Friday Smiles 2022: Week 8

Hello again on a lovely sunny Thursday morning. As I am preparing this post to publish tomorrow I took a break to hang out a line of washing. I try to do the laundry at the weekends when the electricity is cheaper, but we have rain forecast everyday from tomorrow until next Thursday, so today's sunshine was too good an opportunity to miss. I have no indoor washing line and cannot justify having a tumble drier when I only get half a dozen weeks a year when I cannot dry everything outside.  It actually makes me happy to see the sheets blowing on the line in our back yard, or a line of coloured clothes shining in the sun. Today it is the sheets and they will be dry, aired and back on the bed by tonight!

Rain or shine, Spring is definitely on the way. As I walked around the front garden this morning I saw lots of new buds on the hydrangea...

...and on the climbing rose. The Mandevilla, which we planted on the trellis with the rose, I was told was not very hardy and doesn't usually survive the winter, but mine is looking quite healthy still.

And the orange hibiscus has its first flower bud.

We had some fun on Monday. While feeding the dogs at the side of the house, I heard some banging around and van doors shutting, and when I went out the front to see what was going on (i.e.to be nosey!), I found a huge parcel on our front porch. It was the new TV stand we ordered a while ago that had been delayed en route. Amazon had offered to send a replacement but we think this was the original, so maybe they just told the courier to get it sorted. Anyway we were surprised to find they had left it without ringing the doorbell to see if anyone was in, but we were glad to have it and soon brought it indoors and unpacked it. Of course it needed to be assembled, but as soon as we unpacked it we could see the quality was good and it was well packed, so we were hopeful it would also go together without too much trouble. And really it did. There was a strip of plastic in the box, divided into little compartments each clearly labelled with a code, and each containing a different set of screws, bolts, washers etc, which saved a lot of sorting out. Chris did the main work and I was his 'woman Friday', handing him tools and the right pieces of wood, bolts etc. 

A few screws were difficult because they were in tight corners and neither of us have very nimble hands these days, but by lunch time it was up and in place, and the TV was mounted on the bracket that came with it. It is now a much better height for watching, and we are loving the bigger, clear screen. (The jumble of wires beside it were no longer needed and have all been taken away now).

I did another small crochet project and made last week's dolly a little teddy bear. He is made to the same pattern as the doll but with thinner yarn and a smaller hook. They will be parcelled up this week ready to send to my grand-daughter.

This week Tuesday was quite a special day. Its date, written as 22.02.2022 is a palindrome meaning it reads the same forwards and backwards. Written in square digital numbers it is also an ambigram which means it is the same upside down. But for our family it was a special day as it was our youngest son, Ben's, 35th birthday. You may remember that he is a keen musician and especially likes singing and playing the piano. This is the card I made for him.

I went to town on the inside using a card I had seen on Youtube for inspiration. My Silhouette Cameo, cutting machine did a great job of cutting the pop-up section and all the script, notes etc from glossy vinyl. I was pleased with it and he loved it, which is what matters.

You can see the details of how it was made on my craft blog.

On Saturday he went down to a bar near where his brother lives, on the border with Wales, and some family members and his old school friends (we also used to live near there), came to celebrate with him. Of course there were several photos taken but I particularly like this one. In the centre is our second son Mike, and on his left are the oldest and youngest of his sons. On his other side is his daughter, my first grandchild, who is soon to give us our third great-grandson, and on the end is Ben. They all look so happy together, and that makes me happy too.

And that is how my week whizzed by as usual. So I will link up with Annie's Friday Smiles and see what everyone else has been up to.

Friday Smiles 2022: Week 7

Looking back on this week, I can't think of anything very significant that has happened! That said, the insignificant things have been good. I have completed two small projects and this is the first one.

I decided I would try to keep a photographic diary of the year, making one double page each month. I am using a set of page templates by Andrea Gold, and this is my pages for January. 

