1. yellow van, #410 in explore !, 2. Walk In My Yellow Shoes, 3. inconspicuous yellow umbrella, 4. Yellow Bike, 5. Happy Yellow Sunshine Rainbow Baby Tighter Crop, 6. yellow Y and blue sky, 7. it was all yellow, 8. Parking on double yellow lines, 9. Photo Course 01.03.10

I’m in a yellow kind of mood today.  Not sure why, yellow isn’t one of my favourite colours either so it’s doubly surprising.

The last week has been interesting.  HUBBY is still job hunting while I’ve been patiently awaiting a call from my new employer letting me know when I’ll be able to start.  While I’m enjoying the time at home with HUBBY I’m starting to get a little anxious about when we’ll both be back at work.  There’s a few things we’d like to do this year that rely on both of us working.  (Like eating regularly!)  But it’s in GOD’s hands so I guess I’d best just chill and enjoy the time I have at home.

On Saturday night we caught up with HUBBY’s Dad and his partner.  It was a great night.  I forget just how much I enjoy their company until we’re all together again and then I spend the next week or two wishing we all lived closer together.  His Dad was traveling with friends of theirs from Melbourne, A and P.  A and I had a great natter about the marvelous-ness that is Etsy.  We had an awesomely delicious meal at La Rustica in Kingston; it was just a shame that the service was appalling.  We waited over an hour to get our meals and the wait staff were not the friendliest wait staff.  One of the waitresses was wearing a rather lovely set of gold bangles that had little medallions hanging from them.  Only one problem, every time she served food she dragged the bangles through the dish.  Yummy!

We spent Sunday the way we’d spent most of the week.  Lazying about the house amusing ourselves with various media outlets.  It was a cloudy day that threatened rain and failed to deliver.  But it was clearly the first real day of Autumn, which is grand as it means Summer is over and Winter is just around the corner.  I love this time of year almost as much as I love Spring. I love seeing the colours change around the place and the ability to wear scarves.  I just love scarves.  In fact I’m going to have to make it a priority to learn how to make one this winter.

On Monday I went to a photography course with M called Love Your Camera.   (The rubber duck image above is one I took as part of the course.) It was great to catch up with M who is positively glowing in her pregnant state.  We spent the day having a good natter and a laugh.  The course was enjoyable and the facilitator really lovely.  I spent half the day wishing we could have a photo session with her because she was so captivating.  The course was a great rehash of a lot of the fundamentals that I had been taught at university.  The course is geared towards taking photos of your kids it’s still good practical advice for anyone wanting to just take a better photo and understand their camera. The facilitator is clearly really good at what she does and has a wealth of information to share about the business, tools of the trade and how to interact with your subjects.

Despite being enjoyable it just felt like it was missing something.  I really felt the lack of a handbook as I’m a note taker that likes to make notes on the slides as I see them.   I also thought it was hard to see what we were all doing when you just relied on the digital display on our cameras.  It would have been great to do some practical work in the morning, have the facilitator load the images over lunch and then talk about what we’d all been doing, with a follow up in the afternoon to correct what we’d done in the morning.  Or even set a homework task and have people take photos prior to the class and go through those and then show the improvement at the end of the day.  Besides being really helpful people always get a kick out of showing off their talents and subjects.  (Or is that just me?)

At the end of the day did I feel like I got my $225 worth.  Unfortunately not.  Due to the size of the class it was hard to get one-on-one time with the facilitator and because we couldn’t see the difference in our images over the day it really made it hard to adjust your style and settings to see some improvement and take advantage of having the expert with you.

Would I recommend the course?  Probably, but only to those that had children or were looking to start a family portraits business and we’re looking at a really basic introduction in to what to do.

Would I book Angie to take photo’s of me and my family?  Hell yeah!  She was wonderful and clearly talented.  My brother’s 30th Birthday is coming up and she’ll be in Brisbane around that time.  I’m seriously considering flying up there and getting her to take the family portraits my mother has always wanted of us.  I will definitely be keeping her in mind when my Sister-In-Law has her baby later this year.  It would be a wonderful gift to give new parents.

