The boys

When Josh is away, we all sleep in the same bed. Oh well sometimes I do wonder if I would be more comfortable on the floor.

I have monsters under my bed though...

Collecting snails. Monsters love snails.

inspired by

Spring crafts

Every now and then I sneak into the workshop and get some sewing done. Mainly for my shop, but every now and again I feel like doing something for us. Miro has pretty much destroyed the banner that was hanging in the hallway (paper+kids=disaster waiting to happen), so I decided it was time for a small revamp.
I saw some cute fabric patchwork clouds on Etsy and pinned them.

Source: etsy.com via Natacha on Pinterest

Bits of fabric is what I am not lacking, so it was pretty easy to put together some fabric. Tahi even gave a helping hand stuffing the clouds.

I also made a 3/4 sleeve shirt for Miro from one of Josh's old tee shirts.

For a while I've wanted to try making a lamp shade in the style of the doily lamp shades.

Source: blog.mad4flash.com via Natacha on Pinterest

Since I have no doilies and none of that special glue you need, I thought I'd try it with pattern paper. It turned out as I expected, the various bits of paper overlapping look great. The shades do look a funny old kind of faded yellow, not the prettiest, but when they are lit they are pretty and they add warmth to the room (I've put them in the bathroom).

meanwhile in the garden

Spring is finally here and the wind has picked, announcing warmer days. I have been spending a lot more time in the garden getting it ready for summer planting. Most of the seedlings are still in boxes and I'm itching to put them in. This year I've even managed to get tomatoes, basil, capsicum, eggplant and cucumber going in the house where the temperature is much higher (these plants need a soil temperature of about 15ºC) and they have shot up very fast.

spring flower

borage flowers (edible)

After spending the last month digging a new potato patch (our garden spreads every year, there's never enough space), fertilizing most beds with horse manure, adding compost and mulching, the garden is looking a bit empty but tidy (this stage never lasts!).

peas growing in the foreground (with Cds on the teepee to keep birds away), netting over strawberries to the right and cape gooseberries in the background

My favorite crop of the moment is asparagus. If you've never tasted a freshly picked asparagus, you're missing out on a beautifully delicious crunchy asparagus. When I pick some I don't even steam them when added to salads. Well worth the three years wait for the roots to get strong.

asparagus... yuuuuuuuuummmmm

Miro loves giving a helping hand, watering the garden to death with the hose or a watering can, pricking out seedlings and trowing them in the air, tipping out soil (usually with newly planted seeds)... I guess at least he's showing an interest in it, even though it can sometimes be frustrating (and take me twice as long to go through my list).