It has to be snowing somewhere

It sure ain't here

but we have had an icy as wind

the last few days.

Oh but the sunshine

bless her little cotton socks,

She just keeps turning up every morning

and shines her butt off!!

YESTERDAY...

..I went out to Dawns place in the afternoon.

Sitting in the warmth of her cute gallery/studio we chatted while she potted, drank tea, while Taz sat in the window teasing the dogs, as in nah nah nah nah nah I'm inside and you're not suckers!, and before I knew it a couple of hours had disappeared.  The view out the french doors is so lovely, from the garden behind the hedge then on to the house.  I photographed what she had as it gets packed up and shipped out as fast as it comes out of the kiln.

 Caravans with birds on the roof

and washing hanging out!

 Just a very cool selection of colourful goodies!!

Tea pot totem pole toppers, I made the red and white one.

Even weeds look great!

Funny thing is I wasn't planning on going anywhere yesterday as my car was at my mechanics.  On Friday it started playing up when I had the most insanely busy day ahead of me, so I dropped it off at my lovely mechanic and it was good to go yesterday by mid morning.  Apparently the starter motor was knackered, his words!!  Lucky I had TOFs little car to use or I would have been up shit creek!!

Today the sun was shining brightly

but the wind was decidedly

COLD!

I wore a full length boiled wool coat

to work and kept it on

all day.

Being all wrapped up and toasty warm I called in on half a dozen op shops on my way home from work.  The little shelf is going to get pimped, tester paint pots here I come!  The bag was only $1 and it is the handles I want only, the doilies 5 in total all very cute $1 each.  The embroidered dress is way too small for me but I have a cunning plan that involves SCISSORS!!  

75 floral blocks to knit,

and aren't they just all bloody gorgeous??!!

Don't you love it when you spy something you like out of the corner of your eye, but not only once, this happened twice today.  These brooches were both only $5 each and in different shops.  I nearly died when I saw the mosaic one!

Yeah baby I was warm!

Right

I am off to watch the final of

Britain's Got Talent!

You asked, so you get!!

So some of you wanted to know where my wedding photos were, well fasten your seat belts, have a potty stop first because you shall get a good laugh.  Now this was 1992, a Thursday night in our own back yard at our first home with four friends and a seriously old Justice of the Peace with a dodgy stutter.

We listened, TOF put a ring on it, so I gave him a SNOG!

Our entire wedding party/guests.

One Black Forest Gateau for our Wedding Cake,

A low key, inexpensive fun evening.

Sure some people got their noses out of joint because it was so small, in fact we phoned our parents after we had got married to mixed reactions.  But it is what we wanted, it suited us and hell we are still together after 22 years so we must have got something right!!

In true Goody style this is what I say to those who got pippy!!

And I wouldn't do it any different.

BUT

Now here are some of the photos

I took on Friday.

So there you go!

I am pretty chuffed with the results

and so to are the Bride and Groom.

But NO

I wouldn't want to do this for a job.

I just enjoy taking photos

for people I know.

Backing up to Friday morning....

I forgot these were taken on my little camera that lives in my handbag of the hearty frost we had on Friday morning.  My bird bath was officially closed as a bath and reopened as and ice skating rink instead.  When we get one of these good old Waikato frosts we always end up with a ball terror of a day, and it was bloody gorgeous let me tell you!!

Today I went out to collect the small box full of fabulous TG Green and Co china that I had purchased off trade me.  I love this stuff, my dinner set is the pale green with white spots, also a trade me score.  The seller said I got a good deal as she put the wrong buy now price, (sucker) so I played super dumb and went 'Really', of course I knew I had scored well, I may be blonde but I sure ain't DUMB!  I then went to a shopping mall nearby to get TOF a stash of his favourite Aniseed wheels, (remember he is home again for a few days) and then I found these to kick arse necklaces on sale in a posh shop.  Why have one when you can have both!!

It has been a very lazy weekend at home just chilling out, of course I get to continue with the chill out program tomorrow while TOF and the son toddle off to work.  TOF heads off up north again on Wednesday for another two weeks and THEN he should be home for good again.  Bloody better be!!

Have a great week!!

and if you are still on your weekend

then have a marvelarse one!

It sure was a nice day for a White Wedding!!

Yesterday I was a Wedding photographer at my friends beautiful youngest daughters wedding.  I will admit being slightly nervous at being responsible for the photos.  I am so not a professional, in any sense of the word!!  I spent the day with the most amazing bunch of fun loving gorgeous young people, experiencing the before antics of both sides of the wedding party.  As a mother of sons I will not get the frou frou experience of make up, hair, and all the pre wedding girl stuff.  So I feel truly blessed to have been a part of such a lovely event. I was rather pleased at my photographs too.

The gorgeous young newly weds.

Photo booth fun!

An absolute must at any wedding.

Anyway, Weddings stir up all sorts of emotions.  It made me reflect on my own very lovely laid back affair 20 something years ago at home in our very own garden of the first home we owned.  Then I got looking back even further and found this collection of beautiful old family Wedding Photos.

Not sure who in the family this is but just look at those 

glorious bouquets of flowers 

and gorgeous hats.

This is my great grandmother Gladys Mae's Wedding.

(my Grandpa Bills mum)

My Grandparents

Lilian (Lil) and William (Bill)

My sisters and I playing pretend wedding

in Grandmas wedding dress.

(that is how cool grandma was)

I love this one.

My Nana (Ada) is the little girl standing 3rd in on the left.

This is her oldest sisters Wedding

a huge family affair.

Horace and Ada's Wedding

(my dads parents, my nana and pop)

 

Horace's youngest brothers wedding. 

My Parents on their big day.

