Cook Clean Craft

Design a Facebook Wall Image (Giveaway)

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 01:23:00 +0000

When I was asked to review the digital scrapbooking software My Memories Suite (with a giveaway – at the bottom), I had visions of myself whipping up album after album, organising the thousands of photos I’ve taken since my son was born. Well, as someone who’s never scrap-booked (digital or paper), I quickly got overwhelmed and perfection-induced craft paralysis set in.

So for my first project, I thought I’d try something a little simpler: a custom wall image for my Facebook page (hey, you do like my Facebook page, don’t you? ). Here’s a quick rundown of what I did.

After opening My Memories Suite, I selected “Design Your Own” from the new album options, and selected a custom size for the album shape. The maximum size for a Facebook wall image is 180x540 pixels, but the minimum width for My Memories is 200, so to save myself some maths, I just doubled it and used 360x1080 pixels. A larger size is also easier to play with!

Before I got started, I selected View, Canvas Zoom, Fit To Window so I could see my full picture (on my tiny EeePC screen!). Then the fun and games began!

First I added all the elements I wanted in my design:

the clip art from my blog header as embellishments
a photo of me (as a box so it’s easy for me to update the photo in the future)
my blog title as text
my blog tagline as text

I didn’t have a plan and just played around. I added a plain background, a mat on the photo, a rectangle with curved corners to put behind the tagline and some ric-rac. I played around with the colours to match my blog and moved things around until I liked the layout.

I then exported the page as a jpg, and uploaded it to Facebook.

My thoughts on the software:

After watching this tutorial to understand what you can do with My Memories Suite, it was very intuitive. The keyboard shortcuts and functions were the same as I’ve used with other programs, and it was easy to use.
You can add backgrounds and embellishments created elsewhere, but I couldn’t customise the existing ones. There are lots of kits available, but if you’re looking for custom colours in something other than a plain background, it seemed limited.
I used my arrow keys to nudge objects around and it sometimes took a while for the screen to update, and I’d move things too far. This might have been because I’m using a netbook without much computer power.
If an item extended beyond the area of the page, it was difficult to resize it or move it to fit back on the page. This was more of a problem because I was working with such a small page size (maybe I should have made it even bigger first).
There are lots more functions that I didn’t really explore, but I’ve got lots of ideas for other uses of My Memories Suite (aside from maybe actually doing some scrap-booking). I will definitely be using it again!

If you’d like to win a copy of My Memories Suite, visit www.MyMemories.com, choose your favourite digital paper pack or layout, come back here and leave a comment with your choice. Please include your email address if it is not linked to your commenting account.

Entries close at 10am (Australian Eastern Standard Time) on 17th February, 2012, and is open internationally. Void where prohibited.

And if you don’t win, enter the code STMMMS18635 to get $10 off the price of My Memories Suite and also receive $10 store credit.

I was given a free copy of My Memories Suite for review purposes. All opinions are my own.

As good as a holiday?

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 10:39:00 +0000

There are big changes happening here. No, not with the blog (although I am always fidgeting with that!), but in our household.

My husband is changing jobs, and it’s time to move, all the way to the other side of Australia (3606km or 2241miles to Perth, to be exact!). We’ll be close to family (for the first time since I moved out of home!), although it’s my husband’s family. It will be great for our kids to spend time with Granny and Pops, and extended family. We also have lots of friends in Perth, so it’s a happy move for our family.

BUT…

All I can think of is the million and one things we have to do before and after we move: getting a house ready to sell, sorting through our worldly possessions, packing, moving into a rental, searching for a house to buy etc etc. We’ve done this before, but this time we’ll have two active,high-maintenance kids underfoot. Am I feeling stressed!

I also can’t help but feel sad, about the friends we’re leaving behind and that we are selling the home that we first brought our baby girl into. I know it’s easier to stay in touch these days, and we have our memories (and an enormous number of photos), but I still feel sad.

