Romancing the Garden

I tried my hand at a mixed media piece, and am actually very pleased...heading down the beach for Easter - hope everyone has a great break and eats too much chocolate like I plan to do...see you when I return x

Best Friends

After the market on Saturday, Abby and I decided to go and see my friend Wendy sing in a little cafe in Warburton, a lovely little town I have blogged about before.

Wendy and I went to primary and secondary schools together, and were best friends. Over the years, our lives have led us on very different paths, but we have remained friends. It doesn't matter how long between visits, our friendship is such that we can reconnect, no matter how much time has passed. She is a successful singer now, and travels the world sharing her magical voice. I am so very proud of her (and maybe a little envious of her gypsy lifestyle).

I reminded her that it was Earth Hour on Saturday night, so at 8.30pm, she switched off her mike and lights, and did her whole gig accoustically by candlelight - magical.

She has a website if you want to experience her amazing voice for yourselves...http://www.wendyrule.com/

To Market To Market...

St Andrews Market is a wonderful Saturday afternoon destination...finding that I had a rare Saturday to myself, I called my friend Danielle, and we met at this little piece of hippy heaven...Our dear friend Elspeth had a stall there with her amazing art - I couldn't resist and bought a little teepee painting.

I also found this gorgeous headpiece - how could I say no? Peacock feathers and only $8.00
I had some yummy paella for lunch (all that shopping was making me hungry!)
















On my drive home, I spotted this cute yellow ute - ooh, I would love this! Think of all the loot I could fit in this ute!





















I also bought this gorgeous basket, and then had to buy some sunflowers (cliche, I know, but don't they look pretty?) Danielle wanted me to buy a loaf of bread to stick in my basket, but I thought that was going too far, so I bought some homemade spinach burek for dinner - yum!


















Plunked the sunflowers in with the pink lilies Ian gave me the other day - cheery goodness on my kitchen bench to make me smile...

























I wanted to introduce this lovely lady to you...she had a friend up until last week when Mr Fox came visiting - I know, it's too sad for words...she is so clever and gives us beautiful fresh eggs everyday, so I can make all sorts of yummy afternoon treats.

(I scored this cloth at my local market last week for $5.00 - I thought it was really pretty).

I can see a rainbow...

I began dyeing petticoats (and anything else I could get my hands on) today...I decided to use 4 colours (I'm kind of an all or nothing gal). It's a bit like a lucky dip to see how things are going to turn out, but overall, I was pretty happy. The doilies came up a treat! I have put my sewing machine in to be serviced, because it has been out of action for a long time, and I hope to begin embellishing end of next week sometime.


























I figure if they suck, then I will have a whole lot of new nighties to wear (he he)...I took some photos in the garden in the dappled sunlight, and picked some roses from my garden...will post more pics once I have finished them all.

Organic Goodness for Body and Soul

Just a hop, skip and jump from where I live is this amazing Community Environment Park called Ceres...it shares it's name with the Roman Goddess for Agriculture. It is an internationally recognised model of a sustainable society, located on 10 acres, close to our city. It runs on renewable energy, and conserves and recycles its water and waste. It also grows organic food and teaches environmentally friendly living. Pretty cool, huh?

It has been in existence for 27 years and employs 150 people. It is a not for profit organisation.

It has a nursery, and an organic farm and market...

On the first Saturday of each month it offers a community baking group, where you can bring along food to be baked in their wood oven...they encourage people to bring along musical instruments while their food is cooking.

How cool is this tree house?

Looking down on the cafe, where they often have musicians playing while you eat the yummy, organic meals...or just enjoy a chai...or perhaps a glass of vino?

Me sitting outside a typical Mongolian Ger.

There are lots of unusual sculptures dotted about the gardens....

The Cafe (I had the felafel and pumpkin baguette...yummy)











These are the lovelies who joined me for lunch...so nice to catch up with these gorgeous girls...

Enchanted Bird's Nest

I found a nest in my garden...an enchanted bird lives there.

Time Flies...

On Friday night, our daughter Georgia made her Debut...we are so very proud - she looked beautiful...this is my little tomboy, who rarely wore dresses, and who used to ask to have her hair cut like the boys at school.

I have a chopping block on wheels in my kitchen, and she used to lie underneath it when she was little and pretend to be fixing a car...

When all the other girls were being fairies, she preferred to be Batman.

She is such a unique, determined, funny, smart and loyal friend, daughter, musician, student, soccer player (to name a few), and I am privileged to be her mother. (sniff)

Cousins... Georgia and Brittany

Artful shoes...(or when I'm feeling totally blah)

I won't lie to you...some days, being a mum to 2 teenage girls, along with their mood swings, can get me down. Today began much like any other. I drove the girls to school, and instead of driving straight back home like I usually do, I parked the car and went for a walk...I love to discover new places to walk, and after half an hour or so, I managed to find myself on a very quiet, bushy street...I felt the tension melting away.

After an hour of walking, I returned to where my car was parked, and treated myself to a latte in a favourite cafe - by now, I was feeling much better.

When I got home, I prepared the slow cooker (I can smell it as I type - Moroccan beef - it smells delicious).

Now some days, I have a tendency to get 'stuck'. I have all of these creative ideas swirling about my head, but often that's where they stay...infuriating, I know.

So, I put some 'new age' music on, turned on my fairy fountain, got out the paints, and set up out on my back deck.

I found an old pair of shoes in my wardrobe that I had bought for a few bucks years ago for a fancy dress. Armed with my sharpie pen and some paints, I went to town...

There's nothing like being creative outside in my garden to return myself back to me, if you know what I mean...these little beauties were such fun to do...tomorrow I buy the dyes and begin embellishing all the slips and camisoles I have been collecting...hmmm....we'll see if that happens, he he.