January...

So it's February tomorrow... and its the weekend - yay! It's been a long one this week and I'm so ready for it. We've all been getting over colds here and the kids are pretty worn out and grouchy.

To be honest, as much as I'm glad January is over, it actually went pretty quick and wasn't a bad month. I've been inspired to keep up with my New Year goals, keeping creative, going to new exercise classes (I decided advanced spinning probably wasn't for me!) and enjoying some quiet and slow time too. We've also had some wonderful sunshine filled days, which have felt quite Spring like. We've still not had a speck of snow here, much to the kids disappointment. They are so desperate for a snow day, especially as we missed out on any here last year.

We've spent many of our weekend days at the beach, searching for treasures, and the kids have been enjoying their new scooters at the local skate park. I also spent a lovely day in Brighton meeting up with some Instagram friends for the first time. It was so nice to actually see people in person and have a good natter over coffee.


This weekend we will be: going for a walk somewhere - hopefully in the sunshine, having lazy pyjama mornings, catching up on my project life and getting organised for Elizabeth's little birthday party next week.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend! xx

Styling the Seasons - January

This circle shelf was a bargain I found in Homesense, in the sale section. It was a bit battered, had a distressed finish and a world map painted on hessian as the background. I took it home in the hope I could sand it all back and give it a new lease of life. And after a fair amount of sanding and a few coats of paint, I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out.

I've been doing lots of de-cluttering and reorganising this month, but I've still purchased just a couple of new little bits. Like the letter C initial which I just couldn't resist, and the tiny bowls which are perfect for tiny treasures. Its nice to have another surface to put a few of our most recent finds on, like the heart stone and driftwood, reminding me of special days out with the kids.

I love bringing in plants and flowers at this time of year. I have little pots with bulbs dotted around the place and vases of cheery daffodils to brighten the place up. I've noticed the daffodils in the garden are nearly flowering and the snow drops have appeared this week. Spring is definitely on its way! x


Styling the Seasons is a collaborative project with Katy (Apartment Apothecary) and Charlotte (Lotts &Lotts) Join in and share your story by styling a surface in your home to reflect what each month means to you, then upload your post or picture on social media using #stylingtheseasons.  

Collected treasures

Our finds from the last few weeks... driftwood, pebbles, chalk stones, random plastic pieces (mixed with a few older finds) eucalyptus leaves, shells, feathers, a stone wheel, clay dolls arm and tiny cog (my favourites, from Elizabeth) seed pods and beach rope.

I've decided to do my collected treasures posts a little differently this year. I'll still be sharing our finds each month, but instead of putting them all together in one picture, I will be photographing them as we find them. This way I can fit in all the bits and bobs we find, plus its kinda fun to collect and put things in groups!

As always, please feel free to join in and show some of the treasures you've picked up when out and about. They don't have to be neat or in order, I think its just nice to get a record of them, to remember certain adventures or special gifts from the kids that would otherwise be forgotten. You can find more collections on my Pinterest board here! And my previous collections here!

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend! x

Weekend...

Windy weather and big waves // pretty boat stripes // I see faces // throwing stones in the sea // finding patterns at the park //  a perfect space to drive his monster truck // another park, another beach walk // fishing crate colour love // bare branches and blue sky.

Hope you had a wonderful weekend! x

Lately... and a word

Hello! So the kids went back to school today and the holidays are officially over. Elizabeth wasn't best pleased about it. Its so hard when they're out of routine, I remember those feelings all too well.

I'm feeling a little sad that the festive season is over, but I'm really looking forward to starting a brand new year. A fresh start with adventures to be had and memories to be made. Inspired by other blog's I've been reading, I have decided to choose a word for 2015, to focus on throughout the year. I found it so hard to choose just one. There are so many things I want to achieve this year, so many changes I want to try and make and new things I'd like to learn.

I nearly chose the word 'brave.' My lack of confidence has always, and always is holding me back from doing so many things. This is definitely something I want to work on this year - to step outside my comfort zone and push myself to go new places and do new things.

But my one word is 'create' I have realised lately how important it is to find the time to be creative. To have a project or two on the go, to find some time to do my own thing.

I have lots of DIY's and projects planned and I am also going to start project life. After having a couple of years break from scrapbooking, I feel really quite excited to start again and I think this way of memory keeping will be a much simpler way for me to keep up to date. I'd like to journal more too, to combine my photos with words to tell stories and make sure I am documenting all those everyday moments I'll want to look back on.

I also plan to be a little more creative here, and alongside more DIY projects, I'm hoping to try some new things with my photography and the way I present them. I'm working on a new design for the blog too, so watch this space.

Do you have a 'word' or any goals and plans for the year ahead? x