Margaret's Child

Valentine's 2012

2012-02-16T19:38:00.000+10:00

I am not a romantic person at all, so Valentine's Day comes and goes around me without much fuss and I am cool with that. BUT, I do love to spoil the kiddies and they love it when they find a nice surprise on their beds after school so I usually give them a Valentine's treat. I never spend much money and always include something hand made. So this year this was it.

A chenille bear I made from here. A chocolate rose each from Aldi, and an origami heart with a message inside and a $1 scratchie. I spent $2.50 on each child and then used my home supplies for sewing. A really affordable present for anyone.

And of course once the presents were found after school and the chocolates were eaten I had some things created for me too. From Nathan a paper rose, which I was pretty happy he made by recycling the rose stem that I gave him and an origami heart.

And then Emma made me this origami boat with lots of messages all over it and a paper rose on the back.

Cute stuff. Oh and that cute love owl picture at the top is actually my February picture from my calendar Toni made me for Christmas.

Random

2012-02-15T07:19:00.001+10:00

It has been so long since I blogged, I look at my blog every day and have been busting to share stuff but I haven't had my camera and I hate blogging without pics, so the break has been longer than usual.

Anyway, for todays post I still haven't used my camera but I have it in my hot little hands just waiting...I have been using my phone though, taking my photo everyday for my project 365. I have to say that some days a lot happens that I would love to document and picking just one picture to represent that day is a bit of a mission.

So here's what's been going on:

I'm starting to think that a black cat crossed my path at the start of this year. So many things have gone wrong, broken etc etc that I fell exhausted and drained.

After myself not being well and then Billy the dog not being well it was Nathan's turn. He was very sick for a whole week, the poor little boy is now so so skinny but is feeling better. Turns out he had salmonella, I think from swimming in our dam.

Other dramas have happened too. They are small individually but overwhelming when you put them all together. I know there are people who have troubles so much bigger than mine so I try really hard to keep that in mind but sometimes it is hard to have perspective.

Here are some of my recent photos from project 365. I take them all using instagram using a particular filter.

The book I am reading right now and loving. This is going to be the last paper book I read for a while as I am going to move onto reading my ipad.

My blog

Back to normal routine of late has been great. I love my routine and my personal training sessions are part of it.

My birds

The much loved sewing machine

A change from blonde to brown

A gorgeous full moon outside the other night. I can't get instagram to zoom, if you can let me know how!

I had a fabulous catch up with my friends the other night, good food, great company, it was lots of fun.

And Monday 13th February was my wonderful mum's birthday, she would have been 66. She is so dearly missed. What else can you say about someone so significant in your life who is gone? We bought this candle at Notre Dame in Paris on our last trip specifically to light when it is Mum's or my Aunty Ann's birthday etc.

We also exchanged some small gifts in this house for Valentine's Day yesterday (me and the kids that is). I'll be back to share those later today.

Have a great Wednesday!

This and that...

2012-02-02T11:48:00.000+10:00

What a year we are having in our house so far! I've been in hospital, Billy had to have a procedure and this week Nathan has been really sick. This is a big deal for us, Nathan very rarely gets sick and never this sick. The poor thing, I am really hoping he gets better soon, it is miserable and draining when the kids are sick.

On top of all the sickness it is still raining! I just wish it would stop. It is so depressing when you see no sun! I am definitely a person who needs my vitamin D!

Anyway that's my little whinge for now. I haven't had the time since my last post to sew but I am hoping to today. I'm actually trying to think of something cute I can make for the kids for Valentines Day. I always give them something, sometimes just a chocolate to let them know I love them.

I thought I would share some of my project 365 photos today. On my iphone I have the instagram app. Each day I take a photo (of anything) and then I use my Project 365 app to document that photo for the day. I always put a comment to go along with my photo. So far I've kept up pretty well and I'm enjoying documenting the simple things that happen every day (I tried to copy and paste the app onto here but I can't get it to work, so you'll have to go to itunes to get it).

First day of school

A rainy rainy day

Annie tickets arrive

Nathan practising the trumpet

Flowers

Billy after his visit to the vet

Emma playing on the laptop

Just a few of the different photos I've used for January. I think it is really important to document the everyday things that happen. I actually prefer to document everyday routines rather than birthdays etc. but that's just me.

If you have any good Valentines Day ideas for me I would love to hear them... leave me a comment.

Have a great afternoon

Debbie

Getting some projects finished...

2012-01-30T14:18:00.003+10:00

Seeing as though it is still raining I thought what better time to get some sewing projects finished. They are all small things that have been sitting around in my room and just needed finishing.

Firstly, Emma needed a drink bottle holder for school so her bottle doesn't drip everywhere. I'm a week late with this but better late then never.

These burp clothes are for someone special who is having a baby and they have been sitting for ages (well since before Christmas) waiting to be made. I just love that yellow gnome and blue elephant fabric. I plan on making about another 6 of these, at least I have started.

Toni asked me to make some coasters for our desk at work to stop our water bottles leaving drips everywhere. I already had this set cut and waiting for sewing so I decided they would be ours.

And this project is a new dancing bag for Emma. I've actually been meaning to make this for many months and allocated this fabric to it forever ago, I just had to find the mojo to do it. It feels good to know that now I have just in time for the new year of dancing to begin on Wednesday. It's a messenger bag style to it has one long handle that goes over one shoulder and across the body. That was the style she requested. I didn't attach any closures so that she can get in and out of it easily. I made the lining hot pink.

Now what to do next? I have several projects swimming around in my head, I just need to decide which one to make.

Let's hope the sun starts shining around here soon

Debbie

Last share about our trip...

2012-01-28T17:28:00.000+10:00

What a busy week! With the start of school for myself and the kids and the shocking pouring rain the week has been hectic and messy and not much fun. I thought I would check in for a quick last post about our trip away. We only had 2 more places we visited - Dubbo Gaol and Tamworth.

We had a great afternoon at the Old Dubbo Gaol. It was very interesting and surprisingly small and right in the main street of town!

When we left Dubbo we headed home and stopped at Tamworth for the night. We stopped and saw the golden guitar and had photos.

And last of all, this little one in our house has been sick of late and had a visit to the vet yesterday. It looks like he is up for an operation although we are holding out that it won't have to come to that. Poor Billy.

I have a couple of projects on the go but just haven't gotten around to finishing them yet, I'll share when I have which will hopefully be this week!

I still don't have my camera so hence my lack of posting about start of school and Australia Day. I only managed a couple of photos on my phone for the start of school and Australia Day - nothing. Such a shame... how do people survive without cameras?

Some simple crafting...

