Words words words

Bianca's first words past mama dada more, nana were bye bye and hello. Very social she is. She also just said cuddle to Jake when he got up after his rest today. Super cute.

Project 8 - use n re-use

We planted quite a few seeds this year. Some with dubious pedigry and past expiry dates but many flowers grew, including the bird seed sunflower behind Toby.
I'd been meaning to flower up under the silver birch for a year or so, so was good to get round to it.
We re-cycled some trees from next door this year too as our new neighbors wisely reduced my over planting next door, though doesn't look like any have taken, perhaps it was one move too many as I'd already moved them at least twice while next door. Oh well. Was worth a try.

Project 7- re-invent

Furniture is off the shopping list for just a few more days but material purchasing had continued to create a new range of cushions. Same couch. New look. With thanks to the fabulous Kerrie Lesko for a non zip cushion cover that takes 10 minutes to make( it's a bit like a pillow slip).

Gingerbread house 2011

Gingerbread house, Ikea instructions and 3 little helpers trying to eat bits of icing or decoration. How could it fail. Also when I gave them a roof each to decorate while I glued the house together, I wasn't really thinking about the additional weight factor that adding a bag of lollies to the roof would add. Magically, with some sure-ing up of the foundations, it all held. Thanks go after all to the Ikea instructions.

Also the gingerbread itself is way yummier than last years. All for about $7 at Ikea. This blog should surely we sponsored by said brand? Next year maybe 12 ikea projects as a challenge. Though prob not that much of a challenge for me.

Family picnic

Sydney park. Where else? It's been a family trifecta of all things good these last 3 days. Ikea Friday (Jake " that was a good morning Mummy, I'm really tired now"). Saturday Bunnings so Jake could buy some more "pretty flowers", not that I was complaining. Sunday Sydney park. A good weekend.

Footy stuff

We had friends over the other day who were after a doll to push around in the play stroller. B uses a footy.

Xmas is coming

I've gone the full hog and started an advent Xmas calendar this year. Most days involve craft, from making Xmas cards for teachers n grandparents, christmas decoration making, colored pasta necklaces and making mango jam for teacher pressies and a gingerbread house for ourself. They also made a Santa movie one day where they both donned their hats n danced around the house. Such a great time of year.

Wear them out

Sydney park has this most excellent hill. Especially when your children are inclined to race up it chasing footballs. Makes for a quiet lunchtime.

Project 6?

Well it's not furniture related, but definitely is part of the re-use recycle bit of my year. Bought a box of mangos just before we went on holidays and made a valiant effort to eat but had 2 left. Made mango jam. I have wanted to make jam for years but was scared off by the setting process. This recipe super simple. 2 mangos, 1 cup sugar, couple tablespoons lemon juice. Cook bit over an hour. Super yum!

Extending my earlier clear out the baby clothes project, I now have approx no clothes that fit a 0 to 1 year old. Which cleared up some space on the ceiling to put 80% of the boys toys which they didn't even notice were gone and now there is less mess to clean ip every day and the toys are like new when swapped over. Why didn't I do it sooner?

Can we go to Ikea Mum?

Dear Ikea, how you taunt me by opening the biggest store in the Southern Hemisphere 2km from my house. You know i have a special spot in my heart for ikea after my year in sweden. Why do you make it so easy with your 50 cent icecreams and free kids playzone, no parents admitted to cone here?

On the other hand it's a great year to be doing my buy no furniture challenge. I have time to browse. And I still get to buy 2kg of meatballs every 2 weeks and eat at the ikea cafe which is childproof.

The boys chant to go to ikea whenever we drive past. we've been watching it get built for months. Yesterday the boys were playing we're building ikea. This morning Toby started on his own little we're going to ikea song. Oh dear. Maybe the love of ikea is in the genes!

We had another fabulous week down at our favorite south coast beach recently. The view from the house was divine. We saw whales and dolphins. A great holiday with lots of sandcastle building and splashing around. Perfect.

Mmmm sunny

Last couple of weekends have been such glorious weather. Perfect for the beach, even if it's only a few meters wide.

The boys have been riding their bikes like maniacs around parks. Toby has the pedaling under control but the when I suggested that he might like to ride around people he said this:
' no I ring my bell'
And he does ring it quite insistently. He hasn't crashed into anyone yet, so that's a good start.

The look

Friday fun. They are only allowed to wear the same style as me if they have te same script!

Saturday arvo excursion

Steele park. What a great place For Jake to learn how to ride without training wheels and Toby to graduate to the pedal bike.

Project 5- re use jewelry

Somewhere along the way I seem to have amassed an impressive collection of necklaces, most of them chunky bead things that get a little lost in the drawers.

Lost no more, thanks to a handy $7 investment at Target, I can see all my jewelry. Yay! Now I can see it, I even manage to wear it sometimes. Other times it gets pulled off by curious children.

Rockpools

This wasnt this weekend....Going to visit Nana is always such fun with rockpools n beach. Even when it's 15 degrees....

Rainy day entertainment

There's nothing quite like a cardboard box is there.

A great teacher

A morning lesson in working the remote controlled car. What a sweet brother.

Bianca's first birthday

Just a little cake to celebrate. She took to cake like a duck to water.... I had wanted to do a "house" cake for years and figured that I better get in before she had an opinion about it. I had originally planned to use freckles on the roof but someone ate them.........and it was just 3 adults and kids eating it, so I stayed small. I am particularly pleased that I managed to get Freddo frog in to it. I also found a tip for icing cakes, freeze it for a bit, makes it easier to cut n ice. heaps less crumbs get stuck in the icing I must say. Top Tip.

The best toy ever

We have had this for 2 years and all of the kids use it pretty much daily. I read somewhere that it is the number one selling car in the US. I can see why. All three of them fight over it's use. You can stack two kids into at once if they're small enough and once they're bigger, one can ride on the outside in the luggage rack. It's fabulous. I ummed and arhhhed for ages before buying it as wasn't cheap but on a cost per use calculation, it must be the best value toy we have. Yay to the Little Tikes car.

Toby's u tube cake

Here it is. I'm not sure why Jake looks so worried. Toby chose this cake months before the actual day and unlike Jake who liked to change his choice of cakes on a daily basis, Toby stuck to his guns. It was a super easy cake to make although I must say having a u tube tutorial to follow was rather handy. Thanks Tobes.

Walking celebration

Bianca has been pushing our chairs around for a while as she learns to walk. Today Bianca took her first steps.....towards Nana. Here she is celebrating ( with Toby's new kitchen) What a clever girl!!

Happy 3rd bday Toby

Toby turned 3 on Monday. At daycare they made a cake. He got to eat a big bit of it "because I am the birthday boy" (and because he has the carers wrapped round his fingers). Another party is to follow this weekend (Jake says that means we should go and buy him more presents so we can give them to him at the party............even though he already got a truckload of them on Monday. Good thinking Jake).

I can't believe our little Toby is 3. To celebrate the end of being 2, the little guy swam a few laps of the pool unaided last week. I was stunned. I thought he had just been going for joy rides up and down the pool these last few months. Apparently not.

He has chosen his cake from one of the u tube videos he stumbled upon, a cake how to. He would watch these all day if you let him I think. He loves cake! Who doesn't?