Fun Ramadan Craft Ideas for Kids ..

With Ramadan less than a week away, I thought it would be fun to share with you some fun and simple Ramadan Craft activities to enjoy with your children ..

Ramadan Decor ~ Ramadan Joy 

Paper Punch-Out Lanterns ~ Kids Activity Blog 

Eid Cookies ~ Ode to Inspiration

Numbered Flag Garland ~ Ramadan Joy 

I really want to try having a go at a few of theses activities with my girls, I love homemade decor, I think it would be the perfect start of making our own traditions too, Insha'Allah ..

How are you starting to prepare for Ramadan ??

Claire x

3rd Birthday Gift Ideas

Its so hard for me to believe that my baby girl will turn 3 in 10 days !!

The thing with having 4 girls is, I have saved most of the "good" toys so when it comes to birthdays sometimes I find it hard to know what to buy.. 

But a bike is top of our birthday gifts this year ..

Bit disappointed that I cant find this Schwinn bike anywhere in the UK, So will have to order from the US, but its just too cute not to buy for her, I am already looking forward to the warmer weather to take her to the park on this roadster ....

Additional gift ideas ..

She loves despicable me and Minion Rush is a favourite app in our home , so I know she would love a soft minion too.

Lego and Mega blocks, are a favourite too, she spends hours building towers, cars, homes whatever she can think of.

Minnie mouse, seems to have been around my home for a long time, each of my daughters have been slightly obsessed with her at some point, yeap we are having a Minnie Mouse cake this year too !! These Cute Minnie Mouse PJ's (available on-line from the Disney Store, also on sale) would make the bedtime routine that little bit special, lets hope for a good nights sleep too !!

My 6 year old loves Doc McStuffins, to naturally my almost 3 year old does too, this Doctor bag set (also Disney Store Online),  would be perfect for imaginative play, I guess I would be the patient most of the time :)

Do you have a 3 year old ? Any gift Ideas ..

Claire xo

:: The best of 2013

Here is a round up of some of my favourite photos from 2013 ..

What a year, we enjoyed the holiday of a lifetime in Egypt !!! as a family of 6 :) amazing what glorious sunshine can do for your photos ..

My eldest daughter enjoyed her school prom and is now in her first year of highschool (she was also awarded the headteachers award , so proud of her ) .

My baby girl seemed to transition from a baby in a "little girl" we survived potty training in the day time, just need to work on the night time too, its a work in progress!

I was accepted onto my first Design Team which was so much fun ..

I opened a successful etsy shop selling die cuts and paper accessories, which I have since closed..

I changed my blog from Lemon Paper designs to Live Love Create so I can chase my dreams with this blog ..

Made some pen friends , which i love , truly talented ladies and their letters make me smile  .

In late November i re-kindled my love of sewing, dusted off my sewing machine and started to sew, i have a few fun projects in the works and maybe even a shop ???

Lastly, I finally had some closure on a on-going medical complainant, I am scheduled for Surgery for the end of this month...

I am looking forward to 2014 and all the challenges it brings :)

Claire xo  

:: Thought For Thursday

Just as you get into the flow of blogging and feeling like you are on top of your to-do list. Life happens and throws things off balance ..

My baby girl has been sick for almost a week, there have been consistent nights of no sleep and hours in the morning of "wideawakness" at hours that you should be in dreamland , resulting in 1 tired mommy with constant headache, throw in a mix of Consultant appointments and  school concerts , not getting home til 10pm two nights in a row...

My blogging schedule kinda took a back seat so todays post is totally unplanned and I am enjoying a morning off , baby girl is now well and is at nursery until lunch , husband is a work and the other 3 girls are at school, its last day before the school holidays, I am glad these cold mornings are no fun..

So here is my thought for Thursday....

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I am hoping to make some time this holiday to make these ...

Eclairs ~ Americas test Kitchen 

Sugar Cookies ~ I can teach my child 

Vanilla Cupcakes ~ Bakegirl

Carrot Cake Cheesecake ~ Sifting Focus 

Claire xo

Project Life Tuesday ..

Another week gone by, another project life spread :)

This spread is made using the "Midnight" collection, which is perfect for adding pops of colours hear and there..

