My Carnival Garden & A Giveaway........

What a lovely busy week I have had. We are thrilled to have gained a second place for our garden.


Our afternoon at the announcement of the winners in the park was so enjoyable. The gardens were just coming into full flower. The city council does a wonderful job. We also enjoyed our afternoon at the Council reception too!





We have been getting our garden tidied again, just in case we get any visitors. I am so pleased how it has all come together, certainly worth the time we have put in. I hope I get some time to enjoy it this week.

Two of my lovely friends came and had lunch with me yesterday and then we enjoyed a wander around the garden.

The Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers Garden Competition is in its 59th year and is the longest running garden competition in Australia. This Saturday is the Carnival Parade and there are many wonderful activities on in the city this week.

So now for a little GIVEAWAY to Celebrate.

I was as excited as anyone else when the lovely Victoria magazine came back into print. So I subscribed. I waited and waited and then thought I had dreamed my subscription and of course didn't get around to checking it out. I have purchased the first four new issues as they came out at the newsagent AND THEN this week the July/August issue arrived in the mailbox! Can't work it out and still haven't tried to!

SO - if you would love a copy of Victoria and haven't been fortunate enough to be able to get it where you live you are more than welcome to enter into the giveaway. Tell me your favourite springtime flowers - I would love to hear. I think I have two - Sweet Peas and Ranunculi - did you see some of mine in the pics above?

Wishing you a lovely weekend wherever you may be. I know I am looking forward to my Springtime weekend in my garden and home.

Vintage Aprons.........

I just love old aprons. I have quite a collection of them now. It all started when Mum was cleaning out her linen cupboard and asked if I wanted to keep her old aprons.

My Mum was a bride in the mid 60's and she had made for her "glory box" many aprons. Some purely for work and some pretty "hostess" aprons.

I remember Mum usually wearing an apron in the kitchen when we were small but gradually I think this became less and less. I am so glad she kept them though.


Some of these were from Grandma and I think even from her sister. Some have come from the thrift shops. I love the cross stitch designs on these simple gingham aprons. Some designs are quite intricate.

This little brown check apron is the very first one I ever owned as a child. I loved wearing it in the kitchen when learning to bake. My Mothers' friend had made it for me and I think her Mother had made the little "Crinoline Lady" crochet for around the bottom.

This apron I found quite recently in the thrift shop. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw is there! How anyone could give it away. The embroidery is delightful , with her skirt covering most of the bottom of the apron. There was another there that day in an unfinished state - I wish I had purchased that one too.

This is my most recent find. I don't think it is hand made but lovely just the same. It is a child's size bib apron with a lovely flouncy skirt. Crisp, white and not hardly ever used.

I mostly wear an apron in the kitchen now. Mostly because of the busyness of our life and coming and going in the afternoon, helping to keep clean before the next afternoon event!

I love my little collection and enjoyed watching it flutter in the breeze on the line!

Spoilt.......

The judge for the garden competition has just been. Phew!!!! Mind you, he was only here about 5 minutes!!! Oh well, time will tell!! He was quite complimentary though and realised the garden is just two years old.

We have two invitations to attend afternoon tea functions in the next week, so I am looking forward to that. One is with the Mayor and Councillors as a thank you for entering and the other is the Awards Afternoon.

I am so pleased with the vege patch. It is coming along beautifully and has grown heaps just in the last two days since I took this picture.

What a lovely surprise I received today when I collected the mail. Lisa from

Knitty, Vintage and Rosy had sent a packet with this lovely magazine in it. Lisa was one of the winners from my Anniversary giveaway. She was so thoughtful sending this, thankyou Lisa.

Have you seen my little countdown above? I suppose you have guessed where I am going.

My dear friend "B" has been hatching a plan for well over a year for us to head south for a weekend and attend Leanne and Rosie's wonderful "Spring Stitch-In" at Glenharrow.

We are flying to Melbourne on the Friday, stitching on Saturday, staying a Glenharrow for two nights, and flying home on Sunday evening. The excitement is starting to build, I can tell you!! It will be just lovely to be away with the girls (there are 6 of us).

I have never been away like this before, so I am soooooo looking forward to my time in Melbourne. So any shopping suggestions are gratefully accepted, as I don't have a clue about the shops in Melbourne at all.

Today I am counting my Blessings, thankful for each and every one of them.

Spring is Here.....

It is a lovely Spring Day here today. I thought I would show some pics of the garden which I took this morning.

This is looking from the back to the front of the garden.

My old farm wagon. I just love this little wagon. I bought it at a farm auction of people I have known my whole life. It would have been originally used to take the cans of milk maybe to the railway nearby.

The front view across the garden.

This was my original old bike. My brothers lovingly restored it for me and painted it pink when I was about 15. It is very faded now and the basket almost rusted through. It made a very cute planter though!

This is the buxus hedge that was planted just over a year ago. It is growing beautifully.

This old set of laundry tubs came from my parents farm. They were the original set of tubs that were in the old downstairs laundry when we moved to that farm. My little herbs are doing beautifully in them.

I wonder if I will ever harvest olives from my olive tree?

I am looking forward to so many more delightful Spring days and hopefully enjoy them in my garden with some nice cups of tea and some friends company, now all the hard work has been done.

Gone Mad.....

We have been madly gardening here since the weather is starting to

feel much more like Spring.

The lawn is starting to green again. Since the last picture I posted showing the lawn, we

had quite severe frost and the whole yard turned white! So lovely to see the tinge of green again. It is so rewarding to see your efforts paying off when the garden is looking pretty.

Today though I think was our maddest moment in gardening so far. We have entered our garden into the "Novice" section of the local country gardening competition. Novice would be the word!! Not a clue what to expect or what is expected!!

The judging is any time from tomorrow through until Wednesday week and apparently we don't get told when to expect them!

AND TODAY IT IS RAINING

SOOOOOOO

In the rain it was - mowing and the final little tidy up! It would be just our luck to be on the first day!

So here we are in our raincoats - gardening. I wonder what the neighbours think!!!

The rain is beautiful and will dust everything off just perfectly.