So crafting and blogging time is going to be at a bit random in the next 2 months or so. I’ve still got lots of projects to share, but finding the time (and energy) to blog is going to be a challenge.

Of course, once we’re settled I’ll have a whole new house to bring my personal touch to, and there’ll be lots more crafting! So please bear with me during this transition. I promise there will be lots more to come!

Oven-Baked Chicken Nuggets

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 10:35:00 +0000

When we go out to a restaurant (rarely), our 3 year old son grabs the menu, opens it to a random page and says (while running his finger under any old menu item) “I’ll have chicken muggets (yes, he calls them muggets), chips and sauce!”. Rather than having a public battle, we concede (if it’s on the menu!), with that nagging worry about what is he actually eating!

When the kids have nuggets at home, I want them to be a bit healthier (and actually know what goes into them). I made these oven-baked chicken nuggets for Little Man’s birthday. I minced up chicken breast in my food processor, but you could used (ground) chicken mince if you prefer.

This is my first recipe in my Countdown to Dinner format. Read here for more information. I’d love to know what you think of the format.

Countdown to dinner

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 10:15:00 +0000

I’m trialling a new layout for my recipes: Countdown to Dinner.

It annoys me when cookbook recipes give you a cooking time, but half the ingredients already need to be chopped or prepared in some other way. So when I try a new recipe, I note takes and write out a schedule to get it on the table by 6pm (two kids under 3 need their dinner on time!). So in my dinner recipes, I’m going to include the time left until the meal is ready, with a space for you to write down the time you need to start each step.

My recipes include all preparation time from store-bought ingredients. The times are based on my own cooking. I’ve taught myself how to chop things quickly (but not TV-chef super-fast!), and I’ll share my techniques with you, but I’m just a home cook. I think the preparation times are realistic for the average home cook (once you know a few tricks). There may even be a little bit of extra time to allow for cuddling a whingey baby or sort out a fight between the kids!

Countdown to Dinner recipes also include a list of all the equipment you need at the start – no suddenly digging around for tools, or realising half way through that you can’t actually cook the meal because you don’t have a food processor.

I’m working on getting them in a printable format in the near future.

My first recipe in this format will be posted later today. I’d love to hear your thoughts. Do you like the format? Do you have any other suggestions? What annoys you about recipes?

Washable Bolster Pillows Tutorial

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 04:13:00 +0000

When Little Man moved into his big boy bed (nervous Mum started with a mattress on the floor), there was a gap between his bed and the wall due a column on the wall.

Nervous Mum (bit of a theme here...) was worried that he’d slide down and get stuck, or worse, his cuddly flat puppy might disappear in the middle of the night and parents get called in to search. Since I had lots of fabric leftover from his Transport Quilt Cover, bolster pillows were the way to go.

I love the cosy look they give to the bed. It reminds me of the two foam mattresses/couch that my grandparents had (in very 70s fabric). I know at some point these will be used as a weapon against his little sister (if my kids are anything like me and my brother), but at least there's three of them, so both kids can be armed.

Since they’re in a little boy’s room, I made them removable (and have already had to wash them a few times!). Here’s the tutorial:
Read more »

Pantry Challenge Menu Plan (Week 4)

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 00:19:00 +0000

Another week, another menu plan! Last week was a bit hit and miss. After coming back from holidays, my husband had a work trip and then a business dinner, so wasn’t home for dinner 3 nights. The menu plan got pushed aside for meals that my kids will definitely eat (pasta). The plan also got rearranged due to the Australia Day holiday.

It’s hard to tell if I’m making any progress in the pantry and freezer. I have managed to empty the freezer of the second fridge, and my grocery bills are down. It still feels like the pantry is full of random ingredients though, so I’m going to keep the challenge going!

The plan this week is to keep running down the meat in the freezer, with a vegetarian brown rice recipe thrown in too. Here’s my plan:

Monday: Tasty Brown Rice

Tuesday: Chicken Parmigiana

Wednesday: Tasty Rissoles with Salad

Thursday: Chicken Kievs

Friday: Pizza (the usual!)

