Pretty, pretty socks...

I received a package from an anonymous source recently... containing beautiful socks for my Paddy boy... they are gorgeous and soft and beautiful!

Feijoa! A bumper crop after last year...

This is my ... favourite book

I've been conspicuously absent from posting my 'this is my' - so I'll get right on it this week. And may even catch up on a few of the old ones!

My favourite book would have to be My Family and Other Animals by Gerard Durrell. An English family relocates to Corfu just before WWII. It describes the life of the Durrell Family on the island in a humorous manner, the cultural differences, and also richly discusses the fauna of the island. My copy was an old penguin, orange cover, with a huge dragonfly on the front. I've read and re-read it so many times...

Other contenders would be Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood, The Timetravellers Wife by Audrey Niffenegger, and After You'd Gone by Maggie O'Farrell.

ANZAC Day and cupcakes

We too have been in Sydney - although our view was from the other side of the Harbour.

*Notice how many office lights are on those buildings. That was last night - a public holiday before a weekend - and had been on since the night before. So much for Earth Hour affecting real change...

Anyhoo, the main reason for our visit was ANZAC Day. I wrote about ANZAC Day last year, and what it means to me. This year there were fewer of Pa's group, but more family (13 all up). There were only five men from Z Special Unit, and only three of them active members from Pa's Unit. It broke my heart to see so few of them marching. When I first started going with Pa and Nan there were at least 30 men, and their wives that came to march, and then went for lunch (and lots of rum) afterwards. Now Pa's family outnumbers the members by nearly 3 to 1. Last year and this year we went to the Young Alfred restaurant in Customs House. I think it meant alot to Pa that we were all together. I get the feeling it may be the last year his Unit march.

Dick, Eric (my grandfather) and Henry

Caffeine Faerie has the poem 'The Fallen' on her site, and it prompted me to find the poem that is usually read by my grandfather's mate Bill at their wreath-laying. It is glorious and sad in equal measure.

On trails to Kokoda, On beaches to Lae,
the sacrifices called for our comrades to pay
was the price of our freedom to be here this day.
To stand here this morning, remembering why,
our comrades fell, But they did not die.
They are not dead, the men who fell,
though sounds for them the vesper bell,
and loved ones gather at the shrine,
they live in hearts of yours, and mine.
They live on mountain and in glade,
in shearing shed or place of trade.
At school, or on the fields of play,
they live, those men who marched away.
They are not dead, the men who fought.
The sons of valour, who feared naught.
Of man's devising, but who trod
the deathless path that leads to god.
Their call down bush tracks still is heard,
Their whistle in the song of bird.
Their laughter, like a wood note wild,
is heard in some Australian child.
They are not dead, but gone before,
though crosses mark on Borneo's shore,
in Markham valley and Balikpapan,
where rest those mates, who never ran.
The hills near Moresby, the valleys deep
sound no more to their trudging feet.
But they are still here, at our side.
The men who fell, but never died.
They are not dead, they cannot be.
They're a part of you and a part of me.
The friendly hand, the steadfast look,
could never perish at Tobruk.
Though seas and land and years divide,
our comrades live, they have not died.

On a lighter note, we went to visit Cupcakes on Pitt. We always stay at the Meriton on Pitt because its close to the end of the ANZAC march, and a cupcake and coffee have become traditional. I like this place as much as Kuka did when she visited in January. Although the staff/management seemed decidedly more grumpy than last year. Unfortunately I cannot provide beautifully staged photos - like this one from Kuka.


Because I was there with Lily. And our experience looked like this. She only 'eats' the icing - and most of that was up her nose...


But it was fun. And I snapped this interesting pic across the road. The windows of the building were making the most beautiful patterns on the blank wall... and with the trees and the old building etc it just looked purty.

I'd best be off. This has been a mammoth post for me. I don't want you folk getting used to it. Its just that I'd rather be writing this than doing all the washing that results from a weekend away!

I'm not usually a fan of aubergine

But really - could you have walked away from this at the supermarket?

'Brave mother' is my mate!

This article about my amazing friend Sarah was in today's Canberra Times. If you feel like making a donation, the website is at http://www.everydayhero.com.au/kokoda08.

More stuff

Nicole got so much cool stuff for the kids... then Nana and Old Nana (my grandmother) got in on the action. Seriously, Saturday was like Christmas! Freakiest thing was the 'Percy Pigglets' - complete with pork gelatine....

Presents from afar

My sister is back from her sojourn - with presents!

The pendant is from Mexico and the shells from Argentina (now cunningly made into great big earings).

I've got heaps of pictures to share at the moment and very few moments to blog, so I'm just going to dump them here and write about them later. Maybe. If I've got time.

gifts and cockington green

I won a competition over at Funky Finds a little while ago and the first present has arrived! A wonderful monogramed T for Lil from Oliver Lane. Isn't it the most gorgeous thing?? I love pink and brown.

And during the week we went to Cockington Green. I love the little plants more than the other little stuff - but the playground (with about 10 dolls houses) was a hit with Lil.

Canberra's Got Style: Looking forward to: Re-fab

Canberra's Got Style: Looking forward to: Re-fab

This sounds fantastic, although Crafts ACT could do some better promoting of the Clothes Swap a Rama... there are very few details online.

Where my needles at?

Today I made a circular needle holder.

I've had this idea buzzing around in my head for a while and I thought I'd give it a go. I was kind of thinking that if they look like they might be practical and pretty then I could make some for the wool fest at the OBDM. It measures about 7" by 3" and was based loosely on a similar one I found somewhere online or at craftster. There are 6 needle sleeves, made from medium weight pvc. I'm planning a dpn case too, based on the same principle.

I do have some issues though... I don't know if I should go for the pvc or plain fabric. The pvc means the stitching looks a bit messy although PVC has some great benefits - the obvious benefit being that it's see-through so you can see the needle; you can write the size and length on the front in sharpie; and the pvc sticks together to stop the needles from slipping out. BUT - fabric would hide the stitching and make the whole thing a little more tactile and softer (the pvc can be a bit stiff).

So, gentle reader, would you use such a holder? And if you did, do you think you'd prefer pvc or fabric...

This is... a little late

but This is... the contents of my handbag. Its really way too small. I can't even get my sunglasses in. And I notice most mothers have some motherly items in their handbags - but I hate pulling out my wallet and slinging a dummy across the room.

• Cigarettes
  
• Lighter
• Mobile
• Swiss Army knife (doesn't every mother have one?)
• purse that won't close
• hand-me-down mascara from my sister
• hand-me-down lipstick from my sister
• emery board
• receipts and bits of cigarette paper
• a Brumbies balloon (naturally...)
• keys
• work pass (i went for a visit yesterday)
  

And here's a little pic of Lil in the Parisian outfit... at half time in the easter egg hunt (ie, before we had stolen them from her basket and re-hidden them!)