The sewing bug has hit

I like to dabble in different creative fields will all sorts of media, and where I can I try to incorporate creativity into each day with my children weather it be cooking, craft, painting, dress ups etc

I find handmade things beautiful and full of love and I always think it's lovely when I receive a gift that's thought through and made just for me. I try where I can to make gifts when I have the time for friends and family and I'm always trying to challenge myself with new creative skills and projects.

When it comes to sewing I've been doing it for years but I've only ever been comfortable hand sewing and up until a couple of months ago I had never attempted to use a sewing machine.

Let me try to explain...
 Previous to 2 months ago I would think about using a sewing machine and it would scare me, it sounds silly and it is ...but when it comes to creativity I like to have control, the control of holding the needle in my hand gliding it through the material stitch by stitch, making unique stitches, each one different to the next.

I like the character of a hand stitched item and thinking about a using sewing machine made me think.....the control would be somewhat gone- I would be somewhat board- I would break it!- cause myself some odd type of injury. All of the bad and none of the good thoughts.
It was almost as if the simple object of a sewing machine was some evil form of robot, not that different to a deceptacon from the world of transformers. It was sure to transform into my worst enemy and be the object between my creations and me.

I know it's sounds so spastic beyond belief but I am happy to say that I am cured of this horrible sewing monster robot fear and my creative juices are still flowing.

I have had my Mothers Old perfectly good sewing machine sitting gathering dust for years now and it was time to give it some life again.
My Mother made all her clothes when  she was younger and enjoyed it immensely but she hasn't used it since her late teens when she became a quadriplegic due to a motorcycle accident.

Now that I am a Mother of a little girl I really wanted to learn how to sew her some clothes so the day came when I asked my Father if he could give me a sewing machine lesson...Yep you read it right. My Father is rather domesticated and can use the sewing machine!!!
So with Mother talking Dad and I through the ropes of the sewing machine, me cursing and dad trying to remember how to thread the cotton to prepare the machine, my journey of machine sewing began.

I have to confess I am now hooked and believe that the sewing bug has hit me bad.
I'll let the following pictures tell the tale of my sewing journey so far....

I started practice with cushions

a up cycled men's transformers shirt

and one of Miss Thalia's

owl shirts that no longer fit

(couldn't resist hand stitching around the owl for further detail :P)

next a cushion for each munchkin

material of their choice

Thomas for Declan and Thalia's "Peter Rabbit'

Then Hubby insisted that he needed a cushion for his car too,

he often has a snooze in the car before work if he gets there early enough :P

next came a birthday present

for a gorgeous little 1yr old

nick named "the strawberry princess" since  before birth

a dolly for miss Thalia

named "Maisie"

a dolly babushka for a newborn

baby girl

a birthday pressie

for a Big 4 r old boy

who loves trains and plays soccer

(the small soccor ball and train fit in the babushka's pockets)

He has been named "Bob Bushka"

by his happy owner

another pic of the large fabric soccer ball

in comparison to the real deal

small babushka taggie

for yet another newborn girl

*I then made another large Babushka with babushka baby to fit in her belly pocket but didn't get a picture before giving to a little girl for her 2nd birthday*

next was a Dr Seuss cushion for our lounge room :)

a personalised name pillow and tooth fairy pillow

for a Big 4yr olds Birthday

(Cat in the Hat being one of his faves)

a personalised bunting for Declan's

racing car party

and the last creation was

a babushka girl along with a pillow/babushka bed

for a 3yr old girls Birthday.

now that our busy birthday months have passed I can attempt to tackle some dresses for my little princess....wish me luck cause I'm going to need it! LOL

I sure am glad that I started on the sewing machine and I can't see that I will be stopping anytime soon.

Our Little Book Nook

We love books in this house and have been reading out loud to our munchkins since day dot.
Books have become a very important and treasured part of our daily routines,pleasure and play.

We have books in most rooms in our house including bookcases in both munchkins bedrooms, so it was only natural that I looked in amazement at the beautiful spaces when I stumbled across the blog my little bookcase ideas and be filled with inspiration for our house.

