Merry Xmas Everyone

 We hope everyone had a lovely Christmas and best wishes for the New Year!!!

 Salem on Xmas morning with his Cristmas Cat I made for him.

Notice our bunting?

I made this as our xmas decorations this year.

It didn't take me long to crochet it.

I was inspired by the knitted bunting that was created by the English Womans Weekly

Centenary Celebrations in which they created a world record bunting of over 3kms in length.



Christmas Eve Lunch at Arthur's

After a busy morning buying all our veges at the Hill Street Market we went and treated ourselves to lunch at Arthur's Cafe on Cuba Street.

The lovely ladies gave us a xmas cracker.  We ordered a pot of tea (which we really needed), crispy potatoes, homemade fish fingers and some bubble & squeak (Salem's favourites).

The fish fingers were soooo yum!!!

 We were in a different room this time.  It just feels so homely and comfortable.

 This greets you as soon as you walk in the door.

There is always lots to look at.  And lollies to help yourself to at the counter.

There was also xmas cake but we were far to full.

New Blog "Nellie B's Wartime Rationing"

I have just started a new blog to document a new challenge my son Salem and I are undertaking.

As of Boxing Day we will be living on WWII rations as a chance to study what it was like

 for people living in England during that time in our history.

Salem will be doing alot of research on WWII and experiencing a little of it.

We are both looking forward to starting this.

You can see how we are doing on ://nelliebswartimerationing.blogspot.com/

Christmas in Wellington Shops

 We had a good walk around window shopping on Saturday and saw this lovely window display.

I forgot what the shop was called but it was up Cuba Street.

 This is such a great idea and looked so cute.

 Salem just loves this and will be making his own version.

 Also on Cuba Street was this window display at Iko Iko.

Something different for xmas.

The shop was so full that it was an effort to get in and then to get out again.

We couldn't really look at anything so battled our way out.

This was taken at the Xmas Shop at Kircaldie & Stains, Wellington's oldest and most

wonderful department store.

We love coming here an looking through the many floors and imagining what we

will buy if we ever became rich.

They were having a half price sale on their xmas ornaments so we treated ourselves to one each.

Arthur's Cafe in Cuba Street

 Today we went into Wellington and as it was a horrible wet and cold day we decided to go to Arthur's for a nice hot pot of tea and something warm to eat.

We had the Big Vegetarian Breakfast with a side order of "bubble and squeak" to share.

Yum, yum, yum!!!!

It went down a treat and filled both of us up.  Nothing left on our plates!!

 Arthur's is owned and run by the lovely ladies who have Martha's Pantry just around the corner.

But Arthur's is more manly with "manly decor and food.

They do an all day breakfast along with lots of more robust food.

 There are two rooms for dining upstairs as well as more relaxed tables downstairs

and outside at the back of the cafe.

 I just love the antlers.

These photos were taken in the room where we ate upstairs.

Our meal set us up for the rest of the day walking about the city with all the hustle and bustle of the

Christmas shoppers, it was so busy!!!!!

Pantries Update

This is my Pantries sampler, I've still got a bit of work to do on it.

I put it down a while ago as I have had alot of other projects to complete for our market stalls and for selling on-line.  I must get working on it over the holidays.

Happy Feet the Penguin

Happy Feet

Happy Feet the Emperor Penguin turned up on our shores not far from where I live.  He was very, very off course.  He was eating sand thinking it was snow and the sand stuck in his stomach and was beginning to set like concrete. 

He was taken to Wellington Zoo to have the sand removed and kept in a cool room with ice and was fed lots of New Zealand salmon to built up his strength be for they released him closer to the antartic.

We went to the zoo a lot and saw him on the monitors.   Salem and I wrote on his good bye "card" before his release.

This is a life sized replica of Happy Feet.

At the same time as Happy Feet was at the zoo, thousands upon thousands of the little Pirons (a seabird) were blown so badly by severe gale force winds we were having around the country that they were exhausted and thousands upon thousands of them died.

