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Category: Life and laughter

  • How to make a piñata – number five piñata

    How to make a piñata – number five piñata

    Over the next few weeks I thought I’d share some birthday inspiration from the girls’ birthday parties. Today is how to make a piñata using a cardboard box and a loose piñata pattern for a number five pinata.

    Step 1:

    pinata

    Find a decent-sized box. Ours was a sand and water table box, because it was a rectangle shape. There’s no exact measurements here, so choose the size you like. I found for number five, it works best to have a rectangle rather than a square-shaped box.

    Step 2:

    pinata

    Draw on the front of the box the shape you wish to make. So for us, it was number five. Make sure the sides of your number five drawing go directly to the edges. You’ll see why in a minute.

    Step 3:

    pinata

    Using a Stanley knife (or a kitchen knife in our case), start cutting the inside sections of the five – that is, the half circle at the bottom of the five and the straight and curved sections of the top. Do not cut along the length of the box at the sides, only across the width.

    Step 4:

    pinata

    I found it useful to then use the knife or a long pencil to trace through to the back of the box from the inside. Repeat the cutting steps.

    Step 5:

    pinata number 5

    On the half circle at the bottom, you should now have cut the front half circle, back half circle and across the width of the side of the box (as shown).

    Step 6:

    pinata number 5

    For the top, you should now have cut into the box from right to left, followed by a cut downward and then finally the curve shape. Do this for front and back, along with the right-hand length of the box (as shown – so much easier to see in pictures than to explain in words!)

    Step 7:

    pinata

    Go through and measure strips to cover the exposed outer edges to enclose the pinata. Then use tape to stick the strips to the pinata. You should have plenty of cardboard leftover to do this.

    Step 8:

    pinata decorating

    Now to decorate. Take some streamers and slice three quarters of the way up the width of the streamer, being careful not to cut all the way through. These cuts can be about 1-2 centimetres apart. TIP: To make it easier, put a few layers of screamers together and cut a few streamers at once.

    Step 9:

    number 5 pinata

    Wrap the streamers around the number five cardboard cut out. You can alternate between colours or use one colour. It’s completely up to you.

    Step 10:

    number 5 pinata

    You’ll notice we left a few holes to allow us to put in treats for the kids.

    Find yourself a decent stick, the end of a broom or, in our case, an umbrella to use to bash it open at the party. It’s fairly durable, so it takes a bit to crack open, but then, that’s half the fun!

    What are your favourite birthday party games?

    Want more birthday inspiration? Try…

  • Perfect gift ideas for a six-year-old girl’s birthday

    Perfect gift ideas for a six-year-old girl’s birthday

    Gifts for six year olds

    Those of you who follow this page on Facebook will know a couple of weeks ago I put a shout out on Facebook for decent gift ideas for a six-year-old girl’s birthday. One of Ella’s friends was having a party and I was completely stumped with what to buy her. I also didn’t fancy pacing the streets for two hours looking for something. I’m possibly the only woman in the world who isn’t good at shopping. I’m serious.

    Next week we’re into birthday party No. 2 for the year and the first thing I did was revisit that Facebook list. Which took forever to scroll through to find, I might add.

    My time management skills tell me it would be a heck of a lot easier to just put all those ideas into a post. Mainly because I’ll be calling on the list again come November and December when Ella’s birthday and Christmas arrive. See, that’s why I have a blog!

    So, here are the ideas graciously given by the Three Li’l Princesses Facebook community.

    Ideas for a six-year-old girl’s birthday

    My favourite:

    • Mixing bowl, spatula and cake mix wrapped in a tea towel or apron OR a baking set

    Best birthday idea for your own child:

    • Money and a date card for just the two of you for hot chocolates and a spot of shopping.

    6 year old girl birthday ideas

    Thank you so much to everyone who made suggestions. It means a lot – especially to my feet.

     

    What are your suggestions for gift ideas for a six-year-old girl?

    Other gift suggestion resources:

    Christmas gift ideas for kids – girls

    Fabulous gift ideas for a one-year-old girl’s birthday

    These are a few of Ella’s favourite things

    Please note: Some links are referral links. This means if you choose to do business with the company in the future, I may receive a commission.

  • A new take on the horror chain letter

    A new take on the horror chain letter

    Chain letters send shivers down my spine. Mostly because in the late ‘80s I was petrified I was going to die in 27 days if I didn’t send a letter to 15 of my friends within a week. Oh, the torture. Especially because I didn’t have 15 friends to send it to. I didn’t sleep on the 26th night and nearly died from exhaustion by the 27th.

