{The Ordinary Moments} | My Sunday Photo

{The Ordinary Moments} | My Sunday Photo

{The Ordinary Moments} | My Sunday Photo

My Monday Making: Valentine's decorations

Hello! Monday is always such a difficult day for me... Its the first day of the week, where I have to prepare for a hard working week as also finishing up some chores left from the weekend. And this weekend was a special one, as we celebrated Valentine's! I decided that this valentine's would be a family event, where we would celebrate the love we feel for each other. So I tried to make it special for everyone, and make it special for the little kiddos particularly. Once again I went all out with decorations and a lot of baking! The kiddoes do enjoy it, and... I think they are starting to expect it, as they are becoming a biiitttt demanding... lol! More on that later....

Our lunch was special , and I baked a hear dessert for it. I followed this recipe here, for a layered Brownie Heart Dessert.

I started by baking two heart shaped brownies:

This is what they looked after baked, quite cute, when removing the brownie from the foil goes well! My second brownie was not that good looking....

I then made the strawberry cream... Look at those gorgeous colours!

And spread it over the brownie.

Then its all about strawberries!

And here goes the second brownie. As you can see it fell apart, but I was able to cover the hole with strawberry cream.

 and it looked good ... and very tasty in the end:

Making the decorations was the fun part. I made a lot of heart banners and also a big heart to hang. For this I used my stash of tissue paper I had. I used different tones of pink to make an Ombre effect. Kiddos started by helping me, but then got bored!

I began by cutting squares of tissue paper, and glue with a regular glue stick.  I chose to use the darker pink tones first, and then ended up with the lighter pink shade.

The brown paper I am using is the rolls of wrapping paper I have around. I am always saving paper for this little experiments. Everything can have a second, third and fourth lives! I also used this paper to wrap the Valentines gifts. I did forget to take pictures! Next time I will remember to take some...

And this is how the heart ended up:

I cut a lot of little hearts to make the bunting. I made 3d heart bunting for this, so very easy to do! I will later share a tutorial. Its does take a lot of hearts to cut out, but that can be a task that you can share with your little guys!

I also made a banner saying 'Be my Valentine'.... And little fan! yes, I have a lot of pink paper around... Not so much now as I used a lot of pink for Valentine's!

And for snacks I also made some cupcakes and merengue... Cupcake toppers were obligatory! 

My oldest when saw the cupcakes asked 'Are this valentine's cupcakes?'...  I answered, 'Yes, honey, they are!' ... and he replies: 'So why are they not heart shaped??' LOL! Very demanding little fellow....!

I hope you enjoyed a lovely Valentine!

xx

{The Ordinary Moments} | My Sunday Photo

My Monday Making: A bird automata!

Hello everyone! I hope this post finds everyone in good health, both mental as physical... and that everyone is keeping themselves safe. Uow, what crazy times we are living, never ever have I imagined that in 2021 posts of mine would start this way. But this is still our covid's reality. 

It has been a long time since I have last published a post about our little makings around the house. Have to say that with lockdown, I have never been so busy and lacking time to do anything. My sewing machine is closed up in a cupboard. And, being completely honest is not as I have the right mind frame be sewing properly . And since I have little people to keep entertained, any makings have to involve tiny hands, and be fun!

I have come across an amazing whale automata when browsing the internet for ideas:

Yes, this at some point will be something for us to make, but.... not in the foreseeable future!

I had to search for something more feasible for us to make. Much easier to do as well! So  more browsing and I found this tutorial at a great website for automata, Rob Ives .

The tutorial I chose to use was this one, for a cork bird. So .... we started to make this little guy!  We begun by gathering all the materials. We have a lot, and I mean a lot of corks in our home (not sure why... do we have someone who really loves red wine??). As I am always printing articles and so on, we have a lot of paper clips. We just had more difficulties finding foam, as it was spread in different places, kiddos love to find new spots to stash their craft materials. You can also use card for the bird body really, but since we had leftovers of foam, we chose that material instead of card.

Cutting the materials for the bird body was easy.  I did made the hole on the cork, which is very straightforward to do. The bit that was really difficult for us (particularly for the big kiddo, although he had fun using mummy's tools) was straight the paper clips, and even more difficult to fold these at the correct angles, as you can see below:

In this image big kiddo is trying to shape the crank. He started shaping the angles, and I finished as the best I could. Not the most easier task even for mummy!

This image shows another step, inserting the legs in the birds body. 

The bird final look! A bit different from what it was suppose to look lol

And here is the bird finally attached to the cork:

But the good part is, even if you get clumsy angles or not straight at all legs, the bird still moves, although in a really funny manner!

It really did not matter if we did not managed a perfect bird, but making this little guy kept us busy, and the kiddos still enjoyed playing with it.

