Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Dogs, Spiders, Butterflies and an Apron!

Today is Harry's 1st Birthday. Can you believe it. He is one already. 
He has a plateful of turkey and for dinner is having a meat and cheese pie. Lucky boy.
Harry Scally Waggus Barton
Below: DH Trying to coax Harry up onto the trampoline for some birthday pics.
Not jumping up on that Trampoline and that's that!
 The Spiders:
We have 'seasonal' spiders, would you believe. Last year in early spring they arrived - and there was an unbelievable display of the entire grass area (paddock) covered in webs. These webs would show themselves in the morning when covered with dew and elegantly string out their long, long wisps as the howling October, Korumburra winds blew relentlessly across the valley. Their owners would hide, for the most part, in the matt of grass below but some of them, way too many of them, would hang around the house and 'fall in' through the doors whenever they were opened. Fortunately they were not big spiders but I would find them everywhere around the floor on kids toys etc. which was a bit yucky. They didn't climb though so I wasn't too bothered.
This year the spiders came but this time about a zillion of them set up house on my barn. This appeared to happen overnight. I'm not sure that it did as I'm not the most observant person in the world BUT it sure did happen fast. One day the barn was normal the next it was spotty. What a mess. Anyway it's a job for the Spider broom and the Gurney for the ones that are too high.
Every vertical face of the barn covered in webs
Every bolt, rivet, window, door etc. encrusted with webs
The Butterflies:
Another seasonal phenomenon we have which is a lot nicer than the spiders is the brown butterflies.
Common Brown Butterfly - far from a common sight in their hundreds around the garden.
We have hundreds of them every January. They frolic, flutter and float all over the garden and the grass.
One of my old pics. Couldn't take any pics today as it's too windy.
The Apron:
During November I bought myself a very cute apron panel from Spotlight, but didn't get around to making it up before Christmas. Then for Christmas my SIL gave me the same panel as part of my pressie. This made me very happy because I knew that I would have trouble keeping my panel from my DD - - - - so now we can both have one. 
I decided to make the lining a reverse apron and used some fabric my MIL had given me, to keep the owl theme. This way it can be used all through the year, not just at Chrissy.

The Owly Christmas apron - (please forgive the 'Granny' hair, I'm trying to grow it)
The other side with more owls - I love owls and aprons
Well there it is. A very long post. Hope you haven't been bored. Took a while to get to the sewing bit. Have a great Wednesday everyone.

6 comments:

  1. What kind of spiders? Are they jumping spiders? If you don't know what they look like, see here: http://www.jumpingspider.net/

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  2. Harry looks very sweet and I love the butterflies. The apron is very cute and cleverly reversible. Beautifully modeled too :)

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  3. I love the apron, both sides. Happy Birthday to Harry. Isn't he a clever boy being able to train his dad to get on the trampoline like that. Imagine what tricks he will be able to show us by the time he is 2! Tracee xx

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  4. Think of Christopher when you see the butterflies. One was hanging around his room in Canberra and I have seen so many at my low points so think he is now a butterfly and keeps me company when I need him to. Love the apron especially the "back" Need some owl fabric!!

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  5. Many Happies to Harry gorgeous boy that he is. Love all the pics. Your apron is so cute too. We have had quite a few huge Huntsman spiders which freaked my Mum out so I was forever relocating them to the garden. I am still not able to reply to your comments Bron so sorry, I just don't know why??

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  6. Bah - spiders!! We have them all year round - they build on the wires around the deck...we can tell how windy it is by whether they're still there in a few hours' time! We have a great "breeze" off the Clarence River most days...quite unusual when it's still.

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