Their bodies turned up all over Kapiti (where I live), we even had one on our lawn which unfortunately died.  The birds that were alive were taken to the SPCA and other animal shelters to recover, hundreds were also taken to the zoo while Happy Feet was there.

Hundreds were successfully released when they had recovered enough.  But dispite the efforts of very caring and hard working volunteers many just couldn't recover.

It's been a while......so here are some flowers

 Some lovely tulips at the Wellington Botanical Gardens

Salem smelling "Mr Meaty" the flower that only flowers every 7 or 8 years and smells like rotting meat. It looks very beautiful though.

Some gorgeous orchids in the hothouse.

Well, it's been a while since I last made an entry, I have been so busy that time has just flown by.

I'm getting my act together and will be doing a catch-up and letting you know what we have been up to.

It's summer now and very hot and humid so it will be nice to sit in front of my laptop with the fan blowing on me while I am updating my posts.

So..............watch this space!!!!!

R.I.P Cluckie

Clucky and Salem

Gorgeous Cluckie

Hanging out with the girls

Today we found our lovely bantam Cluckie dead in her nest.  It was quite upsetting.  We love our chickens.
She was one of our original three which I got the boys for easter two years ago as the boys can't have easter eggs.
Clucky was quite the character, she was the boss and let everybody know it.
She was a great mum also to three lovely boys, the Frizzles, who we had to sell for breeding as we can't have roosters here.
Rest in peace Cluckie, we love you!!!!!!!

Cluckie and her boys, The Frizzles

Autumn and Winter Pantries

I'm very pleased with my progress on my autumn, and now winter pantries.
I still have a little bit to do on the autumn, I have to go through my stash and find the right colours.
The winter pantry is nearly finished.  I love the cat in it.
Then next is Spring.

It is officially Autumn and nearly the end of daylight savings time.  Yay....now I can get the boys to bed at a decent hour as it will be dark nice and early.

Steam Trains and Ballet for Boys

The magnificent steam train

Salem dwarfed by the train

Getting ready to leave

On Saturday on our way into Wellington, we arrived at the Paraparaumu Station to be greeted by the sight of a glorious black steam train.  Steam was billowing everywhere and Salem just about had a heart attack when the whistle blew.  One day we will have to go on one of it's day excursions up the line.

The boys ballet class

When in Wellington, instead of going to Salem's usual ballet class, he went to two special boys only ballet classes run by the Young Friends of the Royal New Zealand Ballet.  The tutor, Vivencio Samblaceno Jr, really put the boys through their paces and they all looked tired and extremely sweaty when they had finished.  This class was for boys 9 years and older.  It is great for the boys to all get together as there are not many boy ballet dancers.  Salem had a great time.

Autumn Pantry

Autumn Pantry

This is my latest cross stitch project, the Autumn Pantry, another lovely design by Brooke Nolan from "Brookes Bookes". 
This is one of a series of four, which inclues a pantry for all of the seasons.  I will be doing all four designs on the one project.  Very cool!!!!
Autumn is taking hold over here in New Zealand,  is getting dark earlier and lighter later, cooler at night making it easier for the kids to sleep and not so hot during the day.
I love autumn!!!!!!
When I lived in Wellington city before having my boys, I used to run to work through the Botanical Gardens early in the morning, and in autumn there would be masses of leaves all over the pathways and I just loved running through them.  Leaves would go everywhere and I loved the "crunchy" sound they would make under foot.  Magical!!!!!

Pottery and Puppies



The Crown Lynn Exhibition at the City Gallery

On Saturday we had our usual excursion into Wellington and decided to go to see the Crown Lynn exhibition at the City Gallery in Civic Square.  I've been wanting to go for weeks and we had plenty of time to kill so off we went.

Salem's favourite tea set.

Crown Lynn is an iconic pottery brand and I think every person in New Zealand has at least a cup or two of Crown Lynn.  I've got a bit of a collection and am slowly adding to it.  Salem is now collecting some for himself after seeing the exhibition.

