I'm Still Here!

Hi there everyone sorry I haven't been around to visit you in a while. My girls are on holidays and so we have been keeping ourselves pretty busy around here, trying to ward off the boredom that seems to creep up quickly on the holidays. So what have we been up to, we have been visiting family, having a "wedding" (Miss 10, Miss 5 and friend), a first sleepover (very scary for me), going to the city for lunch and lots of playing and exploring outside. I haven't had much time for creating so I haven't got anything to show you today but hopefully tomorrow I'll get a chance to fit some card making into my day. Thanks for stopping by and I'll see you all again tomorrow. Bye!


Smiles Catherine xox

Mojo Monday Sketch 105

I made for card for a little girl who will be turning 2 on the weekend using this weeks Mojo Sketch. It has been a while since I have joined in a sketch challenge so I feel a bit rusty and although I really enjoyed working on this card, I found the colours also were difficult for me. I chose the bright colours because the birthday girl loves the Wiggles and the DP was bright and colourful like them. Thank you for stopping by and I hope to see you again soon.

Smiles Catherine xox
Materials
Paper: SU Real Red, SU Pumpkin Pie, SU Wild Wasabi, DCWV DP
Stamps: SU Sincere Salutations
Ink: Versamark
Accessories: Dimensionals, Holographic Embossing Powder, Kaiser Rhinestones, Ribbon, SU Ribbon, Spellbinders, Corner Punch

Our Creative Space!

With the girls home on holiday I thought I would show you the creative space that we are all sharing today. The first is the puzzle making that was done this morning, Miss 10 got this for her birthday from Grandma just recently. The two of them had a lot of fun putting the puzzle together and I joined in too, it's a bit additive.

My Miss 10 has wanted to make some crayon melts so today I bought this cute mould and we made some crayon melts. It is a great way to use up those crayons that have been broken and lost their papers and they look cute made into a different shape. We just cut them into smaller pieces and arranged in the mould. Put them into a preheated oven at 180 degrees celsius and cooked them for about 10 minutes or until fully melted. We then waited till they hardened and popped them out ready to use later. Thanks for stopping by our creative space, be sure to stop by Kootoyoo for more creative spaces. Bye for now!

Smiles Catherine xox

A Couple of Experiments for you....

My Miss 10 has been asking since the holidays started to make toothpaste. She did this as an experiment in class testing the homemade toothpaste against the bought toothpaste on a coffee stained egg, with the homemade toothpaste being better at removing the coffee stain. We didn't test the toothpaste against the egg but we did try it ourselves, not the nicest of flavour but it did the job. I improvised and used a bit of peppermint essence but recipes on the internet use peppermint oil and other things to flavour the toothpaste. The girls enjoyed making it so much that they used it last night to brush their teeth (lol). My Miss 10 really wanted to colour it pink and add some strawberry essence, not sure how it would work but sounds like a good idea maybe next time. So this is my first tutorial for you on how to make toothpaste, I hope you find it helpful.

Toothpaste
Ingredients
2 teaspoons of Bicarbonate of Soda
1/4 teaspoon of salt
3/4 teaspoon of glycerin (or glycerol)
water1. Place 2 teaspoons of bicarbonate of soda in a container2. Place 1/4 teaspoon of salt in the same container and mix well.3. Add 3/4 teaspoon of glycerin (glycerol) and stir. The mixture should be thick.4. Gradually add water, drop by drop. Continue to stir well after each addition of water. The final result should be the same consistency as toothpaste. (Add oil here to flavour the toothpaste)The dust storm outside has kept us indoors for most of the day so we did a bit of baking, Bill Granger's Peanut butter and choc oat cookies and Raspberry yoghurt cake out of the Woman's Day. Still in the cooking mood and with lunch now here I made us some cheese and vegemite palmiers. I kind of came up with the recipe, not too difficult of course but just something different for lunch.

Cheese and Vegemite Palmiers
Ingredients
vegemite
1/3 cup of cheese
1 sheet of puff pastry
milk for brushing

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees.
2. Lay sheet of pastry on bench and allow to thaw slightly.
3. Place as much or as little vegemite onto the pastry sheet using a knife.
4. Sprinkle the cheese on top of the vegemite.
5. Take both sides of the pastry and fold them into the centre. Do this again, then fold in half. It should look like it has been rolled up at this stage.
6. Cut slices of about 1.5 cm wide and place onto a lined baking tray.
7. Brush with milk and put in the oven for approximately 12-15 minutes or until browned and puffed.