The photos will mostly be familiar because I used them on my blogs through the month, but they are presented differently. They are not in chronilogical order so there are no dates on them. I just grouped them as I thought they went together. The patterned papers and elements all come from my vast collection of digital scrapbook kits. I had the option of doing one double page or two half pages, and I realised I needed them separated so that I could print them as 12" x 12" pages and file them in an album bought years ago, (before I came here I think). It has been languishing in my top cupboard all this time. I was glad to see it still had enough large page protectors but I had 'borrowed' two out of the three posts for binding it, so I had to send for some from Amazon. I like my pages to go into an album so I can look at them from time to time. Just a digital file on the computer tends to get forgotten about.

My second finished project is the little extra piece of crochet I mentioned had side-tracked me last week. It is a wee dolly for my grand-daughter's first birthday on April first. She looked quite odd at first. Her stubby body and big head makes her look like a little alien.

She is made from a set of crocheted dolls by Laura Tegg called Weebie dolls. Her patterns are on Ravelry. There are three sizes of dolls, a wide range of outfits, plus teddies, rabbits etc. I kept mine fairly simple and went for the shortest hair curls, I embroidered the features rather than use safety eyes, and I sewed all her clothes on, including her undies and shoes! I thought that was the safest for her while she is only one year old.

When my grand-daughter gets bigger I may make one she can dress and undress. Of course I haven't posted this to her yet, but I feel quite safe writing about her on here as my son and his wife do not use social media except to message the family on WhatsApp or Signal.

And while on the subject of crochet I thought this little bit of news may have passed you by. I am not a devout follower of the Winter Olympics, though I have watched some events almost by accident, but I was interested to read that all the bouquets given at the flower presentations, were crocheted by a group of elderly ladies at an activity centre for the elderly in Shanghai. It took them three months to make 4,400 realistic red roses, plus many other flowers. Each flower has a significance such as joy, peace, understanding etc.I hope the winners keep them and treasure them after all that hard work. It was part of Japan's sustainability plan.

We have had some lovely weather this week and have eaten lunch outside most days. This afternoon it was so warm that I shed a layer of clothes, and sat for a couple of hours with just a teeshirt and trousers on. Our thermometer registered thirty degrees. Of course it is chilly now, and the layers are back on, but it certainly feels as though Spring is here.  The little birds are singing. I listened to a pair of collared doves cooing across the green zone at one another all afternoon. Then another one joined in, and one much further away could also be heard. But mainly it is the spotless starlings that have a wide variety of songs, and the little sparrows that fill the air with their chattering. They are getting ready to settle down for the night by the time I feed the dogs, and I saw this group all meeting up in the bougainvillea on the corner of our neighbour's house. The starlings go off to roost in the taller trees and I think the doves do too.

I lightened the image so I could see them better and make sure they really were sparrows, and they were. It is the little things that bring us joy!

Today there was not a cloud in the sky, but yesterday there were a few that all seem to come together at sun-down. I love this picture of the sun hiding behind the clouds, with rays shining up above it. 

Of course it doesn't stay like that for long, and soon the sun was peeking out at the bottom. 

It moved so quickly, and within minutes there was a blinding glare, and then it was gone behind the hills.

And that was the week that was! So now I am off to link up with Annie's Friday Smiles.

Friday Smiles 2022: Week 6

 Here it is as promised...     Ta-dah!

This was truly a challenge. It is a very thick and heavy blanket which exactly covers the top of our king-size bed. The pattern is Downtown by Astrid Shandy, a very talented designer. She has several patterns I would like to try but we'll see. I found this very heavy to hold and the bigger it got, the harder it was to handle. At times I had as many as twenty balls of wool all hanging from it, so keeping them all from getting in a tangle was a constant trial and turning round at the end of the row was quite a mission. But I am delighed with the end result. It is probably too colourful for some folks taste, but I love it.

