Staying awake

This post is about a topic some of you may not feel comfortable reading or thinking about so please feel free to tune out now.

If you have been following my blog for a little while, you may know my Dad's health is failing.  He has pulmonary fibrosis and with each passing day he finds it harder to breathe even with the assistance of oxygen.  I call him everyday on the phone as he lives in Western Australia and I live in Victoria.  It's a wonderful thing to be able to do.

Today I heard my Dad's voice, a voice I've never heard before, a voice that was weak and tired, so very tired.  It was also the voice of inevitability that his time with us is not long.  We/I have known that he would be traveling down this road, a road that would be difficult for him to experience and his family to watch.  This morning he said soon it would be time for him to sleep.  I know he can't be with us forever, that is not the cycle of life but I want one more opportunity to see him as I am visiting my parents in a few weeks.  I told him I'd like to see him again and he said "I'll try and stay awake."

Oh how I've cried today.  The process of acceping his mortality, the sadness that goes with knowing that one day soon I will no longer be able to hear his voice, give him a hug, share a joke and tease him about drinking the left over mint sauce after a roast lamb dinner.

This post is not about me looking for sympathy, merely a need for me to express what's inside, acknowledging feelings, appreciating my Dad and what he means to me.  

 

So Dad, if you can manage it, stay awake just a little longer for me.

 

Little trouble  xx

 

 

One of those days...

It's one of those days where on waking I could have cried at the drop of a hat.  It has passed now (I'm fine) but it's now become one of those days where I find myself putting the milk in the pantry instead of the fridge.  Go figure!  :)

It's also one of those days where I am delighted to find the first roses for the season about to bloom.

 A day where I can enjoy the fragrance of my very first Sweet Peas ever.

 It's a day to appreciate our gorgeous cat Stripey who although is sneezing with a cat cold is happily purring and acting so cute that in the second photo he actually rolled off the seat.

 

It's a day to enjoy Spring flowers and even weeds flowering.  Buttercup is considered a weed where I live.

It's definitely a day to enjoy the contrast between the Japanese Maple lime green leaves and the blue sky,

 and a Foxglove flowering happily in the sun.

 It's a day to appreciate Sophie my faithful Labrador who loves me no matter how I'm feeling, who always is always happy to see me.

 Quite simply, today is a day to find the beautiful, the glorious, the wonderful in a world that is at times most unkind and unfair.

Anne  xx

Snow ball tree

The snow ball tree (Viburnum opulus) in our backyard is in full bloom with gorgeous white balls of flowers.  This year it has flowered so prolifically I've been able to bring some blooms into the house.

I thought I'd sneak in this photo of Bungee playing peek-a-boo!

Anne  xx

Easy and scrumptious orange cake

When I had a yearning for orange cake recently I decided to make one but wanted a simple recipe which I found here   It suited me perfectly.  No creaming butter and sugar and using the whole orange, skin and all.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Orange cake

Photo:  Marina Oliphant

Time

20-40 minutes

This is a simple cake that's great for beginners to try. Use the whole orange, skin and all, for a moist and delicious result.

Ingredients

• 2 oranges
• 180g plus 2 tbsp melted butter
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup caster sugar
• 1 1/2 cups self-raising flour
• 2 1/2 cups sifted icing sugar
• Orange zest, to decorate

Method

Preheat oven to 180C. Grease and line the base of a 12cm x 22cm loaf tin. Cut one orange into large chunks, leaving the skin on. Place in a large food processor and blend until well pureed. Add 180g melted butter, eggs, sugar and flour then process until well combined. Pour the mixture into the tin and bake for 50 minutes, or until an inserted skewer comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow to cool for five minutes, then turn out of tin and cool on a wire rack. To make the icing, mix icing sugar with two tablespoons melted butter. Juice remaining orange and add small amount to icing mix to obtain a spreadable consistency. Ice the cooled cake and decorate with orange zest.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I didn't bother with the icing as the cake was deliciously moist.

Make and enjoy,

Anne  xx

Books and mending

I love books especially craft books.  When my parents recently gifted me some money for my birthday, I knew craft books were at the top of my list.  I buy most of my books from the Book Depository because they're are discounted and the postage is free even all the way downunder.  Bonus!  So here are the books I recently received.

Lots of delicious motifs to keep me busy.

A nice easy key of symbols to learn so I can crochet from Japanese patterns one day.

One day I'll make me a skirt just like this.  It's VERY different and I like that.

Add caption

I love quilts, just another thing I have to be brave enough to take on.

So much inspiration in these books.  Thanks Dad and Mum.

