apathetichousewife

love is...

2011-09-06T16:07:00.003+09:30

... devoting 7 weeks of your life to support your daughter and her family as they transition to being a family of four.

a quilt made of Amy Butler Love seems an appropriate thankyou for such a gift, don't you think?

40th birthday quilt

2011-04-23T12:20:00.004+09:30

back in November, my big sis celebrated her 40th. plans to meet in NY we scuppered as I was in the early stages of pregnancy and so I promised I'd makeher something special.

fast forward to a few weeks ago, and the promised gift had not yet been created. but her arrival in Melbourne for a fleeting visit from London was fast approaching.

I waddled around the Finders Keepers market and saw the lovely Ink and Spindle stand. I was inspired by their packs but opted to select 7 different fabrics from the FQ and other range.

3 power quilting sessions and it was finished!

the back is asymmetrical: 2/3 30s repro and 1/3 plain cream w a thin scrappy strip of the fabrics from the front.

I love the almost Japanese look of the back fabric.

my first attempt at machine binding was a relative success. I'd happily use that technique on quilts again, especially where the quilt itself has been machine quilted.

suggestions, please

2011-04-18T17:40:00.001+09:30

my 4 year old niece has broken her arm above the elbow: any suggestions for gift/activities we can send her to keep her occupied?

what have I been up to?

2011-02-22T12:01:00.001+10:30

in no especial order: packing to move house, breaking my foot, moving house, arranging demolition of old place, and finalising plans to build a new house. oh, and gestating our second child. that's tiring enough. I'm 23 weeks along, and looking forward to meeting "Pip" at the end of June.

Baby-Lo starts 5 hour kindy session on friday which I'm hoping will afford me some uninterrupted craft time. I can't wait!

a conversation...

2010-10-06T11:30:00.002+10:30

todd-lo: "the fairies spoke to me"
me: "really, what did they say?"
todd-lo: "they said you should bring me some treats"

she not only knows the system, she rorts it.

5 weeks after the fact...

2010-07-26T20:29:00.002+09:30

and I have some delicious stash to show for it. SD gave me, amoung other things, a voucher for Tessuti. that man really does know the way to my heart.

I bought 4m of Liberty Tana lawns (I'll link, rather than be naughty and borrow the pictures - trust me, it's worth clicking to see them!):

Willow Tree Grey
Isla Rose Charcoal
Daisy Pop Grey
Crysanthemum Black/Silver

(there's a theme in there, isn't there?)

I have no especial plans for them, though am contemplating starting a stash of grey lawns/voiles to make a summer weight quilt for our bed. yes: contemplating the second one, prior to completing the planned linen blend one that I've got on the cards. (the fabrics for which I proudly showed off at MQG last month).

more making

2010-06-07T12:02:00.005+09:30

See - I do sew and craft. Sometimes.

this is a tried and true pattern - the 2 + 2 blouse from oliver + s

I simply adore these patterns: really easy to follow, so adaptable, and every time I do another one I learn a new technique. Time to whip out some of the others in my stash to extend my skills, I think.

the main fabric I bought from spotlight approximately forever ago - I love it because it reminds me of a Hundertwasser print. the purple trim I'd bought as a dodgy FQ from spotlight for $2.50. I'm not sure it's the best match, but really just wanted to whip it up from fabric I had to hand.

when

2010-05-27T14:40:00.002+09:30

when you've struggled to find balance, and you finally do
when you've worried you might never find yourself again, and then you appear
when you've feared that what was the most magical thing in your life has been buried, and it hasn't
when you've found your feet as a mother, lover, friend and daughter:

could you contemplate risking it all again?

