This is... What Makes Me Happy

Being 'Ma' (Thats what Charlie calls me, it's never been mum), to this awsome little being, no explaination needed I don't think!!

Thank you to One Little Acorn for this weeks theme and to Anglea from Three Buttons for hosting This Is

All things lovely...

I just opened my email and was greeted by a lovely email from a ladie's blog that I have just started to read, I won't go into to much but I have asked her if I could mention this and she said it was fine... I stummbled across her blog by accident about a week ago and read post were it seemed she was very down about a few things that I could relate to, so I sent her an email to let her know that I was thinking of her and if there was anything that I could do...

Today i recieved a lovely email from her that melted my heart, and I thought how marvellous it is, that we can develop such strong feelings about our fellow bloggers. i now for certain that there is a few blogs that I read and know that I am developing great friendships with the authors. Just something I thought I would share, and to all my blog readers I thought that i would say I really do enjoy reading your blogs!!

Looking forward to the Weekend

Oh, I have had a lovely day today trying to fiqure out the bugs with my new website for Charlie Rabbit. It is becoming quite frustrating!!

Anyway, on a better note we are going away on the weekend to Launceston which should be relaxing. Staying with Jase's mum and planning to do a little (I promise) bit of shopping!! Can't wait!

I'm a lucky chicken!!

My partner Jase got back today from visiting his mum in Launceston for the weekend and came bearing gifts that he had actually picked out himself... Mr. C got a Kung Fu Panda Activity book and a (another) dinosaur book, and I knew he had something for me, I thought that it might have been my favourite chocolate, or a cd or something along those lines and low and behold he produced this...

Let me say I was indeed very, very, VERY surprised as Mr. J just really isn't a 'crafty brain' and for him to spend time actually thinking and then finding a gift like this really means alot to me... haha, he even said that he spent at least 20 mintues looking through the craft books because he just didn't know which one to pick because he simpily had no idea about them... He mentioned that he would have looked liked a theif or something because he was highly uncomfortable standing anywear near the sewing.kitting section, let alone browsing through them... I'm quite impressed!! (espeacially for someone that hates me knitting to much!!)

(Click the book if you want more information on it)

This is... what gives me goosebumps

I struggled to post that picture, but I this is what gives me goosebumps... I have a full on phobia of this little insects 'earwigs' and it developed when I was eleven years old and had to use the day before's newspaper for my homework. It was already out in the wood box so I went and grabbed it, sat on the couch and open it up to be met by about 20 of these little creatures crawling every which way...
Now, when ever I see on I go into hysterics, (not the screaming type) I can't move, speak, bearly breath and I have been known to actually be physically sick at times.
Who knew that such a little creature could cause so much fear... hehe now i won' want to come to my blog until I can't see that horrid picture above...

I hereby do solemnly swear...

I hereby do solemnly swear that I am not going to buy any more yarn until I have finish all of about 10 knitting projects unless the yarn is ridiculously cheap or I need another skein to finish off a CURRENT project (not a new one)... I am making this promise because I bought a whole bag full of the stuff today, (you know those kinda largish green re-usable bags from the supermarket..., yes one of those...) Yarn is starting to over run the place, I’m pretty sure that at the moment I could find a bit in every room of the house. I even started a new project tonight and then thought to myself right Keshia, STOP!! So lets see how I go... (oh and p.s, this rule does not apply to fabric well not at the moment anyway!!

I should move...

Ok, I'm the first to admit it, the north-west coast of Tassie is FREEZING in winter!! (did you hear me?? I said FREEZING) I am not a cold kinda girl, I love hot, sticky heat, cairns type of heat and for the past month or more I have been running up the electricity bill trying to stimulate it... my butt has been glued to the heater and I sometimes even wear gloves inside, I 'm a sook and I know it, but I really do hate being cold!!

