This Beautiful Mess

P52 Week 5

2012-02-06T00:22:00.000+10:00

Week 5 theme - Get out from behind the camera

It's always the way, as the memory keeper for my family I rarely step out from behind the camera. I need to start doing it more, because photos like this are a true reflection on our everyday life. Simple memories that will last a lifetime.

P52 Week 4

2012-02-04T14:10:00.001+10:00

I'm a little late this week, but never the less, the theme for week four was 'Unexpected Perspective'.

My favourite food, from above. I love that it looks almost like fireworks.

P52 Week Three

2012-01-20T12:55:00.002+10:00

The theme for week 3 of Project 52 is Negative Space.

Not far from our house is a house with a little flower stall out the front. The flowers are always gorgeous. There's nothing I love more than fresh flowers.

P52 Week Two

2012-01-16T12:35:00.001+10:00

This week's Project 52 was Responsibility.

To raise two honest, thoughtful, compassionate, hard working, happy boys. This is my responsibility. Sometimes it's hard work, sometimes it's fun, but it's a job filled with love.

Remember you can keep up to date with Project 52 via my flickr stream.

Project 52

2012-01-09T12:12:00.003+10:00

Last year I embarked on a Project 365. I failed. I got to day 247 and got distracted by other things going on and just never got back to it. On reflection, I think I got board. I didn't always have much time to put the thought into each shot like I wanted to. I also lost my way with inspiration, I felt like I was capturing similar images all the time.

Anyway, this year I've decided to dial it back a bit. I'm joining in with the Paint the Moon - Let's Do 52 project. I'm a little late with my first entry (I hope that's not an omen) but here it is. This weeks themes were Share or Natural.

Heavenly Lavender

2012-01-07T15:39:00.000+10:00

When my mum comes to visit we like to play tour guide, visiting the local attractions and going on tourist route drives. When Mum was here over Christmas one of the first places we took her was Bridestowe Estate Lavender Farm.

This place was amazing! We wandered through the lavender fields listening to the humof the bees at work and marvelled at the majestic 200 year old oak tree.

Mumbought up half the gift shop and then we treated ourselves to morning tea in thecafé. Delicious is an understatement! We had lavender shortbread, chocolatelavender fudge and lavender scones with apple and lavender jelly and cream. Thescones were by far my favourite and I was thrilled to find that you could takehome the recipes for all of the café’s lavender items.

Yesterday, while I was editing the photos I took at Bridestowe Estate, I suddenly got the urge to whip up a batch of lavender scones, only problem was that I couldn't find the recipe anywhere! From memory the recipe was just a lemonade scone with the addition of a couple of tablespoons of lavender. So here's the recipe that I made up.

Lavender Scones

Ingredients

300 ml of cream
300 ml of lemonade
3 1/2 cups of SR Flour
3 tabs of culinary lavender
pinch of salt

Method

Combine the flour, salt and culinary lavender in a bowl and make a well in the centre
In a separate jug/bowl whisk together the cream and lemonade.
Pour the lemonade/cream into the flour mixture and mix using a knife until just combined.
Turn out onto a floured board or counter and gently pat the dough out until it's about an inch thick.
Using a round cutter, cut out each scone and place on a baking tray.
Brush the top of each scone with milk and bake in the a 180c oven for 20-25 mins.

I served my lavender scones as they do at the Bridestowe Cafe with apple and lavender jelly and whipped cream.

You can buy culinary lavender from the Bridestowe Estate online store. 20g doesn't sound like much but there's probably about 10-12 tablespoons in each tin. So there's plenty in that little tin to make lots of lavender goodies. You'll also find the apple and lavender jelly in the online store too.

These scones are seriously heaven!

If you are ever in Tassie, I highly recommend a visit to Bridestowe. The best time of year is mid December to late January, that's when the lavender is in full bloom. Bridestowe is located about 45 mins NE of Launceston.

NB This is not a sponsered post, I have no professional affiliation with Bridestowe Estate. I am merely in love with the place!

Happy New Year!

2012-01-03T12:45:00.001+10:00

Happy New Year!! Can you believe it’s 2012? I hope you allhad a happy and safe festive season.

My beautiful mum flew down from Brisbane to spend two weekswith us over Christmas. It was so great to have her here. The kids miss her somuch and they just loved having her here.

We visited some great places while Mum was here, BridestoweLavender Farm, Perfecta Cherry Farm, The Berry Patch and The Makers Workshop. Wealso did a tonne of shopping and visited family in Launnie too.

Christmas Day was great! The boys had an awesome timeopening their presents and aftwerwards we skyped with my sister and her partner.Mum, Brock and I enjoyed fresh croissants for breakfast while Jack and Mr Messate weetbix (boring!). My SIL and nephew joined us for lunch and the kids had agreat day playing with their new toys and jumping on their new trampoline. Wehad dinner with friends and the kids had even more fun. It really was a wonderfulday.

Boxing Day was just fantastic too. My step son and his family came over for lunch. The kids had a blast together (they always do). We all spent the afternoon outside, there was backyard cricket, totem tennis, nerf guns and of course bouncing on the trampoline.

I relaxed under the cherry blossom tree to escape the blistering sun.

Mum flew back to Brisbane on new year’s eve. Even though Ihate goodbyes, I’m getting better at them. The boys were boys sad to see theirgrandma leave, I’m sure Jack thought she was staying for good! We also visitedmy SIL for a couple of hours afterwards. While the kids were happy to sit andplay lego, Mr Mess and I went out to meet the 15 new additions to the farm.

New year’s eve was another quiet one for us, but I wastotally thrilled that Mr Mess managed to stay awake and see in the new yearwith me. We watched the fireworks on tv together and wondered if our numberscame up in the big lotto draw (no news there yet, still haven’t checked theticket).

All in all it was a wonderful festive season for us and Ihope it was for you too!

Weekend Rewind

2011-12-12T10:21:00.001+10:00

What do you get if you mix two friends, four children and two gingerbread santa sleigh making kits?? Hours of giggling, a sugary mess, a slight headache and a dodgey but cute gingerbread sleigh.

How was your weekend?

Beachy Shadows

2011-12-11T11:23:00.001+10:00

It's been a long time since I participated in any blog memes and I've really missed it. So I'm easing myself back into blogging by participating in this weeks Shadow Shot Sunday, hosted by Hey Harriet.

My boys and our dog Rosie enjoy the summer sunshine.

Oh Holy Night!

2011-12-09T16:32:00.001+10:00

Can you believe it's December?? It's unbelievable how fast this year seems to have gone by. My boys have been harassing me about all things Christmas since mid November! This past week we've been getting right into the spirit of it though. Last weekend we attended the Penguin Christmas Parade. We all had a great night, the parade was heaps of fun to watch and the boys got to meet Santa afterwards. Jack was a little overwhelmed by the parade...

We also spent a couple of hours putting up our spindly tree. It really has seen better days I think. I'm going to keep an eye out for a new one at the post xmas sales.

Today was our very last visit to playgroup, Jack's off to Kinder next year so it's the end of an era in a way. He had lots of fun playing with his friends and singing Christmas carols. He even got his face painted with a cute little Christmas tree.

It really is beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Scratch That

2011-12-05T11:12:00.001+10:00

In my last post I shared my new home but lets scratch that! It's just my new business home. I've missed blogging over the last few months and I'm excited to get back into it. There will probably be a few changes around here though, a bit of a design tweak to change things up a bit, but it's still the same old me jibbering away about stuff.

New Home

2011-11-14T17:13:00.001+10:00

I've made some changes! You can now find me at www.emmamaneyblog.com

APC Wrap Up

2011-09-06T10:15:00.000+10:00

Life's got in the way again. Here are the last few days of the August Photo Challenge.

"After Dark"

I took this from within the car (I wasn't driving obviously). I really like how it turned out.

"Daily Routine"

"Purchased"

"In Motion"

Thomas on the move.

I decided to add in one final shot for the last day of the month.

Sunrise

APC Catch Up

2011-08-26T17:54:00.001+10:00

I'm a little bit behind in my blogging, but hopefully I'll get caught up this weekend. Here's the last ten days worth of the August Photo Challenge.

Day 18 : In my bag

Day 19 : Where I slept

Day 20 : What I read

Day 21 : A Pretty Pattern

Day 22 : Trees

Day 23 : Sunset

Day 24 : A smile

Day 25 : Sunflare

Day 26 : Something Old

Yes, I did put a self portrait up for something old. I thought it only fitting after turning 30 earlier this week.

Pinspiration

2011-08-18T00:09:00.000+10:00

Ok I've already admitted I'm addicted to Pinterest. I thought I'd share with you, my loverly readers, some of my favourite finds from this awesome site.

