four!

Made as a custom order by request this little golf club baby rattle is so cute! May it be the start of a new golfing career for the little New Jersey owner.

A range of Golf Club Rattles will be available in my Etsy shop soon.

play kitchens

DIY kitchen by Mamma Americana seen on Apartment Therapy ohdeedoh

Erika of Miko Design made this colourful play kitchen for her girls

Maya's Playhouse seen on Apartment Therapy ohdeedoh

Aren't these just wonderful! I found myself getting so excited about the thought of making a play kitchen for Ruby's birthday, but then reality stepped in and I realised how time poor we are. Damn that! Once I got over my disappointment I started to search for a readily made one that

1. was not plastic

2. was not gender specific

3. looked like the real thing

4. could be added to later on

This is what we found.

The Duktig Play Kitchen from Ikea

For those of you in Australia, it's not on the Ikea website but is in store if you ask. You can buy the base on it's own or add the top section with the microwave as a extra. I put it together myself while watching "Packed to the Rafters" in a couple of hours. The legs are height adjustable in 3 increments so it can grow with the child.

Here's a few pics of Miss Ruby's 4th birthday yesterday

Also, Happy Birthday to Auntie Lorrin on the other side of the world in Botswana (we hope these pics will make you & H feel like you were here with us yesterday).

You can read all about her adventurous travels here

apartment therapy

Hey hey!

Seems our house is getting a bit of exposure at the moment. Woo hoo!

Check out Apartment Therapy - Clean & Organized, Black, White & Green - organized??? I love that! Those who know me will be doubled over in laughter at this moment.

Aaaaaah.... the art of illusion :)

mermaid wip

Hi all. Just a quick pop in to report today's progress. Kids are in the bath, potatoes are boiling and gotta get into my netball gear.



Apologies for the poor photo - it's dark and my flash doesn't work. Anyways, the skirt is almost there. I'm a bit stuck with the tail - this is the front view and the netting creates the tail at the back. The plan is that it trails along behind (yes I know it will be stepped on and probably ripped by the time the day is out - but hey! it will look good). We had to call it quits today when Ruby refused to try it on "just one more time honey". The perks of working with an almost 4 year old I guess :)

I'd also like to say welcome to those of you are visiting for the first time from Bloesem Kids. I hope you enjoyed my Open House Tour and interview with Brittni of papernstitch. It was a lot of fun and a good excuse to get our place into order (even if it only lasts a few days).

pyjama crafting

Oh I'm sorry did you think I meant crafting OF pyjamas? No no, just the glamorous act of crafting IN pyjamas. Yes. Very attractive.

We have a special event coming up in our family - Miss Ruby turns 4 on Wednesday. When given a choice of party themes she decided to go with UNDER THE SEA. Of course she had an ulterior motive with this idea. As a big fan of Ariel (the mermaid) this meant that Ruby could come dressed as her favourite character. I, Mum, in a moment of madness suggested we make her outfit together. Aaahh....I'm now feeling a little perplexed at the thought of coming up with a mermaid outfit that will not disappoint Miss Ruby and her expectations, but alas, Monday (tomorrow) is the day for Ariel creations. Wish me luck! I'll keep you posted.

Keeping with the theme, we have been getting crafty over the last couple of weeks making decorations for the party space. Most of our ideas have come from here - a fabulous weekly newsletter about crafting projects for kids.

This morning (in our pyjamas) we got busy making these jellyfish. We used my sewing scraps as the dangley legs and stuck them with tape onto plastic plates.

We also made these crabs out of kitchen sponges, pegs and pipe cleaners. We're waiting for the sponges to dry in the sun before we stick their eyes on.

Look out! This crab is about to snap your finger!!

pancakes anyone?

We're trying to make a habit of having family pancakes for breakfast on Saturdays. It's a great way to start the weekend together, have a laugh (and the occasional tickle session) and talk about what we're going to get up to.

We've tried different cooked egg breakfasts but find pancakes to be the most popular with the little people and easier and faster to prepare in the morning when tummies are hungry and need to be fed NOW!

I'm still experimenting to find the perfect recipe. Last weekend I tried these pikelets which were super easy and super yummy.

Hope you're all having a great weekend too.

meet biddi

She's from an older generation and has stories to tell. She's looking for a new place to call home. Biddi is really quite charming with her long woollen legs and big cheeky smile. There's nothing she loves more than a good cup of tea and a midday movie. If you're looking for a little bit of vintage she's your girl!!

pinky pegasus bag

I've finally got around to capturing this creation on camera. Ruby needed a new bag for pre-school and I'm rebelling against pressure to buy Dora or Barbie or My Little Pony or any of the multitude of commercial influences that bombard our kids. When I see Ruby hang her bag in the mornings at pre-school I'm proud to see that she has some individuality. Having said this, I have childhood memories of feeling different because Mum made my school uniform and it was not identical to the others. It took me until my late teens to find the confidence to embrace the differences. I hope I'm able to guide my children from an early age to understand the beauty of handmade and not be embarrassed by it.

baby tools to go

available now here

yearbook yourself

Oh I had fun on this website. Easily amused some might say. Give it a go and see if you find yourself giggling like a teenager. I did!

1960

1964

1978

1992

This last photo looks so close to the real deal it's embarrassing. I had very big hair in the early 90's. If I can put my hands on an old photo I'll scan it and update this post - that way you too can have a laugh at my expense :)

art prints on etsy

I've been window shopping on Etsy for art prints. This rather eclectic mix all caught my eye and landed in the folder of favourites. Hopefully one might some day journey to a little house in South Australia!

Giclee Print (item No. P-2009-18) Fungus by JennSki

Someday - 11x14 Print by Yellena

Pink Dahlia, 7x7 fine art photography print by Rocky Top Studio

Elephant on Map, 6x6 photo box by Esoule

I've been...

....enjoying the sun on my skin in lovely Brisbane. A quick unplanned 5 nights in Queensland to spend some time with husband who was working up there.

If you were wondering (picture above number 3 on top of his RH foot), yes he does number his socks! He has about 5 pairs of identical running socks of varying age that I struggle to pair together - he thoughtfully numbered them to make it easier :)

So anyway, I haven't been to Brisbane for several years and must say I was amazed by the amount of construction going on (including the 6am jackhammer outside our hotel window). The city felt alive and kicking - something that winter lacks down south here where most of us tend to hide indoors.

We loved the Queensland & Scienceworks Museums (so much so we spent 2 days there)

and couldn't resist visiting the late Steve Irwin's Australia Zoo, or Bindi's Zoo as it is referred to in our family.

Then a couple of days at Southbank where the mid-20 degree weather was perfect for swims and walks and that finished our time in sunny Brisbane.

Batteries re-charged.