Celebrating 5 years together

My lovely hubby and I celebrated our 5 year anniversary last week. We both agreed it felt particularly special.

Due to work commitments and availibility of babysitters we had to wait until yesterday to celebrate proprely. 

The date started with Hubby announcing he'd planned the whole evening.

  First up was a delicious meal at a local Frankie and Bennys.

Before I was whisked off to the theatre to see Mamma Mia! 

It's a wonderful show to watch. Very upbeat and ridiculously cheesy, in the best way.

It was a wonderful surprise and a great way to celebrate 5 happy years of marriage.

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Craft Party Fun.

I've been having a whale of a time this weekend. A friend of mine won craft session tickets at a silent auction recently. 

It was a crafting session of her choice for 4 people and included tea and cake. I was delighted to be asked to join her.

Mrs B, chose the pimp my jam jar session which included decorating flower pots. 

It was a wonderful afternoon, sat sipping tea, nibbling cake and being crafty. Sharon has the most wonderful crafting shed. It's like an entry for shed of the year! Every inch is stuffed with fabric, papers, sparkly things and who knows what. It was like a fantasy land! 

 

I came home with 2 herb pots and a fairy catching jar. The pots are already filled and planted on my windowsill. I am so proud of them.

If you would like to find out more about Sharon's wonderful crafting session please visit her website HERE

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Frugal bracelets

I was taping a cardboard box earlier this morning to send a parcel, when the packing tape ran out. So I tried finishing the job with masking tape (the only tape to hand), which also promptly ran out. It just not my day is it? 

DD2 has picked up her first school bug of the year. It's only a little tummy bug and this morning has already seen a marked improvement all round.

I gave her one of the empty rolls along with some beads and wool. She is now happily watching Disney films while winding wool round the empty roll and adding beads as it occurs to her to do so.

It's just enough work to keep a tired mind and little fingers occupied. 

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Squeezing the laundry pennies

I noticed a few months back that we were purchasing washing powder more often than usual. A box just wasn't lasting as long as it used to. 

I started a tally chart on the lid of the next box and was shocked to find we were 15 loads short of the 52 washes! 

The culprit turned out to be the scoop. We used to use a small jam jar but for one reason or another it had been swapped with a larger one. 

I've replaced the jar with a small pringles tub carefully marked with a fill line.

Hopefully we'll soon be back on track and I can get our laundry back on budget. I'm keeping a simply tally chart inside of the lid to keep track.

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Quiet weekend

The girl's school have changed their approach to handwriting this year.  Instead of confusing the poor students with curly cursive they have now opted for a more simple unjoined approach.

Not knowing different DD2 should be fine with the change, but DD1 has been trying to write the old way for two years.

This weekend we will be practising the new way. DD1 seems to be taking to it quickly. She never quite got into the flow of cursive but already her writing speed is improving and her handwriting much neater.

As she is taking her SATS next year this can only bode well. It still feels like a bit of a curveball to throw the pupils though.

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Frugal Halloween update.

I'm really pleased with my half term planning. I have a whole stash of ideas ready to go and plenty more on my Pinterest board.

Today I made felt pumpkins with fuzzy felt faces.

The pumpkins are actually pockets to store the face parts inside. It used up a few more small pieces from my felt stash. 

The Halloween folder where I am collecting everything is looking nicely stuffed.

So far it contains;

*Cleaver Golf

*tons of colouring pages

*DIY spooky book craft

*jigsaw puzzles

*fuzzy felt

*paperchains

*several paper dolls

*pumpkin faces (as mentioned above)

*masks 

*activity sheets (again tons printed)

Not in the folder;

*cake decorating kit

*egg boxes for bats

*pumpkin pots 

*paper lanterns

*pumpkin shopping/carving/soup & baking.

Trips out planned;

*pumpkin shopping (local farm do a fab display)

*spooky walk (free annual event at garden centre)

* Free Halloween crafts at local shopping centre 

That's not to bad considering I have £20 left in my budget :)

And there's plenty of time to find even more things to do!

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Spring Planter project

I've been looking at some beautiful spring planters on Pinterest over the past few evenings. It's inspirefree me to try and  have a go at a mixed planter.

According to the many tutorials they are super easy to do and foolproof.  We will soon see.

Hopefully next spring this empty looking planter will be an artfully arranged display of daffodils, crocus and grape hyacinth. 

 I do like having something to look forward to as the grey cold months of winter pass by.

For now I will be enjoying this lovely display of buddleia flowers. They are making the lounge smell heavenly.

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An emotional few days.

The time has come. Monday morning saw DD2 wearing her crisp new uniform and shiny school shoes.