WIP for baby-Lo's new room

2010-05-18T17:47:00.002+09:30

Here's an overdue shot of a WIP for baby-Lo's room.

when I bought the kit from Amitie at a quilt show last year I intended to whip it up, and have it machine quilted, having never made one before. after practising on the "shirt quilt", I considered quilting by hand.

so I embarked on the couch-quilt to pratice with perle 8s, as I'd not done any handquilting before.

having finished that, I'm now fairly much back in the "professional machine quilting" camp AGAIN! I just want this done - tomorrow. so hopefully I'll be packing it and baby-Lo in the car and trekking to Amitie to book it in. (my local joint and the one machine quilter I spoke to are both taking bookings for end of July, and I just want it DONE!). Enough vacillating...

In the washup

2010-05-18T14:15:00.007+09:30

I'm sure there are thorough run downs of SIT 2010 around the traps, so let me just say: I LOVED IT!

This snap shows all the bootie in the "showbag"

Clockwise from left: Thea and Sami wire coat hanger cover kit, Sew it Together manual and stash-bag, bamboo needles from Craft Junk, Lark green journal, customised Moleskin from Cass, Ricrac fabric teaset pattern (swapped for robots with Leah), fabric sampler pack from Oz Material Girls, Retromummy handpieced hexagon sampler (front), and finally a covered button sampler pack from Jackobindi!

Phew - and if that wasn't enough, I also scored this wicked door prize from the ladies at Craft Junk. Any beady eyed readers will notice an additional 2 bamboo crochet hooks, plus a circular bamboo needle. That's because the super friendly ladies at Craft Junk realised that I'm keen to learn how to crochet, so slipped some extras in! Talk about lucky lucky me...

I can't wait to try the hand-dyed wool. It's a Bendigo knitting mills, and I believe was hand-dyed specifically to co-ordinate with the colours of SIT 2010. How cool is that?

Here's another snap of the now finished couch-quilt, and the cushion I whipped up to match (backed in the same organic Tessuti denim as the others).

and the fabric request? I *think* it's a Michael Miller - I'll try to find out and update!

ETA: it's NOT Michael Miller - it's Alexander Henry Veronique fabric

feathering our nest

2010-04-30T11:18:00.006+09:30

I've finally, finally, made the cushions I planned at last year's Stitches and Craft show. They are all backed in a beautiful Organic denim from Tessuti. It wasn't the plan to be so extravagent, but I'd bought 5m of it almost a year ago for something "special". and I decided that the beautiful Australian printed linen was definitely "special" enough!

This is winter nest by Kristen Doran - I think I bought this from Kelani at the S&C show last year. Others by Kristen available here.

This I bought from Kelani fabrics, and it's birch by Lara Cameron, also available here. I've also go this in the charcoal on black colour way, which I'm stashing to make a quilt for our bedroom.

This is the quilt I've made to go with them on the couch - not matchy, just co-ordinating which is just the way I like it (unfinished binding hiding in this shot)

And here's the group - you can see the denim which backs them all. the other two cushions are rectangular. One features a strip of birch overlaid on plain linen (which backs the quilt), the other you can glimps I quilted to work in with the border on the quilt.

I'm really pleased with how they look, and how the work in with the couch-quilt (that is nearly finished too - unfinished binding hiding in the photo).

And in other exciting (for me) news - I'm delighted to have won a competition on Able Mae! 'ray!

My stacked coins quilt for our nephew

2010-04-15T07:58:00.006+09:30

So I claim to be a sometimes crafter, but you'd never tell!

Here are some pics of my 2nd quilt project, washed and dryed and ready to post to our newborn nephew. Super crinkly - but I quite like that.

This shows it folded, ready to send. Admire the clever herringbone machine quilting pattern: it's puckering because I pulled the backing fabric too tight before basting. We live and learn. I alternated the direction of the stitching, so it does kind of look like it was on purpose (or "a dolphin" as we say at home).

This shows the backing - I loved the chocolate polkadots, and thought they worked nicely to balance all the green and duckegg blue.

And here you can see most of the front. I wanted a casual modern look, and I think the narrow quilted "stripes" achieve that well.