Enjoy! Talk to you all again soon, thanks for stopping by.

Smiles Catherine xox

Fun Times with Family!

We are all on holidays here which is so lovely, today we got a chance to catch up with the girls' cousins and Grandma and have some fun outside. Since the children came along, we really enjoy finding different places to visit and so rather than our usual haunts, we drove another 20 minutes and had some fun down by the bay. We all had a play in the park, some exploring by the water, fish and chips and followed up with an ice cream, thank you to Grandma. It was a great day! Thanks for stopping by!

Smiles Catherine xox

Happy Saturday to you!

I thought I would share with you a card I made last night for a little girl whose birthday my Miss 5 and Miss 10 went to today. I really liked this paper at the local scrapbooking place so decided buy it to make her card, not that I probably needed to buy anymore paper.(lol) So last night with no real ideas in mind I got out one of my Cards Magazines and like one of the layouts and my card just evolved from there. I made a bit of a mistake but with a bit of ribbon in the right place who would know, only you now though! Anyway I hope you all have a wonderful weekend what ever you get up to and I'll see you again tomorrow.

Smiles Catherine xox
Materials
Paper: SU Pale Plum, SU Whisper White, Kaiser DP
Stamps: SU Sincere Salutations
Ink: SU Pale Plum Marker
Accessories: Kindy Glitz, Kaiser Rhinestones, SU Whisper White Ribbon, SU Button Latte, SU Scallop Edge Punch, MM Felt Flower, White Gel Pen, Martha Stewart Butterfly Punch

Some sewing to show you

Hi there everyone! I hope you had a good day. My Miss 5 and Miss 10 are going to a birthday party on the weekend so I thought I would make a bag to give the gift in rather than to wrap it in paper. I went to the local fabric shop and saw some pretty fabric but I thought I should try and use what I have already at home, that's when I thought a felt bag would be a quick and easy thing to make. For me it was pretty easy but not quick, hopefully the more I sew the quicker I will get but for now I'll keep trying. It was also the first time I made some yoyos, so quick and easy, I loved making them. I also thought I would put in this picture of a pale headed Rosella who has been visiting my bird feeder recently. This was the best picture of the bird I could get, enjoy! Bye!

Smiles Catherine x

A Healthy Picnic Lunch

To celebrate what the children have been learning in class they got to have a picnic today and invite their family. I got to go and take a healthy lunch for both of us and watch her have fun doing some fun activities outside.

I really like to cook my girls things to take in their lunch box, I think part of that is because my Mum used to do it for me and also because I know what is going into their little bodies. This week though I just haven't managed my time and so haven't done any cooking for school. In our lunch boxes you can see corn chips which I found on special yesterday that are all organic so I figured they had to be healthy and I relented and bought yogurt. I usually make yogurt in the yogurt maker but they just won't eat it and no matter how many different flavours I try, it doesn't seem to work.:( I can always keep trying but the yogurt I bought has no artificial colours, flavours or preservatives, yeah! So even though I haven't cooked I think that I pass the healthy food lunch box. What sort of things do you put in your lunch boxes and how do you keep it interesting? I would love to know your thoughts, it can be hard to always think of things to pack for them so they don't get bored. Talk to you soon and thanks for stopping by! Bye.

Smiles Catherine xox

A card for a 6oth Birthday!

Hello there! Today I had a sick girl at home with me, my Miss 5 has had some temps and the doctor said it was a virus so a bit of medicine to help her feel better and as much rest as she will have and already she is feeling better but another day at home just to make sure she is on the mend.
I made this card tonight for my husband and work colleagues to give to one of their work mates who is turning 60 on the weekend. I offered to make the card but I was putting it off for a while because it's hard making a card for someone else other than family and close friends. Anyway in the end I was pretty happy with the result, so I hope it gets the approval of everyone else. Thanks for stopping by! Bye.

Smiles Catherine xox
Materials
Stamps: SU Fifth Avenue Floral
Paper: SU So Saffron, SU Certainly Celery, SU Chocolate Chip, SU Whisper White
Ink: SU Chocolate Chip, SU Certainly Celery Markers
Accessories: Glitter, SU Certainly Celery Twill Ribbon, SU Distresser Kit, Kaiser Pearls, SU Button Latte, SU Linen Thread, Dimensionals

Today when I checked my emails I received a lovely one from Andrea saying that she had given me two blog awards, it was such a lovely surprise to get them, thank you Andrea for giving them to me. So the rules for this award are that I must list five things I love to do and then pass it along to five other people.

