Book Week Costumes

Last week I spent a busy time at the sewing machine and I think I may have my sewing grove back.  Yipeeeeee!  I have taken over one of the rooms downstairs to set up my workstation.  It is so big that I have my sewing machine, overlocker, a few big bookcases (to be used for my books, craft books and material) and a large cutting table (the old camping trellis table)  Now all I have to do is get some sort of hanging space so I can hang my designs up, put the ironing board up and a large cork board for design inspirations.  Wow that sounds much more grandios than it is or I will ever be able to produce but it is a nice area to go to and sew that I can shut to door to-well I WILL be able to close the door once I unpack a few more boxes hehehe. 
So here are the piccies of the children in their costumes for book week.  The had to go dressed as a character from a book.  There were lots of superhero costumes and princesses but there were some really good ones-like the gladiator with cardboard armour that was all cut out so the plates were overlapping. 
So here are

MrJ as a Dinotopian.  He relates EVERYTHING to dinosaurs, every. bloody. thing., so one of his favorite books is the series Dinotopia.  About a mysterious island where people and dinosaurs live together. 

MrS as Aragorn from Lord of the Rings.  He has a bit of Lord of the Ring love atm.  He is valiantly attempting to read it and for a child who struggles so hard with school work that is a huge feat. 

and finally there is MrB as a wizard.  He spent all day in his costume, bless him, all the others changed out. 

MsH didn't want a costume.  I offered repeatedly but she decided not to.

All in all a good weeks work. 

New family member.....TASHI

We have a new baby...a little English Staffordshire Terrier.  She is only 3m old and is beautiful.  Mainly black with a bit of brindle showing through.  A friend had her and due to her circumstances decided that a puppy wasn't a good idea so offered her up for a good home.  I don't know if we quailfy as a good home but we got her.  It has been decided that she will be MrS's dog-so he gets to scoop the poop. Yeah! score one for mummy as MrS is 10 and if I find a poop I call him and he cleans it up.  Wish it were that easy when MsR was in nappies :)  I get to feed her titbits so she loves me. 

Life here is full on as a neighbour also offered us his bird.  MsH has been after a pet and decided that bird was it so she is happy as well.  Rocky is a cockateil and can do a good impression as the phone. 

MrB wants a pet too but I don't think they allow dragons in built up areas??????

Sausages

Oh the lengths you go to for a sausage!   We don't do 'normal' sausages from the shops due to MrJ's allergies and the fact that we try to be a FAILSAFE family, so unless we can get a butcher to make them up for us we go sausage-less :( :(.......unless that is you like playing with playdough. 
What??  Well what you do is take your basic rissole/meatball recipe or use the one in the 'Fed Up' cookbook and divide it up into equal sized balls.  Then this is the fun part-roll them out like playdough snakes.  They take roughly the same amount of time as to make rissoles.  They have no processed, fake, plastic skins, no yukky preservatives/artificial flavours/flavour enhancers/MSG or its hidden un-named relatives just whatever meat you choose (beef/chicken/lamb are FAILSAFE), rice flour and salt.  I gently fry them in the smallest amount of oil as they do release a bit of fat as I use a full fat/regular mince (or if I'm using chicken mince I add a tsp or so of butter to the suasage mix) or slowly poach them in a little water (the water if left to go cold and skimmed of fat makes a good stock)
Tonight we are having bangers and mash with onion gravy. 

Bargin!!!!!

Wow it pays to ask the universe and wait for the reply.  Just picked up a dinning table with chairs for only $320.  Not often do you come across an 8 seating table with the chairs in second hand places.  And it was wood.  And it wasn't knocked about.  And it had the lovely shaker style chairs so no more catching my blouses on the chair back knobs and ripping off the buttons.  Haaaaaa.  It is slightly larger than our old one so can seat 10 with a comfortable squeeze rather than a shoehorn and "mind your elbow"

Its been raining here and P has made the children their own bows and arrows.  Amazing what a piece of bamboo gardening stake and twine can do.  Oh and don't forget the bright blue duct tape.  Appartently you NEED it to stick accross your face in tribal stripes!!!