things to go! need to finish

Sorting through my kids wardrobes again lead to a few more items being gotten rid of! Plus a bag of about 30 kids size hangers which are just a little too small even for the Divas clothes now.

and I came across these little things....otherwise known as Squinkies! Each little ball contains a tiny little toy figure...I brought them off a fb page and used them as a prize whenever the Diva used the toilet properly whist toilet training. I think I brought about 300 for £15 and have well over 100 left over, a friend has asked if she can have these so she will pick them up later today!

A set of Zumba DVDs...Brought on a whim when I was doing a few classes. However, not that I regularly go to Curves at least 3 times a week I do not find time to do these as well as everything else...To much too do!

and some random books that are no longer wanted.

Charity shop here we come at the weekend!

Guest blogg

I am one very proud Mummy! My little A came home from school with a certificate and a letter saying that a poem that he had done at school had been put forward and was going to be published in a childrens poetry book! What a little love.

Here is his masterpiece, aged 5 when it was done.

My Senses.

Orange leaves

Banging fireworks

Hot soup

Brown conkers

Hot Bonfire.

I have already given permission for it to be used but as such I really feel that I should buy the book too! However, at £14.99 it is a lot of money....I was expecting £5.99 or similar....but I will bite the bullet and buy it I think. He will always have it then and you never know, he may go on to be a budding poet of some sort just like his great aunt!

Attempts at a mug...

Oh my gosh....how half term whizzed by...so much so that I totally forgot to post anything yesterday, which was also an inset day!!! However one of the things that I tried over the hols was this...

I have seen so many people that are making their own mugs with Sharpie pens and tried it for myself to no avail. (apparently I was using the wrong type of Sharpies and there is a special paint type of Sharpie pen. So, armed with my white mug....

and my own porcelain pens , which are essentially the same as the Sharpies, I think,

I decided to do a simple floral design to test the pens and see if they are actually dishwasher proof and worth while doing. If they are, then the possibilities are endless, Chrsitmas, Birthdays.....the list goes on.

After the painting stage, you have to leave the paint to dry for 4 hours at least. Then bake in an oven at 40 minutes....and supposedly it will be done....we will wait and see...

Well, the pattern stayed on! and it went in the dishwasher too! May try and do some more mugs when the season comes along...I believe ASDA I is where this mug comes from and at £1 a mug it is a bargain....maybe the kids could do all the rellies a mug for Christmas 2015!?!?!

More things to go!

Well, the end of a rainy and not too brilliant half term holiday! Somehow we kept sane and busy...visiting Grandma, cinema trips, friends houses and having a big tidy up...and I am somehow keeping up with 10 things a week at the minute....am sure it will become a lot harder as the year progresses...me thinks.

A random assortment of junk here...most of it will go straight to the local charity shop...they are doing fairly well out of us this year!

Pom Poms everywhere!

I have somehow managed to amass quite a collection of various size and colour pompoms! I keep them all in one of the old style proper tin tins of Quality Street chocolates and it is really full....

The Diva saw that I had them and requested to be able to use them in some of her art work....So I found a bit of cardboard ( the back of  a cereal packet) and gave her some glue and she got busy sticking...

You can see my tin in this next picture and how full it is. The Diva decided that she was going to do a counting board and stuck all the pompoms in neat rows them counted them to me.

Well, it's one use for pompoms I suppose....maybe next time she will follow my instruction and try to make a pom pom photo frame?!

Smoothie...

In an effort to be a little more healthy this year, I sometimes have a home-made smoothie for breakfast. I always think that the ones you can buy in the shops are so full of sugar and yoghurt/cream or something that thickens it but adds loads of calories. So this is one of my favourite simple smoothies. 

The ingredients are simple: raspberries, a banana and a cup of rice milk. That's it!!!! Yes...that is all that is in them....

Excuse my artistic attempts at photos...but well...what the hell....

I love raspberries!

Really ripe bananas (one of which I used)

In the blender!

Add the rice milk....whizz up....and pour...serve with a raspberry on top!

Yumminess!

The rest of the bananas that needed eating were put into banana custard later for 9 kids! Their parents were very happy with a healthy pud!

Valentine hearts

Our bead box, along with everything else is bursting at the seams....time to use some of them up!

