Monday 28 September 2009

Reasons to be Cheerful

I'm still loving being on leave.
Simply being able to get enough sleep is fabulous!
So is having time to cook, time to go to art classes, becoming relaxed enough to really enjoy being with family and friends, having small adventures ~ so many joys.
I'm just back from a holiday,
going out into the Western Australian wheatbelt to see a spectacular show of wildflowers,
and what a lovely time I've had...
but, just before I show you any travel photos, I'd like to share some creativeness.

Here's my almost finished Monroe Lacy Stole:



(I've sewn on one panel of the edging lace and I have only one row of the second edging panel to crochet.)

and here are some Burnt Butter Biscuits which I made from this recipe on Little Red Hen's cooking blog:


(yum)

and, lastly, here's a gorgeous little coin purse that I received from the ever generous 2paw:

Thank you Cindy!

So now on to my little vacation.
I went to find wildflowers with a dear neighbour and fellow flower enthusiast. We stayed at New Norcia, a monastic town (and a little oasis of Spanish culture) that's found in the middle of the wheatbelt. My friend and I also travelled out to a farming community called Dalwallinu. We were rained on a lot (it's been a wonderfully wet Spring) and got very, very muddy but we found wildflowers everywhere ~ blooming along the sides of the road and flowering in carpets out in the bush. Bliss!


Egg and Bacon, blooming just behind New Norcia Hotel.


New Norcia Hotel, where we lunched. Their pizza was delicious!


The view from our room at the Monastery Guesthouse.
Such a tranquil place to stay.
I struck up a conversation, over dinner, with two fellow guests who were translating papers from French and Spanish in the Monastery's archive. They were very European, very devout and fascinating to talk to. I am so grateful that I have the time and the opportunity to meet people who are so different to me and to the people I normally encounter (much as I love the familiar.)


Climbing Fringed Lily, New Norcia



Purple Fan Flower, New Norcia



Milkmaids, New Norcia





White Banjine, Dalwallinu


Acacia, Dalwallinu


Unfurling Everlasting, Dalwallinu


Molly's glad I'm back, although she didn't have to go to the cattery this time ~ Mum and Dad kindly offered to cat sit. She looked very relaxed on my return:



Incidentally,
she's given my Monroe Lacy Stole the seal of kitty approval:





I have so much more to share!
I'm looking forward to showing pictures of the glass beads I've made, the pastel drawings I've worked on, further progress on my stole and yet more pictures of wildflowers...

Have a wonderful week.
x

14 comments:

Kathleen said...

What beuatiful sights and beautiful colors. I loved looking at your holiday as much as you did experiencing it!

"Kitty approved" is always the seal of approval!

Cheers!

Indigo Blue said...

What fabulous pictures. i have never seen so many lovely flowers, so very different to those here. Gosh my camera would be exhausted byt the time I had finished. As for the shawl, lovely. i am building my way up to something like that. It is following a pattern that I am scared of. Do you crochet in a certain shape such as a triangle? Continue to have fun and the extra sleep!!

Balkan Style Bloggers said...

Your Molly looks very much like our Tig Tig. They could be long-lost twins! : )

2paw said...

Love Molly's Seal of Kitty Approval picture: she looks so content you may never get your shawl back.
I am glad you are having a wonderful LSL. I have seen NN on the TV, but your pictures capture the loveliness of all the flowers.
Happy Holiday!!!

Judy Merrill-Smith said...

Gorgeous flower photos! I must say I love that gorgeous pillow behind your kitty, and the spread beneath her.

lizzzknits said...

I love the flower photos, they are so exotic...compared to what we have in Colorado!

Red Hen (dette) said...

I love that photo from the inside looking out. Those biscuits are yummy and easy too! I've not made any for ages I must make some.

Maiden Jane said...

Fabulous stole! And gorgeous photos.

Lúcia said...

Olá,
Wonderful flowers and photos. And the cat...well it's lovely and so cute.
Bye,

Lúcia
www.fazemosdeconta.com

Kate said...

Those flowers are amazing! We don't have anything like that around here! Hope the holiday is going wonderfully!

Erin Wallace said...

You r pictures are amazing! I could learn a thing or two from you! You have a wonderful blog, which I am going to place a link to in mine (found you on ravelry blog roll).

magnusmog said...

The flowers are such a treat for me - sitting in the rainy Scottish autumn.

Unknown said...

What a wonderful blog. Hope you don't mind if I follow along on your life's journey. Found you via Flickr and Lucy. I have found soooo many wonderful friend's via Lucy.

Thanks -
The Garden Bell- Kate
www.thegardenbell.blogspot.com

Stacey Trock said...

Your photos are beautiful! I'm really hoping to get to Western Australia someday soon!