The patterned fabric came from Busy Thimbles - Cherish Nature charm pack. I fell for the egg and butterfly motif, and I'm really happy that the colours are classic with a modern twist.

The charm squares made it a really straight forward project, and removed the risk I felt in having to cut accurately.

Backing and plain fabric from my local patchwork shop. Batting is 100% cotton, so it's not too hot for a littley living in WA.

My SIL says she loves it, which is lovely and I was delighted to find that the duckegg blue was a colour she'd picked for the baby's nursery! Smiles all round.

Woops ahoy

2010-04-14T10:13:00.003+09:30

So in other hilarities (posting blank updates included) I've just this minute discovered via http://vintagericrac.blogspot.com/2010/04/call-me-elastic-woman.html that Stitches and Craft is in Caulfield this year. Was it last year? I thought it was the showgrounds in Flemington, and so had happily volunteered to work 3 of the 4 days.

I thought it was an easy 7 minute drive from home. Not so. Au contraire: it's more like a 50 minute drive. Bother, said Pooh.

Getting back in the saddle

2010-04-14T08:44:00.000+09:30

Complainication

2009-11-06T12:16:00.003+10:30

I've been thinking, lately, about the way I communicate. That feeling I get when I feel someone really understands me, or the frustration I feel when I'm just not heard.

People are quick to boast "I don't complain", as if it really is something to be proud of. But to me, not complaining means not communicating and nothing good comes from not communicating.

If you go into a shop, and the shop assistant ignores you, treats you poorly or otherwise leaves you feeling pissed - then complain. If you don't, then the situation won't change - they'll treat another customer the same way, oblivious to the mistake they're repeating. When you complainicate, you give them the opportunity to change and you give them space to improve.

The same is true in our personal relationships. If you never complain when your partner leaves their towel on the floor, then they will never understand how much it irritates you, and they'll have no idea why you suddenly go postal after 15 years of it.

A few times recently, I've been reminded how important complainication is: SD and I are both tired, and stressed and worried. But until 2 weeks ago we both carried that stress for ourselves. We both worried about the highs and lows we felt in caring for our little lady, and both felt terrified about what that meant about our own state of mind.

Once we actually started to talk to one another, that fear was shared - shared in both the sense of balancing the load, and in the sense of being "heard".

All to often we carry our fears, complaints and worries alone. We say we're protecting those who care about us from the burden of our worries. We say we're "not complaining" as if that implies we're coping fine.

I disagree - bring on the complaints! Share your worries and fears. Acknowledge that you feel angry, scared, tired or stressed. Tell someone - complainicate. Trust me - you'll feel better when you do.

I want to talk...

2009-08-19T16:20:00.005+09:30

baby-lo isn't a baby - before my eyes she's become a togla. ar a toddler. whatev. I should call her "lo" now instead.

a few times in the last week I've been faced with a situation which leaves me thinking. lo is busy learning news things and starting to assert her independence. the things I say and do will establish the ground rules for our interactions, and will really define the way I parent.

it's got me wondering what kind of parent I want to be, what is important to me, and how can super-dad and I ensure we develop consistency in our approach to parenting?

here's some examples:

on sunday, bl carefully pushed a stool over to the toybox in front of the tele and used it as a prop to clamber onto the toybox and reach a doll on the top of the tele

on monday while visiting a friend, bl was presented with a plate of sliced fruit. she wasn't interested in eating it and so tipped the plate over

so they're totally different instances, but for they've started me thinking about parenting philosophies and encouraging positive behaviour in toglas.

in situation 1, the most important issue is safety. but in some ways I applaud her ingenuity. I don't want to just say "naughty girl" when she's being inventive, not bad. I said "well done - great climbing. mummy doesn't want you so close to the tele though darling - let's put the stool in another room". but I don't want to encourage potentially dangerous climbing.

in situation 2, I was acutely aware we were at someone's house and I really felt like I was on display as a mum. I said "let's keep the food on the plate. if you don't want any, I can put it away". and yet I don't want to become an ineffectual mother who brushes aside delinquent behaviours as all being "cute". having said that, in that instance I don't think bl was being intentionally destructive - so it's not a strict discipline thing either.

lot's of book blurbs I've read talk about discipline which makes me a bit uncomfortable. I think there have to be ways to encourage positive social behaviours while still making clear boundaries. I'm conscious too, that consistency in approach will be crucial.

