Living in the past

If you could choose a day, a week, a moment in time to re-live - what would it be? Why would you do it? Would you change anything?

I would love to go back to the time when I got married. I know it's probably terribly cliche to be saying that but there are so many reasons why that time was so good.

I was carefree...

I was blissfully happy to finally be marrying my best friend...

I was a Size 10.....

Most of our family and friends were gathered around us in the one place all day...

The ceremony was conducted by a very close friend of ours...

We were served great food and partied into the night...

We went on a fantastic honeymoon on the Whitsundays for 10 days afterwards...

I was relaxed and relatively stress-free...

I was a Size 10...!

I'd most like to go back to that time to just enjoy it again, savour it more. I think I spent all day floating through it like it was surreal, not really happening.

Of course, the two things missing on that day, were my beautiful children. I was unaware at that point of how much more blessed my life was going to become...if I only knew.

Blog This.

Parcels to your door {& giveaway}

This morning I've received a few parcels. Last week I was on the hunt for the fabrics for the beautiful wholegrain baby coat pattern I bought. I found some stores online that had what I was after and they arrived this morning. I can't wait to get my mum started on the sewing!!

I also bought a very cute Beatrix Potter fabric. I'm not sure what I'll do with it yet but will have a little brainstorm with my mum to see what we can come up with. Might even be cute as a little dress or blouse.



The other parcel that arrived was this tea set from Eco Toys that I mentioned here.




Excitingly, Melinda from Eco Toys has provided me with this cute felt tea bag and cupcake that can be used to play with the tea set. I really love the felt toys on her site, including the fruit and veges. I might have to make these my next purchase! I also love that Eco Toys are "quality, locally made, Australian made and fair trade toys that are handcrafted from natural and organic materials."

All you have to do if you would like the chance to win these little felt toys is to head over to Eco Toys and leave a comment below telling me what your favourite toy is. While you are there have a look at the blog too and there is also a survey you can complete to go in the draw to win a $75 voucher to spend in the store.

Josh's room

I finally got around to taking pics of Josh's room, so here it is!

Blossoms outside my window

Sustainable Baby Winner!

Josh 'helped' me pick the winner this morning (he's good at that, picking a winner that is!!). He liked drawing the winner but wasn't so keen to hold it up for me, and then proceeded to switch off my computer, so this is my second attempt at posting!

Anyway, without further ado, the winner of the Sustainable Baby giveaway is:





Congratulations Danielle! Email me with your address and I'll send it over to you!

Zoe's Room

I promised a while ago that I would update pictures of Josh and Zoe's rooms after we moved and settled. Both their rooms are as complete as they are going to be for now, so I thought I'd share a few snaps to show the feel of their rooms.

This is Zoe's room. We still need to properly hang a picture but otherwise her room is finished for now.

{Wednesday} Eco Toys shopping

I couldn't help myself and had a little retail therapy again!

This time I bought this cute little wooden tea set from Eco Toys for Josh and Zoe to play with. Josh loves to pretend to make people cups of tea so I thought this would be perfect instead of him stealing my mum's antique silver set!

The best thing about it is that it's "made from eco-friendly, sustainable rubberwood and for every tree that is used to make wooden toys, two trees are re-planted." How cool is that!



While I was there, I found this beautiful little wooden toy kitchen too.



I just love it. It's the best little kitchen centre I have seen. I might put it on the wishlist for Zoe's first birthday. There are so many places to store things and it's great looking too.

REMINDER: Don't forget to enter my Sustainable Baby giveaway. Entries now close on Friday morning!

{Wednesday} Etsy buy

I needed a bit of cheering up this morning after a rough night with my sick daughter so what better way to spend it than buying these gorgeous patterns from WholeGrainBaby's Etsy store while Miss Z has her morning sleep!

As soon as I saw these I had to have them. Now, I'm no sewer, but my mum is, and if she's too busy, then I also have a talented friend who I could coerce into making these for me.

All I need to do now is track down the Amy Butler fabrics used in this version. I think it is so stylish I want one for myself!!

My boys

My boys (and nephew) had fun in the sun on Saturday. I hope it becomes a regular thing. And then maybe my girl and I can do our own girly things?

It's Tuesday and I can't wait.....

I know I harp on a little about this, but I really can't wait until the day I can put both kids to sleep at night and know that I will get a good nights sleep myself. Probably won't happen until they leave home right? (Actually, probably not even then!)

Birthday wish list....

