Mopping Up...

 

hello...

and thank you for your kind & supportive comments

on our fire event last sunday.

 

 

the shaking has ceased

my equilibrium has returned.

after some thought

my husband seems to think that

due to the temperature readings the firies took...

that the self cleaning mode

has somehow clicked in by itself.

 

apparently this self cleaning mode

brings the plates on the insides of the oven

up to 800 degrees celsius

where they burn off any food or oil in the oven

and then when the oven is cool

you just sweep up the ashes.

 

i think

that because there had been a more substantial spill

on the floor of the oven,

that it caused flames to ignite with that extreme temperature.

 

well there is nothing but a little ash now

on the bottom of the oven.

we still need to have an electrician out to have a look

and maybe an insurance assessor.

 

 

 

 

....but the dogs have had a few delicious dinners

off the leg of lamb now...

and today kara finished off the last bone...

she's lying down

with a very rounded tummy

here now...hehe!

 

 now back to knitting,

preparing bible studies,

organising myself for mainly music

&

other normal weekly events...

 

 

i hope your week is rolling along smoothly!

 

naturally Carol xox

 

 





I'm Still Shakin'!

 

hi!

 

this afternoon we had a fire in our oven...

 

 

it was 3 pm

&

i thought of the leg of lamb in the fridge

&

decided it was time to start cooking it...

a long slow roast

for dinner tonight.

 

i prepared it

put it in the roasting dish

and in the oven at 160 degrees celsius...

mr t says lamb should be cooked long and slow for max. tenderness.

 

i decided to wash a few glasses and bowls

to clear the benches.

 

about 10 mins after the roast was in the oven,

we noticed smoke building up.

i opened the oven door to see where the smoke was coming from

and thought that it was just a bit of spilled stuff on the oven floor

that would burn off.

 

next minute

flames were spotted inside the oven...

bright swirling and orange!

 

mr t tried to put it out with a teatowel

&

ms s yelled 'put salt on it'.

apparently that normally works

but i only had sea salt in crystals

which when i threw in,

exploded and cracked like mini firecrackers...oh dear!

 

i rummaged in the vacuum cleaner cupboard,

finding the old fireblanket

that we'd always had...just in case.

 

mr t quelled the flames...

meanwhile smoke had filled the kitchen

and the fire alarm had finally gone off

and the oven although switched off was still beeping...

 

i called 000.

i told them the fire was out...

but i wanted them to check that the surrounding cupboards

and wooden weatherboarding outside

was safe and cold.

i didn't want it gently smouldering,

to burst into flames in the middle of the night...

i've seen all those fire documentaries and movies!

 

three big handsome firies came out in their fire engine.

they switched off the oven fuse outside.

with their temperature sensor

they detected 800 degree heat still

so took the oven out so they could check the surrounding wood.

 

all was fine...

thankfully!

 

but

i'm still a bit shaky....

i've had enough adrenaline course through my veins for the whole year...

 

i hope your afternoon was pleasant and even a little boring...

in comparison!

 

naturally Carol xox


p.s..the lamb roast went into the fridge again...i think it will end up as dog food though..if it's good enough!

 



Newborn Baby Beanie...

 

good morning!

 

 

 

i've fallen in love

with this baby beanie knitting pattern...

i do that, don't i?

{then just have to make about a dozen of them!}

 

 

 

i found this one at 'ravelry' too...another freebie.

 

 

 

it's knitted from brim to crown

instead of side to side,

so the texture and pattern is beautifully unusual...

&

makes a most delightful

little hat

for a baby.

 

happy weekending!

 

 

naturally Carol xox


 

 

 



As the Sun Sets...

 

on a.n.z.a.c. day this year

there is peace.

 

thank you

all those who helped to make it this way

&

keep it this way

in our country!

 

 

 

while many went to dawn services,

our household was quiet.

eventually mr m got up

&

made a fresh batch of anzac biscuits

'cos we'd already devoured the ones

we'd bought from woollies.

 

 

 

i knitted...

a little cream baby beanie this time...

smaller than i've attempted before.

i'll show you in my next post.

 

warm damper, butter and honey,

was lunch.

 

the anzac parade

broadcast on tv

was the backdrop for our activities.

