This girl

She is playful.

She is cheeky.

She is chatty.

She is pouty.

She is friendly.

She is cuddly.

She is so very very cute.

She is compassionate.

She is forgiving.

She is humble.

She is joy.

She is 2 today!

My true love gave to me: 10 metres of bunting

We are counting down the days until India's barnyard bash. I've finished off this country style bunting and placed it in my sewing table drawer, positioned just between last years bunting, and her baby shower bunting. This got me thinking...how big will my pile be by age 5? or age 9? or 21! Though I hope to reuse some along the way, they could be put to better use in the mean time. So, this is a call out to anyone who is having a function where these could be used. They can be to borrow or keep. Just let me know and I'll arrange their speedy transfer to your letterbox!

(vintage style)

(sweet strawberries and cream)

(unisex baby shower)

My true love gave to me: a red superhero cape.

We know a Super Awesome boy. He is faster than a speeding bullet (when on his trike up the hallway), more powerful than a locomotive (when banging his drumsticks on the drum), and able to leap tall couches in a single bound! Look, up in the sky, it's Super Asher (and he deserves this red superhero cape)!

Pink

A story. In my first pregnancy I had no food cravings: no fried chicken at midnight; no gherkins with ice-cream; and no doughnuts dunked in coffee. But I did have a desire for everything to be pink. I changed my home decor. I baked pink cupcakes. I bought myself pink clothes. I still didn't guess that I was having a girl. But Elara was born, and the pink has remained!

"Pink as pigs,

Pink as toes,

Pink as a rose,

Or a baby's nose"

All the things she says...

I only like Mummy today.
(Dad: Not even Daddy? Ice-cream? Pretty dresses? Watermelon? Your fairy garden? What about Julie’s party?)
Well I only like Mummy, AND Julie’s party.
(Not even Daddy? What about the playground? Dancing? Kid’s church? Your blankie?)
I like Mummy, AND Julie’s party AND my blankie, but that’s all.
(Next day) I only like my home today. Not Mummy or Daddy, just my home. *Sigh*

(Mum: Where has your toothbrush gone?)
Maybe it’s down the river or in the stream or maybe it’s lost in the middle of nowhere?

(Walking into Bunnings, spots a speed bump sign)
Oh look, they have hats here in this shop!

Can we go to school today Mum? I want to go to school every every every kind of day.

(After a morning of sunny outside play) What are all those sprinkles in my eyes? It must be fairies flying all around. Maybe they are flying inside my eyes with tinsel so it looks all sparkly.

My true love gave to me: 12 birthday invites

Thanks to the ladies at Mondocherry, for their business card idea. It works a treat for invitations too!

A home away from home

This past weekend, we visited a beautiful home in Gympie. Just a few days away here offered a wonderful chance to take in the rolling views from the verandah, enjoy some organic food, be inspired by books, talk about life, watch the children play in the garden, and feel a bit of freedom from the everyday. While I didn't get to spend all my moments pampering and indulging myself as I had hoped, I learnt some valuable things, which have been freeing in their own way. So I thought I'd share a little...

One of my daughters particularly struggled with the change from home to holiday. I know this is usual for children, but it shocked me to see the effect on her. I realised that the divide between my home and this home in which peace and fulfillment resonated, was very wide. My home and lifestyle must be vastly different from what I would like it to be. In my heart I value simplicity, creativity, play and resting, yet my day-to-day living is full of thoughts about bigger and better and about things to be done.

For now I might just dwell on these things (rather than develop a plan of action), and be thankful for a weekend of insight (and rolling views, and organic food, and books and friends). Thanks to John, Sandy, Martine, Noah, Kim, Lachlan, Sophie and William :)

To top it off

She doesn't drink alcohol. She doesn't gamble. She doesn't ride horses (yet). But she DOES love hats. So, our Melbourne Cup Day tradition is to craft a pretty hat and wear it while watching the race on television... except last year we missed the race by about 2 hours. Oh, and this year we missed it by about 5 minutes. But only because we were too busy taping feathers, winding ribbon and carefully balancing beads! Elara began by making one for herself , fashioning a regular tiara into this fascinator of grand proportions.

She went on to make a very colourful creation for Aunty Loz which she called the 'scarecrow hat'. Very Melbourne ;)


We had little time to fashion something to make my head look good, and as India was sleeping during the crafting of hats, she wore a bridal veil when the time came (of which there will be plenty of photos of one day). But I do have a pic of last years hat...


So, we all looked very lovely. And in our household, that is the reason for the Melbourne Cup!

Colour your weekend...

...with a hearty breakfast from Sassafras...

...with some time at the beach...

...by enjoying the breeze and food at the redcliffe markets...

...or by giving out balloons, as part of the citylife team...