Yarny Distractions

It's been awhile since I've done any sewing and would love to turn these
 cotton fabrics into summery tops but alas I'm too busy at the moment.
Crafting time is quite limited so all my sewing plans will have to wait.
I have, however, managed to keep working on my granny square throw
and it's keeping me happy craftwise right now.

I've just made my sixteenth square. There are 48 more to make so it

 will probably be a few more months before it's finished. I don't mind

too much though. It's an enjoyable project to work on, often the 

perfect distraction after a long, busy day.

Another happy project are these flowers that I started making last May.
I want to add a couple more to this crocheted posy hopefully soon.

I've also been thinking of a project using these gorgeous cotton yarn.
Like the summery tops it might be awhile before I could get around
 to it but dreaming up crafty projects is a guilty pastime of mine I have
to admit.

What crafty projects are you busy with right now? I hope you're
 having fun. By the way, thank you so much for all your words of
 encouragement. They're very much appreciated.


Take care. Have a great weekend!

Last Week

You must be wondering how I did in my driving test last Friday
and I'm very sad to say I have no happy news to share with you here.
I'm terribly disappointed but I have to keep going, learn from my
mistakes and try again soon. In the meantime I'm trying to make the
 most of these warm summer days with my girls. We've been out and
 about enjoying the lovely weather and we've also been making our own
 fun at home. These are some of our many happy things last week:

Tuesday morning at Weston Park.

Weston Park and Weston Park Museum

Learning, playing, exploring at the children's museum.

Fun at the city farm.

The best chicken coop/house we've ever seen.

Sunday lunch at Nanny and GrandDad's.

The girls helped pick these black and white currants from GrandDad's allotment.

Yummy pasta dish with freshly picked courgettes, also from GrandDad's allotment.

The girls playing in their wendy house.

I hope you've all had a lovely weekend and you're enjoying the
summer holidays. I'm hoping to be back soon with a crafty post.
Till then take care and have a great week. Back soon!

Lovely Happy Things

We had a long, busy, tiring and stressful week last week
 so I'm grateful and relieved that our weekend had been a slower
 and more relaxed affair. On Saturday I was going to take the girls to
Weston Park but because it was raining we just stayed at home. The
girls spent most of the morning playing, watching Cebeebies and
happily pottering about. I spent most of mine reading, crocheting,
 drinking cups of tea and ignoring the many chores that were
 calling out to me. It was lovely!

We enjoyed the gingernut & chocolate biscuits we made the
day before and we had a go at making rubber band jewellery.
Well, I did while they picked out the colours and played with the
rubber bands.

On Sunday we took it easy too. It was so nice to not do much
 for a change and we do feel rested and better for it.
Hooray for quiet Saturdays and easy Sundays!



.............................




One day last week my father-in-law came round bearing gifts.
He brought us sweet strawberries and gooseberries all grown in
his allotment.

We ate the freshly picked strawberries straight away but the
 goosegogs were made into a crumble. We ate it with cold vanilla
flavoured custard. Yummy! Another great summer treat.



......................................................




We also got this jigsaw puzzle. It's still in its original box
and the colours are fantastic. I love old toys and I was very
chuffed about this.

And yes, my father-in-law is a lovely man and he's wonderful
with the girls. We're so lucky.



............................................




Crafting always makes me happy and I've been working on my
 granny square throw whenever I've had the chance.

I've been making up the colour combinations and joining
 the squares as I go along. So far it's been a fun project and I'm
really looking forward to more crochet time this week.



......................................................




I got these paper clips from Sainsburys yesterday. Aren't
they so cool?

I love the colours and the teeny tiny buntings--- definitely
one of my favourite happy purchases this summer.






I hope you've all had a lovely weekend. Take care
and thanks again for wishing me well on Friday.
Back soon!

Happy Finds

It's been awhile since I've posted about my charity shop finds and
I've got quite a few that I'd like to show you here plus happy finds
from various other places.

These first three items were from a funny little shop in Castleton,
Derbyshire. It doesn't look much from the outside but it's a real
treasure trove inside, full of weird and wonderful, fun and interesting
things, mostly old and used. It's the sort of place that I love and oh,
I wanted so many things. But I was limited by time and money
(they only accept cash and I only had about ten pounds with me)
so I only got these three plus an old spice rack that's now a wall shelf
 in the girls' room. I'd definitely go back there the next time
we're in the area.