Today : In The Kitchen

I mentioned this recipe for Corn Dogs/Dagwood Dogs/Pluto Pups whatever you like to call them, last week. Though I did simplify and Aussie-fy it a little : 1 cup SR Flour, 1/2 Polenta, 4 Tabs Sugar, 1/2 teasp each of Salt and Garlic powder, 1 and 1/4 cups of milk. Mix it all together till smooth and then follow the rest of the instructions. Here's a little pic of my end result, just to make your tummy rumble :)

I made these awesome Cinnamon Doughnut Muffins at school for the canteen's weekly baked treat. They were an enormous hit, we sold 4 dozen of them in one day! They are super easy to make and are so so yummy. Again I tweaked the recipe a little, I just can't help myself. I simplified by subbing SR flour for the plain flour and baking powder. After the first batch, I also switched the nutmeg and cinnamon quantities. So I added 1/2 teasp of cinnamon and only 1/4 teasp of nutmeg. Nutmeg can be pretty pungent and I thought it was a little too much. You MUST try them.

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ICE CREAM. Well now you can make your own homemade ice cream without any fancy or expensive kitchen gadgets. I've been following Kevin and Amanda for awhile, but when this recipe popped up on Pinterest, I fell in love all over again. It couldn't be easier and it's so beautifully smooth and creamy. The best part is you can easily customize it to make all your favourite flavours or even invent new ones. Our last batch was Rocky Road, we added choc chips, coconut, mini marshmallows and glace cherries. YUM!

APC Day 17

2011-08-17T14:01:00.000+10:00

"On the shelf"

Not really a shelf I suppose, but our kitchen window sill does have stuff on it. It's mainly used to store lego creations out of Reggie's reach. There's quite a collection today, I think B-Boy might have forgotten about them.

APC Day 16

2011-08-17T10:09:00.000+10:00

"What you ate"

Home made chicken fried rice.

APC Day 13, 14 & 15

2011-08-16T11:08:00.000+10:00

Geez I'm getting a bit slack with this aren't I? I meant to post these yesterday afternoon but alas, life got in the way again. Here goes.

"From a distance"

Lookin Back

"Flowers"

Paper Cherry Blossoms by Jack

"My Shoes"

I'll be back later with today's pic.

Wear Red

2011-08-15T17:09:00.000+10:00

Wear red and show your support for Daniel Morcombe and his courageous family.

Daniel went missing on the 7th of December 2003.

He was last seen at approximately 2pm at an unofficial bus stop on Nambour Connection Rd, Woombye.

It's been nearly 8 years since Daniel disappeared and there has finally been a significant advance in his case. Saturday, August 13th 2011, Qld Police held a press conference announcing that a man had been arrested and charged with 5 offences relating to the disappearance and murder of Daniel. Police commenced a new search for his remains the same day. While the case has been adjourned until late September, the police search continues.

Daniel's family have asked for the community's continued support in their campaign for child safety. My family wore red today to show our support. It's now my personal mission to make sure that my son's school participates in the Day for Daniel this year.

How can you get involved?

Check out the Daniel Morcombe Foundation website for more information on how you can get involved.

Don't forget to 'like' and share their Facebook page too.

This Saturday I'm grateful for.....

2011-08-13T14:59:00.000+10:00

The weekend!

I'm ever so grateful for this weekend. Of course there's the usual reasons of not having to get up early and get B-Boy off to school, being able to sloth around in my leggings and not quite long enough cardigan (are you shocked?) and snuggling up on the couch to catch up with my favourite bloggers. However I'm especially grateful for this weekend because my week has been so busy and I'm grateful for the chance to take a break.

To catch up with some more grateful bloggers this weekend, visit one of my favourite gals at Maxabella Loves.

APC Day 8-12

2011-08-13T14:33:00.000+10:00

"Technology"

"A faceless self portrait"

"Something I made"

"Something fun"

Ok I admit it, I'm addicted to Pinterest! It's just so hard to say no!!

"Close Up"

APC Day 6 & 7

2011-08-08T12:33:00.000+10:00

Been so busy this weekend that I haven't got around to uploading my pics. Here's day 6 and 7.

"Childhood Memory"

Some call them pluto pups, the yanks call them corn dogs, but I've always known them as dagwood dogs. Growing up in Brisbane, the highlight of the year was the Royal Brisbane Show aka The Ekka. We were lucky enough that Mum took us most years. It was THE best! Sideshow alley, the show bag pavillion, the animals, the demonstrations and of course the firework show at the end of each night. What wasn't to love? The most memorable part of going to Ekka each year was the food. We got to eat things at the Ekka that we didn't get anywhere else. Fairy Floss, Strawberry Sundays and Dagwood Dogs!

(I'll be back later this week with an awesome recipe to make your own!)

"Something New"

New paint job! More on that tomorrow too :)

Happy Monday my friends!

APC Day 5

2011-08-05T17:42:00.000+10:00

Someone you love.

Jack

APC Day 4

2011-08-05T17:41:00.000+10:00

Favourite Colour

Deep Red

APC Day 2 & 3

2011-08-03T22:57:00.000+10:00

"Something you wore"

"Clouds"

Do you forgive me? I'm a little late but in my defense, I've had a vomity kid to care for :( He's on the mend now though. See you tomorrow night for day four!

August Photo Challenge

2011-08-02T12:56:00.000+10:00

I've been spending a bit of time on Pinterest lately. Well ok I'll admit it's more than just a bit, I am a pin addict. I love to pin and repin the awesome things I find. I love seeing what other people are inspired by. Pinterest is a bit voyeuristic like that, in a good way not in a weird, peeping through your windows kind of way...... Anyway, my point, (I do have one) is that Pinterest is awesome, if you haven't already you should sign up immediately.

Actually that wasn't the point of this post. I get distracted easily and go off on a tangent but I eventually do get back on track. Yesterday I came across this on Pinterest.

The challenge is being hosted by Sherry and Jennifer. I'm in! Hopefully it will force me to be a bit more creative with my shots. I'm finding my Project 365 a bit mundane of late. I am still determined to complete it, but next year I think I'll do something a little different. But for August I'm throwing myself into this little challenge and thought I'd share it over here instead of one my photo blog.

So here goes nothing. I know I'm a little late, didn't get to upload last night but I'm sure you'll forgive me.

I'll be back later today with day 2. Exciting!

Grateful......

2011-07-30T12:14:00.001+10:00

This Saturday I am grateful for my gorgeous new kitchen floor!

We're embarking on a little make over adventure. There's several areas of our humble abode that require a small amount of attention. It's mostly just decorating, but there are a few things that need a bit more. Our kitchen is one of the latter. When the house was renovated they put tiles in the kitchen, hallway, bathroom, toilet and laundry. It was a crappy tiling job and we've been going back and forth on alternatives since we bought the house. Last weekend though, we finally made a decision.

With a replacement picked, it was time to start the demolition work. We spent about 5 hours on Saturday taking up the tiles, the cement sheeting and removing about 2000 nails the had held the cement sheeting down. By Saturday night our hands, backs and hips were aching. On Sunday we took a trip to Launie to go to Bunnings to buy our new floor. (On a side note, do you know how much it sucks not having a Bunnings close by? 3 hour round trip to visit the DIY mecca! Crap huh?)

Anyway, we did a little bit of prep work to the subfloor, with the intention of laying the new floor when Mr Mess has next weekend off. But while I was at canteen on Thursday, he went ahead and did it all by himself!! I came home to this!!!

Isn't it gorgeous?! We just love it. It was so easy to lay and feels so comfortable under foot. It's no where near as cold or as slippery as the tile was. It fits in perfectly with the colour of the carpet in the lounge and the vertical blinds. The only thing that it looks a bit odd with is our dining table. Though it's on the makeover list anyway so we'll see what we can come up with. Next on the list is to replace the tiles in the hallway. Hopefully that will be finished next weekend.

For more grateful bloggers, head over to Maxabella Loves.

The Details

Flooring : Gerflor Senso Rustic Self Adhesive Vinyl Planks

Colour : Noisette

Supplier : Bunnings Launceston

Price : $25/m2

PS Thank you for all the lovely comments last week. Gail's funeral was held this past Monday. The boys seem to be coping well, though I'm sure there will be some tough times ahead for them. Again thank you all for your kind words.

Wordless Wednesday : A Frosty Morning

2011-07-27T10:19:00.000+10:00

This Saturday I'm grateful for.....

2011-07-23T00:53:00.001+10:00

The rising sun.

One of the mums at Brock's school suddenly passed away this week.

She was 40 years old and leaves behind her husband and two beautiful little boys.

Unfair doesn't even begin to describe it.

So this week I'm grateful I got to see the sun rise again.

I'm grateful for another day with my loved ones.

I'm grateful to be reminded of what is really important.

I'm grateful to be alive.

Maxabella Loves is on pause this week, so head over to BabyMac for more grateful bloggers.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-07-20T12:25:00.002+10:00

It's definitely winter here on the NW coast of Tasmania.

To see more visit

This Saturday I'm grateful for.....

2011-07-16T13:45:00.000+10:00

Flowers from my littlest boy.

He picked all the flowers in the ~~lawn~~ garden for me.

Each one melted my heart a little bit more.

The promise of spring.

This is my cherry blossom.

I am excitedly anticipating this years display.

A surprise, out of season, local produce find.

They are sweet and juicy and a welcome taste of summer.

Visit Maxabella Loves for more greatful bloggers.