Weddings have certainly changed over the years but the one thing that stays the same is the reason people get married I guess.  To have a bloody good big party!!  Joking.  The thing I like now tho' is that you do not have to get married, it is not frowned upon to not go ahead and plunge into it.  You can, well in New Zealand, marry your same sex partner.  What ever or who ever, you get to have one fabulous day surrounded with friends and family, so that in itself should be a great thing.  All I know is it doesn't matter how big or small the wedding is, or how much you do or don't spend, it is what you do that counts the most.  At the end of the day a marriage should be how you want it to be, it is after all your day.  And for those that choose not to marry, that to is fine, the world would be such a boring old place if we were all the same and did the exact same things!

Oh and I get to do this wedding photographer gig

all over again in another 10 weeks

as the other daughter is getting married.

Pearls and Fur during the week??

Yes indeedy

I wore me some Pearls

and threw

some Possum on my shoulders!!

(I was going to say pearl necklace and fur, but imagine the disappointment for googlers!!)

All this with some Black, White, and Red, and of course Spots and Stripes. Today's feature was my RED BOOTS! I have been wary of wearing high footwear as my dodgy ankle was putting me off.  You will be pleased to know that I did not fall over or roll my ankle once.  Maybe I am good to go with my higher heels!!  Hope so, I have a few.  I do love my black Possum Skins!  I got them off Trade Me last year and I have simply joined them so a tail hangs down my back and man my shoulders are kept warm when I wear it.

The great un-layering

or is that the

STRIP!

Today after work I drove out to Ohaupo about a 10 minute drive south of Hamilton. I was meeting some friends that are getting married out at Windy Ridge out there tomorrow and I was checking out the venue.  What a beautiful place for a wedding, and the decorating was going well when I left.  So I am off to a Wedding tomorrow, woohoo!!!!

I was early so I decided that I would have myself some lunch. The cafe is inside Clock World so there was a lot of ticking and chiming going on, not that it bothered me. I found myself a nice spot in the sun with a window and feasted on smoked chicken Panini and had a lovely Mocca.  The lady said my spot in the sun would be perfect for a cat, so I promised her I wouldn't sit on the table!  I was going to say and lick my....but thought maybe not!!

I called in at an old fashioned Church Op Shop in Glenview today.  The sort that is cash only and cheap as pricing.  The doilies were all 50 cents each, the straw dolls were 50 cents for the lot, the black daisy trim is attached to a skirt and there is lots of it and it will be unpicked was $2.  Only want the trim not the skirt.  The gloves were cheap and they are like a mesh, I have a couple of people that are in the running to get them.  I also got an Arron hand knitted mans cardigan with a  full length zip in the front that Jak has decided he likes that was only $3!!  Insane!  When this little shop is good it is GOOD!!!

On my way home I detoured to Hamilton Lake, well Lake Rotoroa to be exact!  The gardens are stunning at the moment and I take my hat off to the City Council Gardeners that maintain our city parks and reserves.  Just look at the colour and the shapes.  I love that our round abouts and traffic islands get planted in colour.  I used to think I should have been a city council gardener.

This is the old Entrance to the Lake Domain.  I love the roots that have grown down the sides and the old stones that were used.  An original part of the City.  Generations of Hamiltonians have relaxed Lake side over the years, played in the play grounds, fed the numerous ducks, and walked the paths.

 Spring bulbs are even growing on the top of it.

This is a reasonably new sculpture at the lake.  Sorry to say I do not know what it is called or what it represents as I could not find anything to tell me such information.  But it is a Maori design and I like it.  It is big and bold and such a statement.  Hamilton has plenty of sculptures, some I like and some I am not so keen on.  Hey but that is art, not to everyone's taste.  Sure does create conversation tho'.

So true!

Glad you all got a giggle about the petting charts.

I think it is all due to the weather.

Another day of lovely jubbly

SUNSHINE!!

Amazing how nice weather

lifts your spirits.

After work I visited a couple of op shops so it was mid afternoon when I finally got home.  Lunch was a late but leisurely affair outside in the sunshine with the company of wee Oscar.  We opened the mail and basically chilled out with a nice sarnie and a hot cuppa.  I have signed our family up as friends of the  Westpac Rescue Helicopter, seems like a worthy cause when you have a family, and god knows they need the funds to keep it operating.

The white cardy is a summer weight one with the best ruffle back ever.  The red crop jacket ties at the front and will be perfect with frocks! As for the little jug, it reminded me of a large pot in the same colours that belonged to my Nana that my eldest sister got. I had it for a while but she wanted it so I had to pass it on.  I have decided I don't want family things, too many problems and strings attached.  So now I have a collection of things that remind me of family.  Life is too short for hassles, ill feelings and unnecessary dramas.

Today was a purple day.  I wore a Summer dress with a long sleeve t under it, a jacket on top, and leggings and boots.  This basket is my favourite at the moment, it fits everything I need and some.  The reps I met at the airport today were a couple of hard case females from Nelson in the South Island.  We had some laughs we did!!!  No intimidation anywhere!!

I found Tex sprawled out in the sun by the back door.  Cats always hang out in the sun, it is what they do!!  And they do it so well.  The startled look on the right is actually a look of pure Extasy, I was rubbing his fuck yes spot on his back and he gets this expression going on.  Note how cats have a few of these spots but dogs, well dogs are just one big fuck yes spot!!  Just see the chart below!!

If you own either or both animals you will so know what I am talking about!

Last week when it was raining and down right miserable outside wasn't particularly fun.  But as soon as the sun appears everyone is out and about making the most of the good weather.  I spent most of the afternoon chillin' outside with the animals.

I discovered about six balls under the couch.  

Someone isn't very keen on sharing!

And yes she tried her very very best

to get those 3 in her mouth!

Our long range weather forecast

is predicting a few more of

these glorious sunshine filled days,

that is why I am sending

you the above.