2012-01-22T14:20:00.001+10:00

We are in full swing getting ready to head back to school tomorrow in this house. The uniforms etc are ready, the books are covered so today I worked on making Emma a couple of hair accessories for school.

Super easy to make. For the first ones I used some button blanks with the shank on the back. Covered them with fabric to match her uniform (royal blue and yellow) and then threaded a thin blue hair tie through the loop on the back.

Then I measured and cut some FOE (head band elastic) I had to fit Emma's head and sewed the ends together before cutting a couple of felt flowers in school colours and hand sewing them on with a button centre. Easy, quick and inexpensive for school.

I also did some other crafting this week. I went to the local op shop the other day and found this little square frame for $3. I grabbed it because I had recently bought an little square owl picture from here and it looked like it could possibly fit in there. The picture is only 12cm x 12cm. Impossible to buy a frame for.

Anyway I took it home, gave it a few coats of paint and some glitter spray and then a sand back. Then I mounted my little picture inside and this is what it looks like now. Totally cute and the best thing - completely unique.

I have another little picture from the same shop of a little vintage caravan, I wonder if I will be lucky enough to find another frame?

Dubbo Zoo Day 2...

2012-01-17T18:08:00.001+10:00

At Dubbo there is a road that goes around it, we chose to take our car around both days and we parked in the allocated areas and then walked to the enclosures. We found this best for us. On the second day we actually packed our car fridge into the car and stopped at one of the many picnic spots for lunch. On day one we did the outside of the circuit and on day 2 we did all the enclosures on the inside.

First stop on day two was the Meerkats. Love these cuties, I could sit and watch them for hours.

Emma did lots of map reading and ensured we didn't get lost.

There were many beautiful spots of scenery to photograph.

It took me forever to get his guy to look at me.

Another favourite animal of mine, the otters.

Crazy Barro children.

The ostriches were amazing, they must of thought we had come to feed them, they followed us up and down the fence getting oh so close.

This little zebra was rolling around and scratching his back but do you think he would do it while I had the camera out? Come on animals, work with me here!

At the end of our 2nd say Anthony did some crazy shots with the kids while I looked in the shop.

We loved Dubbo Zoo and we would tell anyone to visit. We are a zoo family and really enjoy visiting zoo's all over the world and this one was right up there with my favourites.

Debbie

Any sewing ideas?

2012-01-15T22:03:00.001+10:00

I have a little sewing group at work and we get together once a week (myself and the kids) to create little projects.

I am trying to think of some little projects for the year with my little sewers and would love any ideas anyone could give me.

The projects need to be simple and hand sewn.

I would appreciate any help.

Debbie

Our Little Trip...Bathurst and Dubbo

2012-01-15T16:02:00.000+10:00

We drove from the central coast, N.S.W to Bathurst on the next leg of our adventure. We went to Bathurst for Anthony and he was not disappointed. He had a ball as we drove around the famous racing track twice.

The above photos were taken at the top of the mountain. Beautiful view from up there. And below is the Captiva on the starting line (notice the crazy Barro family hanging out the windows?).

Peter Brock's statue.

After our little trip through Bathurst we headed out to Dubbo. We stayed at the Big 4 in this 2 bedroom cabin. It was perfect for our needs while we were there.

And it was a coincidence that the street our little cabin was on was called Emma St.

We went to the zoo for 2 days and enjoyed every minute of it. We have been to many zoos as we have travelled (we always go to the zoo) and this is one of the best so far.

My very favourite animals are the giraffes...they are just amazing. We were lucky enough to get tickets to feed them.

And another favourite animal...the elephants.

Nathan was very excited at lunch when he found his name on a coke bottle.

Nothing like a pose!

And this zoo had four or five of these tortoises. They are so huge, they just fascinate me too.

I'll be back with our highlights of day 2 at the zoo tomorrow.

Debbie

New name, new look...

2012-01-15T09:38:00.003+10:00

With the new year I thought it was time for a change on the old blog so I have changed the colours etc. I am loving the new colours they are very me.

I have also been thinking for a long time about changing the name of my blog. Much has evolved over the years that my blog has been going for and I think the name Margaret's Child suits so much better now so that is what it now is. I hope I don't confuse anyone.

Happy Sunday!

Our Little Trip...New Years Eve 2011

2012-01-14T21:28:00.000+10:00

We spent a few days during our road trip with my wonderful friend, Tracey. We have been friends since we were 4 and I feel blessed that we are still so close. Our families get together as often as we can living so far away from each other and we always have a good time together.

So we spent the day of New Years Eve at the races. It was family day so the kids had a ball and we chatted, had a few drinks and a few bets.

After the races we quickly changed clothes (in the parking lot which would have been funny to any bystander) and headed to see a soccer game. This was Nathan's first live soccer game so he was wrapped and although we are Brisbane Roar supporters Nathan wore a Mariners shirt to the game to fit in a bit (they really don't like Roar supporters down at Mariners).

After the game we walked to the waterfront and watched the family fireworks before heading home for our pj's and cups of tea to see in the new year. It was a huge day and lots of fun.

P.S. Remember my last holiday disaster with my camera breaking on me? Well yes that very nearly happened again! Thank goodness it lasted the trip, but on this day (above) it played up again with the same problem. So, as soon as I am well enough my camera is going back to the camera shop for visit #3.

Have a great Sunday!

Unexpected Setback

2012-01-13T12:57:00.000+10:00

I was all set to start blogging again on the weekend and had some posts in my head and then I had an unexpected setback. I had to have an emergency operation to have my appendix out. So, since then I have been out of action and stuck in bed or on the couch. Today I am much much better and moving more so I thought I better check in and let everyone know that I am here.

You have probably guessed that our little camping trip was cancelled due to my operation so that was a little bit sad.

I am busting to do some craft after being gone from my sewing for a few weeks now, I have SO much to organise for my kids before school starts (it is actually making my head spin) and I need to organise myself for the start of the new school year too. I have no idea when I am going to get to any of it but I hope it will be soon!

I'll be back with some more photos of our trip soon, but here is one of my favourites, and one of my favourite animals.

Hello...

2012-01-06T22:06:00.001+10:00

Just a short blog post today to say hello for 2012. I know that I did do a very short blog post while I was away. I typed it on my ipad so it was ordinary. Anyway we are home after a really great trip. When I recap our last 9 days I am amazed at the amazing country we have and all that we have seen and experienced in the last week.

I thought I would quickly share some photos today of our favourite rest stop on our trip. It was called New Italy, which was right up our alley so we had to stop. It was lovely and we stayed for a while looking in the Italian museum there and reading about the town Anthony's mum is from.

I had to take photos of the buildings, they had grapes growing on them.