This Saturday I'm grateful for.....

2011-07-09T10:45:00.000+10:00

Finally feeling better again. Now I can get back to taking photos, cooking, blogging and all the other things I've missed over the last two weeks.
Electric Blankets. It got down to 2 here the other night! Suffice to say we are all very grateful for the electric blankets we invested in last year, was definitely a smart purchase.
Sleep. Jack stayed in his own bed two nights in a row this week. For a 3 and a half year old kid who's only slept through the night twice in his life, this was a big deal for us.

For more grateful bloggers head over to Maxabella Loves.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-06-15T11:07:00.001+10:00

Volcanic Ash Plume - NW Tasmania's Perspective

Linking up with Faith Hope & a whole lotta love.

Do you Pin?

2011-05-03T11:13:00.000+10:00

The latest buzz worthy thing around the blogosphere is Pinterest. Sherry from YHL explains it beautifully in this post. So rather than blab on and on about how much I love pinning, I thought I'd offer a couple of invites to my fellow bloggy pals. You see Pinterest membershiip is by invite only. You can sign up for the waiting list, but it generally takes a couple of weeks to get your registration invitation. But if you're invited by an existing user, you can start pinning straight away!

I have 5 left to hand out today, so hands up who wants one? Leave me a comment with your email address or send me an email at emmatplay@live.com.au If you already pin, leave me a link to your boards so I can follow!

Happy Pinning!

Miss Rosie

2011-05-02T18:33:00.000+10:00

I thought I'd share a couple of photos from Miss Rosie's first week at home. She's very cute and fun....and playful. And smart....she's so smart! LOL I'll stop gushing now and leave you with the pics :)

Rosie

2011-04-26T11:43:00.000+10:00

Meet our newest member of the family, Rosie.

She's a very cute Cavalier/Maltese cross.

We brought her home yesterday.

She likes Brock, feet, sleeping and Mr Mess' slippers.

This Saturday I'm grateful for.....

2011-04-16T11:54:00.000+10:00

After the week I've had I definitely needed to take some time to reflect and remind myself to be grateful for what I do have.

A good GP and antibiotics. Without these my poor little B-boy would be so so sick still.
A small lotto win. A sure fire way to put a little smile on your face.
An empathetic mum. I don't know what I'd do without her in my world. I hope I can someday repay all that she's done for me.

What are you grateful for this weekend? Play along over at Maxabella Loves.

Favourite Things : Savoury Muffins

2011-04-13T18:58:00.001+10:00

My SIL made these for us last weekend and I've been thinking about them since. After cooking my own batch today, I've decided they are my latest favourite food. I know they have been around since Adam was a boy but man they are good!

Why I love them so....

They are super simple to bake.
You can customize the mix to suit your needs.
From the moment you decide to bake them, it only takes 30 mins to be devouring them.
They're great for breakfast, lunch and snacks!
Portability! These little suckers can go in the kids lunch boxes, stuff a couple in your handbag for road trips or fill your picnic basket with them.
Make mini muffins for your little people or texas ones for the real manly men in your life.
They are just SO yummy!

Recipe

1 1/4 cup SR flour (white or wholemeal)

1 cup grated cheese*

2 rashers of bacon*

1 tbsp of chives*

1 cup of milk

1 egg

pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 200C and grease a standard muffin tray with canola oil spray.
Whisk egg and milk together in a small bowl or jug and set aside.
In a second bowl mix flour, cheese, bacon, chives and salt together.
Add the egg and milk mixture to the flour mixture and mix with a fork until just combined.
Divide evenly between the twelve muffin holes.
Bake for 20-25 mins until golden and the tops spring back when pressed lightly.

If you plan to store your muffins, allow them to cool completely on a baking rack. If you're wanting to enjoy them straight away, allow them to cool for a couple of mins in the tin before serving.

You can play around with the ingredients marked with a (*). Here's a list of alternatives:

Grated Zucchini, Bacon and Chives
Sun dried Tomato, Olives and Basil
Grated Pumpkin, Spinach and Feta
Cheese, Bacon and Corn

Give'em a go :)

Wordless Wednesday

2011-04-06T11:13:00.002+10:00

Yes I'm finally back in the swing of things, check out my photo blog for the 365 catch up.

The end of an era

2011-03-16T16:34:00.000+10:00

My world changed forever yesterday. Ok so maybe that's over dramatising the situation a little but hey I'm highly emotional at the moment.

You see, yesterday these arrived.

Which meant this had to happen.

Then my heart broke.

I'm not ready for this part of my life to be over.

While my yearning for another baby isn't exactly hidden, the realistic chances of being blessed with another messy babe is far from high. I never been one to revel in the raw honesty of reality in regards to conceiving, though I'm afraid that basking in the warmth of hopes and dream will eventually become too hard to take.

And so it really is the end of and era.

This Saturday I'm grateful for.....

2011-03-12T07:26:00.000+10:00

My SIL, because she drives the 3 hour round trip to see us so that her son and my boys get a chance to spend more time together. They are the three youngest of the grand children and it's important they get to build a relationship through their childhood just like their older cousins have over the past 18-25 years.

My MIL & FIL, because they have kindly looked after Jack for the last two Mondays while I ease into my new role as canteen co-ordinator at Brock's school. He's had a wonderful time with them and it's clear they love having him over. I can already see their bond strengthening. It's lovely to watch.

School Mum friends, because they have been very encouraging over the last two weeks as I get the school canteen up and running. They've lent much support and even an ear to vent my frustrations. They get it :)

What's got you smiling this week? What are you grateful for? Join in over at Maxabella Loves.

Decorating Ideas

2011-03-11T22:41:00.001+10:00

The boys finally get their bunk beds next week, so all my ideas and planning will finally come together. Maybe now I can move onto our room. Even though we have the house on the market, I figure a makeover won't hurt and if we can't sell (the market seems to have died down here) well I'll get to enjoy my efforts for longer :)

So here's what I'm starting with.....

Pretty blank canvas really. See that wall colour?? I don't know the name of it but it's beige I guess...It's everywhere! The walls, the architraves, the skirting boards, the cornices even the ceiling! Except for the odd "feature" wall which is painted a cool grey/brown colour. blergh. The "feature" wall in our room is opposite the wall that the bed is on... weird. Anyhow, I plan to paint out the current feature wall to match the others while painting the skirtings, cornices and architraves a nice bright white. I'll leave the ceilings for now I think :S

I'll be keeping the side tables, baskets and lamps. They are the start of the makeover. The bed of course will stay but I'm planning a headboard, most likely an upholstered headboard, but no matter the type it'll be white and minimalist, not huge and no fancy shapes. Something like this.....

Sorry I don't remember where this pic came from, if you do please let me know and I will provide the link :)

Now I'm after a bit of advice as to what other colour to incorporate. I'm not keen on just having neutrals, I'd really love to add some colour. Initially I thought a rich deep red, but Mr Mess was worried it was too strong. He suggested green but I only like lighter greens and I think I'd like to have a deep colour. So at the moment we're thinking a tealy blue....

I can either paint the wall behind the bed with this and make a huge statement OR should I pick a deeper neutral shade for the wall and add the teal in small scatterings, think a graphic print above the bed head, some sort of trim around the lampshades, scatter cushions and a throw....What do you think?

Which way would you go? What do you think of our potential colour choice? Have you got any other tips or suggestions for me?

A friendly favour?

2011-03-09T16:08:00.000+10:00

Hello my lovely followers! Yesterday I entered the I Heart Faces photo challenge over on my photo blog. This week it's a peoples choice challenge, so everyone can vote. There doesn't seem to be very many votes just yet, which is a shame. Head on over and take a look at some of the fab entries and vote for your top ten.

I'm #265 just incase you're interested ;)

Did you miss me?

2011-03-07T17:08:00.000+10:00

Well they do say absence makes the heart grow fonder lol

I've had a busy few weeks. Last year, somehow, I got roped into running the school canteen this year. So the last week or so, I've spent ordering food, refining the menu, accepting deliveries and teeing up volunteers. Today was our first day and it went off with only a few small hitches. I'm still in dire need of more volunteers (aren't all schools?) but hopefully we might get a few more parents who are interested. Now that the first one is done and dusted, hopefully it won't be so hectic and I can do a bit more blogging. Both of my poor blogs have been neglected :(

Brock earned himself a Gold Card Award today at school. These are a very big deal and we are so proud of him for working so hard. He's been doing so well in class this year. His teacher tested his reading today too and he's progressed 3 levels higher over the school holidays! So so proud.

This Saturday I'm grateful for.....

2011-02-26T10:07:00.001+10:00

1. Not having an open house this weekend. Last weekend was a dismal failure with the rain keeping everyone away :( So I'm grateful that I don't have to rush around keeping the boys from messing up the place.

2. Mr Mess working this weekend. That probably is mean because I know he'd rather be at home with us but the weekends he works gives me some extra down time to catch up on all my favourite blogs, get up to date with my own blogs and just generally potter about. The boys seem to like not having to go anywhere too, work weekends are a vege weekend here in the Mess house :)

3. Home baked goodies. Kenny's been hard at work again. Together we whipped up a batch of my MIL's 123 biscuits as well as a batch of these delicious cinnamon scrolls.