    It got worse in the ‘90s when I was supposed to send a letter onto 12 friends in a bid to receive 36 pairs of underpants. I received one flimsy white g-string. In the early ‘90s I was in high school. And certainly not wearing g-strings.

    Fast forward to yesterday, when I opened the mailbox to see an envelope addressed to Ella. Ordinarily, Ella runs to the letterbox, discovers all the letters and eBay parcels are for me and becomes bitterly disappointed. At age five, to see her own name on a letter was just the best thing since email. Not that she’s ever received an email.

    Sticker Club Chain Letter

    This is what the Sticker Club chain letter said:

    Dear Ella
    Welcome to the Sticker Club! Please send one pack of stickers to the person listed in the #1 spot. Next, move my name to the #1 spot and put your name in the #2 spot. Then send the letter to six friends.
    If you cannot do this in 6 days, please let my mom (yes, it said mom) know because it is not fair to all the other kids who have participated so far. Within 2 weeks, you should receive 36 packs of stickers!! This is a lot of fun and exciting to see where your stickers come from. I also LOVE getting mail, don’t you?
    Thanks for participating!
    Your friend,
    PS. To the parents: Please take the time for this quick project. It is worth it to see the smile on your child’s face when they open their mail.
    To make it easier, we have enclosed a blank letter for you to copy. Before you write on it, make 12 copies. One for each of the six friends you are sending it to and six blanks to make it easy for them as it was for you. You only need to buy 1 pack of stickers and 7 stamps.

    I have to agree, getting mail really is the best. And to see the excitement on Ella’s face over just a letter, I can’t wait to see what happens when she receives 36 packs of stickers. That’s my kind of chain letter. Apart from the bit where I have to peel 36 packs of stickers off furniture, walls and carpet.

    Did you ever do chain letters as a kid? Has your child been involved in any?

  • How to successfully balance work, parenting and love life

    How to successfully balance work, parenting and love life

    With Valentine’s Day today and the fact many of you have spoken to us through the blog and Facebook about being a single parent, eHarmony Australia has written a great post for us on how to better balance work, parenting and your love life. Enjoy! x

    Guest post sponsored by eHarmony Australia

    For single working parents, life can start to feel like one giant juggling act. Many parents struggle to strike a happy balance between their titles as mum, dad and colleague. In the hustle and bustle of day-to-day life, the role that usually gets sacrificed first is their search for love as a single man or woman.

    The good news is that successfully juggling work, parenting and romance doesn’t have to be a superhuman feat. Here’s a look at some tips and ideas for making it all seem more achievable.

    Relationships

    Photo credit

    Let go of the guilt

    The first step to feeling better about your lifestyle as a single working parent is to let go of the anxiety and guilt about things not being perfect. At the end of the day, very few people’s lives are actually ideal. From a historic perspective, single working parents are a relatively new group in society, and institutions like welfare, daycare and maternity leave haven’t quite caught up yet.

    The key is to stop searching for perfection and let go of the super-woman working mum image we so often see in the media. Once you do that, you’ll feel a lot less pressure about how your family life ought to look and function.

    Set clear boundaries

    Your different roles as a parent and a work colleague will often compete for your time and your attention. It’s important to draw clear boundaries to make sure you’re committing your full attention and care to each part of your life. That means things like switching off the work mobile phone when you’re bathing your kids and setting clear guidelines about not being contacted by the office on weekends.

    It’s important to think about when the most important times are to be around in your children’s lives, whether it’s when they wake up, when they come home from school or having a family dinner together.

    Relationship

    Photo credit

    Use your support network

    Being a single parent doesn’t have to mean doing everything on your own. Make the most of the support networks in your life, like your family and friends. Always ask your workplace to consider new incentives to make your life easier, like an office crèche or flexible start and finish hours.

    Finding a network of other single parents in your area is a great way to find like-minded people and gain advice on the best way for handling tricky situations. For instance any singles in Perth looking to meet people with a similar lifestyle, parenting groups often meet at South Beach for a swim or coffee at the Fig Café in Freemantle.

    Don’t sacrifice your love life

    Being a mum and a worker shouldn’t mean the end of your love life. You might not have the time to head out on blind dates, but there are plenty of other ways to meet eligible singles. Online dating for instance is an easy and convenient option that locates like-minded people in your area.

    Best of all, with the option to tailor your matches, online dating sites make it easy to find singles who share your love for children, as well as your other core values and attitudes.

