I’m participating in a Christmas in July swap this year. It’s my first Christmas one and I’m a wee bit excited to be stitching some Christmassy things, so early in the year.

This design is by talented Aussie designer, Michelle Ridgway.

It’s not too early to get into the Christmas spirit, is it?

May Block – Modern Blocks QAL by alphabecky, on Flickr

This block was made by Rosie

This block was made by Lihn

Is the above block yours? It was added to the linky via a dropbox link, but I can’t view it. If it is yours can you please let me know.

Have you finished your block? Have you shared it somewhere online yet? Remember to link them up here: http://www.andsewwecraft.com/2013/05/modernqal-block-one-linky-party-with-prizes/

Who is interested in a quick, easy and simple fabric swap? We thought it would be fun if we hosted a quick fabric swap here at ASWC. The idea is that we will pair you guys up and you each send 4 fat quarters of fabric to each other. Does that make sense?

It is an open swap, meaning that I will pair 2 people up and email you both each others details. Then you guys can email each other, stalk each other on social media and generally get to know your partner and figure out what they like and don’t like.

Housekeeping (please read this carefully):
- By signing up to this swap, you are committing to send four (4) fat quarters of fabric. It would be fun if you also included a card or postcard from your town too. You may choose to add other items to your gift – that is up to you.

- Your fabric must be sent by Friday 15 of June 2013.

-You can choose if you would like to send internationally or not. If you do not wish to, that is absolutely fine, I know the postage costs can be expensive.

-After the swap sign ups close I will email all participants their partner details by June 1st 2013.

- Life happens and you may be unable to fulfill your commitment and send your parcel. If you have to withdraw from the swap, please email me as soon as possible so I can make alternative arrangements for your partner.

- Got a question? Email me  and I will get back to you as soon as I can!

Sign Ups are open now and will be closed this Friday the 24th of May 2013.

 

{I love Alyce’s latest quilt finish called Itedakimasu – Let’s eat!}

{Belinda looked fabulous on Mother’s Day – as always!}

{Tonya finished her crochet ripple blanket}

{Talia has been painting again}

{Anorina has written another lovely quilt tutorial}

{Amy has created a tutorial for coasters – and look for the matching placemats as well}

{You’re invited to Cate’s baby shower!}

{Have you been crafting lately? Have you linked up to our weekly link party yet?}

4:30 – Get awoken by the sun streaming in our bedroom window as it rises around 4am. Wriggle curtains for more sun-blocking and fall back to sleep.

6:30 – Wake up and check emails, blogs, Facebook on my phone until either the alarm goes off or the kids wake up. And if the alarm does go off, hurriedly silence it and wait for the kids to wake up anyway.

7:00 – Time to get up! I take the kids downstairs and milk-and-breakfast them while daddy has a shower and gets ready for work. While they eat, it’s time to finish off bento boxes.

7:30 – Get the boy dressed, and while he plays, eat my breakfast and use the computer to reply to emails, and do a bit of blogging work.

7:50 – Get the boy into his preschool shirt and loaded up with his bag, drink bottle, hat and helmet on.

7:55 – Daddy and son head off on the bike to the preschool bus stop. I clean up my daughter from breakfast and set her loose to play or watch some Japanese kids’ shows while I finish doing blog stuff – writing the day’s post, emails, chat with my Wombat Stew girls on Facebook…

8:45 – Jump in the shower before the kids shows finish.

9:00 – Hang out the washing, clean the kitchen up from lunches/breakfast, vacuum the floor, get my daughter dressed.

10:00 – Shops don’t open until 10am in Japan, but they’re open until 9 or 10pm every night. Hard to get used to at first, but it means we get house jobs done early before heading out for the morning/day! Today we went to the local “city centre” – the few blocks surrounding the local train station is a big hub of shops, the library and post office, etc. Send two fabric orders, pick up some more milk, bread and bananas (almost a daily occurence!), and stop for a bakery treat.

11:30 – Get home, put on Wall*E – the current favourite – unpack the shopping, get lunch ready.

12:00 – As I eat lunch, I check emails, Facebook, and write some more blog posts. I have a few big things coming up in the next couple of months, and I’m trying to get ahead and pre-write posts.

12:30 – Clean up the mess that a lunch with sushi causes – rice everywhere! My daughter will now drift between watching the rest of Wall*E and the playroom right next door, while I get some sewing done. Today’s job is to get a long-promised bag done for a friend back in Adelaide.

1:30 – Wall*E is finished, and my daughter a little restless. We read a book or two before she runs off to play in the playroom again. I quickly check emails, reply to some blog comments and snap a quick couple of photos of the bag for the blog.