Saturday: Steak and Salad (the usual!) – might try a fancy sauce for a change!

Sunday: Burritos (from a kit – the lazy way!)

Do you revert to the kids’ favourite recipes when your partner is away?

Fav Fabric Friday – Mod Tod

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 02:10:00 +0000

As a new feature, the last Friday of every month will be Fav Fabric Friday where I’ll showcase a fabric collection (or maybe 2 or 3…) that I’m dreaming about. (Hmmm, this needs a button – maybe next month…).

For the first Fav Fabric Friday, I’m featuring Mod Tod by Sheri McCulley (formerly Sheri Berry) for Riley Blake.

Three different colour-ways (blue, cream and green) in lovely (but not so obvious or bright) boy colours. The different colour-ways all go together for lots of variation.

Cogs, animals, spots and stripes – very boy-like, but not cutesy and babyish. I can see my little man in a nice button-up shirt, or using the fabric for the trim on a pair of pants. Here’s the display from Quilt Market with more ideas (photo from Riley Blake Designs Blog):

Available in Flannel and Laminated Cotton as well as Quilter’s Cotton, I’m imagining snuggly flannel pyjamas for my little boy as well as a messy mat and chair cover in laminated cotton.

What would you make with this handsome fabric?

Smiley Face Cake (Chocolate Cake Recipe)

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 11:11:00 +0000

When I asked my son what cake he wanted for his third birthday, he told me a smiley face cake. After the choo choo train cake from last year, my first thought was “Woohoo! Too easy!”. I didn’t know whether to believe him, so I asked him a few more times, and it was always the same (actually, it became “a chocolate smiley face cake with Smarties!”)

Note: Australian/Canadian Smarties that are a bit like M&Ms, not the US-style Smarties ;)

Since we got home from visiting my family the day before his birthday, I made and froze a simple chocolate cake ahead of time and just had to decorate on the day. It’s an easy recipe, but the cake is wonderfully moist and with a nice richness.

Icing was a standard buttercream, using Wilton gel colouring. It turned out a little more orangey than I would have liked, but not too bad. I’m also hopeless at getting buttercream smooth, so I fluffed it up a bit (to make it look like my son’s Mr Happy stuffed toy…hmmm, clutching at straws?). I used large Cadbury buttons for the eyes and cut a strip of Willy Wonka Fabulicious Raspberry Twister for the mouth (tastier than liquorice!).

My son loved it (but then, what 3 year old doesn’t love cake)!

Here’s the recipe for the chocolate cake (from Australian Women's Weekly Kids' Party Cakes):

Pantry Challenge: Week 3 Menu Plan

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 10:51:00 +0000

After a week visiting family and friends, it’s time to get back in the swing of the pantry challenge (and that’s why I’m calling it week 3!). It’s nice to go out for meals and have others cook nice meals, but I’m glad to be back home in my own kitchen again.

I still feel like I’ve got a pantry full of miscellaneous ingredients and haven’t made much of a dent. Maybe I’ll continue the pantry challenge on into February! Here’s the plan for this week:

Monday: Homemade Chicken Nuggets (a recipe I’ve been meaning to share!) and Chips (Special birthday dinner!)

Tuesday: Ham and Split Pea Soup (and maybe some fresh bread)

Wednesday: Thai Chicken Curry and Rice

Thursday: Soup Leftovers (more fresh bread?)

Friday: Pizza (as always)

Saturday: Steak and Salad (thanks for cooking hubby! (yes, he does read my blog!)

Sunday: Sausages and Salad

Whenever I plan something fancy for Sunday night, it never happens. I always end up exhausted at the end of the weekend. Must be that extra baby around the house, wearing me out! What is your go to Sunday night meal?

Linking at:

Sweet Mermaiden

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 03:32:00 +0000

The mermaiden pattern has been on my list of projects since the book Wee Wonderfuls was released. After making the felt cake for my niece, I had to sew something for her baby sister too. Mermaiden looked like a fun and easy sewing project.

