Vietnam

Hanoi

 

Vietnam is such a beautiful country. We were fortunate enough to travel there in 2010 with not just our children but also my brothers family. This trip was bittersweet as it would probably not have eventuated without the tragic loss of two family members.

Daily life on the streets of Hanoi

Three years ago now my MIL passed away. We had to travel to Sydney for her funeral and while we were there we were also able to catch up with my brother and his family, It was my daughters birthday and we had a great night of catching up. The conversation centred around the importance of living life in the now. My brother and his wife had also lost close friends recently. So we decided that a trip to Vietnam was the go. My brother had travelled the world extensively in his youth but Vietnam had never been on his list. We were fortunate to have a little inheritance coming our way to finance the trip.

Moving the cattle along the beach at Hoi An

 We left dinner that night on a high...we had a plan....the kids were excited....it would be their first trip overseas!

Hanoi -this man made these detailed figures from Vietnamese playdoh!

That was the last time I saw my brother alive......he died three months later very suddenly and very tragically.....ten days after his fiftieth birthday!

Beautiful view after 1000 steps!

Nine months later my husband and I decided that we were going to continue planning our trip. I sent my SIL an email explaining our decision....would she be ready to join us?? I was certainly overjoyed when she accepted our invitation.....it would be have been what he wanted.

My SIL (R) and I on a junk in Halong Bay

So to say that trip was memorable is an understatement. We had the best time! We laughed , we cried, we remembered, we experienced, we celebrated, we honoured. My brother has now travelled to Vietnam as we left some of his ashes in the most beautiful place on earth.

The most beautiful, special place on earth.

Ramblings

I am so sorry...I am not a good blogger!!

 I started this blog during our summer holidays. Being a teacher I had plenty of time over the holidays to spend time reading blogs. This inspired me to start my own very spontaneously late one night. All was going well until school went back and my time was a lot more limited.

 One of my favourite things about my favourite blogs is the photos. They inspire me to keep crafting, decorating, cooking, travelling....being!! The world is out there and through this window I am able to peek into the lives of others.

So, you say where are all your photos! What does your world look like? What are you making, doing, cooking??? This is where I am failing as a blogger. I need to take more photos but at the moment I need to organise my camera.

I grew up in the era of the film camera. That's right..take two shots of the same scene just in case the first one isn't great. Put the film aside to be taken to be developed....many months later actually do it. After much expense you get your envelope back of very poorly lit, badly framed, double shots.

So when digital photography came in I wasn't in the habit of taking photos and having a camera with me at all times. Yes I have probably missed many significant moments in my children's lives.

A few years ago we upgraded our camera for a trip to Vietnam. We had such a memorable trip and I treasure the photos we have of this family time together. From this I realised that I need to be recording these special moments more often.

 So what happened you ask?

 My camera broke....and I need to either get it fixed or replace it. Time once again has gotten in my way....this blog is my motivation to resolve this problem. I want to show you what I am making, doing, cooking, living, creating, being...............

Please watch this space...I will be back to show you my world.

Anny :)

Discovering Crochet

My mum was a knitter and taught me how to knit from a young age but I actually taught my Mum how to crochet!!

When I was about 8 years old my best friend at school was called Megan. We were inseparable and I spent a lot of time at her place. Her grandmother was a lovely lady and was constantly making something. One day she sat us down and showed us how to crochet a simple granny square . Ooh I was hooked (excuse the pun!) and there started my love of crochet. I have swayed back and forth between knitting and crochet through my life.

My Mum was a little intrigued and wanted to have a go so we sat down and had our first lesson. Mum being a pretty dab hand with the knitting needles quickly picked up how to wield the hook and she also alternated between the two from then on.

Crochet was a great comfort to my Mum and also my family in her last few months of life. As Mum's cancer advanced she became unable to do a lot. Her vision became impaired due to radiation side effects and she spent many hours sitting in her comfy chair...with her crocheting as company.

 She was able to crochet a simple granny square ....in fact she actually crocheted many large granny square blankets....one for each of her five children and eight grandchildren. My blanket was the last one to be finished only a few weeks before she died. It would have to be one of my most precious keepsakes fifteen years later.

These blankets were also a great comfort to my older children through their grief. Each night I would tuck them into bed wrapped in their 'Nana blankets' to keep her close and cuddly. They still use these blankets in winter and I hope that each time they do brings back that memory of her.

We crochet daily for our family, pass on as gifts or sell our creations. I don't think we realise how much history and memories we are also creating.

Anny :)

Wool and living in the Sub tropics

Living in the sub tropics can be very difficult if you have a passion for wool!

One, is the difficulty finding a good local yarn store.

 Two, is the climate...the heat can make it very uncomfortable to work in unless you have fans or  air con.

 Three, is the fact that you can put a lot of work into a piece of crochet or knitting be it as simple as a scarf or as detailed as blanket and there is very little time in the year when you can comfortably wear or use it.

It is really frustrating looking at blogs from around the world and seeing all the beautiful yarns available (I am sure there are good yarn shops here but nothing with the extensive range I have seen in the southern states of Australia) So a lot of my yarn shopping is now ordered on the internet. It can be a bit hit and miss as I am a touchy feely person and the actual sensation of touching the yarn is the first thing I do in a shop. Also choosing colours on a screen can be difficult as many of you know.

Winter in Brisbane is very short and very mild. Yes it does get cold at night and as we really don't need to heat our houses a snuggle blanket is good to watch television with but really you would only have about 4 months to use it.

 So this leads to the problem I am now having...an over abundance of woolly things and really no need for any more!! So as I just can't stop this obsession I think I am either going to have to start selling my wares or lots of present giving.

Has anyone got any ideas on how to solve my dilemma.

Ooh I have a few tah dah moments coming!!!!

Back soon

Anny