    What are your tips for successfully managing work, parenting and love life?

  • 12 Valentine’s Day ideas to date your husband all year round

    12 Valentine’s Day ideas to date your husband all year round

    Valentine's Day ideas

    The last couple of years have seen The Bloke in the Shed and I a little lean on the dating front. There’s usually wine and chocolates, but there’s also a TV, two laptops and a mound of work to catch up on. Valentine’s Day, birthdays and Christmases roll around and we’re reminded we probably should be more romantic.

    This year we’ve decided we’re going to make more of an effort for regular “date nights’’. Especially now Holly is a little older and able to be left with other people.

    Here are traditionally good ideas for Valentine’s Day that we’ll be aiming to use throughout the year instead.

    1. Masterchef at home. Spend some time in the kitchen preparing your favourite dishes and eat together – alone – afterwards, just like you’re in a fancy restaurant. It’s a true Valentine’s Day ideas that even calls for surprise roses beforehand, don’t you think? (I have been known to buy Julian flowers. It’s true! It was a really dark coloured rose back in our early days. I don’t think flower buying should just be for the men).

    2. Go stargazing in the backyard. Take out a blanket, spread it on the ground and lie down while looking at the night sky. Even just sitting in the outdoor area with a wine. The beauty of this one is it costs you nothing. Except for the wine.

    3. Tourist in your own town. I’m ashamed to say, but there are things here in our own town we haven’t done. You know, those touristy things? We’re always so driving somewhere else.

    4. See a live event. Back in the day, we used to attend concerts and shows all the time. We’ve often remarked that “oh, so and so is in town. They’d be great to see’’. But we never go. We may even travel interstate for a show. Maybe…

    5. Watch a movie at home. Prepare your popcorn and drinks and snuggle up on the couch together to watch your favourite romantic movie. Dim the lights for added effect.

    6. Eat out at a new restaurant. There’s something about food and romance. They just go so well together. This year we’d like to try somewhere new.

    7. Go on a road trip. Head out to a new destination. The time on the road will be perfect to talk and bond.

    8. Climb a mountain. This is the ideal date idea for people with adventurous spirits. That’s not necessarily me. Although, one of my greatest memories is climbing to the Wineglass Bay lookout on Tasmania’s East Coast with Julian. It was worth all the effort.

    9. Gourmet picnic at the park. It’s such a simple activity, but thoroughly relaxing. Unless it’s infested with tantrum-throwing two year olds. We’ll be leaving ours at home! Pack some cheese, dips, smoked salmon, cured meats, olives, crackers, fruit and nuts.

    10. Head to the beach. I’m not a beach person. As I’ve said before – I hate the sand. However, there is something about walking along the beach together. (I say this after Julian took me to Boat Harbour to propose 13 years ago and I refused to step out onto the sand, so he had to propose in the car. If only I’d known!).

    11. Find a hobby. Sometimes we get to a point where our lives boil down to work and kids. It’s nice to have something you can do together. Even if doing arts and crafts is a one-off activity, it all helps to create new memories.

    12. I need ideas for No. 12. What would you suggest? Do you have regular date nights? What sort of things do you do?

    DISCLOSURE: I received vouchers in exchange for my time and blog space with thanks to Roses Only. All opinions are my own.

  • Back to school tips from mums in the know

    Back to school tips from mums in the know

    Ella started Prep today. She packed all her little books and pencils into her giant school bag and then nearly toppled over trying to pick it up. It was like an ant trying to lift an elephant. Two guesses who ended up having to carry it!

    We then happily trotted off to school, until my “happy happy joy joy’’ mood was challenged after we circled the car park without luck. We decided to do a blocky in the hope a park might be free second time around. Still no luck. After the petrol light finally came on, I gave up and parked two blocks away. All of a sudden that bag got heavier.

    It was a long morning, but we made it on time. And Ella’s excitement hadn’t waned. She couldn’t wait to show me her new class, her bag locker, her tub – and the toilets. An essential part of any tour!

