On Eagles' Wings

I can now claim to have seen the Whitecliffs (not of Dover but of Taranaki, NZ) ...


(Whitecliffs in the background. We didn't get up close due to only being able to access them at low tide which, considering the timing of low tide, we didn't have time to walk around to both Elephant Rock and the Whitecliffs.)

... The Three Sisters in Two Countries (although there is debate over whether there are three sisters or only two since the sea has taken one away and appears to be in the process of birthing another. [And as an aside, DH and I saw the Three Sisters in Katoomba, Australia, when we were newly engaged and I should have realised then that when we climbed the Giant Staircase - I lost count somewhere after 900 steps - that this was a foretaste of pastimes to come.]) ...



(This photo shows the third sister on the right being birthed. Still attached by the umbilical cord but the sea will soon wear that away, just as the sea has washed other sisters away. [Apparently there used to b…

This is what happens when the younger members of the family record family events ...






... including significant events such as The Most Adorable Granddaughter#3's Fifth Birthday!

From small beginnings ...



... to frustrated times because it was growing so slowly ...


... to this-will-be-big-enough ...


... to I-can't-believe-I've-started-another-one-but-I-hate-to-waste-anything-even-rags ...


... to the memory of what it could have been if I hadn't given up half-way and cut it (and busted a sewing machine needle in the process) ...


Other "makings" have been more successful (and enjoyable) ...



... solid perfume (love this stuff!) ...


...homemade deodorant (best recipe yet) ...


... homemade skin and hair lotion (and sunscreen for those of us who don't burn easily, and insect bite cream, and after-sunburn cream for those who did burn and forgot the sunscreen, and eczema cream - this stuff is just wonderful! - even my kids use it which is saying something [Um, I don't seem to have recorded the recipe anywhere on this ol' blog of mine - I will soon - but it's basically equal amounts of shea butter and coconut oil melted together an…