Random Ramblings

Let's try this again shall we...

2019-04-28T01:02:00.003+02:00

4 years...

That's how long it's taken for me to get my act semi together !

For a long time this little blog has been very low on my list of things to do but recently I have been thinking about ways to do some things for me that make me feel good and help with outside interest other than just home, work and kids and this is one of them . So let's see shall we 😝 not promising anything regular but will be popping in to share thoughts and projects ...

Word of the year 2015 #olw

2015-01-08T19:43:00.003+02:00

So 6 months since my last blog ...... 2014 was definately one of the hardest and craziest years of my life! Starting a buisness is definately not for Sissies , especially when you add a full-time job , baby, terminally ill family members and the day to day happenings with life. My word for 2014 was BRAVE and the year certainly demanded lots of that!

Perhaps the biggest brave step was working up the courage to take a leap of faith and resign to work from home. New things abound right now and I'm neck deep in wading through figuring it all out , gulp !

For 2015 I think the word will have to be a follow on the Bravery demanded by 2014

2015 will be a year of reinventing all I know and stepping out of the comfort zone , and hopefully more blogging :)

Here I go !

Frozen Printable Party Pack

2014-06-10T08:24:00.000+01:00

Some more free party Printables :)

these are free for personal use !!

click on the words under the pictures to be taken to the download

5-Inch Circles

Bubble Labels

3-inch Cup sticker

Invitation

quick freebie: Mickey Mouse invitation

2014-06-04T15:28:00.003+01:00

For those of you who don't follow me on facebook ,we've started a business. you know cos life isn't already crazy enough ;) We are the proud franchise holders of Monkey Magic Kiddy Parties in Namibia. You can look at the website here :)

I had to design a Mickey Mouse invitation for a client and was quite chuffed with how it turned out so I thought I would share it :)

you can download it for free below and use any photo editing programme to write your party details in the 'head'

Micky Invitation Download

8 months old

2014-04-29T15:03:00.003+01:00

Two posts in one day , aren't I good ;)

I'm even getting these up before we hit 9 months (*shepatsherselfontheback)

Here is our munchkin at 8 months

(note the assistants toes ;) )

This girl is such a delightful child but Man she's busy! I thought I'd include some outtakes so you can see what goes on when we try and take these shots

ahh good times :)

7 Months old

2014-04-29T14:47:00.001+01:00

I'm going to skip the excuses and resign myself to the fact that this is my new Blogging normal

:).

Here is Isla at 7 months old

( a mere two months after the fact but hey at least I managed to take the photo's)

This was the best photo I could get on the chair. She had just started standing up and everytime I would Move back to take the picture she would Lunge forward and almost face plant off the chair. I was taking these on my own but from now on will need an assistant *coughhubbycough* to take these pictures

You can see the rest of Isla's Photo Project by clicking here or on the Tab at the top of the page

Guest post : Marriage through the years

2014-03-28T11:07:00.001+02:00

I recently wrote a guest post for a friend's blog on marriage:

you can check out my post here

or click to read more posts of marriages from year one to year 45
or check more of Bretts thoughts at Irresistibly Fish

Simple Rolled Flower Tutorial

2014-03-20T11:08:00.001+02:00

I know I KNOW, I've disapeared for AGES... I have no excuses I haven't used before *hangs head in Shame*

Hopefully this quick and easy craft tutorial will make up some what (I also have a 7 Month update to do but little madam is so busy all the photo's I took came out Blurry so I need to retake them :( )

I've had this on my to-do list for ages and I could kick myself for not doing it sooner as it is so quick.

You need :

-strips of fabric,

-scissors

-glue gun(not pictured).

1) Fold fabric Strip in half and glue to secure

2) Start rolling to make a nice centre for your flower. Glue to secure

3) Continue rolling but twist the fabric as you roll. Glue periodically to secure

4) When your flower is as big as you want it to be (or you reach the end of your fabric strip) glue the tail down to the underside of the flower

5) Cover the back with a piece of material and glue to secure. I used squares and cut around after it was dry to neaten it up but you can use circles from the beginning

6) Enjoy :)

Heres a handy picture for you to pin :)

Linking up at:

6 Months old !!!

2014-02-26T15:12:00.002+02:00

Half a year!!! Crazy town!!! Below are the normal 6 month pics

but I couldn't resist sharing a little bit about what we love about our "Cooksie" as she is

more often than not affectionately known .

