I’m going to be brave and use the C word. There’s something about September that just gets me thinking about Christmas. I’ve written my Christmas wishlist (iPad mini please), been buying stocking fillers and joined in some swaps for Christmas crafting. Christmas doesn’t have to be all about the money. We’ll be keeping it simple. I’ve decided to buy and wrap 24 books to put under the Christmas tree. I love the idea of reading Christmas stories with the children during Advent so have been buying second hand festive books whenever I see them. We’ll also been starting early on…
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I love making personalised cards. We made our own wedding stationery, Christmas cards and announcement cards when both children were born. This year we wanted to make a ‘thank you for our Christmas card’ featuring both their hand prints so got out the paints… We knew Big Brother had a limited attention span so got everything ready to make it as simple as possible. We bought ready made blank cards, envelopes and pots of paint. We put a dollop of paint on an old plate and used a sponge to paint on his hand, then put his hand firmly on…
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I can’t resist anything gingerbread but I’ve never had a gingerbread advent calendar so thought I would have a look for one. With a little help from Pinterest my top 5 favourite gingerbread house advent calendars are: Source: johnlewis.com via Jenny on Pinterest Source: amazon.co.uk via Jenny on Pinterest Source: blog.paper-source.com via Jenny on Pinterest Source: gingerbreadsnowflakes.com via Jenny on Pinterest Source: sewandso.co.uk via Jenny on Pinterest I’ve treated myself to the first one – how could I resist 24 iced gingerbread biscuits to get me through advent (and a new baby!). I shall be keeping a…
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I had a whopping 107 entries to my Sew, Mama, Sew giveaway. I loved reading everyone’s comments on what they would make with the Royal Wedding fabric and I am pleased to announce the winner is Sallie. Congrats, Sallie! Is it too early to be thinking about Christmas? One of my favourite sewing books is Fa La La Felt and I can’t resist working my way through all the projects. I’ve made a lot of the patterns from it but these little felt gingerbread people really took my fancy! They were quick to make although I need to perfect the…
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The latest QuinnyCasters challenge is to photograph our little ones in their Zapp Xtras in an interesting or unique environment. Sadly I’m a Zone 3 suburban mum and the most exciting place we usually go is Brent Cross. However when I was looking through my recent photographs I found this: My son snoozing in his Quinny Zapp Xtra at our favourite coffee shop on the Isle of Wight where we spent Christmas. We’ve used the footmuff every day since we bought it as it’s so useful and keeps him snug. He’s wearing his little monster outfit and sucking on his…
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I’m resigned to the fact that we’ve recently waved goodbye to those blissful baby months. You know, the ones where you can guarantee that if you leave your baby on his playmat in the middle of the floor he’ll still be there while you answer the door. Ever since Edward turned 9 months (a mere week or two ago!) he seems to have turned into a whirlwind of energy. We’ve been back home for a couple of days and he obviously feels the need to explore every corner. So far he’s pretty much ignored his lovely Christmas toys in favour…
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As part of my Day Zero challenge I’m aiming to take part in at least one swap a month. So in the run up to Christmas I signed up for a couple of Christmas swaps. First up was the Blogger’s Secret Santa organised by Leanne where I received a copy of Cath Kidston’s Sew! from Helen. It’s full of beautiful projects to make (some of which will probably end up as birthday and Christmas presents). I sent a Moleskine recipe journal to Domestic Goddesque. Then I joined up for the Secret Christmas Ornament Swap organised by Denise and I received…
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Happy Christmas !
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So we’ve got through our seemingly endless preparations for Christmas and the big day is nearly here. Today we finished the peppermint creams, coconut ice, brownies, cupcakes and the oven is finally free and cooking the turkey. I can’t wait to spend tomorrow with the family enjoying all the hard work of the last few days and helping Edward open his mountain of presents. I’ve found a couple of fun ways to remind us of his first Christmas. Firstly Sally was giving away codes to make a photograph showing Father Christmas in your house. Well we’re currently staying with my…