They look quite pretty as an arty type photo too. We decided to make some Valentine hearts with some of the beads. We did this by threading a bell into the middle of a pipe-cleaner, then threading beads either side and forming it into a heart shape, finishing off with either more bells or a large buttton bead.

We even did a Frozen inspired heart in blues! They look very pretty and only take about 20 minutes to make and NO MESS at all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A quick and easy craft for toddlers and those under 6 may also enjoy as it does not take up too much time. I always find they get bored if it is too hard or takes too much time.

Stained Glass Hearts

With all the Christmas decorations gone it has been looking very bare! So the Diva and I decided that we would brighten things up by creating some Valentine decorations..well there are only a few days  to go!.. Firstly we got some red card and cut out a design within a heart on it.

You will have to excuse the spotty tablecloth....it is one that I always use when we get messy on the kitchen table.As you can see we cut bits of tissue paper in various valentine colours (pinks, reds and purples),and simply glued them in place on one side of the heart.

And so we carried on until it was all done!

Then we moved it onto a piece of paper to dry off....

before sticking in the window as a stained glass heart!

Supplies needed....scraps of tissue, glue (PVA) and Cardstock in red or whatever other colours you may choose to use.

Courgette Crisps

Otherwise known as Zuccini chips to those on the other side of the pond! I have again seen these done so many times that it is about time I tried some too! Here are my 2 lovely courgettes all ready and waiting to be cut ...

My grater was in the wash so I simply sliced with a really sharp knife by hand.

And managed to fill 3 trays...I seasoned them with a little salt and one of the pans with paprika too...we will see what they come out like, as I have just put them in the oven for a couple of hours on a low heat.

They did not turn out brilliantly...I think I put too much salt on...this time it is a failure ....next time....!

10 things to go!

Another week and another clear out! Found 10 things lurking in my bedside cupboard.....why oh why do I keep tissue paper hats from old crackers???? I am a hoarder....or am I reformed hoarder as I am doing this pledge?

As for the random glass that won't stand up (novelty thing), why did I ever put it in my bedside table? An address book I have never needed..a bath scrunchie not used, a black tealight holder (not used in 5 years..may as well go!) a little turquoise bag, a tiny picture, an M&S inflatable ball????a fairy pencil topper and some used nivea lip balm....what a collection from the bedside table. Oh well....some for the bin and a couple to the charity shop when I next swing by!

As an aside, I am managing to get up to Curves 4 times a week at the minute! That is beating my 3 times new year plan!!!! Long may it last. Especially if I go straight from school drop off and I can be home with a cuppa by 10! Fantastic.

Crocheted Lace Bowls????

I have seen the Lace bowls on Pinterest so many times that I thought I would give it a go and see just how easy/hard they are to do...well to start with Sainsburys oe Tesco do not sell Fabric Stiffener, but I found some quite cheaply online...I think it was £3.99 for a pot.

I decided not to use it all in one go but instead to use a brush to brush it onto the fabric... I did this on an old plate so that spills did not matter too much.

Then I found some old yoghurt pots that I had been storing for nothing really other than a random project like this!

I also tried to do a little crown shape one for the Diva..after measuring her head I cut the lenght down and fastened it with a paperclip while it stiffened...

I did 4 of the little bowls! Then left to dry overnight.

In the morning they came off the pots quite easily but are still not totally stiff so I think I may be doing it again today!

The bowls did take a second time of putting the stiffener on them but came out quite well...I sold 3 of them at a fair in someones house,,,they were going to fill them with Easter eggs...what a lovely idea!

Cakes for the school Bake Sale.

BBBrrrrrr...its cold outside today and no matter what I do I cannot seem to warm up! 

The PTA have come up with an alternative to the tuck shop that they have always had once a term, the Bake Sale...All the parents from a set year-group bake and sell the cakes...as there are 6 years there is a bake sale every half term, which is just about alright...any more and I think people would get sick of it.

As you can see, our baking was simple and it seems, what the kids want....simple fairy cakes with a load of icing and chocolate on top!

I saw somewhere an idea for using cardboard cereal packets as boxes to transport cakes and copied the idea. The boxes held quite a few and can be recycled by the school! All of these cakes went fairly quickly in the sale, where we had a blanket price of 50p a cake. (keep it simple so people just have to have a 50p)

Will have to save more boxes for next half term when it  is another one of my kids classes! Feel a bit warmer with the oven been on!