1 : I love hanging out with my husband and having our date nights.

2 : I love spending time with two very special girls in my life who are happy and healthy.

3 : I love working in my vegetable garden and looking after our chooks.

4 : I love being creative with my card making and sewing.

5 : I love cooking cakes and biscuits for my family to eat and enjoy.

The five lovely ladies I would like to give the awards to are:
Kylie
Bianca
Melissa
Tammy
Kelley
Today we had a busy start to the day so the rest of the day we just did a bit of relaxing and just things that need to be done like washing :(. After lunch Miss 5 went outside and decided to go and catch a butterfly, so I got the camera out to take a photo or two.Now onto some card making. I made this card for my Dad to celebrate Father's Day last weekend so I thought I would show you. I hope you all had a lovely weekend. Bye!

Smiles Catherine xox
Materials
Stamps: SU All Holidays
Paper: SU Basic Black; SU Basic Gray; DCWV DP
Ink: Versamark
Accessories: Silver Embossing Powder; Silver Brads; SU Spiral Punch

Happy 11 year Wedding Anniversary!

Today 11 years ago I got to marry a very special man who I believe was meant just for me. We have grown and shared many happy times together and I can't wait to share many more.
Smiles Catherine xox

Chickens are great pets!

Yesterday my Miss 5 came home with a necklace around her neck that said to bring in your pet or bring in a photo. I tried to convince her that a photo of any of her pets would be great but that did not satisfy her need to show and tell her class about one of her pets. Her first try was the cat, my cat Tiffany is almost 15 years old and just couldn't cope with a class of children so on to the next try, the budgies. Dad said that because they are not tame then maybe another pet, like one of the chickens. So that was it, she wanted to take her chicken Star to class. I was a bit hesitant about taking the chicken and suggested a picture but that wasn't going to be good enough. I cleaned out a cage and she drove in the front seat to school. She was such a well behaved animal it really turned out to be the perfect pet to bring into school. (If you click on the picture you can see the chicken more closely)I thought I would share a card I made for my hubby to give him on the weekend to celebrate our wedding anniversay. Thank you for stopping by and I look forward to talking to you again soon.

Smiles Catherine xox
Materials
Stamps: SU Fundamental Phrases, SU Trendy Trees
Paper: SU Kraft, SU Old Olive, SU Chocolate Chip, SU Not Quite Navy
Ink: SU Chocolate Chip, SU Not Quite Navy
Accessories: Tag (which I used as a template), SU Linen Thread, SU Distresser Kit, Basic Grey Buttons, Martha Stewart Twill Ribbon

How does your garden grow....

With lettuce, cauliflower,corn and shallots all in a row! I thought I would share what I am growing in my garden at the moment tomatoes, lettuce, corn, cauliflower, broccoli, dwarf beans, shallots and some herbs. I am not a green thumb and I think partly the healthy growth is due to timing in the planting, some sunny days and the rain, and also the garden beds needed to be replenished so my hubby put in some mushroom compost which I think has been really good for the plants. Now I look forward to eating the rewards but hope that the caterpillars don't get to them first.(lol)

The other day I saw Mel's photo of the little wren on her blog so I thought I would try and get a photo of one of our little residents, boy are they quick and hard to photograph so this is my effort. I hope you are enjoying your day. Bye for now.

Smiles Catherine xox

Yummy Recipes for you

Today was a busy start to the week with errands to run, some cooking to do and a visit from a man about some insulation for the house. So I thought I would share with you some of my cooking. I made some Blueberry and Banana Bread getting the recipe out of the Women's Weekly ABC of Kids Cooking that my daughter got for her birthday. Blueberry and Banana Bread
2 cups plain flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup brown sugar
3 medium bananas (equals 1 1/2 cups)
125g butter, melted
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract 3/4 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

1. Preheat oven to moderate, 180 degrees celsius. Lightly grease a 10 x 20cm loaf pan. Line the base with baking paper.
2. Sift flour, baking powder and cinnamon together into a large bowl. Stir in sugar.
3. In a large jug, combine banana, butter, egg and vanilla extract. Fold into flour mixture with blueberries until combined. Pour mixture into prepared pan.
4. Bake for 55-60 minutes or until a skewer inserted into centre comes out clean and dry. Cut into slices to serve.

And my quick and trusty Choc-coconut slice which is always a favourite with the little and big kids.