They were so yummy!

Come and tell us what you're grateful for this Saturday. Join in at Maxabella Loves.

DIY Friday

2011-02-25T16:46:00.001+10:00

I thought I'd share one of the DIYish things I've been upto in the last few weeks.

Now if you follow me on Twitter you'll know that I ran out of spray paint in the middle of a project last week. Well, I've finally finished it and I thought I would share the before and afters. Well I actually forgot to take a proper before shot, so I had to poor through my photo archives to find one (I'll be sure I won't make the same mistake next time!)

Before (way before)

This chest was a part of Jack's cot set. We didn't really need a toy chest but I suppose it has come in handy. Whilst the change table is long gone and the cot is about to be retired, I knew the boys wouldn't really outgrow the need for storage. The thing is we have a lovely set of white bunk beds on order so the toy chest in it's current form just wasn't going to work.

After!

I used one and a half cans of White Knight Squirts spray paint in Satin White. It's an enamel paint so there's a bit more involved in the clean up but I believe the pay off will be a harder wearing surface. The finish is, well, satiny. LOL Not too shiny and quite professional looking too :)

I had intentions of transforming the lid into an upholstered seat however I stumbled upon these "floor" cushions at a local discount store for less than a fiver each! The best thing about the cushions is that I can swap them out if we change the decor or location of the chest :) At the moment these cushions will go nicely with the rest of the decor in the boys room.

Soul Food

2011-02-20T01:18:00.000+10:00

When I was a little girl, my mum's side of the family would come together at my grandmother's house for dinner on friday nights. With nine of us to feed, including four hungry children, Grandma always dished up a stellar meal. The one I remember the most was her spaghetti bolognese, which was my absolute favourite.

She would use a huge stock pot to boil the tubular spaghetti in and a large heavy based pot for the sauce. She'd start early in the afternoon. I believe the original recipe was a Sicilian one which came from a friend of hers. It had the most distinctive flavour, in part due to the inclusion of carrots and celery, but also because it was Grandma's Spaghetti, non could compare.

Long after the friday night tradition waned, my mother kept Spaghetti Bol on the weekly menu, adding her own touches. It was one of the first dishes I learnt to cook and over time my methods have changed too. These days I opt for an easy version, one that's quick to make and I know the boys will eat.

It starts with sauteing a small finely dice brown onion (gotta be brown they're sweeter), diced bacon rashers and chopped mushrooms.

Then add some mince.

Cook some of this.

Add both of these. (my boys don't like chunky bits of tomato)

You end up with this......

Tummy warming, memory invoking, nourishing, comforting, soul food.

This Saturday I'm grateful for.....

2011-02-19T12:58:00.000+10:00

Mr Mess

It's been a hectic week this week. The last thing I needed was an open home to prepare this weekend, but alas that's what was on the agenda. My dear thoughtful husband Mr Mess took yesterday afternoon off to help me contain the children and clean the house top to bottom. I love him so.

Join in at Maxabella Loves and tell us what you're grateful for this Saturday.

When.....How....?

2011-02-15T21:49:00.000+10:00

Just yesterday he was a little boy. The day before that a cheeky little toddler, the day before that he was my baby! When and how did he grow up? It's not possible that this BOY is my child.....is it?

Grade 2....He started Grade 2 today! It can't be true, I'm in denial. I must be having some sort of weird flash forward into the future.....right?

Mr Mess

2011-02-14T21:25:00.000+10:00

We're not big on Valentine's Day, we never have been. I think in our first year together there were flowers and gifts exchanged for Valentine's Day, but life took over and we'd mainly celebrate the day of lurrrve with a nice dinner and a bit of a smooch.

So it was a real surprise when Mr Mess came home today with these.....

Made me giddy as a school girl with her first crush. I still have the silly smile on my face.

Happy Valentine's Day.

An afternoon with Jack

2011-02-14T15:49:00.001+10:00

Happy Monday friends!

Hope you've all had a wonderful weekend.

We've been busy getting ready for the first day of school tomorrow, so the weekend was pretty boring. Though The Dude, aka Jack, and I managed to spend a couple of hours playing together on Saturday afternoon.

We started out doing this....

Then I got seriously light headed from blowing bubbles so I put them away. Jack's reaction was this......

His reaction to taking the above photo was this........

Then we had a cuddle and he noticed this........

When I explained it was a grass stain, he said "Why do the grass colour in my shorts for?" *Melt*

Then Daddy delivered him his big brother's remote control car and off he went.

I'm linking up with Scissors Paper Rock and Fat Mum Slim. Come and join in :)

New name

2011-02-13T16:36:00.000+10:00

I just wanted to let everyone know that I've decided to change the name of my blog :) I just wasn't feeling the old one anymore, I don't think it quite fit with what I was posting about.

I'm also in the midst of a little bit of an update on the look to, so things will probably look a bit higglty pigglty for the next 24 hours.

This Saturday I'm grateful for.....

2011-02-12T14:44:00.002+10:00

It's Saturday already! Where on earth did the last week go? The days have started to flash by again, before I know it another year will have gone by. Why is it the older you get the faster the years go by?

Anyway it's time to link up with Maxabella Loves and a bunch of grateful bloggers.

So this week I'm grateful for many things.

1. Blog Comments

Everytime I receive a new comment, I smile. To be honest getting comments on my blogs (yes that's plural, have you seen my photo blog?*) absolutely makes my day....That someone cares enough to read and leave a comment is just....well...I'm grateful that they took the time :)

2. Bloggers who post freebies

Who doesn't love a freebie? Whether it's a free download or a tutorial, bloggers are smart people and have much to share. These are some of the fab freebies I've found this week.

Plans for a cool bed head and a super easy daybed from Ana White.
A quick and easy solution for our unsightly ensemble bed base from Heather Mulder Peterson.
Centsational Girl, what can I say, the plethora of DIY tutorials Kate has is ahhhmazzzzing
A fabulous tutorial on adding textures to photos by Rita @ The CoffeeShop Blog. Check out my first go....

If you are into photography or want to learn more about how to edit your photos, Rita's blog is an amazing resource overflowing with tutorials and freebies.

3. Great content blogs.

You know the blogs who always have something great to read? All of the blogs that I read religiously are have great content (all 25 that I check on a DAILY basis, addicted much?), but these are my top five favourites this week.

4. Bloggers who say NO.

Not just any blogger who says no, bloggers who say no to word verification! I'm not sure if it's a new trend or what but man those little word verification things are annoying. I love participating in photo challenges and blog hops and always do my best to visit all the participants, but those little boxes are the bain of my blogging existence. So I'm grateful for the bloggers who make it a little easier and quicker for me to leave a comment :D

(Edited to add, after receiving an email stating that laziness in the reason I don't like WV, I just wanted to clarify, I still visit and comment on blogs that have WV, I just find the ones without a little more user friendly. There is more than one way to moderate spam comments on a blogger blog, the non WV ones require a few more minutes of the owner but less of the readers. I'm not picking on, or blog bashing or ANYTHING like that. Just wanted to clarify.)

5. The end of school holidays.

Three more sleeps, enough said. lol

*Pardon the gratuitous self promotion ;)

Homemade Slurpees

2011-02-11T22:02:00.002+10:00

Slurpees are a kid's dream come true, but with all that sugar and artificial colouring, they can be a parents worst nightmare.

I came up with a homemade alternative that takes minutes to make and tastes fantastic.

Frozen fruit is what makes these homemade slurpees super icy and taste amazing. You can use any fruit you like cut into bite size pieces and frozen in a zip lock bag, or simple use the frozen berries you can find in the freezer isle in your local supermarket. Through a couple of handfuls of your frozen fruit into a blender.

Add approx. 1/2 a cup of your favourite lemonade and blitz. You may need to a little more or a little less lemonade depending on how thick you like your slurpees.

Pour it into a glass and serve :)

Add a touch of vodka or replace the lemonade with your favourite sparkling white wine for a refreshing adults only slurpee at the end (or in the middle) of a hot summers day. Just a little tip from me to you ;)

Frolicking Fun

2011-02-07T10:28:00.000+10:00

Happy Monday! How was your weekend? Come and play Week-a-Boo with Claire at Scissors Paper Rock.

We had a great weekend filled with family and fun.

Saturday was a funny day. It was scorching in the morning, great weather to tackle Mount Washmore. Hubby was finishing some odd jobs about the place and the kids were happily playing. By lunch time it had grown dark and really windy so we hastily packed everything up, ripped the washing off the line and dashed inside as the rain started. The kids settled in to watch their latest favourite movie, Cloudy with a chance of meaballs. Great movie actually. Look how engrossed they are.

By late Saturday arvo, the rain had cleared and when my step son and his family arrived, there was an impromptu basketball game to be played.

Brock met his match, totally underestimating his big brother.

Jack slam dunked, with a little help from Daddy.