We went into the gift shop and picked up the gorgeous Italian recipe book. It is so thick and full of great recipes for us to try. It was a bargain for only $19.95.

And the museum had this old sewing machine that I had to share.

Like I said just a short post tonight, I am exhausted and have been super busy this afternoon unpacking and washing etc. I'll be back though...

Road trip update

2012-01-03T18:26:00.001+10:00

Hi everyone! I thought I would quickly check in while we are away. We are halfway through our first family road trip and I am super super happy to say that we are having a really great time. We have seen and done so much in a small amount of time. We have been to quaint little rest stops and seen plenty of little towns. We caught up with amazing friends and went to the races and a soccer game and had a day at the beach. We went to Bathurst and did laps of the famous track.We are now in Dubbo and had our first day at the zoo today. It was amazing. We are going back tomorrow. I have to say that the bingo I made has been a massive hit so I have been very happy about that. I'll blog again when I i get home, I hope everyone had a happy and safe new years.a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com" target="_blank">

Road Trip Preparations...

2011-12-27T19:12:00.000+10:00

We had an awesome Christmas in our house this year. Everyone was very happy with their gifts and we celebrated our day at home with loved family and friends. I always just take the time to enjoy Christmas and never really take photos so sorry, none of those today.

Now we move on to our next adventure...our first family road trip. To Newcastle to visit wonderful friends and then to Dubbo to see the zoo.

I'm nervous, I don't know if we are going to like travelling this way and I don't really know how to prepare for it to be honest but I am just going with the flow. I don't know if I'll be able to blog while I am gone but I will try.

I did think a lot about the kids in the car. They got a few DVDs for Christmas to keep them entertained (I am thankful that my car has an inbuilt DVD player) and I have made them a travelling bingo game to keep them amused too.

I found a printable game online (I have no idea where, I just printed and didn't save it). I did have to look a bit harder for an Australian version. I printed it off, backed it on card and laminated it. I bought a packet of whiteboard markers to cross off the pictures and sewed up on one of my large pencil cases to store it in. Simple and quick (and I hope effective).

While I was sewing up pencil cases I made the kids' one for school next year. With so much planned for the rest of the school holidays I am wondering when I am ever going to get time to get any school supplies organised so I feel better knowing I at least have one thing done!

If you have any other suggestions or advice for a smooth and happy road trip I would love to hear them.

Last Minute Sewing...

2011-12-24T16:33:00.000+10:00

Well we are all ready for Santa to come to our house, well almost (we need to do his Santa plate and spread our reindeer food). I had some extra time this afternoon, which I know is a miracle in itself, so I thought I would sew a couple of things that I had wanted to do but were not a necessity.

Firstly I embellished a t-shirt for Emma to go along with her Christmas skirt, so her set is now complete and ready to wear. This photo is so dark (the weather is so horrible today, it is a nice white shirt trust me!).

And I have wanted a stocking for our much loved dog Billy but I've had trouble finding one in the shops at a reasonable price so when I read my new book (Fa la la la Felt) I got the idea to make my own.

I just traced a stocking we already had that was the size I wanted as a pattern and cut out some bones to pretty it up. I then quickly embroidered his name on it to make it special. Now Billy has a stocking too, all ready for his Christmas treat.

Merry Christmas everyone, I wish you all a happy and safe festive few days and I hope that Santa is kind to us all!

Handmade Christmas

2011-12-23T16:07:00.000+10:00

Every year my girlfriends and I get together and have a day with the kids before Christmas. We all have a Secret Santa (for the kids) and we make each other something small and handmade. That is the only guideline, it has to be handmade (even the secret Santa presents).

I've already shared one of my kids presents with the skirt and shirt and I put together a little sewing kit so Caty could make her own little owls.

For my lovely friends I put this together.

I made them all two hand sewn Christmas decorations, an apple and a pear and put them inside this cute little box.

And then they each got one of the following books as well. These books are to die for, I am very happy that I bought one of each for myself too!

The decorations I made them are from the Fa la la la Felt book.

I got some gorgeous presents too, I'll have to come back and post them when I take photos. Thanks girls for a fabulous catch up as always and for my thoughtful gifts.

Reindeer Food...

2011-12-22T20:48:00.000+10:00

Every year we have a few standard activities in our advent calendar with one of them always being reindeer food. We make it for ourselves and for all our friends' kids too. This year was no different so I thought I would share the process in case anyone out there would like to make it with their kids before Christmas.

It really is super easy. All you need is something to put the food in when finished (we used cellophane bags), rolled oats, glitter and curling ribbon or something else to seal your package up.

Just combine the oats and glitter and then bag it up. For the labels I simply googled reindeer food labels and found these, I am really sorry but I have no idea where from, I just have them saved as a document. I printed them off, backed them with card, punched a hole in the corner and attached them with the curling ribbon.

When they are ready all you do is follow the instructions on the label (they should all say the same thing) and sprinkle it all over the grass outside for Santa's reindeer to eat while he is busy with the presents. The kids always love sprinkling the reindeer food on Christmas Eve and it is natural and not harmful to wildlife etc.

A simple Christmas treat to make with the kids...

2011-12-19T19:01:00.003+10:00

While reading my very favourite blog today I saw this cute idea for making mini Christmas puddings with the kids. Super easy and something I wouldn't mind a nibble on myself, so I thought I would share. Link HERE

Going Crackers!

2011-12-18T19:16:00.000+10:00

One of our advent activities every year is to make our own Christmas crackers. I have actually been making my own crackers/bon bons for years. The commercial ones are just full of rubbish no one wants and this seems to be the best solution for our family.

So to make it easy and inexpensive I bought this pack from Spotlight for $3.

The instructions are on the back although they are very self explanatory.

I do have to say that I made these with Emma (7) this year and she did have some trouble getting the cardboard inserted into the slit that is cut so little ones do need some help.

The reason we make our own crackers is to make them worthwhile, we don't want any little plastic toys or miniature sized playing cards. When you do it this way you can put in whatever your family would like. We always put $1 scratchies in ours. This way we all have some fun scratching away and seeing if anyone is a big winner.

I forgot to say that these kits come with hats and jokes already prepared so everyone still gets to wear the silly hat at lunch/dinner and share the joke with the rest of the family/guests.

This year each cracker has inside it; a scratchie, joke and hat (in other years I have put a balloon and chocolate in but decided we didn't need them this year). And this is what the finished product looks like.

I did add some extra red and green curling ribbon to each end of the crackers for something more. They look really good. Easy to make, affordable and one of a kind! All up 6 crackers cost $9.

