Mufti Day

Here in Australia our schools have what is called "Mufti Day".  It is a day on which children and staff wear casual clothing, usually to raise funds for a cause. Those choosing to wear mufti on a set day may do so as long as they donate a gold coin (in Australia a one or two dollar coin) for the cause.

My Grand Daughter, Little Miss Seven (almost 8) has mufti day at her school today to raise money for Jeans for Genes Day.  She wore pink jeans to school and, as it was our turn to drive her today, she spotted the knitting I'd been making for her and asked if she could wear them to school.

This is a very simple beanie pattern where the top is drawn in with thread after knitting a rectangle.

The accessory I made from felt cut from a Bigz flower die on my Big Shot and stitched on to a brooch back so it can be removed. 

I've fallen in love with the fingerless gloves.  They look so cute.

And to finish off - a scarf.

I purchased the wool yarn from the Faulconbridge Blue Gum Rotary Markets in July specifically to make the trio for our Grand Daughter after she spotted my own set which I made last month. 

This red wool was a gift from my walking buddy who is a wool spinning enthusiasts. It's got such a lovely soft feel to it which makes it all the more wearable.

I used the same pattern to knit my Grand Daughter's set and scaled it down to fit her.

We've had such a cold winter this year that there have been days during which I've worn coat, gloves, scarf and beanie indoors in an attempt to get warm.

Tuesday just gone was the coldest August day (in NSW) since 1974. 

How have you been faring this winter/summer?

Everywhere A Sign #2

On our road trip, in 2010, we came across a number of novelty road signs relating to our unusual wildlife here in Australia.

But until this year, I didn't know we had elephants at Scotts Head!

Everywhere A Sign #1

On our recent road trip Mr HP and I came across a few engaging signs which I enjoyed photographing.  

I'm going to share a few of them on my blog. Most of the signs have their own unique story behind them while I found others self explanatory but a little bizarre (in my humble opinion).

There's a place in Australia (well, one could hardly call it a town, or even a village... perhaps a settlement) called Innamincka. It's up the Strzelecki Track (yes, here in the desert the roads are called tracks)from Lyndhurst.  Mr HP and I visited Lyndhurst in 2010. That was an experience in itself. In the outback, communities are ruled by the elements and 2010 had experienced a late wet season. In the northern part of Australia it said that there are only two seasons in a year: the wet season, and the dry season.

The wet season occurs in the spring/summer months, and the dry season in autumn/winter.

 Because of the late wet, many of the roads were closed in the winter of 2010 and this  limited the places we could visit.  For us, in 2010, Lyndhurst was the end of the road (although I walked along it for about a hundred metres...I wasn't coming all that way to say I hadn't been along the Strzelecki Track!)

So four years later, we arrive in Innamincka along with what must be scores, if not hundreds of other tourists.  Here we find a Trading Post, and a hotel. There are coin operated showers and a toilet block in the car park.

 On the outskirts of the 'town' there is an 'airport' as well as a town common which is a free camper's haven alongside the Cooper's Creek.  It's a fisherman's dream to fish along the river's bank and entire families make this a destination.

At Innamincka, the hotel, not surprisingly, is called Innamincka Hotel.

The Innamincka Hotel has a beer garden which is called....outamincka bar & beer garden.

At Innamincka, there's a bar called Outamincka...

The play on words took a while to click but when it did, well, I thought it was cute!

Unfortunately, being not yet lunch time, the bar was closed so we partook of morning tea in the hotel, where everything comes with a sprinkling of dust...and an enormous amount of generosity as you can see from the size of the serve of ice-cream I received with my affogato...

I asked for an affogato....

...but then, the size of my serve of ice-cream may have something to do with the temperatures out here...in the desert...

You can see the shower block, on the right behind the screen.  A number of concrete water tanks have been transformed into 'buildings' to house the toilets and showers.

because it looks like the roads aren't only closed because of the wet,

 but also during the summer because of temperature extremes(40-50'C)!

And oh!...we have a saying here in Australia...avagoodweekend and don't forget the Aerogard.. the flies are so bad out here they would carry you away if you let them!

99th Anniversary of ANZAC Day 2014 Springwood NSW

We gather here today, not to glorify war or praise victors, but to remember those who have served our country during times of conflict and crisis, and to reflect upon their selfless sacrifice."

Afternoon Tea - Mother's Day

In Australia,

Mother's Day is celebrated on 

the second Sunday in May.

I was lucky enough to have all my children (residing in Sydney) spend the day with me.

In the afternoon we

visited extended family for lunch-which was quickly followed by afternoon tea.

I was also very lucky to receive a surprise in the mail from our eldest son and our new daughter in law, just in time for Mother's Day.

How did you spend Mother's Day?

When is Mother's Day celebrated in  your country?

Linking to Terri's

Teacup Tuesday

and 

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