Love this face more than words can say :)

4 & 5 Months old

2014-01-14T08:25:00.000+02:00

Even though I haven't been Blogging I've been keeping up with our monthly photo, cos in reality those are less about the blog and more about documenting my child's every waking moment (My mom keeps reminding me what I do for the first child I have to do for the second so hopefully I can keep it up :) ).

I'm going to sound like a stuck record here but until you experience it I don't think you can fathom how quickly a child develops and changes. It at times literally feels like she grows overnight (and I even read an article that said this is possible! YIKES!!) . Isla is no longer a floppy little baby. She is developing into a real little firecracker with a very definite view on the world! I.L.O.V.E.I.T.

4 Months old:

5 Months Old

Its getting harder to take the ones on the floor, strangely enough, as she keeps rolling over to eat the lamb :) the out takes to these shots are pretty funny :)

you can view the previous months by clicking on the links below:

Month 1

Month 2

Month 3

Or in the new Tab at the top of the page

Word of the year 2014

2014-01-13T08:40:00.000+02:00

I Know, I know its late but better late than never. Trying to get back into a routine with a little one in the mix presents a unique set of challenges and blogging was an extra one that could afford to take a back seat to little smiles and giggles :)

Following on from last years Theme its time to pick a new word for the year. There is one that specifically keeps running round and round in my head

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This year is only 13 days old and has already called for some major moments for Bravery. I have a feeling its going to continue and I am choosing to take on the challenges.

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For those looking to join me in this you can download a free printable to remind yourself over at Nicole Joelle

Prayers appreciated

3 months old

2013-11-14T13:00:00.002+02:00

Friends, Life is crazy!

My little blog has gotten neglected as I went back to work and am trying to figure out the new Balance of work & family.

here's a quick photo update of our munchkin at 3 months

You can check out the previous months posts by clicking on the links : 1 Month & 2 Months

2 months old

2013-10-07T16:27:00.002+02:00

How is my baby already two months old?????

She has changed so much and is becoming such a joyful chatty baby:) I'm really enjoying her !

Without Further ado :)

check out last months picture here

Nativity plank art

2013-10-04T07:08:00.003+02:00

this is another project that is a long time coming... almost a year in fact. It also took me about 3 hours longer to finsh than it should have cos I had to do it in Nap times :)

I saw this

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on pinterest last year and immediately wanted on. For those of you who don't know me well I LOVE Christmas and all it brings :) I have Christmas décor stashed all over the place and knew this was the perfect addition.

I contacted Judith from Trendy Walls who you might remember from my post about our Mirror and sent her the picture and she made me the stickers I needed...

In all fairness I did try and finsh this when the stickers arrived but we were building and staying with my inlaws so crafting space was limited (and I couldnt figure out how to get a plank and bought a canvas that was way to small so the stickers just went back into a box)..

While Cleaning up our garage a few weeks ago I found a plank left over from when my dad added a shelf to our kitchen Island that was the perfect size

After painting it red like my inspiration picture we were good to go

I'm beyond pleased with the results!!

roll on Christmas :)

39 & 40 weeks pregnant

2013-10-02T15:32:00.001+02:00

So I'm only about two months late with this post ... whoops!
I wanted to complete the series though so here are week 39 & 40 combined (cos you know after everyone telling me how huge I was and that the Baby was going to come early she was late!)

How Far Along: let pretend here shall we ;)

Size of Baby: Baby came out weighing 3.58 kg's and

was 51 cm long

Picture of Baby:

By this stage Baby Sprinkle was about the size of a watermelon

Source

Belly:

Sleep: the last two weeks were pretty bad.. I couldn't shake the flu and spent the majority of the night blowing my nose

Movement: up and down ... but definately moving down!

Symptoms: there isn't a Symptom I don't have :)

Food Cravings:still very thirsty all the time!

What I Miss: movement

What I'm Looking Forward to: this little ones arrival!! We were MORE than Ready for her and my parents arriving:)

the start of a new project:1 month old

2013-09-05T15:23:00.002+02:00

I cannot claim this is an original idea but taking inspiration from many out in the blogosphere I'm going to attempt to take monthly pictures of Isla using the same props to show how much she grows over a year... I am by no means a photographer and have an overly complex camera I have no idea how to use so please bear with me (I am open to photography tips).