Christmas Skirts

2011-12-16T19:16:00.000+10:00

I've been busy organising Christmas presents around here. Every year my close friends and I have a get together with our kids at Christmas. We all have a Santa or two or three to make a hand made gift for. This year I got 2 lovely girls. So for one of them I have made a Christmas skirt and t shirt to match. The skirt is a really easy pattern from Oliver and S. It's a free one. The link to it is here.

To the shirt I just added a couple of vintage doilies and a button. Easy.

I also made Emma a skirt, pretty much the same but with pom pom trim.

Now let's hope this little Secret Santa likes her gift...

Last Market for 2011

2011-12-16T15:04:00.003+10:00

I will be at Buderim at Mamma's Market tomorrow along with Toni selling our goods. Come along and say hi. This is the last market for 2011 and Christmas.

Christmas Holiday...shop closing

2011-12-15T20:20:00.000+10:00

Margaret's Child, my made it shop will close tomorrow evening, Friday 16th December until the 9th January for our Christmas break. Thanks everyone who has supported my little hobby throughout the year.

We will be at Mamma's Market on Saturday selling all products. See below the new hair accessories I have made. I will have them at the markets on Saturday and they will be in my made it shop next year.

Lolly Tree

2011-12-15T15:18:00.001+10:00

When I write the activities for my advent calendar each year I try to keep them interesting for the kids but simple enough that it doesn't turn into a huge mission to accomplish them. In years past I have stayed away from this one but this year I thought we would give it a go and it went really well. The photos are terrible so bare with me.

This is our lolly tree. Perfect for Christmas and having on the table for little nibbles.

So, basically this is how you do it.

You need

a polystyrene cone
wrapped lollies (we used Minties, Sherbies, Redskins and Milkos)
green cellophane
pins

The process is simply that you cut your cellophane into rectangle shapes large enough to wrap your lolly in with some excess at the top for pinning onto the polystyrene cone. Then wrap each lolly in the cellophane and starting at the bottom and working your way around and then up and up pin each wrapped lolly into the cone. We left the top of ours just green as the cellophane gathers at the top but anything on the top would work. We also added a few curls with curling ribbon to fill in a couple of gaps. Now it sits on the table ready for anyone to start picking the lollies off and enjoying them.

A quick and easy activity that the kids can do with little help. And you can keep the cone and pins ready to use again next year.

And I thought I would share those two other gifts that I said I loved so much from work.

The first one is a banana knitted by one of our little preppies.

And the other a sweet birdie that sits on my half wall alongside Emma's dancing photo.

So nice...

Cute Owls...

2011-12-12T17:20:00.001+10:00

While in blog land today I found these cute little owls. This lady also shares some lovely Christmas packaging. If only I could crochet... and I wonder how she does those hearts?

If you want to read more the link is HERE.

Hand Sewn Goodness...

2011-12-11T20:42:00.001+10:00

Being a hand made kind of girl I really love gifts that are made by someone. I just wanted to share one today, one from a child in my class, one I really love.

A new notebook with hand sewn cover. I love notebooks, I like to make lists so I am constantly writing things down. It will get very good use in my hands.

And I have madly been sewing these little cuties as they have been my little hand sewn gift for people like dancing and scout teachers and parent helpers at school etc.

Ill be back later to share another gorgeous hand made gift from school that I love (and one that is not hand made but I still love anyway).

Advent...

2011-12-10T07:16:00.001+10:00

Every year it is a tradition in our house to do the advent calendar. The kids really love it, they actually count down the days until it goes up so it doesn't look like there is any slacking going to happen around that in our house. Every year we have a hand sewn calendar that goes up and inside each pocket is a little note telling the kids the treat for that day. We don't always have chocolate or lollies more often than not we have activities for the kids to complete. So this is what our calendar looked like this year.

And for activities that need something to work with I just simply put them in brown paper bags with a tag for the date they are needed. The kids really love it when I do this, it's like a little stack of extra presents.

Here is out advent list for this year:

Popping candy
New DVD (Christmas in Cartoon land)
Dinner out with family, Nathan at scouts excursion, Emma at dancing)
Writing Christmas cards to friends
Chocolate Santa
Writing our letters to Santa
New DVD (Mr Bean's Christmas)
Scratchie to scratch
Make a calendar for relatives
Break up parties today - Nathan, scouts, Emma, dancing
New DVD and popcorn for watching
Making Christmas door hangers
Trip to the movies
Chocolate
Making a lolly tree
Watching an old favourite DVD - Phineas and Ferb
Making Christmas crackers
Popping Candy
Making little felt stockings
Making reindeer food
Chocolate
Christmas cooking - reindeer biscuits, gingerbread men, rum balls etc.
Christmas play date with friends
Do Santa's plate, spread reindeer food, go looking at Christmas lights. Open new pyjamas. Check where Santa is on the web.

We also started the new tradition this year of having 24 Christmas books wrapped up with one to open and read each day leading up to Christmas.

These are a couple of the new Christmas books we go this year.

We were also super lucky this year and got a Lego Advent Calendar. The kids are just loving opening it each day an putting the pieces together to make Lego City. A really good advent idea.

As you can see we really love counting down to the big day in this house!

Yah! I'm Back...

2011-12-09T20:00:00.001+10:00

I can't believe I have not blogged in such a long time. The last few weeks have just been ridiculously busy with the end of school etc etc. BUT, now it is holidays and I have got lots to share.

First of all, my house is all about Christmas now. The tree went up and was decorated on the 1st of the month. This photo just doesn't do our tree justice, it is really beautiful (even if I say so myself).

We have a tradition in our house with our tree. Every time we travel somewhere we collect a decoration, or two for the tree. Then, when we decorate it we get to remember all the great times we've had and the places we've seen etc. We've also got very old decorations on there from Anthony's mum and my nan and decorations from when I was a kid etc. We have decorations from people whom we love and loved.

I wanted to share two of our new decorations from this year. First, this gorgeous glass Minnie Mouse Ball from Disneyland Paris. Minnie Mouse is my favourite Disney character.

And this ball that we got in London. It has all famous London sights etc around it and it is colourful and pretty.

The best thing about our tree is it is absolutely unique and personal to us and it triggers memories and talk about our life together.

New Christmas Tradition

2011-11-20T13:01:00.001+10:00

I'm always looking for new ideas and traditions for us to follow at Christmas time. While I was reading Ali Edwards blog (link on sidebar under blogs I read) this week she mentioned a tradition which I really like the sound of. It is simply that you wrap up 24 Christmas books and place them in a basket or something alike and the kids pick one out each day leading up to Christmas to read. I do sort of do this via my advent calendar during December but this is a separate thing to do.

So, in thinking about that I counted up all our Christmas books (thinking that it is almost impossible to have 24 about Christmas) and found that we actually have 19 already. I am pretty sure another 5 won't be hard to come across.

