Formspring Friday

What was the worst movie you've ever seen?
I saw a truly awful movie once called "House of Wax" I think. It was a horror and had Paris Hilton in it. Needless to say it wasn't my choice!

If you could only listen to one song for the next month, which would it be?
Jason Mraz "A Beautiful Mess".

What household chore do hate to do the most?
I hate cleaning the bathroom and toilet. Damp, mouldy, confined spaces just don't do it for me!

What's your favorite type of flower?
I don't have just one favourite- I love hibiscus flowers, roses, freesias and hydrangeas. At my wedding I had blue hydrangeas and white roses.

If you could only read one magazine for the rest of your life, which would it be?
NZ House and Garden. I find it so inspiring, and it has a little of everything-craft, interiors, books, food-so it would cover all those bases since I only get to choose one magazine!

What one thing are you exceptionally good at?
Playing music "by ear".

If you could change your name, what would you change it to?
Audrey Isobel Hemingway. Audrey Isobel would have been Kyan's name if he'd been a girl. And Hemingway's just a freakin cool surname I reckon. I've always been jealous of people with cool (or just "normal") surnames- I feel I lucked out both with my maiden name and my married surname!

A new obsession...

Well, I'm in love with bunting. I was so happy with the way the cowboy bunting came out that I just had to make some for Isla's room. Finally an excellent use for all those vintage sheet pieces I own!

And then I was super happy with the way that bunting came out, so I just had to make some for mine and liam's room too (sorry Liam)...

Hope everyone is having a fabulous weekend!

Formspring Friday

It's that time again! By the way, those are the trees across the road from my workplace. Aren't they beautiful? Anyway-back to the questions.

Questions Answered
Cats or Dogs?
Dogs!

Would you rather be a famous musician or a famous actor?
I'd rather not be famous full stop! But if I had to choose, definately a musician-not sure why though...

Who's the sexiest man alive?
Liam Jacob Rust! (My husband).

Were you a Michael Jackson fan?
The first album I ever bought was "Bad" on tape! I LOVED Michael Jackson from the age of about 9 unti I was about 12. I'd still listen to his music, but wouldn't say I'm a fan. He was a truly great talent though.

What music are you listening to today?
Wel, I'm working today so likely it'll be a combination of childrens music and classical music! Until we're in the car and then the IPod reigns! Currently, I just ask Isla to choose a letter, and we'll listen to all the songs beginning with that letter. We're currently making our way through the "B" songs-it's great! I'm hearing so many that I'd forgotten about!

What's your favorite season of the year?
Spring! I love the feeling of the sun warming my back after a cold Winter! I love the hope that Spring brings, the new growth and the sunshine before it's Summer and I stop appreciating it and start trying to escape it!

What was the happiest moment in your life?
I don't think it'd be just one single moment. And I wouldn't say "when I got married" or "When my children were born "etc-although these were happy moments-don't get me wrong! But I think the most happiness for me has come in unplanned, unexpected moments-like when Isla laughed for the first time, when I got a standing ovation when I sung a song in the school play, laughing with friends and sharing memories,or the other day when Kyan said "lub you Mummy..."

Do you have any scars on your body? If so, how'd you get them?
Well, I've got the scar on my finger from the time I cut it when I worked at the cafe, which we talked about last week! And the c-section scar from having Kyan. That's it actually-wow-I thought I'd have more!

whats one thing you would love to do at least once in your life, if money etc wasn't an issue (no limitations). by squidgyums
Travel my friend. Luxury travel.

What do you eat for breakfast?
Um, I'm naughty, I never eat breakfast. I always have a cup of tea though!

Yee Haw!

My darling Kyan will be two years old on May 1st. Gosh I adore him-he's really the sweetest boy. And he's into cowboys and horses, so we're having a Wild West party and I'm so excited! My main inspiration came from this article, and recently I purchased this book-and my imagination has been running wild! Some of my supplies are pictured below... Gingham cupcake papers (it's a joint party for Kyan and his wee friend Alicia who's just a few days older than him- so we're going for a red and blue colour theme...), cowboy hat chocolate moulds, and horse shaped cookie cutter...
I've also made some bunting-my first time making it and I'm very happy with it. Gingham again, and the offcuts from the chair I reupholstered a while ago.

Horse head shaped invitations... My friend (Alicia's Mum) also informs me that we've secured a little pony for pony rides, and some hay bales for the children to climb on. Now to locate plaid shirts for every member of my family...

If you have any links or ideas you'd like to share for the party please do! See you tomorrow for Formspring Friday xx

Outdoor Spaces

Don't you love Autumn sunlight?

