OH NO SNOW!

The image is a piece of my work in The Material Girls Exhibition.
It's snowing here, large flakes are falling, I only hope they don't settle. Nothing has changed much on the condition of my Mum, she had a CT scan on Thursday and we have just over a week to wait for the results, it's such a long time. She is having good and bad days, I did call out her GP for a home visit on Friday as that was a really bad day, she was very dehydrated, it's not easy to keep a check on how much she's drinking when your not with her all the time, also she's not a child so it's not easy to make her drink. I took a day off on Saturday and did a bit of retail therapy..... my brother and his wife did shopping for Mum and spent time with her. Yesterday we went to see her in the morning and there was an improvement from Friday, I've spoken to her today and she's not so good, my brother is with her for part of the day today, I'm going tomorrow. It's good that we can look after her this way and support each other, the trouble is at the moment she's not actually getting any treatment as they really don't know what to treat her for! It's not easy being patient.
Last night after dinner Dave and I watched the first series of Gavin and Stacey, the whole 6 episodes, we didn't start watching the show until the 2nd series so now it all makes more sense. It's such a shame that there are no more being made, I can see why they stopped while they were at their peak, personally I hate shows that run and run like Last of the Summer Wine, but then I never found it funny when it first started, it's well past its sell by date!
Tomorrow I've got a meeting with Chrissythreads , The Material Girls are giving a talk to the Enfield branch of the Embroiderers Guild and we need to have a run through. Then I'm off to steward at the Exhibition, I'm hoping to get some photographs which I'll put up here. It will be good to go and have a look at the show again, apparently lots of bits have been sold which is really lovely.
I did have my assessment at the gym last week and it seems to be working, I didn't have a weight loss, but my overall body measurements have gone down by 7.1 inches, my blood pressure and heart rate have reduced too, just need to eat less and I'm on to a winner! The trouble is when I'm stressed not only do I knit socks I eat too. Speaking of food it's lunch time........

Meet the Maker

I didn't take more photographs of the work today lots of chatting. When I arrived at the gallery there was a class from a local school, they were doing the worksheets that Chrissythreads had devised and later they asked questions about our work. They all loved Jill's skeleton series, she even had one boy offering to buy a piece, he is going back with his parents! With permission from the teacher I took a photo of the class asking their questions, maybe a few budding textile artists amongst them who knows? It's such a shame that I cant show a picture of their faces and how bright and excited they were, but then I didn't take a picture of their faces! This gallery is a wonderful resource for the local schools, the children get lots of opportunities to see all sorts of exhibitions, I wish that it had been around when I was a child.

Meet the maker could have had more visitors but it gave us more time to chat to the people that did come.
I would like to say thanks to everyone that did come along last night and today your support is very much appreciated. I'd also like to say thanks for your comments on my blog, I'd better finish now before this turns into an Oscar speech......

Private View

I think yesterday can be declared a success!

Firstly I went to the gym,not sure I'll call that a success, I'll know what to call it after my first assessment tomorrow!!!!!Then it was off to set up The Material Girls exhibition, it's the third one that I've taken part in, the work is lovely even though I say so myself. When I was there I had to make numerous phone calls to find out when my Mum is to have her CT scan, finally I got to speak to someone. It's good I phoned as her appointment is on Thursday and no letter has arrived, I'm calling that a success(I'm being positive about all of this).Our visit to the consultant last week showed that her ovaries are clear but there is something on the liver, this has to be investigated?

Last night it was the private view of the exhibition 'UNSEEN', lots of lovely people came, fiends, relations, blogging friends and other textile people. A few pieces were sold from the exhibition. This year was the first time we had a sales table of cards and the usual sorts of things that you get at these events, I sold a brooch,success? Lots of nice comments about the work, success!!!

Today it's back to the exhibition again as we have a 'Meet the Maker' event, more of a chat and networking thing really. Then it's lunch with the Aqua-8 group and then a visit with my Mum as I didn't get to see her yesterday.

I hope to get better pictures of the exhibition today but these are the two pieces that were sold.



I must eat my breakfast, drink my coffee and go and pick up supplies for the event, all that chat will make us thirsty and biscuits would be nice!

