out the loop

first time we've had our own drive-way

i'm still feeling this way, we've been in the new house a week today, the internet took a little longer to get hooked back up, but that was probably a good thing as i've had far too much to be getting on with, i've still got to go back & clean the old house this weekend before we hand the keys back,

looking forward to filling up the wood store

that said, i couldn't be happier, the new house is going to be perfect for us, it's just going to take a few weeks to get it it the way we want it, but it will be well worth it

little O's first bed, in her very girlie bedroom

as you can guess, there has not been much crafting going on, i didn't manage to finish either the crochet blanket or the pin-wheel quilt, so i'll have plenty to be getting on with (when i find the power cord for my sewing machine that is!) i hope to be back soon to share a little more

the tidiest corner of G's room

don't be fooled by the photos - there are many more boxes to unpack & lot's of tidying up to be done, i just chose to ignore those corners of the house!

on the move

if all goes to plan we should complete on the new house tomorrow, so i'm likely to be without the internet for a little while,

i'm feeling rather disorganised, but we've given ourselves a small amount of cross-over as we're moving from rented, so i'm maybe a little too laid back about it all!

the little ones are super excited too

hope to be back really soon to share some of the finer details, 

(photos taken on our half term trip to the lavender line in west sussex)

can't get enough

we're still loved up round here

gingerbread baking session with little O today

finished off a birthday present for a 'girl'friend of G's

 we also exchanged on the new house today, so we now have the fun of packing up & moving again, but at least we'll be stopping there for while, so it will all be worth it

we're in!

& i love this house already, despite still being very un-packed, & still having the builders in finishing off a loft conversion, it feels like home!

looks lovely, until you see the ceiling that is!

& the landing!

just waiting on the stairs to be made in Wales! then hopefully they can get on with finishing it all off! i have however had the sewing machine unpacked & got my sewing mojo going with something simple

a little snippet for now, i'll be back to share the rest tomorrow, when we kick off our family birthday-a-thon (starting with mine!)

it also seems that in my absence i have now gained over 100 followers (just) so i think a give-away is in order, (as soon as i can get myself organised that is)

*edited to add* i should mention that i got the dotty fabric from saints & pinners, a fab online shop stocking great fabric, this was a scap pack & i still have some left over, i also brought some other bits, which i'll save to share another day!

so long

- for now! we have picked up the keys to the new house & will be up early tomorrow, when the hard work will really start, 

i am however rather miffed, as bt are going to take two whole weeks to hook us back up to the internet, so i shall be taking a rather unintentional break from the blog, which might turn out for the best as i really will have so much other stuff to get done!

*just a couple of photos of recent thrifty finds i think i had forgotten to share, a stash of sewing thread £1 & some vintage fabric only a £1*




back soon x

counting down the days

the countdown has started, we move into our new place this weekend, hooray, i'm not looking forward to the chaos, but i am so looking forward to getting back into a place of our own, 

it's been a busy week, so has helped the time pass quickly, here is a brief catch up

we spent a lovely fathers day here, 

& this little fella came first in the veteran dogs show! (i think they took pity on him as he only has 3 legs)

little O had her first little girls hair cut (which now matches her mama's do!)

not sure i could get away with the cute little Alice band though!


big G greatly enjoyed his first school sports day

& made me ever so proud!

& in anticipation of getting my sewing machine back i treated my self to a very small amount of this beautiful fabric

brought from here, it's washed & ready to be made into a new summer top for little O, 

i've been slowly getting on with some knitting too, but have been hugely distracted by a few books! i've been reading the twlight saga & oh how smitten am i, i'd stayed away from these books, thinking it was alot of fuss over nothing, but i am now shamelessly speeding my way through them, (just getting towards the end of eclipse) & am stuck in the age old dilemma of being desperate to finish the story but at the same time never wanting it to end!

hanging on in there

so many things to share & so little time spent at the computer! 

well the house has gone, we got it empty & clean in plenty of time for it's new owner to make it her own, the past week & half has flown by & so far so good, we are all coping well with the changes life has thrust upon us, that said i am so EXCITED, as we have been so lucky to find a house to rent in the village (i really miss being able to walk to school / work) & a lovely little house it is too! we move in at the beginning of July, i can't wait to get settled in & make it home, even if we only end up being there for 6 months, it will be so lovely to get back a space of our own, 

however we have been making the most of our time at the in-laws, they live in a beautiful part of surrey, down a country lane, so the children love getting out in the fresh air

i'm still really missing my sewing machine but know it won't be long before i'm reunited with it, i've been taking the opportunity to get more knitting done, i've just about finished little O's latest Cardigan, just the ends to sew in & a button to find, 

i love this wool so much, that i've gone & ordered a load more from kemps & found a pattern so i can knit myself something with it (just ignoring all those unfinished projects stashed about the place)

