Back to the Plague House

Yes. It is still winter, and around here that means lurgy time.

I have been ill. I have been aching all over, unable to swallow, running a fever of 39 degrees (that's 102.2 for Fahrenheit users) ill. I have been exhausted, dropping asleep in chairs ill. And let's not mention almost nodding off while driving the car yesterday, shall we?

It's been two weeks since I posted. I have been alive (just) and have organised 2 further birthday parties since we last spoke. On the weekend between the children's birthday, we have the grandparents to a party for both of them, so they don't have to travel twice in two weeks.

Then we had the seven kids from kindergarten for a PJ party after school on Monday. We had fairy bread, sausage rolls and little red sausages. We had pass the parcel and musical cushions. We had a supervised trip to the top of the tower and a birthday cake with bright blue icing and sparklers. It was lots of fun, and I was totally knackered afterwards.

You really can't have a party without fairy bread. In case there are people reading who don't know the glories of fairy bread, I'll explain.

You take really good quality, really really fresh white bread, spread it with butter or margarine.

Then you tip 100s and 1000s (a type of multicoloured, tiny, round sprinkle) into a plate and press the spread side of the bread into it. Then you cut it into 4 triangles and stack onto plates. Every self respecting Aussie kid loves fairy bread. I've been at a 40th birthday party where the crowd demolished 4 loaves worth of fairy bread at 1.30 in the morning - and asked for more.




I've even had a couple of days when I was too sick to knit - despite being home alone. Now that's sick. I have also been a very bad parent, and stuck on a 150 minute Spongebob DVD and instructed Destructoboy to watch it while I dozed in the chair. A very poor mother indeed.

I've also been avoiding buying yarn. I counted my indie sock yarn stash and what I discovered made me put my head between my knees and breathe very deeply for several minutes. In fact, the next project ready for my needles is the Vine Yoke Cardigan from the latest Twist Collective, and the yarn was shopped from stash (it's green Naturally Sensation - a merino/angora mix I bought while on holiday for $2.50 a skein).

That's the next project though. Before that I need to finish the second sleeve on my Tempest, do the bands and sew in a million ends.

Other than the plague (or 'tonsilitis' as the medical profession call it), the most exciting thing to enter the house has been this:
The first fibre and yarn sampler pack from Ewe Beaut. Lots of pretties in there for a convalescent to play with.

I'll get back to more regular posting soon.

Status Report

Sorry - haven't been blogging - there have been one or two other things on my plate (metaphorically speaking).

Some of you probably already know that with the support and encouragment of several bloggers (including Ms KissMyFrog, The Knitting Revolutionary and the KnightlyKnitter) I have been attending Weightwatchers since the end of April. This follows the fact that I have now been attending a gym for over a year, and at that point had managed to lose a measly 300gr - although I had gone down a clothing size.

Although I was fitter, stronger faster and all that, I really did want to shed several tens of kilos which had somehow managed to stick to me over the last decade or so. So with some encuragement and trepidation off to WW I trotted.

I have now lost the first 10kg (pauses for applause, wolf whistles and wild ovation), and truth to tell, I'm feeling a bit full of myself. I still go to the gym at least 3 times a week, but I have added in some walking and sorta running. This makes me feel virtuous - and very puffed and sweaty.

I have also become somewhat boring in the food and cooking department. But not this weekend - this weekend I have been...


Taadaaaaaa!

SUPERMUM!

Fighting against junkfood, commercialism and Barbie and Bratz dolls, ignoring housework and contributing badly to climate disruption as I zoom round doing errands.

In other words, it was the Princess's birthday. She turned 7 on Sunday and we had an almost grown-up out to dinner at a restaurant for her a some friends - heavens to Betsy! They didn't get home till nearly 8 pm on Saturday night.

So while you were enjoying your weekends I had somehow managed to do this:

And this:

But best of all, I managed this:

I have been missing animals around the house. I think it is good for children to have an animal - they learn so many things from pets. This is Harriet Cuddles (no, I have no idea where the name came from either), a longish haired and very cute young guinea pig. She is much cuddled and loved. She is fed and played with.

She has been the reason for certain children waking up early on schooldays, racing downstairs, getting dressed and eating breakfast and being entirely ready for school at least 45 minutes early. Just so they can cuddle a small black guinea pig.

This is obviously the best present ever.

There has been some knitting too, but let's leave that till next time.

Happy Birthday, Princess. And welcome Harriet, long may you stay cuddly!