Mediatation Weekend

I have participated in a meditation weekend for self discovery and creativity. It was an interesting journey . Held at a conference centre in the Stathbogie ranges near Violet Town in Victoria. The scenary and surrounds of the area are covered in bushland. Birds, bushwalking , rocks, wildlife. We rose early in the morning and the sunrise was spectacular through the trees, colours of warm reds and oranges. I enjoyed the Thai Che in the morning, this was new to me but I found it sort of calming. The actual workshops were not actually what i was expecting from the weekend, but i participated and found some of it appropriate to myself.  For fun we walked through the bush, i had my camera and pursued taking photos of trees and lychen on rocks, and looking down on the valleys in the distance. The forest was nice and quiet and peaceful, that in itself was a nice form of meditation for myself. We did some exploratory artwork, with pencils, textas, cutting and pasting, and materials. I enjoyed this part of the weekend and enjoyed playing with colours and textures with no pressures to create any thing with an expectation involved. What did i learn? I learnt i had a lovely time away from my family, and i enjoyed not being nagged or asked to do things for people all weekend. I enjoyed not having to cook - the food was nice. I also enjoyed returning home and having a Hudsons hotchoc on the way home and suprising hubby with a coffee and returning early enough to get some stuff done around the house before it got dark.

Onwards to this week and work, school, lunches, dinners, bills and all the usual stuff. Back to normal.

This is my current project , needless to say it will be ready for easter 2010 and not in 2 days time.

I have had an enjoyable few minutes, going back through my blog site and checking out what I have done over the last 3 years. I realise now what i have been missing lately is the urge to be creative and finish projects once they are started. I need to get off the computer and use my hands to create again.

Even with a New full time job, my new resolve - (it may not be new years) - but I will try to create something once a month. For myself and for self enjoyment.  Finish off the quilt i started 2 weeks ago for bush fire victims.

Finish up the easter embrodieries in time for easter. 

I have a great job , with great people . I have a great family. Kids that suprise me with their comments. In the art gallery in Benalla- "mum I know why those paintings are put there like that!." Why? "Because that one in the middle is the biggest, then that one over to the right is next and then the one on the left." the thought that they were put there in size evaded me, except that they had similar imagery of beaten up cars.

What a great age to take kids to the art gallery - they show you things that we take for granted  and bring us back down to earth. 

Put colour back into my day!!!!

Junior artist at work.

Time flies when you are having fun

We visited friends on their farm, these are some of their girls. We will  go woodchopping there soon.  

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2009

Welcome 2009, it seems like ages since xmas and the new year passed. We had a lovely quiet xmas at home, then headed to Lakes Entrance for a week and had New Years Eve  by the lakes watching the fireworks, 9.30pm and again at midnight (from our apartment balcony). We had a lovely holiday and enjoyed the cool weather, we visited the Buchan Caves and had a great day out. We played minigolf, walked everywhere. Had 2 visits to the beach , we got sandblasted the last day at the beach. Back at work again, same old. Still enjoying my admin job at the moment.

I have been updating my digitally stored photographs andmaking index sheets so the rest of the family know where to find the photos.

The kids had a day at Avenel Maze with my husband and last Sunday we all went to Echuca andplayed mini golf and got around the Oz maze. It was relaxing finishing the hot day off with a bit of paddlesteamer watching on the Murray River.

Music festival

This brochure is not actually my design, however i did put together the brochure as required by a friend ready to be printed , had to cut and paste and move the images around to fit the dl size.

Friend was very happy with the results.

Poster made for a friends' presentation

Update and why have i been missing

Hi to anyone who checks out my blog site.

Sorry i have not updated it with any info for a while. 

Life has been busy. From April 2008 until August 2008, I was working as a  Graphic Artist for The Numurkah Leader. Doing a lot of classified ads, some newspaper ads, some business cards, brochures, magnets,and a really great Theatre program. 

I have since changed my employment and am working in Shepparton, but am doing an admin job. At the moment liking it greatly. Working 9-3pm works well with the kids and no travel and the people i worked with are lovely (so far so good).

I had trouble uploading some photos to this blogsite with my apple mac, so I have joined the world of Facebook and having a lovely time catching up with school friends.etc.

moo.com minicards

These are the neatest small business cards i have ever seen. I uploaded a selection of photos taken by me and had them made into small cards like these ones. The website is based in London, but the cards came from Germany or Denmark? They arrived in Australia in less than 2 weeks.
I also ordered the small holders for them they are sooo cool. The kids loved them and they are a neat way of giving people your phone number than a scrap of paper . All under $50 .

Flourish bus card back

Business card made for Michelle in 2007 . We worked well together to come up with a fantastic looking logo and business card. It was printed with a matt laminate and looks great.

Flourish Business logo and cards

Front of Michelle's business card for her business Flourish landscapes.

numurkah singers program 2008

This is the program cover and back that I worked on with the Leader editor , for the Numurkah Singers performance of Good Vibes. It was an entertaining play, I took my 6 year old to see the performance. My first theatre program. I also helped edit the details inside the program. This was a fun job.

Happy birthday to me

Today I celebrated my birthday with family and friends at the Wetlands Cafe, at a winery called Chateau Tahbilk, near Nagambie, in central victoria.

We had food, cake and a boat ride on the lagoon/wetlands area.

Great cake made by the Chef at the cafe, flowers supplied by my great friend Gina .

beer bottles

My husbands xmas present was a box of variety foreign beer bottles. Here they are all empty and lined up to admire what has been drunk.

x buns

This is my attempt at making hot x buns on the labour day weekend. We added choc chips instead of sultanas. The boys did not like them I presume they werent sweet enough. They did rise and cooked ok, but werent like the store bought ones, recipe from Better Homes and Garden book.

I will resort to buying them already made from now on.

birthday cake

birthday cake home made from cadbury recipe

toby's 10th birthday

Toby and Hugh enjoying blowing out the candles on the cake

ribbon box

Here is a box that i have covered with paper and ribbons and added the word Ribbons to store my ribbon stash in.

Update for march 2008

It is mid march already, how fast is the year going. Only one more week left of school. Then Easter and the school holidays. With the holidays comes my reentry into the full time work force from 2 April 2008, as a graphic artist. How very exciting!!!
I have had a lovely time since finishing my course in december 2007, have completed a little recipe book with my favourite recipes in it, have created and sent out my birthday invites for a small get together in April.
I have also had a great time READING novels, here is a list of the books I have been enjoying.
Anita Shreve: A wedding in December, The Pilots Wife, Body Surfing, The Weight of Water, All He Ever Wanted, Fortune's Rock, Eden Close and Sea Glass,Light on Snow. (All very easy and enjoyable reads)
Linda Howard: A Game of Chance, Mackenzie's, The Mackenzie's, To Die For, All the Queen's Men, Loving Evangeline,Kiss me while I sleep,Duncan's bride. Bluebird winter
Maeve Binchy: Lilac Bus, Tara Road, Whitethorn Woods, Silver Wedding, Evening Class,
Rosamunde Pilcher: The Blue Bedroom and other Stories, The End of Summer.
Douglas Kennedy: The Pursuit of Happiness. HAPPY READING