 

 

 

the afternoon sun

sent a shaft of light into the loungeroom

and caught the bare branches of the christmas tree.

it was sitting there waiting for me to dress it

in pompoms for winter.

 

i dusted the branches

&

hung the pompoms.

 

 

 

when someone connects it to the power

it will twinkle

on cold winter nights

resplendant in it's woolly finery...

looking cosy.

 

the sun has set.

mr t has cooked a pork roast

and it's nearly on the table.

time to go

and join the family for dinner...

 

 

see you soon!

 

 

what did you do today?

 

 

naturally Carol xox

 

 



Tweedy Blue...

 

hi

on this clear blue monday afternoon!

 

i'm still practising

my baby boy beanies

&

this pattern is 'baby drops'

a free ravelry pattern

knitted in 8 ply

...a kind of tweedy blue denim colour...

very boyish i'm thinking

though not exclusively.

 

 

 

yesterday

i took my other baby beanie to church...{last post}

but the baby i'd made it for wasn't there.

 

i was showing a friend

while having a cappucino after church

&

she asked whether i could make her one

as she was going to a baby shower

for a little baby boy this friday.

 

 

 

i didn't know whether i could,

so i offered her the beanie i had...as she loved it.

she wanted to pay me

so i said 'five dollars'...to cover the cost of the wool.

she gave me seven

which covers the cost of two more...hehe...a bonus!

 

i came home and was eager to try out another pattern

with this wool that i bought last week.

 

 

 

now i will take this one to church

for the other little baby boy.

he is five months old

and this is size 6-9 months.

 

next i'm going to try one with ear flaps...

and i still haven't mastered those 4 little needles...  :-(

 

i tried but had to frog it.

 

i hope you're more successful in your new endeavours!

 

 

naturally Carol xox

 

 



 

 

 



Baby Beanie...

 

hello!

 

i'm practising...

practising making baby beanies.

 

i haven't made anything for a baby to wear in a long long time.

 

so i found myself a pattern...

and a baby...

and this is the beanie i've made.

 

 

 

now i haven't fitted it on the baby yet...

no, it's not 'baby bean'...

it's another baby that i found at church.

i asked it's mum whether i could knit him a beanie

and she said 'yes'!

 

 

 

so tomorrow

i'll take the beanie to church

and try it on her baby.

 

 

 

it isn't the same as the pattern

'cos when i'd finished the first bit

i realised it was going to be too thick to be doubled over again...

now it looks a bit like a tiny blue chef's hat..hehe!

 

 

 

well...

tomorrow we'll see.

i may have to frog it if it looks too funny.

 

but...

i have been on ravelry

and have uploaded several more baby beanie patterns...

 

 

so...

 

i could always try again.

 

 

naturally Carol xox

 



I'm Done!

 

good afternoon!

 

for the first time in a while

i've got the whole day free...

ms s helped get the house ship shape yesterday

&

i've no other commitments today...yay!

 

 

 

so i was able to spend most of the morning knitting...

click click clacking away

on my fuschia needles...

 

&

i'm done.

 

finished.

 

completed.

 

 

 

no more 'splendour' beanies for me.

 

 

 

i think i've finished about fourteen or fifteen

and that's enough.

i've made three out of the scraps from the others...hehe!

 

 

 

i'm not done with beanies though...

so watch this space.

 

 

naturally Carol xox

 

 



Wordless Wednesday...Lizard in the Back Yard!

 

 

 

 

naturally Carol xox

 

 

 



Green Beanie...

 

good afternoon!

 

it's another rainy day...

another one.

can you believe it?

it seems like it's been raining forever here...

since january!

 

well at least rain = inside

&

inside = cosy

&

cosy = knitting or reading or movies hehe!

 

 

a friend bought some green wool...

 

i knitted up the green beanie.

 

it's the slouchiest one i've made yet.

 

at first she bought me the wool

to make it up to give away...

when she looked at it

she fell in love.

now it's going back home with her!

{i have others to give ... so maria, don't fear!}

 

when i first started knitting it

i didn't really like the green

&

thought i may have to find a lady leprechaun to like it!

 

just shows

even friends

can have radically differing tastes...

in beanies, at least.