When I am done I'll show you our stack of books, this is something I know the kids will love, especially Emma who just loves books.

And now I start thinking about our advent calendar and what we will fill our pockets with this year...any ideas? I usually use a mixture of treats (such as chocolates, lollies etc.), activities and little presents (like new books etc). I'll share some of my past ideas soon.

It's beginning to look and feel a lot like Christmas!

Emma Dances

2011-11-19T15:59:00.001+10:00

Today we went along to see Emma perform in her dance schools concert. We were so proud of her, this is her first year of dance and she has done so well. She danced a jazz piece as well as a tap piece. I couldn't take photos of her actually dancing but I did get some of her with all her proud family.

Good work Emma.

2011-11-15T13:12:00.001+10:00

Toni and I headed up to Buderim Mamma's Market on Saturday for the first time since August. It seemed liked we hadn't been there in forever and we were a bit out of practice when it came to our stall layout etc. Luckily we worked it out pretty quickly and had a gorgeous stall, even if I do say so myself. So I thought today I would share some pictures of the day.

If you see any products you would like to order just email me at ant3@hotkey.net.au and I will organise it for you. You will notice that I only sell a small selection of my goodies in my online shop and my stall has a much bigger selection.

A Christmas Cookie Link

2011-11-14T17:02:00.001+10:00

When I read other blogs I really love when they share great links that they have found. I know that I don't have the time to go searching all day for links to share but when I find good ones I think I'll share more often.

Christmas really is my family's favourite time of year we all really get into the festive season and we all enjoy doing Christmas stuff together.

Today I'm sharing a link for Christmas Reindeer Cookies which would be so good to make with the kids at home and I think my preppies at school may get a go at these too. I'm going to make mine with normal pretzels but I think they will look just as good.

The link is here.

They look so good.

Shop Update

2011-11-12T18:13:00.001+10:00

My Margaret's Child online shop has just been updated with Christmas items. Please click the link here to have a look.

Remember that if there is anything you like and I see you or live near you please let me know and I will happily deliver for free.

Market time again...

2011-11-11T21:27:00.001+10:00

Just a quick post to let everyone know that Toni and I will be at Mamma's market tomorrow (Saturday) all morning until 1pm. We have been busy preparing some Christmas items, although I have to say it has been hard to get into the Christmas spirit this early in the year. BUT, there are only 2 markets until Christmas so it had to be done. I've posted some pictures below of goodies I've been making.

Christmas bunting.

Christmas Tree Skirts

And these gorgeous little guys all hand stitched. So cute.

Have a great weekend.

Handmade Christmas

2011-11-05T20:14:00.003+10:00

I know that hand made is not every ones cup of tea but I love it and I always try to incorporate it into our Christmas as much as possible. I absolutely love getting gifts that are handmade and I treasure them. So every year I use the blog Sew Mama Sew to get ideas and everyday they have heaps of inspiration so I thought today I would share the link. Also they give away books every day and all you have to do is leave a comment. Link Here.

This year I am making some presents - presents for my friends,
presents for my kids teachers and presents for my teaching partners.

Tutorial share

2011-11-01T20:28:00.002+10:00

For Teacher's Day last Friday I got as a gift a lovely handmade bookmark with a handmade flower at the top. It was really lovely and was my favourite gift, because it was handmade. Anyway while blogging away today I came across this tutorial for the same type of flower so I thought I would share.

The link is here.

I haven't had time to try one yet but when I do I'll post it. Happy sewing!

Our Christmas giving begins...

2011-11-01T14:20:00.000+10:00

Last week was the final day for dropping off Operation Christmas Child boxes so I headed off on Tuesday with our boxes all wrapped and ready to send.

We created two boxes this year, one for a boy the same age as Nathan, 9. And one for a girl the same age as Emma, 6.

The boxes came together much more quickly than last year, now that I know what I am doing I suppose.

There are categories you need to follow for each box. Here is the list of what we included for our boys box.

Something to love - a handmade dog softie
Something to play with - marbles, balloons, yo yo
Something for school - coloured and lead pencils
Something for hygiene - toothbrush, soap, washer
Something to wear - thongs

We also put a handmade library bag in there too.

And in our girls box we put

Something to love - a handmade bunny softie and a book
Something to play with - skipping rope, balloons
Something for school - coloured and lead pencils
Something for hygiene - toothbrush, soap, washer, handmade hairband and hair clips
Something to wear - thongs

We also put in a handmade library bag (or bag for anything really)

We also put a hand written note and picture from the kids in the box and photo of them as well.

The trickiest thing about creating these boxes in finding things that are lovely that all will fit in the shoebox, you are not given a huge box so it can be a challenge.

The thing I like most is that these boxes will make a little person smile and happy this Christmas and that I can use my hobby of sewing to send something unique and special.

Market Update

2011-10-30T14:25:00.001+10:00

I've just updated my sidebar with our last two market dates before Christmas and the new year.

Don't forget that I can make any items to order so feel free to ask for fabric choices etc if you would like something.

Below are the Christmas themed fabrics I have available this year.

They are all high quality fabrics and are from overseas so you won't find the same in Spotlight!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

World Teachers Day

2011-10-29T17:18:00.000+10:00

Well, Friday was World Teachers Day and we couldn't let the day go by without recognising all the hard work my kids teachers do. They both work so hard and spend so much extra time doing stuff that no one sees.

Our gift was little but it's that little thought of appreciation that matters. A packet of Tim Tams, some cute post it notes and a handmade card.

I was very spoiled too, it is so lovely to know that you have parents in your class who do recognise the effort you put in as a teacher. My fridge has plenty of chocolate in it now!

I hope all my teacher friends also had a lovely day yesterday.

Hello...

2011-10-26T19:24:00.000+10:00

I know I have been missing in action for a little while, I just haven't had my mojo for the last few weeks and therefore I have had nothing to blog about, but I am back and with Christmas etc just around the corner I am getting my backside into gear so I can be organised.

A few things happened while I was gone so I will share over the next couple of posts...

First of all, a big day in our house was Emma's dance exams. She is new to dancing this year so we were nervous but she did a great job and had a great time too.

She was so cute in her dance get up.

We have also welcomed two new feathery friends into our house, meet Ozzy (blue) and Fluero (yellow). They are lovely to have around they get all around their cage and are always giving one another a kiss. Having birds at the house sounds really nice too, their song is refreshing.

I won't be gone so long next time....I hope.

A little bit of giving...

