i've come to accept my award

- that title is just an excuse to put a link up to one of my fave songs from the 80's (music has never been better since!!!).

So thank you shabby angel and raspberry grace for my creative blogger award which I accept! XxX

I don't think I am as creative as many of the other bloggers I regularly keep up with - but I'm a tryer :)!!

I'd like to award to every blog I read - obviously that won't work - so I shall break with convention and offer this award right across blogland...if you havn't already got one -please accept the award!!

Boys will be boys

As you all know by now I have 4 male offspring! I am frequently (and often rudely) asked if I would have liked a girl...well yes I would! For reasons such as, being able to have pink clothes, hair bobbles, ballet shoes, a pink bedroom, and for having an adult daughter/mother relationship- i would happily have foregone the teenage one ...yikes!!!

And the noise....surely little girls are quieter?? My ears ring sometimes with the racket!

And the running....the only one who doesn't run through the house is the baby...and thats cos he can't yet lol!!

And the toilet humour...everything is about poo...my 3yr old has been taught alternative words to mama mia by abba (!), which is delightful, and baa baa black sheep have you any poo anybody???!!

But would I swap any one of my grotty boys for anything in the world? Not ever! Even though they reduce me to tears sometimes....take the other day, the big boys have been away with granny for nearly a fortnight...the day after they came home they went for a swim and on their return, they presented me with this...

My 2 lovely boys had gone into the local florist on their way home, chosen an individual gerbera for me, paid for it with their own pocket money, got it all wrapped up in pretty paper and brought it for me...why? Because 'you are the best mum in the world' (from 10yr old) and ' cos, felt like it dint I' (from 13yr old!!). Cue snot and tears from mummy!! I realised then what fabulous thoughtful boys I have, and without getting too emotional about it, how truly blessed I am to have them, all in good health.

My family is complete now and I don't feel something is missing with no daughter, so there will be no more 'trys' for that elusive pink one!!!

Happy

Its the littlest things that make me happy....
Like new clothes ....
can't wait to see my baby dressed in this tshirt ......
or this sleepsuit ......

and what about the print on these jarmies for a bigger boy!?(thought they were tractors but on closer inspection they are monster trucks!?)
Boys clothes CAN be fun lol!!!


More happiness.....a parcel from here
fab packaging.....recycled dressmaking pattern wrapping.....little envelope with sweetie and handwritten note....and lovely paper flowers in matching tin.

Can't wait to use them. (In fact, just placed another order already!)

And the biggest happiness....someone has his 1st tooth....my 4th baby and still I jumped up and down and told him what a clever boy he is!!

Nothing much happening chez dolly at the minute - I'm playing get the washing out and dry before the rain appears - my other 3 boys are at Longleat with Grandma - so while I should be catching up with little jobs that prove difficult with a 3yr old 'helping'!- I'm not ...I'm doing things that make me happy instead!Like reading blogs and browsing etsy and baking muffins. X

Finished Project

I am not as cack handed as I thought I was...look!!!

Yep - made by me....aided by this tutorial....

I could be critical about the fact that the denim broke 3 needles on my machine....that the lining doesn't sit flat inside the bag...that the stiching is a bit wonky...that the button is off centre....the loop to big....but I won't...cos I made a bag!!!!!

Think I'm trying to run before I walk - I have a head full of ideas - but don't have the competance to match - so denim was probably not the wisest choice of fabric for a 1st attempt. Not with my billy basic little machine either, but hey ho its done now and fully useable!!

I've cut out a couple of other little projects too. Just need the time (child free preferably - ha!) to get on.

Olympic Show and Tell

Over on fifties girl's blog she's holding an Olympic Show and Tell - show people your favourite treasures in the colours of the Olympic rings, starting with blue , then black, red, yellow and green.

What a great idea...blue is a nice easy start for me (I could be struggling with black lol!!) as I have lots of blue so one thing wasn't an option!!

First up is 2 little hangers - the 'boys room' one came from a little shop in Weymouth which was run by a really lovely German lady - sadly when I returned the following year the shop had shut down. The 'thank heavens...' cushion I bought whilst pregnant the last time - let me tell you I don't always say thank heavens for them!!!

Next is a corner of the shelves in my dining room - the bear was a pressie from my eldest son when he went skiing with my parents, the cabbage plates were bought ages ago and I always intended to add to them....I have 2!!! The tea cup is Ikea and the jug speaks for itself!!!

Finally, a bit of my blue tableware mostly Johnson Bros but a few bits of Swinnertons too. The square plate was my Grandma's. It does all get used regularly, hence why its just sort of dolloped in the cupboard rather than 'arranged'!!!