Meet Stan (the lamb)... He is the 'yardstick' against she will be measured :)

I can't decide if I like the chair or whether the overhead shot is better ... Thoughts ??

and just cos my baby is cute I added some other pics for your viewing pleasure :)

Things we couldn't live without: Newborn Edition

2013-08-29T13:20:00.002+01:00

I loved reading these posts before I had a little one but now having lived through 3.5 weeks of my own newborn I feel some important things were left off of a lot a lists. So in the interests of preparing the multitude of people in my life expecting there own blessing here are some things we couldn't have done without ...

1) Nipple Cream: Get the good stuff ( i.e. Lanisonah) , this is not a place to try and save money ! trust me on this one.

2) Nursing tank tops: again, these don't come cheap but they are SO worth it especially when you don't want to be completely house bound while breast feeding. They allow you to lift your shirt without exposing your post-baby-belly to the world .

3) Swaddle Blanket: We have a 'Baby Sense' one that rocks!

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Its amazing how they help to settle Isla down and stops her little baby 'flailing arms' reflex from waking her up. Receiving Blankets work well too!We have a shaped one too (with velcro) but trying to slide her into it is quite hard, the baby sense one is cut into a triangle shape which you just wrap which is much easier.

4) Baby Grows (Onsies) : we got some very cute outfits that we've enjoyed dressing our little blessing in but there's a reason these simple things have stood the test of time. They are the quickest and easiest thing to dress a baby in (especially if you haven't quite mastered how to slip a vest over a floppy new-born's head)

5) Boppy/Nursing Pillow

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this not only helps for feeding (especially after a c-section) but it serves as a nice place to prop up the baby and also help them to feel a little more Snug if you can't spend every moment holding them:)

6) Help: Hubby took leave from work and My mom was here for the first 3 weeks of Isla's life and it was amazing. Today's actually the first day I've been completely home alone with her since she was born and I'm missing the company and extra set of hands to hold her so I can take a shower ;)

7) Newborn Pictures: do them !! they change so fast its absolutely precious to have a memory of when they are tiny

please forgive me

2013-08-20T10:06:00.000+01:00

please forgive my lack of posting.... things got a little crazy round here :)

introducing:

Things that surprised me about pregnancy

2013-07-27T10:20:00.000+01:00

At 39 weeks pregnant I feel that I can share a bit on the topic of pregnancy :)

There are many symptoms that really surprised me when I first experienced them only to discover(with a bit of research) they were actually pretty common. We all know about the obvious symptoms eg : morning sickness/cravings/big belly/some swelling but there are some strange things out there that I never knew about

Carpel Tunnel Syndrome:

This is apparently really common during pregnancy. Something about pregnancy hormones causes your nerves/joints to relax which means you can develop this pretty painful side effect. It makes your hands go dead or causes extreme pins and needles in your hands/wrists.Not helpful when one needs to type/write a lot and strangely very painful at night.

Body heat:

I am forever grateful that the last bit of my pregnancy has been in the winter ! I would have probably overheated otherwise . I feel like the human furnace

Rib Flair:

A very uncomfortable pain at the the top of my bump just under my ribs... its like a shooting pain every-time I sneeze or move in the wrong way and can be so painful it takes my breathe away...

For interests sake I asked some of my friends who recently became mom's to share their experiences too..

Krista: Mom to Klaire (almost 8 months old)

"I definitely had both fun and not-so-fun surprises during pregnancy.

• A couple fun ones… Whenever I would eat chocolate, Klaire would start to go crazy, bumping around in my belly… In my last trimester, Klaire often had the hiccups; but, without fail, she would always get them when I took a bath!

• A not-so-fun one… I expected most of the major discomforts that came along with pregnancy, but one that surprised me the most was the last two months of my pregnancy, I had awful pain in both hips when I would lay on my side (which is pretty much the only option by then!), so I got very little sleep. I couldn’t sleep for more than an hour at a time without waking up in excruciating pain. I’d roll over and sleep for an hour, only to wake up an hour later and repeat the whole process. "

Kerry: Mom to Luke (just over 3 months old)

My most surprising symptom was extreme bloating. Other than that I had an awesome pregnancy!