I embellished using Amy Tangerine stickers and Die Cuts ..

This was a fun week too and it included a rare photos of my girlies all together !!

I am looking forward to starting a fresh, Project Life in January !!! I think I have a good system going that works for me , will you be changing how you Project Life next year ??

The Mom Creative 

Peppermint Hot Chocolate ...

This weekend was the perfect excuse to make home made hot chocolate. It turned out yummy !! so I thought I would share the simple recipe ...

It leaves the house smelling good too !!!!

You Will Need 

• 1/3 cup of Cocoa Powder 
• 1 Pint of Milk
• Handful of Chocolate Chips
• 3-4 Candy Canes Crushed (1 for serving)
• Pinch of salt 

Method 

Place cocoa in a medium none-stick  saucepan. Gradually whisk in milk until cocoa has dissolved. Add chocolate chips and crushed peppermint; simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until chocolate and peppermint have melted. And the mixture has thickened.

Add salt.  

Use a sieve and a measuring jug to pour the mixture into. Then use the jug to pour the hot chocolate into mugs. serve each with a Candy cane.

Me and the girls liked to dip our candy canes into the hot chocolate ... yummy :)

Now all you need to do is watch a Christmas Movie and your all set !!

Claire xo

Adapted from Martha Stewart

Project Life !!

I have always admired people who commit to a year long project. Some of my favourite bloggers create weekly project life spreads, I have always wondered how do they make time ??

Project Life is something that I have always wanted to have ago at, but wasn't that sure where to start, after words of encouragement from blogging friends and Instagram, I figured why wait until January to start when you can start now..

I suppose everyone has a system that works for them and I think its important that you find something that works for you! I will share more of works for me over the next few weeks..

To begin with I needed to figure out how I was going to simplify something that I thought was going to be complicated. Truth is, is not complicated at all in fact once you get started you will be asking yourself, "why didn't I start this before"

Essentially you need 3 items to start with , Album, Pockets and a core kit .. There is so much to chose from, the hardest part is deciding which ones ..

This is what I chose.

And this is my first weeks spread .

This is my favourite card ..

Its Really fun and therapeutic when you start .

 ~Cx 

Little Moments ....

Happy Monday ....

The girls are back at school today after the half term break, its quiet..

We had plenty of fun though and as they get older it seems easier to embrace the little moments.

One of the days included another boat trip, something so calming about water and the fresh air is always welcome, here are some photos for you to enjoy...

Will be back tomorrow to show you my first project life spread :) 

~ Cx 

Sunday Inspiration ....

Its been a few weeks since I last posted a Sunday Inspiration post, sometimes things tend to get in the way and make your plans impossible to follow..


So, here are some things that have been inspiring me lately...

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Hope that you find something inspiring too, maybe spending sometime outside or crafting ???

For the rest of the day, I am spending the day crafting at my local class :), the girls will enjoy some quality time with there aunty !!

Have a great day !!

~ C x  

Enjoying the moment

This past week was a tough emotional one for me :(.

So a day of  fun and surprisingly warm weather yesterday, was just what i needed to remind myself to enjoy the moments.

It was also a great opportunity to take my camera and take some photos, I miss carrying  my camera round and just snapping away, I must remember to take it with me more often..

Here are some photos from yesterday ..

We took the girls on a canal boat.. So relaxing !!!! They even had a go a steering so much fun !!!

Enjoying a go a graffiti art !!

I spent some time this weekend making "Autumn" inspired embellishments... I have to say that these Yo-Yo's are rather addictive. But they are the perfect quick project to make when you haven't got a lot of time..

The rest of my day will be spent tidying and a quick trip to the shops and maybe some more Yo-Yo making.

Happy Monday...

Handmade gifts ...

Happy Saturday :)

I am so ready for the weekend, this week has been emotionally tough.. I am looking forward to a day hibernating at home .

I have lots of projects in the works to keep me busy, not to mention 4 girls at home :)

I thought I would share with you this quick notebook I made for one of the ladies that goes to the same craft class as me, she celebrated a special birthday yesterday ..

She loves floral papers , so that was the focal point for both the card and mini notebook..

