WOW!

A stormtrooper cake, that is life sized!!!!!
Find it here

Pinteresting Cakes

Okay, so I admit, I am addicted to Pinterest
And it is so great to get inspiration for cakes from there.

Here are some of my favourites at the moment:

Click here for sources

Rona and sensory exploration

Rona loves feeling new sensations. Her new favourite one is getting into my button jar.
So I decided that I would let her play with them safely (and with a sheet under her for easy cleanup).
She loves running her hands through them.

I am glad that she can explore her world like this, and even more glad that I know that any mess is temporary and worth Rona's enjoyment.

Scrabble Cake

I recently made a cake for a 10th anniversary. They requested a scrabble cake.

I had this one for inspiration:

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I could not make it that good, but I did have a scrabble board for reference.
I started by cutting out hundreds of squares

 

 Then started putting it all together

Then finished it off

New Monkisee DVD

I recently received the new Monkisee DVD for review

I was so excited to receive it, and so was Rona.

So excited in fact, I had to put the DVD on as soon as we received it, and watch it twice in a row :)

I love it, I enjoyed it even more than the Action Words DVD we own.

I love the songs, there are new girls helping to present and Rona loves Skip and Howie the monkeys.

The words were clear and relevant, presented in a fun way.

I love that it contained words that Rona already knows (because she is 21 months) as well as new words to learn.

These dvds are perfect for your kids to watch when you have to cook dinner/ clean the house as they are only 30 minutes long. 

There is a catchy theme song that your kids will be singing along. 

A fabulous DVD that will be watched many times more :)

Rona LOVES this DVD!

World Read Aloud Day

The 7th of March, 2012 is World Read Aloud Day!

Check it out here

From LitWorld.org:

Celebrate the Power of Words and Stories and Take Action for Global Literacy with LitWorld.  Worldwide, at least 793 million people remain illiterate. Imagine a world where everyone can read... 

On March 7, 2012, LitWorld, a global literacy organization based in New York City, will be celebrating World Read Aloud Day. World Read Aloud Day is about taking action to show the world that the right to read and write belongs to all people. World Read Aloud Day motivates children, teens, and adults worldwide to celebrate the power of words, especially those words that are shared from one person to another, and creates a community of readers advocating for every child’s right to a safe education and access to books and technology. By raising our voices together on this day we show the world’s children that we support their future: that they have the right to read, to write, and to share their words to change the world.

To learn more about LitWorld and to register to participate in World Read Aloud Day, please visit: http://litworld.org/wrad

A Great Mothering Truth

I have recently started reading Baby Rabies. I encourage you to check it out, makes me laugh (which is actually difficult).

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Kindle

Husband got me a Kindle for Christmas!

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 I had thought that they were a good idea but hadn't thought I would own one.
So I have been downloading lots of free ebooks, I have spent all of a dollar on one book so far :)

I love the classics, and was so excited to see so many classics for free.
I am spending more time reading now, as I find it easier to carry my Kindle around rather than a book.

So I will try to share some links to my favourite ebooks soon!

Christmas snapshots (shockingly late)

Rona adores her youngest cousin

Thank goodness Rona is gentle with babies!

"But Mummy, I must carry all the Play School toys at one time"

Jamming on new Wiggles guitars with Grace

One of those moments

Have you ever had someone you looked up to, who has ultimately disappointed you by being contrary to how they appeared?

Like my high school teacher, who I thought was a wonderful Christian woman, a person I aspired to be. Then a few years later, ran away and left her young son and had an affair.

But the most recent one is my great Aunt. I had always looked up to her, learnt quilting because she did...

Then she came up from her country town just before Christmas. I have discovered she is a very critical, negative person.

I asked my mum if she had been always like this, or it was just her getting old. Apparently she has always been like that, I just hadn't noticed (as I was young when I last met her for longer than an hour).

So this has made me think, what kind of person I want to be.

I want to be a positive person, someone who finds the best in things.

This is one of my new projects (not a resolution) for the new year and into the future

Kimochi

I recently found these toys Kimochis

They are great toys to teach emotions, and just fun to play with.

Rona got Cloud for Christmas, and two packs of emotions.

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She has already learnt all the emotions (10 in all) from the packs. I have found these useful as she will have a larger understanding and vocabulary to express her feelings.

The toys aren't cheap, but so worth it :)

Another muppet song

Rona loves this one, she calls it "Mi mi mi mi" :)

New project for 2012

My project for 2012, is to make as many birthday etc presents as possible this year.

I started by making a list of all the 25 birthday presents I need to sort out (not including Rona's and Husband's).
Then I looked at my DIY and Crafts folder on Pinterest and worked out what to make for each person.

So this year I will probably be sharing the projects I am doing :)

 

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This is the first one I will be attempting: Stainless steel straws.
Some for my house, because Rona keeps chewing all the straws and some for Matthew's and maybe Father In Law too.

Wish me luck :)

Happy New Year

I can hardly believe 2011 went so fast.
Now we are up to 2012!

And Rona has celebrated by appropriating Husband's new Wiimote ;)