I can't believe my chunky litype baby has become this cheeky not so little monkey already.

After her introduction session on Monday each member of her class came home clutching a little organza bag. A little survival kit for all us weepy parents sitting at home and fretting.

Two days in and the poor thing is already feeling the burn. Goodness knows how she'll be on Friday. 

 Goodness knows how I'll be by Friday the house is being given a hefty scrubbing as I try to keep myself distracted from clock watching.

 Many many projects are on the horizon.

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The real Pocahontus

Disney movies are a great source of entertainment for a dreary and wet Saturday.

Today's pick was, as you can probably guess was Pocahontus. While the kids were enjoying the film, I looked it up on Google. I was hoping to find some free colouring pages for the afternoon, but instead I found out that Pocahontus actually existed. 

Her story though is far different than the Disney film and well worth reading on Wikipedia. 

Her final resting place isn't actually too far away in Gravesend, Kent. 

It's tempted me to do some Native American inspired crafts and activities this week with the children.  I feel some Pinterest browsing coming on.

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Egg and Cress fun.

We planted some cress seeds during the final days of the summer holidays. They have been quietly growing on the windowsill.

Yesterday I noticed they were at a decent eating length and hatched a plan.

Dinner time today was a DIY affair. Everyone had some boiled eggs (in the shell) bread (unbuttered) cress and scissors. I pretty much left them to it.

Everyone enjoyed their sandwiches greatly and DD1 even insisted on making one for Gman herself.

It was such a success we will be planting a fresh batch of cress tomorrow so we can do it again.

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Halloween prep

Another £1 gone from the budget but definitely well spent. Making and decorating cupcakes will fill two mornings easily. The girls love baking and Daddy loves cake so everyones a winner.

I couldn't resist these either. I'm planning to line them with a freezer bag to make sensory boxes. You know the type you fill with Cooked spaghetti and say it's witches hair or peeled grapes for eyeballs? If they survive the experience I will pop a LED candle inside to use as decorations.

After researching Angela's egg carton bat idea, I put a request on Facebook for cardboard egg boxes (mine are plastic). I'be already had one passed to me in the playground and two more promised for Monday. This activity is costing me nothing as I have everything else in stock. 

Thank you Angela!

The remaining Halloween budget is now £21/£25.

And I've just found out that school finishes on Thursday 21st so I now have 10 days to plan.

whoop whoop.

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The Big Friendly Read

Both girls have now completed the summer reading scheme for 2016. 

DD1 finished hers first due to DD2 having a poorly tummy at the time of our last visit but today she had her chance.

Both certificates have been popped safely into frames ready to put on display when we repaint their bedrooms.

Well done girls!

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Felt fun

After some heavy thought over a cuppa and some Pinterest browsing, I decided on making Halloween fuzzy felt.

I cut a handful of themed shapes like skulls, pumpkins and castles, then made geometric shapes from the off cuts to use as eyes, windows and whatever else the kids decide on. 

It was a nice to sit a cut shapes while watching the two youngest play.  I have plenty of felt leftover so I can add shapes as they occur to me later.

The teeny tiny offcuts were recycled into a tiny plate of food. The girls love imagination play AND tiny things so I think I'm onto a winner with this idea.

I've carefully tucked it into a little zip lock bag that once held spare buttons for a shirt. I'm not sure whether to stash it in my handbag as a boardom buster or keep it as an advent calender gift. 

I might even make a second set so I can do both.

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Halloween prep

I've spent my second pound for Halloween week. A packet of googly eyes. I spotted them in Poundland yesterday but wanted to check the prices online. 

200 eyes for £1 is actually very competitive and Pinterest has some lovely ideas on how to use them. 

Including eyeball playdough and some really cute greeting cards.

 I've also been printing off cute colouring sheets and colour by number sheets.

A dig in the craft stash has found some sheets of felt that I'd forgotten all about so this afternoon I will be researching ideas for using them.

Any idea's welcome, just pop me a comment.

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Back school and planning ahead.

DD1 is off to school today. I admit I shed a few tears once she passed through the doors and headed up the stairs. Next week it will be DD2's turn to start school. Im predicting even more tears for that event.

I'm hoping to keep myself occupied with little jobs around the house and garden. 

I'm also making plans and gathering resources for half term. As half term falls at the end of October we will be planning a whole week of Halloween themed fun.

I've given myself a budget of  £25 for the 9 days so I will need to use all my best frugalling skills to keep things on budget.

My first £1 will be invested in a pack of card (30 sheets @£1) from Poundland. I've found a wonderful website here with a whole range of spooky printables. 

I can't wait to get started!

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