Gift Idea - A Jar of Sweet Thoughts

Recently it was my mum's birthday and this year it was a big one. We had a surprise party planned out and had also bought various presents, but I wanted to do something personal, something different. So after a lot of deliberation with me sister we came up with this idea. 

Each of us (me,my dad, brother, sister and brother in-law) would write 10 nice/sweet things about my mum on little pieces of paper, fold them up and put them in a nicely decorated jar (with washi tape). Now what we wrote was completely up to to the individual and no one would ever read what the other person wrote. I also wanted to think of something nice to write on the front and came up with 'A Jar of Sweet Thoughts' as in a jar of sweets. I put the jar on my mums bedside table when the surprise party was going on so when she came up at the end of the night she had something special.

This is a very sentimental sweet gift for some special in your life and it also make you think of all the thing that you love about that person. It's easy to do but very affective (my mum said she cried when she was reading the little notes). And it doesn't just have to be for birthdays it can be for any occasion. 

Summer

As I sit here in an autumnal jumper and listening to the rain falling outside I have realised that autumn has kind of snuck up on us. Don't get me wrong I was aware that it was coming, but the past couple of days the temperature had noticeably dropped. Autumn is in full swing and I have been reflecting on the summer that has just waved good bye to us.

Summer always brings with it longer days and shorter nights. Warmer temperatures even when its raining. A bright and wonderful colour show brings us something different each day with nature taking centre stage. Going into the garden and picking fruit/vegetables that you have been waiting for a couple of months to be just right. Having a day in the park and a picnic with your cousins. Sometimes summer can trick us into  thinking that it has gone for good but the sneaks back on us in September and squeezing every last bit of what it has. The anticipation and excitement of the arrival of a new family member whilst still enjoying the older ones. Summer, its been great and now it is over to the ever changing autumn. 

Pick Your Own

For the past five or so years in the summer we have had the pleasure of picking fruit from my aunty's garden. The fruits in question are plums, greengages, berries and apples, and about a month ago it was that time of the year again. My aunty has many plum and apple trees so there was plenty to go around our big extended family and its always nice to get the kids (my cousins) involved as well. The day we went the apples weren't ripe yet but we got bags full of plums and greengages, also some blackberries. I would encourage you to finding a 'Pick Your Own' farm or establishment because you know that the fruit is going to be just right and it's not all going to be uniform and generic like you find in the supermarkets. As you will see in the vlog I found what I like to call a 'bum plum' ha ha, and here is the vlog :)

Baby Shower Gift Idea

As stated in the previous post it has been a big baby boom this year and I thought it would be nice to do a post on a gift idea of something different rather than the usual clothes, blankets and toys etc. You may or may not know that I love anything handmade, just knowing that someone has put hard work, effort and thought into the craft and what they have made just puts a huge smile on my face. So it may be no surprise that this is a handmade gift made by yours truly.

Embroidery hoop art has been all over the internet for a while now and I have always wanted to try it but never had the chance. The great thing about these are that you have 100% creative control and do whatever you want with them and make them for any occasion. In this instance the lovely mother to be hadn't found out the gender of the baby so instead to going with all neutral colours I went with all different colours. You can use any shape/size hoop, any fabric, buttons, beads, ribbons and anything you want. 

Just a couple of tips

• Always cut your fabric about and inch bigger than you need and tighten it as much as you can on the hoop.
• When finished fold and glue the excess fabric to the inside of the hoop to keep it secure 
• You can also cover the hoop in washi tape, fabric, ribbon, lace or whatever else looks good around it
• Just have fun with it, let your imagination run wild and you never know what you will come up with  

Here is the set of three colourful embroidery hoop wall art, ideal to hang in the baby's nursery  

A button hot air balloon 

Who doesn't love colourful bunting

Colourful ribbons 

The wholes on the side of the embroidery hoop are perfect for threading ribbon through

Close up of the cute teddy bear ribbon 

All read to be gifted 

Afternoon Tea Baby Shower

This year has been full of pregnant ladies and babies, and two of those pregnant ladies just so happen to be my sister and her sister-in law. This seemed like a perfect excuse to make up a dessert table and have an afternoon tea (here is the first dessert table we did). Afternoon tea's and dessert table's are brilliant because they give you the creative licence to do whatever you want with the decor and the menu.