Hope you show and tell too.......

Girly shopping

I had to drive to the next town today for my car's MOT (it passed!!), I decided me and 2 little boys would walk from the garage, about half an hour (15mins without a 3yr old lol!!) to the massive Tesco.

So even though August was supposed to be minimum spend month, I ended up doing a bit of girly shopping!!!

A pink fleece blanket to snuggle up with whilst watching telly box, a flowery CK shopper (I only ever saw the blue spotty one in my tesco and that was ok but didn't rock my world!!), some socks with pink mini's on (incidentally pink mini is the car my eldest son will be buying me when he is an internationally famous architect!!) And some fabulous (almost too good to use) pink dishcloths - don't they look perfect with the blue version my mum put in my Christmas stocking?!?!

(I know lots of bloggers have these dishcloths now the million dollar question - do you use them?? I have used a couple but it hurt to do so!! Do you leave them out on display?? I'd love to hear!)

Its also been a good post week, my order from here came today. I am very impressed - pretty heart topped pins- fab floral binding - gorgeous green spotty ribbon , aswell as a few other goodies.

Also a brand spanking CK Kids catalogue plopped onto the mat this week. I had to sit down to look through it - it is so painfully gorgeous!!!!

Cowboys is my favouritist print - we have an eco bag (£8 worth of pap quality actually - but its sweet!!) and 2 little boys have the melamine plates, bowls etc, but now they both need the pyjamas - hey, I need the pyjamas...CK if you are listening adult sizes would be good!!! I love it...especially this....

yum -yum - yum -yum!!!

I'm off to make a wish list!!!!

Blackberries in the rain

Well, I've been reading lots of blogs about bad weather and was beginning to feel a bit guilty that I still needed suncream and my washing was getting line dry every day......

...the bubble has burst!!!

I've made a new holiday rule - if we have no plans we must go out of the house for at least an hour - just for a walk or to the park.....I started today.

Well the heavens opened when I got to the end of the road but we carried on (mainly as I thought it would blow over!!!) - I wish we had worn our welly boots but I had 1 perfectly behaved 3 yr old who didn't moan once for the whole hour and a half out...(I know a 13yr old who couldn't have manage that lol!!!)

I took my camera - thinking I could show you some lovely sea views.....

its a bit miserable!!! (Actually its not much better on a fine day to be honest lol!!!)

We found some blackberries....still lots of red ones so we may rope daddy into a picking for jam session at the weekend!!!

But theres enough for a pie or...even better a crumble - yum!!! Bang goes the diet for the week again!!!

Hopping and Shopping

Over on the shabby forum, the lovely lacey posted a link to a haberdashery website. I wish she hadn't lol!!! When you look (go on - you know you want to!!!), unless I'm the last to discover this gem.... you'll wish she hadn't too!! (Just Joking Lacey x Thank You )
Look at this....
So after clearing out my paypal account :), I hopped onto their blog....which in turn led me to hop here....
And I am totally in love with this.....


This is the sort of skirt the inner Claire wears...the outer Claire thinks she's too old and too fat!!!
I am going to make myself a deal - if I lose a bit more baby weight, I can have it!!! But the trouble is, I love nearly all the skirts on there.

The sun is still shining...

I'm going to stop looking at the weather forecast.....all week it has promised rain, showers, storms etc and all week we have had blazing ('too hot' moany kinda blazing!!) sunshine...!

Its a new experience - having good weather in the school holidays - a good experience! We have had lots of picnics in the park and lots of playing in the garden...

As my parents have been visiting this week - I haven't had many chances to play in my new workroom!!! I have so many things I want to try and do (I say try because the artistic creative gene bypassed me somewhat...) but not enough time to do them.....

After speaking with my mum this week though I am determined not to be so eager to run before I can walk in a crafty sense. I think I'm too impatient which compromises the quality of the things I make...this blog can maybe become a record of how I get more proficient??

I started this blog to be a platform for the breastfeeding support I do....it hasn't done its job properly lol!!! My fault - I start to write about breastfeeding but then I get anxious that I will offend non breastfeeding people.....so I change the post....ridiculous I know!! Think I need to work through those issues first!!!

Below is a pic of the end result of the makeover of these chairsThey were primed, got 2 coats of F&B breakfast room green emulsion, a coat of clear wax (they need another!) and I re covered the seat pads with some curtain fabric which I think came from Dunelm Mill....

I'm pleased with the makeover although I won't be offered any jobs as an upholsterer anytime ever!!! ....