This notebook was really simple to make, I just gathered a mixture of patterned, plain and even a music sheet to make the pages inside, used a paper piecer to make 2 holes and embroidery thread to tie everything together ..

The fun part is embellishing the cover,  using up your paper scraps is ideal for this project. I also included a mini glassine bag (underneath the crochet trim) and a blue tag..

What plans do you have this weekend ???

Any crafting ??

Claire x 

Midweek ....

Just thought i would pop in and say a quick "hello" :)

As i wait for my much needed (strong ) morning cup of tea to cool down, children's programs play in the back ground and my baby girl is sat/layed colouring .... a typical morning for us..

I thought I would share a quick photo, some Midweek Inspiration.

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There is something about hot air balloons that i find so inspiring. Maybe its the colours or the feeling of being free..

Or the dream that one day I may get to go on  hot air balloon ride, whatever the reason i find them fascinating..

I have seen a few stamps, paper and embellishments with the balloons too, I think they would make a great mixed media project, layout or canvas .....

I have a few errands to run today and a holiday mini album to complete !!! I am half way through and looking forward to taking some pictures to share with you ..

Oh and a little nose that needs to be wiped :)

What's inspiring you lately ???

p.s. don't forget to enter the little mini kit give-away i have going on at the moment 

Claire x 

  

Confession ......

Happy Monday, How was your weekend ???

Mine was a mixture of crafting with the girls, watching movies and a huge clean up and sort out ....

Mondays for me, is the day when i try to get organised, meal planning, shopping and tackling the huge washing pile, that has mounted from the weekend..

Which leads me onto my confession ....

I spend way too much time on Pinterest. In my defence is does help me plan my meals and helps to keep my creative mind in overdrive ...

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Take this week for instance, I have 2 new meals planned and a few desserts, as well as a few projects on the "to do" list  ...

Here is fun menu/shopping planner I found.

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The rest of my day will be spent, washing, drying, writing out and ordering food for the new meal ideas, maybe a little time working on my holiday mini album, something that has been on my "to do" list for far too long ...

Will be back with photos soon ..

Claire x 

Midweek ....

Whilst I sit on my couch enjoying some snuggles with my sleepy 2 year old, I thought I'd share a quick photo while i wait for her eyes to give in and close ....

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Later today I have a Doctors appointment for my daughters injections, my aunty is coming for dinner and I have a few projects to finish off for a Design Team Call..

Now that the girls are back at school, I am still trying to figure out a Schedule that works, after the long summer holidays I haven't quite got back into the swing of things..

But Yay!!! half way through the week {already}

The last days of summer ......

Its hard to believe that summer is over and that we are already into the first few days of autumn. Which is my favourite season, the crisp air, the colours, the clothes and i am looking forward to Movie nights snuggled in a blanket with hot chocolate :)

These are my girls on the last day of the summer holidays enjoying a yummy ice cream ( i think this photo will make a great scrapbooking page ). I have to admit i do miss them being at home and look forward to the weekend coming, just to enjoy being in their company.

September is almost like the start of a new year for me, especially this year. My eldest is in her first year of high school, my 6 year old is in her last year in the infants and this is the last year i will have at home with my baby before she starts school part time..

I know how important it is to enjoy the moment with them ...

Sunday Inspiration .....

This is the last weekend, of the long summer holidays. Its kinda bitter sweet as part of me is eager to get back into a routine and enjoy some quality time creating, whilst I know i will miss the girls and the constant flow of noise and laughter..

Today is a day for relaxing with tidying up thrown into the mix , comfy clothes and no make up ;)

So here is some Inspiration for the week ahead ...

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Still very much inspired by mixed media and Art Journalling, I am working on my own journal and can't wait to share with you soon !!

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How pretty are these bracelets ??? The colour, the style. In my eyes perfect :) 

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Yellow, is my all-time favourite colour ( hence why lemon is part of my blog title). It makes a lovely complimentary colour. It look gorgeous with this smokey grey colour.Not to mention that Vase is to die for !! 

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I recently found where to purchase this Tim Holtz clock and lets just say it is on my wish list... I think the possibilities are endless and could be switched to go with each season ..

And a little note, for you to remember ........ 

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Have a great week :) 

Will be back tomorrow with details of a new challenge over @ Craft Blogging Central