Needless to say I have not stuck to my plan for moving on and have, instead, worked on something quite different this week, so watch this space!

We did some serious shopping this week and on Wednesday we took delivery of two big items. The first was a large screen smart TV. Our old one has served us well, but our sight and hearing is not what it used to be and we are enjoying having a large, clear screen. Chris is still installing some things on it, and the new table and bracket we have ordered for it have not yet arrived, so for now it is free standing on a too low table. But it will all be sorted out soon.

The second item is a tall freezer to replace the old one in the garage. When our kitchen was redesigned we had a smallish fridge freezer built in. But the freezer was inadequate so the tall fridge and freezer from the old kitchen, were set up in the garage. The fridge is mainly used for cold drinks in the summer, and for storing milk, butter etc. Our supermarkets are all a distance away so I try to only shop once a month except for fresh veg and bread, so on shopping day I need the extra fridge space. But the freezer is my main food storage. We don't eat big meals and it is difficult to make some things in small enough quantities, so I tend to batch make and freeze meal size portions for use later. And again, I buy meat and prepared items monthly so the freezer is well filled. Unfortunately the old one had just four big, deep drawers and items tended to get lost at the bottom and forgotten. The new one has eight shallow drawers which I have made labels for, (using vinyl cut on my cameo machine), and it should be easier to keep it more organised. I shall do my best anyway!!

When we did the February shop last week, in Lidls I bought a rather sad looking baby hyacinth. It was in a tiny 2" x 2" pot, and I didn't hold out much hope for it, but it only cost 1€ so I took a chance.  I already had one in the kitchen which flowered last year and then I just abandonned it by the outside sink. I thought it had rotted inside, but I noticed a tiny leaf pushing up from the bulb last week, so I brought it inside to see if it would develop at all. So I put the new one in the same pot, and within a few days it had grown and produced a lovely flower. The scent greets me as I go into the kitchen each morning. I know some folk don't like the smell but I love it. It became top-heavy and I had to add a stake to try and hold its head up. It is still going strong. The old one has not progressed much yet, but it hasn't died either, so I live in hope.

Today, Thursday, dawned rather dark and chilly but the clouds soon disappeared and it turned into a beautiful sunny day. I was waiting in for a parcel but fortunately it came nice and early so mid-morning we popped to the campsite near the village for their monthly craft fair. It is only a small affair with stalls selling hand crafted cards, jewellry, soap etc, and I wasn't really into buying anything, but I spotted a cute little pin cushion in a pretty ceramic pot, so I bought that. It is smaller than it looks here and only stands a bare three inches high.

We didn't stay long but it was such a lovely morning with little puffs of clouds in a deep blue sky, so I suggested we drove down to the sea front for a nice walk in the fresh air, and then some lunch. 

We went down to Mojacar and it was very quiet. It was the first day we had been allowed to go outside without a mask on, but I noticed a lot of folk were still wearing them. The sea was very calm. I took this picture showing the indalo man in a wrought iron fence, with the smooth line of sea beyond and no white tops to the waves at all. Also no traffic to stop me taking a photo from the far side of the road. 

It was nice to see the cormorants are back on their favourite rock. They come to it each morning, and spread their wings to catch the suns rays, and just rest in one anothers company. We did quite a long walk along the sea front and back. The further we went, the quieter it became. The far end is mostly hotels and apartments owned by the 'swallows', the foreigners who come over for a few months of winter sun and then go again. But Brexit and Covid have between them made it much harder for people to come over, so many shops and most of the bars and cafés were still closed. Hopefully things will pick up soon. From Easter the tourists should be back, as long as Covid remains low.

We ended up at our usual café, which is near the Parque Commerciál, and is always open throughout the year. We had a lovely lunch. Mine was a 'Sandwich Koi', Koi is the name of the café, and it was three tiers of bread each loaded with beautifully fresh salad and slices of mozerella, and served with a small, portion of chips. I managed to eat it all except the top slice of bread! Needless to say, with fresh air, exercise and food, I was soon enjoying a snooze at home, but I am sure it did us good to be out and about for a change.

