Category Archives: OLW

I have the hangover

Posted in books, grateful, music, OLW, playlist by

& I’m not just talking the movies or the one you earn by drinking. This is the post-migraine, kids being merciless, lack of true sleep, stressors still present hangover. This is what I wanted to avoid with my OLW.

But I won’t go into too much, as the main stress is a relation; let’s look forward to the new week.

  • The kids go back to school – all 3 of them!!!
  • It’s only four days of work this week – Friday is Waitangi Day, which is our supposed Foundation day (but I won’t go into that too much either).
  • I found Alison Weir’s Elizabeth of York on CD, so have lots of interesting listening to help me thru the mundane stuff at work (and it drowns out Hamish’s radio, which is tuned to the Rock).
  • I spent some time with my gf Emma’s cats this weekend, as she is away. Kitty cuddles can be lovely.
  • I had a good walk this morning with Z. I think we are listening to a Michael Morpolgo novel to/fro from work this week; review from Z later on (first kid post on the blog; be afraid as he uses longer words than I do!).
  • The Joan Elliot Spirit of the Orient SAL starts Tuesday, NZ time.
  • The February prompt for One Little Word should be up later today. Homework!
  • I won a download of the new Edge Kingsland CD, Seven Days. It’s an interesting piece of work, as each track is based upon the 7 Days of Creation. I love Day 5, Crash & Collide. Thanks, Dan @ LifeFM.Edge Kingsland Seven Days

The album is a whopping ten bucks – great value for money. Lydia Cole’s is the shortest at 3:22 and that’s still a minute longer than most radio plays.

Fiat lux. Let there be light.

With one phrase, the existence of our sphere began.
The creation poem of Genesis illustrates the magnum opus of God’s artistry.
From the void our world is crafted, in explosions of colour and seismic shifts.
The blank canvas of the universe is traced with stars and a vast roadmap of planets.

But creation is not just a moment in time. It is an endless cycle.
The artist joins the arc of creation when he stares down a blank canvas.
The musician tackles the void with every note and verse.
Seven Days is our attempt to join the creation story. It’s a journey that sees songwriters collaborating with writers and visual artists, creating their interpretations of each of the days of creation.

www.lettherebelight.co.nz

You Can Quote Me

Posted in books, OLW, You Can Quote ME by

More that relates to my OLW, serenity

OLW power

this is a reminder to me that I can walk away. I can chose to un-follow, to un-friend, to correct my behaviour & responses.

I have just finished Unbroken (love it still) and am moving one to Gretchen Rubin’s books, starting with Happier at Home. Not sure what fiction I will read, as M starts back at school next week so it will be a lot of picture flats. Lots of non-fiction recommends running around (feel free to link to my Goodreads and make some suggestions) but I am in a bit of a book coma from these last two being so, so good.

Feeling – what?

Posted in music, OLW, Saturday Share, Smalls SAL, Uncategorized by

Monday morning & I’m feeling a little off. Today is the day R came back to work & according to the boss, she’s a little unhappy that I am still here & have taken some of her roll. But then the work focus has changed, and it’s def more than one person can handle. A lot more. I’ve just seen her and she seems OK – so maybe I allowed myself to be caught in someone else’s drama. Bad, bad Paula. Don’t think I’ll include that little bit in my first card to my new OLW penpal – I haven’t had an old-fashioned snail mail penpal in how long? – I must stop fluffing around with blogging and working and WRITE. I’m on a deadline – it’s nearly time for my lunchtime walk with Sarah. Yay for having stamps in my folder.

Yesterday was so slow in the household & not what I expected it to be. My rhythm & routine disappeared right from that moment I slept in & I didn’t get my groove back until late afternoon. Finished another ornie (will share on Saturday) and got rid of the mending pile that B created. So domestic. Then to blow out the cobwebs I went for a drive up to the SIL’s to drop her back off at hers with the toy car’s top down & on the way back, blasting music. Sorry Swanson peeps. Hope you liked some Ministry of Sound. If not, well, at least it wasn’t One Direction, right?

Tonight I plan a binge watch of Nashville & some stitching. Or maybe a swim and an early night. I don’t know about you, but I am more than ready for the school term routine to start. Only two more weeks to go! That noise you just heard? My wonderful MIL sighing in relief.

school

Sunday, Gorgeous Sunday

Posted in family, Mirabilia, OLW by

It’s beautiful here in Auckland today. Well, the West is! Yesterday the cricket was on at Eden Park, so of course it rained. Great for my fruit trees, they could have done with the soak (stupid hose doesn’t reach to this side of the house, so I bucket around). Not great for the cricket – it was rained off. I think the next Eden Park game is v Australia in the ICC World Cup – I want to go to that one.

Si is sick so yesterday was super quiet. M & Z went to Grandma’s quite late in the afternoon, then around nine I got a phone call to say that they were going to stay the night. AWESOME! B got a lesson in consequences; he’s on kitchen this week and has been mostly on strike. So after multiple warnings, I followed thru (& felt like the worst parent in the world) – no dinner was served. Mind you, he’d had two ham croissants not an hour earlier but Ah Ma Gord the circus erupted. Newsflash – the world is not fair to the Screaming Teen. But we’re adamant that he must learn consequences – better now at home than in the workforce. This is safer.

I stitched. And stitched. So excited when I look at the height growing in my thread jar, and the growing yellow on my working copy (I don’t often colour but I find it easier to pick up a stored WIP if I do) then I look at her skirts & groan. Seems like I’m getting nowhere fast! There is so much still to do – and I still need more beads.

