The Cascade And Finding Lucy

Hello!!
You could be forgiven for thinking that I had run off with the "Goods"!!
But no, I can assure you that I have not & yes there are now two in the giveaway.

Firstly I will tell you about the cascade..
You see, it all began with Anna (our daughter) receiving notice to move from her house.
And when you move, all kinds of tidying & hiffing & reassessments are made.
It can be a very busy time.
It is at just such times that you can discover, that just perhaps, you may..have a spare cat & are simultaneously requiring draws...any kind will do.
This daughter status lead to acquiring one said pussy & a re-evaluation of one too small (no longer a bedroom...can't actually find the bed any more) room that really wants to become a craft room but nobody at all can move in it!!
So, a trailer was hired & this lovely old oak dresser was delivered to Anna's.
A small note..this was the bedroom of interest in tidy times gone by...but it really is the actual dresser.

Un-useful bed was passed on to the Saly's & this wardrobe thingy-a-me-bob was retrieved from the same.  Update on the up-cycle on this very soon!

The space has been cleared (well mostly!)

All this floating around the rest of the house!

 The test pots have been applied & fresh colours decided upon.

And in the middle of all the wringer washing machine agitation, the cat has begun to settle in...Lord knows how. Poor Paikia! No photos of her yet...can't find her half the time.
Now, early in this process , about when Anna got the notice....I received a particularly intriguing notice of my own. A message on Trade me & an unexpected listing that took my breath away & captivated my heart.
A listing for an adorable shabby chic vintage caravan.
I kept going back to have a look at it & the dance began...twirling round & round in my heart; flipping my emotions as if I was caught in the waves on the edge of the ocean & couldn't walk out.
"Yes you could do it..no I couldn't possibly, don't be ridiculous, besides surely you don't really want this caravan, there's just some kind of emotional connection going on here so you better just figure out what it is & let it go..."
But I didn't let it go & somehow...I made it through the process & bought her!!!!
I bought her on a "buy-now" as free delivery was a part of the deal & she was living in Nelson in the South Island & that's across water & along way away. I have hardly slept all week so huge was my step. Could I trust the other trader. Could I really find that much money! And would she arrive here in one piece?
 Oh, & of course, where precisely would she live?
I cleared out much of my courtyard...a bit overdue anyway. Then one foggy???? yes foggy morning, about last Tuesday..

Having traveled all night & even bravely on the Inter-Island Ferry in the company of a nice man called Damon (who, by the way, had to fend off amorous admirers on the journey!!)...

This photo of Interislander Cook Strait Ferry is courtesy of TripAdvisor

 one darling girl came trundling down my driveway!!

She is a star & nearly as old as Rob!!

 Someone has done lots & lots of work on her & I could just hug her to bits.

 Yet, she is not pretentious (hand painted & all that sort of thing)

 And she is cosy & lovely

 and...she wants to tell you...

I have also had a big re-organize in my china cabinet (after the last tea party).

I came across these wee chaps & had some eggs one night with my tea.

Eating has been a bit by the by just this week.

Mind you, the last two nights Lucy & I have had tea together since Rob 's been at work.

I have so much I want to show...very soon!

I've also stumbled into Easter & figure the best thing I can bring to the time is gratitude.

And I am so thankful!!!

I am also glad that it's the time of abundance & sunshine here.

Easter would make a jolly good Thanksgiving time in New Zealand I have decided.

And so I wish you dear friends & visitors a wonderful, happy Easter.

I do so love this darling Margaret Tarrant picture.

You still have time to enter the "Good" giveaway.

One just because & the other..

for finding the name for this marvelous old tea pot (25 cups remember)

I will tell you all the suggestions next time.

It has been such fun.

Thank you for joining in...all the names are delightful!!

 However will we chose just one!

MUCH

 ♥♥♥♥♥

A Good Giveaway....

If you popped in for a visit last week you'll remember that I mentioned this Kiwi "Good" magazine and how I thought we just might have a wee giveaway...

and so we shall!

Full of the most interesting & thought provoking articles..

 And lots of vintage-style scrumminess too.
I'm sure you will appreciate, along with me, the sentiments of Sarah Heeringa (the editor) when she reflects on the subject of seasonality saying
 "Being mindful of the seasons is a way of adding more rhythm & ritual to your year- and choosing to only do certain things at certain times in the calendar can help us maintain healthy balance and enjoy each thing in full.
...Seasonality gives everything it's moment in the sun. It's why I decorate my house with wildflowers in summer & try to spring clean in spring. It's why I'll be putting my summer frocks away in a box & why making fruity jams & jellies is one of my favourite late-summer routines."

 Our gi-normous ancient enamel tea pot had an outing to join in a Mad Hatters Tea Party last week & had a truly stupendous time amongst the children. I really feel that he/she should have a name for such future events? There have been a number of suggestions already: Ima (as in I'm a little tea pot) Mrs Potts (as in Beauty & the Beast) do you have any suggestions? Do feel free to email me if you're not a blogger just here.

 The late summer produce from the Farmer's Market has been so satisfying & delicious lately.

 This colander of heirloom tomatoes look so lovely made into a simple tomato salad..drizzled with local olive oil.

 It's passionfruit time again!

 And for some of us it's been birthday tea party time.

 That is one certain bonus of the fine weather..it would be hard to pick a poor day just now.
We had fun setting out our pretty things.

