on Thursday as I had not one but two Happy Dances.  Unfortunately I cannot show you any pics as they are both pieces for exchanges.  For both of them I took some freebie designs but then modified them to suit the exchange theme and experimented with my Cottage Garden overdyed threads.  I must say that I am pleased with the results.

Now, I was talking of my winner.... but, wait, my TUSAL update is late, here is my January TUSAL jar:

Do you like the fabric which it is sitting on? It is the backing fabric for the Love and Friendship Exchange piece (it is a lovely piece of quilting fabric from my stash).

Now, I was thinking of my winner when I visited my LNS and did some more Stash Empire Building and bought this absolutely gorgeous Mirabilia design

Cinderella by Mirabilia
To be stitched on 32 count Smokey Grey linen

I  have started but, of course, there was some frogging involved.

And, I was thinking some more about my winner of the Ladies who Lunch mini competition when I was packing for Queensland - I am leaving very early in the morning for a work conference at Sanctuary Cove.  Unfortunately, it is always full on so I won't have too much time to enjoy the gorgeous surroundings.  It also means that I won't be able to visit blogland until I get back on Tuesday night.  But I will be thinking of you all.

Now, to the big announcement:

What did I have for dessert when I Lunched with the Ladies?  I loved all of your reasonings and some of you were very clever how you worked it out.

I chose this as my dessert:

THE LEMON TART!!!!!  It was absolutely yum!

So, lots of bloggers actually worked this out (or had lucky guesses) so my friend, the Random generator worked his magic and chose:

Kate

Congratulations, Kate, please email me on KayeDeP@gmail.com with your snailmail address and I will post you your mystery prize when I get back from my trip up North (I am actually coming up your way tomorrow)

Thank you to everyone who entered - I hope that you had fun.  It was a fun giveaway to host.

I would also like to let all the winners of my other giveaways know that I have not forgotten about them - I intend to do a big post office trip when I get back from Queensland on Wednesday.

Well, that is all from me now - I need to download some books onto my kindle for my plane trip tomorrow and get some more stitching in.

Hugs,   

What I did on Sunday.... plus a mini competition

But first welcome to my new followers and to the new bloggers who have so kindly commented on my blog.  Welcome to my little bit of the world - sit down, have a cuppa, get out your stitching and let's have a chat.

[Now, this has turned into rather a lengthy post as I keep updating it and there are lots of pics but please read to the end so that you can enter in my Ladies who Lunch Mini Competition.]

As you know, at the end of last week I was feeling rather low with twisted ribs but my great blogging buddies gave me lots of support and suddenly it all didn't seem too bad.  Then on Sunday, I had a pretty good day...

In the morning my dear friend, Marie and I did our usual walk around Princes Park.  Here are some pics of the beautiful place which we are luck enough to enjoy every Sunday.

There is a small lake, it is lovely to see the fountain running again after our 11 years of drought and the duck family is back.

Marie's dog Pooch (short for Puccini) - she is a Cavoodle. So cute.

Lots of people walk/run the 3.2km loop around the park - including lots of footballers.

Some of the pavilions date from the 1930s.

The Melbourne Cemetery is across the road.

Carlton's (an AFL team) old ground is at the centre of the parkland.

Then, later on Sunday, I went out with two of my girlfriends to celebrate a birthday.  We went to the Studley Park Boathouse on the Yarra River:

The birthday girl is on the right and I am on the left.

Yummy desserts:

 Views from the Cafe:

 Getting ready for Australia Day (January 26th)

We had a lovely time - it was very relaxing, sharing a bottle of wine by the Yarra.  Friends and good food - what more could you ask?

Update:  I have just thought of a good idea for a mini competition, here we go:

Ladies that Lunch Mini Competition:

Two of the ladies who lunched each had the scrumptious apple and berry crumble - one each (Dessert photo number 2) whilst one lady had the delicious lemon tart (Dessert photo number 1).

So, how well do you think that you know me?  Which Dessert did I partake of? If you have a reason for your choice - I would love to hear it.

Comment with your knowledgeable guess on this post only by midnight this Friday night to win a mini mystery prize.  

As there is a 50/50 chance that you can guess right - I will use the random generator to choose a winner.

Good luck everyone.

Hugs,

P.S. Don't forget to check out the new Giveaways listed on my sidebar.

P.P.S. Is anyone else having trouble with updating the list of blogs they follow?  My list is playing up - it won't let me add anyone new.  I have decided to try to categorise the blog lists a bit as it has got so long (must be the librarian in me) and divide them up - cross stitching blogs, book blogs, cooking blogs, etc. - I am hoping that will make it easier to keep track of them, I keep missing out on vital posts from other bloggers. So my blog list/s might be a bit messy for a while as I reorganise - sorry!
K

IHSW - stitching done but sorry no pics

Well, I did stitch for the IHSW and thought of all my fellow stitchers across the globe stitching with me.  But, as I am still working on a Love and Friendship Exchange piece - no progress pics, I am sorry to say.

However, I do have a pic of Furio watching the tennis with me tonight:

Really interested, isn't he?

Hugs,

Feeling much better and a shopping success...

Thank you yet again everyone for your support and kind wishes.  I am feeling so much better this evening as I relax with DH and watch "our" Lleyton playing really well against Raonic in the Australian Open.

The shopping expedition was very successful today - my DS and I managed Nonagerian wrangling around the huge Chadstone shopping mall most successfully.  It was decided that a new bed was not necessary after all - just some big European pillows and a new doona set to cover up the possibly "dangerous" corners of their existing bedhead.

This is the design which they chose - it is very nice and subtle colours - my mother really likes cream and gold (and there is little bit of pink in there for me - lol!)

More hot weather coming our way here in Melbourne:

At least the Australian Open is on - Hot Weather + Tennis = Lots of Stitching Time - Yay!

