All Things Mum

I've been eye-ing these bags since forever. Waiting patiently for the right time. Today was THE day. They are having an extra 40% off everything sale. Irresistable, right? Get in quick for this Christmas! So I bought these two. $10.50 each! Flat rate shipping in Aus $6. Shhhhhhh... he doesn't know yet! .......

Some days are like this upside down smile. Schedules thrown out the window. Messy floors and tables. Loud noisy kids. Oh gosh, the noise. General blahness. But we find a moment to be happy. We capture this moment. We find beauty in nature. Roses from our front yard. Baby J snuggles close to me. She likes to sleep like this when the day is worn and weary. I don't blame her. She gets lots of cuddles and kisses from mummy. I'm going to make a ribbon blanket for her, now that she loves to suck her thumb. I hope you're capturing the moment too,

Image from Sydney Morning Herald by Jessie Du. Happy AUSTRALIA DAY ! I took the kids down to Parramatta Park to celebrate but just like a typical Aussie summer it got way too hot to bear. We stayed a good hour or so before heading back home. We're talking about 35 degrees celsius or 95 Fahrenheit. Today is a good day to reflect about life in Oz. My family are living in this really great multiculturally rich country. The people are so nice, relaxed, and even though I was not born here, I'm proud to have an Aussie accent and to be Australian. We're truly blessed here. The opportunities are endless and life would be a struggle had we not migrated here as refugees in the late 70's. I do call Australia home. I love our laid back lifestyle and the general friendliness of most people here. We shouldn't take it for granted. Oi oi oi! So I hope you're having a good day where ever you are. As we say here ' Slip , Slop , Slap ' (slip on a shirt, slop on a hat an...

It's been a good summer and Little Miss isn't short on dresses. However, I just wanted to make her a proper dress now that I learned how to shir on my Janome. It was rather distressing before when I had no idea why it wasn't working. I took this fabric out of my stash and cut using the whole width (selv to selv) to the length I needed for her. It wrapped around her twice so I knew it was enough width to shir and sew up a tube. Oh how I love my rotary cutter. I used it to cut the straps. My sis bought one for me a looong time ago when she went to a craft show. Hubby used it to put our wedding pictures up in a frame and blunted the blade. I tried to use it since then but just thought that it wasn't a good cutter. Now I know better. I have seen the light. Last week I was at Spotlight so I picked up a new blade. It was a revelation when I used it. OMG. Like Wow. I saw perfect straight lines! Fireworks went off in my head. (I've always been melodramatic) The possibili...

Since having kids I've been more of an emotional person. I cry about babies, lost children, death, basically anything related to sad stories about people. Real people. The devastation in Haiti has made life perspectives more pertinent. I cry at least once a day. LMAO. I watched Dr Phil today and I shed tears. I related to mums who talked about how it is hard to be a stay at home mum or even mums who have to work and leave their children in day care. We all sacrifice a part of ourselves and sometimes more to do what we can for our family. I wonder, when will I stop feeling guilty about not doing enough, when will I stop comparing other mums to myself, when will it get easier? I do know that I love this blog, I need this blog and this blog community. So, thanks so much for stopping by. It means very much. This week I learned about how (not) to grow maggots in your garbage bin.. ewwwww, and I have started knitting a baby bolero for Baby J. I screwed up sewing up another cushion cos...

I always love reading reviews about about things for children. Hip Little One provides heaps of information and reviews about all sorts of baby products. I especially love that Nuby products don't contain BPA, the harmful chemical they use in making some plastic things. I just prefer to be very careful when it comes to my children's health. Head on over there to enter in the giveaway .

I've been inspired by all these tutorials on zippers and cushions that I decided to give it a go. I had this fabric left over from my sister's Amy Butler Sling and I think it looks fabulous as a cushion. The old cover was tearing anyway so I re-used the zipper for this one. I can't wait to make more of them. I said I was going to write a tutorial but I found this one from Mildly Crafty so there isn't any point re-inventing the wheel. I didn't box my corners though. Down here we've been sweltering in the heat and I really wish I had a chance to shop for some sale fabric for a summer dress. I should really visit the local op (charity) shop. My other problem is that most patterns are not really breastfeeding friendly so it looks like easy tops and shorts are the way to go. I had a 20min chance to play with my overlocker and I really enjoyed using both needles. Now if only I had something already traced and cut out to sew : ( Baby J is now coo-ing and gurgling to...

Happy New Year! Yes, it seems that 2009 was a tough year for most of us. We all had challenges to over come and it seems that 2010 is quite promising already. Baby J has been really colicky since birth. It meant I had to learn that I just had to let go and hold my baby alot if most of the time and that even though she would cry for hours I would just pray that things would get better. That's her Xmas dress I made for her and stayed up til 11.30pm Xmas eve sewing on the binding. For the first time this year I have put her down to sleep without her waking up after 10mins! What a relief I tell you. You can imagine how a house of crying kids does to you. It wears you down and you wonder if and when the balance of life will come back. I think it already is beginning to come back. I started sewing up a new cushion cover and will show a tutorial on how to do it. I'm really keen on eating less meat this year and we'll just see how we go with growing some vegies in the garden. I...