Tamlyn: Mom to Ricky (4 months old)

My most surprising symptom was my lack of symptoms! I had a very positive pregnancy experience from beginning to end. Of course I had my fair share of morning sickness – I don’t think anyone truly escapes that inconvenience – but I started taking Asic and it disappeared entirely! Because of its antihistamine properties, acid reflux in later pregnancy was almost non-existent, so double bonus!! All the usual pregnancy symptoms – aches and pains, mood swings, food cravings, lack of sleep – just never showed up! Even the belly didn’t properly arrive until over half way through, so I had little to no use for maternity wear, which was exactly the opposite of what I expected! Food-wise, I went off peanuts – the smell was enough to send me running for the bathroom! – and I found myself eating less meat and more fruit, vegetables and dairy, but there was nothing I had to have RIGHT NOW! The closest I got to anything I expected was in my final two weeks of pregnancy. Ricky was one VERY active baby and, due to the reduced amount of amniotic fluid, every kick and jab took my breath away. I loved it though! Being pregnant was some of the best fun I’ve ever had!

Baby update: 38 weeks

2013-07-26T11:24:00.001+01:00

How Far Along: 38w 6 day ... I'm actually right on time , Go me ;)

Size of Baby: Baby should weigh about 3 kg (psssh ja right , I'm thinking more like 3.2 if not more ) and be about 50cm long

Picture of Baby:

By this stage Baby Sprinkle is about the size of a pumpkin... (sounds about right )

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Belly:

Sleep: not going so well, on top of being 38 weeks prego I managed to get a pretty bad case of bronchitis flu so I've had a blocked nose and lots of trouble sleeping cos every time I lay down I can't really breathe

Best Moment of the Week: The arrival of Baby James! so Excited for my friends and Sad i can't see him

Movement: up and down ... but definately moving down!

Symptoms: there isn't a Symptom I don't have :)

Food Cravings:still very thirsty all the time!

What I Miss: Family and friends close by... Would be nice to be able to visit with more people...

What I'm Looking Forward to: this little ones arrival!! We are ready (MORE than Ready) for you to make an appearance little one!

Baby Update: 37 weeks

2013-07-22T09:48:00.000+01:00

How Far Along: 38w 2 day ... I'm late this week again ...oh well:)

Size of Baby: Baby should weigh about 2.9 kg and be about 48cm long

(the people that made this list had small babies!! ;) )

Picture of Baby:

By this stage Baby Sprinkle is about as long as a leek

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Belly:

Sleep: not going so well, haven't slept properly for the last week

Best Moment of the Week: starting Maternity leave (although I am a bit unsure how I'm going to fill all this free time till she arrives :) ) and a sweet baby shower thrown by some special friends this side of the world...

Movement: still fluctuates... went to the doctor (weekly appointments now) and she has moved down more and is engaging.. any time now..

Symptoms: there isn't a Symptom I don't have :)

Food Cravings: been drinking like crazy, I seem to be thirsty all the time!

What I Miss: Family and friends close by... Would be nice to be able to visit with more people...

What I'm Looking Forward to: still waiting on the arrival of special little boy :) (Come on buddy) and the count down to our own special sprinkle:) Less than two weeks to go!!

Baby Update: 36 weeks

2013-07-12T08:23:00.000+01:00

How Far Along: 36w 6 day ... Can hardly believe it!!

Size of Baby: Baby should weigh about 2.7 kg and be about 46.5cm long

(the people that made this list had small babies!! ;) )

Picture of Baby:

By this stage Baby Sprinkle is is about as long as some Swiss Chard

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Belly:

Sleep: ja, that's not going so well!

Best Moment of the Week: hearing about how the ladies from our Antenatal classes have started having their babies... not long to go now :)

Movement: fluctuates... went to the doctor and she has moved down and is starting to Engage..

Symptoms: at 8 months pregnant I don't there is is a Symptom I don't have :) (this statement still stands)

Food Cravings: nothing much...

What I Miss: being able to put on a pair of socks... for some reason i cannot reach my right foot. Left is fine but the right foot is unreachable.

What I'm Looking Forward to: the weekend !! 3 weeks till my due date tomorrow!! and the hopefully soon arrival of another special little boy :)

Adventures in Nursery land Part 4: painted furniture

2013-07-08T08:26:00.000+01:00

If you can remember way back to my first Nursery Post I mentioned how we were going to paint the dresser in the baby room with Chalkboard paint... That was in April and we finished it yesterday ! Procrastinate much ?