♣♣♣♣♣

If you want to see other people’s Flickr Faves head on over to ArtMind. While you’re there check out the latest, and way cutest, offering from ArtMind: Bunny Art

Image source: ArtMind

1. Roller Derby – Skate of Emergency, 2. Baby Kylee’s Bathtime, 3. two little owls!, 4. MOVIES TIME :D

I’m running a little late this week with my Flickr Faves, and I’m sure it won’t be the last time.  I’ve had a busy week with lots of new adventures.

On Saturday I went to my first ever Brown Owls meeting.  Much fun was had and I feel like I’ve got a brand new chapter happening and that’s exciting.  I backed it up with my first ever Roller Derby social skate on the Sunday.  Freshmeat doesn’t start until mid March, but already the new recruits are hyped.  It was a great day out in the sun.

On Monday night we went to the movies with COUSIN and LEE LEE.  We also ran into M and R while we were getting some pre-dinner food.  It was awesome.  We went and saw The Blind Side. It was spectacular.  It’s the first movie I’ve seen in a long time that had a positive vibe to it.  There was a happy marriage and family at the centre of it and the message of the movie was one of hope.  It was awesome.  I left the cinema on such a high and feeling like we can all make positive changes in our lives, and the lives of those around us.  I was also grateful to see a positive marriage portrayed.  I feel sometimes like the world just gives us all negative messages about marriages; that they’re all doomed to fail.  Sandra Bullock rocked in her role and deserves her Oscar nomination.  Tim McGraw was also a great surprise.  I can’t talk highly enough of this movie, if you can afford the movies – go see it!

We also got some wonderful news; my sister-in-law is pregnant!  It’s such great news.  It’ll be the second grandchild and it’s going to be loved like nothing else.  It may also have another cousin some time soon.  We got some great news from my Gynocologist.  We are able to start on IVF.  I’ve been scheduled for an examination on my tubes to see how much damage was done from the surgeries I’ve had.  Once that’s known we can start.  It’s going to be awesome.  For the first time in five years I feel like we may just, finally, get that family we’ve always wanted.

All in all a pretty outstanding week.

Not many people in my circle play, or understand why I play, World of Warcraft.  In fact, if you’d told me that I would become a World of Warcraft player two years ago I would have told you to “get real”.  But here it is nearly two years since I first started playing and I’ve spent 80% of today playing World of Warcraft.  And you know what, I enjoyed every minute of it!

I don’t know why, but I love playing this game.  I love the changing environment.  I love the graphics.  I love the yearly in game events.  I love it all.  I even love that it’s task based and has it’s own economy.  I’m just crazy like that.

When I haven’t been playing World of Warcraft I’ve been completing the first of two of my Doll’s for Haiti.  I had planned to only do one and get it in the post today, but HUBBY has yet to secure a job so I’m holding off on spending the money on international post until we know what’s happening there.  I’ve also decided that one doll would get lonely in the post so I’m doing a boy and a girl.  I’m not 100% happy with how the girl has turned out, so I’m going to mix it up a little when I make the boy.  I’ll be sure to post all about it when they’re done.

I also managed to hand in all the documentation for my new job.  Apparently a security clearance takes 48 hours to complete and once that’s done (and I’m cleared) they’ll extended a start date.  So I’m thinking I’ll be back at work within the fortnight.  It’ll be strange to be going back to the first place I ever worked full time, but it will be nice in other ways.  (Like the income and security!)  HUBBY’s contract offer fell through and so he’s back to the drawing board.  But I’m positive that all things happen for a reason and it’s in GOD’s hands.  Until it’s sorted out we’re just going to have to watch our spending.

Tonight I played indoor soccer as a fill-in for someone who wasn’t able to make it.  I had a blast.  I’m so unfit it’s not funny and I have no idea how the actual game is played, but I still had fun.  Unfortunately the person who started the team wasn’t so thrilled to have ring-ins.  Oh well, you can’t win them all.  (Oh, and we didn’t win the game either!)  Maybe next season we’ll try and field our own team or something… who knows maybe Roller Derby will be more than enough for me to handle!