My husband's grandchildren are the same age as Jack, Amelia is 6 months older and Kobe is 7 months younger, so they always have a great time when they get together. We tried to take them all to the beach after tea, but not 10 mins after arriving, the rain started :(

Sunday saw the end of Mt Washmore and the yard work all done and dusted. My amazing husband pulled out all the horrible lillies that had started to infiltrate the garden beds again. We decided we're going to try and propagate the aggies in the autumn and see if we can get enough to adorn the front garden with them.

Sunday night after tea, we took the boys down to the beach to frollick in the sunshine, perfect way to end the week.

Hope you have a great week!!

This Saturday I'm grateful for.....

2011-02-05T15:32:00.000+10:00

Modern Tecnology.

The telephone because it keeps us in contact with our whole family whether they live near or far.

My computer and the internet because they allow the boys and I to see my mum whenever we like, even though she lives over 2000 kms away.

My camera. I don't draw, paint or write, but my camera allows me to still be an artist.

What are you grateful for this week? Join in with Maxabella.

QOTD

2011-02-04T14:12:00.000+10:00

Today's QOTD is brought to you by Jack.

Let me set the scene. Jack is still in toilet training mode. He's doing very well at it, but the last few days has preferred to wear nothing but his jocks around the house.

I'm sitting on the couch catching up on some emails and in walks Jack wearing his jocks all normal in the front but pushed down underneath his bum at the back.

Me : Jack pull your undies up
Jack : I can't it's crunchy
Me - giggling : Come here and I'll rip the tag off.
Size tag is ripped off
Jack : Sanks Mum.

LOL Funny boy!

A little visitor

2011-02-03T12:36:00.000+10:00

My neighbour knocked on the door this morning, beckoning me outside to see what she'd found in our front yard. So with Jack on my hip (dressed in his glorious TT outfit of just a pair of jocks, how embarrassing!) we ventured outside. There in our front yard, hold up in the corner where the side fence meets the house was a little fairy penguin. He was so cute that Jack shrieked with delight and scared the poor little guy so much that he took off underneath the house. Can you see him hiding?

I rang Parks and Wildlife and left a message. While I was doing that our little penguin friend ventured out from his hiding spot and took shelter underneath the massive cordylines in our front yard. He was very timid and wary of my presence, and scurried deeper underneath the plant with ever step I took. Snapping a picture of his was hard, but I managed to get this clear shot of his little face. Apologies for the weird flare on the lens, I was laying on the grass trying to get a clear photo and the sun wasn't co-operating.

Just as I took this one a lady from Parks and Wildlife rang back and I dashed inside to get the phone. As I spoke to her, he moved to the other side of the cordyline. After being given instructions ton how to capture and release our little friend, I came inside briefly to ring my father in law for a hand. He wasn't home so I came back outside to tackle the rescue on my own, but our little penguin friend was gone. He wasn't under the plants and I couldn't see him under the house.....We'll keep an eye out for the rest of the day though. I hope he gets home safely.

This Saturday I'm grateful for..

2011-01-29T11:11:00.000+10:00

Old Friends

The Great Garage Clean Out of 2011 has proven a very fruitful exercise. Another great rediscovery, my much loved copy of my favourite book, Jessica by Bryce Courtenay. The first night I read two chapters. The next night, I was half way through. By the third night, I was so engrossed that I finished the book. When I rested it and my glasses back onto the night stand the clock read 2:57am. I love staying up late reminiscing with old friends.

Kenny

This is Kenny, my therapist. I have a few different therapists but none as productive as Kenny. No matter what I throw at him, he takes it all in and comes up with the perfect solution to any problem....

Chocolate Brownies

Kenny out did himself don't you think? Double chocolate brownies. Deliciously fudgey on the inside with an ever so fine crust on top. Chocolate really is one of the worlds greatest discoveries, one I am surely greatful for.

What are you grateful for this Saturday? Join in over at Maxabella Loves.

Exploration and Wonder

2011-01-24T17:02:00.000+10:00

Happy Monday!

I'm a little late this week, but I hope you enjoy the photos and run down of my weekend :)

As I said in a previous, we've been sorting through the boxes of ~~crap~~ stuff in the garage this week. It's still not finished, but that's because we've started procrastinating. Anyhow, I got pleasantly distracted on Friday afternoon. I heard this humming sound. First I thought it might have been a small plane, nope too soft. The I thought it was probably one of those enormous Tassie blow flies, but those buggers buzz for a few seconds then land then take off and buzz again, this was a constant hum. I was stumped and ventured inside for a drink. As I walked past the Aggies it got louder, when I looked up I couldn't believe what I saw.....Bumble Bees! Not you average honey bees, but big furry bumble bees! When I looked closer there were about 5 or 6 of them and a few honey bees as well. I couldn't resist, I bolted inside for my camera.

Aren't they beautiful? The are absolutely huge, 3 or 4 times the size of the honey bees and so dark and furry. They were easy to photograph too because they hover. The little honey bees darted quickly from stamen to stamen but the bumble bees took their time and hovered about the stamens on one plant before landing and crawling inside the flowers on another. They were mesmerizing to watch.

On Sunday afternoon, after a bit of thrift shopping which landed us two near new screen doors for $30 (!) we decided we'd do a little exploring and took off for an afternoon drive. We stopped in a little town called Railton to enjoy the views of Mt Roland.

There's a little tourist area where you can stop and take photos of the views, we stopped in an met some of the locals ;)

After Railton we continued on to Sheffield which is a small town that has come to be known as the town of murals. Gorgeous painted murals cover a lot of the town's buildings, they are just beautiful. I'm going to do another post later this week with some more of the murals, I hope you'll come back and check it out.

On our way home we went through Spreyton and I could not get over all the apple trees. Now I know Tassie is renowned apples but these orchards lined the side of the road with no fences or anything. The only other orchards I've seen along the highway to Launie and aren't what you call accessible. So I could resist jumping out of the car one last time and snapping a few pics of these gorgeous royal gala apples.

So that's our weekend wrap up. I hope you had a great weekend too!

Today I'm linking up with Scissors Paper Rock and Fat Mum Slim

This Saturday I'm grateful for.....

2011-01-22T10:11:00.000+10:00

Home Videos

We've been sorting through our ~~crap~~ stuff that's still packed in boxes in the garage this week. I don't know why we've kept half the stuff but anyway. Yesterday yielded a wonderful find, the mini DV tapes for our video camera. Now I can't remember the last time we used it but it was a far while since the camera had even been out of it's case.

Last night after the kids were in bed, we rigged the camera up to find out just what was on those tapes. When I pressed play, Jack tiny newborn face appeared. My heart melted and the tears started to well up in my eyes straight away. Those soft little coos and even that newborn cry, oh my goodness it was so cute it made my uterus ache! There it all was on those three little tapes, his first year. His first Christmas, his commando crawl, pulling himself up, his first birthday party, everything. The memories had been locked away in my mind but as soon as I saw the footage it all came flooding back. How lucky am I to be able to relive those precious moments over and over again.

The little cutie himself.

Jack Vs Cupcake

2011-01-20T13:34:00.000+10:00

The cupcake lost!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-01-19T09:41:00.001+10:00

more wordless wednesday at Faith, hope and a whole lotta love.

Getting my bake on

2011-01-17T10:58:00.001+10:00

Happy Monday!

The boys and I have had a rather quiet weekend as Hubby was rostered on again. We've spent most of the time just chillin out, though we did have a bit of fun.

Saturday morning saw the sun shining brightly which was a welcome change to the grey rainy weather of late last week. The boys had a lovely time playing outside. I enjoyed the display that the aggies in our garden were putting on. It seems the copious amounts of rain have given them a second wind, because they are looking fabulous.

Saturday night, Hubby decided that he needed a new, softer seat for his new bike. So we headed to Devonport as the Kmart store there is open until midnight every night (crazy!). On our way home we went by the wharf to see if the Spirit had left yet. Luckily it hadn't and I managed to get some pics of it on it's way through the mouth of the river.

Sunday was a bit of a lazy day, we didn't do much at all in the morning. By lunch time I'd got the urge to bake and while Jack slept in our room and Brock played outside, I got my bake on. My sister gave me some gorgeous Tea-Cup-Cake moulds for Christmas so I tried those out as well as making a dozen vanilla cuppies. I love how the Tea-Cup-Cakes turned out, they are so cute with their little saucers.

I'm linking up with Claire of Scissors Paper Rock and Chantelle of FMS

This Saturday I'm grateful for..

2011-01-15T12:45:00.004+10:00

The devastation that has hit our country this week has been heart breaking. What really brought it home for me, was reading this harrowing story this morning. What this family has been and will continue to go through is just incomprehensible. My heart broke a million times over for baby Jessica and her mum Stacey.

Through my tears I glanced up at my boys, playing together happily on the couch. I had to force the thoughts of what-if out of my mind, just the thought was unbearable. This Saturday I am grateful for.....

Today.

Today, my boys are happy, healthy and above all safe.

Today, we have electricity, running water and a roof over our heads.

Today, I am learning to focus on all that I have instead of what I have not.

Today brings lessons from yesterday and hope for tomorrow.