Life doesn't stop unfortunately when you have a baby on the way ( although it definitely should slow down in my opinion) but every time we planned to get a start on these projects something would come up and it would get bumped down the list. I even got to the point where I was trying to convince myself it wouldn't be SO bad if it didn't happen.Thankfully two weekends ago I finally bit the bullet and jumped right in :)

The Bookshelf was mine as a child and has lived in many places throughout my various homes :) It looked like this before we started. Not to bad from far but up close it was chipped and kind of just blended in with the wall behind it.

The chest of drawers was one we inherited from W's Gran when she passed away. We used it in our spare room before and then decided it was the perfect height to use as a change table. Being the bad blogger I am I forgot to take pictures before taking the drawers out but I'm sure you get the idea

There was a layer of varnish that needed to be sanded off first so I used our electric sander (if you are planning on refinishing furniture invest in one! It was a such a time saver and not that expensive). The bookshelf had been painted previously so we just roughed it up with the sander to allow the new paint to stick

The Chest of Drawers hadn't be painted before so my Sister in Law painted Primer on it (it was stinky stuff so I stayed away and we made sure to do it outside )

When we started painting we quickly realised that we needed more than just one can of paint (and then I overcompensated and bought way to much! chalkboard paint anyone?).

It was quite a messy endeavour

The Final Product turned out amazingly! It's such a contrast and even though the 'grey' paint is not as grey as I thought it would be (more a blue/green/grey) its still pretty cool:)

Apologies for the overexposed picture but I wanted to show the stencil detail on the drawers and this was the only way to do it...

Everything's back in the room and the Drawers are started to get packed.

Rooms officially ready!

EEEEKKKKK!!!

Baby Update: 35 weeks

2013-07-05T07:42:00.000+01:00

On time this week :) go me !

How Far Along: 35w 6 day

Size of Baby: Baby should weigh about 2.5 kg and be about 45cm long

Although I'm still convinced she is bigger than this...

Picture of Baby:

Baby Sprinkle is comparable in size to a crenshaw melon (whatever that is???)

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the Melon comparisons still seem very appropriate :)

Belly:

34 weeks vs 35 weeks

is it just me or does that baby look like she's lower down?

Sleep:is actually becoming quite the painfull experiance. I'm starting to get symptoms of some pregnancy induced Carpel tunnel so my hands are constantly going numb or tingling with pins and needles plus they hurt when I bend my fingers (especially when I first get up). Getting comfortable is all but a distant memeory and I get up at least twice during the night to use the bathroom

Best Moment of the Week: its actually been a pretty good week all things considered :) Met some interesting people

Movement: fluctuates... some days it feels like a prty in there and other days its a lot less busy... I can feel movement quite low down too which is a new experiance

Symptoms: at 8 months pregnant I don't there is is a Symptom I don't have :)

Food Cravings: nothing much...

What I Miss: comfort

What I'm Looking Forward to: this baby coming!! 29 days to Due date and realistically it could be any time now ( I dreamt I was in labour last night, obviously it was just a dream as I am clearly still pregnant but it was a reminder how close we actually are)

Baby Update: 34 weeks

2013-07-01T10:14:00.003+01:00

These posts seem to be happening later and later every week. Apologies! I'm slowing down considerably and have had a fairly full weekend

How Far Along: 35w 2 day

Size of Baby: Baby should weigh about 2.3 kg and be about 43cm long

Although I'm still convinced she is bigger than this...

Picture of Baby:

Baby Sprinkle is comparable in size to a canteloupe

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the Melon comparisons seem appropriate at this stage :)

Belly:

Sorry for the bad cellphone shot!! and yes those are my pj's

Sleep:meh, if it happens it happens :)

Best Moment of the Week: getting the nursery bookshelf painted! Thanks for your help Annelise! (pics to follow :) )

Movement: Slowing down now... its nerve-wracking cos I'm paranoid but apparently a good sign. She's head down but still not quite ready to make an appearence.

Symptoms: I'm HUGE and pretty much still in pain, Just aches all over the place :) I'll take it though , the end is in sight!

Food Cravings: this weekend ,Cake ...

What I Miss: my feet :)

What I'm Looking Forward to: Finishing the painting of furniture and being able to finally see it all come together :)