2:05 – Time to get ready to go meet the preschool bus.

2:30 – Get back home, unpack school bags, get snacks ready and put on Playschool while they eat and I do the dishes.

3:00 – TV off and while the kids play/fight/run around noisily, I get some more sewing done. I need to get this month’s bees and BOM blocks started so they’re finished by the end of the month!

4:15 – Japanese kids’ shows go on again and I take a couple more blog pictures while the sunlight is still good. It’s then time to edit and upload them.

5:00 – My husband and I share the cooking, although he does more as he loves it as a way to unwind after work. But tonight it’s my turn, so I start cooking tea.

6:00 – Dinner, bath, book, clean up, teeth, bed!

7:30 – Time to clean up the kitchen, make most of the next day’s bento for the kids, then settle down with coffee and supper while we watch a few episodes of our shows via Hulu or iTunes. Favourite options include Grey’s Anatomy, Law And Order: SVU, Criminal Minds, Game Of Thrones, MI5/Spooks.

10:00 (at the earliest, or later if an episode finishes after 10) – Bed time!

This recipe came out of me misreading a recipe. I made them, everyone loved them. I made them again, and realised that the first time I made them, I forgot the flour. People didn’t really like them. I made them again and tweaked the recipe, left out the flour and – again, people loved them!

These are simple to make, they do require some ingredients you may not necessarily have in your pantry (almonds and corn syrup – both readily available in supermarkets), but trust me, once you make them, you will certainly want to make them again. They are so crispy, like a brandy snap, but with a twist of lemon. Delicious.

Just note, you will not have a lot of mixture in your pan… but a little spreads a LONG way! You will really get about 30 biscuits.

Preparation Time: 10 mins

Cooking Time: 10 minutes per batch

Makes: Around 30 cookies

Ingredients

1/2 cup raw ground almonds

70g butter

1/3 cup raw sugar

2 tbsp corn syrup

1 pinch of salt

zest from one lemon

1 tsp vanilla extract

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celcius. Line some large baking sheets with greaseproof paper.

2. Place the butter, sugar and corn syrup in a heavy based saucepan, heat until the sugar dissolves. Slowly bring to the boil. Once the mixture is boiling, remove from the heat and add the almonds, salt, lemon zest and vanilla.

3. Using a teaspoon, drop small amounts onto your prepared baking sheets, leaving enough room for them to spread – they spread out a LOT!

4. When they are golden brown and bubbling, remove from the oven, be sure to watch them, there is a small window of time between cooked and burnt!  Allow to cool for a few minutes before easing them onto a cooling rack.

5. When they are totally cool, store in an airtight container.

Variations…

• Leave out the vanilla and replace with lemon essence for REALLY lemony biscuits
• Leave out the lemon zest for a delicious vanillary (so a word) biscuits

Serving Suggestions…

• Fabulous with a cup of tea!
• These would also make a fabulous base for a dessert, when they are not quite cool, you could lay them over a muffin tray and make them into baskets, or you could roll around a handle of a wooden spoon. Fill with patisserie creme or a cheesecake filling.

I hope this recipe that this becomes a family favourite for you, just like it has for my family!

My day starts at 6:45. It gives me an hour to get the kids out of bed, fed, dressed and the school lunches made. My aim is to get everyone out of the door by 7:50. We have a fair drive everyday, and usually get to school at around 8:20 (depending on traffic ofcourse). The first bell rings at 8:25 to get all of the kids inside and in their class lines. The second bell rings at 8:30 and it’s time for assembly, morning prayer and then the kids go into their class rooms.

Some days I volunteer at school for Kindergarten reading groups or school banking or I’m at the canteen.

The days that I’m not helping at school (or when I don’t have other things to do or place to go),  I drop the kids at school and head over to the post office to check my mail box. Then it’s a dash into the supermarket for bread or milk and then I head home – usually getting back mid morning and my “perk me up” coffee. Washing on. House gets a quick tidy and then I read emails, blog and catch up with what is going on in the world.

If I have a project on the go, this is when I sit for a couple of hours to work. I have been busy and have made a lot of things lately, but haven’t been able to share them with you as they’re awaiting publication in various Australian publications. Big shout out to Handmade Magazine and Down Under Quilts!!!

My quiet time is quickly over and I have to finish up and collect the kids. I leave home just before 2 pm with afternoon snacks and drinks for the kids.

School is out at 2:40 and then it’s the mad rush of after-school activities. Each day brings us something different.

Swimming.

Ballet.

Martial Arts.