I used wool blanketing fabric for her hair (which I’d bought for another project and never got around to it!). Her face is a cream quilter’s cotton and her tail is scraps of River View in Candy Store Pink from the City Weekend range by Oliver and S (from one of these baby tunics).

I didn’t follow the pattern exactly for how I quilted her hair, but tried to make it look more like a part and a crown.

I haven’t done a lot of embroidery, but am quite happy with how her face turned out. I just used 4 threads of normal sewing thread rather than embroidery thread because that’s all I had. Looking at the photos now, I can see her mouth is a bit lop-sided, but I’ll call that part of her handmade charm!

I also only stuffed the end of her tail (and her body) so that her tail could swish about.

My sister-in-law sent photos of her little one playing with her mermaid, so I hope she likes it as much as I liked making it!

You can download a free copy of the mermaiden pattern here.

My Mum’s Recipes

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 00:17:00 +0000

This week is all about visiting friends and family, so I don’t have a menu plan to share today. Instead, here are some of my Mum’s recipes. They are comfort food for me, taking me back to my childhood.

Tuna Mornay	Creamy Tomato and Bacon Pasta
Flummery	Pineapple Platter

It will be a quiet week here at Cook Clean Craft, but I look forward to sharing more fun projects with you next week, and maybe even a tutorial. I hope you have a great week!

Pretty Pink Felt Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 06:32:00 +0000

The next Christmas present I have to show you is a Pretty Pink Felt Cake made for my 2 year old niece.

It’s from the book Big Little Felt Universe, that has the cutest felt toy patterns (and something for everyone).

I’m not a big fan of hand-sewing, and there was no way around it with this one. It was too cute not to make. The book is a little light on details for the inexperienced hand-sewist, but thankfully there is the blogosphere to help me out! After I’d sewn for a while, I started to get my rhythm and it went quickly.

I have enough felt to make one for my kids too, but at the rate I’m going, it probably won’t be done until my daughter’s birthday in October (actually, that sounds like a reasonable goal with everything going on in my life at the moment!).

The cake from the book included almost every fruit under the sun to top the cake, but that was way more than my crafting time allowed. I think my niece likes the cake though - she brought every piece over to show us the last time we chatted on Skype!

What is you favourite felt food creation?

Galette des Rois

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 21:17:00 +0000

Time for another sweet treat, although this isn’t as sweet as my usual desserts!

I discovered the tradition of eating Galette des Rois on January 6 when we lived in Paris. It celebrates the arrival of the Three Kings at the birth of Jesus, and a trinket or dried bean is baked into the cake, and the person who finds it is the King (or Queen), gets to wear a crown and choose their Queen (or King).

We bought one from a French supermarket to take to a friend’s house that year, and what a mistake! (With all the patisseries in Paris, I don’t know what we were thinking… Actually, it was probably that we didn’t have to speak French if we just picked it up off a shelf…) It was a bland, dry and slightly chewy.

For some reason this galette popped into my head over Christmas, and I decided to bake one. This was a MUCH better experience than the supermarket version (and now I understand the tradition a little bit more!). Flaky puff pastry with a smooth, creamy, nutty (and not too sweet) filling.

Here’s the recipe:

In-Drawer Plastic Bag Holder

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 21:03:00 +0000

I started with the very classy plastic bag filled with lots of plastic bags. I then moved on to fabric bag holders. You know the type – long cylinders with drawstrings that you stuff bags in the top and pull out at the bottom. But something about them always annoyed me. They’re too squishy, they bang against the door if you hang them in the pantry. My kitchen mostly has drawers too, and they just didn’t work for me. They just weren’t neat enough (yes, the engineer in me is just a little obsessed with order and neatness).

Then I found an old wooden tissue box cover that I wasn’t using, and a light bulb turned on. So I present to you my neat and tidy in-drawer plastic bag holder:

It’s also a drawer divider, stopping my paper towel from rolling away – double tidy duties, even better.