Last week there was an altercation between a door, a cat and a figurine.  The figurine was made by Nana who is no longer with us and as the figurine was damaged, it was very upsetting to the daughter it was bequeathed to.  I gathered up the pieces from the floor and set about trying to put them back together.  Tools needed for the job, glue, tweezers, toothpicks, emery board and lots and lots of patience.

Doesn't look so good up close but from a distance it will pass.

 Yesterday I went down to Spotlight and bought some fabric to make some summer tops.  If they turn out I might be brave and show them on here.

I hope you are having a fab weekend,

Anne xx

Australian War Memorial, Canberra

War, any war is horrible.  The injury, death, trauma and displacement caused by war is unimaginable.  Regardless of my views on war, the Australia War Memorial is a place where we can honour, respect and remember the thousands of people who have served our country.

The main reason I wanted to visit the War Memorial was to see my Great Uncle's name on the Roll of Honour.  I was not prepared for how emotional the experience would be, not just seeing my Great Uncle's name but the names of thousands and the poppies relatives and friends have placed next to their loved ones names.  

My Uncle's name was Claude Spencer Williams  and is displayed as WILLIAMS C.S. in the photo below.  

The Eternal Flame set in the Pool of Reflection.

It's a little hard to see the flame in the sunlight.

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in The Hall of Memory.  The story of the Unknown Soldier can be found here.

There are beautiful stained glass windows in the Hall of Memory and images of those who served in the wars all done in mosaics.  The Hall is awe inspiring.

The Pool of Reflection in the centre of the photo above, the Walls of Honour are through the arches on either side of the photo and the Hall of Memory is at the rear centre of the photo.

Mosaic detail.  All the walls are done in mosaic not just the images.

We spent time looking at the exhibits of artifacts and photos from the 1st and 2nd World Wars, wars that members of my family served in.  I found the photos of the 1st World War particularly distressing, images of men in the trenches in France, in wet, cold and unbelievably miserable conditions.  There were images too of men enjoying a break in houses they were billeted, gathered around a fire enjoying a sing-a-long.  I'm sure these times were very special to them scattered in amongst the horrendous things they were seeing and experiencing.

My Great Uncle Claude made it through the 1st World War in France where he served.  Unfortunately he contracted the Spanish Flu in France which was an epidemic in 1919 and very sadly died from complications.  Our family thought he died in England while waiting to come home, however we now know he died and was buried in Sous-le-Bois, France.

Claude Spencer Williams

My paternal Grandfather also served in the 1st World War, fortunately he came back to Australia unharmed.  My maternal Grandfather served in the 2nd World War, he too came back to Australia safely.

ANZAC Day commemorated on the 25th April each year will now have a far greater impact on me than previously after visiting the Australian War Memorial.



Anne  xx

Canberra

This weekend hubby and I flew up to Canberra to celebrate his Aunty's 90th birthday.  We met up with hubby's two sisters and their husbands who had also traveled to Canberra and were able to enjoy some time together.   Yesterday morning we went to Canberra's Floriade Spring festival.

Floriade started in 1988 as a wonderful commemoration of Australia's Bicentenary and Canberra's 75th birthday.  Beautiful floral displays of exotic bulbs and annuals are grown and they certainly thrive in Canberra's climate.  As the first Floriade festival was such a huge success, the community decided to make it and annual event and is held in Commonweath Park.  Here are some photos from our meanderings.

Commonweath Park is gorgeous with lakes, streams,  beautiful trees and shrubs.

 These bird sculptures are beautiful.

We saw these gorgeous black swans, one being happy to commune with me and the other was nesting.

We enjoyed walking around some of Lake Burley Griffin's shores and took a cruise around the lake.

The National Library of Australia

Australian Houses of Parliament, the old building in the foreground and the new building in the background.

The Australian War Memorial with Mt. Ainslie in the background.

The National Carillon

'The National Carillon is a striking 50 metre tall architectural landmark. It is also an impressive musical instrument with 55 bronze bells, each weighing between seven kilograms and six tonnes. The Carillon was a gift of the British Government to the people of Australia in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the national capital. 
Aspen Island is the perfect place to enjoy one of the regular carillon recitals and have a picnic.' 
Information found here.

After our cruise we headed into the city for some lunch and came across some  interesting sculptures.

This ram doesn't look too happy or comfortable.

Detail about the above sculpture.

 While on the subject of sculptures, this one is at the Canberra Airport.  I loved it so much and couldn't resist taking photos from a number of different angles.

 After our lovely morning and lunch, we spent some time with hubby's Aunty's extended family before celebrating with the birthday girl at a restaurant in the evening.  We had a wonderful time together with many laughs, enjoying stories of Aunty's childhood.

My next post will be about our visit to the Australian War Memorial which was a very moving experience it deserves a post all of it's own.

Anne  xx