Well yesterday was so full on, I didn’t have a minute to myself! It started at 6:30am and continued like the Energiser bunny until 10:00pm.

One of the things we did was a trip to Wilderness Woods in Hadlow Down, a few miles up the road from us. It has a great many attractions there for children and adults alike.

DGD discovered the delights of a zip wire and zipped down it a great many times, shrieking all the way. We explored the woods finding bugs and beasties, camps, totem poles, chairs for giants and fairy gardens.

We played in the mud kitchen, explored the camping grounds, the Christmas tree planting, the marquee, had lunch in the cafe, more zip wire, swinging in the tyre swings etc etc

Then today we made this dolly. DGD wanted one with a face on two sides. We added a tiny teddy brooch on each side made from a couple of teddy buttons, and adjusted the ribbons, putting one with a bow on the neck on one side, with a choker on the other, and another ribbon round the waist with a bow on the side with the choker. I was really pleased with it. I found the pattern at makeit-loveit.com There are all the pattern pieces and comprehensive instructions, including a version for boys of a boy doll.

Even more satisfyingly, dolly cost absolutely nothing. All the material was leftovers from other makes, the stuffing was from a worn out pillow about to be disposed of, the buttons and ribbons from the sewing box, the wool chosen by DGD from the balls I already have, also leftover from previous makes.

The hair was a bit of a challenge, having a face on both sides, but as you can see, it seemed to work out fine.

DGD also made tiny flatbreads using the magic bread dough I keep in the fridge all the time now. It was from the mixture I first made with a sachet of yeast a while ago. I now top it up with flour and water, so it’s like a very very thick batter, and keep it covered in the fridge. It rises, even in the fridge, within a couple of hours, and will sit in there, quite happily for days and days. I haven’t added any more yeast, or any more salt either. It makes delicious bread and flatbreads.

DGD scooped out some of it, kneaded in enough flour to make it a dough rather than a batter, then rolled it out to the thickness of a credit card and cut out rounds using biscuit cutters. I then cooked them in a hot dry pan for a few minutes each side, and kept them covered with a clean tea towel so the steam kept them soft. She has made, and eaten, a great many of these little things over the last three days!