1/2 cup plain flour 1/2 cup self-raising flour 2 tablespoons cocoa powder 2/3 cup caster sugar 3/4 cup desiccated coconut 125g butter, melted 1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence 1 egg, lightly beaten
Icing 1 1/4 cups icing sugar 2 tablespoons cocoa powder 30g butter, softened 1-2 teaspoons hot water 1/4 cup desiccated coconut, toasted
Preheat oven to moderate 180 degree celsius. Brush a shallow 28x18cm slice tin with melted butter or oil; line base with baking paper, extending over 2 sides.
Sift flours and cocoa into a medium mixing bowl; stir in sugar and coconut. Make a well in the centre. Add cooled melted butter, vanilla essence and egg and stir to combine.
Press mixture into prepared tin, smoothing surface with the back of a spoon. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until set. Leave to cool in tin.
To Make icing, sift icing sugar and cocoa into a small bowl; add butter and water and stir until smooth. Using paper, lift slice from tin and spread with icing. Sprinkle with coconut. Cut into pieces to serve. Enjoy!

And after my day I'm feeling a bit tired but really wanting to make a card, maybe I will get my second wind, I can only hope. Bye for now.

Smiles Catherine xox

Happy Father's Day, Happy Sunday!

How was your Sunday? Was it full of sun and relaxation? Mine had a bit of both of those in my day but first of all it was about telling my husband what a fantastic dad he is to his girls. So the morning started with toast (cinnamon and sugar) some apple juice and the paper. After presents and breakfast he was outside with his Miss 5 helper digging holes to make a gate for our soon to be dog, maybe a Christmas present for the girls. A stop for morning tea and then back to work. Lunch was made by the girls, salad and cooked by Dad and Miss 10 helper of sausages on the BBQ. The afternoon ended with a visit to the hardware, the nursery for a fruit tree for my Dad and to the park for an ice cream and a swing. I hope you enjoyed your Sunday too! Bye.

Smiles Catherine xox

A Father's Day Card and a Colour Challenge to share!

Hello there and happy Saturday to you! I hope that you have been enjoying your day. It has been a lovely day here visiting the library and the shops (so busy) and just generally hanging out together as a family. Since it is Father's Day tomorrow I thought I would share with you the card I made for my wonderful hubby for my girls to give. I used the colours from Dawn's Colour Challenge #16 for his card. It was one of those cards that I had an idea and in the end it just came together completely different to what I had imagined but I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, it's really hard to judge your own work because I can be a bit critical of it. Enough of my rambling on, enjoy the rest of your weekend wherever you are and for those in Australia I hope that you enjoy Father's Day with those special in your life. Bye for now!

Smiles Catherine xox
Materials
Stamps: SU All Holidays; SU In the Stars
Ink: Versacolour Vanilla; SU Chocolate Chip
Cardstock: SU Kraft; SU Chocolate Chip; SU Very Vanilla; Bazzill Cardstock Mat Pack; Accessories: Basic Grey Buttons, DMC Brown Thread; SU Linen Thread; SU Distresser Kit; SU Dimensionals

Some guests in my yard.

Yesterday I was about to take the washing off the line and to my surprise I had an interesting guest in my yard. We live near some bush and so we sometimes have bush turkeys in our yard but never a peahen. I called to Miss 5 to come and look and not only were there was a peahen in our yard but there were three of them, so funny.My Miss 10 comes home from camp today :) and so I needed to make a pencil roll that I planned to do for her birthday. I bought some Lyra pencils from Winterwood after seeing them over at Mel's blog and know how much my girl loves to draw and colour I thought they would make a nice present. So I searched many blogs and used the methods of construction I found but changed the measurements to suit the size pencils I bought. So this is my first try at a pencil roll.It was my first attempt and I am pretty happy with it but will have to fiddle with the measurements a bit more if I were to make another. It ended up being a pretty quick pressie to make!

And yesterday I went to my weekly stamping class and we had to do a challenge card. We were given an inspirational photo of some pretty linen and then given time to collect materials and to make the card and so I thought I would share the result. Thanks for stopping by and I hope that you have a good day. Bye

Smiles Catherine xox
Materials Paper: SU Whisper White, SU Pink Pirouette, SU DP Sweet Always Ink: SU Pink Pirouette Stamps: SU Circle Circus Accessories: Kaiser Pearls, SU So Saffron Ribbon, SU Summer Love Ribbons, Dimensionals, SU Corner Punch