In for a Penny, in for a Pound!

As well as finishing the quilt top, last night I scrapped a photo of Kevin in Spello, Umbria as part of a challenge on Chook Scraps.  Now to tidy up after all that crafting!

There's a new baby on the way....

My nephew John and his wife Bec are expecting their first child in about 8 weeks.  Being the proud Aunty, I wanted to make them a quilt.  What I didn't think about was that winter is our busiest time at work and I don't have a lot of free time.  Anyway, this weekend I ignored the housework (and everything else!) and finally got the quilt top together.  Luckily I made a start a few months ago so it wasn't too taxing yesterday.  Tomorrow I will see if I can get the batting and backing in town, otherwise it will be a trip into Bunbury and maybe next weekend I will start quilting it.  That should be fairly straightforward.

The original pattern by Calico Farm Designs (thanks Jo!) featured teddy bears along the top.  I decided to swap them for owls to reflect the fabric design.  The yellow border fabrics are some that I hand dyed.  I love this pattern, it's simple but effective.  I can see it becoming a favourite as more babies come along :)

Köln

Our friend H was waiting for us as we docked at Cologne.  It was All Saint's Day and he took us to the Cathedral while the cardinal was still saying mass.  We tried to be as quiet as we could while we had a quick look around.


The Gothic style Cathedral is one of the oldest churches in the world and the architecture is just stunning.  It took over 600 years to build.  Even though Cologne was heavily bombed during WW2, the Cathedral was unharmed.

 Our first glimpse of the Cathedral from the banks of the Rhine.

It is Germany's most visited landmark and averages 20,000 visitors each day!

 The Cathedral is World Heritage Listed.


We lunched with our friend at a tavern quite close the Cathedral.  He insisted we try game soup (and I was game lol).  It was a very flavoursome broth with mushrooms.  One thing I really wanted to try in Germany was sausage and sauerkraut so Kevin and I shared a plate.  It came with mashed potatoes too and we drank the local beer, kolsch, so light and refreshing.  I don't usually drink beer, so I was impressed with this one. 

Playing in the leaves!

After lunch, we had a quick tour of Cologne, including a visit to the Bloom Art Fair which was a great way to spend a couple of hours.

I was delighted by the golden colours of autumn in Europe, it was just as beautiful as I'd dreamed.  We don't have many native deciduous trees in Australia and they are not rich hues like these.

All Aboard!

Our time in Amsterdam had to come to an end, and it was time to board our ship "Felicity".  I was looking forward to unpacking and living out of a wardrobe instead of a backpack for a week!  The ship was very comfortable with a large lounge area and another small lounge at the rear.  Our room was also extremely comfy and I really loved the wide window so we wouldn't miss a thing.  The first meal on the ship was dinner and it was a huge 5 courses!   

 Leaving Amsterdam behind....

 Next morning we were on the beautiful Rhine River

 We enjoyed a leisurely morning

 taking in the sights and sounds along the river

and picking out church steeples!

Back in Amsterdam

It's about time I blogged some more about our holiday last year, before I totally forget what we did and saw!

 After our day out in Amersfoort, it was back to Amsterdam for another look around.  Dennis met us and snapped us in front of the iconic I Amsterdam sign.  This is a promotional sign on the Museumplein and there are always heaps of tourists there having pictures taken.

 We enjoyed a delicious breakfast of Dutch pancakes before heading off for a walk to get rid of all those calories!  We walked up this street towards town where we were going to meet Thea and Theo.

 Canals everywhere but our local town council won't allow a bike track along an irrigation drain because it's too dangerous!  

 It seemed most of the locals use bikes to get around, but we saw a few of these tiny cars - Theo thought they were for elderly people.  We couldn't get over how small they were!

 Dennis, Kevin and Theo enjoying a drink (the first of many that day!)

 The Red Light District at night....it was really beautiful with all the lights reflecting on the water.

 A condomery!

 Our ship awaiting us...our last day in Amsterdam was quite overcast.

 We visited plenty of cafes but no coffee shops......

Cute higgledy-piggledy houses!  

An Evening Walk

Jaxon and I like to go for a walk most afternoons.   I took these photos a few weeks ago but have only just worked out how to get them from my phone to my blog - doh!


 Jaxon waiting (not so) patiently.  He's probably glad of the rest actually!  

Life is one big road with lots of signs

So when you're riding through the ruts, don't complicate your mind.

Flee from hate, mischief and jealousy.  Don't bury your thoughts,

Put your vision to reality.  Wake up and Live!  

~ Bob Marley

The sun about to set...can you spot the roos?

Another beautiful sunset.

Bound for Coral Bay

It was a chilly 2o when we woke this morning....I stayed in my swag until Kevin had the fire going and a cup of tea ready for me :)

 Adjacent to Karijini - still beautiful!

 Part of the park was excised so this mine could go ahead.

Mt Bruce - the second highest peak in WA

 This long stretch of highway has two jobs - it's also an emergency landing strip for the Royal Flying Doctor Service.  It's situated about 350 kms from the nearest hospital.

Relaxing at our campsite

We had an early morning visit from a bush turkey (Australian Bustard)

We arrived at beautiful Coral Bay mid afternoon, ready for a week of sun, sand and relaxation...

It's a shame I took my camera out on the cloudy day!

We went looking for Merv the legendary groper at the marina

but he wasn't around

Some guy was fishing from here...hasn't he heard it's a marine park??

The water was crystal clear

The fishing guy moved down the beach a bit....it's still a marine park!!