Now  I will link up with Annie's Friday Smiles, and see who else has found things to smile at.

Friday Smiles 2022: Week 5

Hello everyone. Sadly our sushine is taking a break and we have clouds and rain forecast for the weekend, but we cannot complain as we have had a week of beautiful sunshine, with days warm enough to eat our lunch outside, and spend the early afternoon sitting out on the porch reading, browsing the internet, and crocheting, or even having a little siesta snooze! I made the most of the sun to get lots of washing dried, stripping the beds, and chair covers, as well as our usual clothes washing.

After a good Sunday dinner I knew I would doze if I didn't do something, so I decided to go for a walk, and this time I headed over to the urbanisation across the main road from our village called Huerta Nueva. In the original plans this large site was going to incorporate small shops, a bar and a recreation area, as well as a range of villas, town houses and apartments. Most of the housing was done, but the rest never happened, though they did dig out a big hole for an ornamental lake. Over time this has been very neglected until some of the residents took it in hand. They enlisted the help of volunteers and the council, and it now has a fence around it, the lake has been dredged to remove excess algae, a path has been cleared part way round it, and a few plants added at its side. They then clubbed together to buy some ducks which have thrived, and it is now a pleasant place for a short walk on a sunny afternoon. It is also quite a novelty for some of the local families who are new to the idea of taking little ones to feed the ducks. So that is where I was heading on Sunday afternoon.

I take my time these days and I can get there in around 25 minutes. The first thing I noticed as I left the main road, was the effect of the sun and rain on the campo. Instead of barren mud, there were areas covered in yellow oxalis plants.I had to take this one through the fence, but you can see how closely the plants were growing, and all had buds ready to burst into flower.

A few yards further on I saw this patch on a corner that were already in flower. They are a very sharp, acid yellow which shines out from their green foliage. Quite different from the pink and white oxalis we grew in the garden in UK.

Next I walked down the road where all the villas are, and in one garden I saw this beautiful mimosa (acacia) tree. It is early for it to be in full flower but how pretty it is. This is the type that we used to pay the earth for, to have a spray or two in a wedding bouquet, with soft yellow pompoms, and an open structure to the tree. The more usual form out here is a dense, tall shrub with much darker, almost mustard yellow flowers. Known in some places as wattle, in a month or two it will be everywhere.  (It is not as attractive as this one, and I am not so keen on it as it sheds a lot of pollen which I am sensitive to).

As I reached the campo I saw this beautiful aeonium. It is usually a cultivated plant so I suspect someone was clearing a patch of their garden and just moved it to the campo where it has thrived. I have one just behind the railings at the back of us, but sadly mine has not flowered this year. It has never had blooms as splendid as this one anyway.

Next I found this area which still has quite a few yellow wild crysanthemums in flower. They had a very early blooming this year and I think will mostly bloom again in early autumn, but it was nice to see these ones still surviving. I sometimes pick a few as they last well in water indoors.

You must be thinking that everything is very yellow. (One of my very early blog posts when we first moved here was titled "March is Yellow" which perhaps indicates how the seasons are changing). However, not all the wild flowers I saw were yellow. On one corner I passed this beautiful almond tree with its abundant blossom. The bees were enjoying it and it looked so pretty with a backdrop of open land and distant mountains.

I also passed quite a few clusters of the wild asphrodels. They are so delicate and wave gently in the breeze, but they can also withstand quite fierce winds. The individual flowers are very pretty. In the cultivated version the flowers are closer together forming a spire, but the wild ones are more openly placed, which gives them their fragile air.

When I talk about the campo I am often describing an area of open land that is flat mud with the odd rock and sparse vegetation. But the rain brings it to life and this week the campo is a carpet of wild flowers, or weeds depending on how you look at them, and alongside the path to the lake I saw lilac stocks, yellow broom, waving grass flowers, tiny daisies and many more.

