Happy Birthday Baby!

Because I cannot do my gig in the Hospice for a few Fridays due to me being away on two of them, I collected 5 huge containers of stuff last week to sort for them at home.  Such fun!!  All containing wool and fabric that needed to be bagged and tagged ready to be sold.

This is how the fabric looks once I have done my bit to it.  After work today I dropped back the 5 containers, and then put it all out in the shop.  The old gals love me!!!  Thing is, I really enjoyed doing it, so they will search out some more for me to tackle.

One of the lads at work is having a clean out of his books and he thought I might like these, nice that he thinks I am a domestic goddess on a budget!!  And I am so gonna change the world for fifteen bucks for sure!!

Actually he bought in a pile and said take what you want and any left after the others have had a look I will drop off to Hospice for him.  These three appealed to me too, the car one is classic, it really is!!

My bosses sweet little seven year old son left me a note.  So cute.

All of a sudden my hair feels quite long!!

 Oscar was enjoying the flowers in the sunshine.

And Sheba just being Sheba!

The Heir turned 22 today,

and I just want to know where all those years have gone.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABY!!

So the Spare joined us and we went to our local pub for dinner (paid for by TOF but he doesn't know yet coz he is away with work) and a game of pool.  Oh and watch the Cricket, which we have just won, and OMFG it was exciting!!!

Te Rapa Tavern, not looking very busy but peeps were down the other end of the bar.  Nice feed they do to.

Time to blow out the candles

and head off to bed.

It's all about being Happy!!

Saturday morning at some ungodly hour TOF left to go fishing for the day.  When I got up the weather was so lovely that I thought 'what the hell, I'm going to the beach'.  

So I did!!

I stopped at Waihi to visit a shop my sister had told me I needed to check out.  I happened to park outside the cutest old church.  On a corner of the main street is the lovely old Rob Roy Hotel.  Waihi is an old mining town so dotted with lovely old buildings to drool over.

The shop I just had to go to is called Gevadi and as Helen put it, 'I died and went to Heaven'.  An explosion of all things colourful was waiting for me inside.  The owner is the most gorgeous friendly lady, who travels overseas to buy stock and normally just sells at markets but she put down some roots in Waihi for the Summer.  She lives in her house truck out the back of the shop she has rented, so very cool.

I purchased a lovely shawl/scarf/snood thing in lovely stripes and the healing hand necklace.  Really good prices and just so much to take in, making me walk around the shop at least twice.  She is only going to be there until Easter then she is off enjoying her free spirited life style.  I think the odds are stacked very high for me to have another visit.

This is the first sighting of the ocean that you get to see when heading out of Waihi to Whangamata.  I actually took this photo on my journey home.  This is also the beginning of the two windy hills that have made many a traveler car sick. In fact I made poor wee Oscar sick when he came to the beach with me last time on those bloody hills.

Of course I headed straight for the shop Helen manages. She didn't know I was coming over so it was a good surprise.  I also had stock for the shop from her boss.

I bought the felt purse from Glamour for my little camera to live in and the yummy yum necklace from a shop down the road called Coconut Gallery.

Across the road I wandered to Garuda, a favourite shop of mine where I bought the coolest pair of pants and some Tibetan bells that have the most divine chime.

How awesome is my necklace??

Whangamata Beach just how I like it,

uncrowded!!

When I got back home I had a play with my scarf/shawl/snood thing, and I like it!!  Endless possibilities especially for Winter.

TOF had a successful day fishing and spent the morning filleting his catch and smoking a lovely Kahawai which we snacked on round the middle of the day, yumo!!  He was actually about to evict the girls out of his strawberry patch when I took this photo.

Left to right, Denuce, Mrs Wickham and Autumn, and Cassie back on.

 Aggie, Mrs Potts and Coral.

Aretha popped off the other day, she hadn't been too well,

and Oprah was being camera shy.

 Someone was super happy to have TOF home.

The Passion fruit is continuing to provide likewise the Blackberry.

 Oscar just looking adorable.

Smelly but adorable.

The scruffiest Blackbird lives in my garden,

he looks like the morning after the night before.

Maybe he went to the Spares flat warming party?

Loads of fluffy fat Sparrows live in the garden too,

all hanging out in the trees down the back.

It's dark outside now so the weekend is all but over. 

Another lovely weekend of enjoying life'

keeping it simple,

being happy.