I worry about the messages children hear when we label them as naughty or nice, good or bad. I feel really uncomfortable when I hear parents talking about their child in negative ways - especially within earshot. I cringe when I hear parents describe children as difficult, high maintenance or highly strung.

praps I'm coming to this later than other mums, almost certainly I'm over thinking it. what do you do to encourage positive behaviours, and how do you respond to inappropriate ones? is there a book or philopsophy or mantra that you follow?

me wait?

2009-08-18T13:47:00.003+09:30

I just wanted to get it done, so done it is. now to consider backing and borders and things...

eeep - random?...!

2009-08-18T11:34:00.004+09:30

I bravely sliced, sewed and sliced into some old work shirts of SD's. I wanted to trial making a quilt top by machine, and also to trial the disappearing 9 patch quilt.

this is my current layout. I'm going for a grid design, rather than the usual slash/rotate, because I had 5 sets of 3x3, rather than an even number.

any quilt enthusiasts reading: shall I stop playing and call this a day for the layout?

ETA: the fabrics....

it was a day like any other day

2009-07-28T16:15:00.004+09:30

sunday dawned, as it does; the day unfolded, as days do.

but this wasn't any ordinary sunday: sunday 26 July 2009 is the day I last nursed baby-Lo.

breastfeeding's been a trial at times. from the early days when baby-Lo struggled to feed because she had a sore neck (osteo fixed that) and "tiny mouth", and I struggled to feed her with cracked nipples and aching breasts.

3 weeks in we'd faced our first 2 bouts of mastitis and a breast abscess. 5 or so more bouts of mastitis, oversupply, nipple thrush, overactive letdown - we had our share of difficult times.

there were plenty of feeds where I cringed, cried, and just wanted it to be over. there were a lot of times I just wanted to make it to the next milestone - 3, 6, 9 months.

by 10 months in we were in a great rhythm - my body was finally making only to meet demand, the engorgement had settled, it was all good.

by 12 months it was going well, and we seemed to have had such a short time of success that I wasn't ready for it to end. we supported one another when times were tough with gentle touches and seemingly boundless patience when it seemed so hard. I for one didn't think we'd make it that far.

we've nursed on planes and in cars; in public but mostly in private.

and we've not done it alone. early on we had the support of a lactation consultant who came to home, I've spoken to ABA counsellors on the phone and in person.

and throughout it all there's been the strong influence of superdad. SD has stood by us (literally and metaphorically) through it all. he's poured water down my throat, propped pillows, delivered a freshly changed sleepy babe to even sleepier mumma. he's always said "you're doing the best job, babe". he's never once questioned why I wanted to keep going, never made a disparaging comment about why we're still feeding.

but the line? I've drawn it in the sand.

baby-Lo's ear infections have settled (thanks grommets!), but her silent reflux is only being managed with a huge dose of meds.

milk exclusion hasn't worked. the next step is a strict elimination diet. a strict diet we both need to adhere to while we're still nursing. it may seem odd that despite pain and pus, and blood and plenty of tears, that it's food that's finally made me call it quits.

it's not quite that simple of course. the prospect of me potentially screwing up a strict elimination diet by accepting a proffered biscuit is not a risk I'm willing to take when it means risking finding an answer for baby-Lo. she needs my help, and I'll be better able to help her without extra mummy guilt making me worry about every mouthful I eat.