All in all it’s been a fairly relaxing day.  Spoke to my parents which was good (like always) and we had some laughs.  I’m really hoping that we’ll still be in a position to go away in April/May.  If we’re both not working soon though it’s looking shaky.  Just need to have faith I guess…

This Sunday will see the Park Hyatt in Canberra hosting Mathilda’s Market.  It’s a market specifically for selling handmade childrens items.  Now I don’t have any children (at the moment) but 2010 is shaping up to be the year of the childbirth for most of the women in my circle so I’m seizing the opportunity to do some baby present shopping. Besides, it’ll be a nice excuse to get out of the house on Sunday morning.

Mathilda’s Market is held in all capital cities, with the exception of Darwin.  (But I’m sure it’ll only be a matter of time before that is rectified.)

A month after Mathilda’s Market there’ll be the Handmade Market!

This market is not just about the kids, it’s got everything for anyone.  The market has become so popular it’s had to change it’s location to accommodate more stalls and shoppers.  Which is a great indication of how much people love to buy handmade and support local artists and crafters. I’m going to be saving all of my pocket money for this event in March.  Which will mean staying away from the fabric stores!

If you can’t wait till March, you can get a sneak peak of what’s going to be on show and the people doing the showing at the Canberra Handmade Market Blog.

As of April if you can’t make it to a market day there will be the Handmade Market Shop to supply you with your handmade fix.  The shop front opens April 16 and you can keep up-to-date with all the pre-opening happening at the shop’s blog; here.

With these new kids on the market scene it could be easy to forget about the tried and true Old Bus Depot Markets.

Held every Sunday in Canberra in what used to be, strangely enough, the Old Bus Depot these markets are an eclectic collection of craft, art, jewelry, fresh produce and specialty food items.  They also have a food court type area that has a small, but diverse, collection of stall holders.  These markets are a staple in our household.  HUBBY likes them because he can get his coffee fix from the wonderful people at Wagonga Coffee; and I love them because I’m a sucker for anything bright and shiny.

So that’s how I’ll be spending my Sundays for the next few months…

Yesterday was weigh day and my first ever social skate with Canberra Roller Derby League.  I had a blast, but before I get to that I’d best get the boring statistics out of the way.

Yep, you’re reading that correctly.  It’s a loss of over 20kg.  Can I notice any difference?  Sometimes, but it’s hard to tell as I just seem to be me.  I’m sure once I get back into double digits it’ll start to sink in, but at the moment it seems a little hard to equate.

Anyways, enough about the boring stuff on to the exciting stuff; ROLLER DERBY!

I was really nervous about the social skate as I didn’t know anyone that was going.  Despite my desperate pleas to HUBBY to come with me as my support crew he refused and sent me on my own.  I did take my good luck charm; a string voodoo doll keychain that Alivicwil gave me for my birthday.  And he did bring me luck – I didn’t fall down! Yay!

I did manage to remember how to do a cross over skate on the corners which I was really happy about.  It’s a little weird to do while wearing knee pads, but I’ll get used to it.  It was also bloody hot being out there in the middle of the day skating on a black concrete basketball court covered in all the protective gear.  But I had a blast.  It’s given me the little boost I needed to get some more practice in before Freshmeat starts in March.

I did get some disappointing news while there, my name is already taken by someone in America.  It sucks, so I’ve had to put my thinking cap on and try and come up with another derby name.  Lucky I’ve got five months before it becomes important!

I had a blast and a laugh.  I cant’ wait for the season to start.

I was struck by the thought on the way home that had I not had the operation in December I probably wouldn’t be in a position to play this sport.  It’s still going to be hard going carrying the amount of weight I am at the moment, but it won’t be as hard as it would have been 20kg’s ago.  It made me get all misty eyed.  It’s like a new person is coming out from behind the blubber.  I’m getting back to the person I’ve wanted to be for so long and that’s scary and exciting.