Anyway, on the cold topic, Charlie really does need some more pj's and I found some fantastic ones at Kmart the other day on sale for $10, but do you think he wants to wear them?? No, becuase they are fantastic blue with the wiggles on them instead of dinosaurs or (ok maybe I'm a little embarrased to admit...), but not his 'pink(ish)' dora the explorer ones... It is either Dora or Dinosaurs in this house at the moment and so much so if I'm not humming in my head "we did it, we did it we did it HORAY!', then I am roaring like a dinosaur... oh it was fun to start with but at the moment I 'Don't want to do it' and I'm all roared out!!

So anyway, back to the pj's, he needed some new ones because his dinosaur and dora ones don't fit any more so i raided my fabric stash and found this...

Oh, it is so, so, so soft, its a towelling material and I thought how glorious would it be to snuggle up in these...

I can't even remember buying this material, but oh well, problem solved, new pj's that have dinosaurs on them all done while Charlie is having his nap... There is still some left so i think I might just overlock and blanket stitch the edge and give it to him as a blanket for curling up on the couch with... or a pair of pj's for mummy!! (maybe)

Remember this from a few posts ago?? Well head over HERE to find out what it was all about...

Look what I just bought...

I just went for a drive with my mother to the laundrette, it just won't stop raining here so mum wanted to use the massive industrial size dryers...

I went to a second hand shop close by and found these little treasures... there was lots more there but I only had some change in the bottom of my bag... had left my wallet at home, oh well next time, I am sure these will keep me busy for a while...

Womens Weekly Publication from 1972

Paper Dressing own Pattern from the 'Australian Home Journal Co. Pty.Ltd.' not sure how old this pattern is, but it has the parts stamped onto pattern pieces so I'm guessing quite old... will have to do a little research...

And my major bargin...

This is a big binder of magazines ranging from quilting, knitting, sewing, lots of things... Ranging from 1983 to 1987... I 'm very excited with this folder... there is lots of things that I have book marked to make... will let you know when I make each one...

All of these deffaintly in the budget at only $5 for all... yay!

Creative Weekend

I had a little bit of a creative streak on the weekend and here are my creations, the first a little summer dress sz 6 months the dotty fabric is just sooo cute and bright, might make a pair of purple pants to go underneath, with the same dotty fabric some where on them, the second a pair of cute pants with love hearts... ok I'll make a confession, i had a little splurge last week and bought some new fabrics... (just please don't ask how much money I spent) Excuse the photos but I am having a vague moment and can't find my camera... so I had to use my laptop camera

This is... my most treasured memory from my childhood...

I don't have an 'exact' picture to illustrate my most treasured memory, so i have just included some pictures of 'little' me to give a bit of colour to this post...

The treasured memory of my childhood is about my grandfather, Leslie who passed away when I was 25 months old (A little older than picture below) He was my mothers father and i had a lot to do with him. My treasured memory is actually my first ever memory, were I was sitting at pop's kitchen table, on a blue chair with a plate of chicken... I was playing with my food and pop said to me 'Charlie Rabbit, if you don't eat your tea I'll feed it to the pigeons (he had pigeons) and I replied simply with 'but poppy, pigeons don't eat chicken.' I treasure this memory because of my pop who passed away not long after, it is such a vivid memory where I can still picture his face. I also treasure that i remember and can hear him calling me 'Charlie Rabbit', which was his pet name for me. This gentleman was apart of my life for only two years, of which I was only a baby and still remains an inspiration to me... My son's name is now Charlie, and he has taken on the nickname "Charlie Rabbit", and it is also the name of a new venture in my life.

(A little Younger than two)

(Kinder age 4 )

A little preview...

Let me just say that this is a sneak peek at some very exciting things that are happening in my life at the moment... Stay tuned and more will be revelled next week...

My little man is now 2!!

Well, my little man is now a big 2 year old! We had a fantastic day on Sunday... I was so excited about it all that I woke up at 5 o'clock and sat in Mr Charlie's room until he woke up at 6.30... I know that it seems silly but I just get so excited!! The night before I had arranged his parcels in the lounge room so he could walk in and go wow! And he did, he walked in and got so excited that he started to scream!! It was so cute!

