I couldn’t help myself. Â Lark had a sale on Belle & Boo and I just had to have the reversible skirt for Tenneille. Â I had been eyeing it off for a while, so when it featured in their 12 days of Christmas sale with 40% off, it was a sure sale! Â I could have ironed it before taking photo’s, but I was too excited to share it with you. Â I couldn’t go past the cute pocket mirror either (for me of course!).
How cute is this apple button!
Meet Me at Mikes Pocket Mirror
Just sharing a little of our festive spirit with you.
Saint Nicholas joined our family a few years back. Â I love his rustic look and charm. Â I made him from a pattern out of Australia Homespun, No.12 (Vol 3.4). Â It is a fairly old magazine. Â I had it a few years before making St Nick. Â He wore a beard of inferior quality for a couple of years, until I stumbled upon some lovely natural woollen fleece. Â It looks and feels so much better than his previous beard did. Â I love him dearly!
I have made a lovely little tradition each Christmas where I read a story of St Nicholas to the children, with him sitting at our side of course.
I have been crafting like a crazy woman! Â I managed to get a table cloth together with napkins and a table runner sewn up in an afternoon. Â I am so happy with the outcome. Â I know I wouldn’t have been able to purchase anything I like as much in the stores. Â I love nostalgic festive fabric. Â I find bright red Santas, well, quite scary. Â Spotlight have 50% off Christmas fabrics at the moment. Â I went to town, so to speak and purchased all sorts of lovely prints. Â You will see more of them created into all sorts of goodies as we lead up to the festive season. Â I can’t wait to share with you all my crafting madness.
My cousin’s wife recently had a baby girl. Â What better excuse to do some crafting! Â I decided that a quilt was in order. Â The pattern is by Kwik Sew, pattern no. 2971. Â I purchased the pattern about 8 years ago, so not sure if it is still currently available. Â As per usual, I changed the pattern slightly. Â The quilt could be used in a cot, on the end of a bed or even a play rug. Â Welcome sweet baby!
Oh yes, bugs are big around here. Â Or should I say slugs! Â Enormous almost doesn’t cut it. Â They are know as Leopard Slugs (Limax Maximus). Â As it has been so wet around here of late, they have been very active, but only ever at night. Â We don’t actually know where they hide out during daylight hours. Â We have learnt that it’s not a good idea to walk around barefoot outside our house when it is dark and wet. Â I am sure you can guess why! Â Did I hear someone say eeew? Â Well that is an understatement. Â Shall we leave it at that?
Leopard Slug pictured next to an Australian 20 cent coin for size comparison
Up close, but forget personal!
This is another favourite cafe. Â It’s not in the hills though. Â Blue Dish is a french inspired cafe that serves really good food. Â I tend to order their tarts with a salad. Â On this visit I ordered a smoked salmon tart and chickpea salad. Â The crust on the tart is light, crumbly and tastes oh so buttery! Â The salad was perfect. Â Their flourless chocolate cake is lovely. Â I ordered a toasted bagette for Jairah. Â He managed to eat most of it, which was a feat in itself, as the serving was quite large. Coffee is good too, not too bitter. Â Blue Dish is located at 326 Highett Road, Highett.
It is before 8pm and I have decided that this mama needs to be in bed. Â So not much to share tonight. Â I am a little disappointed, as I was meant to be sharing a special evening with some lovely women, but my body is telling me to rest and restore. Â Good evening to you all. xx
Sunset
The Dandenong Ranges are filled with beautiful places to visit. Â One of which is the National Rhododendron Gardens in Olinda. Â As of the middle of this year, entry is now free! Â We visit on a regular basis as the gardens are forever changing with the seasons. Â We recently had grandparents visit from New Zealand and we managed to pick the ONE sunny day to visit the gardens.
Enjoy your look around.
We have had good intentions of enrolling Scarlett in Nippers for the last couple of years, but family dynamics have prevented our good intentions. But this year, we seem up for the challenge of being part of an organisation that is very Australia at heart. Â If you don’t know, Nippers is part of surf life saving in Australia. Â It is a fun way to introduce children to the fun that the surf has to offer, but also educate them in surf safety. Â We are really looking forward to our new family adventure. Â What I love is that they encourage younger siblings to join in the fun of Nippers. Â I must say I have been hesitant in joining any extra curricular activities, as our life always seems so very full, but I think we are on to something here!
The weather was perfect and fun was had by all. Â Unfortunately I didn’t get any photo’s of Scarlett, as I don’t feel it is fair posting pictures of other people outside our family without permission. Â The water was quite murky in places due to the extreme weather we have been having and was caused by stormwater draining into the bay. Â Didn’t put the kids off paddling in the water after Nippers was finished though!
Yes, I am perplexed!
A perfect day