 



 

i bought this african violet yesterday.

it's a present to myself.

 

do you buy yourself presents too?

 

i hope you find something nice for yourself this weekend...

you deserve a treat!

 

naturally Carol xox

 

 

 



 



Neon Naturally...

 

hi there!

 

after doing a little 'mainly music' prep

for the start of term next week,

i drove into my driveway

&

spotted this bright beauty
hanging over the front fence...

 

 

this, i know, is a crucifix orchid...

unlike the purpley ones in the last post

which i'm not sure about!

you can spot the little crosses visible as yellow centres.

 

i think they're true neon glory.

 

 

i thought i'd lost them...

then up came this lone flower.

 

all is not lost! hehe!

 

they're in amongst this lovely purple flowering bush...

 

 

i don't know it's name.

 

yesterday

i finished another specimen

of unnatural neon-ness...

 

 



 there's nothing like a touch of neon...

natural or unnatural

to brighten up your day...

 

 

 

i hope your day is neon bright today!

 

 

 

naturally Carol xox

 

 



Tiny Orchid...

 

good afternoon!

 

i have been admiring these gorgeous little orchids

in one of the jacaranda trees

for a few days now.

 

today i took the camera out

just so i could share them with you too...

 

 

they were here living in the trees

when we bought our house here nine years ago.

with all the rain they've started to flower and grow...

i think they love the humidity.

 

i know the orange ones are crucifix orchids

but i'm not sure whether these are or not...

i'd love it if any of you queenslanders

could help me here in identifying them properly.

 

i am amazed that a flower so beautiful

grows so commonly here!

 



 

i've been taking advantage of having more time

over the past week or so {due to school holidays}

to knit up some more beanies.

 

i've now knitted seven in all...

 for fiona, rose, stephanie, alana, sharrie, jill

&

one for myself!

 

brigitte is next

and then a couple to send to maria

for brisbane's needy.

 

i think i understand a tiny bit

of how monet felt about haystacks...

or water lillies for that matter!

i remember seeing some of his haystack paintings

in the canberra national gallery,

capturing different colourings in the light

of various times in the day or seasons.

 

i look at these balls of 'splendour'

and imagine every brim a different colour

&

love it as i knit them

and the colours unravel in different ways

displaying their own particular pattern and blend of colour!

 

it was the same with aprons and cushions...

i think i'll always be fascinated and enthralled

by how different colours make different objects sing

and suit different people!

 

 

 

i hope you're enjoying

your 'obsessions' as much as i'm enjoying mine...hehe!

 

 

naturally Carol xox

 

 



Spreading a little Beanie Love...

 

good morning!

 

yes..i am up early again.

mr m is on his early morning shift week.

he has one week on earlies and then one week of lates.

 

yesterday

his car broke down completely

and it looks like it will take a couple of weeks

for the spare part to come...

that means

i am his transport.

 

the trouble is

that once i'm awake

it takes a while to wind down again

to get back to sleep.

 

i'm on a roll with these beanies.

i've adjusted the pattern though.

the first one was a bit snug

so i've added on another seven stitches in width

&

another sixteen rows of pattern

for a bit of slouch.

 

 

 

the result is a more relaxed look.

 

 

 

one of these is for my friend steph

{who loves purple!}

&

the other for

someone close to me

whose birthday is sneaking up soon.

{and may be useful when walking on a windy beach

or gardening on a frosty morn?}

 

i know they look a bit like weird tea cosies

but {trust me?}

they do look better on.

maybe ms s will model hers for me

to take a photo of for you.

 

have a lovely day!

 

naturally Carol xox

 



Holiday Knitting...

good morning...

 

it's one of those gorgeous sparkley mornings...

sun shining

dew on the grass

blue skies

flowers blooming

insects buzzing

gentle breeze blowing

curtains gently moving

warm

&

restful.

 

i've had a bit of time

to do some holiday knitting.

ms s wants a beanie too,

so ....

 



 

 

more 'splendour'.

 

 

later

i'm having brunch with friends.

eggs benedict

will be the order of the day

at a local town cafe.

they came highly recommended.

 

what are your holiday plans?

 

 

naturally Carol xox