Willowmenia Needs a Name

I took a few photos of Willowmenia today and although she has my full attention at present, she still hasn't revealed her personality. I really don't want to keep the name given to her by Liz (it's a bit of a mouthful), but this darling doll is not opening up to me in any way. How do you find a name for a doll who keeps secrets?

When I have more time, I will have to do something about her eyelashes (at least the ones on her left eye or right when you look at her) as they became detached when I was inserting her very stubborn eyes. I did try putting them back on, but without a great deal of success . . . they are on, but they are not sitting as they should.

I thought yellow would be a complimentary colour for her beautiful chocolate resin and when I found a pair of MimiWoo yellow and white shoes amongst my stash which fitted her to perfection, I assumed I was on the right track.

Her outfit was designed by me, made without a pattern and stitched completely by hand. The eight piece outfit is comprised of a 100% Cotton (quilting weight) dress & matching hair band, Cotton Tana Lawn bloomers and over skirt, Supersoft Cotton Interlock arm and leg warmers.

Willowmenia is wearing an Off Black Monique Gold Geneva wig and has brown glass eyes.

My Garden . . . That Hubby Attends To

Thought I'd lighten the mood and share some photos of my garden. First are the photos I promised Alasse . . . my herb garden.

From the front: Flat Leaf Parsley, Sage, Oregano.

From the Front: Sage, Oregano and Basil.

We have been picking the herbs and using them, but I do wish the Basil would grow a little quicker, it's my favourit herb. I also have a Rosemary bush in my front garden.

Parsley, Cos Lettuce (2 types) and Snow Peas.

Leeks

I don't know why, but the Snow Peas are just not doing very well, neither are my Tom Thumb Tomatoes. In previous years we have had great crops from both of these. I think all the crazy weather is to blame.

We also planted Rocket, but that bolted and just went to seed in a week!

Now to my beautiful roses, these are called Double Delight. They also have the most beautiful fragrance, hence their name . . . they really do delight me in two ways!

As you can see they begin opening as a deep pink and eventually you see their cream centre, every rose is different, it's like they have been hand painted. They have lovely long stems which makes them perfect for cutting. I don't know how many vases I have filled this year, they have been blooming for weeks. As one vase full of roses fades, another set of roses are ready to come inside.

An update on Willowmenia . . . she has arrived and I am sewing her outfit at present, so photos coming soon. :)

Plans Gone Awry

I had been planning to share photos of Willowmenia (my Liz Frost doll) this week, but unfortunately her shipping has been delayed due to the fires throughout the north east coast of Australia. There are fires burning from The Sunshine Coast through to Canberra. You can see the extent of them here.

PHOTO: Brittany Daly

These fires are horrendous and so many people have lost their homes (577 in the last two weeks) and all their belongings. The homes can always be rebuilt and furniture can be replaced. However, you cannot replace photographs or personal items that have special memories attached to them.

Over a million hectares (2.5 million acres) have now been razed across New South Wales since the start of this year's unprecedented bushfire season. People have been killed and there has been so much destruction on the state's mid-north coast and northwest where bushfires ravaged regional towns. The rail between Brisbane and Sydney has been shut down, as the the lines have been warped by the fire.

Liz is right in the thick of this, at present she's okay, but it must be scary to have these fires so close to home. Being right on the coast, I think Liz should remain safe, however, the highway is closed and not knowing which way the fire will head next, my doll will remain with her until Liz knows it's safe to send her.

My thoughts and prayers go out to all those in the fire zone as things have been predicted to worsen. With forecasts of a heatwave later this week and temperatures expected to climb past 40 degrees Celsius in some areas, I am really dreading the outcome.

PHOTO: ABC

Sydney has been covered in smoke haze, South Australia has also had fires with 111 schools closed due to temperatures of 42C. Now fires are out of control in Western Australia.  What makes me really sick to my stomach is that some of these fires have been deliberately lit by teenagers . . . I don't know what goes on in those people's heads.

Meanwhile, the northern part of Victoria faces scorching days as northerly winds will leave temperatures well over 40C both today and tomorrow, which has prompted the CFA to declare a total fire ban for the Mallee region.

Melbourne was expected to heat up today before hitting one of its hottest November days ever, as temperatures are forecast to hit 39C tomorrow, so I'm going to take my doggy for his walk now before it gets too hot and I'll be back in a few days, hopefully with something more positive to talk about.