Shower Saga

I had been having problems with the shower leaking recently, and had it resealed around the bottom of the  shower twice over a period of time.  But that didn't seem to fix it, and when I noticed the damp going up the wall, I knew I had a serious problem.  Oh dear, with Robin not here, it was something I would have to tackle on my own.  One of the neighbour's recommended a plumber who had done some work for her, so I called him to have a look, and give me a quote.  Seems the only way to fix the problem was to replace the shower to see exactly what the problem was. 

It has been a very interesting and rather noisy time. In fact the weeks dragged on with different tradesmen doing their own part in the repairs.   Gemma was locked in the bedroom to keep her safe and out of the way, and she wasn't at all happy about that.  I had to remove my car from the garage to give the workmen room to put their tools and workbench.  When the old shower and the wall boards had been removed the water damage was clear, the leak had been dripping from the mixer behind the shower wall.  So no amount of resealing around the base of the shower cabinet was going to fix it.

Gib board removed

After the plumber came to replace the shower mixer and what ever else he needed to do, the builder replaced two sheets of aqua gib board.  Then the man installing the new shower cubicle had his day, followed by the painter.  I was up bright and early each morning, locking Gemma in the bedroom before the tradesmen and their noisy tools arrived.  Then the plumber was back with the new shower dome, which had to be cut to fit.  It was a busy old time, and the weeks rolled around with tradesmen coming and going.  Poor Gemma was getting quite stressed really, what had happened to our quiet peaceful home?

Cutting the shower dome

The final job was replacing the lino flooring, that was several weeks after the other work was done.  Getting the lino scraped off seemed to take ages, and the workman told me how the adhesives used had changed so much over the years, since he started as an apprentice.

Scrape, scrape, scraping away

Then at last the job was all finished.  A new shower, this one has curved doors different from  our previous square shower.   New lino, I managed to find something very similar to the previous one, just a different colourway.  New paint on the walls, everything looks nice and fresh.

All finished

Of course, being a quilter's home, I had to rehang my bathroom decorations.  This is my beautiful hand made seahorse, sent to me quite some time ago from Janet in Cromer, England.  I didn't realise how dusty he was till he was taken down, but he is dust free now and ready for bathroom duty again. 

Beautiful seahorse from Janet

And my little tropical fish wall hanging was given a clean and rehung after all those noisy men had finally departed.  I purchased the fish fabric during our trip to Hawaii in 1993, and finally made the little wall hanging in 1996 to commemorate our trip.  

Memories of Hawaii

There really is a sea theme going on in my tiny bathroom.  These lovely shells were brought home by Robin's Mum after her trip to New Caledonia.  We gave them a new home after she passed away some years ago.

Beautiful shells

So that is the end of the recent bathroom saga.  I'm pleased that it is finally at an end, and that I managed to deal with it myself.

Chookshed Challenge completed

I'm so pleased that I have my Chookshed challenge for June completed - especially as  May was a non event for me.  I started with this, all the little blocks embroidered and ready to go.  I really enjoyed stitching these little beauties.

Starting point

This kit also provided a pattern to make a wall hanging, so that is what I decided on.  So I added some red/green/gold sashing and started assembling the blocks.  This was a little tricky as the middle row was a bit too long compared to the outer rows.  So it was unpicked and just a smidgeon cut off the middle row blocks.  Whew, luckily they now fitted together nicely.

Next was the outer border, and I decided to keep it simple with a green and gold patterned fabric.  I contemplated hand quilting but no, although this was small, it would still take me a while to complete.  And I wanted it finished in June.  So, a little while quilting on the sewing machine, adding the binding, and I was almost there.  Then it was just a matter of hand stitching the binding down, adding a hanging sleeve and a label, and this little project was finally complete.  This is the first time I had worked with felt applique.

By assembling the blocks together as a wall hanging, there were two blocks left over.  So I used one as a label on the back.

This kit was a gift from my pen friend Carol from Dakota several years ago, thanks so much Carol.  The little blocks were stitched a while ago, and I'm pleased this project is finally completed.  It will now be ready to come out and be displayed at Christmas.