Yet another Tweet Up today.  This time it involved Alivicwil (of course), Schlep_star (understandably), Spence_84, Crankye, Joolery and Cryingpenguin.  The purpose of today’s gathering? To finally put a body to the voice that is Crankye.  Oh and get a lesson in crochet!

The place of our gathering, Edgar’s Inn.  Normally Edgar’s is a pretty safe bet.  Good location, great food and usually pretty interesting characters.  Today however the weather let us down and so did Edgar’s food.  But never fear the company more than made up for the little disappointments.

Apart from having a terrible hair day I was chuffed to be able to take my Thai Coke shirt on it’s first outing since purchasing it on holiday in 2006.  (It’s the little things in my world!)  I also took along my psychedelic wool and crochet needles.  I showed Crankye what I had learned from studiously studying Meet Me At Mikes tutorials on crocheting.

The previous day I couldn’t get anything to look right to save myself, but the power of Crankye soon had me sorted.  I managed to work out how to start my granny square and continue without it looking like something George had been alone with.  I was really proud.  (Again, it’s the little things!)

It was a wonderful afternoon.  It was awesome to meet some new people, catch up with some old ones and learn a new skill.  I haven’t had a lovely afternoon of lazying about socially in a long time and it’s made me long for more.  It also left me with a hell of a sugar headache.  (Much skittle and smartie action was consumed afterward when we wrapped up the afternoon with some Mario.)

I did manage to start on a less full on wool this afternoon to try and pay more attention to my stitching and get something a little more cohesive going.  I’ve managed to do this so far…

I’m happy with it and I’m planning on making it into a big lap blankie instead of granny squares as I’m all about the practicing at the moment.  Multiple granny squares will definitely be in my future though!

I never would have thought I would long to learn how to knit, but lately I’m just seeing all these amazing things and wishing I could make them for myself.  So today I’ve decided to list my top five reasons for wanting to learn to knit.  I’m hoping it will provide me with the motivation to find a knitting teacher.

1. Toys!  I have just loved being able to make toys for all the newborn babies that are about to enter the world.  Not to mention there are so many wonderful knitting patterns available at the moment.  Some of which I could just knit for myself.  Is that wrong?

2. Clothing.  I’m just starting to branch out into sewing my own clothes, so this seems like the logical extension of that.  I have always adored cable knit sweaters.  I love the fact that these sweaters were used as ways to identify sailors that fell overboard.  There seems to be some sort of magic contained within the tradition.

3. Family.  My Nana used to knit all the time.  In fact I still have some items of clothing that she knitted me when I was a kid.  I love the fact that she spent time thinking about me and making something that she thought I would enjoy.  I’d love to be able to pass on those same wonderful items to members of my family and friends.

4. Travel.  This is the kind of craft activity that travels easy.  I think there would be something kind of soothing about being able to spend my work lunch hours making something rather than sitting around eating and waiting to return to my desk.  Lunch time always seems like a wasted opportunity to me.

5. Brown Owls Knitting Badge.  I’ve decided to join the Brown Owls this year.  I think it’s going to be a great way to meet people, share ideas and learn some new tricks.  I was very excited to see there’s a badge for knitting, so maybe this will provide even more incentive to learn how to knit!

1. Brown Owls. 2. Owl and Baby Knitting Pattern 3. Sweetest Bunny with her Ducky Toy Knitting Pattern. 4. Daisy the baby Dragon Knitting Pattern 5. Traditional Aran Cushion Cover 6. Well Dressed Bunny (Pattern) 7. Lion Toy Knitting Pattern 8. New Bo Rabbit Xmas Toy Knitting Pattern. 9. Hand Knit Cable iPhone Case 10. Penelope the Empathetic Monster Knitting Pattern.

Illustration by Monica Gallagher

In December 2009 I was lucky enough to attend a Christmas Bout for the Canberra Roller Derby League.  Despite only being out of hospital for three days I was so excited by what I was seeing.  As soon as we got home from the bout I went online and registered my interest in the Fresh Meat course.

