Pumpkins in Trees

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"Writing is like pumpkins in trees, sometimes an idea takes on a life of its own and you just end up with a pumpkin in a tree with no idea of how it got there"

Blogs about zero waste, natural things, humour and mum life in New Zealand

New Zealand mums tell their birth stories - part one.

So many mums have had their own stories to tell so I wanted to compile a blog dedicated to them and their own birth stories. Birth can be beautiful, incredible, funny, weird and sometimes heartbreaking. Thank you to all who contributed, it was so amazing reading your own journey through birth. Please also check out part two HERE also. Many thanks to... Vanessa Wood - Owner of 'Suede Studios' Photography Abi Copley - Blogger at Mammaknows Courtney - @courtneyandsons - owner of

New Zealand mums tell their birth stories - part one.

Feel a Little - Book review

This was a book that I have been anticipating for the longest time! A kickstarter funded project, it reached its target in record time and it was amazing to watch the support and belief for a children's book whose themes are so important! This is the most fun, beautiful, important book that you could ever own! We have a huge issue in New Zealand with youth mental and emotional health. We need to start talking about it earlier... we need to get our kids communicating, get them

Feel a Little - Book review

Why being Gay is cool!

My mum reminded me about a story the other day... and I just had to tell it! It is about my aunt who is gay... Now I just want to paint you a picture first about my life... I had a mum, a dad and a brother, I had aunts and uncles and cousins, everyone got along and we were all intelligent, and normal, and nice to each other... for the most part it was all SUPER boring! But then in 1986 something happened in New Zealand... The homosexual Law Reform Act 1986! New Zealand legali

Why being Gay is cool!

The anxious child - talking about feelings.

We now have a really important book in our lives... "Feel a Little" and it is helping us deal with a lot of things that Scarlett is going through... and mummy too. Scarlett's first weeks at school have been tough for her to get used to, she has been sick 50% of the time but even in the moments of health school has been met with a flood of anxiety and worry. She has been worried about the food in her lunchbox hurting a child with an allergy. She has been worried that her teach

The anxious child - talking about feelings.

My anxious child - Allergies and stress, how one can make the other worse.

I myself have anxiety from time to time and it seems that so does my 5 year old. I suspect that her stress is manifesting in physical ways also, as she complains of a sore tummy and I am suspecting it is increasing and prolonging a small allergic reaction into a larger one. So while the stress itself isn't causing an allergic reaction, a minor allergic reaction (to pollen or the red food colouring she is allergic too) happens, then it seems to be prolonged and flares up when

My anxious child - Allergies and stress, how one can make the other worse.

Making "mummy friends", why it is so hard making friends after babies.

My main problem with making friends in primary school and high school was that I wanted to be everyone's friend, I don't really get exclusive cliques or groups, and I never could understand why we couldn't all just get along really. In fact I was so much all about the 'lets all just be mates" that my friends would get shitty and either make fun of the fact that I was so and so's friend and they would kick me out of their groups one by one until I just became "Michelle, no mat

Making "mummy friends", why it is so hard making friends after babies.

5 fun crafty kid friendly ideas on how to reuse your zip lock bags

Do you have a bunch of zip lock bags that you dont know what to do with? Well below are some ideas on how to reuse zip lock bags. * FUN SQUISHY SLIME BAGS * WIPEABLE PAINT SURFACE * DIY COLOURED WATER BALLOONS FOR THE BATH * SMALL DIY WET WIPE BAG * EASY KID FRIENDLY PIPING BAGS 1. FUN SQUISHY SLIME BAGS Squishy slime bags are really fun, you can make them clear or you can add food colouring or put in little round paper circles from the hole puncher like I did. How to make sl

5 fun crafty kid friendly ideas on how to reuse your zip lock bags

Some natural tips on surviving the chicken pox.

Yay, we are all done and dusted with the chicken pox! I think that in all reality we got off quite lightly with the girls and their chicken pox. They were covered in spots but everything else was mild (no high temps and bad sickness). I think the worst thing about having to deal with the chicken pox isn't so much the applying of lotion its the constant complaining from the kids (mostly Scarlett) about how bored they were lol. So what is chicken pox? Chicken Pox is an infectio

Some natural tips on surviving the chicken pox.

'Live, Laugh, Love' - Nick Rado, comedy review

I had such a great impromptu night at Nick Rado’s show “Live Laugh “ at the NZ international comedy festival! It’s been a long week, and I'm not gonna lie, I needed this! And it was such a great night out! Nick Rado seamlessly creates a picture of a husband living in a Pinterest lovers dream! Surrounded by yoga mats, Kombucha, meditation and chia seeds he wonders what the fuck happened to sky sport and.. you know… normal shit. Married to a Yoga instructor, Nick paints a pictu

'Live, Laugh, Love' - Nick Rado, comedy review

Teach "no secrets" - Was I one of the reasons my friend killed herself?

Teach "no secrets" - Was I one of the reasons my friend killed herself? I have been wanting to write this down but have been struggling to find the right words. I have procrastinated and re-written the words that I wanted to say in my head over a hundred times... some of my best work being in the shower, I might add! Usually I can write a personal or opinion based blog in an hour, but this took me a long time. I had to do it in parts because it upset me every time I sat down

Teach "no secrets" - Was I one of the reasons my friend killed herself?

6 ideas for DIY paint brushes

Here are some ideas for some DIY paintbrushes. The kids had great fun making them and using them! You can use so many different household items so experiment a little and let me know how you go. What you will need... * 6 wooden pegs, I got these from warehouse stationary but clip pegs would also do the trick. * Leaves from the garden * Sponge * Wool * Water balloon blown up with air * Cut up paper * String * sellotape Attach all the various item to the paintbrushes with sello

6 ideas for DIY paint brushes

An apology to my real friends

An anonymous post from a friend X This one was written by a friend of mine, it was a letter written to me and to her other close friends. Of course, she never needed to apologise for trying to help, she never needed to apologise for the actions of another. With her permission, I have posted her beautiful words up for everyone to read :) An apology to my real friends I didn’t realize it at the time, I thought she was just my friend, my best friend, but hidden in the depths of

An apology to my real friends

Social media - What people leave behind, when they go.

It is the anniversary of a friends death, 2 years ago today. We worked together at the same place I was made redundant from after the birth of my second child. The last time I saw her was a couple of days before she left on her overseas experience, we sat at a table at Garrisons in Sylvia park in Auckland, New Zealand, I had just given birth to Scarlett where I drank my first wine after a long 9 months of pregnancy. She was courageous and kind, stubborn and funny and her fune

Social media - What people leave behind, when they go.

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