Today is a gift.

Linking up with Maxabella.

Queensland

2011-01-13T12:36:00.003+10:00

My heart breaks for my hometown. While I know that SE Queensland is not the only area in the state affected by flooding, it certainly has brought home just what devastation these floods bring.

Photo Credit

My family are all safe thankfully. My mum works in the CBD and was sent home on Tuesday morning. She hasn't been back to work yet as the call centre where she works is still closed, no doubt without power too. My sister too was sent home from her work place on the west side of Brisbane. She opted to stay at home yesterday as well, which was a good thing because the Centenary Highway was cut anyway. My dad lives on a property west of Beaudesert. While he's fine as they are up on a hill, he may be unable to get out of the town for the next few days.

Watching the rolling coverage on channel seven, I've seen some heartbreaking footage. The enormous wall of water that hit Toowoomba this week was really unfathomable. We sat and stared at the tv, unable to process the enormity of what was unfolding. Seeing the footage of the aftermath in the last 24 hours, makes you feel helpless. There will be so much work that needs to be done across all of the flood ravaged regions in the coming months and there really is only so much that monetary donations can do. The physical clean up will be grueling and I hope that the Queensland spirit shines through and everyone bands together.

Photo Credit

This woman, Anna Bligh, has astounded me over the last few days. She has done an amazing job in what must be an incredibly difficult time both as the premier and personally. I wish I could articulate my thoughts about Premier Bligh, but I think I'll quote Jessica Rudd;

"Then I saw Premier Anna Bligh and I just knew it was going to be all right. As soon as she came onscreen my pulse slowed, my breathing steadied and my tummy unknotted.

I think it was in her manner—the no-bull way she looked, that calm stare an impossible cocktail of warm compassion and hardcore determination"

Jessica has written an amazing post for Mama Mia about the Queensland premier.

Jessica's own father, former PM Kevin Rudd has also been on the ground in his Brisbane electorate. He spoke to Channel 7 yesterday which had me tearing up. Then I saw the video below, linked via the Mama Mia website. I take my hat off to him, he is an extraordinary man.

My thoughts and heart go out to every single person who has been affected by the Queensland floods. The devastation must feel insurmountable right now, but you will prevail.

Local Brisbanites, I have heard that many people are delivering donated goods to the evacuation centres which is amazing. I have also heard that the centres seem to plenty of clothing but are in need of items such as nappies and other personal items, soap, toothbrushes, toothpaste etc. If you are near a centre and can spare some of those things please donate.

Stylish Blogger Award

2011-01-06T08:55:00.000+10:00

The always intriguing Ms Le Feisty has very kindly awarded me with a Stylish Blogger Award....

Apparently this all works in a pay it forward kind of way. These are my duties as a recipient:

Thank and link back to the person who gave me this award.
Share 7 things about myself.
Pay it forward to 15 recently discovered great bloggers.
Contact those bloggers and tell them about the award.

So here goes.....

7 Things About Me

I'm a night owl. I just cannot possibly goto bed before 11pm.
I am petrified of snakes. Cannot stand them and have nightmares about the things. It absolutely freaked me out when I discovered Hubby and Brock had patted one at Dreamworld a few years ago!
I chat on the phone for WAY too long. It's something I inherited from my mother, why just this past Sunday we blabbered on the phone for over 2 and a half hours! Thank you Telstra for $1 long distance phone calls lol
I love playing Super Mario with Brock on the Wii.
I absolutely love that Jack still comes into bed with us half way through the night. His snuggles are my heaven and I'm savouring them while I can.
My favourite thing to drink at the moment is peach iced tea. I recently discovered Bickfords Peach Iced Tea Cordial. It's divine! The perfect summer drink.
I still have the teddy bear that was given to me when I was born. I can't remember a time when it wasn't with me even though I don't remember it having a specific name. Brock has since claimed it and he calls it Mummy Bear, cause it's Mummy's Bear. I'm glad he loves it as much as I do.

Now on to the 15 fabulous bloggers that I'm passing this illustrious award on to:

I hope you enjoy these wonderful blogs as much as I do!

Happy blogging!

Blue skies

2011-01-02T23:47:00.002+10:00

Tonight I took a beach towel and sat in the back yard. As the boys frolicked in the spray of the sprinkler and Hubby pottered in the shed, I felt a warm wave of contentment wash over me.

I laid back on the beach towel and gazed up at the clear blue sky. I smiled to myself, I never would have imagined that something as simple as a perfectly clear blue sky could bring such warmth and happiness to my heart.

All of a sudden I heard a cheeky little giggle and my view was slightly skewed.

What a delightful distraction he is.

I'm adding this to Chantelle's first Point and Shoot challenge for 2011, come and play along too :)

5 sleeps to go!

2010-12-20T09:33:00.002+10:00

This weekend seems to have been the calm before the storm. Hubby has worked this weekend and it’s been pouring with rain on and off so the boys and I had a very quiet end to the week indeed.

Brock came down with Chicken Pox on the 9th . Thankfully he only had a mild case and was able to for the last day this past Wednesday. He had a great day, he handed out Christmas cards and candy canes to all his class mates. He proudly presented his teacher with a package of homemade rocky road that he helped make. Jack also got in on the action and gave Miss G a bottle of champers to say thanks for putting up with him this year lol. Brock said they played lots of games, had a party at lunch time and even got a present each from the teacher at the end of the day. He came home with all his Christmas artwork as well as a package of shortbread and a Christmas bon bon that they decorated and Miss G filled with goodies. Neither the shortbread nor the bon bon made it home :)

I got my first Etsy sale this weekend. Little Cherry Tree is up and running. I’m having a little giveaway to celebrate my first Etsy sale, so head over there to enter.

With 5 sleeps to go until Christmas, I would have to be the most disorganised mumma this festive season. I haven’t done a spot of gift shopping yet! Tomorrow is the day, Hubby has the day off so we’re going to tackle it together. I’ve got some mini stockings to finish off today before the kids and I get started on our baking and our shopping list for tomorrow.

One more thing before I go, check out the awesome Christmas lights display across the road from us!

It's two houses side by side. They do an awesome job every year and despite the lights being vandalised 3 times in the last month the owners still keep doing it for the local kids. It's a bit hard to see the lights before 9pm here because of the late sunsets, but the lights stay on till 11:30pm and there has been car lods of people coming by to see the magical sight that it is.

Hope you had a great weekend! Enjoy the lead up to Christmas!

Today I’m playing along with Claire @ Scissors Paper Rock and Chantelle @ Fat Mum Slim.

DIY Friday : Mini Christmas Stocking

2010-12-17T16:35:00.001+10:00

Well it's that time of the week again, DIY Friday! It's Brock's first official day of school holidays and let me tell you, crafting isn't as easy with two boys to entertain.

Never the less, I broke out the sewing machine for the first time in over 6 months. I was nervous as I threaded the cotton and plug all the cords in, but it's like riding a bicycle really. The funny part was I was so pleased to be sewing again, I was actually humming "Back in the saddle again" LOL

Right so, mini christmas stocking, pretty straight forward I guess. I just drew up a quick template and went from there. I made a faux cuff for this one and embellished it with some ric rak. Simple stuff really. I'm going to fill them with a few goodies, cookies, gingerbread men, candy canes and chocolate santas. I'm making them as a little something extra for our kids, our nephew and my husband's grandkids. We've decided to go easy on the presents this year. We've noticed that our own boys are more concerned with the getting than the giving part of Christmas, so we're trying to change that by gifting mostly handmade things that they can be involved ing making.

Anyway, so that's DIY Friday for another week. Happy crafting everyone :)

Wordless Wednesday : Two-gether

2010-12-15T10:01:00.002+10:00

Playing along with Sarah @ Faith, hope & a whole lotta love.

See more shots from my most recent trip to the beach over at my photo blog, Happy Snaps.

DIY Friday : Christmas Wreath

2010-12-10T13:45:00.002+10:00

In the effort to reignite my crafting flame, I’ve decided to try to attempt one diy project a week. In fact, I might just make it my new year’s resolution and I was thinking about turning it into a linky.

So here goes. In keeping with the season, I decided that we absolutely needed a wreath for our front door. I wanted something simple and straightforward, so I decided to start with a wire coat hanger. I pulled it into a circle shape, a rough circle shape.

The bare coat hanger looked a little skinny so I decided to add so bulk by wrapping some fleece fabric I had leftover from my cloth nappy making days. You could also use quilt batting or polyester wadding. I’m glad I took the time to complete this step because it made a better base for the tinsel and also made the wreath look fuller in the end.

Next I wrapped tinsel around the covered coat hanger. I found some matte forest green tinsel garland at our local discount store which cost a mere $2.50 each. I used three and tied them together end to end to get one long piece of garland. I used the hook part of the coat hanger to anchor one end to and then proceeded to wrap the tinsel tightly around the whole wreath.

