St Patrick's day out

I loved these fish sculptures,  made from jandals and tin cans

We had a wonderful day out on Saturday, spent some fun Mother/daughter time together.

A St. Patrick's parade was taking place and we got to see the tail end of it, when we met in the City.

Blue skies were overhead and the sun was shinning brightly, so we made our way to a Restaurant, called The Food Store for lunch.

Sitting at an outdoor table, we were able to watch the folk walking by, dressed in green for the occasion. 

I chose the crayfish with avocado, lettuce and tomato gazpacho sauce and V had the tuna nicoise - confit tuna, quail egg, beans olives and shallot dressing, both meals were delicious.

We walked to La Cigale French markets and  did a little shopping, buying some pretty soaps and candles to take home.

Next we went to the Art Gallery to see the Exhibition showing Degas to Dali - this was wonderful and if you get the chance to see this it is well worth the visit. I will share a post on this next time.

Today it is pouring with rain and very windy, in fact our power went off just as I was making myself a morning cup of coffee. You don't realize how much you miss it, and so glad when after an hour life could resume as usual.

Thanks so much for stopping by and wishing you all a wonderful new week

Hugs

Carolyn

For the love of Green

 Always nice to have fresh herbs handy, on the windowsill

 Tim Walker Vogue November 2009,  Chanel suit and hat


 A few tufts of down cling to the feathers of this newly fledged young Kakapo. Thanks to the continuing breeding success and a bumper season in 2009 Kakapo numbers have surged to 124 at the time of printing. 
Photo and text from The best of New Zealand Geographic.

May you always be blessed with walls for the wind

A roof for the rain

A warm cup of tea by the fire.

Laughter to cheer you

Those you love near you

And all that your heart might desire.

~ Irish blessing.

My daughter and I are having the day out tomorrow - we are looking forward to visiting the Auckland Art Gallery to see the Exhibition,  showing the works of Degas to Dali.

Then maybe some shopping and lunch. Do you have anything special planned for the weekend?

Happy Saint Patrick's Day and wishing you a wonderful weekend

Hugs

Carolyn

Nature is a wonderful thing

 Hello dear friends, I hope that you are having a lovely week.

Here are a few pictures taken today around my house and garden.

As our summer is winding down, there have been little hints that Autumn is on its way,  with the temperatures dropping a little and some of the leaves on the trees are turning  a beautiful rusty golden colour.

Marigolds always make a pretty show

The Monarch butterfly had come down to land.

A sound synonymous with summer,  are the Cicadas.

I am amazed at how loud and shrill their song resounds in the big outdoors all day and even into the night when the bedroom windows are open.

The little apple tree my Father gave us,  produced five juicy, crisp apples this year,  so was a surprise after the last year only reaping one. 

 How strange that Nature does not knock and yet does not intrude

~ Emily Dickinson, letter to Mrs J. S. Cooper 1880

Enjoy the rest of the week

Hugs

Carolyn

A sweet new baby

We have a darling new baby in our family and very excited to welcome Isla Jasmine, my nephew David and Renee's sweet baby girl.

Life is filled with the sweetest of blessings.

The lovely thing is our newest, precious member of our family was born on the 9th of March.

This was the birth day of my dearest late Father,  so a very auspicious and happy day for the family.

My Mother is now a Great Grandmother for the first time, so such a thrill for her  being able to cuddle her new Great grand-baby.

I hope that you are having a wonderful weekend -  yesterday we had a lovely day in the City and DD came back with us for the weekend. Tonight she is cooking Sunday night dinner for us, so I am feeling very lucky and the smells wafting upstairs are delightful. Many thanks V.

Wishing you the sweetest of life's blessings.

Hugs

Carolyn

Lavender days

The old time favourite Lavender is always around.

I love the fragrance, the beautiful purple flowers,  walking out in the garden, breathing in the heavenly scent and how it attracts the bees from far and near.

Lavender sachets tucked in  a wardrobe and the underwear drawer always make everything smell divine.

Interestingly enough, the French word 'to wash' is the verb laver.

Taking a bath in essential oil,  relieves tension and restores vitality, calms the mind  and relaxes the body.

Country Living

It's a wonderful world we live in, hope that you are enjoying your week and all the joys that come your way.

Hugs

Carolyn

Happy new week

Every single day there are moments of joy and happiness in the little things in life.

I have been spending some time painting on the high side of the deck rails, so it means standing on the ladder, balancing and not looking down ... hopefully will only have one more morning and will have the job finished. 

So don't really have much exciting things to share.

March, marks the end of summer here for us and already there is a nip in the evening air.

When the alarm goes off at 6am, it is dark outside now,   but I really love the Autumn days where the sky is blue and clear and the weather a little cooler.

Go for it!

Our aspirations are our possibilities.

~ Samuel Johnson

Have a happy week everyone

Hugs

Carolyn

The old wine boxes

I have a few wine boxes that I picked up for a song, but wanted to give them that old look as if they had been around since the 1900's.

All you will need to get this look, is a steel wool pad,  a glass jar, some malt vinegar and a paint brush.

Take the steel wool and cut it up into small pieces with a pair of scissors, put it in the jar and cover with vinegar and leave for 24 hours. Most of the steel wool will dissolve in the liquid.

Then brush the solution on the wood and as soon as the solution touches the wood,  you will notice a change and get the old vintage weathered effect.

This really does not smell very pleasant, so is a good idea to do this outdoors in the fresh air and sunshine. 

These boxes are so useful for storage and that is what I am going to do now, have a tidy up of some of my supplies.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend and I hope all your plans and dreams come true.

Hugs

Carolyn