March Snippets

I ummed and ahhhhed about participating in the photo a day challenge but honestly, I am just hopeless at these things. Seen as I have neglected our family blog for oooh six months or so now, I just thought I would try and record some monthly snippets here instead. So, without further ado...the March Snippets!

I had a birthday. We went out for Chinese to celebrate.
The Mr bought and potted some herbs for me. I am so happy about that!
I think I am happier than I was at 37.

Boo turned ten. 10! Some days I think 10 is the new 13!
One Sunday I decided to buy tickets online to see Taylor Swift in Melbourne-the following day! So just me and my big girl went to the concert. Her very first concert. I think I was about 20 when I went to my first concert. I am SO happy I took her. The concert was fantastic! A wonderful first concert for Miss 10.
She loved every minute of it. My favourite bit was toward the end when she was tired and asked to sit on my lap. I loved every minute of it.

I had my hair dyed back to brown.

We had a garage sale. We sold our cot and change table. Boo hoo.
But it's time to move into the next stage. Our little family have many plans.

G surprised us with this! Yes it's pink! That didn't hinder Ollie's enthusiasm one bit!

Boo was funny. The Mister had a rope attached to the back while they were learning. He runs along behind them and if they get into trouble, he pulls the rope which flicks a switch and stops the bike. Boo took off so fast that she pulled the rope out of G's hand. He couldn't catch her. He yelled out to her as she raced around the paddock. He was yelling her name and holding up his hand in a stop signal. Eventually she rode up to him and gave him a high five. Yep a stop signal can definately be mistaken for a high five. Clearly she has driven quad bikes in her dreams because she knew just what to do.

 Ollie, on the other hand needs a bit more time on his L plates.

The little ones and I had a really fun afternoon at the mini railway. We had such a happy time.

 I tried some new recipes. A delicious frittata recipe found in Real Living Magazine.

There have many playdates. We had Ruby over. And Ned and Tom. We played with Dayne and Halle. O went to Finbar's. We had a bbq at the park with school friends. We had afternoon tea at Annie's and at Liss' too.

There has been band practise and music lessons, swimming squad, reading groups, parent/teacher interviews. I am counting down the days until the school holidays.

G and his dad went to the Mulwala Classic. A special trip for them each year.

Boo has a staph infection.

All three had their flu shots.

The big kids had their eyes checked. Guess who is wearing glasses now?



PS Don't forget to change the clocks tonight. Daylight saving ends at 3am tomorrow!

Hello yellow!

My head is in a spin at the moment. Real life is just keeping me too busy to sit down at the computer...mostly in a good way. Does that happen to you too?

Yesterday I managed to sneak a bit of time to sew a cushion. I found a second yellow shirt at the oppy...finally, and so now this cushion has a friend. The shirt is a lovely rich yellow. I like the little pocket but I had to unpick it as I needed every bit of the shirt front for the cushion cover. I quite like the back pannel of the shirt as well so I am thinking I might be able to used that for another cushion.

And a little bit more sunshine for any yellow lovers...

1. Yellow pyrex. Thrifted and gifted to me from my bff for my recent birthday. 38!
2. Pre loved florals found on my thrifting travels.
3. Thrifted yellow knit. Handmade and the perfect size for my little love.
4. Sweet Johnson plate. I do love my roses and yellow roses are a favourite.
I had a bouquet of yellow roses on my wedding day.

I hope you are having a sunny week!

Op shopping bits and pieces

A little assortment of bits and pieces this past week.

Some more pretty florals...yep MORE! $2.00

Some lovely disney books $2.00

A coin purse because I needed one. $2.00

This little piece which I really love. $3.00

Something about it just called out to me. I walked around the Salvos with it, while I thought up a plan for it.
I think it will be very pretty with some daffodil bulbs planted in it. Any other ideas?

And finally, I bought two of these chairs last month. They were $25.00 each.
Hubby has moved this one inside and has claimed it as his new morning coffee drinking spot.
I have plans to get some new foam cut and new covers as well. For now I am happy enough with the mustard covers and Zara's gorgeous cushion looks right at home there, I think.

Have you been op shopping lately too? Once again, I am linking up with Sophie's Flea Market Finds.

Yellow skirt

Totally inspired by these gorgeous skirts...I made a little skirt for Boo. She's all about yellow at the moment so some yellow paisley sheeting it was!

Comfort food

My mama is a pretty good cook. As a child, I have many a memory of her catering for various dinner parties and celebrations. She is a bit of a whinger by nature (love ya Mum!) but secretly she loves the preparation, the fuss, the food and the enjoyment of sharing it. If you happened to be at our place around meal time, you were not invited to stay. A place was automatically set and it was assumed you would be eating with us. We always had a ring in or two for Christmas dinner and everyone was welcome.

One of my father's favourites is  Bread and Butter Pudding. As a child, I wasn't really a fan of bread and butter pudding but these days it is one of my favourite comfort foods. It has a tonne of nostalgia for me.

