Quietly Content at Home

 I love cross stitch magazines, my Addi knitting machine, making personalised icy pole holders with my Cricut and pumping out dozens of bookmarks. But picking up a crochet hook and some yarn is like arriving home after a long drive. I browsed through a crochet magazine on my library app and reading the patterns was like hearing my first language after working so hard on cross stitch for so long. Attributed to Tasha Tudor I have been using my girl's crochet play purse pattern to make little presents for a special little girl's second birthday. I am so happy with how the rainbow variegated one came out. Making it brought me so much joy after a long and tiring term. Left, centre are my crochet pattern linked above. Right is a daisy square by Melanie Ham I made into a bag.

There are thousands of wholesome book lists online and just as many parents and educators ready to share theirs. This is my list of enjoyable, clean and heart felt books for children aged 3 - 12 years. This list is a good place to look for a comfort read and a good story. Charlotte's Web by E. B. White What Katy Did by Susan Coolidge Little Women by Louisa May Alcott Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt The Magic Faraway Tree series by Enid Blyton The Wind In The Willows by Kenneth Graeme Heidi by Johanna Spyri The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett Pollyanna by Elaenor H. Porter Ruby Red Shoes by Kate Knapp Little Pilgrim's Progress by Helen Taylor Because of Winn Dixie by Kate Di Camillo Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing ...

 My dear Nan has been gone 13 years this August and it still doesn't seem real. My husband and children came after she went to Heaven and I had to become the wife and mother I always wanted to be with just her memories rather than her direct guidance. I was given a bag of her embroidered linens by my Aunt on a recent visit. I spent this past weekend treating, soaking and washing them. It's no secret that I adore ironing and pressing. Pressing these lovely handkerchiefs, runners, placemats and doilies has brought me so much joy. Just a small sample of the treasures I have made a few embroidered pieces for my girls such as hoops with their names and flowers in them for their doors. I also embroider their names or initials on some of their things like bags. I made a Christmas embroidery hoop a few years ago from a kit and it's my favourite thing to put up each December. Seeing just how many of these beautiful pieces my grandmother produced inspires me to keep going. Every litt...

 Learning to ride and care for horses is a wonderful experience for so many children. A love for horses can be explored and enjoyed through stories when getting to the stable is not possible. Here are some suggestions for books about horses and their humans. First we will go through some classics then all the series I have come across as a librarian. The classics are read and enjoyed by both boys and girls but the series on this list were written mostly by women, for a female audience aged 8 - 16. Horse Diaries however would appeal to boys who enjoy historical fiction for children such as My Story, My Australian Story and Royal Diaries. This is a simple list of cherished classics, for further details please check Common Sense Media, Booktopia, Amazon and any of the other wonderful lists of horse books that give summaries of the stories. Goodreads is not particularly good for reviews of classics or anything with religious characters. Classics The Black Stallion series ...