I have no idea why it is painted a bright blue. I can’t remember where I was originally using it. I probably should pretty it up a bit, but it’s not high on my priorities.

Does plastic bag messiness irritate you? (I can’t be alone in this, can I?) How do you store your plastic bags?

Pantry Challenge: Week 2 Menu Plan

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 08:00:00 +0000

Last week didn’t go totally according to plan. We went out for dinner after a lovely afternoon on Monday with a CityCat (ferry ride) to Southbank in Brisbane. It was a great way to spend the last day of my husband’s Christmas break. Saturday night ended in takeaway too – just one of those days.

It didn’t feel like I got through much of my pantry inventory, so I’m trying a few new recipes to use some different pantry ingredients (with a couple of easy meals thrown in too.). On the plus side, it was a quick and cheap grocery shop. I got some good exercise too. All the shopping fit in the bottom of the pram, so I had a nice walk to the shops.

Here’s the plan for this week:

Monday: Sweet corn, Tomato and Haloumi Risotto

Tuesday: Red Lentil Burgers

Wednesday: Beef Rogan Josh in the slow cooker (didn’t happen last week)

Thursday: Marinated Chicken Drumsticks and Salad

Friday: Pizza (I really do have to share my pizza recipe!)

Saturday: Steak and Salad (A Saturday night semi-tradition cooked by my darling husband)

Sunday: Dinner out

Linking at:

Bathrobe for my Dad

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 04:10:00 +0000

I never thought I'd sew a Christmas present for my Dad, but I was inspired this year! When my parents came to visit a few months ago, my Mum was complaining that my Dad's summer cotton bathrobe really needed a wash, but he didn't want to put it in the wash as his spare was a satin one that made him too hot. The idea of sewing him one popped in my head.

I already had a half yard of the tools fabric in my stash (from the Suburbia range by Robert Kaufman), and I hunted around and found just enough blue quilter's cotton too. I was going to draft my own pattern from my husband's robe, but I couldn't find it (robes don't get much use in this house, and it must be in a box somewhere!). I then spotted Kwik Sew pattern 2325 in my drawer:

Yes, it's a ladies pattern, but hey, a bathrobe is a bathrobe! I made it in extra large and cuffed the sleeves with my feature fabric instead of lace.

I also added some pockets.

Apologies for the average photos – I only finished this on the Monday morning before Christmas and I had to post it off that day. The photos were taken in a rush (and I couldn’t find the belt I’d made, but it was found before I posted it!), so they didn't turn out very well. I’m off to visit my family soon, so maybe I'll get some photos of my Dad wearing it!

I was happy to be able to given a man in my life a handmade present. It feels so much more special as they are so hard to sew for! Did you make any manly Christmas presents?

Linking at:

Pantry Challenge Planning

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 06:30:00 +0000

It’s time for the Pantry Challenge at Good Cheap Eats. I’m an accumulator of ingredients. When I go to the supermarket, I see all sorts of interesting food that I’d like to try cooking. I buy things and they go into the pantry, never to be seen again.

I’m also a fan of buying meat in bulk and keeping the freezer well-stocked, to save trips to the butcher and make it easier to find something to cook for dinner. But once again, there are a few things that get pushed to the back of the freezer and are forgotten.

So to start this pantry challenge, I’ve taken stock of what food I have. Oh my, do I have lots of options. Let’s just start with rice: I have brown rice, white rice, Arborio rice, sushi rice. Move on to noodles: rice vermicelli, Singapore noodles, Pad Thai-style rice noodles. Other dry ingredients include chickpeas, red lentils, green lentils, yellow split peas. Not to mention the different sauces, curry pastes and canned foods. This is getting embarrassing, so let’s just stop there!

After writing a list of all the staples I have, I’ve realised I can go hard-core with this challenge. The only thing I’m allowed to buy this month is fresh fruit and vegetables, and bread (I’m not doing my bread challenge this month!).