I saw the opportunity to nurture our love of books and create our own special space to read, imagine, play, laugh, cry, relax, learn, listen and retreat into a world of books taking us on journeys of the book kind.

You can go anywhere you want with a book and some imagination and I wanted a space where we could capture this on the cheap.

Two weeks later I have started on our space and it's very much loved already, I tried to work with places and things we already had and let the creative juices flow :)

This is what I have come up with so far....

This is a corner of our lounge room (only carpeted room of our house), to the right of this space is a large L shaped lounge and to the left is our foyer.

The book shelf has always been here but the floor space has mostly been used for a space to store or sit toys. It didn't occur to me to take a before shot :( sorry.

Here is how we changed and added to the space:

• rearranged mummy and daddy's book so the bottom shelf was cleared for a selection of the munchkins books.
• Cleared the floor space and moved a large bean bag from another area of the lounge room for a comfy reading seat.
• Reused a woven basket to hold our library books, keeping the separate from the others and forward facing. These books get changed ever 2 weeks after our most beloved trip to the library.
• The munchkins helped me select 2 book buddies (Lou Lou the golly wog and Henry the Teddy bear) to sit on a basket along with 2 small baby blankets that are no longer in use now that our munchkins are a tad older. I assume the book buddies with change every now and again so we can read to new toys and share our book space with them.
• A homemade Dr Seuss cushion was placed in the space for comfort and another way to make the space as book territory, also adding colour and character. More cushions will come in time, I'm thinking some big floor cushions of some kind.
• A little peoples plastic playhouse has been stored beside the bookcase for an opportunity to incorporate our little people toys into our stories and to play out books (the little people are stored in a nearby toy box)
• 9 old mix matched photo frames have been saved from the world of dust and cupboards and been revamped with paint we already had. The munchkins helped select images from a few of their favorite books to place on the wall. A trip to Office works and $8.40 later we had some beautiful colour photocopies ready to frame and hang (using picture hooks we had).

So far this is the extent of the transformation but there will be more...I just don't know what yet but will update you at a later date.
An idea's are very much welcome but in the meantime we are loving our new space and I think our book time has improved and extended, less TV being watched (yay) and more imagination and dramatic play on a daily basis :D

Do you have a book space in your house?

Selected images for the wall:

Puff the Magic Dragon, The cat in the Hat, Koala Lou,

Ten Little fingers and Ten Little Toes,

Hairy Maclary and Zachery Quack,

Anamalia, Green eggs and ham,

Each Peach Pear Plum and Blinky Bill.

Miss Thalia enjoying the new space :)

30th Birthday Party - Perfectly Emo

My hubby turned the BIG 30 last month and we hosted a party at our house.
When  I had first asked him months ago what type of party he wanted me to organise I didn't know what to think when he replied "what about an Emo party?".....um WHAT!

After many weeks of talking me into it, helping me to understand what an emo was and what he wanted at his party the process began.

Make no mistake in thinking that my hubby is an emo because he is not.....unique yes.
Like me he likes to do thinks differently, nontraditional and sometimes the unexpected so his thought were that lots of people have dress up party's such as the nerd party, the bogan party, the superhero party...but who the heck has had an emo party. It was a theme that you could have a lot of fun with and that we did.

I have always loved the prep that goes into a child's party so it was a change to go through the creative process to plan out an adults party where there would be no kids present. I became excited and full of ideas.

So here are some pics of what we came up with...

Here is a very transformed emo Shell

putting the finishing touches to the food table.

anyone for veggies and dip :P

grave yard deserts for all!!

Chocolate moose topped with dirt (crushed oreo's) and a grave stone handmade biscuit.

-the two at the back are a chocolate brownie style allergy alternative (dairy free)

hubby serving drinks in the bar :)

the CAKE!!

chocolate of course

the birthday boy

happy emo guests :)

sad emo's :(

hubby and I

Guitar hero was played much food and drink had!

Happy Birthday to my man.

I hope it was a very memorable 30th for you oxox

....................

pppssssttt.....I am happy that I listened to my hubby in the end, no matter how crazy he sounded to begin with....the party went so well, sooooo fun to plan and everyone really got into it.