    Today is only day one – apparently I have 300-odd more jam sandwiches to make – but I can already see that adjusting from a three-day school week to five is going to make life interesting. So, to help stay a little organised, I’ve pulled together some fab tips from mums in the know. Hopefully they’ll help you too:

    Back to School tips

    Back to school tips:

    My eldest has a ‘Things to Pack’ card on the refrigerator. The check list encourages him to be independent and responsible, and is easy for any age to read the picture cues. Days of forgetting drink bottles, hats, news folders etc are no more, and he is definitely proud that he can achieve this for sure!
    Virginia

    Talk to your child/ren positively about school and about their school day. When you pick them up from school ask such questions as, ‘What was the favourite thing you did today?’ It helps to make your child’s experience at school positive and helps them to see the good in things!Cate

    Always make lunch the night before, you never know if you’re going to sleep in.
    Andrea

    Create a School Launch Pad at home. Dedicate a space at home where your kids can pack and unpack their bags and where you can get school stuff organised. Got the sports kit organised for tomorrow? Place it in the Launch Pad ready for pick up.Bubble

    With four little ones under seven,
    colour-coding is my answer to school day heaven.
    Each child knows which coloured items to gather
    And even dad can manage if I’m under the weather.
    With colour coded labels to match,
    We’d make it to school by 8.15am without a catch.
    Jessie

    I love putting little notes in my kids’ lunch boxes. Not every day but as a surprise every now and then.Billie

    This year we are trying out frozen foods. I have made a bunch of sandwiches, cakes, banana bread and muffins then put them all in the freezer.
    Jane

    My tip is to organise a ‘school info’ folder to put all the newsletters, documents, order forms etc into so they all stay together. Also get your partner/husband involved as much as possible so not everything is your responsibility or job! Leonie

    Our independent little Miss loves having clothes laid out the night before to put on “all by myself”. Undies may occasionally be on backwards – but no matter! A sticker chart for jobs done has also been great – and the Grobag Groclock to keep her resting/sleeping in bed until a reasonable hour in the morning has been a lifesaver!
    Simone

    My best tip is getting my children to change out of their school uniforms as soon as they get home (it doesn’t take long for them to get them dirty. April

    As a past teacher, my top school tip is to double name everything. Label clothing items especially with a name on the collar and then one on a seam or something.
    Anita

    Homemade, budget school lunch snack: popcorn. Buy a 99c bag of corn kernels and a packet of brown paper bags. Place a small amount of popcorn in a brown paper bag, fold over the open end of the bag and tape it down. Place it in a microwave oven for two minutes and it’s done. Just place it in a small reusable container. Kara

    Sit down on a Sunday with your child and help write and organise a menu for each day’s lunchbox. It helps get your child interested in eating healthy and creates a better relationship with food. Making it fun with food themes is also a great idea.
    Melissa

    To make school mornings easier to manage for us and the kids, we decided to create each child their own little cubby space that held all their school gear. There was a hanging space for their bag, hat and a space for their school shoes and all the bits and bobs. To make it even easier we created a daily checklist of items they needed to make sure was packed in their bag. Each child had a different library day, a different reader day, a different PE day etc so the daily checklist made things so much easier for me and for them. The check list also included things like Hat, lunch box, recess, drink etc. I found a visual display was much easier for them to remember what was needed and they also got ready in the mornings much quicker. Kaz

    In my house, school socks used to go missing! Each morning we would be almost ready to leave until my son would point out – ‘Mum, I can’t find any socks to wear!’ So to make things easier for my kids (and maintain my own sanity in the mornings) I have set up a little school area in my garage with hooks for the school bags and a big basket to hold all the clean school socks (and another for their school shoes).
    Michelle

    New stationary is fun, but definitely not cheap, But there’s ways around it, this tips one to keep! Each year empty bags, and review what comes home, Check ink levels for textas with a fine tooth comb, Throw out what is broken, and match up what still works, Saving money on old stationary is one of the perks! From the old, sets of pencils, crayons and textas should be made, Add only what’s missing, keep the rest for the next grade. Clean and label everything meant for school, It will all come home again, which is pretty cool! Elise

    What I don’t like, because it’s not very nice
    Is the possibility of the kids getting head lice!
    We’ve already experienced one infestation
    Oh, the nuisance, and sheer devastation!
    I try to maintain a positive perspective
    But even the products are often ineffective!
    Not to mention the time and cost
    And combing guarantees patience will be lost!
    So, my top tip for back to school would be
    Tie hair up, and use a defence spray with tea tree
    Hopefully this will be enough to stop the nits
    Because they really do give you the sh… sads!!!
    Michelle V

    I have bought Miss 6 and Miss 5 school shoes with Velcro so they can put their own shoes on in the morning. Over the holidays I have also taught them how to do each other’s hair. Tanya

    See more tips over on Retro Mummy’s blog.

    What are your tips for getting through the school year? How are you going so far this year?