quick three :: children's books

I implemented a rule in my house when Master N was about 6 months old and had been given every toy under the sun. The rule was 'If you feel the need to bring a present every time you come to visit, it must be a book'. Not unreasonable I think after all at least a book is something that can continue to give rather than be thrown in the toy box and forgotten about right?


So here are the three books that I read a lot to Master N....


There's a Yeti in my Shed - Master N adores this book! I know it word for word! I must admit that it is kind of cute!

Big Yellow Digger - I think the big wheels that spin are a big winner with this book. I think we spent a whole $2, if I had $2 for the number of times this book has been read and driven around the house I would be a millionaire.

Funny Frog - This book was given to Master N by a family friend and he loves it! It has such cute little illustrations and as it says on the front lots of surprises!

Playing along with Kasiabear - you should too!

wordless wednesday....

More Wordless Wednesday fun here......

quick three :: chocolate

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Chocolate - oh how I love thee but it seems only when I am breastfeeding do I just HAVE to have it ALL the time..... strange huh!

So my favourite three chocolates of choice - in no particular order....

Cherry Ripe - I love a cherry ripe, anytime - day or night!

Fruit & Nut - This is a fairly new favourit of mine, I am partial to chocolate sulatanas too but this just has the added bonus of the nuts!

Whittakers Toasted Coconut Slab - One word - YUM! That is all I need to say!

Playing along with Kasiabear....

just one......

I had to share just one photo from the Royal Wedding, this is my absolute favourite.....

She looked amazing, even better than I had imagined.

In all the excitement - I can't remember where I got this image from if you come across it anywhere please let me know.

our easter in pictures....

[All Photos by Me!]

Just a few of the things that made our Easter Break fabulous!

Hope you all had a lovely extra long Easter Weekend!

quick three - beauty products

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I have never been a big beauty product person. I think the last time I wore make up was the day I got married which was five years ago! I have always thought it would be fun to have a go at making my own scrubs and shampoo but time is not something I have lots of!

Three beauty products you will find in my bathroom cabinet all the time are....

Vitamin E Body Butter from The Body Shop

Biore Face Scrub

Garnier Night Moisturiser

The bare basics I'm afraid!

Playing along with Kasiabear - why not join in?

the view from here.....

So as I sit here in this little spot each day, blogging, pinteresting, visiting you all and just generally exploring the WWW. I stare straight at our Fridge. Yep, my laptop sits on our kitchen bench and I must say that it rarely gets turned off. As we are yet to decide on what we are going to do house wise I have learn't to make do so the kitchen bench is where most of my crafting and blogging is done.....

I must say that I was definitely the Fridge Police and didn't like anything on the fridge making it look messy so to speak. That was until it was what I stared at when stuck for words whilst blogging etc. So I guess maybe you could class my fridge as my pseudo inspiration board for want of a better term....

So here you go, this is what I am currently looking at on my fridge...


So lots of pretty things hey?!? Here's a closer look....


Of course they can't just be any old magnet that holds my pretty things. They need to be pretty magnets. My little white birds are from Kikki-K, the round 'hey' magnet is from Paper Tree Studio and the cute little owl and bee are from Isabell's Umbrella.


My magnets hold an assortment of pretties. An assortment of mini prints by the gorgeous Kellie from 74 Lime Lane, snail mail from a bloggy friend, an ultrasound photo of Baby H - even though he is here now, I still like having him on the fridge, there is also a copy of his birth announcement in the mix too.

So there you have it, that's what is on my fridge. What does your fridge look like? Is it clean and clutter free? Is it full of pretty things? Or is it covered with bills?

advice...

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I have been thinking of late that I need to get an art and craft box started for Master N - you know the type I mean one filled with egg cartons, cereal boxes, pipe cleaners, pom poms, string, sticky tape etc....

You would think that I would be in my element heading of to the $2 shop to fill a trolley full of supplies but I am perplexed to say that I don't really know where to start....

Considering I am not currently living in a mansion, I want to try and contain it to one of those plastic storage boxes - oh to be able to have an art and craft space like in the photo above...

