Posted by Sarah in Family on April 6, 2011

Oh the excitement! Sabrina loves the little bonnet that Tabitha at Small Things made for her.

I am in love with this little hat, it is soo sweet and it’s the first hat that I can actually keep on her head. I think the softness of the fabric doesn’t irritate her as much as other hats we’ve tried and also she can’t undo the knot so that helps. It doesn’t even fall off when she runs which she always does.

I love that it covers her neck and ears and protects them from the sun.

Also It makes me think I have a little Elizabeth Bennet running around my backyard see those bonnet wearing Austen folk new a thing or to about practical fashion.

Posted by Sarah in My place & yours on April 5, 2011

Green wall and my favourite green skirt totally crumpled and unironed, sorry Mum. And a beautiful super sweet bonnet for Sabrina made my the very talented Tabitha at Small Things which I can’t wait to try on my buba but can’t because she’s at her Grandma’s. Beware, expect a ton of posed bonnet photo’s come tomorrow’s light.

Also I was handed this lovely letter while I was taking the above photo and just had to include it, it’s green.

Posted by Sarah in Food on April 4, 2011

Our Family has intolerances to certain foods Dairy being the big one, we have also cut out colours and preservatives and overly refined foods and are trying to eat as many whole foods as possible to help with Hyperactivity and Autism, isn’t our family fun? Sabrina is on a very restricted diet at the moment eliminating gluten and soy as well. When she is on the diet her reactive bowels settle down and she is skin rash free, but it is very hard for a little buba to see her sisters and brother eating her beloved cheese and Nutella sandwiches without her so we haven’t been buying it. To be fair it was mainly a treat at grandmas house anyway. But in a moment of inspiration I thought of an idea for an alternative.

We had all of these ingredients in the cupboard. The Nut paste is made of 100% nuts ground into a thick butter consistency nothing added at all, I would like to try and make my own with just hazelnuts to get a more authentic flavour but I do really appreciate the ease of just popping open a jar.

So here is the simplest recipe in the world.

1 tablespoon of nut paste

1 tablespoon of honey

1 teaspoon of coca powder

combine all ingredients and eat.

It only makes enough for one persons breakfast, two if you spread it thin but really who would want to do that. I would suggest if you want to try it to make up this quantity first to see if you like it then multiply to suit your needs.

Oh and by the way the kids are begging for it for every meal at the moment so it passes the kids’ test.

Posted by Sarah in Uncategorized on April 1, 2011

In case any of you were still worried by yesterdays post I thought you might like to see Lillian’s artwork glued and painted.

And with all its gaudy friends. You may think our colour choices are a little bright for relics from the past but remember they have found evidence that those white marble Greek statues were once painted and the Great Pyramid was covered in white stone and caped with a point of gold. Nothing screams over the top tacky urban planning to my mind than a gold tipped pyramid. Besides these are little girls artworks you didn’t expect them to leave them brown did you?

Posted by Sarah in Craft on March 31, 2011

I have been to kootoyoo many many times, I love that blog and I really love popping over there on a Thursday to check out all the creative spaces. This week I thought I would be bold and play along. Manly because I wanted to show you…..

…my six year old daughters latest art work, make of it what you will. (I home school so I’m kind of cheating and claiming their creations as they are in my space and I was the creative force behind the exercise) At first I was leaning towards a What happens in the craft room stays in the craft room approach to her art work but my curiosity got the better of me. Apparently its a ball and a sign post but the sign part fell off, why…what did you think it was???