So here is my first week’s menu plan:

Monday: Turkey and salad (yep, we’re still getting through our turkey!)

Tuesday: Chicken Stir-Fry

Wednesday: Beef Rogan Josh

Thursday: Cold Meat and Salad (again!)

Friday: Homemade Pizza night

Saturday: Steak and Salad

Sunday: Sushi hand rolls

It’s a simple menu plan to ease me into the challenge and the New Year (except for the sushi hand rolls). I’ll have to get more adventurous later in the month!

Linking at:

Free Printable: 2012 Monthly Planner

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 10:11:00 +0000

This may be a little late, but I’ve put together a monthly planner.

I’m using this planner as my blog editorial calendar and as a place to jot down goals, ideas and tasks. I’m using it primarily to keep my blogging on track, but you could use it for menu planning, as an ordinary calendar.

It’s set up to print double-sided and then fold all the pages in half to make a booklet. Download your free copy from here.

Please let me know if you use the planner and if you have any suggestions for it.

Edited to add: If you'd prefer not to make a booklet, you can download this version to just have a page for each month.

Linking at:

2012: What do I want to do?

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 06:30:00 +0000

Happy New Year!!!

I’m going to try another theme word for the year (not that it worked for me in 2011!). 2012 is the year of being…

Measured

So what does that mean? I want to be measured in how I spend my time. I want to think is this getting me where I want to go and helping me be the person I want to be. I want to stop making excuses and make better use of the time I have. I want to be the Mum my kids’ deserve, but also look after myself . I want to stop wasting time. (Maybe I want to do more measuring, cutting and sewing too!)

I have some more concrete goals too.

Cook

The same as the last two years, I want to cook 52 new recipes.

I also want to go a whole month with no store-bought bread products (a little more specific than my failed goal last year).

Clean

I want to get back into a cleaning routine, keeping on top of my chores and not getting so overwhelmed (I know this is a little vague, but I still need to put together my action plan here).

Craft

I’m struggling a little to come up with concrete craft goals. I want to sew more clothes for myself and my kids. Use up some of my fabric stash (and try not to add too much more to it!). I want to get some of my pattern ideas onto paper. I want to crochet more. I want to make some home decorating projects. Overall, I just want to keep crafting during my “me time”, and do what inspires me at the time (rather than set out specific projects). I want to keep learning and trying new techniques in the crafts that I enjoy.

I ‘d also love to see this blog keep growing, and share all the ideas I have bouncing around in my head. But more on that later… I hope you’ll come along for the ride with me in 2012!

P.S. I’m taking part in the Pantry Challenge at Good Cheap Eats. I’ll share more information tomorrow, but head over to Good Cheap Eats for more details.

The Year That Was

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 05:46:00 +0000

So 2011 is almost over. It’s time to see how I went with my goals for the year.

My theme word was “Routine”. Hmmm, I didn’t have a lot of success here. I was good at keeping my kids in a routine, but really don’t have a routine myself. Constant tiredness from two poorly sleeping kids is my excuse (and I’m hoping that doesn’t last much longer!). I’ve now started thinking through how I want my ideal day and week to look and am trying to get my routine in order. I’ll share more about this in the new year.

I wanted to try 52 new recipes this year – I made it to 48 – close but not quite. Considering I was only at 34 on the 5th December, I think I’ve still done well! Cooking more bread also didn’t last long… Maybe I’ll try again in 2012!

Craft-wise, I finished my crochet cardigan and did a bit of sewing, but not as much as I wanted (although I don’t think I’ll ever be able to do all the sewing I’d like!). I didn’t make any felt food or crochet toys, but I’ve made lots of other things. So while I didn’t meet my goals, I still feel like I’ve achieved a lot.

I wanted to be able to shoot in full manual on my DSLR – well, I did that once, but it was a lot of trial and error to get the result I wanted. More practice required there!

