72/365

Grace in small things.

1. A beautiful wedding in Norway that got everybody a bit weepy.

2. A weekend on the seaside in Norway! Unpacking today, I had to shake sand out of everything. Grassy sand dunes on a breezy day are the best.

3. Dhari got to be a page boy at the wedding. He took his job so seriously - it was adorable (up until the bit where he didn't want to hand over the ring to the best man).

4. I sent Marcus on an underpants buying mission. He bought me a pack of GIANT maternity knickers. This cracks me up to no end. (bit ironic that this is in a Grace in small things post, when these knickers are nowhere near small - they put granny pants to shame) mwahahahahahah

5. My new bed is amazing!

71/365

Grace in small things.

1. The Wonder Hill Market today at Tooting Tram and Social. What a cool venue, what a lovely, warm atmosphere (met lots of lovely sellers and bumped into Sinead from Crafty Fox and got to see her brand new fox cub - what a teeny cutie), and what a sweet surprise at the end! I had started to notice a few dapper young gentlemen and some very stylish vintagey ladies milling about, checking out all the stalls. And I wondered, where did these people come from all of a sudden? This is not your every day Tooting look. Then, a swinging song kicked out overhead, and the aisles of the market became a stage for swing dancers. Hence the dapper and vintage. Good fun.

I love that woman's dress.

2. Fresh fruit, muesli and yoghurt for breakfast. Mmm...

3. New pillows! Tempur pillows! And the matching bed coming soon! My back hurt ever so slightly less this morning when I woke up. I think.

4. Another free day full of lots of tiny power. One highlight of all I did: I turned one of Marcus's old snagged jumpers into my no-snags jumper. Easiest upcycle ever.

5. I've started making things for my new home. They will be photographed just as soon as I get to go make that new home mine.

70/365

Grace in small things.

1.  Standing in the rain to catch a glimpse of the Olympic women's road race flying through Kingston. It was bucketing. Those girls are hard.

2.  Taking Dhari to his first football (that's soccer to my Americans) match, and having it also be an Olympic match where Team GB beat BRAZIL!!!! Brazil, people. Dhari absolutely loved it. Especially the bit right at the very beginning when Team GB scored a goal and 70,000 fans jumped and shouted in celebration. You should have seen his face. Priceless. We then got a load of free stuff from one of the food kiosks because their card machine wasn't working and the lady felt sorry for us because Dhari is cute and I am hugely preggers.

Dhari stayed awake until 10:45pm, which is no mean feat for a 3 1/2 year old.

3.  Randomly bumping into two friends at Earls Court for the Olympic women's volleyball yesterday. What a small world!

4.  Having the Olympics in London. This is awesome.

5.  Bouncy Stonehenge! Official name: Sacrilege. I went. I saw. I bounced.

I can't tell if the little girl in the foreground of this shot is crying, or having the time of her life. Any thoughts?

69/365

Grace in small things.

1. Baking. Last night I baked some lemon bars from this recipe (via Pinterest, of course). The flat smelled delightful while we were watching True Blood. Today, I glaze. Tomorrow, I share.

2. Today is an empty day. I don't have to go to work. Marcus has taken Dhari into nursery on his way to work. The flat is clean. I have nothing that absolutely has to be done. It is, therefore, a dangerous day - so full of potential, but potential for what? Productivity? Faffing around on t'interwebs all day? Getting lost in a good book? Basking in the sunshine? It is entirely up to me. I feel so powerful in such a tiny way.

3. We have begun to pack our things into boxes. I was making asparagus risotto for dinner last night and on autopilot, I went to the bookshelf to get The Silver Spoon, only to realise I had packed all the cookbooks away the day before. Not to worry though. I've made that dish so many times I could do it with my eyes closed. But I couldn't really, because I might cut my finger off chopping onions.

4. Marcus, Dhari and I joined the crowd on Monday evening to watch our bit of the Olympic torch relay go by. Living in London is truly a special thing, but only if you have the energy (and lack the cynicism/jadedness) to jump in and take advantage of it.

5. I'm listening to Flight of the Conchords this morning, thanks to a random Facebook thread one of my friends started. Oh I laugh. And laugh. And laughandlaughandlaugh.