& thanks to this lovely lady for the sale tip, i also had to increase my fabric stash a little with some of the Amy Butler 'love' fabric from here, 

no idea of-course what i'm going to make with it yet, but it is ever so pretty to look at

still here - just!

wow, how have i stayed away so long, i've been meaning to post for days, but time has got away from me, last week was pretty hectic, packing, moving ALL our furniture into storage, moving in with the 'in-laws' over the weekend, living out of suitcases & boxes, not really knowing where anything is? cleaning our empty house, ready to handover the keys on wednesday, moving really is so SO stressful, 

i did escape to my folks for a couple of days last week, in an attempt to get myself & the children away from it all, well it was half term! no school - no work & all that, 

& how glad i was that we did, the weather was glorious, & i soaked up as much of that view as i could,

the small people enjoyed feeding the horses,

exploring

softplay

whilst i enjoyed a little quiet & a paddling pool with the best view ever,

i'm feeling much more positive about the whole thing & know we made the right decision, still i'm rather sad that my sewing machine & fabric stash is packed away for now, as i keep thinking about all the things i want to be making, so for now i'm going to be all about the yarn, as i've kept plenty of that within easy reach!

*& thank you for all your sweet comments about our (lack of) housing situation, you're all right of-course, as i'm sure it will all work out for the best in the end!*

almost friday

well, it's now even nearer to Friday than when i first started writing this post, but what a week so far, being back at work & still trying to fit in all the regular stuff has really wiped me out, i've also not been sleeping so great due to house moving related worries!

our buyer is pushing things along at a very quick pace (she's currently in rented), we've had an offer accepted on a house (far from my dream house, but it's BIG! & in a great location, i've had to use my head for the decision making & not my heart)

so yesterday i picked up my hook & worked on another row for the granny blanket, which really did help to calm the mind & slow me down a little, 

every time i work on this i love it more & more, although i am so upset to have noticed i'm going to be short on the white/gray i'm using for the borders, (Debbie Bliss Pure Cotton shade #18 - now discontinued, darn it, so if anyone spots some anywhere, please please do let me know)

Also to kick start my 12 hours of sewing a month pledge, i set about making a cosy for our coffee cafetiere, i made this up as i went along & was really pleased with how it turned out, 

i need to make another one to match for our mini cafetiere!

ofcourse little O wanted to get in on the act too! (she rather annoyingly just wanted to take the cosy on & off, over & over)

i've been at the sewing machine again tonight, having just remembered at bath time, that it's a 'non-uniform, wear yellow & bring a plant into school' day tomorrow, just great, G had nothing in yellow (& i've yet to buy a plant) so i set about this evening, chopping up a yellow vest of mine, with which to make a t'shirt for him to wear tomorrow, not my finest work, i just hope it's going to fit him!

the neighbourly birthday gift

long time no blog, how did that happen, i have not been up to much, we did get an offer on our house, which after a little negotiation we accepted (hooray) so now will come the hard work of actually moving, not that we have anywhere to move to yet! (we are considering renting, as the people buying from us want things to move quite fast) so i'm feeling a little daunted but ever so excited, 

it feels like i have been making very little recently, i have done the heels on the socks, so am now just working on the cuffs when the mood takes me, 

i'm still working on the noro shawl, but as each row gets longer, progress has slowed a little

i did knit up a lovely little neighbourly for a sweet little girls 1st birthday present, which i can now share, as i know it made it to her in time for her birthday (happy birthday little M)

 

i used freedom sincere dk yarn, which is a lovely organic cotton, in what i'm hoping will be a very wearable colour for a one year old!

i love this pattern, it's nice and easy, but quick enough to keep your interest, i definitely plan on making little O another one in some chunky yarn for next autumn, 

noro

what can i say, the sun must have gone to my head! i gave in, i have been admiring the noro yarns from afar for a long time, loving their beautiful rich colours, but having no idea what i would ever make with them (other than socks - for which i really don't need any more of for the time being!) that is until i found a shawl pattern on ravelry, i just couldn't get this one out my head, so set on a quest to pick up some noro kureyon sock yarn to knit it up in, 

it was a hard choice to pick the colourway, but i settled on shade #188, & i'm in love, 

all my other knitting (& sewing projects) are lying neglected, as i can't work on anything else right now, it has been the perfect project this week, as i've had to keep the house pretty much ready for viewers constantly (well that is how it's felt), thank goodness the weather has been so great, so that the small people can eat their tea out in the garden, thus keeping the floor clean!

& i'm trying so hard not too get excited* about someone coming back for a 2nd viewing!, then the reality sets in - 'but then we are going to have to find somewhere to move to!' & things start to get a little scary (but quite exciting too)

*i'm going to have to try a little harder i think - but do keep your fingers crossed!