As well as the um…free form art work we wrote our names in cuneiform

Made Sumerian seals, used in ancient Mesopotamia for leaving your mark when you made a bargain, you know putting your seal on it.

we made recycled paper (closest thing I could think of to papyrus) and wrote our names in Hieroglyphs

This is my own personal never ending project. I Had this brilliant idea that I would crotchet a baby blanket for Sabrina when she was born, she’s now two and I’m only just starting to join them together. I think I’ll have to add more squares and make it bed sized.

and this is the toy I still haven’t finished and should have sent off weeks ago for a swap. maybe now that the birthday month is over I’ll get things done. Maybe if I keep coming back to this meme I’ll feel guilted into actually getting something done. Maybe.

check out more Creative Spaces here

Posted by Sarah in Parties on March 31, 2011

The location of the girls party was originally the park out the back. I was going to set up a simple party table under the great old Gums and let nature do most of the decorating for the animal theme. But choosing the wettest March day in the last 70 years to hold the party on put an end to that. So the day before I raced around gathering as much animalyness as I could find. The Table is decorated with placemats made from wrapping paper I found at the reject shop, a table runner from another dollar shop and a selection of the kids Schleich animals.

I found this pretty little twelve piece tea set at an Anglicare shop years ago when the girls had a tea party birthday. I choose to believe it fitted the theme well and made up for the lack of trees in the house, also I like to have little traditions that make the girls feel special like using the birthday china.

Food was a little tricky because we are on a gluten, dairy, colouring and preservative free diet at the moment so I had to make everything by hand. I think some of the party guests were a little sad not to have the usual sausage rolls and frankfurts but…meh…what can you do. 

After the kids finished with the hot food I told them that we were all going on an animal safari and that we needed to play pass the parcel to help us on our adventure.

It wasn’t as much a parcel as a giant sack because the gifts I had chosen were so large. When the music stoped they could stick there hand in and pull out a little parcel of their own. Can you believe these binoculars were only a dollar each at Big W and are loads of fun especially if you look through them backwards.

So armed with their binoculars and Fredo Frog I sent them off on a safari around the house to find the hidden animals.

Which turned out to be Tails that I had made (sorry about Lilly’s face apparently excitement makes her tongue swell up)

When all the children had their tails on we transformed the party table into a craft station so that they could make a headdress to go with their tail. (see in the original outside plan I was going to have different stations set up that they could all drift between, this was a little more cramped, chaotic, totally mad. In fact it only worked out because my wonderful Dad spent the whole time in the kitchen washing dishes and my Mum herded children and played tag team with my friends to keep Sabi from dancing on the table.)

Then I disappeared into a corner for the rest of the party and painted hundreds upon hundreds of faces…well about twelve, but it was a big twelve.

Can’t you find our safari animals now? do you need to borrow a pair of binoculars?

Cake time! it was interesting but not impossible to make a natural birthday cake. We found natural coloured sprinkles and food colouring that was made from things like turmeric and concentrated spinach extract…mmm….sounds yummy doesn’t it?? don’t worry they don’t add flavour just colour. The natural colours are very muted compared to the food colouring we have been using, take a look at the green butterfly wing for example but I managed to get around that for the lion cake by painting the details on after the white icing had set. The lions mane is plane veggie chips and the line work is string liquorish which does have gluten in but we just kept that part away from Sabi.

They passed the test though, the girls were thrilled by them and people came back for seconds so that spinach flavour can’t have been to strong.

I love this last photo it reminds me of an English war movie. They always have those scenes with poky little rooms crammed to bursting with friends and family celebrating around a cake lovingly crafted out of whatever they had in the cupboard. I’m starting to believe that thrown together moments as long as they include those special few who have a home in our hearts are often the best moments. That said I hope it doesn’t rain for the next party.

Happy 9th Birthday Little Miss Lion and Happy 6th Birthday Green Birdie Girl. May God open your eyes to the joys of this life and may you always know your Mummy and Daddy love you beyond words, even beyond parties.

Posted by Sarah in Family on March 25, 2011

If you would like to hear in Glenn’s own words why he wanted to do the World’s Greatest Shave click here to read the article

Posted by Sarah in Family, Parties on March 25, 2011

I have to start this by saying I am so proud of my Glenn he has raised $902 for cancer research. I also want to thank everyone who gave so generously. When we all work together we can do great things. The money raised will go towards making the lives and treatment plan of people suffering with cancer more bearable and to scientific research into how to kill this cancer beast once and for all. If you would like to read more specific information about the Leukaemia Foundation’s use of donations look here.

