Back on track

A bolt from the blue found me in hospital with a mystery illness last month.  

I'm back on track now thanks to wonderful care from the nurses & doctor 

 in our lovely little local hospital and of course from my beautiful family & friends.

It certainly brings things into perspective though 
and makes you realise what's important in life.

So yesterday I met up for a picnic lunch with my son and family in the little town of Guyra

some 100 kms to the west of us, and about half way between Brisbane and Sydney.  

Guyra is the highest town on the New England Tablelands of N.S.W. 

at 1330 metres (4363 feet) above sea level. 

Autumn colours there are in full swing.

The usual hour and a half journey home took way way longer
 as I stopped constantly to take photos!

The country is quite dry here so colours stand out in all their vibrancy

 against the dry vegetation.

I am at risk of becoming boring......(I warned you I took lots of photos!)

so I think I will continue on my journey home next time.  

The photo above gives a hint of what's ahead.

Bye for now

Dry Spring

It's been dry here, but we're hopeful it will improve.  

There's beauty in it anyway.

Some days are Diamonds, some days are Gold!

Yesterday was the last day of June, and for us in Australia, the last day of the financial year.  Well I'm thinking that the signs are all good for the coming year because the day was truly gold!

Sundown brought golden clouds dancing across the sky

The evening sun shone on the underside of a little moth settled on my kitchen window.

And the ripples of water on the dam fairly gleamed!

It was a golden day indeed, but sadly short lived because today has been, grey, grey grey!!

They say bad things come in threes ~  I think good things do too!

 How about you?

Lovely day to share

Hands up who loves spending time with their grand child!  Me too!  Wanted to share a tiny part of my lovely day with you.

Morning started early, water vapour from planes way up high,
 as I headed down the mountain to mind my grand daughter for the morning.

Reached my daughter's place in nearby Bellingen.
Colours of fading flowering gum quite delish!
Linking this photo with Mandarin Orange Monday

Lasiandra and bunting welcomed me in.

Darling grand daughter and I headed for coffee 
and fun at you know where!

She has the most delightful facial expressions!

Appointments dealt with, met up again with daughter and son in law
for lunch break at Botanic Gardens in Coffs Harbour.

The Grass Trees are just one of the attractions

Son in law went back to work & after some quick shopping I left sleeping baby girl
 at home with Mum & headed back up to my mountain home

Where the sun's fingers were tickling the hills 

And making their own special magic

Hubby had some fish cooking on the stove as the sun went down.
No complaints!

Grand children are pretty special, and so are grand parents. Do you have a special memory of a grand parent, or moment with a grand child that you could share with us?  Would love to hear:)

I can see both sides!

Hello there one and all!  

Today I am showcasing a reversible potato necklace.

 My daughter liked it so much that I decided to give it to her.

She wears it a lot and it looks really good on her!

 Following on you'll see just some of the things around me

 which have inspired the colours of both sides of this adjustable,

 bold and lightweight neck-piece.

Bright Side
featuring this on 
Mandarin Orange Monday today

More Muted Side

Rose

Crimson Rosella

I think he's watching us out of
the corner of his eye!

Superb Fairy Wren

Evening clouds reflected

Thank you for taking a peek into the things I do and what inspires them.

  I imagine you have similar stories to tell. 

Is there something recently that has influenced your creative pursuits?

 A beautiful sky perhaps, or the colour of the sea? 

 Would love to hear about it!

The sky's the limit!

I told myself when I started my blog that every post had to include something about potatoes, otherwise....... well, it wasn't about potatoes was it?  
So you can see my dilemma today when I was keen to post the photos I was considering entering into Tasha Chawner's Weekend Photo Project, but at the same time they had nothing whatsoever to do with potatoes! 


The key word for the photo challenge for Sunday was "The Sky".

 Oh dear , what to do? 

 How could I ever make this into a post to do with spuds?

Well first, let me show you my photos and see which one you would have chosen, only one allowed.....

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

I actually took the photos on Saturday, and I am so pleased I did, because the sky with it's cloud formations was pretty special and Sunday (as I write) it is just plain old blue!

Hope you enjoy, and I wonder which photo you would pick?  I'll let you into a little secret,  I decided on number 6, with the aeroplane, mainly because it was serendipity that it just happened to be passing by as I had my camera pointed to the sky!  

---------------------------------------------------------------------

But back to the potato connection.  You knew I wouldn't let you down!!

So prepare to be amazed!

Potato Clouds from the Photography of Joachim Knill

Joachim Knill's webite says that his....

....."most recent work consists of 20"x30' Polaroids photographs which he creates with the world's largest portable instant film camera designed and built by himself. The one of a kind photographs depict surreal landscapes and installations which he builds in his studio. He uses mostly natural objects such as fruits, flowers, vegetables, seedpods, sticks and stones, or delapitaded building parts, all collected either on his travels or around Hannibal Missouri where he currently resides."

Wonderful isn't it, and thank you so much Joachim 

for giving me permission to show your fabulous photo here 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

But wait, there's more, thanks to Disney family fun recipes

Mashed Potato Clouds

Yes, you heard right! More Potato Clouds. 

You'd have to agree that potatoes are pretty versatile:)

Doesn't this just melt your heart:)

Ingredients

• MASHED POTATO CLOUDS
• 4 large russet or Idaho potatoes (about 2 1/2 pounds)
• 1/2 cup milk
• 3 tablespoons butter

• Salt and pepper, to taste

• HERBED BUTTER PATS
• 4 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon dill or dried chives

Instructions

1. Using a vegetable peeler, remove the skin from the potatoes and use the tip of the peeler to scoop out any brown spots. Cut each potato in half lengthwise and then slice into 1/2- to 1-inch pieces. Place the potatoes in a saucepan and cover with cold water.
2.  Bring the potatoes to a boil, watching carefully to make sure they do not boil over. Once they have come to a boil, cook for an additional 10 minutes or until tender (about 20 minutes in all). (While the potatoes are boiling, make the butter pats: see step 4.) Take the pan of potatoes off the stove and drain the water.
3. Pour the milk over the potatoes and add the butter. Using a potato masher, press down on the potatoes until they are smooth. (If you are working with younger kids, transfer the potatoes from the hot saucepan to a large bowl before mashing.)
4.  To make the herbed butter pats, mix together the softened butter and the dill or chives. Press the mixture into a 2-inch by 3-inch rectangle on a piece of waxed paper. Place in the freezer for about 10 minutes, then use miniature cookie cutters to cut out butter pats.
5. Spoon the mashed potatoes onto the dinner plates and serve with a pat or two of herbed butter. Serves 4.
   
   
   

   -----------------------------------------------------------------

   
   
   Well enough from me today, I have got my head in the clouds and I think it is time to come back down to earth!
   See you next time and don't forget to leave a comment and let me know which photo you would have selected for the weekend photo project.  And if any of you are interested, I am sure Tasha would be happy for you to join in the project right where we are.  It's great fun, and sparks ideas you didn't know you had!