VISITORS :O)

SUNNY and ETTA came over last wednesday for an overnight stay.   a pure delight - etta explored the house and garden from end to end, we had time on the beach in the afternoon and on thursday we spent the day walking around Queenscliff, out to the marina looking at the boats and a gigantic stingray that was cruising along the boardwalk,  went out on the lovely old pier and had oysters and champagne in glorious sunshine by the water - it was a public holiday in honour of the death of dear Liz and the weather really turned it on for everyone.

these lovely daisy gardens are an inspiration to me, this is exactly the kind of garden i would like to create here, daisies, euphorbias, echeums (never grown those before) grevilleas and other natives to attract birds.

wonderful to see pelicans and swans today, the pelicans are at St Leonards pier and the swans are part of a large group on a small lake halfway between the pier and Indented Head

HOME ONE WEEK - GO AWAY WINTER!!

ANOTHER BLOWY DAY - spring is trying to get started but the rain and grey skies persist.  bulbs are appearing, sparaxis, bluebells, hyacinths and soon ixias are getting ready to bloom. 

I've been in hospital for gall bladder removal, home on the 11th to stay with aileen and max for some special attention and an overnighter.   but next day i felt fine to come home and revelled in the absolute peace after three nights of clatter, beeping and blood pressure tests at all hours.  great care though and the staff were all terrific.

now it's back to trawling the net for bathroom ideas and fixtures, a world of baths, basins, taps, tiles and colours.   just need someone to do it for me!  

today i'm dismantling the yucky vertical blinds, mulberry and cobalt !!  where did they find them??  i have lovely light white ricepaper blinds which will lift all the rooms.  it's a start.

A NICE PIC from luke, etta's last visit

pics from the past two weeks

walks along the foreshore

the local coastal saltbush

this tree is just crying out to be a monoprint

i photographed these cormorants using a lot of
zoom, didn't see the seal behind them until
i looked at the pics on the computer 

i enjoy the view of melbourne across the bay,
it's different every day

     the mudlarks are busily sitting on the nest, it's been a week now, surely there'll be some chicks soon

Yesterday, Sept 19 i found my swimming spot.  I'll 

go and swim with the Salty Bitches group too but 

this is a walkable spot on a pretty little pier not 

far from home.  i like the idea of climbing into deep 

water rather than wading out from the shore

PICS OF RENE and FAMILY - the kids are growing so fast, i hope we get together before too much longer

RENOS RENOS!!

 I'VE BEEN OBSESSING over the bathroom since i moved in.  it's appalling, fred flintstone would've loved it and he'd look completely at home in the bath.  Wilma would've moved out.  barney would appreciate the pebble tile accent, totally out of kilter with the clunky slate wall tiles. a complete mess 😱

so i've been haunting every bathroom outlet - taps, baths, basins, vanities, mirrors, tiles . . . many kms travelled and some success.  a few good websites found,  but now i need a builder to tell me my next step. someone is coming tomorrow, that'll be a start.

over a week now since sunny luke and etta came for the weekend.  it was just lovely, perfect weather to take etta to the beach to make sandcastles, a birthday dinner of coq au vin and chocolate birthday cake.  I'm not sure if etta's seen a cake in the dark with lots of lit candles, she looked totally gobsmacked.  

then sunday we all met susan and sean at jack rabbit for a beautiful lunch and time to sit out on the lawns overlooking the bay, watching etta trying to roll down a hill (she couldn't quite figure out the direction :0)  and simply enjoying the sun.  Sadly jenny and freddie couldn't come because mockie had hurt himself and was due home from the vet.  That was a real shame because they missed halls gap as well.