The Peapillybean family’s Worlds Greatest Shave got off to a tearful start with Lillian jumping on her Daddy and sobbing “NO don’t do it don’t cut your curls off….waaahhh….”  Which is why we chose to do it at the end of her birthday party and not before.

She got over it though when we said she could have the first cut, however when one sugar filled excitement charged birthday party kiddie gets to play with scissors….

….they all want too.

Glenn’s internal voice at this point in time was screaming “NOOOO this is not what I signed up for!!!” actually I’m pretty sure, if I remember rightly, his very loud and pleading external voice said the same thing.

Is that fear I see behind that smile. Don’t think badly of him, he has a sensitive scalp, poor dear.

Also I think the scissors were blunt.

We found a place that takes hair donations to make wigs for cancer patients so we put all the cut hair in a box. Lillian fiercely guarded the box of her Daddy’s hair and wouldn’t let anyone else hold it.

Birdies, Zebras and little Black Kitty cats all became expert Hairdressers.

But one sooky Lion was still very apprehensive about the whole thing. I was really surprised by the kids reactions, Lani and Lilly were so sad to see their Daddy shaved and Eli wouldn’t have a bare of it, wouldn’t even watch. Sabi on the other hand couldn’t care less everyone kept asking her where her daddy’s hair was and she just pointed to his head with a look that said “On his head duh,”

It was too much for Lilly when Glenn’s ears were permanently uncovered from their blanket of curls.

It was too much for Glenn when we let the iddy biddy kiddies at the scissors.

I think all the other party animals coming back for seconds put Lani to shame…

…and she finally had a go….

…and Glenn immediately wished she hadn’t. He’s not a woose I tell you, it was the scissors, they were blunt. At least that’s what we’re claiming anyway.

We didn’t let the kids use the clippers, I know we’re spoil sports, it’s just that I do like his ears and I wanted him to keep them.

Near the end of the shaving the kids decided he needed the clipped hair shoved up his nostrils. No idea why but it was funny from my side of the camera.

Lillian mourning the loss of Daddy’s curls.

And it all ended with the required head rub.

Now every afternoon I get to jump out of my skin every time the terrifying bald stranger walks in the back door. I guess it’ll take some getting used to.

If you would like to see Glenn’s fundraising page or if you were holding out to donate till you saw the evidence go here.

Posted by Sarah in Homeschooling on March 24, 2011

We have been looking at contractions today, it did not run soothly.

Me: “I am going to read a word to you and I want you to tell me what words it is a contraction of. The word is Aren’t”

Lillian: “Aunty!”

 

Me: Can you please say your contractions to me before you go to free play time.”

Eli: “No!!!

Me: (insert random gentle persuasive words)

Eli: “AAAHhhhhggg!!!!” bangs fists down on the table “I cannot I can’t, I will not  I won’t and you aren’t going to make me” Then runs off

Alanah: “Well….at least you got him to say his contractions.”

Posted by Sarah in Family on March 23, 2011

Every year for five days I have three consecutive numbers. This year for the short bit of time between Lillian and Alanah’s birthday I have a Six year old a Seven year old and an Eight year old. We always take a photo of them which they love looking back on but is always a mammoth task because of the boy in the middle. Funny thing is he loves looking at the photo’s later just has stage fright during the taking of them I guess. Anyhooo theses are the best two we got after about an hour of trying and 108 photos. Don’t worry I wasn’t making them sit still and pose thorough all of that in their memories the hour when a bit like this:

Mummy got the camera out and tried to take a picture, Eli freaked so we just played a game of Hide and Go Pop your Head Out and Squeal then we ran around the house laughing then we all jumped on Mummy’s bed. Oh yeah and Mummy took photos.

Happy Consecutive Number Day Kiddies!!!!