Rosy Lady

Damp, dull, grey

I can add wet and cold to the list.  Yes, it is the weather outlook for today.  Bring on Spring!  Please, pretty please?!

xx   

 

A storm is brewing

Don't you just love it when you can tell that a storm is on it's way?  We get a lot of rain in England but, rarely any thunder storms.  I love a good thunder storm and Hubby takes it a step further, he loves tornadoes.  Not too many of those around either.

 

I associate storms with a feeling of excitement and anticipation.  Thinking of the thunder storms we get in South Africa where sudden thunder makes you jump or if you get caught in the rain, you would be wet to your undies in less than 2 seconds.  You could smell the thunder but also the freshness from the fields.

Although I have a few storms going on in my personal life, I am filled with excitement and anticipation.  Sometimes it takes a storm in one's life to make you look up again.

I marvel at the wonder and greatness and am filled with hope anew.

xx  

 

 

Peaceful Sunday

I've had a restful weekend with lots of sleep and nourishment.  I've been so tired lately and I've got a couple of really stressful weeks lying ahead in my day job.  However, there is also a lot going on behind the scenes, which I hope to be able to share with you soon.  I am making life changing decisions and that is both exciting and scary.  

I hope that your weekend has been everything that you needed.

xx 

 

Images of Africa

I would like to share a few photos with you that was taken during my recent holiday to South Africa.

        

  

xx     

 

All is calm, all is bright

It was so good to spend some time with my family in South Africa where it was hot and sunny.  We talked, laughed, ate, shopped and I took lots of photos.  I took my smaller Nikon coolpix so the photo quality is not as good as with the bigger camera but there is still plenty to show you.  I also want to say a big thank you to all who have shown me so much love and support.  I am so happy to tell you that a full body PET scan has shown that my Hubby doesn't have any cancer in his body.  That was such an answer to our prayers.  We feel like a weight has been lifted from our shoulders and we can finally start to look towards the future rather than to live from day to day.

 

I always try to visit South Africa during the UK winter.  The sunshine and beautiful flowers have a way of lifting my spirit and it is always a good time to reflect on my life, my goals and to be inspired.

As it is Christmas Eve, I wanted to show you some of the Christmas decorations that I saw in a couple of malls:

 

Maybe not traditional but, I like how they have an 'Africa' feel to them.

I had a great time.

But, then I came home to this:

Photo taken through train window.  

This was the train platform:

I was in the last train carriage so, this chick had to walk through all of that and then over a bridge (to get to the other side.

May I take this opportunity to wish you a very blessed Christmas and say thank you so much for your support and for reading my random ramblings. 

xx

  

Christmas food

I have entered two entries for Tigerprint's Christmas Food photography competition:

First, cookies and milk for Santa:

Not forgetting the carrots for the reindeer ;-)

The second one is a still life photo of mulled wine and cranberries.  I really wanted to show the colours of Christmas with this one:

xx

Busy little spinster

I wanted to share a few more Autumn photos with you before Winter sets in properly.  I'm always fascinated with spiderwebs and the shapes or designs that they take on.

I love these for being so unusual.

I have taken the day off work and am planning to make the most of it.  Come on Illustrator, prepare yourself to be conquered!

Have a nice day everyone and thanks for stopping by.  I'm planning to post a bit more regular again.

xx

Spooky

Yesterday was a misty/foggy day here.  It made for some interesting, spooky images:

 

This is Hadleigh Castle.  These castle ruins are not far from where we live.  It is on a hill with a stunning view to the Thames Estuary with Kent on the other side.

I don't believe in ghosts but have a vivid imagination and the combination of foggy days and old castles can make me think up a few ghosts from the past.

Hadleigh Castle was built in the 1230's during the reign of King Henry III.  The mountain biking competition in the 2012 Summer Olympics will be held here.

Something else that I find spooky is a deserted boat or ship on misty waters..

Happy Halloween!

xx

Thank you

I wanted to say a big 'thank you' to everyone who has voted for me in the Spoonflower fabric design competition.  I am thrilled to tell you that my design is through to the final round.  I would really appreciate it if you would vote again.  Voting will be a bit quicker now because we are down to one page of designs (mine is number 6) and you have one vote.  I think my first blog give-away would be in order, if my design wins.

xx

Just keeping it real

This week I have really felt like I was trying to swim in a stormy sea.  

The waves looked big and it all felt so hopeless.

 

Today in particular filled me with so much dread because I knew that I had to face something that scared me so much.  I got through it but it made me re-evaluate my goals and where I see myself and how I am working to get myself there and out of a *job, which quite frankly, I find abusive.  I have to do this for myself because I have to be true to myself.  Life is too short to feel like this about a job, right?  This is not easy but I wanted to keep it real.  I am so incredibly thankful for every day that I have with my biggest support.

*Edit:  I wanted to just clarify that I am talking about my day job, which is not design related in any way.  

You are my love, hope and peace.  My light tower on a distant hill.

xx