My Love and Friendship Exchange piece is coming along well this IHSW but you will have to wait until it has been sent and received to see a pic of it.

Last thing - check out the new Giveaways I have listed on my sidebar - a new one from Linsueray of a gorgeous bag and Nancy from the Victorian Motto Shoppe continues to be be oh so generous!

Update:  Lleyton looks like he is going to win the match - Come on, Lleyton!

Hugs,

Thank you everyone...

A big thank you to everyone out there - I have said it before and I know that many others share the same sentiment - but bloggy/stitchy friends are the best.  Your support and kind wishes mean a lot to me.

I went to the osteopath yesterday and she is fairly certain that it is not shingles (and there has been no sign of the blisters so far) but that the pain at the top of my front ribcage is to do with this pesky back rib I have which often twists when I carry heavy loads (like my work bag up two flights of stairs! lol!).  So, she worked on my back and front ribs and while I will feel pretty bad as a consequence for 24 hours afterwards, usually then it comes good - so fingers crossed that by tonight (Sat night) I will start to come good.  I certainly hope so as it is quite painful which makes me a bit (just a bit????) grumpy and I am really tired as I just cannot sleep properly with it (and earlier this week we had really hot summer nights here of 24 degrees - so sleep has been pretty elusive all of this week and I am a girl who NEEDS her sleep!)

However, I did get some stitching done yesterday and last night on two of my exchange pieces - feel so less stressed now that I have stopped UCJC, and thank you to everyone who offered support on making that decision - so no pics but as I haven't got any stitching eye candy to show you. I thought that you might like the following little video about the beauty of a real book (over an ereader - although I love my Kindle and cannot live without it).  This video is so very clever:

I hope that you enjoyed it.

My latest read is a series of Icelandic detective-type novels by Yrsa Sigurdardottir.  I have never read anything much about Iceland so it is really interesting to read something set there.  The heroine/detective, a thirty-something single mother lawyer, Thora Gudmundsdottir is a really appealing heroine.  Here is a link to an interview with the author.

Well, off to take my 90 year old mother and 92 year old father bed shopping - wish us luck - my mum is pretty fussy so it might take us a while.  At least with my sore ribs I will be walking at the same speed as them - lol!

Hugs,

Unwell again and I have failed!!!!!!

       Oh dear, I think that I am falling apart!!!!!   I have a very sore pain under my right breast and the doctor thinks that it is either muscular strain (from carrying my work bag up two flights of stairs to my attic study) or else it is shingles!  I am hoping it is the former not the latter.  I should know within a day or two if it is shingles (when the blisters form) - something to look forward to - lol!

Also,  I am very sorry to report that I have fallen by the wayside and I have given up on the Ultimate Crazy January Challenge - so disappointed in myself.  However, I have to be realistic - it was becoming a source of stress rather than a source of pleasure.  Also, I have signed up for some swaps (and I do not want to be named and shamed!) and I have started some SALs with blogging friends, plus I work full-time and I have DH, DS1, DD, DS2 and DFIL to look after, plus I have blogs to read, swimming laps to do, BOOKS/KINDLE to read, DS1 to help move out of home (Oh, what a big thing that is) and I need to spend some quality time with my family, friends and kitty cats, plus, plus, plus...- something had to give!

Thank you to all of the wonderful blogging friends who gave me great advice on my photo storage problem.  A couple of you suggested that the easiest and quickest option was to buy more storage - which is what I have done - less than $5.00 (as the Aussie dollar is so strong at the moment) for 20 meg of storage - pretty good!

If you want to read all of the wonderful suggestions, please scroll down to the previous post.

Isn't it wonderful how we can rely on someone out there in blogland to give us good advice and support?

Now, I do have some UCJC or should I say CJC progress pics to show (after all I did make the 15 days, I just fell by the wayside on Day 16! lol!

JCS 2011 Christmas Ornie Sal start

May Bee

Gingerbread Man

This last one is a very small start as I started it on a work day and then went straight out to see Spicks and Specktacular - which was one of our Christmas presents from our children.  It was a great show and we had a wonderful time.

Well, off to see the Osteopath and then I plan to do some relaxing stitching this afternoon.

Stitchy hugs,

I have run into a problem - any suggestions?

Hello lovely bloggers,

I am hoping that one of you more computer savvy bloggers out there can help me.  I was just merrily trying to add a photo to my blog when blogger told me that I have run out of space in my picasa web albums and I cannot upload any more photos!  Un disastro!  How can I blog and not show off my progress?

Anyway, what do other bloggers do to solve this problem?  Google says that I need to buy more storage.  Is that what everyone does, or can I cull from picasa to create more space?  And if I do buy more space, how much should I buy?

Please help!

Hugs,

P.S. I although I just managed to upload this gif from the albums - maybe the problem is the way I save and upload images?

... and the winners are....

.... now, I know that I said that I would give away one of these three designs:

But what the heck!  It is my last 12 Days of Christmas in Blogland Giveaway, so I am giving away all three patterns with charms to three lovely, stitchy winners.  So, here goes....

The first pattern, Santa

has been won by

Jo from Serendipitous Stitching

The second pattern,  Angel

has been won by 

Kimberly R

(Kimberly, you are so lucky, this is two of my giveaways you have won in a row!)

The third pattern, Christmas

has been won by 

Linda from Stitching with my furbabies

(and Linda, you, too, have won two of my giveaways - although not in a row)

Congratulations, ladies, I think that I might have all of your addresses but if I have lost them, I will email you.

Off to do Day 10 of UCJC stitching right now.

Hugs,    

UPDATE:  Heather from Heather's Stitching Story is having a wonderful giveaway of LHN and CCN charts.  You can check it out here.