 Let's see if I can start posting more regularly. No promises though, as finding some free time with home-schooling is not easy.  I hope this post gets you some inspiration to spend time at home with kids! Share some ideas below, I would love to hear from you.

xx

{The Ordinary Moments} | My Sunday Photo

#Mutual Aid

 I would not imagine that in the beginning of 2021 Mutual Aid would be so necessary or more comparing with last year. We are at the start of the 3rd lockdown, but this time around this new lockdown, at least for me, feels different. Families have to once again  home-school  my children, which will also be impacting their activities and  work -  if indeed working. I am also home-schooling my children, and know first-hand how truly impossible it is to have some work done. And on top of what already is an incredibly  busy day, it is still needed to deal with the regular chores around the house. Experiencing enclosure this time is more exhausting, and feels that my resilience is not on the same levels as before. All seems more difficult to do. Imaginative plays are not so imaginative, TV is on more frequently, and I am taking more and more time to recover.... Seems when waking up, I am already tired after what was a really long day.  I hope not to get to complain so much, as I wanted today to write more positively... So, I am reserving some quietness around the house to write a few words about how volunteering  with my local Mutual Aid Group  helps me cope, and lifts my spirit a little.

I am volunteering with my local Mutual Aid Group, Southampton Coronavirus Mutual Aid Group and this has truly kept me sane. Kind people, compassion and generosity are still well alive amongst the world. Noticing how the group aids the city makes me feel hopeful and meet so many kind members makes me recover hope in our world's future. When I first started to volunteer I did not expect that after 2020 our Group would be so necessary. This is what I feel it is still so disappointing, as even with such a crisis that my city is experiencing, still so much is left to charities, mutual aid groups, and organic groups and actions that are still popping up to respond to the desperate need of so many. The government and civil entities are coping badly, as austerity has impacted how the immediate response acts. This is what is chocking, as networking with so many charities and groups you also get to learn how so many people are in such a need, and how city councils are limited for lack of funds. 

Not all needs and results from covid and the pandemia, but this has made need, hunger and poverty much worse. And this is still the beginning. As time passes by you understand that more people are left jobless, and how unemployment is reaching new levels. Southampton is already a city that has high levels of unemployment, and I know that these numbers are reaching new heights. Unsurprising, the calls to Southampton Coronavirus Mutual Aid Group hotline for food parcels are increasing exponentially. 

With crisis increasing what I really what to highlight now is how generosity of so many also rises up to the challenge. I want to write how so many Sotonians are helping and donating to City Mission, the Big difference and helping with Southampton Coronavirus Mutual Aid Group food drives. And help is popping locally too, neighbours collect on doorsteps and self-organize to help our Food Banks. These are the positive actions that still make me sane, and learning about all of these positive actions, kindness and generosity only happens because I am volunteering... This keeps me still hopeful, and believe in a better future. I think is as simple as Mr. Rogers story:

"When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, 'Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.' To this day, especially in times of 'disaster,' I remember my mother’s words and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers—so many caring people in this world." 

With crisis, many people rise up to help and face the problems strongly and in positive ways. This is the message that I feel that I am needing right now, and keeps me going - more or less sanely... I am not facing this alone, none of us are. Of course, as many have also explained, we might be facing the same storm, but not all are sailing the same ship. Which is why #mutualaid is needed. Caring people and understanding people, compassionate people are out there, we are not alone, nobody is, and help is out there. And will reach you. It is as Mr. Rogers explains, really comforting witnessing these actions. The prevalence of kindness and generosity. This is what is needed in crisis. 

How do you keep some degree of sanity with the lockdown? 

Let me know about more positive stories!

xx

My Sunday Photo || {The Ordinary Moments}

My Sunday Photo || {The Ordinary Moments}

My Sunday Photo || {The Ordinary Moments}

And 2021 is here...

I can't believe that is already 2021. So much has happened in 2020, that time is not flowing in a recognizable way, at least for me.

Christmas passed, and that warm feeling that usually fills me did not happen. Christmas for me is about family, encounters, spending time together, dramas (what is Christmas without the family drama???) , cooking for large numbers, a typical smell in the kitchen ... long traditions that are so very important for me. This year Christmas was also robbed by 2020. 

We did have a busy Christmas,  two birthday parties, one on the 23rd and the other on Christmas day, the 25th! The penguin party and the crocodile party... I did try to make up for the fact that the grandparents were not around, and make sure the day was special for the two of them. We were zooming all the time with our different grandparents so the blowing the candles was witnessed... Kiddos were happy, but eventually our older did say '2020 is indeed a horrible year'... Our kiddos are noticing the pandemia, and what is indeed robbing from us, no matter how we tried to make it special they know that something is not quite alright. 

Saying that I am exhausted from all of this does not even begin to describe how I am feeling. It's endless days that merge into each other and I hardly recognize that a new day is here, or that a day has passed. And with is days are passing and a new year is here. I am trying to feel hopeful, and bright that there is so much that I can do in my current state.

Not all is terrible, and we have little moments of joy... These are some quick snapshots of moments I am enjoying. My new Christmas slipper which are so comfortable! We are having so many trails happening here! I am now taking part of a new one, a 'fairy trail'. Oh, and I so need so much magic!

I enjoyed so much seeing both kiddos's eyes enlarging when seeing the living room prepared for their little parties! 

Anyway, a new year is here. Happy 2021!

xx