It seems I wasn’t the only one interested in it.  The League advised that over 320 people had registered their interest in attending the course.  It’s amazing to think that there’s that there is that much interest in Derby within the Public Servant city that is Canberra.

In January 2010 notification went out to everyone on the mailing list that Fresh Meat was officially open and that there were 50 places on offer.  I nearly wet my pants in the excitement.  I couldn’t register quick enough.  I paid my fees, sent in my completed forms and waited with baited breath to find out if I had been lucky enough to secure a spot.

A week or so later I got confirmation that I was in.  Cue excited chicken dance!

So that was a couple of weeks ago and since then I have successfully managed to order my skate gear from Sydney Derby Skates.   I was really nervous about ordering gear that I had never tried on before, but the measurement chart and information on the SDS site was awesome.  My skates fit like a glove, my helmet is snug as it should be and all my pads fit.  Joy!

The only snag I hit was wheels.  My skates came with a set of indoor wheels on them, but to be able to skate in the wilds of Canberra I needed a set of outdoor wheels.  I figured as much when I ordered them so I ordered a set of outdoor wheels.  Shame I didn’t factor in that I would need bearings for those extra wheels.  Luckily some of the Roller Derby girls I had met through Cousin and LeeLee were able to help me out.

They gave me my first lesson in skate maintenance, told me where I could buy bearings from in Canberra and made me laugh till I thought I’d bust a lung.  I’m having so much fun and the training doesn’t even begin until March 2010!

I’ve put my skates on and geared up already.  Did a loop of our street and nearly peed in my pants.  I’m so worried about falling over on the bitumen; it’s been years since I had gravel rash but the memories are still fresh!  I need to find a nice carpark somewhere where I can practice without the fear of being run down by the local bogans.  The Dali Slammer has told me of one in Southern Canberra, but it’s a bit far to travel at the moment.  There’s a place I pass each day on the way to work that I think I might check out and see what the surface is like.

I also need to start practicing my squats apparently.  It’s one of the things that all the Derby girls agreed on – practice.your.squats!  So I started yesterday.  I’m trying to include squats in everything; playing with dogs, cooking dinner, brushing my teeth, getting out of bed – you name it I’ll be squatting through it.  I’ll have thighs you can crack walnuts with by the end of the year!

One of the things that has given us much merriment in Casa Wilsonia is picking a Roller Derby name.  I wanted something the reflected me and struck fear into the hearts of my competitors.  We went through a few different names, such as Clawed Monet, Dee Dee Mented, Angel of No Mercy and Hell’ll Do Ya.  I even put a call out on Twitter and Facebook for people to submit suggestions.  In the end it was HUBBY that came to the rescue and gave me the handle that will become synonymous with pain and destruction in the CRDL…

A few weeks ago we finally took delivery of the shelving we ordered from Ikea and had delivered by Bring It Home.  The lads from Bring It Home were awesome.  Kept us in the loop about delivery times, moved all of the packages into the house for us and were just really lovely lads.  When they delivered the shelving they laugh and said “That’ll keep you busy for the next few weeks.”  To which I cavalierly replied “Not likely, they’ll be up by the end of the day!”  It was 4:00pm.

I was true to my word though, by 9pm that night we had everything built, installed and stacked with our stuff bar the one Billy that wouldn’t fit.  (My measurements were out by 6cm.  Whoops!)

I’ve been waiting for a sunny day to take some pictures of the completed project for posting, but I’ve come to the conclusion that the lounge will never be flooded with sunshine so I’d best just take the photos and be done with it.  (Plus I was inspired by the topic post at Meet Me at Mikes) So today I took some happy snaps.  I apologise for the quality, I really need to invest in a tripod because the natural light would have been good enough but I’m too shaky.  So here they are.