Who said a challenge isn't good for you.... so when your next planning a party  think outside the box and see what you can come up with.

Yummy Indian dinner

I simply LOVE Indian food and having been to India twice myself, eating Indian style brings back many fond memories.
 Previous to Declan's anaphylaxis diagnosis we enjoyed the odd Indian take away as well as home cooked Indian meals. The new rule of no eggs and no nut products and no products that contain and/or may contain egg or nuts was massive. It sure did change the Indian menu choices in our house a great deal but I was determined to work with it.

Since food allergies have entered our life I have chosen to cook one recipe for dinner each night instead of cooking one for the kids and one for the adults...we all eat the same.
It has proven to be challenging at times to please everyone but it's easier and we enjoy eating as a family in this way.

Before starting the munchkins on the fail-safe diet last year I had a incredible butter chicken slow cooker recipe up my sleeve (completely nut free and egg free) but it's no longer safe due to all the different spices and tomato paste etc.

I was extremely  happy when purchasing 'The Fail safe cookbook' on seeing that there was an Indian recipe inside and ever since it has been appearing on our weekly menus now and again and is always enjoyed....even the visitors like it!!!

According to the fail safe book an owner of a popular Indian restaurant in Sydney says the secret of a good curry is plenty of onions, salt and oil. In this recipe leeks are used instead of the traditional onion.
So here it is, an Indian recipe without all the spices that is very yummy and full of flavour.
If you don't believe me, try it and see for yourself.
You could always add a little curry or spice to it at the end after serving any allergy meals if you want a little extra taste but I think it's great as it is.

Indian style lamb with leeks and potatoes

800 g diced lamb
1 tsp finely crushed garlic
1/2 cup canola oil
1 tbsp sugar
1 large leek, cut into fine rings
2 large potatoes, peeled and quartered
1 1/2 - 2 tsp salt
2 cups water

• Put lamb in a bowl. Add garlic and mix well, cover and set aside for 2-3 hours.
• Heat the oil on a medium- high frying pan until hot. Scatter in the sugar and immediately add the leeks. Stir fry the leeks until they are a rich brownish colour.
• Add the meat. Stir and fry the meat for about 10 minutes or until it browns lightly.
• Now add the potatoes and stir-fry for about 5 minutes.
• Add salt and water and bring to the boil, then lower the heat, cover and simmer for about an hour or until lamb is tender.
• Stir gently once or twice during cooking. Serve with steamed rice, green beans, homemade pear sauce and plain poppadom's.

Sharing the Vintage Love: For Fun and Fancy giveaway! :)

If your like me and you adore Vintage things, weather it be something to love, look at or wear you need to go on over to Becky's very creative blog For Fun and Fancy and take a peek at her giveaway and join in.

Becky creates pieces for babies, children and mummy's that are both unique and beautiful, she is a mummy of 3 and works from home and is a whizz with the sewing machine.

I love the vintage style designs and fabrics that Becky creates and melt every time I see a Dr Seuss or Hungry Caterpillar piece :D

So why not support a very talented work at home mum, gets your hands on some homemade items and at an affordable cost all at the same time! Happy shopping and good luck with the giveaway

Easter food fun

Happy Easter everyone!
What a lovely time of year with family, friends, fellowship, fun and food.
This is often a tricky time for those with food allergies, trying to juggle through the chocolate mess, find appropriate eats, socialising and escape the season in safety.

I have been sick for the last 2 weeks and although I love cooking and baking have been dreading the baking involved in an allergy Easter. Thankfully I found most of our special Easter bunny chocolate in store and I didn't need to bake near as much as I thought.

I thought I'd share with you what was on the Easter bunnies list this year.

Pictured above is the items that will be appearing over this holiday break.