He just did not know what to play with, between his bike and his cars and books and dinosaurs oh the list goes on. I had done the majority of the baking thee day before so Jase decided that we should go down to the park to let Charlie have a ride on his new bike before the guests arrived...

Went to the park and I had a mini cry (I feel a little silly now), because Charlie could pedal his bike just like a 'big' kid... hehe I just had one of those emotional mum moments when you feel as though your kids are just growing up to fast!

Anyway... quickly through the rest... We had a great little gathering with a few friends and family, Charlie loved his dinosaur cake which i can proudly say that i made all by myself with out even a pattern... and he looked quite the little man in his "Blacked Eyed Susie" pants and his new shirt that I got for hids birthday... I will post more photos later when i have resized more...

His new bike which I'm letting him ride inside at the moment becuase it won't stop raining!

The Best of Friends

This is a picture of Amanda (left) and me when we were 18... It was taken at Crayfish Creek at Amanda's boyfriends house... When I look at this photo it makes me smile, a person can have a lot of friends in their life but to have a friendship that endures all is amazing. Amanda is now pregnant with her first baby, oh and I am sooo excited (the same boyfriend whos house we are at in this picture, though is her fiance now!) She is due on August the 9th and is my first official 'long time' friend to have a baby after me, oh and she has asked me to be godmother, even more exciting. Now the hunt is on to find 'the prefect present'. For her baby shower last month I just got her a small gift which was a few funky face washers and a few singlets and gave them to her arranged as a bunch of flowers... I also got a bit mushy and wrote her a poem/letter which i must say bought a few tears to the room... I have decided that the perfect present that I could give her would be made by me and of course I have already started on a package of some knitted goodies, but I want to give her something that her little bub can have for the rest of his (yes it's a boy) life, or that Amanda will treasure... I am just stuck, I was thinking of making a teddy or something but I really want it to be unique and everyone gives teddy's... maybe a quilt or a little blanket... quilting would be fun, have never tried it, oh I'm just not sure, let me know if you have any suggestions

Looking back...

Well, 3 more sleeps till my little man turns 2... Have been going through the thousands of photos that I have of him today to make a dvd to play while his party is on and I thought that I woiuld share six of my favourites... which was very hard to do as my favourites more like add up to 200!! hehe, hope you enjoy them...

Newborn Charlie still in hospital... he had a natural mowhawk...hehe

Learning to crawl, 5 months old.. hehe I love this face!!

This is 'Taj', his teddy whom he just loves... still

Look at his hair...

Look what I just made...

Hehe... I don't know who loves them more, me or Charlie... haha... On to try and make some different types...

(If anyone wants a template to make this finger puppet I can scan mine and email it to you)

A bit overboard??

Well, only 4 more sleeps to my little man turns two... I'm getting sooo excitied and anxious about it all at the same time. It is hard to imagine that he useed to be a tiny little baby and now he is a fully fledged little man!! Its quite emontial actually! Anyway, in preparation for the (small) gathering that we are having I have been getting my creative little hands out and making some decorations for the top of the cup cakes... For those of you that know me well, nothing would surprise you, but for those of you that don't... ah, why ruin the surprise, you'll find out!... Anyway here they are... (*sigh*, I still need to make 21 more and these have taken me 45 mintues...)

And this is what my hands look like right now... lovely!!

Inner Hippy

I must admit I have a little bit of inner hippy inside of me, that just likes to burst out now and again and it has with these pants that I have knitted for a friends little girl...

When I was putting Charlie to bed last night I imagined that they had a green pocket, so I knitted one and I love it!! I think that I might line them as well, (living in Tassie and all) maybe with the same kind of green, not sure yet I'll see what I imagine tonight when put Mr C to bed.

My friend is as hippy as you could almost possibly get, she wears the most outrageous clothes but makes them look fantastic... I think it is becuase of her personality because if I ever tried to pull some of the things she wears off, I would look like a clown... I think I'll just stick with my rainbow knitted slippers...

An Idea

Was just having a few thoughts a moment ago when I was tidying Charlie's bookshelf if anyone is interested...