Then I looped a two metre length of ribbon through the centre to hang the wreath. Using another piece of matching ribbon I fashioned a (near) perfect bow and hot glued it to the hanging ribbon. I also threaded a star ornament onto the hanging ribbon so it would dangle in the centre of the wreath when hung. Lastly I hot glued some silver bells around the wreath for a bit of added sparkle. The also jingle every time the front door is open, which I thought was a nice festive touch.

Hanging on the door

Close up

To hang the wreath, I put a small screw hook into the inside of the front door. I tied a simple bow about a third of the way from the ends of the hanging ribbon. Then positioned the wreath on the outside of the front door and ran the hanging ribbon up and over the top of the door and hooked it over the screw hook on the inside. I hung it this way because it required the least amount of damage to the front door and because I think it looks prettier.

From inside

Have you been doing any crafting or DIY lately? Should I turn DIY Friday into a link up?

Wordless Wednesday : Imagination

2010-12-08T16:24:00.001+10:00

Playing along with Sarah over at Faith, hope & a whole lottta love.

A busy weekend

2010-12-06T13:04:00.001+10:00

Well it's been a busy weekend at Casa De Play. I've been hard at work on something that I'll tell you all about later today (intrigued?), as well as keeping the little tikes entertained while Hubby worked all weekend.

Saturday was disgustinly hot all day. There wasn't a breath of wind and it was the type of day that you just don't want to do anything but try to keep cool. Hubby came home with the perfect solution, fish and chips at the beach. We stopped at a takeaway shop near the beach and managed to get a enormous piece of fish that fed the four of us and some chips for less than $10, still can't believe what a bargin it was.

So we sat on the beach and ate our fish and chips. The kids shoo'd the seagulls away everytime they got too close, which they thought was hilariously funny lol. It was a beautiful night, there was only a slight breeze and the tide was out so we had a lovely walk along the beach and admired the stunning colours in the sky. It was a perfect end to the day, one which I hope we'll repeat a lot over the coming summer holidays.

Saturday | The Beach | About 8:30pm

How was your weekend? Come and join in and play Week-A-Boo and Point & Shoot too.

Awesome Teachers

2010-12-04T13:30:00.001+10:00

When we first moved to Tassie in 2008, I was excited to find out that we could enrol Brock into Kinder at the local school. He'd not long turned 5 and started just after the start of the second term. Brock had been in daycare for two days a week in Qld but Kinder was different. It was school and he was so excited by that.

He was a little behind the eight ball, I guess. All the other kids had already settled into school life and the concept of structured learning. He had the most wonderful teacher Mrs L. She was a very nurturing type of woman, she helped his transition into school immensely. The two teacher aides in the class, were just as caring and important to his successful start.

When I learned his Prep teacher would be Miss M, I was a little worried. She seemed tougher, something I wasn't sure was "right" for Brock. Within a few weeks of starting Prep, I knew she was exactly the type of teacher he needed. She pushed him, the right way and just enough to encourage him to WANT to learn more. She was/is a fantastic teacher and I'm crossing my everything that she still be at the school in a few years time, because I think she'd be great for my feisty little Jack.

When we returned to Tassie from our 12 months stint in Qld, I was desperate to get back to Brock's old school and the quality teachers and education, that I'd taken for granted. We've been blessed that the school has delivered yet again with another great teacher in Miss G. She's more awesomesauce than words can explain. Not only has she been great for Brock, but she's also been great for Jack. She's happily welcomed him into the classroom when I've come to do parent help. She's even taken him into the classroom when I had a couple of important meetings at the school! Jack just loves Miss G and is always looking for something to take to school to show her, new toys, pictures, books, you name it she's seen it lol Brock adores her too, so much so that it's increasingly hard to get him to come home from school!

So yes, this week I am grateful for awesome teachers!

I'm also grateful for Etsy. I'll tell you why on Monday ;)

Today I'm joining in at Maxabella loves.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

2010-11-29T12:59:00.000+10:00

26 days to Christmas! Can you believe it? Where did the year go? As usual I'm totally unprepared. I've not bought a single present yet, I've no idea where we'll be doing on the day, who'll we'll be with or what we'll be doing! LOL This happens every year for us. Something will fall into place at the last minute no doubt.

Anyway this weekend was the first weekend Hubby has had off in a while, so HE decided to put the Christmas tree up with the kids. About 10mins in, I got a phone call which kept me tied up for about half an hour. There were shrieks of giggles and the sound of Jack's little feet running down the hall followed by my husband shouting "Bring that back!" LOL Over and over he nicked off with all sorts of stuff.

By the time I came out from the bedroom the tree was mostly set up, all be it in the middle of the lounge room. We soon shifted it into place and Jack is calling it his "bewdiful cwismas twee" SO cute. I'll post a pic of it tomorrow because the lounge room is a mess!

On Friday Jack and I went along to playgroup as usual. This week there were loads of Christmas crafts to do. This is what Jack decided to do. He did it all by himself (except for the star) and was very proud. So proud in fact that we had to go straight to Daddy's work after playgroup to show him :)

Happy Monday everyone, hope you have a great week!

Today I'm playing Week-A-Boo with Claire and Point and Shoot with Chantelle. Why don't you play along too and tell us about your weekend.

The simple things in life

2010-11-27T11:18:00.000+10:00

Today I've decided to join in at Maxabella loves and play.....

So.....This week I'm grateful for the simple things in life.

I get so caught up in the comotion of everyday life that, that I often forget to stop and savour the simple things in life. Things like.....

Rain drops on roses,

smiling little faces

and my gorgeous mum.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Does your man swear?

2010-11-25T16:01:00.000+10:00

Today is White Ribbon Day. It's a day to raise awareness of and try to prevent violence against women.

The foundation has a new campaign to promote the positive role men can have in the prevention of violence against women. "One in three Australian women will experience physical or sexual violence in their lifetime."* That seemed ouragous to me, but when I thought about it a little more, I realised that I know more than a handful of women who've experienced it. And they are why I support and promote White Ribbon Day.

By encouraging all the men in our lives to take the oath, we're one big step closer to changing social attitudes that surround this problem.

*statistic provided here

Wordless Wednesday : One Moment

2010-11-24T12:05:00.001+10:00

For more fab photos or to play along visit Faith, hope & a whole lotta love.

A special visitor

2010-11-22T11:56:00.000+10:00

Happy Monday!

I hope you all had a great weekend. We sure did!

My wonderful mum came to visit us for a long weekend. I kept it a secret from the kids and the looks on their faces when they first saw her was complete and utter shock lol

While Brock was at school on Friday, Mum, Jack and I spent the day in town shopping for Christmas presents, lunching and just being together. I miss being able to do that sort of stuff with Mum so it was great to have a day to ourselves.

After we picked Brock up from school, we stopped by the local beach on the way home. It was low tide, which is the best time to go for a stroll.

We all had a great time. The kids played in the water. They both got so wet they had to take off their shorts in the end lol I had a great time photographing the beach and Mum, well I think she was just happy to be spending time with the boys :)

By Sunday the weekend was over and the boys and I took Mum back to the airport. I hate goodbyes, especially when it comes to my mum. I cried, then she cried, then I cried again. When we got back in the car to head home, I cried again and my very wise seven year old little boy said to me, “It’s ok Mummy, sometimes goodbyes are very sad”. Bless his cotton socks, he’s a clever little cookie.

After our long drive home, a quick bite to eat and a nice warm shower, the kids were in bed and Hubby and I weren’t far behind. It was a busy, but wonderful weekend.

Today I’m playing Week-A-Boo with Claire and Point & Shoot with Chantelle. How was your weekend? Why not come and play along too?

To see more photos from our trip to the beach, check out my new photo blog Happy Snaps.

Wordless Wednesday : Daddy's Little Helper

2010-11-17T08:16:00.000+10:00

For more visit Faith, Hope and Love.

Grab button tutorial

2010-11-15T10:19:00.000+10:00

Grab buttons are gaining popularity in the blogoshpere. I love them. Of course when I find a blog that I love reading I want to share it with all of my readers too! I think grab buttons are the best way to share them.

Graphics catch the eye. I'm a visual kinda gal, I know I'm more likely to check out an image link over a text link, most readers are. So if you want to drive more traffic to your blog, whip up a graphic button that you can share with your readers.

What's better than a graphic button? A button that is easy to install! Make it easy for your readers to install your fab blog button by providing the html so they can copy and paste it straight onto their blog. I guess this is where the term "grab button" comes from, cause it's a button that your readers can "grab" lol.

This is my grab button.

Ok down to the tute. It's pretty simple really just copy the code below to your sidebar and replace the capitalised text with the appropriate links :)

Hope you find it as simple as I think it is. Let me know it you have any questions. Also, if you use this tutorial I'd love to hear from you! Leave a comment below with a link to your blog so I can check it out.

Hapy Blogging!

Lazy Sundays

2010-11-15T07:23:00.018+10:00

Happy Monday!

I hope you all had a lovely weekend. Ours was a quiet one. My wonderful husband had worked twelve days straight prior to this weekend, so we took advantage of the time together and stayed home.

Saturday was filled with mundane household chores and a spot of toilet training. We had some small successes with toilet training. Jack seems to understand that doing a wee on the potty makes everyone happy and is nowhere near as scary as he thought. However that’s as far as he’ll go lol, anything “else” is just a little too extreme for him to comprehend as yet.