I've just had my birthday so this wish list will have to be maintained for nearly another year unless my friends and family want to shower me with random unbirthday gifts! (Which my mum tends to do anyway <3)

Brand new clothes

Donna Hay magazine subscription


A hot stone massage


Lior in concert


A little weekend getaway here (just hubby and me)

Monday-itis

Friday favourite moments

Playing with Josh outside this morning....he was playing and checking out the herb garden and as he was pulling the leaves he was telling me 'just a pinch, just a pinch'. He has a habit of pulling all the leaves off plants, but I think his grandma has been trying to teach him to just take a pinch of the herbs. Sweet.



Watching a child enjoy simple pleasures like throwing rocks!



The smell of fresh cut jasmine from the garden wafting around my bedroom.

What are your favourite moments from today?

Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

I'm so excited. I received a parcel in the post today and it was my brand new Canon DSLR. I'm very naughty and couldn't wait for the battery to fully charge before I took some photos. I'm so happy to have a camera now that takes great quality pictures of my family. I love photos. They help me make beautiful memories more vivid in my mind so I can remember those moments in better detail.

Now I just have to learn how to use this beast better!

Giveaway! Sustainable Baby

I popped out briefly this morning with kids in tow (argh!! remind me never to do that again on my own!) and was browsing in my favourite store the ABC Shop.

I love checking what new books are out and found this little gem!
It's packed with ideas on how to save money and create less stress on the environment regarding all things baby. There are even some recipes and instructions on things to make.

After a bit of 'googling' I found the author's blog too. You can find it here. Her blog also has great ideas and 'how to's'. Go and have a look.

After browsing, I thought I would grab a copy to giveaway next week. All you have to do to enter the giveaway is leave me a comment about something you do to save money or the environment. Entries will close next Friday 28 August midday. Winner to be announced Friday afternoon!

It's Tuesday and I can't wait.....

I can't wait to feel healthy and rested again. I finally have caught this wretched cold that has been going through my family in circles. I have so far been immune after the children have both been sick with cold and flu a few times. But finally it has caught me. Or I have caught it.

I can't even rest up much because the littlest person in this house doesn't want her mama to get any sleep at night either! Oh for the days when I could stay in bed under the doona all day!

On a brighter note, I can't wait for my nice new camera to arrive, a digital SLR. Can't wait to take better photos of my family. :)

Play It's Tuesday and I Can't Wait here.

The Hip Infant 'Little Home' giveaway

Pop over to The Hip Infant blog and while you are there check out this great giveaway of gorgeous linen from Little Home.

The Hip Infant blog is one of my favourites. They share about new products and have great little ideas such as this.

Friday favourites: {Cubby house}

Thought I'd share some of my favourite online finds on Fridays.

This week it's a cubby house. Now that we have our very own yard, I would love for J & Z to have a cubby to play in.

Check out the one above at Miko Design. I think I want to play in there! Don't you just love it?

I love...

A to Z Letter Garland by paperklipdesign

Springtime

What a glorious day it has been today! I can't wait for spring to come. When the weather is warm and not hot.

I did a spot of shopping last night. I loved the print I won recently, so I bought this beautiful set as well:



It's from bella luce photography. Check out more of her beautiful prints here.

And the winner is.....

I couldn't help but pick the winner tonight, so have used the random number generator.

The result?


Simone!!

Congratulations Simone. Please send me your postal details and I'll have a copy of the book sent over to you.

Giveaway reminder

Just a reminder that today is the last day of the giveaway! Entries close at 6pm tonight and I'll get one of my little people to draw the winner.

On another note....I've had a blog makeover again! Can you tell I get bored easily?

Look what arrived!

I just received my fat mum slim giveaway prize!!

Thanks so much Chantelle & Natasha! I can't wait to go and find the perfect frame for it and a special place at home on the wall.

It's Tuesday and I can't wait.....

I was fortunate to have seen Tim Freedman at the State Theatre in September last year with 30 piece female orchestra “Symphonie des Femmes”. It was the best live music concert I have heard. I could close my eyes and be lost in the music.

Now, I can't wait to see the Whitlams with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra in December. I'm hoping it will be just as good as my experience at the State Theatre.

Play It's Tuesday and I Can't Wait here.

Baking with Josh #001 - Chocolate cake

As promised, here are the photos of our cake baking....got to admit, the end result is a bit ordinary looking, but it tasted ok!











Make sure you enter the Small Fry cookbook giveaway here.

What's on your bedside table?

Latest Blog This challenge: What's on your bedside table?

