Frazzy Dazzles

Saturday brought with it The Golden Child’s ninth birthday.

I hope he had the day that he wanted to have. Ironically he woke me up by singing ‘Happy Birthday To You’….to me at 6.30 am. Goodness knows how long he had been awake and itching to get into his gifts!

Our little family birthday’s always make me a bit teary and a lot melancholy. I start reminiscing days before hand and am always seconds from crying on the day! Old softie.

I remember when we were first planning to start a family.

I remember the first moment I saw him.

I remember when he first rolled over and when he wouldn’t come in for a bath so he bathed in a warm bubbly paddling pool in the yard on a balmy summer night.

What I can’t do is imagine a world that doesn’t have him…or for that matter any of my little family in it.

I am blessed and I know it.

I am lucky and I’m glad.

I am a mother and I want nothing more from life.

One step after another is all we can do. How fortunate I am to take each and every one with my little clutch around me!

Now….back to The Golden Child. Being nine I sort of think that he’s getting a bit old for some of the things that mum makes for him. A passion for Lego and electronic gadgets rules me out of the big ticket items. However, I am lucky enough to have a little boy who appreciates art, craft and creation of special, individual things. So here’s what I had made for him for his birthday.

This is Sock Dog Ruby. Made by the highly talented Stacey from Three Red Trees.

She’s a little mini me of Harry’s dog Ruby.

I think that the likeness is lovely! She’s soft, smiling and bigger than I thought she would be. He loves her. I love her and she will be with him forever. It’s never to early to buy pieces of art for your children.

Sometimes things get on top of you and you need to leave your postcode and see different things.

I needed a change. I needed to not be in the house, not be in our town, not be in the familiar-ness of my day to day life. So Scott took us here.

We saw lots of lovely things on a bright sunny day.

We spent the day at the zoo. It was fabulous. This Giraffe has the best view in the city!

Then back on the harbour on our ferry called ‘Alice’.

Can you see how much fun we were having?!

She wasn’t the only one smiling that night.

Flowers

Inspiration.

Saved seeds waiting for the warmth of Spring.

A busy family as evening falls.

I don’t have to look beyond my family table to find all the happiness I need.

Where do you find your happy place?

Well, nearly five.

This little girl turns five on Wednesday.

She can’t wait and I can’t find a way to stop time….so we’re going to do it.

We’re going to turn five.

When I thought my surgery would be…tomorrow…we organised to have her party the weekend before the big day. I have no idea how she slept on Friday night knowing that this cake was in the house.

She told me that I was an artist.

If only you could frame sugar and not attract the ants! Ha!

I was actually pretty proud of this over the top and slightly leaning lass.

Just between you, me and the gate post my husband is the birthday cake decorator for the children.

I haven’t even tried to decorate a cake since The Golden Child was one!

So armed with pretty hair,

a pretty dress and party food…mostly pink…

we laid the table with craft-a-licious fun.

All the ingredients for caterpillars, butterflies, wands and crowns.

It was a good day…I wish I’d taken a picture of her face after the face painter had worked her magic.

I wish I’d remembered to serve the warm food that never even made it to the oven.

I wish my jug hadn’t stopped working just when it was needed for cups of tea!

I wish I could have seen everything that happened on her special day when she was almost five.

I would love to have captured every second. Freeze in time all of those moments.

But we ticked a lot of the boxes for the party.

She had a fabulous time and will always know how much she means to us.

Thank you for coming to be our baby girl.

Life’s never been the same since you came into our lives!

Who doesn’t love a redhead?
I’d love to be a redhead…but alas I have ‘mousey hair’ to quote my mother.

But Meg has red hair…well orange hair I suppose!

Do you like her?

She makes me smile. She’s bright, bold and beautiful. She’s a re-purposed chick at heart. Her hair and her dress are both a-la-op-shop! Her dress was originally an apron.

With caramel skin and rosy cheeks she’s been a big hit with The Little Bush Princess. It’s all I can do to stop her playing with the dolls I make. Inevitably she puts in a request for one ‘just like that one’ when each doll is finished! Maybe I should just start making two of everything!

Although, her hair caused me stress. Great stress. I used a funky vintage wool that I’ve never used before. I’m glad I persevered.

The problem was that I couldn’t treat it as I would the other blanketing I usually use for hair.

The end result was that her ‘hair line’ where I sew the back part of her hair ‘wig’ on is more visible than on any other doll I’ve ever made. I also didn’t stuff her piggy tails and they have a raw edge look to them.

I worried about it for a while that she wasn’t ‘neat and finished’ but now I look at her and she looks individual and funky! I love it that her construction is visible and not hidden.

Not my usual style but I like her a lot.

Might have to pull my finger out and pop her into the shop!