Gymnastics.

But even though I’m waiting for the kids to finish their activities, I try to craft and make the most in the time.

Stitching. Applique. Quilting. Whatever I have at the ready and which I can sew by hand.

We head home and it’s time for dinner, homework, showers, stories and bed time.

With the kids in bed, it’s time to settle down with a cup of tea and some handicrafts, while I watch a little bit of telly. CSI or Law and Order are my usual go-to’s though I’ve just started watching Greys Anatomy again from the start, so I’m enjoying that too.

Do you find time to include a little bit of crafting in your day?

4:30am

Wide awake! Very unusual… wish I could go back to sleep again instead of lying there worrying about stuff I need to get done. Oh well… yawn…

6:30am

Woken by Hubby’s alarm – must have dozed off again!

Check email, Facebook and Instagram on my phone – it feels like getting a jump on the day and lets me wake up while Hubby takes over the bathroom.

Chat to Mr 7 who comes in for a snuggle before he heads off again for breakfast with Daddy.

7:15 am

Get up. Mr 7 is happy playing and Miss 9 is back in bed with a head cold and a nasty cough.

That means a Home Day for me! Yay!

Hubby heads off to work.

7:45 am

Writing my Weekly News for The Crafty Mummy over breakfast. I often have my laptop at the table while I drink my coffee – mornings are when I’m most keen to write, but it’s not always possible.

8:00 am

Oops! Better get ready for school! The usual mad rush! Thank goodness the kids can dress themselves!

9:00 am

Back from school and into chore time – washing, dishes, tidying up.

Miss 9 is back to bed with a book – she is loving EJ12 at the moment.

9:30 am

Cup of coffee in my new mug from Mother’s Day and time to finish the Weekly News.

9:45 am

Time to sew! (The up side of a day at home with a sick cherub)

First I finished off my Craftsy BOM April block:

Then I set to work on the next block for our Modern QuiltAlong. In June I’ll share this one so here’s just a sneak peek!

11:30 am

Miss 9 has a fever so medicine for her and more sleep. Poor thing!

Time to take some photos of my quilt blocks so I can blog about them.

Also did some more washing and answered phone calls and emails.

12:15 am

Lunch at the computer while I edit the photos and do a little writing.

12:45 am

Miss 9 must be feeling better because she’s hungry!

Then I set her up on the couch to watch TV while I read some blogs, chat on Facebook and fold some washing.

1:30 pm

More chores plus thinking about what to make next – I seem to often be planning projects in my head for when I have time to grab the fabric and scissors!

2:45 pm

Off to pick up Mr 7 from school, followed by afternoon tea and homework. This is our only afternoon at home usually so if they don’t do their homework today, it won’t be ready to hand in at the end of the week. They are pretty good about it. Time for TV and dominoes afterwards.

4:30 pm

Cut out felt for a B-Inspired Mama post – hopefully I will get to that tonight on the couch.

4:45 pm

Dinner into the oven – baked risotto tonight from the Donna Hay Instant Entertaining cookbook.

5:15 pm

Bath time and chores – how does the house get so messy with the kids mostly out all day!?

6:00 pm

Dinner for the kids and I – Daddy working late tonight which isn’t unusual around here.

6:45 pm

It is story time and into bed. We are reading one of the Narnia books, The Silver Chair, together at bed time at the moment. The kids still love to be read to, and they often read themselves for a little while too. Even though they are in bed around 7:15 pm, they won’t always go to sleep straight away.

7:30 pm

A little kitchen cleaning and some more folding, then crafting while I watch TV.

I finished off this ripple blanket which I started for One Crafty Mumma’s RippleAlong. Nice to get it finished! It will go to Handmade Hightstreet in Brisbane to be sold.

Then I worked on another crochet project, an infinity scarf in variegated yarn.

9:30 pm

Hubby finally home so good to have a chance to chat before bed.

10:30 pm

Into bed with a book while I listen to the rain. ‘Night!

The Step in Time Quilt is  perfect for a beginner wanting to take the next step from basic square piecing.

Click the image for the Step in Time Quilt tutorial.

Here is how I spent my day yesterday. It is a typical Wednesday for me: friends, errands, blogging, cleaning. I love Wednesdays because it is our day ‘off’ extra curricular activities. The one day my poppets can come home from school and just hang out. It is a great breather in the middle of a busy week.

Here is how my Wednesday panned out…

What a great day… probably not enough cleaning, but I HAVE to get this book read before bookclub tonight!

Thanks for sharing my day… did you notice, I even managed to squeeze in a little crafting?

Love,
Belinda