Go play outside....and mind The Snakes!!!

It's warming up in these parts so along with the regular mantra of telling the Kidlets to "go play outside"  you will often hear the addition of "....stay on the tracks and mind the snakes!". The warmer weather has brought the snakes out to sun-bake and the long grass is making it more difficult to see them - a disconcerting combination for my outdoor loving little adventurers.

There are 3 types of snakes in Tasmania - the Tiger Snake, Copperhead Snake and White-Lipped Snake. All venomous and the first two are in the top 10 deadliest snakes in Australia. All have been spotted on our property. However, they are generally shy creatures and usually only attack if trapped or threatened so we are not particularly frightened of them.  The last death from a snake bite in Tasmania (of a person who wasn't an actual snake handler) was in 1966 and all snakes respond to the same anti venin so if anyone was to be bitten, it could all be sorted with a quick trip to the hospital. Still, the Kidlets have been taught to have a healthy respect for these creatures and we are all mindful of them. We have also had Reptile Rescue come and remove the Copperhead that had made it's home at the top of the steps.

The current obsession with snakes around here fuelled my decision to make the Kids some pet snakes of their own and when I saw this pattern on The Purl Bee a few weeks ago, I went straight to my stash and started knitting immediately. They were super fun and easy to make and have been a huge hit. They have done the rounds at School for "Show and Tell" and accompanied the kids at sleepovers as well as causing some near heart-attacks as a result of cheeky bedtime pranks. Sigh.

Blue Eyes wanted a 'real' snake so luckily I had some multicoloured wool to combine with some grey wool for a realistic snake-stripey effect.  

Twin Boy who loves pink chose the pink multicoloured wool which I combined with black wool for the stripe.

Twin Boy who loves the blue chose blue and yellow from the stash along as well as blue star eyes. Sadly for him, my enthusiasm on the 3rd snake waned so his snake is noticeably shorter. However, luckily for me, I got away with it because I manipulated told him his snake was smaller but faster and deadlier. Win win!

It was in that moment I realised that I could never be a producer of mass knitted goods. Hypothetically of course as I don't have any plans to actually do this. I really only enjoy making something once and then moving on to a completely new project. Because there are just so many things I want to make right now. I'm completely obsessed with my new craft.

Finally, even though she still wants one of these snakes, Miss Fancy also wanted me to make her a scarf. It's an Ascot Scarf. Perfect for Spring and I found this great pattern here. I ran out of the teal so finished it off in white.

In other news, whilst I was taking photos of my latest knitted creations today and pondering what on earth I was going scramble together from the pantry for dinner, The Pianoman was having a private lunch with The Prime Minister of Australia. I mention it only because his day was such a far cry from the day I had which involved chopping up fruit, playing with trains and making sure the snakes didn't blow off the balcony while I photographed them. Whilst I'm name-dropping (for the benefit of the great grand children down the track) an interesting little fact is that the Pianoman has actually met and dined with the last 5 consecutive Prime Ministers of this country - Hawke, Keating, Howard, Rudd, and today our current Prime Minister, Julia Gillard. Apparently today she wore Apricot, she was delightful and gracious and the Lunch at The Lenna was very pleasant. He is a Lobbyist by profession and so this sort of thing is part of his job from time to time and although I wouldn't trade my role as a stay-at-home Mum for anything, just sometimes my life is put in rather harsh perspective as our daily activities are so very different. Knitted snakes versus lunch with the Prime Minister. Hmmm....Rest assured, he is well and truly back in reality land and slaving away knocking some more floorboards together while I type this Post on the cold concrete floor. We are halfway through finishing the 6-hour Floor!