busy bees

Before Christmas, Beetle & I spent one of our big-sibling-free mornings cruising the local op-shops – I had a project in mind, you see, something I’m sure would surprise, um, no one. I wasn’t having much luck finding some of the bits & pieces I was looking for, and just generally browsing, when I found some cute little glasses for 50 cents each, and a bowl for $1. I didn’t have an immediate plan for them, beyond “oh I want those! Maybe I could put Christmas m&ms in them or something”, but picked a little collection out anyway. As I swatted tiny chubby hands away from all the breakable things that I consider unsuitable for small children, but that he considered “oooOOOOOOoooo MAMA” (which I believe is Beetle speak for “let me at the pretty shiny things mama and let’s see if they bounce. For SCIENCE”), I remembered I had a rather generous lump of local beeswax sitting in my pantry, a leftover from adventures in lip balm making for Nic’s Secret Santa a while back and I wondered what some little beeswax candles would look like.

A candle making friend kindly have me some wicks, after looking online turned up $6 wicks with $17 shipping!! In the end, we ended up making these the first week of the school holidays, an eager audience perched up on chairs as I melted the wax. They each picked a glass, after we debated the merits of a bowl candles, and lined them up for me to pour the candles. It was surprisingly entertaining for them to watch them cool and see the wax change colour, but then when the realised we couldn’t burn them right away, they wandered off, periodically coming back to check on progress. “Can we light them yet?” “No” “Can we light them yet?” “No” “Can we…” Lather rinse repeat.

But then came lighting time, and we sat down to dinner with a centrepiece of three pretty candles – upcycled, local, handmade with my babies, and completely perfect in their imperfection.