Spring Forward

Spring has officially arrived in my part of paradise, and along with it came Daylight Saving, so we had to put the clocks forward one hour last week.  I’m always so impressed that the computers and cell phones know how to do this themselves, so it’s only a couple of household clocks and those in the cars  which need to be altered, plus watches too of course.

The last reasonably pleasant days of Winter have given way to the tumultuous Spring weather.  It’s always so much more windy in Spring, it’s been rather wet off and on, and the temperatures are jumping up and down all over the place.  The weather has been weird worldwide, and NSW in Australia is suffering from wild fires, brought on by hot temps and strong winds, that must be a terrible thing to live through.

It’s time to hang up my seasonal wall-hanging. Hello Spring was completed last summer so was this is it’s first season up on the wall.  This is hand embroidered and machine quilted.

Hello Spring

It may well be Spring but the weather is cold – so cold I decided to make some nice tasty soup for lunch.  That should last us a couple of days.

Colour Change

The colour for those of us taking part in the Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) has changed this month to aqua.  In my mind, aqua also encompasses the  shades of turquoise and teal.  Once again, not shades I have a huge amount of, but I found enough strips and small pieces to cut and stitch blocks for my two Little Bricks projects.

Little Bricks

We took a trip up to Palmerston North on Thursday to get the many staples removed from Robin’s knee, in fact we counted 28 of them!  The nurse had some sort of handy little implement which she used, and ping, ping, one after another the staples were removed.  Then the surgeon breezed in, peered at Robin’s knee, and declared that he was pleased with the results of his work.  An appointment was made to come back in six weeks time for a final check. 

On the way out, I noticed a pretty starry wall hanging in the waiting room, so of course had to stop and take a photo.  I believe that the wife of one of the partners is a quilter, and likes to change the quilt from time to time.

On show at Aorangi Orthopedics

Robin decided he didn't really couldn't cope with going out for lunch after all, in fact he was feeling a little seedy after our tripping around, so we drove straight home.  Now the staples have been removed his knee feels less tight, which will help with moving around.  He is slowly improving, one day at a time.

Autumn is here

Autumn has well and truly arrived.  Cool mornings and evenings, the sun is rising later and setting earlier, but we are still enjoying nice crisp sunny days.  It’s time to ring the changes and hang my Autumn quilt up.  I love the rich golden colours in this quilt.  The centre baskets came in a kit sent to me from my pen friend  in South Dakota.  I wanted to make it bigger so put the baskets on point and added borders to make it a wall hanging size.  This was the first time I tried circular spiral machine quilting.

Baskets of Blessings, made in 2015

Autumn is a time of plenty, with feijoas and apples in abundance.  We have been gifted bags of feijoas, which I love, but Robin is not keen at all.  There are some left over, so I’ll probably use them in baking, perhaps some muffins and fruit loaf.  And Mary gave all the Sew Wot ladies a bag of super sized wonderful cooking apples from her own garden, thanks so much Mary.  These have been put to good use and enjoyed.

Feijoas and cooking apples

So what else have we been doing?  We had a busy day of medical appointments last week.  First, we had a 10.00am appointment at the hospital, and you can imagine the scarcity of parking at that time of day.  The car park was full to bursting with everyone attending a multitude of clinics, so round and round we drove.  Finally we spotted a spare car park, thank goodness for that. Inside the hospital it was a matter of masks on, sanitize hands,  and follow the orange line on the floor. 

 

We were here to see the orthopaedic surgeon who had done Robin’s knee replacement.  But first  Robin was whisked away for a couple of knee x-rays, then  we were ushered in to a consultation room and the surgeon breezed in.  The x-rays are fine, we were told, Robin’s previous knee replacement has healed well, and the surgeon could see the up-to-date state of the other knee.  Mmmm, that needs replacing too, we were told, probably get done in a few months time.  Documents will be sent out shortly with all the details.  So that was great news all round.  One knee done,  one to go.

Leaving the hospital we went to find the Covid drop-in clinic where we could get both the flu jab and the Covid booster at the same time.  Giving our details we sat and waited our turn, and before we knew it, a friendly and very informative nurse took us into her room.  There she went over details, answered questions, and delivered the flu jab, followed by the Covid vaccine.  All done quickly and efficiently, and we hardly felt a thing.  Such excellent service indeed.