I went to a professional development course recently, at one of our local marae. It was about Outdoor Learning Spaces and gosh it was inspiring! The speaker was Robin Christie, of Childspace and he spoke a lot about how children NEED to be outside-at least 70% of the time. According to him, anything that can be done inside can be done outside (yes,really, there are these "forest kindergartens" in Scotland, with actual "toilet trees", if you know what I mean?)

He said "children will love what they know, and they will protect what they love." I adored that quote, and dutifully scribbled it down in my diary, and it's stuck with me because we all want our children to love and protect our environment, don't we?

He also talked about how we as adults are so protective of children when it comes to weather! And he was so right! I mean, I can't begin to count how many times I've been outside with a group of children, and it's started to patter with rain, so immediately I've gathered them all together to go inside for shelter! A wonderful teacher I worked with once cut up a tarpaulin into squares, with a hole for the head, and made a set of rain ponchos so that the children could stay outside in the rain-because it's rain-they've got to experience it!

Anyway, it got me to thinking, about how I could implement these ideas at home as well as at work. Winter is fast approaching, but I still want my children to be outside as much as possible. (Anyway, Winter Schminter-apparently there are preschools in Denmark where in their Winter there are only 4 hours of daylight in an actual day, but they still spend almost the whole day outside, they have these amazing snowsuits and the playground is lit by these HUGE globe-like lamps. It's incredible!). So I've set up an outdoor play space round the side of my house. It's close enough that I can have the door open and still hear them, but still outside enough that I can now officially utter that phrase of old that I remember so well from my own childhood...

"Run along outside and play now!"

It seems to be going down quite well so far!

Formspring Friday

Gosh is it Friday already? Thanks for all the interesting questions everyone, and Happy Friday!

What's one food you'll never eat again?
I haven't drank red wine since the time I went out for a gorgeous dinner at my best friends father's resturant. I had rich tomatoey pasta and creme brulee and much, much too much red wine for a 17yr old. You guess the rest...

What was the best advice you've ever received?
Well I've recieved a lot of good advice in my time! But something my boss said at the first centre I ever worked at, when I was 19, has always stuck with me... "If you're irritated with someone and you don't let them know, how can they do anything to remedy the situation? It's not being confrontational, it's giving the other party an opportunity to explain themselves". Well, she probably put it much better than that, but it really made sense to me.

What's your favorite drink?
Tea. Twinings English Breakfast Tea.

When was the last time you received flowers?
At the end of last year, when I finished up at my job to go to a new centre. That was a sad day.

What was your first paying job?
I worked at the movie theatre when I was 15. Selling popcorn, sweeping popcorn off cinema floors, saying "Cinema 4 thanks, enjoy your movie! Cinema 3 thanks, enjoy your movie!". The worst part of all was that I earned $5.10 an hour! The best part was that I made some great friends there-whom I'm still friends with to this day, and I have some awesome memories of that job.

What's your favorite sport?
Uh... I'm pretty much allergic to sport. But I have been know to play a bit of backyard badminton over the Summer... Is pilates a sport?

Who's your favorite musician?
Gosh that's hard to answer. Right now? This minute it's Hollie Smith/John Mayer/Amy Winehouse, but I have so many favourites. I'll always have a soft spot for the old Jazz greats-Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong and Billie Holiday... I'm such a music lover.

How many languages do you speak?
English, Te Reo Maori (not fluently, but enough to understand what's going on!) and a bit of French (enough to have a very basic idea of what's going on!)

Would you rather have the ability to fly, or the ability to breathe underwater?
The ability to fly I think-although they both sound cool!

Where's your favorite place to buy clothes?
Probably Trade Me-I can buy new or used, and there's lots to browse from, different brands to try and best of all I can shop from the comfort of home while I'm still in my pjs! Perfect because the thought of dragging my children from shop to shop while I look at clothes is not very appealing!

Do you consider yourself a good dancer?
Absolutely! I don't think I could make it as a profesisonal by any means, but I love to dance.

Have you ever been fired? If so, why?
No never! But, I was sat down for a "little chat" one time when I worked in the kitchen at a cafe. It was the WORST job ever! The owners hardly ever let me have breaks, it was about 45 degrees in the kitchen and there was no fan, and when I cut my finger open and required stitches, they graciously allowed me to sit down for 5min before asking me to do dishes, thus plunging my throbbing finger into hot water repetitively for two hours. I nearly fainted! Annnyway, I hated the job and even though I tried my best, when I made a couple of mistakes (possibly due to heat exhaustion) like not measuring the raw meat into perfectly even portions for freezing, or forgetting a garnish on some waffles, they sat me down and questioned whether my heart was truly in it. I resigned. That's the closest I've come to being fired!

How would you describe yourself in 3 words?
Short, Creative, Opinionated.

