This has been a busy week, puppies, birthdays, visits from family and five customer quilts done. Phew, I hope this weekend is a nice quiet one after such a hectic schedule.

 I haven't had as much time to spend with the puppies as I'd like, so tomorrow I want to sit down and take mugshots of each puppy and have a good cuddle with all of them.

Pippi has been very tolerant  and shared them with all the visitors; she's not possesive, just a  bit anxious when they're picked up. She's proved to be a very good mother, it's lovely to see.

I may get a bit of sewing time in this weekend, it feels ages since I did anything for myself....

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 I hadn't mentioned Pippi's condition before and now it's all over, bar the squeaking and the constant feeding and the cleaning up.

Keryn has blogged about the arrival of the puppies here, so I won't go over it again. Pippi is being a wonderful mother and won't leave her charges for more than a few minutes, it's lovely to see how attentive she is. But after such a hard labour, this will be it for puppies. It's only fun when it goes well, like a lot of things. But this did end well in the long run, and now mother and  puppies are fine. The puppies are being steadily inflated  by their huge appetites, and they've grown so much already. I'll have to take lots of photos to record their progress, they're real cuties.

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 One of our dear friends was making these cross blocks, and I can remember being a bit doubtful about the pale red and white fabrics. I thought there wasn't enough contrast, and wondered if the pattern would show up when it was set together.

When she brought it to us for quilting, I fell in love with the beautiful transparent effect, and had to admit that the pale blocks absolutely make this quilt.

It's quilted with one of Keryn's pantos, Stitcherie, which suited it perfectly.

 I love the way the trellis fades in and out, and I'm wondering what a blue one would look like.....might have to add that to the list of tops I think!

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The blocks are set together, with rather boring tan sashing, but it's the only fabric that went with everything.

 I used two different brown prints for the connecting squares, and a slightly different tan for the outside strips because I didn't have enough of the first fabric. I've been quite frugal setting this together, but now I'm thinking that it needs to be rectangular, not square. I'll have to go back to the drawing board and work out something to extend it top and bottom. I want it to be a quick solution because I've spent enough time on this top already.....

I tend to lose the plot with patchwork at this time of year. There are so many things to be done out in the garden, in what passes for our very brief spring. I know that in the middle of February when all the plants are  shrivelling in the heat and I'm spending two hours a day trying to keep everything watered I will regret the new pots, but I can't resist my roses.

New ones this year are the RSL rose (Returned and Services League), a beautiful velvety crimson with petals that are amber on the reverse, quite stunning in fact. Some money from the sale of each rose goes to help support veterans and their families.

Candy stripe... which I've seen in a few gardens around town, and it's so healthy and strong and striking that I wanted one for myself

and my new favourite, Black Caviar, named after a famous racehorse. Sometimes I'm disappointed when a new rose flowers, and it doesn't live up to the hype. This rose is so beautiful, and looks exactly like the glorious picture on the label. Not only that, it's covered in buds, so it's going to put on a wonderful display for a while and the perfume is divine.

This is Chicago Peace, which I've had for a few years now, and is still breathtaking whenever it blooms.

I'm trying to get most of my pots planted in the ground, so I can set up automatic watering systems, but it's hard work. I tend to have these great enthusiastic spurts in the garden, and then the hot weather sets in and all I want to do is stay inside and sew.  For now I'm enjoying the outdoors, and my fabric will be waiting for me when it's too hot,  probably in a fortnight or so.....

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