Easter carrots

Julia (Miss 5) and I had fun making these Easter carrots for her classmates at school. 

Whilst others brought Easter eggs and cupcakes to share, Julia was happy to be bringing something different for her friends and loved making these with me.

This idea was from Ebony at Neat 2 Eat. Her carrots were a lot neater than mine, but I couldn't get disposable piping bags so I used cello bags and taped them into a cone shape.

I wish you all a safe and happy Easter!

Christine xx

The Gallery - At Peace

Joining Sticky Fingers for The Gallery ... the theme this week is At Peace. 

I love old cemeteries. They hold secrets ready for discovery, like opening a door to the past. Some headstones will tell a story whilst others will keep silent. Some graves are constantly tendered and loved, whilst others are left crumbling and forgotten.

I like visiting cemeteries to unlock the past and explore my family history. I don't like visiting cemeteries to say goodbye to people I know and love. 

Christine xx

Listography - My 5 goals for April

Joining with Kate Takes 5 for Listography again this week. Kate has listed 5 (very admirable) short term goals for April. 

Here are my 5 goals:

1. Finish my current crochet orders for Mini-Me Handcrafts and crochet something new. I have so many projects that I'd like to try, but not enough time! 

2. Cook something new for dinner. I have lots of recipes, but I always seem to fall back on the easy and popular dinners. 

3. Finish planning the next family holiday. It's going to be great! 

4. Organise and print my family photos to bring the photo albums up to date. Seriously, a year is far too long. 

5. Make some crafty Easter gifts with Julia for her to take to school. I've seen so many lovely ideas, now to take action! 

Christine xx

Harry Potter vs Darth "Hermione" Vader

Wrapping up the March photo a day challenge from Fat Mum Slim. 

22. Kitchen sink
Almost clean and shiny. The highlights are the leftover pancakes from lunch and my crocheted dish cloths. 

23. Moon 
A bright shape in the sky on a clear night. 

24. An animal
This is the closest to an animal that I could find - Julia's beloved teddy bear Lollipop. 

25. Breakfast 
Easy to prepare. Cereal, just waiting for milk. 

26. Key 
My set of spare keys. I have no idea what they open, if anything! 

27. My name 
Since Julia was born, my most often used name is Mummy. It stands out amongst a seemingly random set of letters and numbers. 

28. Trash 
No, not rubbish - everything in these boxes can be used for crafts! 

29. Feet 
My feet... way down there. 

30. Toy 
Souvenir magnets from Legoland. Julia loves to swap the parts around, as you can see by Hermione wearing Darth Vader's head. 

31. Where I relax 
In front of the television of course! Although I don't often watch daytime TV; I like to crochet and catch up on recorded shows from the night before.

See you for the April challenge! 

Christine xx

Mini-Me Handcrafts - Teeny Tiny Beanies

This is the face of Rug Babies - Sewing Knitting and Crocheting for premature and sick newborns. This tiny baby girl was born at 26 weeks gestation in 2006 and is now a beautiful 5-year-old princess.

The Rug Babies project was started by Cass Malone who was placed on hospital bed rest late last year at just 23 weeks. To keep herself busy she began sewing tiny hospital gowns for her baby and then decided to keep sewing and donating these gowns to the Canberra Hospital NICU.

As Christmas drew closer, she began to make Christmas gowns and asked for Christmas hats to make sets for each little baby that had to be in hospital for their first Christmas. I was delighted to be a part of that project, donating tiny handmade crochet Christmas beanies to go with the gowns that Cass and many others had made.

Cass had her baby boy on 2nd November at 27 weeks, weighing just 980 grams. Whilst she has been very busy with her family over the past 6 months, she still finds time to sew her tiny hospital gowns and is putting together gift packages for those babies and their families who take the journey through Canberra Hospital NICU.

So in between bunnies, strawberries and angry birds, I have been busy crocheting more tiny beanies for premature babies. I have about 50 ready to go with Cass's tiny gowns in lots of different colours and four sizes. 

This is how tiny they are - the smallest is just the right size for a beanie bear!

Please take a look at Rug Babies on Facebook. If you would like to help, Cass can be contacted by email at rugbabies@gmail.com. 

Christine xx

Update July 2012: Details for the crochet pattern I use can be found in a new blog post here.

The Gallery - Extreme Close Up

Joining Sticky Fingers for The Gallery ... the theme this week is Extreme Close Up. 

This is my favourite close up shot of all time - how could I go past my daughter's big blue eyes?

If you think you've seen it before you are right - I posted this photo on my blog in January for the photo a day challenge (A handbag, a sunset and blue, blue eyes).

Christine xx

Listography - Beauty products

Joining with Kate Takes 5 for Listography again this week. Kate has decided that this week will be her Top 5 Beauty Products. 

Oh dear. I don't use cleansers and toners. I don't use foundation. I don't use make up. In fact I don't use a lot of beauty products, partly because I am blessed with nice skin and partly because I am just plain lazy when it comes to beauty routines.

My favourite beauty product is goats milk soap. I love the gorgeous range of fresh goats milk soaps from The Karma Soap Company. Felicity makes all her soaps in small batches, and none of her soaps contain preservatives, alcohol or petroleum products. I can feel the soap moisturising my skin as I use it, and it leaves my skin feeling soft and smooth.

Here are my top 5 fragrances from the Karma collection:

Lavender

Frangipani 

Mango

Coconut Lime

Sandalwood 

Don't they all look delicious!

Christine xx