Jolly July Stitching

Hello friends, 

this month I've been Jolly July stitching, a Christmas design stitch along that has been running each July for a few years now.  

I took two projects kitted up with me to Australia, and I was able to enjoy a few hours stitching on the balcony at our apartment.

This design made me smile, so cute, the 2024 Wee Santa by Heart in Hand.

I used 32 count vintage mocha and the recommended threads. 

Jingle all the Way by Crafty Bluebonnet Designs, same fabric as above.

Three Stitching with the Housewives designs, stitched on 32 count charcoal Belfast linen

These next two designs are by Cathy from Hands On Designs, stitched on 32 count Weeks Dye Works Liberty fabric. 

More finishes to add to the rather large pile that's been building up this year!  Maybe I'll attempt to get my sewing machine out over the weekend? We'll see as we've got some more DIY happening - our second lounge is having a makeover and we need to arrange some new furniture purchases over the weekend, sort out our bookcase and find places for pot plants, photo frames, etc. 

have a happy weekend, see you soon xx

All sorts of things

Hi friends,
Another week’s flown by and we’re right in the middle of winter here in NZ. At this rate, spring will be sneaking up on us before we know it!

I finished this fun project, Spring Quaker by Primrose Cottage Stitches during my holiday break. I used DMC threads and the fabric is an ice blue Lugana that I've had in my stash for a very long time. I think this will be made into a little thread bag, when I eventually get to my sewing machine!

I visited my local sewing shop the other day and found some new Lynette Anderson Christmas fabrics had come in.

I also got some supplies to make a new stitching folder or bag, and a handful of needed DMCs.

Andrea, the owner, gave me this very cute Tula Pink bag, 

Can you believe Diesel is now three years old!  He's just such a joy, loves his food, walks along the river tracks, a good snuggle, and lately, enjoying laying in front of a roaring fire. 

I've been enjoying some baking and meal prep lately.  These scones are so easy to make, and go well with a bowl of soup on a winter's day.  

One of our favourite's for lunches, VJ Cook's Banana and choc chip slice, a good way to use up bananas. Minus the choc chips the other day as we'd run out!

I've been reading a lot lately, and this is my latest read.  Steffanie Holmes is a NZ author and was a local girl during her high school years, a few years behind me at college. This is the first of her books I've read. 

Lastly for today, a few photos of our beautiful girl from the evening of her school ball.  Hannah looked stunning and she had a fabulous evening with her friends. 

Her shoes for the night were actually my wedding shoes - I knew I'd kept them for a reason, ha ha.  

Have a happy week, see you soon with some of the Jolly July stitching I've finished xx

Gold Coast, Australia Holiday time

 Mid week last week we arrived home from our holiday to the Gold Coast, Australia. We were away 8 nights in total as we stayed in Auckland before we flew to Australia.

We flew from Napier on a gorgeous sunny winter's day, and enjoyed a coffee before heading to the airport at our favourite spot, Ahuriri.

At Auckland you can either walk between the domestic and international terminals, or catch a shuttle. There's lots of construction work happening around the airports right now. It only takes about 10-15 minutes to walk, and there's a painted line on the footpaths to follow.

We opted to stay the night at the Novatel, which is literally a two minute walk to the International departures, as we had an early flight to Australia.  Of course, with a free afternoon once we arrived in Auckland, Hannah wanted to check out the Sylvia Park shopping mall, so we caught the train there for a few hours and the first shopping purchases of our trip were made, ha ha.

This trip we were flying into Coolangatta Gold Coast airport, so the flight was only 3 1/2 hours in duration. 

We can see land!

We arrived to a sunny morning in the Gold Coast, it was so good to see blue skies and sunshine after the wintry weather at home.

Once we arrived, we found a shuttle to take us down to Surfer's Paradise, where we stayed for the next week.  We chose to stay in an apartment at the Mantra Sun City, which is in a great location, only a few streets back from the main street of Surfers and has a tram stop right outside the gate. 

The weather was perfect the whole week, sunny blue skies and good temperatures, although the first few days were a bit cooler and windy due to storm system further south.

Each morning Glenn and I would head out on an early morning walk and find a spot to enjoy a coffee before heading back to get ready for the day. 

We didn't have any specific plans for this trip, no theme parks this time but we easily filled our days. Visits to Harbourtown outlet shops and the Pacific Fair shopping mall were first on the agenda for Hannah, lol.

Lots and lots of walking around, and most days we used the trams and buses, so easy to use. Purchase a card, top up and each ride is only 50 c.

We enjoyed delicious meals out for breakfast and dinner, so many great cafes and restaurants to choose from. 

On Friday 4th July, we went to Brisbane for the day - it took us a tram, bus, train, and then a bus to get there as trains were not running right into Brisbane due to line works.  

We enjoyed some refreshing drinks and a delicious lunch along the river side at South Bank, where there are parklands, lots of eateries, playgrounds for children, swimming areas and much more. 

It was beautiful day, very warm, I think we were all in bed early that night as we walked over 20,000 steps in the sunshine! 

One morning we did a hop on, hop off river cruise on the Nerang river, this was a two hour trip.  

An awesome way to see more of the Gold Coast, great views looking back to Surfers and also the beautiful homes and buildings along the river.

We went up the Sky Point Observation tower,  at the top of 77 floors, we got panoramic views for miles and miles!  It was bit gloomy this morning but one of the hottest days of our trip.

One of the many beach walks we did.  There is a beach restoration project underway at the moment along the coast line, due to erosion, and also after Cyclone Alfred back in March, aiming to replenish the sand, cleaning up debris and replacing walkways and steps that were damaged in the cyclone.  There's a photo of the sand dredging boat back at the start of this post. We could see this every day during our trip.

Hannah and I enjoyed a pedicure on our last full day - so needed after all the walking we'd done.

Although we were out and about most of the days, we did get to enjoy some relaxing time back at our apartment - I read two books and finished a stitching project. 

The night before our flight home to NZ, we got a notification that our flight had been cancelled! No need to panic though as our lovely travel agent back home was able to rebook for us, although it meant a very early morning start to get to the airport. 

A very cold and wet day greeted us in Christchurch - yes, that's right, we flew to the South Island before a few hours later we could get our flight to Napier.  

Diesel was so happy and excited to see us home, by the sounds of it, he'd had a great time with our friends. 

What a lovely holiday we had, especially spending time together with Hannah.  Lots of happy memories.

See you soon xx