Each time I bake this, I call and ask my ma for the recipe and every time, I'm sure it's a little bit different.

Bread and Butter Pudding as told by Margie...

4-5 eggs, couple of cups of milk, cup of cream or half a bottle, couple of handfuls of sugar and a couple of dobs of vanilla


Beat well.


Always put bread and butter(with jam) in first. 
I like to sprinkle it with nutmeg-not a lot, just a tiny little taste of it.


Bake 50 mins in 1 inch of water. 
If it evaporates, top it up...you've got to keep your eye on it!

Okay...clear as mud?!
Now my interpretation of Margies Bread and Butter Pudding, in case you would like to make it too.


4 large eggs
2 cups milk
1/4 cup castor sugar
1 cup cream
2 tsp vanilla extract
bread, butter, jam

Beat eggs, milk, sugar, cream and vanilla well.

Cut crusts off slices of bread. I like thick toast style slices. But when I made the one below I only had sandwich slices so I did two layers of bread.
Spread each slice with butter and jam of choice-I like raspberry, marmalade is more traditional, I think.
Place bread in baking dish, just lay it out covering the entire dish.
Gently pour mix over bread.
Place baking dish in a larger baking dish/roasting pan that is filled with water.
Water should be about 1 inch deep or so it comes halfway up the sides of your baking dish.

Bake at 180 degrees cel. for 50 mins. Halfway through I covered it with foil to prevent too much browning on top. Serve warm or cold. Indulge with a dollop of whipped cream.

Variations Add a handful of sultanas to mix. Use crossiants instead of bread-naughty but delicious!

I am the only one in our family that likes Bread and Butter Pudding which unfortunately or maybe fortunately... means I eat the lot!

Do you like Bread and Butter Pudding?
Do have a favourite comfort food?

Pre loved fabric

This week I received my package from the Vintage Sheet Swap. There are some lovely florals, some really faded and worn fabrics-in a good way, some I haven't seen before and many that I don't have in my stash. One of things I love is seeing some of the same prints I already have but in different colourways.

Having a new bundle of fabrics was all the motivation I needed to pull out the sewing machine.
I cut up some 6 1/2 inch squares and I thought I really ought to try something else-seen as I have made four quilts of varing sized squares now. The thing is, although I admire fancy schmancy quilt designs enormously, I actually really like squares. Yep I am a simple girl!

Anywayyyy I decided to be a bit crazy and have a go at triangles ;)
I kind of thought it was a bit wonky but once it's all pieced together, it seems to work out I think.

I just stitched up a small portion to make sure I was on the right path...and I think I am.
 I am not sure what I am making yet. Maybe a quilt or maybe a European Pillow Case.

Did you participate in the Vintage Sheet swap as well?
What will you be making? I'd love to see.

For more creative spaces, pop over here.

Flea market finds

A little 'show and tell' of some of the florals thrifted during Friday's outing.

 This Smurfs pillowcase is currently being squabbled over by the little loves.

 A pretty floral skirt, handmade and the perect size for Lulu. Just $1.00

And while not actually a flea market find, I wanted to share with you some pictures I took at the gorgeous Ajanta Cafe in Coolamon. I wrote about it here and a couple of weekends ago, my girls and I went out to Ajanta for some morning tea. It's just filled to the brim of lovley stuff.

I hope you have had a wonderful weekend and have found some pre loved treasures too.
For more flea market finds, pop on over to Her Library Adventures.

For the love of thrifting

This morning I decided to go for a little drive to visit some country oppies. Usually my thrifting consists of popping into the op shops on my way by or when I have 10 minutes to spare. But today, Lulu and I headed out for a morning of thrifting in it's own right!

We visited 4 op shops and picked up a few bits and pieces including these lovely linens. Some beautiful florals, a lovely paisley, some great prints for a 'vintage boy quilt' too. A very pretty flannel pillowcase, so soft with just the perfect amount of wearing. And to top it off a linen tablecloth in perfect condition and some fun, bright floral runners.

I am rather pleased with this little haul. They are all in the washing machine as I type. I have laundry piling up but the motivation to wash those precious fabrics was HUGE ;)

Hopefully a bit more show and tell on Sunday!
Have you been thrifting this week? I hope you've found something you love!

My creative space lately...

A little while ago, I saw this dresser at the Salvo's for $20. I was very tempted but my better half was cracking down on the amount of junk thrifted treasures I was bringing home. I was heading away that night for a few days so I expected it would be gone by the time I arrived back home.

Lo and behold, it was still there. So, I took it as a sign it 'was meant to be'.

My dear old dad collected it for me and we sanded it back and gave it a lick of paint.

The paint is a very pale blue/grey called Vintage Blue'. I forgot to take a before shot but it had a brown lacquer on it. I added some pretty glass knobs and it has a new home in Miss 10's bedroom.

I love the shape, the legs, the mirror and I really enjoyed working on this little project with my dad as well.

Linking up with Our Creative Spaces