Progress Report.

Two cute little felt birds made last night and almost complete (just a few tiny glass beads to add I think)...

1 walk and breakfast at a cafe with my friend across the street this morning,
1 movie to see and dinner out with friends tonight.
260 or so art marks entered Friday afternoon...
26 classroom reports to finish.
Well a girl has got to have some fun!
I'll do them tomorrow.

Reports!!!!!

If you see me around in blog land tell me to go and write my reports! They were due in on friday!

too cross...

I just found out that although my ex has been unable to pay more than half the correct amount of child support, or pay for driving lessons, cars or car repairs or school fees or anything or take the kids to lunch anywhere but KFC or Maccas, he did in fact earn over $450 000 in 2008 and $250 000 in 2009.

Kawaii Kokeshi Dolls

I found this pattern on Ravelry, Very cute ,very easy. It would be a good one to use for a first project. I am using up some of the yarn that Tim bought for me at a garage sale. I have no idea who they are for. I might sell them or maybe they would be good for a Toy Society christmas toy drop.

I love Totoro

This little fellow has inspired Chicky Babe to want to learn how to crochet!
I made him using the pattern mentioned in my last post, with some modifications (smaller ears, skinnier arms and bigger white belly) to make him look more like the big grey guy rather than the medium sized blue fellow.
I still have to embroider on the features and invent a pattern for the legs.

PS: (Later in the afternoon.)
Embroidered features...

Still no legs!

Reaching across the crochet divide

Oh so delicious but a bit too expensive!

Silk Yarn

And wonders will never cease. While chatting with Chicky Babe today I was browsing Ravelry looking at toys to make for Christmas time. I came across some Japanese manga style toys Chicky babe suddenly exclaimed. Oh Totoro!
What?
Totoro is a totally cute creature from a Japanese Manga film. So now crochet is good and I am making a set of little Totoro toys.

My Neighbor Totoro (Hayao Miyazaki, 1988)”

I can't upload a picture of the one I'm making but click here if you want to see it or if you are on Ravelry try this link.

Here's her blog of cute crocheted critters.

I really should never complain.

I had a girlfriend visit this morning with her little one. So, so cute. We had a lovely chat and coffee and cake (oh my own new yummy recipe- which I will post when I get a photo of the half demolished remnants of it.)

Here it is.
Ricotta and apple cake (Easily adapted to wheat free/gluten free version)

After she left I thought I'd pop on the telly and see what was on Oprah- my guilty holiday pleasure, I love the weepy ones not the celebrity interview ones and today was indeed a weepy one. About a woman who had grown up in poverty in Africa desperate to go to school but not allowed to. So she did her brothers home work on a stone "desk". Her father refused to let her go to school and she was married off at 11. By the time she was 18 she was a mother of three with a husband who beat her daily. One day a woman from an aide organisation came to her village and planted a seed in her mind that it was possible for a woman to get an education. She now has her masters in agricultural studies is living and studying in America and is remarried. They then went on to show again the atrocities that happen in the Congo with the poor women who are victims of rape. Tears were flowing in my house by this stage. Chicky babe who was going to make fun of her teary mother did not when I told her why I was crying.
It fascinates me how dedicated these women are to education- as a teacher who deals with children of various backgrounds I am struck by the difference in general by the poorer people in Africa and India and their keen desire to attend school and the general reluctance of many kids here to take hold of the opportunities education holds.
Another thing that is interesting is the success of programmes that educate and empower women. Money loaned to men in these communities is often used to show off to others in the community whereas small business loans give directly to women will enhance the whole family and also the wider community who are often employed by these women as their businesses grow. This money is usually always repaid and the profits are often used to educate the children. I of course-did as instructed by Oprah and went straight to her website and found the link list page to find avenues to help. Often I will go to Oxfam and buy a business for a woman in a developing country but now I have found on line links where I can do this with my new pay pal account. I've added it to my sidebar so I can find it easily again perhaps you might like to take a look too.
One day when I win lotto I would love to build a school for women - I guess I am quite passionate about it because along with the social security assistance I initially received, being educated has given me the chance to escape an abusive relationship and to support my family independently and to a comfortable standard, we may not have had everything our hearts desire and we have a modest house and don't have the latest gadgets and flat screen TV's but in comparison to many people in the world we enjoy a standard of extreme luxury.

not quite right.

I've started a new crochet project (although I promised myself I would not as this time was supposed to be devoted to the kids and the house.) But I could not resist this lovely cardi/shawl that can be worn several different ways.
the endless cardi/shawl pattern from stitch diva studios
I like that this one piece can be worn different ways and am planning to make one to take to thailand my thinking is it will be versatile and I can have it folded/scrunched in my bag to be worn in temples or thrown over a singlet top to go out for dinner. However this presents a problem because it will be HOT! So I thought I will have to make it from a natural fiber. like bamboo or cotton. So far I have tried 5 different swatches. Then I discovered I would need about 30 balls of yarn! That then meant I had to consider the cost of the yarn on top of colour and composition. To make it in silk yarn as shown would cost over $300!!!!
I found a bamboo/wool blend that I thought would be ok. It was on special at spotlight so that was good. But it is too chunky!
Then I tried a cream cotton. It was ok but too stiff.
Then I found this sage green cotton,
which is nice and soft and drapes quite well.
But they don't have quite enough balls of yarn! They do however have enough of this soft type of cotton yarn in off white and another in a cream, so perhaps that is the universe saying make it in cream!
I've also discovered a local designer who makes beautiful clothes that all mix and match together to create a range of outfits. I found it on line, but I am afraid to go into town to find out if they do larger sizes as I may be tempted to buy a whole set! I was going to try to make some as they would be simple enough to make but sourcing the fabrics is getting harder and harder. I remember the day when there was three fabric stores in fremantle, including those in the major department stores and several at local shopping centers dotted around the suburbs. Sigh!

So glad..

I am so glad I have been fortunate enough to take some time of work to support Bantam Boy through his TEE exams. I have been making a cooked breakfast for him, preparing his favourite meals at a reasonable hour and making cups of tea ,lunches and snacks. I've been able to drive here and there and run lunch into school for Chicky Babe. All without any stress. It is my job at the moment, just being a mum and I am enjoying it thoroughly. I have time to pay attention to the little things I enjoy, like the shadows on the wall in the hallway in the late afternoon sun. I have two of these little dolls given to me by a friend.

I've had time to create a Halloween costume for Chicky Babe, who is in her own words "So Cute"
I made the tail she did the hat. I love that I am still making 'dress ups" for her even though she is 16 and a half. When they were tiny I made them dinosaur costumes- little hooded t-shirts with spikes, teeth and tails. I often took my little dinosaurs shopping and could hear other children begging for a similar costume. I used to whip them up when friends came over to play. This led to the belief my children held for quite some time that Mum was capable of whipping up anything that was required on short notice, especially for West Aussie Day at school. I want a frilled neck lizard costume, I want to be a black swan, ...a jar of Vegemite, a tropical butterfly, Captain Stirling. At one stage I gave up buying normal clothes because they spent most of their time dressing up.

And I've been exploring the net, planning my Thailand trip, booking hotels and finding things to do and places to see. Also I've been trying without immediate success to set up a paypal account and try to purchase crochet patterns and pay for hotel booking deposits online.

Very Frustrating....but I'll get there.