Spring bought me lots of lovely gifts!

So we have been busy as usually.  My lovely 2 sussex hens have been dutifully sitting on some eggs.  Myrtle and Gyrtle have delivered me 5 lovely baby chicks and have decided to sit again for me.  I think we have 3 sussex chicks and 2 Sussex X Ilsa Brown chick.  Aren't they just gorgeous!



Sussex X Ilsa Brown (we think)

Sussex X Ilsa Brown



our 3 Sussex chicks

We also have some new ducks,  A friend  had them but her exhisting duck did not take well to the new ones so they now have a home here. They are Indian Runner Ducks (you know the ones, they stand upright, the movie Babe had them)  We haven't named them yet but I'm thinking Duck, Duck and Duck!  I know its silly but when ever I walk out there the first thing I say is Duck, Duck Duck!  They seem to be changing colours nearly every day so we shall see how they turn out when they get their adult feathers.  They are cute but you wouldn't believe how messy they are,   I think my kids and chickens together are cleaner than these things.

Duck, Duck and Duck!

I also went out the a spinning equipment market at Littlehampton this month too.  It was my Dear Hubby and my 15th wedding anniversary and he wasn't here so what else do you do but shop.  I have been eyeing off the squirrel cage swift for a long time but couldn't justify the money for it, well I spend my b'day money I had been saving on getting it.  and I am so glad I did, no more bribing someone to hold the skein while I ball it up and followed by the inevitable knots and yelling, and it is as smooth as silk.  I also unexpectedly got a new wheel ( I know I already have 2 ashfords which I love).  She is a second hand Ron Dooley wheel ( I lovely old man here in the hills that makes wheels and lots of other wood things)  it is lovely and compact for me to travel with and spins like nothing else I have ever spun on,  My spinning improved just using it.  I made a beanie  (using my pattern but used a beginning st of 5 not 4) out of some lovely kathys fibres roving, it is 21.5 micron merino, so it is just so soft.





         

Squirrel Cage Swift                                                                  New Wheel



Kathy's Fibre Roving





Navajo Plied Yarn





Nish's Beanie



Hmm what else. oh I started the beginning of my veggie patch, I planted just some basics.  It's not the veggie patch I want but that is going to take longer that expected whilst we sort out other things around the property. So for now its a start,  I figured I would just keep expanding it until its the layout I want.  at the moment it is just 1 little lonely bed in a paddock.



The layout of my 1 little bed






see the very lonely little bed!

 The other thing I love about our first spring here is not knowing what is popping up in the garden.  The gardens here had been started and even though its a bit different from what I would have done there is lots of flowers.  It had been let go for a few years though and there is lots of work to be done but every where you look there are beautiful flowers of all shades coming up.  There is also some exhisting fruit scattered around the place so I thought I would share some with you - got to share the beauty!


Exhisting Passion fruit Vine




the flowers on the passion fruit vine





No idea what it its but its pretty and pink!




I love this one for the changing colours in the flowers





This is a type of rose, it starts out Pink and as it ages fades to white.
It grows like the clappers and is a pretty way to hide the Bio-cycle

  Well this has been a long post so better wind it up.  If I don't make it back before Christmas, I hope you all stay safe and enjoy this celebration of our lords birth.  Don't forget in all the chaos to love one another and enjoy.

Catchya later

Dell



The Lurgy has hit!

Well it was inevitable moving going into winter. The cold here is a bit of a shock to my system - I have been wearing an average of 4 layers of clothing and the locals are still running around in t-shirts or 1-2 light layers. Apparently I will get used to it eventually?!?. Ian and I both came down with the lurgy this week which rapidly turned into pnemonia and a trip to the local doctor for both of us - on seperate days of course. So needless to say not much got done this week, we were just happy to have the kids feed, dressed and off to school. If I wasn't sleeping I was rugged up in a blanky, with a heat pack on the couch knitting. I did get a Play jumper knit for PJ from this blog and here is the Pattern.

I also decided to make a beanie to go with it for the left over yarn.  Its pretty simple and can be changed for any size.  Thought I would write it down for you.

Plain Beanie

do a small swatch with your desired yarn and needles (I used plain knit but you can use any stitch pattern you like just make sure you do the pattern in the swatch)
measure the head circumference and work out how many stitches you will need to end up with (rounded to the closest multiple of 4) 

To be knit in the round
inc 1 st in next st - knit into the front and back of the next stitch

I used size 5.5 mm DPNS needles with 2 strands of DK yarn and needed 80 stitches

cast on 4 stitches
next row: increase 1 st in every st (8 sts)
next row: knit 1, inc in next st til end (12 sts)
next row: knit 2, inc 1 in next st til end (16sts)
next row: knit 3, inc 1 in next st til end (20 sts)

cont in this way increaseing the knit stitches by 1 each quarter until required number of stitches
continue kniting every row until about 2.5-5cm shorter than required lenghth. 

Finish the last 2.5 - 5 cm in k2 p2 rib (or what aver edging you prefer)
cast off