Red sky in the morning . . .

Well I don't think the sailor would care about this red sky. Yesterday we had incredible winds (90km/h plus) that in turn has brought in the red dust from the outback! The photos are untouched! Eery lighting when I woke at 6 am. On windy, windy days Canberra becomes engulfed with dust. I think this is the first time it's been this bad here. Even the inside of our house smells dusty and that's with the windows closed. Incredible. I just checked my facebook account and it's what everyone is saying on their status updates. One of my friends' kids said "there's something weird happening in the sky. I thought Jesus was coming". If only!

Down our road:Driving down College Dr in to the college grounds:

Near the boom gate:

One thing that makes me happy is when there is quiteness in the house and I find Benny 'reading' his books. This particular book is about trucks -happily left by his cousin Carter. Benny just went and finds his own books and reads them. I have a couple of 'singing' books - books that ae songs, such as Old Macdonald, The Wheels On The Bus, He's Got The Whole World In His Hands. If I don't sing read them Benny looks up and points to my mouth - like I should be singing to him. I'm so pleased he hasn't realized that I may be a bit tone deaf!!

Today we're off to a ABA (australian breastfeeding association) meeting. I've just joined this recently when I needed to ring a breastfeeding counselor. She was extremely helpful and encouraging and I joined the group so I could support others. Breastfeeding is something that I believe in and I want to encourage others to do the best they can. This group provides free counseling and puts out a really good magazine every other month. So that's our plan for this morning. Then a trip to the grocery store and a pot of curry and rice to make.

UFO's (unfinished objects)

Mr Santa has been a project that Delena and I started 2 years ago. Between have a baby, moving house and just the busyness of life Mr Santa got put aside. We decided this year he'd get finished and proudly hung on our walls. We've improvised a bit and Rudy the Reindeer (over the shoulder of Santa) had no pants and in fact has no legs. But since you can't tell from the photos it really doesn't matter.


Another project I've been wanting to do for awhile is give a makeover to the dogs rooms. So I found some old jeans, cut them up and sewed them back together again to make new beds. I even added velcro closures so i can remove them and wash them every so often. I was a little concerned that the dogs may not want to lie on them but they didnt' disappoint me. I even found Leah lying on her bed in the middle of the day (unusual for her!).


This project I started almost 4 years ago. My dear friend Amber was getting married and I wanted to make her a quilt. But then she moved to India for awhile and I got distracted so the quilt sat in the closet - unfinished. They decided to come out for a visit so I had to get it done. I love the finished look. It is something that is designed to be thrown in the car to be used on picnics etc. And I put their names on it so they can't give it away!!

I think I've got 3 projects that are needing to be completed at my leisure. One may be a Christmas present and one is for me and one is for Benny for when he is a little older. So with Christmas coming (yes, there are decorations in the store now!) I might have to get busy and get it finished. Or I may just take up crocheting and start a whole bunch of new projects.

Side note: I'm loving the concept of cloth nappies. We had a trial day yesterday and not too bad I must say. Benny is bigger than I think he is and the nappies aren't the best fit so I've ordered some different types. It's just a matter of finding the right fit and size for him. I'm sure I can handle it!

17 months.

My life has been so much more complete in the past 17 months due to this gorgeous little boy. He gives me direction, purpose and fills my soul with goodness. Much more than I ever thought. In the past few days he has learned to kiss and I love how his hands frame my face to kiss me. He tells me all about the cars, trucks and motorbikes we see on the road and is so excited to see Leah when we get home. He's learning to become my helped by passing me clothes to put in the washer and turns off his heater and puts his pillow back in his bed. He likes to say hi now at the appropriate time and of course blows kisses at goodbye. Today I watched as he took 2 different pairs of shoes outside so Leah would have something to chew on!! He's a quick learner!

I am so grateful for the past 17 months. I am a lucky woman.

Caves Beach Sunday Sept 20,2009.

Go the Cats! and Avondale Fun Day

For the third year in a row the Geelong Cats have reached the Grand Final in the AFL. Colin was born in Geelong so it's the team the family goes for by default!! (Otherwise it would be the Sydney Swans who just happen to be red & white!) Last night it was the game between Collingwood and Geelong - a long standing rival for Colin and Rod. The Cats smashed the Magpies and pizza and friends were good!

Sunday was the annual Funday at Avondale School - the school we plan to send Benny when he is of age! It's a good effort with lots of rides, stalls, food and of course the petting zoo. Benny got right into it and loved it!

I think summer weather has finally arrived so the rest of the day will just be relaxing and maybe give the pool a good clean. My nappies are out drying on the line and I plan to use later today and tomorrow. I'm so hoping they work well!

Is it that bad?

I guess my son doesn't appreciate my sense of humour! I thought it would be funny. Obviously Benny doesn't! But he does like how I wrestle with him, chase him, read to him and play with him. He tells me all about the cars and trucks on the road that he sees and thinks every dog is named Leah. So he definitely has his own sense of humour! He enjoys throwing things off our deck and expects us to go and get things for him (or wants the dogs to return them to him!). The other night we could not find our remote for our tv. Looked under every cushion, in every drawer, under every toy but no remote. Then I thought maybe Benny took it outside. We happened to be watering our front garden at the time and wouldn't you believe that's where it was!! Colin, being so smart as he is, was able to retrieve it and it works fine.


The other thing that I am really excited about is using cloth nappies. Before I had children I had thought about it but more in a passing thought. Then I got into the routine of using disposables and that was that. My friend Jo, who has a son 8 weeks older than Benny, started using cloth nappies a little while ago and that got me thinking. So I did some research and got some of my own. Back in the day when they used cloth and pins it was pretty straight forward. Now, with the invention of the "modern" nappy, they is a whole range and different types. At first it is quite overwhelming but once you read a bit and realize why there are different types then it's not too bad. I'm going to get a few different types of nappies and see what I like (and what suits Benny). So I'm going to give it a go - because I can.

How cool is this?

I've been admiring this type of wall art for sometime and knew that I wanted something like this. A few months ago my sister-in-law Natalie, cousin-in-law Cheryl and myself went to a quilt and craft fair in Sydney. We found this little company and I knew right away that I loved this. It arrived last week and it is amazing!! It's in the entrance way as you come into our house. At the moment I've got my house pretty much how I want it. This is the icing on the cake.

My future soccer player!

We spend a lot of time outdoors and this is one of Benny's newest activities. He loves to tease Chewy with the ball and Chewy enjoys it just the same. I know that Chewy is super keen to have Benny bigger so he can throw the ball even further!