So I am asking for you advice - what is a definite must have art and craft item that your kidlets have in their stash and love? Is there anything you can have too much of?

quick three :: favourite movies

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Top Gun - I used to sit and watch this as a little girl and tell my Mum that I was going to be a fighter pilot when I grew up! I get goosebumps everytime I hear a song from this movie - sad I know! This is classic Tom Cruise before the jumping on the couch episode!

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Romeo & Juliet - I love, love, love this movie. Every single bit of it. I cry (not sure why) everytime I watch the fishtank scene and the end, oh dear, I am devastated everytime.

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The Social Network - This one is a bit out of left field for me. This was the last movie I saw the the cinema with Uber Claire before Baby H was born. I wasn't all that keen on seeing it but went along and I loved it. This one is definetely a keeper for me.

Playing along with Kasiabear - why not join in too!

a breakthrough....

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So it has been just over 15 weeks since Baby H (yep, 15 weeks) graced us with his presence and I must say that all those people who told me that your second baby would be a better sleeper than the first were right. What they didn't tell me was that the second baby would hate the car and would scream like he was being murdered from the second you put him in the car seat until the time you got him out.......

Yep for the last 15 weeks every car trip has been a nightmare, Baby H has screamed blue murder for the entire time that we have spent in the car. No amounts of loud music, me singing or Master N whinging would drown him out. I knew it was bad the day I turned around to see Master N sittimg in his seat with his fingers stuck in his ears.... So I am not going to bore you the details of what we have done to try stop him from screaming nor am I going to bore you with the stories, like the day when I was driving to Mum and Dad's (2 1/2 hours away) on my own and it took me 4 1/2 hours to get there after the screaming, a number three nappy change and being projectile vomited on, no I defeinetely won't tell you about that.

I will however tell you that something has changed and he has stopped the screaming. Not sure what it was or what we did differently, if anything, but he seems to be happy in the car now so long as we are not stopped for any length of time. This does result in me driving like I am competing in the V8 Supercar Series and doing my best impersonation of Craig Lowndes so as to not be stopped at a red light!

I am feeling a less apprehensive about leaving the house now! Yep, I wouldn't leave the house unless absolutely necessary so that I didn't have to put my little Baby H through something that he quite obviously did not enjoy!

Oh and I have noticed that Master N doesn't seem to have his fingers jammed permanently in his ears during car trips now too!

All I can say is thank goodness! I was starting to get worried that I would turn into a hermit!

this week i am grateful for....

[Photo by One Craftee Mumma! notecards from Whimsy Whimsicals]

SNAIL MAIL!

I love to receive little bits and bobs in the post that don't come from Mr St George Bank, Mr Origin Energy, Mr Brisbane City Council, I could go on and on with the people that send me 'yukky' mail!

This week I received a lovely little note from a gorgeous bloggy friend. Put a huge smile on my face, thank you xox

I have also decided to join a couple of swaps on Swap-Bot, sent off a package earlier this week and can't wait to see what i get back!

I am discovering lots of great ways to connect with people and can't wait to continue doing my bit to bring back the snail mail tradtion!

Joining in with Maxabella Love's grateful blog hop which is being hosted over at And then there were four this week......

all i am missing is a library....

[image via dazeychic]

my creative space....

So this month hasn't been a good one for craftiness in my little world.

Instead the last couple of weeks have been filled with creative writing in the form of a submission to the Council regarding a proposed three storey, 12 unit development proposed for the property right next door, obviously we are a little upset about the whole thing but understand that it is progress and we can't stop it but would think that asking for a couple of things to be changed isn't unreasonable. One example, I don't think that having an industrial sized bin situated right outside our kitchen/dining room window is something that we should have to put up with. I could go on but frankly I am a little over it and have decided that by putting my submission with my objections into the council that I have done everything I can do.

Just got to sit and wait now....

For more creative types head on over to Kootoyoo....

if you say so....

[image source - Joys Hope]

Not one to normally do what I am told I thought that I just might try it today, so I am off to do something good!

quick three :: favourite magazines

Country Style - I only started buying this magazine about six months ago. I was drawn to it for it's gorgeous covers and dreamy content. Lots of beautiful things to be found in this magazine....

House & Garden - I have been a faithful subscriber to House & Garden for a long time now! I find it full of beautiful things every month without fail. Always good with a cuppa and some peace and quiet!

