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Coke sure Is It

December 21, 2009 at 10:41 am | In Emmeline | 4 Comments

Uh, clearly 1 year olds have no sense of humour……

One Per Month Challenge

December 21, 2009 at 9:08 am | In One Per Month | 12 Comments

I can hear a collective sigh of relief across the internet that you will not be subjected to reading about my mammaries or my cravings for cheese or any boring nonsense about being deprived of food in 2010.

And the only sporting achievements we might discuss will be the race to who can open the first bottle of wine on New Year’s Eve which I guarantee I will win. So that topic is done as well.

I can only hope and pray that you are done hearing about Emmeline’s screaming half the night, and I’ll pray even harder that I don’t have to type the T word here again. But I can’t guarantee it.

So what are you going to read about here in 2010?

Well, I have a plan!

I have a plethora of beautiful, inspiring craft books and cookbooks. Each of them has glorious photos of gorgeous creations, page after page after page.

And how many do I actually use?

Hardly any.

So my challenges for 2010 are as follows:

choose a craft book per month and make at least one item from the book
choose a cookbook per month and try to cook one new recipe per week (or at least just one recipe per month if four gets too challenging)

It’s called my One Per Month challenge (I am nothing if not simple) and I’m excited to start!

For January, I am taking my books on holidays with me, and here’s what’s being packed:

Stitched in Time by Alicia Paulson. This was a gift from Donna last Christmas and is one of the loveliest craft books that I have.

This is my favourite project, The Family Tree, and one that I will be working on during my holiday, since there is not much that needs to be done by machine.

January’s cookbook will be ‘Byron Cooking and Eating’ by Steven Snow. My Mum bought this for me when we ate at one of his restaurants while we were on holidays.

First on my list to make is the Banana Croissant Pudding, which I have been craving for a long time now:

And then the Chargrilled King Prawns with Asian Marinade:

If you want to play along, leave a comment below, because I would love to see what you’re making in 2010 too!

The End of The Beginning

December 19, 2009 at 6:28 pm | In Emmeline | 24 Comments

Tomorrow morning is the last time I will ever breastfeed a baby.

——-

I’m immensely sad about that.

I know that I will have no more biological children that I will carry, deliver and breastfeed. I’m not 100% sure our family is complete, but I am 99% sure that I will never be pregnant again (how’s that for tempting fate?) nor be nursing any more babies.

I know this is not a big deal for most people. And for those who so wanted to, but couldn’t, I hear your voices; I am very lucky to have nursed Emmeline for just over 12 months. Don’t think that I don’t know that.

You see, my body is just not that good at very much. I’m terrible at running, hate swimming races (but love to swim for pleasure) and have never been able to touch my toes. I am sure I was the laughing stock of my yoga class, back when I had the time and energy to attend a ‘class’. I’m just not flexible in the slightest.

And I get exercise-induced asthma which tends to put a dampener on exerting myself too much. That’s what I tell myself, anyway.

The season I played soccer, we never even scored a goal. THE ENTIRE SEASON. Let alone win a match. The season I played softball we never won a match either. I was always picked last for a team. Actually I don’t even remember ever getting picked for a team – let alone last. With a track record like that, you can understand why nobody wanted me on their team.

Except for netball, which I discovered a few years ago through a social work team. And you are looking at the goal shooter for the winning team one season. Thanks, you can stop clapping now.

Aside from that one aberration, there’s not a lot physically that I do very well.

I can’t seem to fall pregnant without medical intervention, and I thought I did pregnancy well until Emmeline, which was just one drama after another.

So be gentle with me when I say that at breastfeeding – I rock. At last, something that my body can do well. All by itself. Nourishing my children with a body that, in my mind, has failed me in so many other ways, does so much for my self esteem and confidence as a woman and as a parent and as a person.

After all, who doesn’t enjoy something they are good at?

So maybe now you can understand why weaning is a big deal for me. It’s saying goodbye to something I am good at and that I enjoy. And I’ll never be able to do it again for the rest of my life.

Which makes me very sad.

Until I look at the cheese section at the supermarket. Because I am very good at eating cheese.

And guess where I am going after lunch tomorrow?

PHISH FOOD. My time has come.

The Man In Red

December 19, 2009 at 6:21 am | In Emmeline, Henry | 12 Comments

Do you remember last year’s Santa photo?

Not a great success. Emmeline was screaming and Henry was distressed.

Same again this year. Nothing’s changed, except she has grown an awful lot.

She’s still cute when she’s miserable. Fancy taking her to Santa when she’s sick and has a fever. But you know, what were the odds that I could ever get her to Santa healthy? She’s been healthy for about 6 minutes since September.

Bohemian

December 18, 2009 at 12:56 pm | In Fabric | 12 Comments

Ah. It has been a busy day. I took Emmeline to the photographers for her 12 month portraits and she snarled and glared her way through the photo shoot. I guess, though, if I am trying to capture her at this age, then a snarly photo is probably about right. Who can blame her? She has been so crook for the last few months.

Before that, I got an email from Melbourne re Sew It Together that got me all riled up, but I managed to put out the fire and all is well again. You can read more here. If you wish.

So, to end the week on a prettier note, here is a sweet stack of fabrics. It’s Anna Maria Horner’s first line, Bohemian. Out of print now, and hard to find, I have collected these from swapping, surprise finds in local fabric shops, and an online store in Norway.