2011-10-02T19:19:00.001+10:00

Well I have just printed off my labels and what to pack list for my Operation Christmas Child shoe boxes this year. It is a really great cause and takes such little effort on our part. The kids help pack a box for a child of the same sex and age as them. It is a warm fuzzy feeling being able to give to someone who has so little. Anyway I will share our boxes in a couple of weeks when they are all ready to deliver.

If you would like to know more about Operation Christmas Child click the link here.

Camping...

2011-10-01T12:04:00.000+10:00

We've just spent our final week of school holidays away camping. We spent lots of time sitting around reading books, playing the ipod, drinking refreshments (the adults did anyway), they children spent their time riding their bikes at the bike track, swimming in the creek and just having lots of outside fun. We did venture out one day for a drive...we saw lots of this.

Until we finally came to this swimming hole.

The kids had a great time swimming and looking for different kinds of rocks.

At camp there was a lot of action at this water hole.

Someone had put a swing up and so there was lots of swinging and jumping.

Billy came along on all our adventures, some he liked and some he did not like so much (he wasn't really fond of being put into the creek). I had to include this photo.

At Platypus Pond the kids had fun paddling around in the boat too, Emma was very brave being in here with Nathan because he could not paddle that thing to save himself, they could of ended up anywhere!

All in all we had a good week away, the caravan is clean and repacked for next time.

Quick Update

2011-09-22T15:22:00.001+10:00

We have really enjoyed our first week of school holidays in this house. The weather has been so nice and sunny and warm that Emma had her first run around with the sprinkler on the weekend.

We celebrated Nathan's end of season of soccer with his trophy presentation and then an evening at Aussie World. They hired Aussie World out for the soccer club and the kids had an absolute ball! Anthony took Emma on the dodgem cars.

We caught up with friends with a picnic and swim at Bribie Island on Tuesday. Another gorgeous day weather wise.

And today this little guy had a haircut. This photo is what he looked like yesterday.

And these photos are what he looks like now. He doesn't look very happy does he? He really hates having those bows in his hair but he is so cute! We actually had a scare with Billy this morning, when we woke up he had a tick on his ear. He seems OK but we are keeping a close eye on him.

I think Emma could turn out to be quite a good photographer, she took this photo.

And now, we are getting ready to go away camping in our little van. In fact I should be stocking it with supplies right now.

We've also been to the movies and shopping etc etc. I hope the next week of holidays is just as good. I am sure it will be camping is always fun.

I'll be back after camping. I'm sure there'll be plenty of photos and stories to share.

We have a winner!

2011-09-20T18:24:00.000+10:00

And the winner of my little set of treasures from my holiday is.... PAULA! Congratulations Paula. Can you please email me your address and I will send your prize to you ant3@hotkey.net.au We were very technical and chose the winner by writing everyones names on paper and Emma picking one. Paula, I hope you enjoy your surprises.

We have really enjoyed our holidays so far, we went to the movies yesterday and loved the Smurfs movie and today we spent a few hours at Bribie Island with lovely people. I hope you are enjoying your week too.

Last week...

2011-09-17T21:02:00.000+10:00

I know I am a bit behind because today I am going to blog about what we did last Sunday... better late than never I suppose. Anyway last Sunday Nathan, Emma and I went to Bribie Island for the day with Nathan's cub scout group. We spent a few hours at the Bribie Island Seaside Museum and then had time at the beach and park and had a sausage sizzle.

I have to say that I was not over excited about heading to the Seaside Museum but when I got there I had a really good time. I found it so interesting to hear all about how people used to get to Bribie on the Ferry and go there for their holidays etc. It is definitely worth a visit.

Some photos from the museum.

Then we walked along the waterfront to the park. I was in a photo taking mood and it was such gorgeous weather.

And while we waited for the sausages to cook we headed down to the beach. Emma had fun just playing around on the sand and in the water.

While Nathan and a friend made rafts to float out to sea.

Sometimes the events we are not really looking forward to turn out to be the best ones!

Holiday time...

2011-09-16T17:48:00.000+10:00

Well it is holiday time again in our house, school holidays that is, which means the kiddos and I are off together for two whole weeks! We love holidays together we get to do fun stuff and hang out. This holidays are pretty well planned out for us so I thought I would share what we are up to:

movies to see The Smurfs
a picnic at the park near the beach with my wonderful friends (and their kids)
an op shopping day
some shopping and taking Billy for his haircut
then off for a week of camping

It's going to be a fun holiday....can't wait! What are you up to? I would love some new ideas if you have any to share.

***Don't forget my giveaway, I am wondering if I have terrible taste and people think my giveaway is crappy? All you have to do is leave a comment!

Giveaway...

2011-09-11T15:32:00.000+10:00

While I was travelling I picked up a few extra bits so I could have this giveaway on my blog when I got home. This is what is on offer, a ProSport small zippered pouch, a blue shopping bag that folds and goes in your handbag, a Kath Kidston purse, some cute little post its from Singapore and a small Mickey Mouse tin of lollies from Disneyland.

All you have to do to be in the running is leave a comment on this or any other blog post between now and next Sunday 18th September. Your comment can be on Facebook under my post link or on here. Your comment can be as simple as your name, so please don't stress about what to say.

Good luck!

9 years today...

2011-09-10T21:42:00.000+10:00

9 years ago today I got to marry my amazing husband. I am lucky to have him... we are lucky to have each other... here's to the next nine years full of love and laughter and great times together.

Just sharing my happiness!

Family Photos Share...

2011-09-08T20:56:00.000+10:00

I was really excited today when I saw my CD of photos in the mailbox from our photo shoot the other week. Kara did an awesome job and the price she charges is hard to believe...you can find her on Facebook - Kara Madders Photography. I got over 50 photos on my CD so I thought I would share my favourites with you all. I am hoping to get some into frames around the house as well as one printed onto a canvas and maybe a poster print too, I just have decide what photos for what.

I'm working full time over these couple of weeks so I am super busy but I promise I will try to get my giveaway up over the weekend.

Happy Friday for tomorrow!

Oh I love Singapore...

2011-09-04T11:17:00.000+10:00

The last week of our holiday was spent in Singapore. We had an awesome time here, we really love Singapore there is so much to do, the people are really lovely, the weather is always hot and you will not find a cleaner place on earth! I have crammed our week in Singapore into just one post so it's a big one, you may need a cuppa!

Singapore have their own version of London's Eye except theirs is bigger so we went for a spin around on that to see the city of Singapore. It is a much nicer surrounding than London with gorgeous gardens and water features below it.

We enjoyed some much needed relaxation time each afternoon at the hotels swimming pool and the kids were busting to swim (seeing as though we had not had swimming weather so far).

Singapore has some amazing sights and one of them is their Night Safari (night time zoo). We headed their for the evening and had a great time wandering among the nocturnal animals.