If you could go on a road trip with any person, dead or alive, who would it be and where would you go?
When we were about 19, my husband bought a 1975 Bedford Ambulance and travelled all around New Zealand in it for a few months. I didn't go-for pragmatic reasons-work/study etc-but now I wish I had gone and hadn't been so sensible!

The Squares Quilt

The squares quilt. It took me ages, but it was worth it. I started it about 6 months ago, and when I went to Auckland recently, I took the quilt top with me, and Mum finished it off. That's how we roll- I do the exciting parts and Mum does the bits that require the real quilting love. And so now it sits happily on my bed. Just in time for it to be needed as it's slowly but surely getting cooler in these parts.

Mum's a super talented quilter-her work is colourful, textural and almost sculptural sometimes. And being the pushy oldest child/Capricorn/naturally bossy person I admit I am, I'm pleased to say that she now has her own Felt shop. Awesome.

I love this quilt for the following reasons-1. I stitched all those squares together by hand, and I'm proud of that. 2. I can honestly say that I LOVE every single one of the fabrics I used, and 3. Because Mum and I did it together and that's special to me.

Also, I'd like to point out that I'm pretty sure my husband would much prefer a neutral coloured bedroom with lots of cream and peaceful tones, but, because the poor man is married to me, this is what he has instead. He must love me huh?

What to make next?

Waiting for the Harvest

There's a lot of green fruit growing in my garden at the moment, and I'm waiting patiently for the Autumn Harvest! Oranges, Lemons, Grapefruit (isn't it clever how Nature provides us with all those Vitamin C rich fruits in the cold and flu season when we need them most?) Fejoas galore, and more exotically, Figs and Guavas. I've invited Rhiannon over to raid the fig tree-there's been talk of some fig based baking which I'm all in aid of. But the guavas-what do I do with guavas? Any suggestions?

Formspring Friday

The idea for this regular Friday post totally came from Rhiannon, I have to give credit where it's due! These are my formspring questions and answers from the last week...

Questions Answered
Sneakers or sandals?
Sandals-that way I don't have to locate socks and life's just easier!

What's your favorite city?
Sheesh I'm not really a fan of cities at all actually! I'd have to say Auckland, but only for visiting family and friends reasons, oh and the shopping, but I'm always pleased to get home to my small town haven

What song do you want played at your funeral?
Hhhmmm... Something I've never actually thought about! I'd have to say "Come for me Here" by Hollie Smith.

What would you do differently if you could do it over?
Have an indoor wedding. Never start smoking (I'm a reformed smoker now and have been since I found out I was prengant with Isla, but I regret the years I did smoke-it really is an insidious and puerile habit and it's embarrassing to admit that I was formerly a slave to it.) Take more photos of myself while I was pregnant (I had an aversion to cameras both times. Why? I don't know.) And NOT eat the Mars Bar I had last night!

Would you ever consider plastic surgery? What would you have done?
If I could afford it-absolutely! I love the thought of being able to change the parts of my body that I'm not so fond of.

Who's the most talented person you know?
Everyone has a special talent. But I was lucky enough to work with someone whom I consider the most talented teacher I know, which was very inspiring.

what do you think is your favourite thing of everything you've ever made? by squidgyums
My favourite of all my designs is definately the Hobby Horse. Which makes it all the more difficult when I see other crafters copying it! I know it's the highest form of flattery etc but it's still hard for me!

If you were offered the job of U.S. president would you take the job?
Never never, no way. I'd hate to be in the public eye like that. I actually feel sorry for celebrities in that sense-the media stalking that they have to endure...

If you had to perform at the circus, what trick would you do?
If I had to perform at the circus-I'd seriously reflect on what happened to my career in Early Childhood Teaching! No really, I'd be a tightrope walker in a pink sparkly costume. That or a clown!

Are you afraid of dying?
Not really-I'm far more afraid of something happening to my children or husband.

What's the best place near you to get a drink?
The local Irish pub is probably my favourite place for a drink locally, but as I have 2 small children, I can count the amount of times I've been out for "a drink" in the last 4yrs on one hand!

What did you dream about last night?
Last night I dreamed about horses-going to some type of stables or pony club with my mum and riding around and around and people were clapping. It was a strange dream!

What website do you spend the most time on?
Probably Trade Me-a lot of the contents of our home come from there! Everything from cupcake papers for the kids birthdays to a barking collar for the dog...

If you won a $1,000 shopping spree for any store, which store would you pick?
Borders bookshop in Auckland. I'd buy a pot of tea and spend the day there choosing books for myself and the whanau!