I am embarrassed to say that I managed to checkout of a Norwegian website, in Norwegian, because I am somewhat, er, overly familiar with online checkout forms. Did I really just admit to that?

Worth it, though. So pretty. The colours are so very vibrant, and quite unique.

Coke Is It!

December 18, 2009 at 5:33 am | In Emmeline, Miscellaneous | 8 Comments

A long time ago, last century in fact, when I was young, free, single, unencumbered, childless and unmortgaged, I travelled a lot.

I think it was in Dali, or maybe Lijiang (and maybe I will stop place-dropping now) that I met a middle-aged Dutch couple who had made the deliberate decision to remain childless and unmortgaged so that they could travel around the world during their holidays. (They might have been my idols for a brief few weeks there). And being teachers, they had a lot of holidays. They had done a lot of travel.

So when they told me that their secret trick to staying healthy in developing countries was to drink a can of Coke a day, I took a little bit of notice. Apparently, what it can do to clean a coin, it can also do to pesky things that get inside your digestive system when you may not be eating in the most hygienic of places.

I hate Coke.

But I thought I’d give it a try because I had had some stomach upsets in China, and it took me 4 hours to drink my first can of Coke. Ugh. After that, I got quicker at it, and you know, they were right.

I never got sick again.

Coke, indeed, Is It!

—

Last night I did a little survey in my head of the infection rate in this household.

Since September, here is where we are at:

September: Henry – 1 x tonsillitis, Emmeline – 1 x middle ear infection

October: Emmeline – 2 x tonsillitis

November: Emmeline – 1 x tonsillitis

December: Henry – 1 x tonsillitis, Emmeline – 1 x tonsillitis

And you can add me to the list now. In addition to Emmeline’s 4th bout of tonsillitis this week, I have pharyngitis.

We really need to put tape around our property warning of infectious diseases.

And so where is my husband in all of this? The one who is out in public the most, in air-conditioned offices, touching doors in office buildings, lift buttons, taxi doors? The one, who by rights, should be catching anything before we do?

Not an -itis to be found in him.

And he is the only one who drinks Coke.

That’s my well-founded scientific conclusion. Argue with it if you will.

But Emmeline is getting Coke in her bottle today. That will fix those sucky tonsils for good.

More News for Sew It Together

December 17, 2009 at 7:26 pm | In Sew It Together | 1 Comment

New post up here.

Have you added the Sew It Together blog to your reader yet, or should I keep letting you know when there is a new post up?

Blue Moon

December 17, 2009 at 6:41 pm | In Miscellaneous | 8 Comments

Am I the only one who was left a little flat by New Moon?

The cast has lost me.

The more I see Robert Pattinson in media interviews, the less I like him. And I can’t help but feel there could have been a better actor to play Edward.

I read that Henry Cavill was Stephenie Meyer’s first choice, but he grew too old (24!) whilst the film was waiting to be made. I have to say, he is a very fine looking young man and I could totally see him as Edward Cullen.

And apparently Rob Pattinson has a friend named Tom Sturridge who was a favourite at one stage. I prefer him to RPattz, who is just leaving me cold, I am sorry to say.

And what is with Kristen Stewart? Does she have more than one facial expression? I know Bella is morose during most of New Moon, the novel, but surely she could crack a smile at some point in the script?

Thank goodness for Jacob. That’s all I can say. I may be old enough to be Taylor Lautner’s mother, but that is one fine specimen of a man, oops, boy.

Right. Where was I? Oh yes, Christmas next week. Lots to do!

Sponsor for Sew It Together!

December 14, 2009 at 12:13 pm | In Sew It Together | Leave a Comment

There’s a new post over at Sew It Together with some fantastic news.

You can read it here.

2010 Australian Craft Blog Convention

December 8, 2009 at 8:51 pm | In Sew It Together | 7 Comments

Although somewhat distracted by ladybirds and copious amounts of baking last week, I have made some progress on the national blog meet-up.

Once I started talking to hotels and venues, I had to come up with a name for the event, and with a great lack of imagination, I have called it…

Sew It Together

It has a date – 14/15 May, 2010.

And it now has it’s very own blog, which you can see here.

Before you hop over there and add it to your blog reader, just bear with me for a minute. The most important part that has to be sorted out sooner rather than later, is the Saturday Crafting Session. I have to book and pay a 50% deposit for that before Christmas to lock in the venue. Everything else can be sorted a little closer to the time.

So I know it is a stretch at this time of year, but I will be collecting some money from those who want to secure a place at the crafting session, in the next couple of weeks.

Numbers will be limited, and preference will be first given to those staying at the hotel, and then to other visitors to Melbourne. However, I also want a great showing of Melbourne bloggers since the whole point of us coming to Melbourne is to meet you. And to see some of your great city while we are there.

So I urge you, especially the Melbourne girls, to register your interest sooner rather than later. I hate the thought of anyone missing out who really wanted to be there. Don’t make me sad, okay?

Head over to the new blog, and have a read of all the options, and please, please, please take the time to leave a comment with your interest on each relevant page. I will be using that as a planning guide.

And please spread the word! Send your readers directly to the Sew It Together blog so they can find out all the details .

Okay! Off you go! Over here!