 I ordered some petite cupcakes from the New World supermarket. Michelle made them pink for me & put wee flowers & butterflies on the top of each one.
There was a small incident where some heavy groceries squashed themselves on top of the wee cakes & some minor re-modelling had to be done, but I don't think anyone noticed!

 I found some more of these vintage glasses the other day..

  & was thrilled to come across a large pink lemonade jug at last.

 And whose birthday was it?
Well my dear friend Wendy's, of course!

Wendy & I have known each other for over 50 years!

We will be friends forever.

 The 11th of March was also the day we moved into our house 24 years ago..so a tea party was a sweet way to celebrate birthdays, homes & friendship.

 The passionfruit that you saw earlier in the cup was made into this yummy passionfruit tart, just above. It can be eaten as a dessert or a slice & is super easy & coconutty. You can find the recipe just here in the kitchen blog.
 Would you like a cup cake too?
 We have few left over if you're quick.

 Now...Willows news.
I mentioned that I found this little fundraising book in the Hospice shop in Taupo.
I had come across the Picnic edition in an op shop a long time ago.
Isn't this such a perfect picture for the cover.

A lot of people make their way to Taupo (in the centre of our North Island) through the year, for holidays & recreation. And huge numbers own or rent baches around the lake side, hence the pertinence of the little recipe book. Here is how it begins: (click the picture & you should hopefully be able to read the words).

Such a cosy bach friendly scene on the back cover.

Thanks so much for visiting...if you would like a chance to "win" our lovely copy of Good please do let me know in a comment or email if you prefer. Don't forget to make your suggestion for the name of the grand tea pot too...25 cup would you believe!
We will get Charlie to draw a name out of the proverbial over Easter.

Lots of love to you all..hope you have a wonderful week.

MUCH

 ♥♥♥♥♥

Choosing Good-ness

There have been a lot of things happen lately that have reminded me (like the all night really loud party over the back fence)...that we get to make new choices every day, over & over again. Will we choose the good or will we be crabby and slack? 

Will we choose kindness & grace or will we be rude & grating.

 Will we celebrate ourselves & who we are & go with the challenges that turn up in our path or will we sit down and I say..."I can't"

I'm not enough?

This boy, is now a young man...

he is making his own way in life & he is making choices everyday.

He has had some interesting challenges, hard ones.

They say that exercise can make all the difference in working with depression. 

 And he's come so far, so far in fact, that he ran 47 kilometres on saturday: up three peaks & down the other side. Many ran in teams, some biked & others walked but he ran the whole way on his own, for himself..streaking past me to the finish, so fast I nearly missed my own son. 

I thought I'd seen a ninja at first & then, quick as anything he was suddenly at the finish line... 

done.

A whole packet of gingernuts, orange juice & two cans of coconut water were the scientifically calculated fuel for such a journey (of 6 1/2 hours)...and an awful lot of water!
Things like house keys were forgotten in the hustle to prepare for the day.
A few seconds from here he said "I have to go now" & fell in the window!

Rob had some time off this week.
Time to work on our house, watch a boy finish his challenge & take me away for a night to Taupo.

Kaitiaki told me about a hot pool at Reporoa, half way between Taupo & Rotorua.
This is it: Butcher's Pool. Open all the time. No charge...just glorious hot water bubbling through the sandy bottom of the pool day & night; refreshing, replenishing & soothing all souls who come to bath. A magnificent place to watch the night sky fill with stars.

We stayed here at The Cottage Mews.
Everything about this place is delightful & best of all it is so reasonably priced.

We heard about a new French cafe in town...and we found it.
As we sat enjoying our coffee we realised that we were the only English speaking patrons in the place.

Taupo is very touristy & pretty much there for the lake.
A lot of people love to holiday here.

We loved all the op-shops!!

And the signs!

A volcanic plateau means lots of available stone lying around.
This lovely carved stone seat really appealed to me..

I wanted to know what it felt like to be hugged by a rock?

We loved this plaque. An excellent tenet for marriage we reckon.

And the creation was beautiful.

Solid, meaningful

& colourful.

The latest Good magazine arrived in our letterbox not long ago.
It's truly fabulous. I read bits to Rob & then we chatted about all kinds of stuff..it's a thought provoking magazine. Would anyone fancy one do you think? Next week we just might have a simple giveaway. It could be sent anywhere & I know that many of you don't get to catch up with this Kiwi classic.
I'll show you some more bits of the inside & then you can decide.

These water droplets on English Garden were watered on by me...there's not a skerrick falling from the sky just now.

This tall salvia loves the summer months & is very useful for height & vibrant colour.

I wonder if I blow hard will I find lettuces all around my garden soon?

A week or two ago I discovered the infiltration of the cupboard moth...you guessed it, in the pantry cupboard!
I decided to salvage the cashews & put them to soak overnight, then I remembered a recipe I had seen for a raw cashew "cheesecake". It tastes so good you never want to stop eating it! Best thing about it is that it's actually a really good for you too.

You can find the recipe in the kitchen blog just here.

Would you look at what I found in the Hospice shop in Taupo!

I'll tell you more about it soon.

So lovely to have you visit...thank you for popping in!

Do hope that your week is truly peachy & not at all pants!

MUCH

 ♥♥♥♥♥