What are you reading right now?
I'm reading "Saving Fish from Drowning" by Amy Tan, and I've just finished "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini. Both fabulous books.

what is the best thing about being a an early childhood teacher? by squidgyums
Ooooo, that's tricky, because there's so many things that are great about it! I love the fact that I get to take my children to work with me-very handy. But I guess the best thing about the job is that it's never boring. I can spend the morning in a meeting, and the afternoon face painting or planting seeds. I get to be indoors, outdoors, really experience the seasons of each year and I get to be professional, academic and creative all at the same time-it's so varied and interesting.

Well, there you have it! Keep 'em coming! And again-thanks to Rhiannon for the introduction to Formspring-so much fun xx

Lovely Things

I hope everyone had a fabulous Easter! Ours was a day of family and chocolate which is pretty much as good as it gets as far as I'm concerned! I'm just stopping in with some random news...

Thanks for all the interesting questions on formspring. Some of them really make me think... If you haven't joined I encourage you to, because I think you can learn a lot about yourself. Plus-it's fun!

The lovely Kristin is having a giveaway. The prize is one of her fabulous sleeveless hoodies. I can vouch for these because Kyan had one last year and it was top notch both in terms of quality and cuteness. Here he is modelling it (oh my Gosh he looks so tiny! Don't children just grow up so amazingly quickly?)

And last but not least, Hollie Smith has a new album out. It's called Humour and the Misfortune of Others, I've been listening to it a lot over the past two weeks and it's absolutely fabulous!

Eggy Goodness

Have you ever tried blowing eggs, to decorate for Easter? We did, and it was lots of fun! You'll need;
A bowl of hot water (not boiling)
Vinegar
Eggs
Pins
Bowls to catch the egg white/yolk
Food colouring
Glue
Sequins, stickers, felt shapes or whatever you can find to decorate the egg
Bamboo skewers

Poke your pin carefully into the top of the egg. Wiggle it round so you break up the yolk and white-which makes it easier to blow it out later. The wiggling also helps to make the hole bigger. Do the same thing at the other end of the egg.

Blow the contents into a bowl (note Isla's wet hair-that's because my children had just had a bath. I'm the kind of Mum that bathes her children and then, when they are nice and clean and sweet-smelling, I give them raw eggs and food colouring to play with, but that's another story anyway...)

When the egg shells are empty, put them into the bowl of hot water and add a good swill of vinegar. This helps to kill any eggy bacteria that may be hiding in the shell. Save the egg yolks/whites for scrambled eggs later on...

Add food colouring to the water/vinegar mixture...

Swish the egg shells around in the water so they are evenly covered, and dye your hands in the process...

Stick the eggs onto bamboo skewers and find a suitable place to dry them where they won't be touching/leaning against anything.

Decorate! Check these out for insporation!

Display proudly! Happy Easter everyone xx

Formspring Me

Well, it's been so interesting following Rhiannon and Kristin's questions from Formspring that I've totally hopped on the bandwagon. So, if you'd like to ask me anything-go ahead. Check the sidebar for the question box.

Here are my questions and answers so far...

If you could choose, how would you want to die?
Peacefully, in my sleep, at the age of 94.

If you could be on one TV show which one would it be?
I'd love a part on Outrageous Fortune. I am a true blue West Aucklander after all!

Do you believe in God?
Not in a Christian sense, but I do believe there is a higher power, and a purpose beyond oneself. I believe in karma, integrity and the power of positive thought.

Chocolate Brownie

I'm suffering from a case of total Crafters Block. My symptoms include-inability to follow a pattern, shortened attention span, lack of inspiration and general aversion to fabric. Thank Goodness I can still bake-Phew! It's my only creative outlet at the moment and apparently, also the only project I can see through from start to finish without stashing down the back of the sofa in frustration! So let's celebrate with Chocolate Brownies!

Originally this recipe came from a magazine, but I've "tweaked" it a little bit.

Ingredients

4 eggs

175g butter-preferably unsalted

1 cup of plain flour

175g darkest chocolate-Whittakers is best

1 cup of castor sugar

2 tbsp of cocoa

1 large packet of Malteasers, crushed up a bit-not heaps, you don't want a fine powder-just bash them a bit with a meat mallet or similar while they're in the packet.

Icing sugar for dusting

Method

Heat oven to 160°C

Melt butter and dark chocolate together in the microwave, or carefully in a saucepan. Whisk until smooth, then stir in sugar and eggs.
Sift flour and cocoa powder together, then stir into chocolate mixture carefully-just enough to mix it all up, then gently stir in the broken up Malteasers.
Pour into your tin-use baking paper!

Bake for about 40mins-1hour-until a knife when inserted comes out cleanly. Allow to cool before cutting into pieces. Dust with icing sugar before serving. Enjoy!