Dear Santa

Dear Santa,

I have a very big christmas list but all I really want is a fairy dress and a wand.

Love Holly (age 3 and 3/4).

Oh how I love that little girl in all her sweetness. 

And just quietly, it seems Santa must be very smart as he already has a fairy dress and wand,  ready and waiting for the big day to arrive. 

Flea Market Finds

6 blue mugs. 

Funny story behind these mugs. I spied them in a charity shop in a town about half an hour away from here. Only when I spotted them, it was a Sunday and the shop was closed. I went home and thought about those mugs all night. The next morning I got up and drove back to the charity shop- an hours return trip. But, I did come back the proud owner of 6 lovely blue mugs.

And how much did they cost me?

Mugs- $6.

 Petrol driving to get them- hate to imagine!

 How stoked I am to finally have some decent coffee mugs- priceless!

Things I Am Loving

The smell of the wild thyme that is growing like mad all over central otago at the moment.

Warm days that remind me Summer is almost here.

Listening to my girls shreaks of happiness as they play on their new trampoline (even if it is well past bedtime!)

Visits from family.

A bargain find at the op shop.

Linking up with PaisleyJade for more Loving things here. 

On Buying Locally

There is a little shop I like to stop at. It is in the middle of nowhere, on the road which if you follow it long enough, would eventually take you to Mt Aspiring. Holly calls this little shop "the farmers shop". It operates on an honesty box, selling organic free range eggs, vegetables, herbs and seeds. The kids get a real kick out of stopping there. All of us squishing in while we choose what to buy.

It is the truest form of buying locally produced goods. You can't really get more local than the farm gate now can you? 

And Just Like That.... She Grew Up

I am not sure how it happened so fast, but my little one is growing up. My baby, my little tiny baby, is now a little girl. And so we hit another mile stone... the big girl bed. I knew the end of our cot days where in sight when she preferred to climb into her big sisters bed rather than her cot, much to her big sisters frustration. So we decided it was time to put up bunk beds. Oh how happy it made her, she grinned from ear to ear when she saw her big girl bed. She has taken the transition from cot to bed all in her stride. But when I sneak in at night to check on her, she looks so tiny, curled up in her big girl bed. And as I tuck her back in,  prying all the books out from around her, I understand what people mean when they say "she will always be your baby". 

Flea Market Finds

2 lovely, warm, pink and cream coloured pure wool blankets. To keep my little girls snuggly and warm next winter. In perfect condition, $5 each from the salvation army store. 

My Creative Space

The last month or so, most of my crafting focus has revolved around 1 project. I am making a rag rug for my girls bedroom. It is a long, time consuming and repetitive job. 

It started with a whole lot of cutting-

Followed by a whole lot of sewing the strips together-

Followed by a whole lot of plating-

Like I said, a whole lot of repetition! But it has been worth it. I am 90% finished now and I am over joyed at how it is turning out. Fingers crossed, all going to plan, I will get it finished in the next week and I will be able to show you the results of all my hard work. 

Enjoying Simple Pleasures

Today has been one of those lovely hot late spring days, the kind of day which fill you with anticipation of the summer to come. I made the most of the beautiful weather to enjoy an impromptu ice cream in town with my girls, followed by picking wild flowers down by the river. Simple pleasures that make for a very happy day with my girls. 

Flea Market Finds

I found this wee gem recently at our local recycling centre. I must admit it was one of those very rare holy grail kind of thrifting moments where you cannot quite believe your eyes. A lovely vintage horn sewing cabinet in near perfect condition, with a price tag of...... $35! I pretty much did a little happy dance there and then before promptly paying for it before they could change their minds.

More lovely finds to be seen here.

My Little Lady Of The Lake

I love how our days pan out here. A lazy lunch followed by an afternoon beach combing at the lake. This little girl of mine, just loves the water. She spends long periods sitting and playing quietly by the waters edge. She loves to throw pebbles into the water, taking joy in the plopping and slashing as they hit the water. 

Today this little girl of mine really made me smile. There is something about preschoolers and costumes, they are like moths to a flame, and my little Holly is no exception to that. Lately, I rarely seem to see her out of costume and todays choice was a butterfly fairy. She flittered along the waters edge, testing the water and enjoying the freedom to unleash her little butterfly fairy along the empty beach.

And as usual for my little girl, we spent time collecting the prettiest of the treasures to take home.

Gotta love days like this.  

I Came Back

I never intended to leave this space but, well, life just got in the way.

As many of you know, my family survived the horror of the February earthquake in Christchurch. We lived through the aftermath before deciding to move hundreds of miles away to start over. To be honest, I have found this whole year a little bit mind blowing and I have been working hard to find my bearings again and establish a new life here. We are 6 months into our new beginning and I am pleased to report that things are going well. We are happy. We have made new friends. We have been welcomed. We have embraced the change. Life is good.

And now, I am looking forward to returning to this space and sharing a little bit of this goodness again.