I am a great book lover, and since I was pregnant have been buying Charlie books, we now have a collection of childrens books that would rivial a small book shop (slight exageration, but have alot of books...)

I was just looking through some of the titles that I have purchased for him and I have come to the conclusion that i buy alot of similar books, similar authors etc... I suppose that comes from the different tastes that we have as adults and what we were read when we were children.

Being a future teacher I think I have a pretty good idea on great children's literature, but I think it is time for an expantion of variety... this is were my idea comes into play... Would anyone be interested in doing a book swap with me, and / or other people that would be interested... I thought that what could happen is once a month each of us buy a new book to post off to someone else... So at the same time we are expanding our childrens library and also I'm sure the kids will love getting a new book in the post... Maybe a price limit could be set on the amount you spend etc... I don't know its just an idea, but if anyone is interested let me know

Pictures

Please, try and excuse my bad photography today but it is an over cast day here and I had no shoes or socks on out side and just could not bear to stand out on the deck any longer...

Here are some pictures of what I have been up to latley...

First of all Charlies new (old) pants: (He is having a nap so I took them off him as he just doesn't want his photo taken today which is a real shame because these photos just don't do them justice!!)

Another pair of knitted bub pants... this wool is sooo soft and the colour is just amazing the photos really do not do them any favours...

And finally a newborn beanie and a pair of booties... which won't upload for some reason so will post them later...

All weekend I have been busy going through mine and Charlie's wardrobe because lets face it, I don't wear hardly any of the clothes in mine and Charlie had more clothes than the local department store supply! I came across a pair of pants that I used to love, but they just fall off now and the bum hangs down to low if i wear a belt... So I cut them up and made Charlie a pair of trousers with them... he has them on at the moment but won't let me take a picture... wil TRY and get one later. I must say that I was quite pleased with the end result, I didn't have a pattern for toddler pants so I just used a pair of his old pants to make my own pattern, must say that I have never ventured into this world of 'as you go' and am now keen to cut up more of my old pre-loved trousers that would make cute pants for him... One thing though I just tried to cull his wardrobe and as per usual when that happens I just re-stock it... hehe

What do people do with their children's old clothes? I find that I am just to attached to them to throw them out... silly I know but I just can't bear to get rid of them... any suggestions?

Charlie and I went ot see Kung Fu Panda at the pictures on Friday and let me say it is awsome, Charlie and I enjoyed it so much!!

...p.s only 6 more sleeps!!

Exciting

I must admit lately I have been on the Internet a bit to much lately but it is all because once starting this blog I have come across some very talented and creative women... This blog has introduced me to Etsy and Made It which is great and really, really, really bad because I just can't decided what to buy because I want it all (and I keep on spending to much money!!)

Today I bought a pair of trousers for Mr. Charlie from talented lady that trades under the name of 'Black Eyed Susie' (a link to her blog which has links to the places which you can purchase her goods), she makes gorgeous children's clothes and accessories... I just wish I had a little girl so I could buy some of her dresses... I can't wait to receive these pants in the post to put them on him!!

I love getting mail... haha even if I do have to pay to get it... The pants will deffaintly be worth the money!

Catch Up

An apology to begin with (sorry), but this is going to be a long catch up post. I’ve just been doing so much the last couple of days and I feel like sharing.
I’ve been knitting away like a crazy women the last week or so. While it is nice and peaceful down here at the shack, it can also get quite boring (especially when Charlie is having his nap during the day). I actually can’t believe how much I have missed doing crafty things; now that I have started again I just can’t seem to stop! I found this beautiful baby wool at spotlight which I made Charlie a scarf with. It was so good to knit with, nice and thick, thick enough to use size 10 needles and I just love knitting with bigger needles!

(Notice the texta all over his leg?? hehe he is a real terror for drawing all over himself lately... and the sock on his hand?? He came up to me with it for 30 mins wanting it back on his hand every time it fell off...haha)

I loved the wool so much that I made some funky baby pants with them, which I must say that I was quite pleased with; I just wish I had someone to try them on! I went to spotlight and got some different colours in the same wool, don’t know what I want to do with it yet though, I just love the feel of it.