At the end of the night we saw this fish spa, where the fish (called doctor fish) come along and nibble all the dead skin off your feet. So we paid for our 5 minutes worth, except I was too chicken and just could not bring myself to put my feet in that water and let the fish touch me. It freaked me out to say the least so I missed my go. The kids on the other hand loved it.

And Anthony had to use my 5 minutes. The fish loved him, look at them all over his feet!

Singapore has a river through the middle of it and so we ventured out on one of these 'bum boat' rides to explore.

There is an island just off Singapore that is really close (I'm pretty sure it's a man made island). Anyway, you can drive there but we decided to make the day of it and we travelled across on the cable cars. They go so high it gave me butterflies just hanging there but it was good fun.

Sentosa Island is full of fun and games, it's a fun packed day.

There is a huge Merlion there which we just admired from a distance.

There is an attraction there called the Luge. We had an awesome time on this and went back for more and more it was so much fun. This photo is part of the track you travel along.

And here are Emma and I having a go. The last photo is Anthony.

There are nice beaches there too.

We went to the Underwater World which is much the same as ours here in Australia. The kids got to touch sea urchins and starfish etc.

The sea horses were beautiful.

And so were the jellyfish.

After lunch the kids had an hour turn on the waver rider. They had a great time and got really good at it by the time the hour was up.

Anthony coming back after his ride down the luge.

We spent almost a full day at Jarong Bird Park. I am not a bird fan, we really went for the kids but I still had a good time too. We walked through an enclosure where we got to feed all the parrots.

And the kids got to dig for bones (I don't know what kind). The kids always love this activity.

Posing for photos

Really gorgeous settings all around at the bird park (and everywhere in Singapore really).

On our last day we headed over to this building, Marina Bay Sands. It is a hotel, and that boat like thing at the top is an observation deck as well as pool, restaurants etc.

These are our photos from the top. The Singapore Flyer looks so small!

That tall hotel in the middle was our hotel. We stayed in the tallest hotel in Singapore on the 52nd floor (there were 70 floors).

When you were at the top the space was so big you didn't even notice you were up so high, this is the pathway.

If you stay at the hotel (Marina Bay Sands), this is the spa.

And this is the pool. How cool is this pool? It looks like it falls just right off the edge!

Family self portrait (this is my favourite self portrait).

Our last stop before checking out was Raffles Hotel. You can't go to Singapore without stopping here and having a Singapore Sling. The hotel was right across the road from ours so easy for us to get to. Anthony and I had our Sling and the kids had a mocktail each. They were delicious!

This bit is out of order but we spent a full day at Singapore Zoo. We headed there early and had breakfast with the animals. We've done this before and just had to do it again, it really is a unique experience the animals are right there while you enjoy your breakfast.

An Orangutan at breakfast.

The kids could not get enough of holding this snake between bites.

And our professional photo with the Orangutans behind us (running a muck I think!).

We also got to ride the elephant while we were there.

And feed the giraffes. We had an awesome day.

And I have to share that I was super super spoiled when we went into this shop.

And that was our big adventure for 2011. We had such a wonderful time, we saw so much and did so much. As I recap on everything I am blown away by how much we fitted into our 6 weeks away.

Now to get planning the next holiday...I'll share that another day, I'm still thinking about a few ideas in regard to that, but we do have something already booked for 2012.

Last few days in London...

2011-09-02T16:05:00.000+10:00

After all our tripping around we had a last few days in London. It was spent catching up with family before heading home and fitting in a few things that we hadn't done yet.

We spent the afternoon visiting my cousin Kate and her family and then headed up to Norfolk with my Uncle Will.

We had a great night out at dinner one night with a few family members. This is my cousin Kelly and her husband Justin.

And this is my other cousin Andrew with Kelly and I.

This is the O2 where we went for dinner, this is a terrible photo, we took it on the Thames Clipper on our way home.

We spent one more day in London seeing stuff we hadn't seen yet.

One major thing I wanted to do was go into Buckingham Palace to see Kate Middleton's wedding dress etc. Unfortunately when we got there the line was so far up and around the street that we decided not to. It was a shame but I wasn't going to spend hours lining up when we could be doing something else.

We did stop in at the shop though.

And lastly just a couple of photos of my gorgeous ones on our way out to dinner.

And then we said goodbye to everyone and to London and headed for our last week of holidays in Singapore.

Port Isaac...

2011-08-30T20:28:00.000+10:00

Our last full day in Cornwall was gorgeous weather, I would even say I got warm on this day! We went to a little fishing village called Port Isaac. It is where the t.v show Doc Martin on ABC is filmed. I really wanted to see a fishing village while I was there and this little village did not disappoint. It was gorgeous there. This shop had the cutest things inside...

This is the view from where we parked the car.

Can't go without a self portrait!

The scenery was amazing.

I find it amazing that England even has water this beautiful.

Everyone loved this shop, we spent ages in here, even Anthony liked it (and that is saying something!). See those gorgeous dishes in the right hand side window? They are from this English designer. She designs really gorgeous things, very retro in style and I would have loved to of bought her things. I am still thinking about her quilt cover (dreaming really).

These are photos from inside the shop.

Yep, that little owl did come home with me along with some other goodies.

The streets were so narrow, these are a few shots of them, cars did actually drive down the street but I have no idea how they managed to fit!

Every time we went somewhere in Cornwall we had to drive through a little village called Camelford. It was so tiny that there was a traffic light because the road is only wide enough for one lane. A really gorgeous place. Anyway we stopped one day on our way home for a sticky beak and where we parked the car was this shed/garage with a lovely old man selling old stuff. So we went in for a look...I came out with a couple of old books, he had some amazingly old books there.

This painting was why we actually stopped in Camelford. I saw it and fell in love with it in a gallery window. We stopped to see if we could afford to buy it....we couldn't it was 200 pounds...a bit too expensive for me. I still love it though.

This is the main road through Camelford.

This little treasure I found in another shop that I fell in love with, a gorgeous red, enamel coffee pot.

And these are the two books I picked up at the garage/shed along with a tin from the same shop as the coffee pot.

One last stop before we headed back to London was Stone Henge. It was an amazing place, it was smaller than I expected but so full of history and mystery. How did they get there, why are they there? No one knows, there are just theories... I had to buy the book with all the different takes on it.

And it wouldn't be a holiday post without a picture of that gorgeous baby.

Quick Share...

2011-08-30T12:46:00.000+10:00

Just a short post today to share a few photos from our family photo shoot on the weekend. These are the only photos I have at the moment but I am busting to see the rest when I get them.

I love, love, love them...

