Lists Lovely Lists

I like lists! Small ones, big ones, official ones, lists on scrap pieces of paper, lists in my head, lists everywhere. They help me to keep all the stuff floating in my head in order AND are useful for ensuring I achieve something concrete in my day.
So in following my fav blogging Mum's I thought it may very well be time to publish a list

Here's what I NEED (and want) to achieve in the next little while!

1. FINISH JK's Quilt....very urgent
2. Finish knitting JK's hat (I just pulled back about 10 lines as I found a stitch round the wrong way and it just annoyed me!)
3. Finish knitting little Bubba cardigan (to add to my little collection of 'new' baby clothes)
4. Finish knitting my poncho
5. Add buttons to LJ's knitted jacket
6. Learn to knit longies and socks (Karen is my source of knowledge)
7. Sew two fabric bags as pressies for my twin sisters' birthdays in June
8. Sew some little baby nappies with scrummy material from Sarah @ Greenbeans
9. Knit another little Bubba cardigan for a friend's bubba due in July
10. Organise JK's birthday ON TIME to avoid stress
11. Finish reading 2 books that are in progress
12. Learn to crochet (mummy help!!.....maybe start a blanket of blocks so it's attainable)
13. Clean my oven....ICK! (I dislike this job with great intensity.....maybe get hubby to do it while I supervise)t
14. Organise a box of interesting activities for the kiddos on rainy days
15. Sort through the multitudes of photos on our computer and delete the bung ones

I think my list could go on for a little longer but 15 things will keep me busy for a bit. Will report back as things are done just for the satisfaction of seeing the progress for myself.

Quilt Madness is Upon Us!

It's time again....
Time for what??? you may very well ask....
Time to dominate the dining room table with fabric, sewing machine, cutting mat etc and the floor with fabric, thread, left-over fabric......and probably more.


My husband Jumps with Joy or is it....Grimaces when I start cutting a quilt.....he knows it'll be a while before he gets the dining room and lounge looking tidy and orderly again.
It's JK's 4th Birthday at the beginning of May and he requested a 'cool blanket like LJ's' as his present and he would like it in blue and green and he likes the courthouse step pattern.
Huh!! opinionated.....NOT AT ALL!!
So I've done the mad dash to Spotlight and the Fabric Barn for material (no trouble with the blues, but the greens seemed to be mainly in muted colours.....weird....a bit limited!). I've cut 11/2 inch strips and 2 inch squares (actually I cut 21/2 squares cause I didn't re-read the instructions...but we'll downsize as we go).
Last night I put together my first 2 courthouse blocks and this was the result...................................

Scrumptious Little Boy

Bag-erific!!

One day the itch to make a bag came upon me.
So in true "Laura-Motivation" style, it was done on that very day!!
I used the Tutorial from Tiny Happy and was very happy with the results.
Fun and reasonably fast to make to...all things I love!




















I gifted that one to my sister Emma who loves a bit of vintage in her life.

The great thing about it was the denim on the outside of the bag was given to me by Emma and the flower fabric on the inside was a good find at the local Salvation Army Thrift shop. In fact I got a few goodies that day including vintage bark cloth with a Horse-themed print all over it....I know a little sister who would just LOVE to have a tote bag made from that!!!

Good Kai and Mahi

Having quite a few cultures represented in our family unit, I have always wanted to learn the cultures (ie. cooking, craft, language) of each one. Being bought up in a Dutch family I can speak conversational Dutch and know enough about the culture to navigate it. I can cook Dutch meals and sing Dutch songs to my kids. That's one down.
My husband represents the Maori and Samoan cultures. To get a better grip on the Tikanga (protocols and traditions) of Maoridom and to fulfill a desire to learn the Maori arts, I enrolled in a Raranga (weaving) course at night school.
I have done 4 weeks of the course and am just loving it. Our tutor, Tia, has such a beautiful heart and is so encouraging and knowledgeable. So far we have learnt to harvest our own Harekeke (flax) and prepare it. We have made a bouquet of flowers all woven from one piece of work.............


Rourous (food baskets) and a wall hanging (sorry no photos yet!).............

And.....a plasticbag holder..........



This week we are going to start our Kete Pikau (backpack bag) so it is all very exciting. I love the challenge, the character development (great way to practice perseverance and patience!) and the company of the 5 ladies.

In addition to my weaving I also attempted a traditional Maori meal of Boil-up.
It consists of stewing meat, potatoes, kumara, pumpkin, cabbage and dough-boys.
I felt very proud when my husband's verdict was, 'just like mum's boil-up'. Yay!!
I found a great website with Maori recipes
These recipes have cooking times and quantities which is FAB as most recipes are passed down through the family so everybody has their own variations. Have a go!!

~~Our 6th Anniversary~~

I just spotted some photos from our Wedding Anniversary back on January 19th.
So here is a post in hindsight.......

On our Sixth Anniversary we took our lovely children to their Opa and Oma's home for a day and night of fun with the rest of the whanau.
We headed off to spend the day doing whatever we wanted without having to think about feeding and napping little people on time. We popped in and said HI to our dear friends Dave and Rae on the way out to Raglan. Consequently we stayed for a leisurely lunch and a good catch up (at that stage they were waiting for the arrival of their firstborn Eva-Elise). We then meandered out to Raglan with a stop at the Bridal Veil Falls (55m high) and enjoyed the sights and sounds.












Then we spent a leisurely 3 hours out at the beach, Ken surfed, I read my book, we swam at 7pm and basked in the warmth of our summer sun.



All of this outdoors worked up a bit of an appetite so Fresh fish and homemade kumara fritters for dinner. Followed by a coffee at The Tounge and Groove.

What a wonderfully relaxing day, spending time together, just being.

Time like this is so refreshing to one's relationship and binds us closer together.

BLUEBERRY BLISS

It's Blueberry season here in NZ and where we live in the Waikato, it's Blueberry Country.
So off we went to pick some scrumptious blueberries with the whole family in tow.
We picked 7 kgs between 2 families. That may sound a lot.....trust me it's not, they are just too nice to leave hanging around.....even in the freezer. We have done Blueberry Smoothies, Blueberry and Lemon Yogurt Cake, Blueberry Pancakes and am planning Blueberry Cheesecake, Blueberry Pie and many more Blueberry Smoothies.....YUMMMY!!!