12 Random things

So I have decided on my goal for the year. It is to do 12 random selfless acts/things. It can be money, a service, time, gift etc. No limit at all, it just has to be totally for someone elses benefit.

And why 12?? Well thats simple ;) that makes it one a month. Totally manageable!

So my first random thing from back in Jan. (Yes month late posting but hopefully that means Ill remain Anom. ;) Plus I didnt have photos of it so had to steal the ones she took, hope she doesnt mind!!)

A TNNer (Nappy networker www.thenappynetwork.org.nz/forum ) had missed out on her secret santa swap as the other person didnt send anything :( how sad is that! So I made her a bag (ottobre design) a set of stitch markers and included a cut of mushroom fabric and big block of choc. Oh and it was wrapped up in a big picture painted by Jake, which she lovingly added in the pictures :D so lovely of her to do that!

It cheered her up and she seemed to like it which is what I hoped it would do :)

I didnt let the organiser tell her who it was from as to me that means Id recieve credit and would make it seem less about her, which I didnt want, as it was all about her and her knowing we hadnt missed noticing she had missed out. (But Maybe Im just strange as most people own up??)

And now Im half way thru month 2, Im getting worried I have no idea what to do! I doubt buying my friends a shot of tequila each the pub the other night counts! So Ill have to keep thinking. I thought Id struck gold when my friend said she needed 3mths rego for her partner to start a new job but alas no Winz covered it for them. So back to the drawing board...

Busy busy!

Well its been a few weeks. At least I can say Ive been doing 'stuff' in this update! I have painted the bathroom and kitchen, bye bye ugggggly peach! So much nicer.
Ive also gotten the knitting and sewing bug, perfect just in time for returning to tech and having no spare time!

I have started a lovely cabled vest for Jake, Im so in love with it and really enjoying knitting it, I normally like to knit on circ needles but Ive found the flats love again. So heres a sneak peak at it (because it will be a while until its finished!)
The lime green verigated wool is from a swap a while ago, Im so in love with it!


And today I finally sewed Jake his Thomas Pjs, the fabrics been floating around the lounge with him asking for pjs everyday, Not a very clear pic at all but its satin Thomas print boxers and a singlet with a square of satin sewn on. He also asked for a pocket so will add that later (for his wipe that he always lugs to bed for his watery allergy eyes :( )

I did a swap/trade that involved me sewing a circ needle roll, so I came up with this, love the colours and I really enjoyed sewing it, spent the time measuring and ironing etc (for a change *blush*)

So decided to make another for a secret box trade. (hope no one for that is looking here!!)

And all rolled up.

More knitting bug. A pilar dishcloth, no idea why its off on funny angle tho! Hoping it straightens in the wash. Loved this pattern, was nice and easy but not so easy you zone out from being bored.

ANd for my dishcloth swap I made an owl cloth.

and a cupcake, but its tiny! Stupid pattern! Will have to upsize it and make another to send off!

I also made a bag for the bag swap. This one is a nappy bag, at first I was a bit gutted to get someone who wanted a nappy bag *blush* I was never a 'nappy bag mum' as they were boring and bulky and encourage you carry around loads too much stuff. But found some fabrics I fell in love with and got all excited to sew a nappy bag ;) Personally I think its the best nappy bag ever!
Double front pocket on one side, smaller pocket to the side on the other side.

Zippered pocket inside and smaller pocket on the other

and an elasticated pocket on the side inside.

Just need to find the magnet button I brought and put somewhere 'safe', attach it and its ready to go.

I have also been dyeing wool but still to get pics of that. :)

garden update.

We had an awesome thunder storm the other night, I had just gotten home from work when it started and I was a tad bummed as I work on the 8th floor at the hospital there would of been some awesome sights from up there!

The garden loved the big down pour... Im not so stoked tho... now I have to mow the lawns!!

Heres a few pics of the garden now, still not harvesting much from it, the chooks attacked the sliverbeet, the spinach, brocs and lettuces all bolted so I biffed them over to the chooks. At least now three out of four are laying so I guess its not all a waste.