The lake itself was as tranquil as ever. I only saw one other family there, and they were only passing so I took my time to wander round it, enjoying the antics of the ducks, who swam straight over to me, decided I wasn't going to feed them, and swam away again. 

There are two small islands in the lake with tamarisk trees on them. They are one of the few plants to take on autumn colours, and they are still tinged with rusty pink, but the new green is coming through.

The islands give the ducks some privacy and shelter and they probably nest there too. On the far side of the lake you can just see a little house under a willow tree, but it was empty this week.

Some of the ducks rest in the sun, or pad around on the mud surrounds to the lake and these two caught my eye. Look at that long neck. It looks like a cartoon duck.

The colours on their feathers are beautiful. I have tried to identify this one which has a black beak and black feet as well as black and irridescent green feathers. The nearest I have found is the Cayuga duck, but I am not certain about that.

This white goose came to investigate me, but soon wandered off again. I didn't know there were any geese there. I shall be popping over again soon to see if there are any chicks. I missed them last year but I remembered that they breed at a different time from the ones in UK. I just can't remember whether it was earlier or later!

Bottoms up!!

At the far end of the lake there is no path, but I decided to try and cross it anyway. The ground was very uneven but I held onto the fence, and it gave me a very different view of the lake.

I am not used to walking so I was tired when I got home, and was happy to sink down in a chair with a cup of tea, and rest a while.

Other than that my week has flown by as usual. I have spent some time in my room, putting finishing touches to a couple of birthday cards for later this month, and making another set of six Christmas cards. I won't show them as I will probably use them for my end of month Christmas challenge that I always enter.

I have spent some time at the computer designing elements for cards. I like "playing" with the software for my Silhouette Cutting machine. You can do so much with it if you are prepared to weather a good few failures on the way, and when you get it right and manage the final result you were working for, it is very satisfying.

We did the main, monthly food shop on Wednesday. It was fairly quiet everywhere. We still have to wear masks anywhere outside, and in the shops, but we are used to that now. Hand sanitiser is still available at most shop entrances and it is a fairly safe environment, though we are quite efficient these days and don't hang around unneccesarily.

I knew I was needing to shop by Wednesday, so I was pleased when a parcel due that day, came a day early. It was the equivalent of a 'squishy parcel', but as the wool was in a box, it was not so squishy this time. This is what was inside. Aren't those little coloured balls attractive? It is called the Rainbow kit, and it is also available in other colour mixes. The balls are only 20g each, and they are a 60% cotton:40% acrylic mix which is supposed to be lovely to work with. The little balls are idea for making toys, or adding decorations but I actually want the whole kit, for another small project that is on my waiting list. 

The grey yarn is to make a border around the Celtic tiles blanket when I have made all the squares. It is a shade or two darker than the squares and will finish it off nicely. Of course I am not ready for that yet, but it makes sense when the shop offers a fixed postage, to buy it all at the same time. I bought this from a Spanish shop near Murcia, who are the only stockist I have found here who sell the Sweedish yarn I am moving over to now I can no longer buy the one I used to buy from UK. I put the order in on Sunday, it was dispatched on Monday and arrived on Tuesday so their service is excellent.

This is the project I wanted the rainbow colours for. I love all the mandalas that are popular right now and I also love pansies, so when I saw this I knew I had to make it. It is called Pansy Pizza mandala. I hope mine looks like this when it is done.

I have no skies to close with this week so I will use another photo of Tango and Tolly together. They are so cute when they are being friendly, and not fighting! I don't know what was happening outside the kitchen door, but it caught their attention for a while.

And now I will link up wth Annie's Friday Smiles and when I came back next week I hope to have a "Ta-dah!" for you. *For those not familiar with Lucy from the award winning crochet site, Attic24, that is her phrase when she has a big completed project to show.