A Handmade Christmas

I’ve spent the last few weeks working through my list of hand made presents. We are having an early Christmas with Mr B’s family the week before Christmas day and then the actual day with my side of the family.

So I’ve been getting our gifts ready for the first occasion as a priority. Last week I made a batch of mango butter, as well as passionfruit shortbread and pfeffernusse (iced gingerbread cookies). I’ve sewed some shopping bags out of our fabric stash and sourced some gorgeous vintage reference books for other family members.

I’ve got some patterns for make up purses and scarves that I still need to make, plus some little eco kitchen cleaning kits to make up (home-made washing powder, knitted cotton & jute cloths, plus some little wooden pegs that Little B is going to decorate).

I said it last year and I’ll say it again, Christmas feels more meaningful to me these days because we try to make our gifts. Yes it’s frugal and yes it’s green but I like giving these gifts of love to family and friends. It also helps that I love sewing, knitting and baking LOL. And where it’s not possible for me to do so, I love buying hand made items from other people to give as gifts. I feel like I’m supporting a little grass roots business and it makes my purchase feel more useful.

** No pictures for this post as I have family members who read my blog :-) They’ll just have to wait for Christmas to see what they are getting *giggle*

Kidswap

Contrary to the title of this post, I havent been swapping Little B ;-) Last week I attended a local kindy fundraiser that is similar to a clothes swap.

For $15 entry, you received 10 tickets to swap for items. You could donate kids clothes, toys, books and other items like prams. Anything left over at the end was donated to a local toy library and / or op shop.

We had a ball. I managed to pick up some lovely wooden toys, a few puzzles and a brand new unopened complete set of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe book series. Great for Little B when he is a bit older.

It was a great event to have just before Xmas and it is a lovely way to fundraise for a kindergarten. They hope to make it a more permanent fixture on their calendar next, and it would be great to see the popularity of green and frugal events such as these on the rise.

My Happy List

Inspired by Kate at Foxs Lane, here is my current happy list. I love the concept of a happy list as it keeps my spirits high :-)

Home baked allergy friendly choc chip cookies -- Making jungle decorations for Little B's party -- Sewing (my skirt is so very nearly finished) -- 5 tiny tomatoes on my tomato plants (after a battle with early blight) -- Christmas through the eyes of a 4 year old -- finger knitting (when in doubt, add some finger knitting LOL) -- cuddles with my family -- sunshine -- hand made presents -- 

Jungle Party 2010

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.  Inspired by soulemama

A useful giggle...

The weather in Melbourne has been very hot, humid and full of thunderstorms. To me it feels really tropical (and not in the best sense). This means the mosquito juggernaut has descended.

Little B experiences the worst munching from the mozzies so we’ve gotten a little bit creative.

We’ve installed a mosquito net over his sandpit. He happily plays in his new “tent” and isn’t over run my mozzies. I have to say it’s quite pleasant sitting in there with him. Good company, nice breeze, no mozzies…what more could a girl want ;-)

Party time

It’s that time of year again :-) We have Little B’s birthday party at the start of December even though he is a late December baby. This means his little friends can come along easily rather than being away around Xmas.

Last year I focussed on ensuring the party was both eco-friendly and allergy friendly. And these are my main focuses again this year but I am also aiming for the food to be as whole and nourishing as possible, while still being party food.

Decorations

We will be re-using our home made bunting and paper lanterns from last year. I bought a variety of paper lanterns last year (to cover all our birthdays throughout the year) and the green will suit our Jungle theme. We are also putting up our solar lanterns as bright decorations out the front of the house.

Goodie Bags

Last year, I made fabric bags from some party theme fabric I found at the op shop. This year I’m using recycled paper bags. In these will be a home-baked choc chip cookie, a wooden toy and a little crafty something extra.

Entertainment

I believe in a lot of unstructured play for kids, even at parties. I have a few Montessori games up my sleeve, revolving around the Jungle theme (like “The Waterhole”) and we will be doing some strewing (like a jungle park in the sandpit) and some strategically placed toys around the garden. I’ve also set up some drums for some African drumming sessions ;-)

Food

I have been inspired for our party food mainly from Jude Blereau’s “Whole Food for Children”. We are having jelly boats (from pear & mango juice with agar agar), fairy bread (with sourdough, labne and allergy friendly sprinkles), home-made tzatziki & pinto bean dips with spelt crackers, and finally a gorgeous fruit platter. Little B’s cake will be a spelt butter cake, decorated with Hullabaloo food coloured icing.

I’ve asked our guests not to give Little B any plastic toys. I’ve also asked people to be as environmentally conscious as they can be in their gift choices.

** NB: If it’s raining, we’ve organised for 3 separate play spaces in the house. One following the strewing jungle theme, one with some jungle inspired playdough and craft and one for freeplay (with a big dress up box provided for inspiration.