I like finding craft supplies like these rubber stamps from a car boot

sale last spring. The girls sometimes like to 'do stamping' and these

are just perfect for a bit of crafty fun. We use them all, even the

 Christmas ones.

These little jars were from a local charity shop. I'm not sure
what to use them for but I like the flowers and they're sweet.

Last but not least, these craft books. A couple were from
table top sales while the rest were bought from charity shops.
 I love craft books even old ones with outdated designs.
I find them interesting and they're always a good source of
ideas and inspirations.

So these are my happy bargain finds these past few months.
If I have to choose a favourite it will have to be the wooden
building bricks. I think they're fantastic.

Thanks to those who wished me good luck for my driving test.
Unfortunately it was cancelled halfway through because of
some car problems. It was actually bizarre becase even the
examiner couldn't figure out what was wrong but later on after it
was decided we had to stop it was fine again. Up til then I was
doing fine so I feel encouraged by that. I've rebooked for next
Friday so keep your fingers crossed.

Thanks again! Enjoy your weekend!!

Crocheted Table Mat

I'm enjoying crochet again. This week I've started making
a granny square blanket and I've also made a table mat with
 crocheted circles.

I made these circles months ago. They were going to be

made into squares to make up a throw but I changed my mind

soon after I started so they've just been stashed away these 

past months waiting to be used for another project.

I've thought of making them into a bunting for my craft space but
 this week I've decided to use them to make a table mat instead.

So after a bit of arranging and rearranging I was happy

with the colours and I started sewing in the yarn ends. I then 

joined them together and added a border with double crochets

 and it was done.

It's just simple but I like the bright and happy colours it brings
 to our table. It's also been a great 'quick and easy' project and I've
been able to start on my granny square blanket very soon after
finishing this.

I hope you're all having a lovely and restful weekend.
I have my driving test booked this Thursday so please wish
 me luck. I'm very anxious about it but needs must and
we do all we can for our families, so fingers crossed....

See you soon!

Lovely Happy Things

I like carnations, especially pink ones, and I have loved
having this pretty bunch on our mantle for the past week.

I also like this little posy with sprigs of lavender and rosemary
from our garden and a few carnations. I think the tin looks sweet too.



...............................



We got these lovelies in the sale when we were in town last week.

The CK plimsolls turned out to be too small for Markie so we've had

 to return them. But we found even better ones and Lulu got a new pair

 too (Clarks, pink, with sparkly lights) for just £7! I always love a
 bargain and these finds certainly made me happy.

.............................



These notebooks are three of my (not so many) happy holiday purchases.

I really like them. They're great for jotting down thoughts,
ideas and inspirations for future craft projects and they look
lovely too.



..................................



We love homemade fruit sorbets and strawberry sorbet
made by my husband is currently our favourite.

It is tasty and refreshing--a sweet summery treat!



...........................



This year's Tour de France started off here in Yorkshire.
We saw the cyclists race past in the village of Midhopestone
just outside of Sheffield. It was a thrilling and amazing sight.

The crowd was amazing too. Everyone was excited and there

was a festival like atmosphere. I'm actually not a cycling fan

(I can't even ride a bike!) but I'm so glad I was there when this

great bike race came to Yorkshire.

.....................................

I had a short but very sweet trip to London last Wednesday.

An old friend came over from Germany with her family for a week's 

holiday in the capital and it was so wonderful to see them all 

even for just a few hours.

I'm so grateful to my husband for making this possible. He had the

day off work and was happy to look after the girls. We also used his 

train ticket voucher otherwise the fare would have been SO expensive.

And when I came home he had dinner all ready. He's so wonderful!

................................

Lulu and I stopped by the playground after dropping Markie off at
nursery this morning. She had a lot of fun running around, climbing
and going on the swings--and she did it all wearing her wellies
and a party hat! What a funny girl!

When we got home we sat outside and had some snacks.
It was a really lovely, sunshiny Monday morning and I hope
the rest of the week stays like this.

Hope you're having a lovely Monday too. See you soon!