Vaccinations done

With the medical business taken care of, we went for a quick lunch before traveling back home,  we’ve got a weekend caravan rally to attend.  The caravan was packed and ready, and we set off to Shannon School, not too far away from home.  When we arrived and were set up, Gemma found the caravan wardrobe door open.  Just the place to explore, she thought.  She loves little hidey holes like this to settle down and peep out of.

Can you see me hiding in here?

On Saturday afternoon of the rally Robin and I had planned a mystery tiki tour of the local area, to conclude with a BYO afternoon tea.  Cars were shared and off we went.  First stop was quite a marvel of engineering, the Moutoa Sluice Gates.  These were built in 1962 as a flood protection measure.  The Manawatu River here runs very sluggishly, and when in flood the river would overwhelm the stop banks and flood farmland.  The sluice gates cause much of the river flow to take a short cut, bypassing 30km of low capacity river channel, directing the flow down the 10km Moutoa Floodway.  The holding area in front of the gates was very wet and muddy and the gates had been in opened earlier in the  week.

Moutoa Sluice Gates

Continuing on our mystery trip we back tracked down the road to stop at the site of the WW11 Whitaunui Military Defaulters Camp, one of two in the area.  Sadly, nothing to see now, but in it’s time the two camps housed 250 conscientious objectors. The huts used to house the men were built by the Public Works Dept., mostly two men huts measuring 8ft by 10ft together with some single men huts.  The unheated huts were furnished with beds and straw mattresses, a pillow, and old army blankets.  The men were also provided with a small table and stool.  You could imaging how cold the winter conditions would be.  The men were required to work in wet conditions, cutting flax.  One of the more famous detainees was Rex Hillary, brother of Sir Edmund Hillary, hero of New Zealand.  On 29 May 1953, Hillary and Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay became the first climbers confirmed to have reached the summit of Mount Everest.

Housing for conscientious objectors

Back in the cars again we headed up to the hills for our final stop, the Mangahao National White Water Centre.  No races down the river this day, of course, but we could see the overhead rails all in place.   Over the years the park has been upgraded to international standards, and training takes place here by locals and international teams.  We have watched competitors battle the river at another venue, paddling hard as they maneuvered the coloured hanging poles - green (downstream) or red (upstream).  There were handy picnic tables on the river bank so we settled down to enjoy our afternoon tea.  Out came the thermoses, the coffee and biscuits, and we all soaked up the peaceful atmosphere.

The river looks calm today

I took a short walk up the road and over the bridge to the nearby power station.  The Mangahao Power Station was opened in 1924 and although very small by todays standards is still operational and continues to provide power to the National grid.

Mangahao Power Station

That was the conclusion of our mystery trip so we made our way back to the school.  Although some of our caravan friends who live locally were aware of one or two of the attractions where we stopped, not a single one were aware of the Military Defaulters Camp, and some had not been to the other two sites either.  It’s always interesting, I think, of how much history there is to be discovered as we travel around. 

Last sunset of the weekend

A Quilt – and Removing Staples

It’s always exciting to find a quilt displayed – sometimes when you least expect it.  This was the case when we attended an appointment for Robin, it was an Anzac wall hanging.  For those who don't know, Anzac stands for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps, and we have a public holiday on April 25th to remember the fallen soldiers from both countries.  Upon enquiry, I found out that this wall hanging was stitched by the wife of one of the orthopedic surgeons who consult here.  One of my aims is to make an Anzac quilt one day soon.

Anzac wall hanging in the medical rooms

Our appointment at Aorangi Orthopedic Centre was for Robin to have his staples removed from his knee.  In fact, he wasn't the only casualty who walked into the treatment room, my hand was dripping blood, of all things!  Helping Robin out of the car, I reached into the back seat to pick up his crutches, and must have caught my hand on a rough piece of the handle and ripped a gash in my hand.  The nurse kindly attended to it for me, washed it out, found me some plasters, and patched me up.  I was certainly very grateful for her help.

It turned out that Robin had 30 staples in his leg.  In fact, until the coverings came off, we weren't sure if there were stitches or staples underneath.  Everything has healed well, no redness or, heaven forbid, infection, so that’s good to know.