Yes, unfortunately this is the book that currently sits on my bedside table.....*sigh*. A sign of my life at the moment. No time for reading anything I want to read, but plenty of books being thrust into my hands from Josh. He brought this in to me one morning and it's been sitting there ever since.

If I had a choice (and the time) I would be finishing off this beautiful book:

I started this book a while ago and got more than half way through before getting distracted. It's been so long now that I would need to start again if I were to pick it up. It's the sort of book you can imagine as a movie in your mind as you read it. The way Vikram Seth writes really makes the story come to life so easily.

Now just to find the time to get into it.

Small Fry Giveaway

I was given a copy of this book when Josh was quite small so I haven't pulled it out much until now. It's got some great ideas and recipes in it for cooking WITH children. This is something I really want to start doing with Josh. He is at an age where he is interested in everything in his little world and wants to get involved. I feel like I need to let him explore that a bit more and instead of being fussy in the kitchen which I am prone to do (just ask my husband!) I'm going to make a concerted effort to let him help me out more and to cook things together.

I remember baking cakes with my mother as a child, with the all-important bowl/spoon licking ritual at the end. I have fond memories of it and it would be nice to start creating memories with my own children in that regard.

I'm getting the ball rolling this afternoon by baking an easy chocolate cake from the Small Fry book with Josh. I'm sure it will go down a treat!

Anyway, as I start this little goal of mine, I thought I would offer a copy of the book to someone as my first giveaway, so to win, all you have to do is leave me a comment saying why you would love to win the book! Easy! Entries will close next Wednesday at 6pm and I'll announce the winner on Thursday morning.

I'll be back later to share photos of the baking if I'm brave enough!

Wacky Wednesday

Josh and I were exploring what was left in our garage from our recent move and I discovered a box of books most of which were from my childhood. It brought back so many fond memories. One of the books I found was the Dr Seuss classic 'Wacky Wednesday'. I used to love looking for all the wacky things on each page! I read it to Josh and took so much pleasure in seeing how much he was enjoying it too. Simple pleasures!!

Now that I have re-discovered this book I wonder what will be wacky about this Wednesday.....?

Tuesday thoughts in pictures

1. I'm so tired, 2. sleepy raver, 3. coffee, 4. dieting, 5. 74.365 - Party Time!, 6. Spotted Moth Orchid, 7. Built in 1919 (Frieden Lutheran Church), 8. Daddy gives J&E his childhood cars, 9. Ejecting matter from the stomach thru the mouth

It's Tuesday and I can't wait....

Image: Thai Massage follows the Energy lines by Eric Lon


...for my one-hour massage tomorrow. The physio I have been seeing for my Carpel Tunnel syndrome has a new masseuse who is doing $33 one-hour massages during August! How could I resist that bargain. So 2pm tomorrow that's where I'll be!

Giveaway win

I was having a bit of a down in the dumps day yesterday. Just an accumulation of sleep deprivation and groundhog day feelings. And then I popped over to fat mum slim to discover I had one this fantastic giveaway. It truly made my day!

Now I have to think about where I want to put it. At the moment I'm thinking in my computer corner at home that needs a little sprucing up.

Thanks for making my day Chantelle. xo

Happy Birthday to me!!

Happy Birthday to me,
Happy Birthday to me,
Happy Birthday to me-eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Happy Birthday to me!!

Thanks for letting me indulge!!

I have had such a great day. I woke to find hubby tidying up our still 'not completely unpacked yet' house. The cluttered look has been bothering me for a while. But with most of us being sick I just haven't found much time to devote to unpacking and tidying so it was such a treat to have hubby do it all this morning! Even our back deck looks great now.

At 9am, family and friends arrived for breakfast which hubby also cooked - bacon, eggs, sausages, fresh juice, fruit, freshly baked berry muffins, coffee.......wonderful! I received some fabulous presents, including lots of jewelery, a book, a new jewellery box, a kilo of fresh gourmet coffee, honey roasted macadamias and an exquisite moth orchid like this:



It was all over by lunch time, at which point I was full to the brim from breakfast, so once the kids were asleep there was nothing left to do but curl up on the lounge with a coffee in hand and my honey roasted macadamias to munch away on. Bliss!

Now Miss Z is in bed, Josh is being read to by his dad and then going to sleep. Hubby will be whipping up some dinner and then to top off the night - Streets Blue Ribbon vanilla ice-cream with some Ice Magic. Tragic, but delicious.

My best birthday for a while. I'm easy pleased.