Kara Madders Photography took them for us and you can find Kara on Facebook. I would recommend her to anyone.

Good quality photos are so important to me and these fit the bill perfectly. I can't wait to get them up around our home.

I'll be back with more when I get them in my hot little hands.

Cornwall...

2011-08-28T12:03:00.000+10:00

Cornwall is the most gorgeous place, it amazed me that there was rich farmland and then right next to it the ocean. Just something we don't see. The week we spent there was freezing cold, I am not exaggerating either. It was about 15 degrees on most days and rainy and windy. We just didn't pack clothing for that weather (seeing as though it was summer!) so we felt the cold while we were there. It was beautiful though and I would love to go back one day. So I've split my Cornwall week into two posts so they are not so heavy on the reading and picture viewing.

This is where we stayed, the view from the back door. You can see the ocean.

We visited a Cornish Cider farm on one day, needless to say it was freezing cold but we learned a bit and had a good time tasting all the cider etc. This is what it looked like with all those old buildings made out of stone.

A self portrait (where would we be without them!)

It wouldn't be a cider farm without apples.

How Emma could eat ice cream I don't know, it was way too cold for ice cream!

A must do in Cornwall is cream tea and we did not miss out. I couldn't possibly finish mine, it was divine though.

We had a tractor ride around and saw lots of gorgeous countryside.

On another day we went to a place called The Eden Project. Those huge things in the background are biomes and they house all different plants etc I suppose you would say. We went in the first one which was Mediterranean. There were olive groves, gorgeous flowers etc etc. They really are huge! The second one was a rainforest with the canopy 50m high.

This was the eatery. It is all organic and you see them make your food right there and then you get what you want and eat and pay on the way out.

This is called the seed of the project, it is a huge granite egg with little bumps all over it, it was amazing to see how this was made.

We stayed near a place called Bude which is where the beach was.

I wasn't tempted to swim.

This is a pub which seems to be very close to losing itself to the ocean.

Just down the road from our cottage was Sandymouth Beach. It was a gorgeous spot.

These photos are from a place called Lands End. It's the most southern point (I think) of England. It was blowing a gale this day and I was frozen but it was good to see.

After leaving Lands End we drove to St Michael's Mount. A really pretty church/museum on a little island. You walk there from the mainland but before we headed off we stopped for some hot chocolate to warm up.

At this cute little cafe.

This is St Michael's Mount from the mainland.

And when you get there.

You have to walk across a narrow footpath but when the tide comes in the path gets covered in water and you can't get across anymore. You can see the path being covered by water behind Nathan. When we got there the path was clear, we had our hot chocolate and started walking only to get nice wet feet and by the time we took this picture the water was up to your knees, you can actually see people trying to get across. The tide comes in really really quickly.

Cuteness!

If you are wondering how we got back to the mainland, we caught a little boat that takes you back and forth when the tide is in.

Thanks for sticking with me while I relive my holiday through blogging! I have a giveaway coming soon (as soon as I photograph it). I collected some little things on my travels and have put together a little giveaway prize... I'll be back with details later in the week.

Another week in London...

2011-08-21T14:29:00.000+10:00

When we got back from Paris we had another week in London. We had lots to do as usual.

We picked up our wheels which we kept until the end of our trip.

We went for a drive and then a walk up at a place called Shooters Hill. There is a castle there that is not in use anymore and the gardens are gorgeous.

Evelyn looking as cute as ever.

Kelly and Evelyn.

The castle

A little cottage among the gardens

We spent a full day (I mean a really full day) in London this week as well. We waited for my cousin Linda outside this shop, this dangerously delicious shop. The cakes in here are to die for. I caved and got myself and the kids a couple of chocolate croissants to share, yum!

Then we all went to the British Museum for a look at the Egyptian section. The museum is amazing, there is so much to see there but we chose to just stick to the mummies. They are an amazing sight all on their own!

This hippo was just too cute!

After the museum we all walked to Covent Garden where we went to Jamie's Italian restaurant for a late lunch/early dinner.

The food was extra yummy here, we all had 3 courses and enjoyed every mouthful.

This photo is Nathan looking at the kids menu in the restaurant. What a great idea. I had to have a good look at it too.

Me with my cousins, Kelly and Linda.

After dinner we said goodbye to Kelly and Linda and headed just up the road for Emma's special surprise, Mamma Mia! Emma and I saw the show and we loved every minute of it. It was so cute to see Emma on the edge of her seat singing along to all the songs.

Another full London day saw us see some tourist stuff. We started with Madame Tussauds.

Photo with Harry Potter himself.

We had to line up for a while to get our photo with Jack Sparrow.

A pose with Michael.

And the Pope.

I really liked the Obama display/set up whatever you call it really.

We also squeezed in a visit to Harrods this day.

What gorgeous cakes you say? Don't be too tempted, they are for the four legged friends in your life. Yep they had a patisserie for dogs.

These cakes are for the dogs too.

This is the Dodi and Dianna memorial in Harrods, around the bottom is says 'Innocent Victims'.

This photo is just randomly in here, it's one of the long, long escalators you have to go on to get down to the tube. I think I am already a way down because it took me that long to get the camera going.

We went on the London Eye, it was a grey day but we still got to see everything clearly enough.

This was outside a shop so we had to have photos.

We went for a day out at Colchester Zoo with Kelly and Evelyn.

This monkey was so cute, he was very curious about Emma.

The kids fed the elephants. I do have to say that they are not as nice as our Elephants at Australia Zoo but I think we are a bit spoilt having such a great zoo so close.

And after that we started our next adventure in Cornwall.

Random sharing...

2011-08-20T20:39:00.000+10:00

So I had some photos that I really liked from our stay in Disneyland resort that I thought I would just share today. The hotel next door to ours (we actually stayed there last time we visited France) has a playground so on our first afternoon while we waited for check in time we went for a walk over there.

There is an entertainment/shopping area at Disneyland Resort so we visited there on the first day too and had something to eat. We didn't eat here but the sign was cool.

We ate here, at Rainforest Cafe. The animals all make noises and move and the ceiling is covered in vines etc. The rainforest comes alive with a storm every 15 minutes or so and all the animals come to life. It's a pretty cool place.

Of course some shopping was done in the Disney store.

And then the light was good so I took some more photos while we waited for the shuttle bus.

These are back at the park again.

And I thought I would share where we stayed. These photos were taken around our hotel. It was called Kyriad and was really good and extremely well priced.

This is the view from the front of the hotel.

And this is the view from the back. This is where the gate is to the hotel next door.

Out the back of the hotels there is a lake and this little bridge takes you to it.

And just a photo of Emma with her Minnie Mouse she got while we were there.