Overall, I’ve had a fun, busy, crazy, sleep-deprived year! I’m looking forward to new challenges, with lots more sleep, cooking and crafting in 2012. I’ll share my goals for 2012 tomorrow!

Since this post looks dull without photos, here’s a picture from Christmas Day:

How did you go with your 2011 goals?

Favourite Project of 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 10:29:00 +0000

As we count down to 2012, I’ve had fun looking back at all the things I’ve created this year. So what was my favourite project of 2011?

Is it a toy for my boy:

Something to wear:

Something for the home:

Click here to head to the CSI Project to find out!

Thanks for the Memories

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 02:36:00 +0000

I don’t know what TV show he got it from, but my son likes to yell “Thanks for the memories!” (and I tell Little Miss she should be saying “Thanks for the mammaries”).

It’s so easy to capture memories these days. My smartphone is almost always nearby, and I can quickly whip it out to take a photo or video. Here are some of my favourite memories from this year:

Choo Choo Train Cake made for a 2nd Birthday:

A Train Holiday to Longreach:

First Birthday Party with Teddy Bear Cake:

And a million and one other little things I want to remember: the way my little girl says “baby” and cuddles herself, my son’s huge run-ups to beat Daddy up etc.

Free online journal LiveOn wants you to be better organised at preserving your memories. You can quickly create memories, grouping photos, videos and text together. Add some music and make a movie of your memories. These are then stored in a neat timeline, and can be shared with family and friends (your “tribe”).

There are prompts to help you remember the past, share your thoughts and wisdom (not much of that around here at the moment!), or create a time capsule, which can be opened at a specified time or event in the future.

“Great – another social sharing site! When am I going to find time for that?” It integrates with your Facebook account, importing photos, or alternatively, you can create your memories on LiveOn and then share it on your favourite social media sites.

If you are looking for a way to organise and share your memories, LiveOn is a great option. LiveOn makes the grand promise of preserving your memories forever, which is a bold statement for a new website, but it’s a great concept and an easy interface, I hope it does stand the test of time.

P.S. If you want to digitize old photos and videos to help preserve your memories, use the code HOLIDAYREWIND for 30% off at LiveOn Rewind.

Thank you to LiveOn for sponsoring this blog post. Please visit LiveOn to learn more about sharing and preserving your most important memories. I was selected for this sponsorship by Clever Girls Collective. Although story ideas were provided, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Felt Mistletoe Hairclip Tutorial

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 01:48:00 +0000

Kisses under the mistletoe – a cute holiday tradition! I don’t need an excuse to kiss my (not-so) baby girl, but thought a little bit of mistletoe would add some fun to her holiday outfits. Here’s the felt mistletoe hairclip I came up with:

And modelled by my sweet, little girl:

Who can resist kissing those chubby cheeks?

Here’s the how I made it:

A Glimpse

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 02:22:00 +0000

Things are still a little slow around here… My husband has been away on a business trip for almost 3 weeks, and life with two small kids has been fun but exhausting. I really do appreciate all the help and support I get from my husband, and sometimes wish I lived closer to our families.

I’m busy making Christmas presents in stolen moments, so things may be quiet here for the next few weeks, but I’ll have lots to share in the new year!

I thought I’d share this glimpse into my life: showing my kids in the atlas where Daddy has gone (way on the other side of the world):

I’m sharing this at Project 52 at Simply Modern Mom.

Also, if you’ve got a spare moment, please vote for me here.

Happy Thanksgiving to my US readers. Thanks for reading and supporting my blogging habit!

Crafty Creative Christmas

noreply@blogger.com (Narelle Heath) — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 02:22:00 +0000

I’m busy sewing Christmas presents this weekend. I’m starting to question my sanity with picking complicated projects, but maybe I’ll find some easy presents to make too!

I’ve also been busy with another Crafty Creative Christmas project. Head on over to Me Making Do for my tutorial to make your little girl extra kissable:

Is anyone else busy making (or avoiding making) Christmas presents this weekend?