Speaking of boredom, Charlie must have been a bit bored the other day to... He came running out of his room and all I got was the big whiff of baby powder. I didn’t think much of it as I (I don’t know why), but anyway he went running back in his room and I could hear him making car noises. I went in the investigate about 10 minutes later and he had baby powder all over the floor and was driving his cars and trucks through it to make tracks! Hehe, The funny thing was though he had put the powder back and done up the lid as if to say ‘I didn’t touch it though mum’, after I finished laughing I got down and we drove the cars through it for about half an hour before I vacuumed it up. Don’t you just love having kids so you can have excuses for doing fun silly stuff like that!!

We have been having a dinosaur week this week in preparation for Charlie’s up and coming second birthday on the 29th June. We are having a small gathering for it this year instead of the massive party that we had for his first birthday. This year it is just a few close friends and relatives. But I am still going to go all out with the baking part. A - Because I enjoy it B – Because I think other people enjoy it C – I want Charlie to LOVE his birthday. It the case, Charlie is dinosaur MAD at the moment, so I found some dinosaur cookie cutters and have been experimenting with all the different things that we could make:

Dinosaur cookies, which we made the other day and decorated as a fun art project before we ate them... Actually I ate mine but Charlie just played with his hehe.

Dinosaur cheese and vegemite pastries... these were yummy, Charlie just loved them and instead of playing with them he actually ate them.

I also thought that I could cut out some dinosaur sandwiches as well as the letters in Charlie’s name. Have lots more ideas but will post about them when I have experimented and have got pictures of them.
Speaking of baking, I felt like mini egg and bacon pies for tea last night as I had some bacon that needed to be used. But I had no patty pans to cook them with so I experimented with shaping them with a glass and then putting them in muffin paper... I think it worked out very well; they didn’t even look that bad! They were also bigger than normal which was a bonus as well. I love making little savouries like this which I can pop in the freezer and eat for lunch for the rest of the week!
Anyway, I THINK that that is all, for the moment anyway. Oh, I forgot to mention, Charlie came and jumped into bed with me this morning at around 6 o’clock and when we both woke up again it was 9:15!!! Sleep in, YAY!! hehe

Itchy

I’ve just been itching to do something lately so I’ve done a few things to get me started:
1. Started this blog
2. Had a crazy shopping day at Spotlight (I won’t even say how much I spent)
Haven’t really done any sewing since Charlie was born but in the last week I have got the crafty bug again and now have about 10 projects that I have started on! Talk about eager! (hehe)
Charlie and I have been down at Sister’s Beach the last two weeks on a holiday. It has been so relaxing hanging out at the beach and the park and the great thing about staying down here is that you don’t get mobile phone reception. It has been so nice to have a step back from technology. Charlie loves the beach, he is going to be a bit of a beach bum as he grows up I reckon, he is quite content to just go down there with a book and sit there for hours. We have been taking some dinosaurs and digger trucks down to add in a bit more fun. Check out my photobucket account at http://photobucket.com/pebehok to see more pictures!

It’s 13 days until my little man’s second birthday today, my gosh, it has gone so fast! I miss the little baby part of him but am loving the emergence of his mind and the things that he is interested in! At the moment it is dinosaurs, dinosaurs, dinosaurs. At the very moment we are watching the ‘Land Before Time’, a series of movies which I must admit that I am quite hooked on myself! We made some dinosaur cookies last night and decorated them this morning. I found the cookie cutters at a cute little home wares shop, which I can’t even remember the name of. I got them to make some cookies for his birthday which we are having a little get together for, which yes, as you guessed it is going to be themed with dinosaurs. I am quite excited about it!!
Anyway, this post is just to start me going, I’m off now to go and make Charlie and I some lunch then he will most likely have a nap which will give me a chance to play with the things I bought from Spotlight yesterday!
Keshia xxx