The chooks went on a rampage when I was raising seedlings so I ended up planting unknown seedlings randomly in the garden a couple of them were sunflowers, this one has a massive head and is short.

This one has multiple heads sprouting off the stem! and doesnt seem to have a middle just lots of petals.

Everythings pretty crammed in there... at least theres no room for weeds (that I can see any way!) The cornflower has gone crazy and I cant for the life of me recall what its good for! Will have to google....

My spaghetti melons have gone on a rampage.... Its a point I dont know if I should cull it or leave it! I havent even tried it before so no idea if its worth eating or not.

My poor corn is fighting for a spot, and tomatoes... welll they might be in there somewhere... There was celery once upon a time...

It had even hooked itself on the neighbours garden trellis and had grown to their house *blush* so I yanked that off. Its growing towards the fence keeping the chooks in and to the other garden...

But it is fruiting 'ok' Ive harvested one (but not cooked it, will do that tonight, will need google for that too...) and theres three massive ones growing that I can see, chances are theres another one or two hiding.

I wish they were watermelons!!! Next year....

Strawberries are on their third round...

The plums are ready! I cant decide if I can be bothered making them in to jam or not tho??? Why is jamming season the hottest season when you dont want to be standing over a hot stove!

New edition updates

Its been such nice hot sunny weather in Hamilton this week, its wonderful. Jakes been cooling off in the afternoons after care by jumping on the tramp in the sprinkler, keeps him entertained for ages. He cant use the tramp without the sprinkler at the moment, it gets way too hot and burns ya feet!

We have EGGS!!! Only one girl tho, Ive been giving the other three a lecture every morning about earning their keep, Im wondering if they are nesting somewhere instead of the nesting box? Jakes loving collecting the egg every day he calls it "special egg from chooks bum" Shes laying bigger each day, at the moment they are pretty small, the first one was tiny! (and fair enough too... Im sure if my first child was small and not 9lb 7oz I would of managed it better too! lol)

And Jake got some new babies today, hes such an animal lover and is so caring with the hens and cat I decided to let him get a couple of zebra finches. He spotted them at the pet store a few weeks ago and loved them! Thankfully he has cheap taste, they were $9 each, the other birds for sale were $30 upwards. I think he likes how flighty and action packed they are compared to the bigger less moving birds. He chose the only white one, was set on having it (poor pet store girl had a mission catching it!) and said he wanted a random grey one (bet the pet store girl was glad about that hehe). They are wonderful birds, sing lovely tuned songs, it is very cute and relaxing to listen to them. :)

The white one got out of the shoe box when I went to transfer them! Dammit, I knew that would happen, thankfully Id closed off the hallway and kitchen. I had to wait for her to land on the ground and chuck a towel over, got there in the end!

The new year

Its been a week or two since my last blog, Not much new to update, have been busy at work so that takes most of the day away and with my low iron Im to tired to anything crafty in the evenings. But oh well.
New years eve I was getting ready to go out, putting my face on and what not and Jake asked to put some on so I gave him my eye shadow and lippy...
Well turns out eye shadow wasnt standing out enough for him so he used my lippy on his lips, cheeks, nose, forehead, eyelids, eye brows.... I dont even put make up in half those places! He then annouced he was pretty and ready to go out to grans for the night and proudly showed everyone there his master work, I wasnt too worried at the time as it ment he wasnt around my feet while I was trying to get ready but then well, the Lippy set like cement to his face. Was a time consuming mission to get off, which made me late leaving and he still has a small dot on his eyebrow...

And Ill finish this blog with my chooks... as you can see my fence contains them well...

Sorry Little einsteins

But Jake cant help you on your mission this afternoon (for those who dont watch LE, they ask the child to help them solve the issue and go on a mission, Jake said No, I asked why not?) because hes....
"To big to fit in the TV" !!
Oh dear I said, Im sure you can squeeze you in if you wanted Jake?
"No its square, Im not."

