Saturday 24 November 2012

Enchanted Fairy and Gnome Party

My beautiful Mahlia turned four a couple of weeks ago. I am at a loss to even fathom where the last four years have gone. In a blink of an eye, she's gone from this enchanting, knowing newborn to a terrific toddler (with a handful of those dreaded tantrums for good measure), to a delightful, caring and clever little girl.

She had been looking forward to her party for months. She originally wanted a butterfly party, but I dissuaded her as that was last year's theme. So she selected the good old fairy party. However, she plays with the boys at Montessori as much as the girls, if not more. So I took it upon myself to make it an Enchanted Fairies and Gnomes party. I tried to keep it as simple as possible. We held it at a beautiful nature reserve just ten minutes from where we live—plenty of space for fairies and gnomes to run and roam freely and safely. Here are some photos and details of her morning.





We held a treasure hunt, and Papa Gnome handed out paper bags and instructions—take ONE item from the balloon-marked areas. We had bubble wands, fake flowers, fairy dust, feathers and chocolate coins (many of these were put out, and none were left, so the instruction of one each obviously went unheeded!). When they made it back, the girls were gifted a handmade (by yours truly) wand and the boys received some magical gnome stones (aka marbles in an organza bag).

I made the decorations—doily bunting and tissue paper pom-poms. Not much more needed I thought, as the setting provided the perfect backdrop. Food was also simple, with popcorn, cups of berries, cheese and crackers and fairy bread. And of course the cake. Layered with a small fairy statue on the top. I also made the flower garlands that my little fairies were wearing – cute hey?

I had planned to do a lot more, but I'm more than happy with the end result. And more importantly, the birthday girl was as happy as can be. There is so much inspiration out there on the internet, and I wasted spent many an hour researching! Now, better start planning Leila's second birthday party ... any ideas?

Thursday 8 November 2012

I Uv Oooo

Well, after much procrastination, I am finally making my first post. What prompted me to bite the bullet now? Three little words ... I Uv Oooo. This is what I overheard my youngest daughter, Leila (19 months old), say to her big sister, Mahlia (just turned four yesterday - eeekkk!). My heart melted. And so I realised that I really need to document these little moments as my memory isn't holding up as well as it used to.

And they really do love each other most of the time. Sure, Mahlia gets annoyed at Leila at times when she finds her little sister trashing her bedroom. But they spend most mornings sharing, playing, taking turns, chasing and reading together. Leila dutifully obeys Mahlia's demands for extraordinary lengths of time. They take turns pushing each other in the fire truck on the deck. I love seeing their bond strengthen every day, and can't help but imagine them in 10, 20, 30 years time. Actually, I try not to imagine them in their teens—that downright scares the bejesus out of me!


There's an 11 and 13 year difference between myself and my brother and sister, and I am close to them now, but growing up I would have loved to have a partner in crime. With 2 years and 4 months difference in age, Mahlia and Leila are already enjoying each others company and genuinely love being together. 
Sigh ...

Do you have a close bond with your siblings?