A little gem for your enjoyment:



Have you ever been told that you look like a llama?
Tears of a rapper, I'm crying tears of a rapper...


I don't know about you, but I'm crying tears of laughter.

68/365

Grace in small things.

1. Twin Sister. Such pretty pretty music! I found them through this excellent blog, Prudent Baby.

2. Dhari's becoming more and more independent, in a good way. He can go to the bathroom by himself, he can play for significant chunks of time by himself, and he can dress himself. His t-shirt is on backwards today, but who cares? He doesn't. I pointed it out to him, but he said he wanted to wear it like that. He is truly a unique snowflake.

3. Two more days of work, then summer holidays! Yay!

4. I think we've finally decided on names for the twins. We're not telling, though...

5. Marcus got a promotion at work. We're proud of him. :)

67/365

Grace in small things.

1. These beebees are kicking like crazy. Twin 2 (Tupac) is the most nutso of the two, and I'm wondering if that's my fault, for temporarily naming him Tupac. By the way, they're both boys. I can't remember if I mentioned that. Boys. AAAAAACK! Help! Just kidding, Imma love it.

2. Pinterest is really good for planning the decor of a new home. I've created a board for each room, so I can keep my pins organised and start to see some cohesiveness of what colour and style I'll be going with. Sorry. Boring, I know. But it makes mama happy.

3. True Blood is back.


4. I've been reading some amazing books! They're written for teenagers, but whatev. I'm a school librarian, so it's allowed. Required even. Amazing book number one: A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness. I cried my eyes out. Amazing book number two: Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher. I couldn't sleep until it was finished.

5. Brunch at Mel's.

66/365

Grace in small things.

1. I totally made Dhari a pair of bird wings (from this tutorial). It took me hours, but it turned out to be something truly special. And, as I'm a tiny-bit of a hippy, I really like that his first cape is bird wings and not a superhero one. Not that there's anything wrong with superheroes - I just like nature better.

I made it with some fabric my mom gave me ages ago. She used it as table cloths for some themed party she had, and thought it might make cute banditos. Sadly, while I love gingham for banditos, it was the wrong fabric. But I found a use for it finally! And I have loads more left over, if anyone else wants to make some matching bird wings. Or, if you want me to make them for you (or your toddler, whatever). But it'll cost you, because like I mentioned before, it takes hours. :) Pictures to come.

2. We had a glorious (and very busy) trip to the USA. Sunshine, family, friends, dinosaurs, legos, boats, pancakes...I could go on and on, but I won't. I'll just leave it with this:

3. Just found out yesterday that the twins are both boys. I will be totally outnumbered, but this is going to be loads of fun.

4. So far so good on the sale of our flat. Hoping it gets done quickly! I'm ready to get into that house!

5. Dhari let me sleep in a little bit today.

65/365

Grace in small things.

1. I'm back!

2. There are lots of reasons I have fallen off the face of the blogosphere. One is I've been really tired and falling asleep on the couch instead of writing blogs and taking pictures and making things. That doesn't seem appropriate for a Grace post, except for the part that I recently found out I'm having twins! Holy schnikes!

3. We're moving to a house! With an actual garden in the front and the back! And stairs! And a garage! And a little bit of extra space to just be. At least until the twin invasion. I don't think I'll be getting my dream sewing studio. It will probably still be a spot on the dining table, but whatevs. I get a garden! To grow things!

4. I get to see my Americans in a few days. Woot!

5. Days and days of sunshine. Please tell me summer is finally here to stay.

64/365

Grace in small things.

1. Yesterday, at the bus stop, Dhari made a stranger guffaw (it was an actual guffaw, I kid you not) by randomly shouting out at the top of his voice, "WHAT IS GOING ON????" Her response, after the laughter, was, "What IS going on? The bus should be here by now." Sometimes Dhari clearly annoys grumpy people on public transport during rush hour. But he mostly makes them smile. And that makes me happy.

2. Sunshine! Days and days of it! Yay! I know there's a drought in the UK at the moment, and this is a big problem, but there is a silver lining behind this lack of clouds. It's called Vitamin D and happy Londoners.