Words of Wisdom

bought to you by

three good dudes.

 

Perfectly happy not being perfect!

The temperature has dropped slightly so some carefully layering has been taking place of late.  We have been experiencing cooler mornings, warming up to border line HOT then cooling off again in the evening.  Pretty sure Autumn is very near by, and I do love Autumn.

Thanks for all your lovely positive comments on the top I made, I cut the pattern off this one I am wearing. Time to add skirts and light weight jackets to a favourite black and white.  Just after I took these photos I dropped my little old faithful handbag sized camera and it wouldn't work. POOH!!

After a quick consultation with Google I discovered one of the big retail stores had a one day special on a couple of their small cameras.  So off I went and came home with this camera but in black, even tho' I said yes please to RED.  Never mind, it's only a camera.  Oh and this kettle and matching toaster have been tempting me for months, so I thought what the hell, why not.  Such a cool mint colour.

I have been after one of these gorgeous old Bournvita Mugs forever.   Finally I found one in my price range so I hit the buy now on the auction on trade me.  I basically picked it up for half the price they normal go for.  They are called 'Sweet Dreams' and made back in the late 40's early 50's.

It has made it's way onto the top shelf in my new to me cabinet, where my treasures live.  See the PINK flower?  That is the very coolest clock that my dad gave me when I was quite young, and it still keeps time.

TOF's car collection gets the third shelf and then my Happy Hens and Piggy banks live on the bottom shelf.  I think it is safe to say there is not a lot of spaces left.

Today I slept in I suppose because I was so snugly and warm in my bed.  But when I did crawl out the sun was out and the day was full of promise, and a cool breeze.

Cool breeze aside, I found some lovely things.  The pot is a Morris & James, which is made in NZ and retail at quite a price.  Mine was only $7.50 and quite possibly get planted over the weekend. In the same shop I found a nice piece of Tapestry fabric, rick rak, brodery anglaise lace and colourful trim, all 50c each, a pretty silk square and a string of Camels, beads, and pom poms.

The straw market basket was brand new and I love these, then at another shop I found the cute little Hermes bag with a wee coin purse inside, for $2.

Something else I need to do over the weekend is trim the shrub above Texs chair.  It is a wonder he can even get in to the spot.  Luckily there are other favourite spots for him outside to rest in.

Time to play with my new little camera in the garden.

I love Pink and Purple in my garden, did you notice?

 This is how flowers see the world.

The coolness of the evening set in and you can tell by how Sheba is tightly curled up on the couch.

No words of wisdom today but a classic old photo 

sent to me by my old friend Leonie. 

 

My sister Helen, Jane, Leonie and me, taken on our Confirmation day back in the early 70's. I remember this day vividly as after it we were allowed to decide if we wanted to continue to attend Church.  I have nothing against Church and religion but it's justnot for me and I do not believe that attending makes you any better than anyone else.  Like standing in a garage doesn't make you a car.  I think we are all entitled to believe in our own things and I am perfectly happy believing in myself and life.

Have a fabulous weekend!!

Remember to eat your greens!!

So the baking, the baking for the lads at work, well of course it was GREEN!!  St Paddies day and all, and I don't own a lot of clothing in green in fact only a jacket and a pair of shoes, which I didn't even wear.

As my very own Irishman  is out of town with work, (yes TOF is Irish, born in Belfast and moved to NZ when he was 4), he didn't get any of my St Paddies baking.  Green Chocolate Chip Biscuits!!

Of course the lads at work loved them.  A couple asked if they had an 'special' ingredients in them because they were green, but we all know 'special' baking is not for work.  Next time I am going to make them peppermint flavoured, because they will be made again.

Last night, at 10:30pm to be  precise, I decided to do some sewing.  I cut a pattern off a top I like and sewed this colourful little bugger together in less than an hour!! Got to love an over locker.

Obviously such a success in the sewing room needed to be worn today.  I have two more ready to throw together maybe tonight but maybe not quite so late.  Perfect for all year round as things can go under it and over it!!

After work I went out to visit Dawn on her new 5 acre plot that they are building a new home on.  She had these lovely creations to show me.  I love these huge faces, both already have homes but she will be making more. They are an indoor artwork because she paints them not glaze.

This is going to be the view from her kitchen window, one of many beautiful scenic pictures to look out at.

Todays Words of Wisdom

from

The Irish.

 and