Sunday we spent sleeping in, lounging around the living room watching car racing on the tv, playing trains and Wii, blogging and baking cookies :) It’s been drizzling with rain the whole weekend so it doesn’t feel like a total waste. Besides, I love just ‘being’ with my boys.

This funny little fella has made many a visit over the weekend. I thought he was very cute all ruffled up.

How was your weekend? Today I’m playing Week-a-BOO with Claire.

PS I’ve got a little blog design tutorial to share with you this week. Make sure to come back later today to check it out.

Redecorating

2010-11-11T21:37:00.000+10:00

I decided yesterday that the blog needed a makeover. A change is as good as a holiday right? So I got to work this afternoon and changed it up a bit. I'm loving the brighter colours and the fresh look.

Here's the before and after, what do you think?

Before

After

I still have a few things to do, like actually set up a Facebook fan page and finishing off my "Links" page. Hopefully by this time tomorrow night it will be all complete. I must admit, the makeover has stirred up my urge to blog again, which exactly what I needed :)

Jack's Birthday Party

2010-11-02T12:29:00.000+10:00

On Monday morning we celebrated Jack's 3rd birthday with a small morning tea party. I really wanted to make the party special and fun for Jack so I went with a "favourites" theme. All the food I made was Jack's favorite foods, or and adaptation, and we played his favourite games.

It was a great morning and I had so much fun planning everything and making his birthday cake, which he loved! I turned our dining table into the party table and displayed all the food and the cake in a buffet style. I was really happy with the way it all came together. The only thing I'd do differently is to make some tags for the food and the loot bags.

I had my first go at sculpting fondant. I was suprised at how easy it was, considering I didn't have all the right tools. I used a tutorial by Cake Journal for the train.

The birthday boy had a fabulous time and is still exhausted today. The best part of the day was watching him as everyone sang Happy Birthday to him, he was beaming from ear to ear, he just loved it.

Three

2010-11-02T11:55:00.000+10:00

Three years ago I sat in a hospital room staring at you. You were just over 10 hours old and you were the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. Daddy, Brock and Grandma has just left to let us get some rest. I couldn't rest. I was to busy staring at you, stroking your cheeks, counting your fingers and toes. You were finally here.

After all the fighting and heartache, I was finally holding a baby in my arms. I wanted to savour the moment and create a memory that I'd never forget. I wanted to drink in that newborn baby smell that I'd longed to smell again. I just wanted to sit and hold you.

By the time you were 15 hours old, we were at home and life had started. You fit right in, just like a puzzle piece, you belonged.

Now here we are my gorgeous boy, you're three years old today. You're such a wonderful little boy, you bring such joy into my life that it's almost indescribable. You are a generous and caring little guy, always happy and forever making me smile. I can't imagine life any other way.

Happy Birthday Jack.

Wordless Wednesday : My Happiness

2010-10-27T11:30:00.001+10:00

More here.

click

2010-10-18T15:07:00.001+10:00

We had another fairly quiet weekend at our house, but I do have photos to share.

As I said in my previous post, Friday was International Pregnancy and Infant Loss Rememberance Day. We lit our little candle and remembered with love, not just our little angel, but all the angel babies in heaven.

Jack and I also spent some extra time at bath time, blowing some bubbles for all the angel babies in heaven. He's such a perceptive child and stayed close to me whilst the candle was burning, as if he knew I needed extra love.

As I said the rest of the weekend was pretty quiet, we didn't venture away from home at all. So I took advantage of the spare time and relatively fine weather and spent some time out in the garden taking lots of photos.

Jack had a great time watering our latest addtition to the garden, an apricot tree that my mother in law gave us.

I hope you had a good weekend, why not check out what everyone else has been up to this weekend. Head over to Scissors, Paper Rock and Fat Mum Slim to play along too.

International Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remeberance Day

2010-10-15T11:36:00.001+10:00

photo credit

Today, we remember all babies whom we have carried but never met, those who we have held but could not take home, or the ones that came home but didn't stay. Make this your status if you or someone you know has suffered the loss of a baby. Light a candle at 7pm for 1 hour in honour of all the angel babies.

Blossoming

2010-10-14T11:44:00.000+10:00

You may remember this post I wrote about waiting for our cherry blossom to flower. Well kids, as I reported on Monday our little tree is really blossoming. It fills my heart with joy to see each little bud unfold and burst in to frilly pink loveliness.

This shot shows the progression of the bloom. Simply stunning.

Wordless Wednesday : Suburban Sunset

2010-10-13T08:21:00.001+10:00

More over at Faith, hope and a whole lotta love.

A quiet weekend

2010-10-11T16:19:00.000+10:00

Between Hubby working all weekend and yet another cold finding it's way in, we've had a rather quiet weekend here. The flowers on my cherry blossom are really starting to bloom and I'm looking forward to sharing some pictures in the next few days but for now, check out Claire and Chantelle's blogs for more interesting weekends than mine.

Photo from here.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-10-06T11:07:00.000+10:00

More here.

A weekend in the sunshine

2010-10-04T11:13:00.000+10:00

This weekend was absolutely magnificent. The sun shone brightly each day, it was warm without being hot and we got to spend the whole weekend together, all three days!

Friday, we enjoyed the company of some wonderful friends. The kids all had a great time playing inside and out. Everything from video game to football, you name it, they played it. They were all completely exhausted by the end of the day.

On Saturday we started working on our vegie patch. Hubby had already spent a couple of days preparing the patch, but we still needed to buy some timber edging, mulch and of course our vegies. By Sunday afternoon we'd finally finished. We planted carrots, beans, peas, strawberries, raspberries, basil, parsley, thyme, oregano and chives. We've still got to plant the potatoes and some broccoli if we can manage to find some. We need to add some chicken wire to help keep the neighbourhood cats out and some pinwheels to keep the birds away from the fruit.

After working hard in the garden all weekend, the boys played some backyard cricket and totem tennis.

To top off a great weekend and to celebrate the start of daylight savings, we went for a walk along the beach. It was a beautiful end to our weekend.

What did you do this weekend? Come and play along with Claire and Telle too.

Exquisite

2010-09-30T14:27:00.001+10:00

I watched him sleep today, relishing the beauty, the moment, the quiet.......him. I fell in love all over again.

I got mail!

2010-09-10T17:32:00.001+10:00

I had a knock on the door today. When I opened it I was greeted by our friendly parcel post man who had a delivery just for me! Once I'd ripped it open, this is what I found, a beautiful MooGoo gift pack from my sister. It was such a surprise that I burst into tears (yes I am a bit of a sook lately). Everything smells so lovely and subtle. Once I'd read about the company on their website I even more elated that my little sister decided to spoil me, bless her. I don't treat myself to this sort of thing, so it makes me feel very special when someone else does.

MooGoo is an all natural skincare line that's handmade in Queensland. Check out their website. I'm looking forward to lathering up the Butter Milk soap in the shower tonight, but I'd love to try their lip balm and shampoo too.

Wordless Wednesday : My Sunshine

2010-09-08T15:31:00.001+10:00

Check out Sarah's blog to play along too.

Down for the count

2010-09-01T00:24:00.001+10:00

My new best friends.

I've spent the last few days camped out on the lounge after being knocked out by yet another bout of horrendous head cold. I'm so so SO over being sick and to make matters worse my littlest man, Jack, has been taken out too so it would seem. The poor little mite had a temp of 39.5 late this afternoon which only dipped below 38 around 11:30 tonight despite two doses of Panadol, lots of water and a cool sponging. He seems to be doing much better now though, he's fast asleep next to me on the lounge.

So there you go, that's where I've been hiding. If I don't resurface after the weekend, send more tissues! lol

Fab Finds

2010-08-29T11:24:00.000+10:00

Last week, the lovely Claire from Scissors Paper Rock Designs opened her very first store on MadeIt to celebrate the release of her brand new line of prints. Claire's works are just gorgeous and with the promise of more designs to come, this is one store that I'm bookmarking for future purchases!

I love inspirational quotes and knowing Claire also offers custom prints, well I just need to find the right one now.

I'm sure a pair of personalised name prints will fit right in to the boys room makeover that I have planned.

Love this! The white frame and font really makes the red pop.

Make sure you go and check out all these fabulous prints in the MadeIt store and while you're at it, pop over to Claire's blog and take part in her latest competition where you could win one of these fabulous prints!

Flickr Friday

2010-08-27T14:19:00.000+10:00

Prunus Serrulata 'Kwanzan'

Photos by The Gifted Photographer via Flickr

Links : Photo 1, Photo 2, Photo 3, Photo 4, Photo 5

Last year when we bought our house, the first thing we did was to plant a cherry blossom. Our little tree has special meaning for us and we were more than a little sad that we didn't get to see it flower before we moved away. However, since we've been back, I've been on the edge of my seat waiting for our little tree to flower but I think it's a little way off still. So while I wait for the little buds to blossom, I've been day dreaming of whats to come.