This Friday....

I’m loving bloggers – the kind that step up when PJ decided it was time for her to let the Friday loving linky go – thanks Meghan and Kristy.

I’m loving that Nin dropped in the other day with a gorgeous stash of blue and green buttons for me – just because

and I won a beautiful fat quarter from Kirsty just for getting her oh-so-tempting newsletter every month (I suggest you sign up too if you are a fabric lover)

and that when I was in need of paper bags for the mystery party this weekend both her and Nin made suggestions and offered me bags from their own supplies – generous people!

I’m loving accomplishing stuff – today it’s been parent help, cherry-ripe mudcake, 2 loaves of handmade bread, 2 batches of cupcakes, some handmade bikkies and a whole lot of tasks for a very special birthday party on Sunday afternoon, all before school finished.

I’m loving going on a birthday date with Flip

and coming home to find Grandad had done ALL the dishes from the aforementioned baking

I’m loving it’s family awards night

doing giveaways – find the details here – I love giving stuff away, especially good-for-the-soul stuff

and I’m loving that this weekend is the 48 hour film festival – oh yes!! fun, fun, fun
and finding little postcards for Grandad and Aunty Katie written very carefully

What are you loving this week? What are you looking forward to?

Make My Week #20 - Birthday Season

It seems birthday party season is upon us and I have such difficulty with the whole present thing.
I love presents and I love giving them but I also struggle with the amount some people spend on children's birthday party gifts and when your child gets invited to several birthdays during the year how much can you end up spending. Or do you just buy cheap 'landfill' knowing it won't last much longer than the party???

On the other hand I don't want my child to be the kid who brings stink presents to birthdays ..... catch 22??
So mainly I try to make the gifts my boys take but it's not easy - especially for boys. This year it is 6-year-old birthdays and I have decided that personalised cushions are going to be the order of the day. Flip choose the colours and helped with the design so he felt proud and happy taking it with him.

This is the latest for a birthday last weekend and you'll be seeing more over the next month judging by the invites coming in!

How do you feel about buying gifts for multiple other children during the year, what is your 'go to' gift and what is your price guide??
Other creative spaces here

Wardrobe Wednesday #20 - Remix # 1

Due to my rebellion on week 1 this is my first remix for 'remix May'.

Apologies for the photos this week The Atlas was running late out the door and I couldn't be bothered re-shooting!! (it explains why my face is cut off in most of them, oh and it's driving me nuts that the belt and cardi are all off centre! - I'm a bit precious like that sometimes!)

So $8 portmans/op-shop dress mixed with

Tights, belt, necklace and cardi all hand-me-downs from my sister (I know what does she have left in her own!??!)

Boots from Debenhams (UK department store) bought about 6 years ago
I think this outfit looked better in real life.... so you'll have to trust me on that

See what other lovelies are re-mixing here and enter your self the prize is AWESOME!

B.M.W.B #20 - Awards Night

as part of the parenting course we are doing a suggestion was made that kiwi's aren't great at celebrations outside of birthdays - how much do we just celebrate our families for no good reason???

The Atlas got all enthusiastic (love that!) and suggested we have a family awards night each week
on Monday night we each draw a name out of the hat and all week we watch that person and then on a Friday night we have a special candle-lit dinner (we have candles with whatever dinner we planned!)

after dinner each person stands up and talks about who they were watching and what that person did well/ they loved noticing

and gives them an award (a BIG chocolate bar for the first night but usually a mini-bar or something little)
You can see by the boys' expressions how special it was for them

I love that The Atlas is on board with wanting to do a good job of parenting our boys and I love that we have a new family tradition based around noticing each others strengths and contributions.

This year I am making more of a conscious effort to have quality moments with my boys. B.M.W.B (becoming the mama I want to be)  is my way of recording and hopefully inspiring other mama’s too. Please inspire me with the little moments you are snatching with your little people OR with ideas I could do with mine. If you have blogged about it please leave a comment so we can all visit and encourage each other.

Simple. Achievable. Intentional: becoming the mama I want to be

Mother's Day

Today I am celebrating the 'career of my life'

Being a mother is all-consuming, regardless of whether you are full-time, part-time, unemployed.... motherhood trumps it all in terms of your thoughts, hopes, fears, emotions - every mother is a full-time mother some of them just get paid to do other stuff as well!

This week I've loved watching the preparation for first football game of the season

Celebrating with a little boy who wrote his name all-by-himself for the first time

and watching our boys paw over photo albums delighted to see themselves and re-live some of our adventures.

And there have been sleepless nights and burst ear-drums, puddles to jump in and skinned knees, tears and laughter and huggles..... and all the patchwork of life together.
Happy mothers day to all the mama's out there and especially to my own mama - constant inspiration to aspire to as a mama.

Would You, If You Could? + giveaway

A while ago a few of us blogged about our dreams... you know those things we don't want to talk about because you fear they will never happen, or people will judge you, or you will sound silly.
At the same time I was approached by a New Zealander Jolene Stockman who had written an e-book about this topic. She asked me if I would consider reviewing her book. A big risk for her (this book is her baby) and for me (what if I didn't like it?)
But I did like it.
Jolene has written this book specifically with teenagers in mind but that does not mean it can't be appreciated by adults as well. Her book is called 'Total Blueprint for World Domination'.

It is a book that brims with passion and enthusiasm for making your personal dreams a reality, but it is much more than a 'you can do it' motivation guide. The book is also a workbook at the end of each chapter there are places to pause, questions to ask yourself and exercises to do.       `````
And it takes things a step further - it asks you to go to the edges of your dream and work backwards in steps to look at what you can do right now to make those things happen. For me this was the chapter that was most valuable and challenging. It's all too easy to dream, to talk about what you want to be 'when I grow up' but not to actively pursue that by the things I am doing now.
The book is very readable. It isn't long or arduous but it is a book you can really take time over and let it challenge your behaviour and your thinking if you want to.
Here are two of my favourite quotes from the book:
Feel the incredible deliciousness of being able to do something right now.
You have always made a difference from the time you entered the world to this moment sitting in your skin. You affect people around you. You affect the world. Everything you do, and everything your don't do.....you make a difference right this second. Whether you mean to or not.
Jolene has been working hard to make her own dreams realities and I think she is a wonderful example in a long line of New Zealanders and women who have chosen to make and be the future they dream of. Jolene has generously decided to donate 2 of her books to readers here as a kindle book or PDF .
Leave me a comment, tell me your dream, tell me about a person that inspires you or just tell me I'm awesome!
2 winners drawn in 2 weeks time May 25th
extra entries if you share through your platforms - blog, tweet, fb...

Make My Week #19 - A New Jacket

I found this pattern at a junk shop a while ago and I liked the shape and the over puffy sleeves (do puffy sleeves remind anyone else of Anne of Green Gables??)

I changed it up a bit in by taking the lapel opening all the way to the bottom of the jacket and using a button and loop system.

The buttons are vintage ones I got off my step-mother and the fabric is some I bought last year or even the year before - it has a slightly pearlised surface and comes from somewhere in Africa from recollection.

I also made the sleeves a lot slimmer to try and reduce the amount of volume going on.

This is my second clothing make for May.

Check out all sorts of creative goings on here.