I saw this fab mural by Eline Pellinkhof a while back on this Bloesem Kids room tour and I thought I’d found a post with a video tutorial. Turns out it’s not a tutorial (dangit) but this post on Freshome DOES have some close-up examples of Eline’s cross-stitch wall murals so maybe you’ll get some tips about how to recreate it yourself. I’d imagine that all you need is a cross-stitch pattern and an overhead projector. Otherwise, rumour has it that Eline will be releasing a DIY kit some time this year.

File this under: things I love.

Here’s something fantastic to do on a rainy day – turn your favourite book into an edible project! Playing By the Book recently ran a competition called The Edible Book Festival and this was my favourite entry by South African blog Se7en. Their edible illustration of ‘Augustus and his Smile’ is equally fantastic. Have a look and be inspired. It would be a great way to bring your kids’ favourite books to life or get them interested in foods that they haven’t tried before in a fun, interactive way.

I hope you all had a wonderful Mother’s Day. My sister, niece, Mother, Aspen and I went to yum cha for some yummy dumplings followed by Baobing (which we decided is a delicious snow cone for adults). If you follow me on Instagram, you’ve seen these already but I just thought I’d share a few pics from the weekend (Me and the kidlet, me and the hubster, the cuzzies and my very own Mummy).

I got an email from a friend today and she ended it with the words ‘You’re doing it all right.’ It absolutely stopped me in my tracks because quite frankly (and most of my close friends know this about me), I feel like I’m hopeless in the Mum department. In fact, on an hourly basis, I feel like I’m actually doing it all wrong.

When people give me advice, it’s a waste of time because I already KNOW what I can do better, I’m constantly going over the things I need to improve on. Am I cooking the right meals for my daughter? Am I playing with her too little/too much? Should she be wearing something warmer/cooler when we go out? Should I be stricter in my discipline? Should she watch this cartoon? And that’s not even touching on all the failings I feel as a teacher to my child (ironically the career I initially studied at university… note to self: best decision ever becoming a designer) especially as she is very much behind in her speech (also note: if you need a speech pathologist recommendation, I’ve got the lady for you!). I’ve even gone to parenting classes recently as I finally gave up on the idea that I’d miraculously wake up one morning knowing exactly what to do (at 6am of course, because my kid decided for two months that this was a good time to wake up).

I love this quote I heard a while back: A mother’s guilt has its own postcode.

Man, I don’t just live in that suburb, I am the Mayor! (OK so you don’t have Mayors of suburbs but Alderman just didn’t sound as good). Anyhoo, long story short, I really appreciated my friend writing those words to me (Thankyou Jackie, you always know the right things to say) and I thought I’d share them with you in case you’re ever feeling the same. The words may not be 100% true (we wouldn’t be human if we actually WERE doing it all right) but it makes a nice break from the constant messages in our heads saying the opposite.

Toy designer, blogger and Mum, the very talented Mari at Small for Big created this free printable book as a gift for Mums this Mother’s Day. Beautifully illustrated, it’s the story of Mother Nature…

“Where is Mother Nature?
You’ll find her in the things she does and the things she loves.
She’s right there, and here, and over there too.
Do you see her?”

You can download and print it for yourself right here.

This find is care of Cool Mom Picks. I wish these colourful organic cotton chevron baby blankets had been around when Aspen was tiny – I much prefer them to the ubiquitous pastel blankets that grace every baby store shelf. US$37.65 from Little Hip Squeaks on Etsy

While not as beautifully illustrated as last year’s printable by Inessa from Diaper Memoirs and me, this printable will definitely add some colour to your wall! Hope you enjoy it. Feel free to post up your pictures of it on my Facebook page. Designed to fit both A4 size and US Letter, it can also be scaled to any size – when in doubt, print it BIG!

And as usual, I’ve made some wallpapers for the ol’ technology too…

Download Wall Art  |  Download iPad wallpaper   |  Download iPhone wallpaper

Here’s a sweet little gift idea for Mother’s Day – a thumbprint heart pendant. Check out the tutorial here. (via Moms Rising)

The Stitchsmith has just come out with some new custom embroidery patterns which would be a great way to celebrate the birth of a new baby or to decorate a kid’s room. The kit comes with a customised pdf file including a pattern to trace, a reverse pattern for heat transfer, a stitch and colour guide and full instructions on how to transfer your pattern onto your fabric.

I love the colourful and quirky folk art of Neon Matisse – so perfect for a kid’s space (or my space). Prints are US$18 in their Etsy store.

To say thankyou to the stores who participated in my Mother’s Day ad feature which is raising money for the World Vision West African Food Crisis Appeal, I’ve decided to round up something I love from each of their stores. There are some great discounts for CMT readers so you could score yourself a bargain as well!

*Go here for details about discount codes at checkout

Dala Horses wall art from Love JK AU$29.95

A3 Manifesto Poster by Smile Collective $30*  |  Jellystone Bangle : Bonito Baby AU$14.95*

Earrings by Mudbird NZ$40*  |  Love print by Erupt Prints NZ$28*

Custom artwork by Keep Me Sweet US$13.50  |  Gift Kit by 74 Lime Lane AU$3

Cloud Mobile by Baby Jives US$49  |  Pot of Gold Healing Balm NZ$26.62

I must have doilies on the brain because I’m loving this Zara Hanging Pod chair from Kiwi store Cush & Nooks (the store is a recent discovery and I pretty much want everything in it…like this bone inlay console table!)