Mojo Monday

Tomorrow is Daddy Monkey's birthday so I thought I better make him a card. I'm not terribly good at those so I need someone who is. Like these people here. Except even with a lovely sketch as this it took me several attempts to produce a card suitable for a big birthday as Daddy Monkey's.
But I think I did, I really like this one. Good that Daddy Monkey always keeps his cards forever. And look, look I used the German stamp!


I even managed to make two pretty cards.


Impressive, no?

How could I be angry?

If he looks at me like that?
Even if he hands me the contents of his nappy nicely rolled into beads first thing in the morning when I hope for a lie in?

At least I still think it was a good idea

Yesterday I read Green Craft magazine and I saw the little seed pots they used as little gift bags. I thought oh, I like this, what a clever idea. They do look familiar though? Why would that be?
Maybe because I made something very similar for Big Monkey's birthday party as goody bags?


Yes, that could be it...

Toddler wisdom - Part2

Little Monkey likes what his big sister has. So when she asks for more juice, he wants more too. Regardless whether his cup is still full or not. Until now he had to accept that he would not get more juice if his glass is already filled to the prim. But not anymore. This morning he thought he had come up with a glorious solution to this dilemma. He simply pours his drink into his bowl once he's eaten his grapes. Voila, an empty glass for more juice just like Big Monkey's. Clever, eh? Except it didn't work! That is so disappointing. Daddy did not fill up Little Monkey's glass again. He just took the bowl and poured the juice back into the beaker. That's not what Little Monkey wanted! Time for a tantrum? Little Monkey wasn't sure if that situation actually validated a proper toddler tantrum or not. He had to have a serious think about this. But he got distracted after a few seconds and forgot everything about the tantrum and his drink.

Trains, Trains, Trains

Oh, how he loves trains! Little Monkey adores trains, whether they are tube trains, steam trains or regular train. Big trains, little trains, Thomas the Tank engine, Brio, Lego - he loves them all. Nothing better than sitting in a train and riding along. Nothing is more interesting than the promise to go on a train ride.


He hangs out of the window so he spot the locomotive. Once he has to get off he stands in front of the train and stares adoringly at it. This is in Exbury Gardens, where the Rothschilds collected rhododendrons. Well, one of them had a "disease" incurable but not fatal as the train driver told us, it's called train obsession. Oh, no I thought, Little Monkey got that! Maybe he will grow out of it? But so far he shows no signs of healing. I don't think we can do what the Rothschilds did... build a proper narrow train track with a steam engine in our back garden.

Signs of Autumn

Look a ... toadstool? Is it a toadstool? I don't know. If you do let me know please. I call it a "Fliegenpilz" and I think it's so so pretty. I have to confess that this is the first time I've found one. Several grew where we found the cows in the forest. They never grew in the woods where my grandparents lived when I was little.

Here are the cows in case you're wondering. We didn't have those either. In the forest I mean, obviously there were lots of cows in the fields.

Autumn in the New Forest

Last weekend we took a little trip to the New Forest to see some Autumn Colours. The leaves haven't yet changed completely but we were very lucky with the weather. We had lovely sunshine both days. But best of all there are wild ponies roaming the National Park. Big Monkey was delighted. She took great delight to comment the sight of each pony to everybody, even Little Monkey joined in. Even though he was terribly busy collecting stones. Especially really big ones.

Children don't make you happy...

I recently read an article about the fact that having children doesn't make people happy. Apparently the sleep deprivation, the stress of dealing with screaming children, toddler tantrums, school proplems make parents unhappy.

But really would you find an alien in your bathroom without children living in your house?

Or a Lego zombie between your flower pots (and spiderwebs)?


You wouldn't have a door for fairies to visit your garden either, now would you?


You wouldn't fill your washing machine with load after load of teddies, horses and bunnies so they can sit on the radiator for a day or two, right?


I don't know about you but this makes me happy, just for starters.

Confessions of a inquisitive mind

The journaling reads:

I have emptied nearly all of a brand new 900g box of rice krispies onto the floor
I start singing at the earliest possible moment each morning at around 5.40 am
I have stuck 3 beads up my nose so we had to go to A&E and wait for four hours
I said mummy hurt me even though she only closed the fridge door
I always say yes even though the answer clearly should be no
I normally scream before anybody even realises I didn't want that
I need to cry because nobody peels a banana the right way, there is no right way
I push my big sister because that makes her squeak really loud
I don't ever listen but that's because I always know best anyway

Ah, the joy of having a toddler to share life with...

Fabric paper ATC

Somehow I'm so busy I don't get round to take photos of what we're doing although the local A&E might not be the best photo opportunity. But lovely atc's make good pictures. Those are for yet another swap, I'm really happy with them, they came together really quick.
Oh and about the A&E, nothing bad happened at all, just very inconvenient but more later. It's been a while too.

Felted Postcard

I made this for a swap, we had to make a fabric postcard.


As I had those lovely wool fibres I felt inspired to felt the postcard. I really like the feel of it, very soft and warm. Previously I always made a card backing for a fabric postcard but this time I chose some batting and fabric for the back. This contributes to the cuddly factor. I like felting, it's so quick and easy to do. Albeit a bit dangerous at times, it's definitely best to not take the eyes of that needle. These needles are terribly sharp and a punched finger happens quickly. Very painful but the sound it makes is worse.
No blood on this cheery picture of goldfish though, I hope my swap partner likes the card as much as I do.

Stick Insects

I finally managed to get sort of decent photos of the stick insects. Their cage is not the most photogenic but they need the holes to climb up.


We had four to start with now we have 11 or 15... it's hard to count the little ones. In the beginning they managed to climb through the little holes and we found them sitting in front of the cage. No doubt wondering how to get back in and have the food. We might have lost some this way but I sure hope they are just hiding.


The little ones hatch looking just like the adult ones. They step out of their skin a few times until they reach their final size which is about 10cm. Then they also get the red batches on the first pair of legs.

A haircut

After we came back from our holiday, oh, a month ago, Big Monkey decided to have her hair cut as everybody else in the family had so before we went away.


She decided that she wanted it that short and as it is so convenient I was all up for it. In any case I know that once she has made up her mind there was no changing it. I think it looks super cute anyway. But I won't tell her that of course, she's not cute don't you know!