A Good Nights Sleep

I am sure there are many people out there with much the same problem as myself.

Just before Christmas for some reason unknown to myself .....I started getting very tired early evening, and by 8.30pm or not much later I was taking myself off to bed... here lies the problem,  I am sleeping for may be 2 or 3 hours then waking refreshed and no possibility of any more sleep for at least another 3 or 4  hours.

I have heard of the theory that you need to stay awake for 90 minutes if you wake during the night and have difficulty returning to sleep, this has worked in the past ... BUT what do I do with this 3 to 4 hour lark.

I have done ironing ( which I hate) hoping this will bore me into sleep, I have washed dishes and dusted I have drawn the line at vacuuming... I have tried stitching but just get engrossed and stay awake longer. Believe it or not I have actually watered the flowers in the yard at 2am ...... When I finally sleep again I still wake at 6.30am sharp, I don't feel tired in the mornings but come evening I am dropping...!!! a vicious circle...PLEASE how do I break it.

I just had to post this .......and I rest my case

TO THE POWERFUL WOMEN I KNOW.

Live your life in such a way that when your feet hit the floor in the morning,
Satan shudders & says ... 'Oh shit ... she's awake!!'

Kitchen Cabinets

Now my house is a Lockwood which is a house designed by a Dutchman who lives here in Rotorua
These houses are completely made of wood inside and out. Almost on the lines of a log cabin.
I just love wood and am one of those people who has to feel it with my hands all the time.

I remember going to a Wood carving exhibition and standing next to a stall of items for sale,
 all the time feeling, smoothing and touching the exhibits , when the chap who was selling  them said
 " I can see you love wood, by the way you need to feel it"
I am obviously a tactile person with a need to touch and smooth wood........... But I digress.....

Now the kitchen is painted egg shell blue, I love the colour blue but not in the house I feel it is a cold colour and the kitchen needs lifting.. it needs a warm colour and also a lighter colour to add light to the room as it is an internal area, so has no windows.

So today a painter came to give me an estimate to paint

 the cabinets a warm stone / cream colour

I had considered doing it myself but the more I look at it

and see the 24 drawer fronts and cupboard doors back

and front the more I have put off starting...

So I have finally asked a few painters for a quote to do the job.

So watch this space as they say !!

Stitching day

A group of ladies came today to stitch, we had a good chat and did some stitching, we all supplied a plate and had a good lunch, we are going to meet at Bev's house next week for the same.
After everyone went home Sugi and I took a trip to Cottage Flair our local patchwork shop.

Sugi needed to choose some fabric which you know does take awhile,

so I had time for a good browse around, something that I have not done for ages.

I saw some neat patterns and fabrics but I was very strong and did not succumb,

but we did see a neat cushion pattern that we both liked

so we are going to share this.

This picture on the pattern packet  really does not do it justice.....

but it is in the shop made up  as a sample,

if I had not seen it made up I would not have been interested in the pattern at all.

It is amazing what a having a made up sample will sell.

Citrus Chicken and Rice

A very quick and no fail chicken dish for hot days when you don't want to be in the kitchen for long
Good served with salad or veg table rice.
Lovely and citrusy.....is there such a word? if not just invented a new word.
I thought may be to much honey but depends on your taste.

Citrus Chicken and Rice..........................Serves 4 people
1 cup uncooked rice
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves or smaller fillets
1 Tablespoon canola oil
1 medium sweet orange pepper, sliced
1 medium sweet red pepper, sliced
1 Tablespoon cornstarch
One-third cup orange juice
2 Tablespoons water
2 Tablespoon lime juice
2 Tablespoon honey
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon paprika

Pepper to taste

Minced fresh basil, optional

Prepare rice according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium heat, cook chicken in oil for 4-5 minutes on each side ( less for fillets) or until juices run clear.
Remove and keep warm.
In the same skillet, sauté peppers until tender.
In a small bowl, combine the cornstarch, orange juice, water and lime juice until smooth. Stir in the honey, salt, paprika and pepper.
Stir into the pan and bring to a boil.
Cook and stir for two minutes or until thickened.
Return chicken to pan and heat through for 2 minutes.
Serve with rice and sprinkle with basil if desired. 
 
 

Summer time

I just love the summer and am not complaining, but I will be so pleased when the end of January arrives so life can get back to what is normal.
All the groups I belong to close for 2 months all of December and January.
Embroidery Guild, now this attended by shall I say,  older ladies,  a lot living on their own and who do not go away for the whole of the summer, this day we meet is a high light of the week for some of them also company for a day, not only the older ladies but all who come, not many if any have young children...besides Grankids, although a few may do sitting duties for these during the holiday period most don't.... So I am sure they would appreciate not being closed for so long.

Patchwork also closes, I can see the reason that some are here this week and others the next and the group would be small in numbers for a few weeks, but the same goes for the ladies who attend this group as the above one..

So on Wednesday I have decided to have a stitching day here at home and invited some of the ladies to join me, so if you read this and can make it come along and join us ...bring a plate for lunch.

The first step

Chivers has been champing at the bit and going wild in the house he was getting quite out of control and almost climbing through the glass on the windows...

So I decided he needed to go outside... he seemed desperate.

So I took the bull by the horns, took a deep breath...I felt like a mother allowing a child to cross the main road on their own, and opened the door.

He took a very slow a look around and  purring loudly looked at me and stepped into the big world.

For a whole hour I though he had gotten lost and looked every where but then this pathetic meow appeared at the door and in he waltzed.

The guide line from the SPCA was 2 weeks inside...I would have had a neurotic cat on my hands by that time...he lasted just  3 days. He has been coming in and out for a couple of hours now, so guess he is on his own now. I have relaxed as well!!

Mermaid or Whale

I read this  and thought Yes! how I would have loved to have been the one who wrote it.

Mermaid or Whale
Recently, in a large city in France, a poster featuring a young, thin and tan woman appeared in the window of a gym.
It said, "This summer, do you want to be a mermaid or a whale?"
  A middle-aged woman, whose physical characteristics did not match those of the woman on the poster, responded publicly to the question posed by the gym.

 To Whom It May Concern,
 Whales are always surrounded by friends (dolphins, sea lions, curious humans.)
 They have an active sex life,  get pregnant and have adorable baby whales.
They have a wonderful time with  dolphins stuffing themselves with shrimp.
 They play and swim in the seas,  seeing wonderful places like Patagonia, the Bering Sea  and the coral reefs of Polynesia .


 Whales are wonderful singers  and have even recorded CDs.
 They are incredible creatures  and virtually have no predators  other than humans.
 They are loved, protected and admired  by almost everyone in the world.


 Mermaids don't exist.  If they did exist,  they would be lining up outside the offices of Argentinean psychoanalysts  due to identity crisis. Fish or human?
 They don't have a sex life  because they kill men who get close to them, not to mention how could they have  sex?    Just look at them ... where is IT?
 Therefore, they don't have kids either.    
 Not to mention,  who wants to get close to a girl who smells  like a fish store?
The choice is perfectly clear to me:
 I want to be a whale.

 P..S. We are in an age  when media puts into our heads  the idea that only skinny people are beautiful, but I prefer to enjoy an ice  cream with my kids, a good dinner with a man who makes me shiver, and a piece of  chocolate with my friends.
 With time, we gain weight  because we accumulate so much information and wisdom in our heads  that when there is no more room,  it distributes out to the rest of our bodies.
 So we aren't heavy,  we are enormously cultured, educated and happy.
 Beginning today,  when I look at my butt in the mirror I will think,
¨Good grief, look how smart I  am!¨
  Author Unknown.....