3. Wet felting Easter eggs out of beautifully hand-dyed Falkland wool. It takes ages, but is really very meditative.

4. Dhari and I will be going to a funfair this afternoon with our buddies, Hazel, Sophia, Alexander, Claire, Jack and Maisie. Dhari is so excited.

5. Growing things. Dhari's really getting into this. At the moment we just have mustard cress growing in an egg cup on the windowsill and some watercress seeds lurking under some soil on the back step, but soon we will have a complete salad, once we plant the tomatoes and sweet peppers. Hahah!

63/365

Grace in small things.

1. Getting recognition for a job well done at work.

2. Dhari's been having lots of really good days! Now there's a kid who loves life.

3. A great day at the Crafty Fox Spring Market. I tried setting up my table differently this time, with the banditos out of their packaging. I think the result was good. Everybody had to touch them and then exclaim about what lovely fabric it was. You can't do that when it's all wrapped up in plastic.

4. Homeland is good.

5. Looking forward to getting ready for Easter. I made Dhari a cute little basket last year, and am planning a few more things for this year.

62/365

Grace in small things.

1. Today is a beautiful day. Sunshine has major restorative powers, people. Just don't forget your sunblock!

2. I held a poetry competition for World Poetry Day (tomorrow) at school, and got a LOAD of submissions. I've already read a couple from the older kids, who have greatly astounded me with their gift. I think of the sort of thing I wrote when I was 17, and I shrink in embarrassment. These boys are good.

3. I absolutely cannot wait for the Crafty Fox Spring Market on Sunday. I've been stitching away on new ticky tocks for what feels like forever, and I'll also be rocking up with some adult sized versions (digital, of course!), just to see how they go. Wish them luck!

4. Dhari's having a rare midday snooze.

5. The Hunger Games film is out this week. Woo! But I think I'll have to wait until next weekend to see it. Oh well...

61/365

Grace in Small Things.

1. Good news on a bad news kind of day. In this case, I am chuffed to announce that I'll once again be presiding over a humbly awesome table at the Crafty Fox Spring Market at the Dogstar in Brixton in March. Woo!

'Springfox' by Jimbobart

2. Marcus painted the kitchen an antique-white. It's suddenly a bigger room. Yay!

3. babybandito has been getting a windfall of ticky tock orders. Wahoo!

4. We're finally getting our buzzing radiators fixed. Now I can sleep with the heating on in my bedroom, without having it wake me up hourly. Shazam!

5. I have finished reading The Hunger Games. Courtney was right. It broke my heart, then put it back together, only to break it all over again. And again. And again. I can't wait for the movie. Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!

60/365

Grace in small things.

1. I sold a ticky tock today! It'll be making its way to the Netherlands tomorrow.

2. I had a nice day at work today.

3. Marcus cooked black eyed peas tonight. Yum.

4. Borgen. It's funny seeing ***THE KILLING SPOILER ALERT!***Sarah Lund's dead ex-partners and so on playing new characters in a different program. Marcus keeps shouting at the TV, "Get away from him! He's a serial killer!" Hahahah.

5. I've been featured in two new treasuries since Friday. Yay!

59/365

Grace in small things.

1. The Ottolenghi cookbook. Have I sung its praises before now? This book has not failed me once. Today, I made a sweet potato galette and ate it up. Mmm...So good.

2. Today I took another shrunken t-shirt of mine, cut it down, sewed it up, and put it on my boy. He now has a Saint Etienne t-shirt. It's this one:

 Coolest kid on earth? Yes ma'am. Thriftiest mama on Earth? Not really, but I'm trying!

3. House hunting.

4. I got Tobyboo's London skyline tape in the mail today. I can't wait to use it. Someone buy something from me please so I can seal the envelope with this most amazing tape?

5. I'm reading Jane Eyre. I didn't think I'd enjoy it, but I do. Immensely.

58/365

Grace in small things.

1. The therapeutic properties of cooking. I came home this evening wanting to destroy something, but after cooking up some lovely minestrone, and then gobbling it up with my family, I felt so much better. Oh, and hey. Don't worry. It wasn't any major personal turmoil; I was just railing against the establishment. Mostly Michael Gove (stupid face. Because of him I might be buying the queen a £60 million yacht for her Diamond Jubilee! I wonder what she'll get me for mine...I'm hoping for an island, or perhaps the NHS...) and Citibank (who have decided to charge us to put our own dollars in our own dollar account!). Anyway, I'm glad I chose to create, rather than destroy. Creating is so much tastier.

