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.

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.

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.

50/365

Grace in small things.

1. Getting settled into a new rhythm. I'm working two days a week now, and it took a bit of time to get used to that old way of doing things (and overcoming the emotional "wahhhhh!" of dropping the Little Man off at day care). But we're settled now.

2. A refresher of optimism and hope that comes from being invited to sell my things at gorgeous places like Skyline Salon, Sienna Loves Kai, Beanies Cafe and now Things British.

3. Having inexplicably long fingernails. I'm a hopeless biter.

4. The gorgeous soft scarf Amy knitted for me. I got to bust it out all day yesterday because the library is cold. Thanks Amy!

5. De Forbrydelsen (The Killing). It's so good you won't get annoyed about having to read subtitles. And, even though he's never seen it, it's fun to say "Troels?" to Dhari because he responds with, "Yeah, Troels?" And if you get him to say "Troels Hartmann" he sounds Danish. But if you say "Theis?" he will say, "No, not Theis." Poor Theis. After 20 episodes, I finally know who killed Nanna Birk Larsen and why. And I can't wait for Season 2 to see what happened to "Anne" and if poor Sara Lund ever gets any sleep.



I know there's an American version. But. I'ma stick with the original.

39/365

Grace in Small Things.

1. I've started a cross-stitch project. So far it's taken me two days just to transfer the pattern. There must be an easier way, I just couldn't figure it out. But I'm way excited to start stitching and see the final product! It will be one of my Facebook giveaways, which I let fall by the wayside there for a while. Oops.

2. Going to a funfair yesterday with Dhari, Sophia and Hazel. I took Dhari on loads of little kid rides, including the caterpillar train, the teacups and a little train roller coaster (which he loved at first, but then at the 4th or 5th time around he decided "I don't like it! I don't like this one!"). I was hoping he'd come off saying, "I ain't afraid of no rolly-coaster!" But he didn't.

3. Summery days like today. Ooh, sunshine.

4. The tea cupboard. It's the only spot in the flat that isn't cluttered. Thanks Marcus!

5. Charlie Brookers The Hell of It All. It makes me laugh so much I can't really read it on The Tube. You're not allowed to smile, let alone laugh, on public transportation.

34/365

Grace in small things.

1. On Sunday, hearing Dhari shouting, "March again! March again!" because he had so much fun at the March for the Alternative with his daddy on Saturday.

2. Starting the day with great intentions to get things done. I've managed to tidy my bedroom, dance around the (now tidy) lounge with Dhari singing "Don't Dumb Down" by the Rumble Strips (yes, Dhari got his ukelele out), clean the bathroom, re-list an item on Etsy and start this blog entry. For me, this is an achievement!

3. Staying out late on Saturday night to celebrate Ben and Jane's engagement and then having a midnight curry on Brick Lane. Yum.

4. All the compliments (mainly on Facebook) I got on my new tiny hair. Always very fun. A random man in Chiswick called out, "Crackin' eyes!" when I walked by on Saturday. It's a great compliment, but then, you always have to wonder, where is the line between an honest compliment and street harassment? Surely, it's defined by the way the comment makes the receiver feel. If it makes you smile, it must be a compliment. If it makes you uncomfortable, then harassment. For me, it made me smile, mainly because I get a kick out of the adjective "crackin'", because I associate it with Gavin and Stacey. What do you think? My clever friend Kate explores this very question here.

5. The way Dhari sounds like Snuffleupagus when he's really focused on something. He also sticks his lip out, which is a distinct Chappelow trait.

30/365

Grace in Small Things.

1. I've been invited to sell my stuff at the Crafty Fox Pop-Up Market in April! This is really exciting. It's a craft market at a bar (!!!) and is enthusiastically endorsed by Etsy UK, so it must be good. If you live anywhere near The Dogstar in Brixton, you need to come. We can make it a drinking game. Every time I sell a bib, you take a shot. I really hope you get wasted.

2. Dhari is giving away free kisses today. And I'm hogging them all. Mwah-hahah!

3. Old episodes of Mock the Week on Dave. I laugh. And laugh. And laugh. It's like The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, but with a quiz format. I can't wait for the new season to start.

4. Esther has helped me to Celebrate the Boy by ordering some more boy bibs. I made six last night!

5. "Sausages" and mash for dinner tonight. Mmm...

29/365

Grace in Small Things.

1. Using the last episode of Skins to clarify a student's understanding of what themes actually are.

2. Dhari was really really excited to see his grandmuma and granddad. It was cute.

3. I started making Hazel's lavender door hangers this evening. I think they're going to be luuurrrrvely and might have to make some for my own home too!

4. I already posted this on Facebook, but as I was getting off the bus at Richmond Station, an old man with awesome sideburns let me get off the bus first and then told me, "Your hair colour is really pretty." It was sweet and totally made me smile.

5. I discovered a little shout-out for my friend Dana on the Made By Rae blog today. Dana's featured design is the Dinosaur Rock Band. It makes me happy that she is getting major kudos all over the place, because she is awesome, talented and hilarious and she definitely deserves it.

17/365

Grace in Small Things.

1. Dhari's love of falling down. "Oh no! Oh no! Oh No! OH NO!"

2. Swimming pools on roofs. More importantly, reading in lounge chairs next to swimming pools on roofs.

3. Making time for breakfast as a family. We do this pretty much every single day. This reminds me that while my New Year's resolution is to work on the rhythm of MY home, some of it is already in place. Rad.

4. Finding sand in my handbag, pockets, shoes, et cetera when it's 5 C outside here.

Certainly not 5C there, though. *sigh*

5. Misfits Christmas special. Hee-larious and mentali.

12/365

Grace in small things.

1. 15 minutes of crochet practise everyday.

2. Hand-applique. It gets down to the basics of handmade.

3. I'm pretty lucky to have such a photogenic child. I'm just sayin'.

4. I was pretty impressed by the number of young folks who took to the streets yesterday to protest cutbacks in education. I know violence and vandalism is not really the answer, but it's good to know that there's passion inside London youth that they get angry enough to smash stuff up. No complacency there.

5. The magical casting of Boardwalk Empire. Steve Buscemi and Michael Pitt? That's just the beginning! Oh my goodness.