The nurse set to with a handy little gadget and snip,snip, each staple was soon removed.  She didn't mind me taking photos, and I assured her she would remain incognito.

They were removed very easily

The surgeon then breezed in, confirmed that he was very pleased with how things were going, and we will be back to see him in six weeks time.  With a six week exercise programme set up at the local medical centre, hopefully Robin’s mobility will be much improved the next time we return for the follow up appointment. 

Handcrafts, Art and Cheesecake

Our weekend was spent in Woodville (about 90km each way).  We were invited  to attend a caravan rally (with a different group) and it was nice to catch up with several couples we had met up with over the years at different rallies.  One of the highlights for me was the craft display.  Although I didn't know it was happening ahead of time I had several hand stitched items in the caravan, so I could take part too.  There obviously is a lot of talent in this group, with everything from knitting, quilts, toys, hardanger on show.  I certainly enjoyed checking things out, although I am not sure of the maker’s names.

Three wall-hangings, and my two embroidered native birds below which live in our van

More beauties

This quilt was made to commemorate a caravan trip around the South Island, and features New Zealand fabrics and hand embroidered blocks of their travels.  Such a great idea.

Travel quilt

Knitting and crocheted blankets

The men in the group had crafts to show as well.  Wood turning and making spirits, a toy caravan, and kit set models too.

Made by the husbands

My caravan apron and place mats

On Saturday the club organized a visit to Gottfried Lindauer Studio, a replica of his original studio.  Born in Bohemia, Lindauer came to New Zealand in 1874 and was well known for his portraits of Maori people and settlers.  After travelling and painting his way around the country, he settled in Woodville in 1887 until his death in 1926.

A peek inside the studio

Did I mention cheesecake?  A visit to Yummy Mummy Cheesecake shop was a must.  So many delicious flavours on offer, and as the girls told me, there was a special offer if I purchased two.  So I did, chocolate, and raspberry with white chocolate.  These small cheesecakes are enough for two, so we enjoyed them for dessert for two nights in a row.

Yummy Mummy Cheesecakes

The caravan rally was fun, the people were very friendly and surprise, surprise, I won a raffle prize, that was a thrill!  Each rally the members take along a can or packet of food for a raffle – the items were split into three prizes.   This is what I came home with.

Not bad for $1 raffle

And for those of you who have never heard of the place name Woodville, there are towns called this all over the world.  Check out this.sign post.

Many  Woodvilles in the world

Autumn Time

I know it’s been Autumn here for a wee while, but I’ve only just got around to changing my wall hangings in the sitting room.  Before we know it Winter will be nipping at our heels and it will be time for a change again.  But in the meantime, here is Autumn – nothing new to see,  but its always nice to ring the changes.

Autumn quilts out again

You may remember that last time we were up at my daughter’s home, she had handed granddaughter Megan’s quilts to her to look after.  I've just received this snap chat photo from Megan, with such a lovely message.  Its good to know that these early quilts have been loved, and still are appreciated.

Megan’s first quilt

And at long last I've taken my wedding ring to a jeweler to get resized, after I had a couple of occasions where it slipped right off my finger and went missing.  My goodness, did my heart sink when that happened.  I had been waiting to take a trip into the big city to go to a jeweler there I have used several times, but that didn't happen, so went local instead.  It feels great to have it back on again, I didn't realize how much I used to touch it, till it wasn't there.

Got my ring on again

Hello Spring

It is Spring here now in New Zealand, the days are slowly lengthening but we wonder if Winter is really over?  I found a few brave little hyacinths poking their pretty heads up in one of the pots – that's surely a sign of Spring, isn’t it.

Time for a few Spring bulbs to appear

A change of season means a change of wall-hangings.  Down came my dark hued Maple Leaf quilt hanging over the sofa.  It was time for the kitties to come out to play.  Hanging in place are  the Colourpoint Cats, much lighter and cheerful for the new season.  This was a Rainbow Scrap Challenge finish last year.

Colourpoint Cats

A couple of other changes were made to the sitting room décor.  Tane Mahuta is having a turn on the wall, as are my New Zealand Native Birds.  There, it looks much more like Spring now.

Tane Mahuta and the birds