UPDATE

Why does everything always seem to come at once. Tomorrow we are off to see the consultant to get the results of my Mums scan, when we saw the GP he didn't sound to positive, I just really want to know what is making her this weak, sick and sleepy.
We took Belle the constipated cat, to the vets on Thursday,for a sort out! The vet advised us to have an operation, the result will be that her colon is removed, we don't have insurance any longer as she suffers with an ongoing condition, they never paid out! I can't bring myself to put down here how much it's going to cost, but I hope it will work! no arrangements yet. I need to find out whats going on with my Mum first, it may sound daft, but I can only cope with one thing at a time and Belle is not suffering at the moment. The vet says that some cats have to have an enema every month, this doesn't always work for Belle, she has to stay in over night and have anesthetic which really isn't good as frequent as she is starting to need it, so no option!
On Saturday I went to a work shop at Romford Embroiderers Guild, next year there is going to be an exhibition. It was to get us started on a joint project of "white work" not my favourite but I want to support them so I'm going to give it a go. It was a good day, nice to spend some time with friends. Yesterday Dave and I went out for lunch to a pub that we've been to lots of times before, The Hoop, I couldn't resist the fruit crumble and custard!
I got to the gym today, I really would have preferred to stay in bed but didn't, it was my turn to drive. Actually thinking about it after lunch yesterday it's a good job I did get up!!!!!
I have done a bit more to my quilt for Wednesday's group, its hard to keep up with these things, but I really don't want to let things slip. I'm putting images in a slide show with some of my other work, I'll add to it as I go along!

Whats Going On!

No blogging recently, lots of things have been going on. Last year I would have knitted about 5 pairs of socks( my stress reliever), at the moment I cant even concentrate to do that.I think I've mentioned my Mum has been just lets say under the weather, a week or so ago she did become quite ill, so I took her to the doctor, she's had blood tests and things have been put in motion! Tonight we have an appointment with the GP, my sister-in-law is coming with us as she medical knowledge(she's a geriatric nurse, that's she looks after the older person, not she's old). You do have to be careful what you say you never know who's reading do you? Saturday there is a scan booked and next week she's seeing an oncologist and a gynecologist. I am trying to look on the positive side of things!

Last time I blogged the Aqua-8 group were meeting in our new room, it all worked out really well, not everyone could make it for various reasons, but there is lots of space. February we are meeting at the Material Girls exhibition MG's are having a meet the maker morning and Aqua are going to go out for lunch, that will be really lovely. March we are having a felting workshop, we are paying for a lovely lady Cathy to come in and we have opened up the class to a few others. The places were snapped up, if this works well I hope we can do this a couple of times a year, it will bring in some income and help with funds for the group.


Above are pictures of a few things I've made to go into the shop for The Material Girls exhibition. I don't usually do cards and things, but I enjoyed making them.I've started using my embellishing machine and I can see that it could become very addictive, It's fun just what I need!

On Sunday Dave and I woke up to sunshine (makes a change) we decided to go for a walk at the RSPB reserve near to us. It was busier than I have ever seen it, probably something to do with it being the nicest day of the year so far, it was cold and bright. The water was frozen in places which made it difficult for the wading birds, there were two swans making lots of crunching noises as they swam through the water breaking the ice as they went, they weren't very graceful but very determined! It made me smile! We finished our walk by having a hot coffee and a Bacon sandwich for lunch.




I've not managed to get to the gym as often since the new year, mainly because of the snow, hopefully the snow is over and I'm back on to three times a week again! Boy do I need it!

The Material Girls Exhibition

The Material Girls Exhibition is getting closer, all my work is finished, well almost! Today Chrissythreads emailed me the flyer to put on the ERTF website,blog, this makes it real. Time for panic, not really!!!!! This is going to be a good start to my creative year.....
Tomorrow is the first meeting of Aqua-8 in our regular meeting place, we've booked a really lovely room in a Lodge, no stopping us now!


I went to the gym today for the first time this year, I have a pain in my right leg tonight hopefully I wont wake up in the morning with anymore aches,hope not I'm back there again on Wednesday!
see I said I was going to blog more often this year!

2010 And I Still Love London!

It has become a bit of a tradition on New Years day Dave and I take a trip into London have a stroll along the south bank and have lunch! Last year we had to give it a miss, I wasn't very well. I was waiting to have my gall bladder removed and I had a few complications with my liver. Thinking back I was really feeling quite awful all over the Christmas. This Christmas was so different, I feel so much better. I wasn't able to have the operation until March and not in the hospital where it was originally planned to have it as they don't have the specialist aftercare facilities which in the end I didn't need, thank goodness. All that is behind me now and I'm looking forward to a great 2010. 2009 wasn't all bad, I completed my certificate in City and Guilds Embroidery, I've joined a new Quilting Group and also I've helped form a new Embroidery Group Aqua-8, 2010 is going to be a busy and creative time! I plan to blog a lot more, which is why I'm blogging today! I'm not making any new years resolutions as I always break them after the first week, and it's always the same ones anyway lose weight, not easy when you are weak where food is concerned, but I have that sorted, I'm going to the gym 3 times a week and that will not change! Anyway back to what I was saying at the beginning our trip to London today we went to Butlers Wharf, we haven't been there for quite a few years, the weather was bright but very cold, we didn't do much strolling but did have a really nice lunch in Brown's then another stroll, then back to the car and home into the warm, a cup of coffee and my blog. Here are a few of the photo's taken today!


Click on the image and read about Oliver Twist!


These were once warehouses but are now expensive apartments.

City Hall, London is Governed from here!

Tower Bridge looking up River




The Tower of London, high tide so Traitors Gate is just visible!