Latest Posts
Of Lemons and Other Things
We have 2 lemon trees in our garden. One came with the house, and the other was a tiny little shrub that we transplanted 3 times before we were satisfied with its location.
Felt Dumplings
I’ve wanted to make felt dumplings for a little while. We (well, Miss S and I) eat quite a few dumplings in our household. And I thought they would be pretty simple to make – since I knew how to make the real thing, the felt ones should be easy, right?
Hmmm… not really. Felt ones take way longer than real ones, and you can’t eat them after all that work you’ve put in!
Cupcakes
I love cupcakes – both the making and eating parts. And I love cupcake cases. They make the simple cupcake look so pretty and dainty. I’ve amassed a small collection and I must say, I’m on the lookout for some more!
Cupcake cases
Button-Up Cube
My 2.75 year old loves buttons – especially the process of buttoning and unbuttoning. Bedtime routines take far too long these days – she insists on buttoning up her flannel pajamas. And dressing for the day takes just as long.
So I decided to make her this:
"Button Toy"
She calls it the “Button Toy”.
Here are some pictures of the process:
Jigsaw puzzles
Miss S has discovered she likes jigsaw puzzles.
We were loaned a set of 2 train puzzles – an alphabet and a number train – and she decided that she would work on that on the kitchen floor while I cooked dinner one day. It was terrific – she completed the puzzle in 2 hours (meaning I had 2 WHOLE hours to cook in peace without someone hanging off one leg and wanting attention). And she didn’t need my help – except to show her how to put the first pieces together and look at the picture on the box as a reference point.
Now here lies the problem. Having completed the puzzle, we tidied up after she showed Mr K what she accomplished when he got home from work. A couple of days later, I asked if she wanted to play with it again. She said, “But I’ve already done it”.
So, I made her some “new” puzzles from some stuff we have in our house.
The 3 puzzles
Continue Reading
Chocolate Oat Cookies
Last week, Miss S and I spent a day with friends. This means that us 2 mums relax while the kids entertain themselves. 
We had chocolate oat cookies with morning coffee and afternoon tea. These cookies were the most delicious oat cookies I have ever eaten. Golden, soft, chewy and chocolatey. I asked my friend for the recipe and she said that I’d have to ask A, another friend who made them.
So I did, and A kindly emailed me the link to her friend’s site and I made a batch today.
Coffee and Chocolate Oat Cookies
What would one do with the leftover condensed milk, you ask? Make another batch, of course! Or do as I did and make a cup of coffee – 1 tsp instant coffee, 1 tsp condensed milk and hot water (filtered coffee tastes best though – I only had instant in the cupboard). Or Milo or tea.
Mmmm… brownies
I found this recipe a few months ago. Just reading through the ingredient list made my mouth water. Last week, I made sure that mascarpone cheese was the first item on my list (in my head). And what do you know… I had to go back to the supermarket a few hours later.
The first “make” was perfect – I followed the measurements exactly. It also helped that Mr K took Miss S for an afternoon excursion so there was peace and quiet. I wish I remembered to take a photo.
The 2nd “make” … well, I wanted to use up the cheese and used 3/4C instead of 1/2C. Halfway through baking, the brownie was drowning in fat which had to be poured off. The lesson – follow the instructions!
Brownies - 2nd "make"
Despite the drama, they are still VERY nice and this recipe tops my brownie recipe list.
Now the search is on for the perfect chocolate mud cake recipe…
Hello Kitty
Who would have thought that Hello Kitty would come back into popularity. When I was in primary school, having Hello Kitty stickers in your sticker album was a really cool thing. Come to think of it, having stickers back then was a real treat – when my siblings and I got a sheet, we would divvy them up and then keep them in a safe place (meaning we don’t use them).
Anyway, I digress. I never had Hello Kitty stickers or anything Hello Kitty. The only Hello Kitty thing I had were sketches and drawings I drew of Hello Kitty. It was a fun thing to do, and my friends and I would spend our recesses comparing sketches.
I decided to make Hello Kitty the other day for a little girl’s upcoming birthday. I made two, just in case one went a little wonky. As usual, I used LiEr’s tutorial – Thank you, LiEr for your very many great ideas!
Hello Kitty
The one in the yellow dress will be boxed up with a few more dresses and accessories. The one in the pink dress…. well, Miss S has called dibs on it.
Singlets for winter – Part 2
As a continuation to my first winter singlet post, I made the 50/50 wool/cotton singlets. It’s surprising how much easier this fabric is to sew compared to the cotton knit, and it was a really nice fabric to work with.
After making 4 for my toddler, I attempted to make one for Mr K. Same method – got an old singlet, traced the front and back pieces, cut and sew.
4x toddler singlets & 1x adult singlet
This picture was taken before I threw them in the wash.
They came out quite a bit shorter than they were originally – argh!
ALWAYS wash the fabric before cutting and sewing.
But they will still be worn. No one will see the imperfections – they are singlets after all.