Fair enough I guess.

Anyway today I was bored waiting for the porridge to cool down this morning so made a bag for Jakes inhaler. I used some monster fabric that was used to wrap a swap I recieved a while ago (... 2 yrs ago...) and always planned on making something out if it. See it pays to put things off and stock pile fabrics sometimes you do NEED it ;)

The inhaler goes in the pocket (still to be snapped) and spacer in the main body of the bag.

I even got out the hammer and put in a proper eyelet.

And for good measure, Jake with his inhaler, I covered it in stickers to make it more fun. But hes actually accepted it well and already asks for it when he gets wheezy (not bad for a few days of use!)

Then this morning we went Strawberry picking. Much easier then Blueberry picking... almost too easy... Didnt take long to fill four icecream containers at all.

Jake and Mum

Grans bum was in the way of some good ones... and yes she knocked him over when she stood up and yes I just stood there and took a picture and didnt give any form of warning about the child behind her...

M, L and Z, L was the master at picking the green ones... ;)

The loot. 3 icecream containters full. (M took one)

And Ive been Pav and meringue making! I wanted to do some meringues so Jake didnt miss out, as the pav is going to have cream on it. (Mean mummy will NOT have pav without cream!! ;) ) I put 100s n 1000s on them. Will take most of them to the bbq tonight at a friends. (odd looking because I dont have a piping bag, tried to make one but the bottom seam brust and I had mixture oozing ut of two places! so mish mash meringues it is!)

And my Pav... Its a pretty good looking pav too if I dont say so myself!

I think I may have found the secret to pav making..... At first when I started I thought I was a bit mad.... towards the end I decided that yes I was in fact a bit mad... but look at that pav! And what secret weapon am I talking about???.....

A hand held mixer! Haha, I have a normal big mixer but it is missing a beater... for the last three years! I dont think it will ever show up :( but Yes I did make both a pav and meringues with a $12 warehouse handheld mixer!! It got a bit hairy towards the end, when the handle even got too hot hold and the pav was cooking on the beaters, but Im sure that happens often?? I pushed forward and figured hey worse case I kill my cheap mixer, $12... I can spare it so long as the pav works! then it got a bit smokey smelling (well a LOT smokey smelling!) so I stopped... Decided it was beaten enough anyway. Wonder if it will work next time I try to use it!

Ive also finished off Jakes outfits and made a last minute crayon roll. Im suprised I got the clothes done! Just have to snap them tonight, Im wanting to use jean snaps but I cant find my tool for it!! Dam! Will have a proper hunt for them later, fingers crossed its somewhere simple!

Kmart tree day

Jake was still too sick for care today (First time on a new antibotic so I wanted to keep an eye on him, plus he was still a bit wheezy and needed his inhaler a few times) So we jumped on the bus and dropped the presents off at Kmart. They had a scale this year aiming for 5000! 5000! Thats lot of kids in Hamilton going without! (I assume its for local kids because they collect until xmas eve so dont have the time to transport the gifts else where) Sadly it was only at 250-300 :( I wish we could do more. Jake took great effort in carefully and nicely placing them under the tree, so cute :)

After this we went for 'icecream' Jake was limited to a choice of two sorbets (only dairy free items) but he really wanted one of their monster icecreams so I asked the girl serving us if she could make it a monster and she did, right down to rolling it in the coating (but it didnt show agaisnt the bright red) Thank you very much Wendys :) She didnt even charge more for it. Totally made his day :D (He had eaten the nose and mouth before I got a chance to take the pic but you can just make out the eye balls on the last pic.)

Oh and apperently waffle cones "taste like wheatbix" hahaha.

Today I did Jakebs name out of wooden blocks covered in scrapbooking paper, I totally stole the idea off Laura http://kahurangiskies.blogspot.com/2009/12/manaia.html Which makes for a change ;) I think it looks great, wonderful idea, now I have to work out how to put it on the wall still...