Salem has just bought this off 'Trade Me'.

They had an old film from the National Archives showing the old Crown Lynn factory and how they made the pottery, it was very cool.
Needless to say, we enjoyed seeing all the different types of pottery that they had on display.



Salem taking Puppy for a walk.

Afterwards we made our way to Martha's Pantry (where else????!!!!!!) and had our lunch.  It was very crowded with people having high teas, even the outside tables were taken.  So we joined a couple of the owners and their friend's on a table outside along with Puppy who became great friends.

Salem and Puppy

  We stayed a couple of hours as Salem doggy-sat Puppy and took her for walks and they had a lovely time hanging out together.  He was quite sad when we had to leave.  He should see her again next weekend.

I've finished my Winter House!!!!!



The Winter House

 Yay, I've finished my Winter House and am very pleased with it.  It is such a lovely design.
I cross stitched a snowflake in pearl white and then beaded it but it doesn't show up in the photo.  It's in where the poem is.  Looks good in 'real' life.

The poem is from.......

The Garden in Winter

Frosty-white and cold it lies

Underneath the fretful skies;

Snowflakes flutter where the red

Banners of the poppies spread,

And the drifts are wide and deep

Where the lilies fell asleep.

But the sunsets o'er it throw

Flame-like splendor, lucent glow,

And the moonshine makes it gleam

Like a wonderland of dream,

And the sharp winds all the day

Pipe and whistle shrilly gay.

Safe beneath the snowdrifts lie

Rainbow buds of by-and-by;

In the long, sweet days of spring

Music of bluebells shall ring,

And its faintly golden cup

Many a primrose will hold up.

Though the winds are keen and chill

Roses' hearts are beating still,

And the garden tranquilly

Dreams of happy hours to be­

In the summer days of blue

All its dreamings will come true.

By Lucy Maud Montgomery

Carrots and Tea Thyme

Cool Carrots

Salem is very pleased with his fist lot of carrots.  They were supposed to be purple heirloom carrots but turned out orange.  Never mind, they were yummy!!!!
Salem grew them in his container garden on our front deck.  Away from hungry chickens.



Tea Thyme

I was very dissappointed with my new tea pot,  I had only used it a couple of times and then it cracked as I was making a much needed brew. So it now is a planter for my small thyme plant.  Looks nice on my table outside.

Another Earthquake in Wellington

Wellington City

Quake Shakes Wellington
A magnitude 4.7 earthquake rattled Wellington early this morning, the second quake to hit the capital in less than a week.
The quake struck at 2.19am, at a depth of 30km, 10km north-east of Upper Hutt.
GNS Science said it was widely felt in the lower North Island and upper South Island.
Police said there were no reports of damage.
On Tuesday, a quake measuring magnitude 4.5 hit at 10.07pm, 20km northwest of Wellington, at a depth of 40km.
- NZPA

The ground seems to getting a bit shaky over here.  I was reading in bed when this second shake hit.  I thought "Here we go again." As always , I get up to check on the kids.  They were still asleep this time.

I feel sorry for the people who have moved up here from Christchurch to get away from earthquakes and are having to face them again.  Even tough the shakes are nothing like they have experienced.

Here in Kapiti, still in the Wellington area, alot of us are on sand so tend to feel the quakes quite a bit and of course are now worrying about liquifation which Christchurch has really highlighted.

Lets hope "The Land of the Long White Cloud" has a bit of rest for a while.

Tutus on Tour 2011

Verdi Variations

Pinocchio

After a very long day in Wellington on Saturday, we went to see the Royal New Zealand Ballet's production of Tutus on Tour which included "Verdi Variations" - classical ballet with tutus, tiaras and wonderful dancing.  And a lovely version of "Pinnochio" which was just magical. 

The magnificiant whale

Salem's favourite dancer and friend, Jacob Chown had a leading role which Salem really enjoyed watching.
Wish we could go and see it again but we will save our pennies for the next Royal New Zealand Ballet's production.

Photos are from the Royal New Zealand Ballet.