I'm so happy we've made it this far - a few days shy of 18 months. a real achievement I never thought we would have.

talismans

2009-07-25T19:23:00.002+09:30

this morning, SD and I spent a few hours sorting through some of our... possessions. I'm reluctant to call them that when in truth I mean that we sorted through some of dozens of boxes of our things that we've had stored at SD's folks' place for (I'm ashamed to say) almost 3 years. the earliest boxes honestly date from August 2006 with another batch from October that year, and more still from the December.

you see, in August 2006 we were planning our wedding. we knew our groovy west melbourne pad was not where we wanted to live when we started our family, and so in anticipation of selling up we started to pack. the idea was to minimise in preparation for putting the apartment on the market. October saw more of the same packing, then we were married in November so the boxes of wedding gifts were added to the ever-increasing load at SD's folks' place. you can see where this is going, can't you?

we moved house in August 2007 when we were 4 months pregnant. what didn't fit into our teeny wee home was... added to the storage.

so we have literally dozens of boxes, many of which we've not even opened in 3 years.

it's horrifying.

so I've been thinking a lot lately about how, to me, my possessions (and purchases) are talismans. they represent something to me - and often that something is a memory, or a time in my life, or an aspiration. these dozens of boxes are filled with such symbols.

there's the boxes of books (Kerouac's Satori in Paris that I bought in, you guessed it, Paris; Joyce Johnson's Door Wide Open that I bought when I read loads of books about different characters in the Beats; this book I bought on spec at the Tate Modern - I'd joined for my birthday and the title was irresistible to me). boxes and boxes of books that all mean something and remind me of someplace or sometime special.

there's the boxes of clothes (the exquisite Valentino silk brocade coat I bought at a sample sale - iridescent hues of purple and teal; the dress I wore at my 21st; my wedding gown).

there's the boxes of linens (the chuppah we married under; the hand-printed bedlinen my parents bought us as a wedding gift). and then there's the boxes of wedding gifts (most of which we registered for as we love them - but we just do. not. have. room. for them right now).

there's boxes and boxes of empty wine bottles that we haphazardly displayed atop our kitchen cupboards in our old apartment - each one reminding us of another great evening with friends, or a wedding, or a celebration of some kind.

I have all of these things that are beautiful to me in one way or another, and yet they're shoved in boxes and I don't see them.

I don't think it's appropriate to callously dispose of them (the boxes haven't been opened in 3 years, you say, you don't need them!), I can't bring myself to donate much of it (yet, maybe this will change), and yet it breaks my heart to think I own these beautiful things and don't enjoy them.

I guess part of me had hoped that I would find, today, as I opened boxes that my feelings had changed and that these possessions would have lost some of their significance; that I would be able to let go.

and yet I've found they still hold power over me, they still hold memories (all good - the bad ones are long gone), and so they really are talismans for me still.

a break in transmission

2009-07-17T07:43:00.003+09:30

That was a long break in transmission!

From good days, to bad nights, to bad news, to rough trots. I think that about covers it.

Crafting has been low on the agenda as we try to come to some conclusions and decisions about how to approach recurrent ear infections/suspected ongoing silent reflux/night screaming/potential allergies/possible food intolerances.

Are you following? No? I'm confused too.

But finally, finally, we have a plan, man. In no particular order we're going to...

wean
postpone gastroscopy and ph probe testing
stay off dairy for another 2 weeks
blitz with probiotics & slippery elm
roll with the nights as they come (with stricter guidelines for ourselves, and greater consistency about how we approach the night waking)
postpone the strict elimination diet til after we've weaned

Phew. That's it. Onwards and upwards!

More good days...

2009-06-30T18:04:00.001+09:30

Tomorrow Baby-Lo and I are heading off to a dietician who specialises in paed allergies!

Super-dad knows her through a board he serves on, and she has graciously offered to help us even though she is not taking new patients!

I suppose another sentence culminating in an exclamation point will portray how excited I am!

