Mamatography: Week 6

Don't know what happened last week but I didn't get around to posting up my weekly photos so I have two week's worth to do today, although there are some gaps where I just didn't take a picture that day - rest assured the intention is always there...

30/1/12 Balloon Fun

1/2/12: Rockin' on her 'stage'

4/2/12: A snowy drive out this afternoon

5/2/12: Test-run of our birth pool (stored in the loft since Eden was born so we weren't sure what condition it would be in)

6/2/12: This fairy loves playing with cardboard tubes and milk bottle tops!

7/2/12: Trying on Mummy's boots

8/2/12 Small world play: This is Eden's traffic jam!

9/2/12 Smily happy close-up

10/2/12: I had the most amazing surprise today: a completely unexpected surprise Baby Shower was organised for me!

11/2/12: Bump and I after the wedding of some friends today

Mamatography is hosted by Diary of a First Child. Check out more blogs taking part this week here.

Toddler Valentines Craft

As it's Valentines Day tomorrow I was keen to do a heart craft activity with Eden, and was inspired by this blog post to make some sparkly hearts! Like with many 2 year olds, I only have to mention glueing and sticking to Eden and her eyes light up and she turns into an incredibly helpful toddler clearing a space for our craft! Today while I was preparing the activity in the kitchen, she was chattering away at her craft table saying 'I like sticking Mummy, it's my favourite and my best'.

Preparation:
I cut out 3 heart shapes using cardboard from an old cereal box and covered the front of them with tin foil, taping them down at the back.
I tore a selection of pink, purple and yellow tissue paper into thin strips and small shapes.

Glueing:
Eden and I then used some gloopy PVA glue to stick the tissue paper down onto the tin foil hearts.

Add some sparkle

While the glue was still wet, Eden shook some confetti glitter over the top of the hearts, and stuck some sparkly gems on to finish off. I love our glitter shaker and gem stickers - they're both from the pound shop and every time I'm in there I always look to see if they're in stock to buy some more - sadly I haven't seen the sticky gems in there since I bought them a few months ago, so I ration them at home now :)  

Stuck up on our wall

Mamatography: Week 4

23rd - 29th January
Missed a day this week, ooops! 'Must try harder....!
'

23/1 I love this photo! Our cat, Flo, found her own way onto Eden's lap for a cuddle. Eden's response was 'Thank you Floey, make me happy!'

25/1 A wet walk in the park hunting out puddles to splash in

26/1 I made this little drawstring bag as a gift for a family member

27/1 A Friday night treat for the husband and I

28/1 Eden and her cousins (who live a couple of hours away so we don't see them as often as we'd like to) having a lovely time together visiting a City Farm

29/1 I spent most of the day ill in bed, and Eden came and kept me company trying on all my participation medals from previous triathlons and running races 

Mamatography is hosted every week by Diary of a First Child. Check out other contributor's week in pics here

February

I'm so glad February's here! I woke up yesterday to this most beautiful sunrise!

I'm sure it's not just me that every year finds January a bit of a gloomy month, with a bit of a post-Christmas energy and mood-slump. Yesterday was 1/2/12 and as I woke and realised it was now February, my mood really lifted! It was a good start to the day, and as it happens, the rest of yesterday ended up pretty good too!

Maybe this month is even more poignant for me this year, as our new little baby is due early next month, which adds to the excitement!

Mamatography: Week 3

16th-22nd January Bit of an out-of-routine week this week as we had decorators in painting our ceilings, so we spent quite a lot of time out of the house to keep out of their way. 

16/1 A visit to the local children's centre sensory room. Eden loves it here & it's so peaceful

Pretty lights and lots to explore in the sensory room!

17/1 My 33 week bump!

18/1 Giant paper and pens providing some entertainment as most of the toys have been packed away while the decorators are in 

Loving the big paper and concentrating hard!

19/1 A full day out of the house, and a special treat of a hot chocolate!

20/1 A wet and rainy day, so we spent much of the day reading lots of books

21/1 A trip to the museum

22/1 Hunting for 'treasure' (pennies strategically placed) in the garden

Finding treasure!

Mamatography is hosted by Diary of a First Child. Check out other contributions this week here

Mamatography: Week 2

9th - 15th January

9/1 One of the things I love about our house is that because we live on a hill, the houses below us drop away and we see so much sky! Every day brings a different view...

10/1 A trip to the Zoo

11/1 This morning's sunrise taken from our bedroom window

12/1 Finger painting fun!

13/1 This week has been a week of baking for us thanks to Eden finding a new love for cooking - she also loves the washing up part!

14/1 Making a den in a corner and behind a chair at Grandma and Grandad's house

15/1 Relaxing in the bath with lots of bubbles

Check out more Mamatography weeks here:

Mamatography: Week 1

2nd - 8th January 2012

I really love taking photos and capturing moments in time. It's a New Year, so I've signed up to take part in Diary of a First Child's Mamatography Challenge 2012. The aim is to take a photo everyday that represents something that happened in your day, and to post them up on the blog once a week. Sounds like fun, so I'm up for the challenge and looking forward to having a record in photos of daily life in 2012.

Here's Week 1 of my Mamatography challenge:

2/1/12 Iggle Piggle sadly lost his red blanket while out shopping today, Eden requested Mummy make  a green replacement.

3/1/12 Special birthday card made for Great Grandma

4/1/12 It may just look like a mess, but Eden spent a good 10 minutes 'organising' each item , placing it carefully exactly where it is on the carpet!

5/1/12 George, our kitten, had also been cuddled up next to Eden in this shot, but jumped off as soon as he saw the camera!

6/1/12 Finishing off a 'Happy New Year' painting started at the library's toddler session this morning

7/1/12 Some of the stash from our Ikea shop today

8/1/12 Finding the cats on Eden's bed - 'Bit naughty' as Eden would say!

To see other blogger's posts in the Mamatography Challenge click here

Bitten by the sewing bug

Regular readers may remember the Advent Calendar Bunting that I made for my daughter back in September (which by the way was a BIG hit with her this December, but that's another story). It was made using a basic mini sewing machine that I picked up for £4 at a car boot in August, I was impressed with the results even though the project was a complete pain and took three times as long (at least) thanks to the sewing machine not coping well with the material. With this in mind, I've been on the hunt for a decent 'proper' sewing machine for the last few months.

Just before Christmas, I bought a Silver Crest one that was on offer from Lidl. I did my research beforehand and checked reviews, all of which were very positive. From the set-up to the sewing, I've found it easy and enjoyable - and this is coming from a COMPLETE sewing novice, I am well and truly a beginner, and like to learn by getting stuck in and doing. The Silver Crest sewing machine has 33 different stitches, and comes with various different 'feet' - so far I've used the basic foot and the zipper foot - it's easy to interchange them. 

I purchased just in time to make a few Christmas presents for family. Due to my lack of skills and knowledge in using a sewing machine, I was surprised at the results, which I felt were good enough to actually give as presents without being embarrassed about wobbly edging and the like showing me up! So here's a few piccies of my recent makes:

Cath Kidston-style knitting needle case

The zip using my new sewing machine

Owl doorstops and paperweight

And this is a Very Hungry Caterpillar baby playmat that I made for our new arrival in March - can't wait to use it!

VHC play mat