We decided to make the invitations ourselves (which we had a lot of fun doing), most of the pom poms were home made as was the bunting hanging from the table. Food wise we had a mix of home made and shop bought which turned out really well, because if you don't have time to make all the food there are so many bakery's, deli's and other food places that do brilliant food for occasions like this. It always worth having a look around in your local area for places like that. For serving dishes we used a combination of things that all three of us had, what our mothers had and we hired the tea cups and tea pots from the bakery where we got the cake from (And the dish ran away with the spoon). Flowers also make everything look prettier, we decided on one big pitcher of flowers and a few smaller jars of flowers dotted around the table.

All in all I think it was a big success and it just goes to show that a mix of home made and shop bought can work really well, and just have fun with it. Here is the vlog of the whole thing

  

Ladies Lunch and Baking

Recently I have notice the growing trend in 'Tea rooms' and dessert places opening in my local area, and the other day my mum told us about one that had opened near us, so we decided to check it out. CommuniTea Rooms is a none profit organisation that is part of a community scheme. All of the profits that they make go to organising local community projects and events. All of the food is made by them and some of the member of the community also make cakes so it all tastes great. Its brilliant that these guys are make our local community better and organising events for people to get involved in (you can find out more about them here). 

Also that same day I had a bit of a baking day. Now if you follow me on instagram (@capturing_my_world) you will know that a few weeks ago I experimented with making cornbread and it went down so well. Since then I have made it at least once a week and it is fast becoming a family favourite. It's perfect for anyone who is on a gluten free diet or even if you just want to try something different to your normal bread. It couldn't be easier to make

What you will need 

• 265g coarsely ground yellow cornmeal 
• 1 tsp sea salt 
• 1 tsp bicarbonate soda
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 egg
• 60g butter melted and slightly cooled
• 4 tbsp honey 
• 340g yoghurt
• splash of milk   

What you will need to do 

• Pre heat your oven to 190c/gas mark 5/375f (170c for fan ovens) and grease your tin
• In the bowl you are going to mix you wet ingredients in, put in your butter and melt it in the microwave. When melted leave to one side to cool slightly
• In a large bowl mix together the cornmeal and the rest of the dry ingredients  
• To the bowl with the melted butter add the rest of the wet ingredients and whisk until well combined 
• Make a well in the middle of the cornmeal mixture and pour in the wet mixture 
• Whisk until its all combined and forms a batter 
• Add a splash of milk to loosen the mixture slightly 
• Pour the mixture into you baking tin and bake for 30-35 mins until the cornbread is golden brown, our when you poke a skewer in the middle it comes out clear
• Slice it up and enjoy :)

Tips

• Instead of using yoghurt you can use buttermilk, in that case you don't need the splash of milk because it will be looser batter.  
• I also prefer to mix the wet ingredients in a jug instead of a bowl because then its easier to pour in the dry ingredients 
• This cornbread is perfect with your favourite soft cheese and a mixed salad
• You can also experiment with adding different flavours such as mixed hers, spice and cumin  

My sister and I also made a Banoffee pie which we have loved making (and eating ;)) for a long time. For the recipe check out my sisters blog here. I also filmed that day so here is the vlog.

Going to the park

Ever since I can remember in the summer holidays we would always go to the park. This could be either one of the smaller local parks or we would drive to one of the bigger parks out of town. The 'we' that I speak of wouldn't just be the members of the household, it would be all of the cousins, all of the aunties and uncles and even the grandma. We would always bring a picnic (sometimes even do a barbecue) and bats, balls and rackets. Even now at the age of 24 it always nice to see all my younger cousins and niece getting excited at all of animals and rides.   

For the past few years we have been going to the park a little bit earlier in the year as the blessed month of Ramadan  has taken place in the middle of the year. With yesterday being a bank holiday it seemed like the perfect time to gather the brood and go to the park. We drove to one of the bigger parks as the have animals and there is always something going on. Obviously I made a vlog of our time at the park (I didnt film the picnic) so here it is.