Small pleasures

2009-06-30T14:06:00.002+09:30

I turned 31 last week, and was thoroughly spoilt by "treat mice".

One of the special deliveries was a pack of RJ's licorice chocolate bullets, sent by one of my favourite people.

She warned me not to eat the entire pack in one sitting - so far I'm not sure I can agree to that!

So so delicious...

What comes after the second guess?

2009-06-29T16:53:00.003+09:30

Today Baby-Lo had an operation to insert grommets after around about 8 ear infections in the last 12 months. And this afternoon, we had an email from an allergy specialist dietician friend of Super-dad's who is happy to meet with us, and who fears the reflux/ear infections may be caused by a food allergy OTHER than the suspected milk allergy we've been eliminating for in the last month.

That dull thud you can hear is the sound of me banging my head against a wall, and that pitter patter sound is my brain as it flip flops from feeling like we've done the right thing (there was lot's of gunk in both ears when we thought the issue was only in 1 ear), to feeling like I've missed at least part of another potential cause (and I ought to have done more to investigate before turning to surgery for my little darling girl).

I ought to just feel relief that my daughter is fine. Instead I feel like we might be just at the beginning of another uphill climb to get some answers.

what I like to call The Soft Road

2009-06-20T20:55:00.003+09:30

I don't know that this is my invention, but I'll take it as such til proven otherwise.

The Soft Road is a philosophy about making life easier.

I tend to have what some my call a Protestant ethic that things worth doing oughtn't be enjoyable, that hard work is the best, and there's nothing like toil to prove your worth.

I've gone off this idea in the last 12 months, as I've slowly learnt that in fact there is nothing wrong with avoiding the hard road altogether.

I now am far gentler on myself: I once expected a fantasty transformation into some Martha/Nigella hybrid the moment I was married. Then I thought maybe it would be upon the arrival of my first born. Nope. Still waiting.

So in the meantime I acknowledge that Super-dad won't come home to a glorious 3 course home-cooked meal each night; my daughter won't always eat organic and home baked goods; and I won't leave the house with an immaculate blowdry and twin set.

Instead I settle for The Soft Road: acknowledging the efforts I do make, and enjoying the activities that I choose to do instead of cleaning, baking and homemaking.

The Soft Road for apathetichousewife

Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

2009-06-20T20:44:00.005+09:30

I've been late to join the legions of readers, but join I have - and the fan club too what's more.

I had half read so many reviews in recent months from various bloggers. Somewhere along the line I developed the impression that this would be a bit of a cerebral read and quite hard work. It was neither.

Definitely thought provoking but not cerebral in terms of a difficult intellectual work out.

I can't wait for my great friend to read this so we can have our inaugural book group meet about it. Just an excuse to catch up regularly, in truth.

I want to go back and ear mark the passages that really resonated with me.

"Happiness is the consequence of personal effort. You fight for it, strive for it, insist upon it, and sometimes even travel around the world looking for it. You have to participate relentlessly in the manifestations of your own blessings. And once you have achieved a state of happiness, you must never become lax about maintaining it, you must make a mighty effort to keep on swimming upward into that happiness forever, to stay afloat on top of it. If you don't, you will leak away your innate
contentment. It's easy enough to pray when you're in distress but continuing to pray even when your crisis has passed is like a sealing process, helping your soul hold tight to its good attainments."

An easy reading, light, deep, funny, moving inspiration.

My Year Without Sex

2009-06-20T20:40:00.002+09:30

Super-dad and I went to the movies today - the 11am session, followed by lunch at TiAmo, and wandering Lygon street (with a long nosey in BBold to top it all off).

Bliss.

GMa is here to look after baby-Lo, or vice versa.

The film? Beautiful.

It is so simple and real and engrossing. I don't know what it is about having had a child, but I find myself so easily moved - this film was filled with loads of real candid teary moments for me. Some striking lines and vignettes - so many moments you're filled with what might go wrong (and doesn't) and minutes later filled with hope for what might happen (and doesn't).