Home Beautiful - I received a subscription to Home Beautiful for Christmas from my gorgeous SIL and I love it. It is filled with so many fresh and pretty ideas!

Playing along with Kasiabear - why not join in....

this week i am grateful for......

[image source - Cadbury]

Panadol and Chocolate.....

To say that this week has been one of those weeks would be an understatement and I don't know that I would have made it through said week without a good dose of chocolate and panadol - daily!

I am not going to go into the sad story because after all tomorrow is the beginning of a new week and to tell you the truth the happenings of the past week are something that I don't want to relive! I should just say that none of the happenings were disastrous or life threatening and were just what I assume are normal happenings when your life includes a two year old, a three month old and a husband that is very busy at work at the moment!

So here's to tomorrow being the start of what I hope will be a more normal week in our little household!

Playing along with Maxabella Loves - why don't you join in....

quick three :: favourite stationery items

[image source - Handmade Pencils by missIsa on Etsy]

Pencils - I love writing in pencil, I also think that pencils are never the same once your sharpen them so I don't, I just buy new ones!

[image source - Flickr]

Post It Notes - You can never have too many of these useful little items! I love them and use them for lots of things - notes, page markers, lists etc.

[image source - Kikki-k]

My 3am Notebook by Kikki-k - Sits on my bedside table and sometimes get a huge workout in the middle of the night when there are lots of ideas floating around in my head!

Playing along with Kasiabear - you should too!

finally.....

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There it is..... Up ahead, I think I see it.... Is that light at the end of the tunnel!

To say that I have been walking around in a haze of dirty nappies, washing piles taller than me, a two year old who throws tantrums worthy of an Oscar nomination and days where I don't seem to have time to get out of my pyjamas for the last, hmmm, 10 weeks is an understatement!

Yesterday I finally felt like I had achieved something! And no, I didn't get the bed made, the washing done, the toilets cleaned nor did I have dinner ready and waiting when husband got home. What I achieved was so much better than all of these things put together.

This is what happened....

1 :: Baby H managed a car trip to Master N's swimming lessons without screaming blue murder the whole way, this made Mummy much less frazzled upon arrival!

2 :: Master N was actually excited about going to his swimming lesson and there was no screaming or clinging to me for dear life as I walked him out to the pool.

3 :: Baby H then sat peacefully in the car - no screaming - on our drive to the Shopping Centre.

4 :: Both the boys were very well behaved whilst I got everything done that needed doing - a stress free trip around Westfield, who would have thought!

5 :: Baby H then totally outdid himself and fell asleep in the car on the way home from the Shopping Centre.

Ever since we bought Baby H home from the hospital he has hated the car, the minute you put him in the car set he bellows like a little bull. So bad in fact that I generally sit in the back in between the two children to try and minimise the screaming. Him not screaming in the car was a huge step for us!

I am not a hard to please person as you can see, it's the simple things! Maybe I will now venture out of the house a little bit more!

quick three :: favourite shoes

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Converse All Stars - Oh how I love thee! I got my first pair a couple of years ago and haven't looked back. I live in them in winter - so comfy and versatile.

Havaianas - These are a staple items in everyone's wardrobe I think! I have my good pairs and my around the house pairs!

Slippers - I love slippers too! Kind of like pyjamas really - can you have too many pairs?

Playing along with Kasiabear - you should too!

Happy Tuesday!


*Please let me know if you know the original source of this image found on Pinterest.

this week i am grateful for...

A good packet mix cake! *Hangs head in shame*!

Ok so I am not a baker, I have the odd thing that I have mastered and can confidently whip up if needed but I have never mastered cooking cakes from scratch. I dream of getting cupcakes that are nice and even and not all sagging to one side or looking like a small mountain.

So Thursday was Husband's birthday and I thought I should probably make a concerted effort to bake something to go with his dinner of choice. Whilst I was scrambling around my pantry to see what items I could whip together so to speak, I stumbled across a packet mix that I obviously had bought intending to put on my Suzie Homemaker Hat at some stage.

I whipped it up and voila cupcakes that were even on top not a single sign of a mountain peak anywhere!

My Official Taste Tester didn't have a bad word to say about them either! He may just be biased though!


Joining in with Maxabella Loves - you should too!