2. Dhari is a master of flirting. This evening on the train, he got a woman to tell him her name, note that he knows he's cute, and then show him pictures of her house (on her camera, which he asked her about). I know, I should probably teach him to be less friendly to strangers, but...

3. I just finished reading A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan. It was pretty wonderful.

4. I made a lampshade on Saturday at The Make Lounge. It's pretty awesome.

5.  I'm starting a book club in the library at school. I hope it's well-received! Any suggestions for reading material? The participants will be 14/15 year old boys.

57/365

Grace in small things.

1. Got to chat with my big brudder on Skype this afternoon.

2. Dhari doesn't let chicken pox get him down.

3. The Etsy Spring 2012 Look Book is out now. And I'm in it! Well, not me, but you know...

Open publication - Free publishing - More 2012

Please keep your fingers crossed that this means I'll be madly stitching hundreds of tiny felt watches until I go cross-eyed.

4. Back to normal(ish).

5. I've kept to my resolutions so far: floss daily and improve the rhythm of my home.

56/365

Grace in small things.

1. Nana for Christmas! Screw Santa - this is way better.

2. Tacos for dinner.

3. Dhari for cuddles.

4. Marcus for New Year's resolutions. Oh how lofty (and admirable).

5. Emptied out chocolate tins for sewing storage.

55/365

Grace in small things.

1. Volunteering at Fine Cell Work yesterday afternoon. We put together project kits: cutting and counting strands of yarn and thread, constructing colour keys, and choosing and assembling colour way kits for new recruits to practise their needlework. The last one was good fun. I decided to make a colour way inspired by my shirt.

FCW is a charity organisation that works with prisoners, but what makes them unique is they teach the prisoners needlework/embroidery, and then give them paid work. What they have found is that not only does it give them the opportunity to have money to do things like call home or save up for a better life when they get out, but the work itself allows them to have quiet, positive moments in their cells to reflect and to have positive, supportive interactions with fellow inmates who are also involved in FCW. 75% of the inmates involved are men. Amazing. The organiser read out a letter they received that week from a "lifer" who wrote how important FCW was to him and his own mental wellbeing, and his message nearly made me cry. I hope to do a lot more work with FCW in the future.

2. Adele got her needle book and it would seem that she loves it.

3. I'm going to the Concrete Market today. It's organised by Tobyboo, who I think I've mentioned before.

4. I crocheted a cowl last night with some yarn which I think is from the 80s. It is warm and fuzzy.

5. Marcus gave our bedroom a proper tidy up and clean yesterday. It now looks like no one actually lives there. I love it.

54/365

Grace in small things.

1. 30+ people came to Thanksgiving! Awesome! No leftovers. Not even salad.

2. I went on strike and marched with some old work buddies on Wednesday. It was something I felt strongly about, and would have moped around with a heavy heart for a week if I hadn't done it. I think I was the only person from my school that went on strike (that more and more popular - but completely unenforceable - no strike policy), which is partly why I nearly didn't do it. Let's hear it for swimming against the tide.

3. I made the Purl Bee advent calendar.

It took me 10+ hours and I'm super chuffed with how it turned out and Dhari is really excited about it. He keeps saying, "I want it to be December 16th!" (there's a Green & Blacks white chocolate peeking out of that one)

4. Using sheets of actual wool felt for crafting, instead of the nasty acrylic stuff you get in most craft shops. It just feels so wonderful to the touch and the colours have a warmth to them that acrylic simply cannot achieve.

5. Scott and Regan's wedding in Cumbria. I heart Cumbria, most notably the Lake District. Even in the last days of November, it is beautiful.

53/365

Grace in small things.

1. Big ol' Thanksgiving partay comin' right up. My gonna eat some pecan pie.

2. Dhari made a snowman puppet today. He named it Hmmm.

3. We figured out where to put some of our clutter here at Chez Bhargava.

4. William Shatner and Ben Folds' "Has Been". So good.

5. I still like my job. Woot!