EASY CHRISTMAS D.I.Y - REINDEER DUST!

When Dexy & Flo were both toddlers, some friends of mine introduced me to the fab tradition of sprinkling reindeer dust on the doorstep on Christmas Eve, to help the reindeer's find your door ;) 

The kids go crazy for this and it's a fun activity to do with them on Christmas Eve if they are going mad with excitement! I actually pre-made ours this year as I wanted it to be part of their advent calendars, so i took some pics & created a mini-D.I.Y post for you. Enjoy!

You will need the following:

All you need to do is combine the edible glitter and oats together into small clear bags. Seal with some pretty tape and attach your tags. It's that simple! You can then either print out or hand write your labels and if you want you can attach a poem on the reverse. 

It's cheap, it's cute & the kids love it. It's one of our favourite Christmas traditions and it can be a sweet little gift too.

Here's Dexy & Flo sprinkling theirs last year...

14.10.13 | PEANUT BUTTER KRISPIES

 

So, here's a healthy nutriuous snack for you all to ease you back into this drizzly pissy Monday morning.

Peanut Butter / Sugar / Golden Syrup or in other words / yep / oh yes / omfg gimme.

(Relax, you can't drink green smoothies and nibble on kale chips all your life, right? Erm, i think we're meant to...)

I made these and vowed to never make them again as they are just too addictive. I'm not even meant to eat peanut butter but my crazy brain decided that if I did get sick then it would have been ok, because WOW these beauties are so worth it.

If you don't like peanut butter then I guess you left already, but if you do then welcome to my party! Lets dance (and eat) like no-ones watching.

25.07.13

complete the creepy house challenge // visit nanny in Devon // watch the hot air balloons go up // have friends to play // have a homemade pizza night // visit grandma & grandpa in West Sussex // go on a nature hunt // visit a penny arcade // go fruit picking to make homemade jam // take a day trip to Brighton // paint our faces // build dens at Rainbow woods // have a bbq with friends // make some more ketchup // go to the cinema - at night // throw a Mexican party complete with homemade piñata  // go to the SS Great Britain // fly a kite // visit uphill beach // play crazy golf... 

and the list just keeps on growing! Come back to see how we get on!

02.03.13 | FLO'S CRAFT PARTY

Last weekend saw Flo's craft party that we had been planning together for weeks! Since her birthday falls on Valentines day, she wanted a Valentines themed party - craft style! Now, I am by no means the crafting type. Don't get me wrong, I know my way around a sewing machine (because my mum forced me to take G.C.S.E textiles telling me enthusiastically that I could make all my own clothes when I grew up - yeah nice one mother!) but crafting on the whole is just not my thang. I tried to convince myself that I enjoyed it a couple of years back and i think i actually made a friend of mine a doorstop full of rice (pah! you know you want of those) and I also made Flo a bag but I'll admit that I ran out of steam fairly quickly when it comes to my whole crafting fad. 

Anyway, when a doe eyed Flo asks you for a craft party then a craft party she damn well gets, even if you know deep down that it could quite possibly finish you off! The way I got round having a complete mental flip out though was to try and be super organised and make all the kits before hand. So i did. All 48 of them. Oooo check me out...

from top to bottom:

hanging felt owls // whirlybirds // cupids arrows // bracelets // gingerbread // hair slides // party bags

All eight girls had a blast - one declaring "this is the best party i've EVER been to Flo" and another taking all her goodies in for show & tell on Tuesday morning. Now how cute is that?!

So it seems it was a success in the end and who knows, I may even let India have one of these when she's bigger (but you can't hold me to that as I wrote that last line with my fingers crossed behind my back...)!

*thanks to my lovely cousin Jasmine for helping out and for being on hand with the camera when the birthday cake came out!!

SNOWY

It did snow and I will be posting pics of my lot having fun in the snow! Of course I will - i am a lover not a hater :)

and one of a little lady mesmerised by her waking up to her first snow. She sat saying "WoW, White" and kept pointing...

ALMOST SIX

Flo will be SIX (say, what?!) this February 14th & this year she wants a craft party with a valentines day theme. So, she's having six of her little friends to come party and with the help of some willing family members we're going to help them create some (hopefully) lovely things to take home with them. At the moment I'm frantically pinning like a mad woman and trying to get some things sorted in advance. I've started planning the favours for the party bags with these make your own necklace cards from Alexis being made tonight (i can't wait to do this). Already the food lists are being drawn up - of course they are, this is me..  and on that note actually how easy are cake pops to make? I've never made them, or had any desire to either but i think they'd be good for the party? Bear in mind what a shockingly awful baker I am before you answer that though...

So, wouldn't you know planning a party can actually be quite fun & that's coming from the mother who normally hates this process. That might possibly be due to the fact that we've been to the sodding Zany Zone for parties every year bar one so i'm not going to beat myself up too much about my lack of Alsopp-ness just yet. Thankfully, it looks as if this party might actually be one that doesn't have me wanting to lie in a dark room drinking gin for weeks afterwards. Here's hoping...

Sources all from Pinterest:

1. Flower Crowns

2. Cupids Arrows

3. Heart Pompoms 

4. Heart Crayons

5. Bath Bombs

SUNDAY SNAPSHOT

1 / they always head straight to the books, no matter what else is on offer
2 / we call her chocolate button eyes
3 / ickle baby ice cream
4 -7 / our favourite canal walk
8 / gimme a lick!

THIS SUMMER

This summer  - urgh!

This summer - rain!

This summer - yawn!

On the days we have had sun this summer, we have made sure we soaked it up. I'm not going to lie - it's been a pretty miserable summer here in the South West, and as i didn't quite get round to getting new passports in time we decided to not go abroad this summer, we have been taking day trips & mini-breaks. We spent a couple of days last week again down in West Sussex, and we're soon off to North Devon for a while, so with these pics I bid you farewell until next week.

Enjoy x

SUMMER, SOUTH COAST STYLE

Yesterday morning we jumped in our bus & headed down to the South Coast for a night.
The weather was gorgeous and warm and even the sky was a California blue - bliss!
I love the south coast, I find the colours so pretty & interesting as it's very different to the North Devon coast where I grew up.
In Devon you are treated to golden sands stretching for miles & miles with pale blue ocean dotted with surfers. On the south coast you have quiet lapping seas, which change colour constantly and pebble beaches made up of all different colours and textures.
Even though it was a flying visit, everyone had a chilled and relaxing time. We beached and we spent the afternoon at Brooklands play area, which is amazing for kids. I took Dexy, Flo & Indi on the Diddyland train ride around the site which they loved & found especially exciting when it broke down...ha! Indi spent the whole time waving at everyone she clapped her eyes on, and Dexy took it upon himself to tell a family off for not having their dog on a lead... er, embarrassing much?!

After the kiddos India fell asleep, the mister and I left the grandparents in charge and we grabbed some wine & supper and headed to the beach to watch the sun go down. So simple and so lovely. What a beautiful part of the world...

 i love this building...

but not quite as much as i love this house on the beach edge...

Even the light the next morning was beautiful...

I feel very lucky to have both the North Devon and the South coastlines at our fingertips. Good times.