Thankful Thursday

Thursday doesn't just creep around; it leaps out at me, waving its hands and yelling 'I'm here! I'm here!' Does anyone else find this?
And that's a statement of fact, not a Thankful, just so's you know...

1. Thankful that Spring is slowly arriving. There are a few brave blossoms on the trees and some hardy daffs out, as well as the pussy willow I found at the Port.
2. Thankful for SURPRISES! Yesterday I got home late afternoon to find a parcel from Kat!

A novel set in Scotland, some note papers (one post-its and the other with a magnet back so it doesn't get lost!) and the kindest note! Amid all her health problems and she has time to be thinking of me? You are SOME FRIEND Kat!! And please could yez all pray for her today although her surgery should be done by now?

3. Thankful that my clivea is flowering:

Each year when the clivea flowers I get so excited, don't know why! Such beautiful flowers, they were rare enough in East Africa, even rarer here, so I guess its just the miracle of it!

4. Thankful for my crazy children...this is what BBug and I found on the breakfast table yesterday....

...a Theater prop, but a truly disgusting artifact for the breakfast table...Sos had got up early to finish it before having her shower...(she's living here this week as she's been ill again).

EURGH!

5. Thankful for a long phone chat with Dilly last night- they are rare enough. She had been working as Technical Assistant on the lights in the Theater all day as there were five short plays being performed for end of term assignments. She'd enjoyed herself but said that the nerves of student Directors and actors were very frayed. At one point whilst setting up the third (I think) piece, things got so fraught that she simply yelled 'BLACKOUT!' and flicked off the main lighting switch! Can you imagine?! She said that 10 seconds in the pitch dark restored every one's humour!!

6. Thankful for my car- its small, old, temperamental, breaks down from time to time, gets used like a pack-horse, has the mentality of an Army Bedford truck, and gives me a measure of independence.

And that's about it for this week!

Check out the Inspiring Music Challenge if you feel so inspired! (at end of post)

Have a good day folks!

OWOH Giveaway Result and Challenge Check #6

One World One Heart Giveaway Result:

Voila! Le chapeau avec les people who entered giveaway de moi!

Music...Jaws? da da da da da da da da....

Et le Winner Fabulouso is....

Amanda31Gifts!! Hooray! Hooray!

But because so many folks entered I thought I'd draw three more names and send you each un petit cadeau surprise! So....cue more tense music....I am sending a surprise each to-

jonaks, Andrea and Becca-Bluebird Rose!

Congratulations! And I'll email and post to you later today!

To be honest, I didn't really 'get' the whole giveaway thing at first, but now I see it's such fun that I think I'll do another one soon for my regulars...does that make me sound like a Bar?? Oops!

Another thing- I aim to visit all of you who entered in the weeks to come, and I'm sorry for not visiting you during the Magic Carpet Ride.

Challenge Check #6

For this week's Dottie Angel Challenge I dug out a hoarder box of scraps to start a quilt. I thought there would be lots of floral so I was going to do a Log Cabin sunshine and shadows layout,

but when I opened the box it was almost all plain pinks,

...so I chose a magazine pattern to try out

I've never worked with so much pink in my life but am finding it quite challenging, and enjoyable, to get the effect I want with a limited palette.

All my quilts are scrap quilts, as I think I've said before, as fabric in East Africa and also here is very dear. But that suits my 'something for nothing' philosophy and also my 'sustainability' beliefs. God gave us the earth to care for, not squander its resources, and I am very very happy to use other's leftovers, I'm not an artist or needing this and that special item for my perfect masterpiece. If I was a settler I'd be the one rooting through your waste sweepings picking out bits of fabric to reuse.

Remember the lovely fabric which Ulla sent me? It'll be worn out from stroking soon as I can't bear to cut it up!!!

And the CED Challenge?

Well I was going to write something different, and then on Saturday I opened a wrongly labelled box (it said 'Purple and Mauve Floral') and found some hoarded baby clothes!

Dilly's first boots and slippers, both of which were sent to her in East Africa from here by my Mom...they're so small! The collar I cross-stitched for Sos when she was a baby to go with a very plain pink dress I made her. It may sound silly but I so wanted my babies to look pretty when we went to Church but we were dependant upon the Missionaries for anything which wasn't a bare necessity. Someone gave me a piece of pink corduroy and a scrap of Aida cloth and Sos got a Sunday outfit!

And this is a later Sunday dress I made for Sos from some Viyella fabric Mom had hoarded which my Godmother had sent her when I was born to make a dress for me! Mom made one dress, and then I made the second!

At the time I was into smocking, as you can see, but my girls have long since refused to wear smocked dresses, which isn't surprising, but I so love doing smocking!

Anyhow, I'm not sure if these are relevant to CED but I thought they would interest you!

And now I'm off for another cup of tea, then to email all the winners, and then to carry on sewing together chopped up bits of cloth!!!