But the upside of having God throw patience lessons at me all day yesterday is this: I know what I want to invite into my One Little Word life. And that’s patience. It’s OK to not respond immediately. It’s OK to count to ten. It’s OK to have consequences for my actions or inactions. It’s OK to walk away. It’s OK to say “I am not involved in your story”.

And that feels good.

Saturday Share

Posted in OLW, Saturday Share by

Planning is very important to me. Without it, I’d have a snowballs chance of maintaining my One Little Word or even the slightest resemblance to sanity. If you want to laugh, it’s okay. My family will be too. Sanity? Ha.
image

Anyway, I have a work planner and a personal.  Filofax week per page, that I added some tabs to do I can find the month easily. Bit of washi, some thumbnail images and I’m good. I pick up other stuff here and there (yay Pintrest) & this site is one of my favs.

Organizing Planner: The Harmonized House Project

Take a peek, there might be stuff for your house too. Or Pintrest, on my Printables list. Link is up the top of my page.

January WIPocalypse

Posted in Mirabilia, Nora Corbett, OLW, stitching patterns, Teresa Wentzler, WIPocalypse by

January 5- Topic: Introduce yourself, your projects, and any goals you have for the year!

Introduce Myself. Hmm. Right. I’m Paula, and I live in Auckland, New Zealand. My avatar name is pure panic/laziness, as I needed a personal email the one time I had to go job hunting and that was all I could think of. Paula, in Auckland. I am a mum to four, who range from 20 to 5. I am a partner/fiancé of nearly 19 years now. I work as a vendor performance manager for a major retail group, and I have my fingers in quite a few pies. I also do volunteer work during the league season – in 8 years I’ve only taken the one season off. I’m seriously considering being a sideline mum this year. I don’t use my degree at all, unlike Si, my partner, who uses at least two of his in the day-to-day role he has. I am overweight & not really looking to fix this in a hurry because I have no desire to run even Round the Bays. I’d rather walk it. Or swim.

Personality wise I am friendly, altho don’t lie to me. I will drop you like a hot potato. I like to make people smile or laugh, and it was only after a massive issue at my then employer in 2012 that I learnt to say “no” when asked to do something. A very valuable skill to have. I like to support people and find solutions to help make them happy. Happy friends = happy me.

I read A LOT. Like, two to three books a week. Anything from suspense to biography to contemps to historical. I don’t read horror, or misery memoir. I did read M&B (bath books!) but it’s more than a little stupid to use your Sony in the bath. I’ve been reading since I was 4 & I love to escape into a world that someone else has created. Pretty much everything I read is now digital. Forget diamonds – eReaders are this girl’s best friend. I do occasionally buy physical books – for the pretty pictures or the travel guides.

I dabble in scrapbooking – mostly Project Life, December Daily and this year I’m taking Ali Edwards’ One Little Word. The idea is to take one word that really speaks to you, and make it your focus. You can read about my choice here: https://sewscrapmuse.wordpress.com/2014/12/30/one-little-word-2015/ and more about Ali’s course here: https://aliedwards.com/projects/one-little-word

I took a surface embroidery class in 2014 and enjoyed it. Not enough that it has taken over my main hobby, which is cross stitch, but enough that I can see where I want to incorporate it into pieces (Mirabilia Sleeping Beauty’s blankets seem to be a cool spot) & I have some confidence to do so.

I made Teddy Bears – proper old fashioned ones – in the past. One sits on my console here at work & is regularly picked up and examined. Others have been gifts for newborns and friends going thru hard times. Others have sold, which was amazing to me at the time. I still have the tools and a banana box of stash/patterns but I haven’t made a bear in years.

2014 saw a revival of sorts for me, stitching wise. It went from a chore & an ignore to a woo-hoo! & I got lots more completed than I thought I would do so. I filled my TUSAL jar. An attempt at rotation (let’s blame my wanting to grow up to be Anne for this) failed as I got the “must finish it now” bug. I got a Nora Corbett bug & brought heaps of patterns, altho I cleaned out boxes and boxes of stash.

This year’s WIPs are:

  • Nora Corbett Reindeer (I started with Rudolph). I only have five charts more to go…six to buy!
  • Nora Corbett Mediterranean Mermaid
  • Mirabilia Stargazer
  • Teresa Wentzler’s Tapestry Cat

Planned new starts:

  • Nora Corbett Letter C
  • Nora Corbett Letter P
  • Mirabilia Rose of Sharon

 

I am still collating my list of Smalls for the SAL this year, as I like to be a little flexible (I was regimented about the 12 TW smalls for last year and finished with 3. Dismal fail). I sort-of think the NC letters are small, as I tended to finish them in only a fortnight, but the rules state they are not.

  •  Travelling Bunny (he came from Wisher in November, & he needs to move on)
  • A biscornu
  • A Just Nan special finish
  • a “not my circus, not my monkeys” piece I saw on Pintrest. It fits nicely with my OLW for this year too.

IMG_1055

And that’s it. A shorter list than I anticipated! #mustworkharder

 

OLW updated

Posted in OLW by

I decided to go with Serenity. It’s close to Peace, but it’s the attitude that I want to express.

I’ve been sitting on the class notes for a couple of days, thinking on things while I work away around the house, in the garden and so on. Here’s my result – and yes, I know there is a blank. I’m not sure what to write under “invitation”. Not yet, anyway.

2015-01-04 21.23.162015-01-04 21.23.23

 

I also need to take a photo of me and slot it into the gap on the cover page.

I did lose my attitude today tho – grocery shopping at Countdown and what do I spy?

2015-01-04 13.22.32

Really? Jesus was only just born!