We chatted about it for ages over lunch, and again on the drive home.

Favourite lines: "I bought you another cow so you'd have two". "For my second wife, I choose you".

*insert disclaimers about dreadful photo quality here

2009-06-13T11:42:00.004+09:30

Is it an election year? I've promised and I shall deliver!

Here are some photos of clothes I've made from my adored Oliver + S patterns

the Sunday brunch skirt and jacket

The bedtime story pjs

And my favourite so far - the 2+2 blouses.

I think the attention to detail in pattern design provides a really polished finish that disguises all sewing abilities.

Next on my list is the bubble dress - I hope to overcome my fear of sewing knits and tackle it in a soft stretch of some kind. Maybe merino?

I may not be a Doctor...

2009-06-13T11:33:00.004+09:30

I may not have a medical qualification but even I can diagnose a serious case of mermaid legs.

Still no sun...

2009-06-12T16:04:00.004+09:30

There's still no sun, hence no photos. They'll come and spruce this place up some time, I promise.

I've been knocked over with a flu. The porcine variety? Who knows, and it seems the Drs and government no longer care.

I personally believe that the incubation period is longer than the 3 days the Drs currently suggest: 1 week to the day that I fell ill I'd spend the evening crafting with 2 teachers from 2 different schools in Melb that have since been declared swine flu zones. My guess is that that is more than mere coincidence!

Anyway, I'm on the mend, slowly. No crafting, lot's of lying around moaning and feeling sorry for myself. I'm very thankful for Super-dad and Super-mother-in-law who have willingly stepped up to the plate and taken care of Baby-Lo these last 2 days.

Home quarantine recommended for 3-7 days (depending who you ask) so another 1-5 days.

Baby-Lo is back to herself: no night screaming for 2 nights now - hurrah! Now we just have to work out whether it's the dairy free diet, the new mode of med delivery or something else that has helped her settle back into her groove.

Count to my very own Super-mum arrives? 2 big sleeps!

And another point in the "good days" column...

2009-06-09T09:24:00.003+09:30

I've just been offered free tickets to see Justine Clarke this afternoon - how exciting!

I *think* the reflux is settling too - dairy free or new form of meds delivery? Hmmm

Rainy cold days

2009-06-08T16:28:00.002+09:30

It's a rainy, cold day in Melbs today.

Several hours of knitting done - a beautiful 4 ply merino is slowly becoming a helmet for a friend's newborn son. Bluestone, from Morris & Sons. Hmm, I did NOT need to just-this-minute discover that they have an online facility!

Photos will still be promised until the sun finally appears!

Bad nights and good days

2009-06-06T16:58:00.003+09:30

Bad nights: Baby-Lo's silent reflux, which til 2 weeks ago was perfectly controlled with meds, has flared up again terribly. Super-dad watched two episodes of INTG with her and read books between 10 and 1. She settled back to sleep til 4, then I did the 4-5am shift with more INTG.

Our "sleep-in" til 10.30 this am would have been sweeter had we not all been exhausted.

Good days: I won 2 tix from one of my favourite bloggers - mamamia. Hurrah for random draws. I really wanted to see this movie, so can't wait. Maybe Super-dad and I can have a date?

Crafting today? Just an hour or so of knitting a twirly whirly scarf using some yummy Vero. If we get some sun one of these days I'll post some pictures.

it was always going to happen

2009-06-03T20:13:00.000+09:30

It was always going to happen: this blog thing.

It'll start by recording some of the things I'm crafting, and we'll see where we go from there.

I've developed a passion for Oliver + S patterns

They're a delight to follow, and come together so well. Photos to follow.

So far I've made the Bedtime Story PJs, 2+2 blouse, Sunday Brunch jacket and skirt, with plans for the Sailboat set, and the dresses. Oh the dresses.

I wouldn't consider myself an accomplished sewer, and yet the instructions come together so well.