This is the view from our front door.   This is the view that I love to come home to.  That brown blur is George.  If you’re wondering why we have the bottom couple of shelves empty, do you see that brown blur – that’s George, she likes to chew and she especially loves to chew books.  The side with the board games is non-fiction.  All the “boring” books.  The picture beside the court jester rabbit is the 100+ year old map of Cambridge that I purchased while I was in London last year.  If you look closely you can see the first soft toy I’ve ever made adorning the Lonely Planet and Dictionary shelf.

HUBBY’s massive television has pride of place.  I’m ashamed to say it but we only ordered four of the Benno DVD shelves and they’re completely full.  We could probably do with two more and then we could probably do with stopping buying DVDs.    The two framed prints above the television are from Yumi Yumi – they are this and this.  Both are stunning and they never fail to get noticed.  I also have two Zukzuk prints, this and this, off to the side of the games shelf.  They greet guests as they come in and bring a smile to my face every time I see them.   (And they’re made by an Aussie!!! Ok, she’s a Kiwi, but in the true spirit of ANZAC I shall claim her just like we did Russell Crowe and Crowded House!)

On the other side of the television is “fiction”.

These shelves hold some of my favourite treasures.  There’s my rubber duck collection.  One day the shall go all the way across the top.  There’s my little sock monkey from Maribel Made, Ali Star.  There’s the gnome my Mum gave me when I was in Mount Isa – he’s hand made and he’s a miner!  There’s my Andrea Joseph print which I adore.  There’s my gnome from Brooklyn Rehab.  All the books I love to read and have read as part of my yearly reading challenge.  There’s my collection of vintage purple bottles.  My Belle and Boo print which makes my heart swell.  The little Bambi figurine that I found on a trip to Braidwood.  My tie died piggy bank.  There’s a photo with HUBBY and his mother who passed away last year.  There’s a photo of us together from our wedding.  HEAPS of things.  It gives me so much pleasure to have them all out on display.  Just little bits and pieces of our lives together.

There’s also this….

IT’S A MOOSE!!! Miss Alivicwil brought him back from Canada for me.  I love him!  He makes me giggle on the inside every time I see him.  Did I mention, IT’S A MOOSE!!!

So that’s the shelving situation in our house.  One of these days I’ll take better photos of all the little collections of things that we have going on.  It’ll have to be once I get a tripod though…

When things aren’t going well I can always count on my teddy bear to be there for me.  So this week I thought I’d give you my top five teddy bears.

1. Gund – HUBBY’s nickname at high school used to be Schlep – I don’t know why… it’s a boy thing… I think.  One day we were out shopping and I made him stop into one of my favourite stores The Teddy Bear Shop.  Inside we saw Schlep.  It was love at first sight for me, but I left him in the store because I couldn’t justify spending the money on a teddy bear.  (I’m supposed to be a grown up, remember?)  On our first Valentine’s Day together HUBBY surprised me with Schlep.  I’ve cherished him ever since.  Whenever I need hugs I know I can rely on both of my Schleps.

2. Nici – When I was diagnosed with PCOS four years ago and there was talking that I was going to have to have a laparoscopy I splurged on this little guy to help cheer me up.  He has his own little belly button just ripe for the insertion of a laparoscope.

3. Me to You – Everyone loves a tatty teddy.  The colour scheme wouldn’t be a traditional choice for teddy bears which is why they’re so great.  I love their little blue noses.

4. Keel Toys – While I was in Cambridge last year I was a little bit home sick for my HUBBY and puppies so one day while I was out perusing the local stores I came across Toby, the American Beagle.  Cue massive homesickness and Toby came to live with me.  Toby is much less maintenance than George!

5.  Big Ted – The first bear in my life.  Big Ted stars on Play School, an Australian children program on the ABC.  Big Ted isn’t the only bear on the show, there’s also Little Ted.  I can’t remember properly, but I think a few years ago Big Ted turned 40.  Forty years in teddy bear is a long time, especially to have not lost an ear or worn a hole in your stitching.  Hopefully Big Ted and Little Ted will be entertaining children for another 40 years to come.