• Large Kinder hollow eggs for Mummy and Daddy with bonus toys inside for Mr 3 and Miss 2 (Mummy and Daddy wanted something that we could safely eat around Mr 3 without causing him any risk of a reaction. Thankfully some of the Kinder range is safe for nut and egg allergies as we don't have to worry about dairy allergies)
• Woolworth's Macro label  in the health food isle also had a packet of 12 nut free chocolate eggs available so I whipped them up for a egg hunt on Sunday morning :D
• Sweet William chocolate as usual had their bunny shaped Easter chocolates individually wrapped for the munchkins to enjoy too. I also got them each a special  Sweet William rice crackle chocolate Easter bunny.
• Mummy and Daddy could resist and also purchased some small cadbury milk solid eggs kept out of sight and reach for night time when the kids are in bed (as chocolate may contain nuts).

I don't think we will get through all this chocolate and will most likely share it with other family members but it was great to be able to buy all this and know it was safe to have in the house......nothing like seeing your child with a huge chocolate grin and know they are not missing out.

We were invited to a friends house last night for dinner along with another family with dairy allergies and also on the fail safe diet.
Our lovely hosts live a life with no food allergies but are extremely kind and understanding to our needs. All three Mummy's got together and organised the menu, who was to bring what and how to do it to ensure everyone would be safe and happy to make the most out of our night.

Desert was on my list which I love. My cold started getting better a couple of days ago so I was ready and rearing to get in that kitchen and do some baking.

So what do you bake to please a bunch of people with dairy allergies, anaphylaxis to nuts and eggs, four people on a moderate to strict version of the elimination diet and non food allergy friends?
...........this!

If you didn't see my earlier recipe post "PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE" Chocolate cake click here to view.

This is hands down the best chocolate cake recipe for non allergy and allergy eaters.
It's dairy free, egg free, nut free and safe on the fail safe diet even with the decorations and was enjoyed by all last night.
The cake is decorated with white pascal marshmellows to make the Easter eggs on top, shaved sweet willaim chocolate, sweet willaim chocolate bunnies on the side and safe writing icing brought from the shops.
I figured it was good Friday and we were not going to go without chocolate to share just because of food allergy issues. So this was the answer and as well as tasting devine, EVERYONE got to eat their cake! :D

So what recipes are your staples come Easter time?

Fabulous fairies, tea party and cinnamon toast!

Last month the munchkins and I were in rather a crafty mood, with fairies being a topic lately due to Miss 2's new Big girl room...we were to make fairies!

I had remembered reading the post Easy kid craft- Pipe cleaner flower fairies by one of my fave Crafty mummy blogger pink and green mama.

With our fairy mood on and craft inspiration, we frolicked to the local shops to buy some pipe cleaners, fake flower arrangements and wooden beads.

Soon enough after selecting just the right colours for our fairies and a bit of cutting, threading, twisting and love our fairies were made.

Miss 2 promptly asked were their babies  were, so after a bit of experimenting mummy whipped up a boy and girl baby (fairy size of course!).
Then Mr 3 piped up and said were are the boys, so 2 boys were then created with pixie boys in mind, using leaves instead of flower petals.

Here is a picture of our materials before we got stuck in, we got some inspiration from the books Rainbow magic and Australian Bush fairies.

This activity was so simple but so rewarding, the process of making each fairy was very special.

I thought it would be lovely to enjoy a special afternoon tea party outside with our fairies, after the munchkins afternoon nap but I left that bit a surprise :)

It also coincided with a new food challenge for the munchkins so I thought the fairies/tea party would be just the thing to make this food challenge a bit of fun.

As the munchkins slept, mummy set the scene outside for a fairy tea party with a menu of cinnamon toast for the Munchkins, Mummy and Daddy (cinnamon being the challenge, a great spice to spice up biscuits and all manner of good)...the munchkins later helped to pick a nice selection of flowers for the fairies to nibble on.

You will see from the pics that follow, the munchkins certainly were very wrapped in the whole activity and our fairies remain to be much loved and often come out to play.
I very happy to say the cinnamon challenge was a success!

"ssshhhhhh the babies are asleep"

Miss 2 very happy with the addition of fairy babies

before the munchkins nap they kindly set the fairies down for a nap too :)

the fairies woke up and made themselves comfortable until the munchkins arose

The tea party

We all had a very Fairy Fabulous time!!!!