It's time to say well done.

Too often I beat myself up about the things that I don't get done. I've gotten very good at it since I had Annie. The days seem to merge into each other and my list of things to do sits by, smiling and twiddling it's thumbs. It's very frustrating for me, because I am a doer of things. I like to get things done. To be in a position where achieving just the evening meal and perhaps a little housework can sometimes leave me sighing.

But you know, I have to change my perception on all this. Being with my baby and watching her grow should be enough, right? If I manage to get anything else done above and beyond that, I'm doing well. So, today, I am going to celebrate the fact that I got so much done yesterday (Monday). It was a productive day on many levels. With Annie, with the house and with my inner self. Here is my tribute to the achievement of the small things. Congrats me. You're doing great!



I dropped Ben over to the house so he could meet our carpenter and help him install our new wardrobes!!!! Yipee! Imagine...somewhere to hang our things. The sheer delight of that!



Miss Annie and I ventured to our local park for a picnic lunch. She is a little obsessed with 'Birdy's' at the moment so we went to look at the ducks that live in the pond. She loved it. But, in true Annie style, would not share any of her lunch with them, opting instead to eat the bread I gave her to throw at them.



While Miss Annie slept in the afternoon I managed to take some more paint off the window we are restoring for our hallway door. I love heat guns, they are so satisfying!



And hey, while we're at it, let's whip up a tomato pie and a spinach and fetta pie too. With homemade crust of course (easiest recipe ever! will share soon)



No busy day is complete, without a little something sweet. The ripening bananas in the fruit bowl inspired some Banana Cake that was hungrily eaten for desert with cookies and cream ice cream. Yum. Yum. Yum.

Where has the time gone...

Dearest Miss Annie,

I have been threatening to write this update on you for months now. So much time has gone by and you have grown with every week. It's hard to believe that you are not my little 'easy-to-hold-with-one-arm' baby anymore.



However what you have become is much more delightful. You're a sweet little thing. You take moments to let things sink in. You look around a room, suss people out, decide how you feel about it all before you will relax into the moment. The other day we visited the Elsternwick Library Story Time. There's a very talented young lady there who reads stories and sings songs while all the babies (and the Mummas) sing along. There are actions to do, and sounds to make, and all the other children are actively involved. You, however, sit in muted silence just starring. I can't decide what is going on in your tiny little mind, but I'm tossing up between:

'Wow, this is intense' and 'How do all these people know my Mummas songs?'

At the very end of the session when I was sure that you had hated it, you started to clap your hands and bounce on my knee. I was delighted you were finally getting into it, but it was the last song and before you knew it was all over. Your little face nearly broke my heart.

Your current obsessions are taking lids on and off things, pointing at everything in the house and saying 'ta' as if we will just give you the microwave to play with. You are madly in love with Dada at the moment. In the morning, when you wake, we walk out of your bedroom and into the living room. Normally Dada is sitting there having his breakfast and reading the paper. With confidence you holler 'Dadaaaa!'. Some mornings he has already gone to work and you just can't figure out where he is. You have an unhealthy fascination with Maggie our dog. Now that you can crawl, you are gunning it over to her hoping to get a little pat in. Maggie is onto you though, being extra cautious now that your new movement resembles a small dog. She hops up quickly when she senses you coming and hightails it out of there. For you this is bitterly disappointing as it can take you awhile to get anywhere on all fours.

You've started giving Mumma real hugs back. For awhile there I was sure you had some kind of intimacy issue. But no, you show love now. In little hugs and soft kisses. I can't get enough of them. They make my day. It blows me away that we can be this lucky.

To honor the fact that you are officially 14 months old, I wanted to share a little video of the first 6 months of your life. Don't worry, we are currently filming the next installment and have found a good place to hide the tapes until your 21st.

xx

Here's to you my sweet little girl who I love so very much. Thank you for making my heart so light with love.
Mumma

And then there were four...

I've just recently discovered that rolling around in bed and huffing and puffing a lot, will lead to doctors wanting to take photos of your stomach. Look what they found in me a few weeks back...



That's right...Ben, Annie, Maggie and I are all digesting the news that there is going to be another baby in the house very soon. Bubs 2 (as we have lazily named him/her) is due in early September. And whilst this was a planned thing (Ben didn't just surprise me in the middle of the night with cake and an offer of a quick rumpy pump) it has taken some time to get used to.

I suppose initially I felt overly guilty for Miss Annie. That she would no longer be the only one. I knew instantly that I would have less time for her. I didn't want her thinking it meant we didn't love her beyond comprehension. After that, I started to think about that lack of sleep that comes with a newborn. It played on my mind so much I couldn't sleep. Ironic huh? But, over the last 16 weeks I have come to feel much better about the idea of having another baby.

I know Miss Annie will be a terrific (if a bit bossy) big sister. I know Ben will be a terrific and helpful second time Dad. And I think, and hope, that I will be a much more relaxed second time Mum. I must point out how happy I really am to be growing our little family. We have had such joy from our Miss Annie that I have no doubt bubs 2 will merely add to our feeling of elation. It's hard work, let's not kid ourselves. But it's hard work with huge rewards and that makes it all worthwhile.

With all the house renos and a trip to Bali in two weeks time, I suppose I am feeling a real urge to nest. I want to set the house up. Prepare and plan. Make a nice home for this little bundle to start his/her life. With any luck that will be in the next few weeks and my feeling of panic may subside.

Tomorrow is appointment week 16 at the Royal Women's Hospital. It's my first visit there and I am looking forward to seeing the digs. I have a few friends who have given birth there, and while I will miss the homely nature of Sandringham Hospital, I am comforting myself with the thoughts that the Royal delivers, on average, 30-50 babies a week. (don't quote me on those stats)

Can anyone recommend a good book to read on natural births? Something with a headline similar to...

'How to get through the most excruciating pain and still remain attractive',
'10 ways to knock yourself out during labour',
'Simple steps to sedating yourself without drugs'.

I'll check back in regularly for your recommendations. The best answer gets to win a copy of my birth video!!

A visit from the postman...

I was reading Dooce and came across a book that I couldn't stop thinking about. Now that we have our house I am always thinking ahead when it comes to decorating it, cooking in it and of course caring for the garden. I'm not much of a green thumb in all honesty, but I am hoping that now we own a little block we can call our own, that it will inspire the gardener in me.

This book should help quiet a bit...



What interested me most about this book was the idea that you can grow veggies in even the most awkward places. I have had a few ideas for integrating veggies and herbs into our garden without needing to take up the whole back yard, and this book has just served to inspire that. What's most wonderful about it is that it's such an easy read. I feel like I walk away from sections of it, informed rather than confused.





The organic side of it seems obvious rather than scary. And it also has a great section on preserving your produce and even a few recipes to boot. All in all, the best $23 dollars I have spent in the last few months (and my first amazon purchase too!)



In other naughty internet credit card adventures I also visited the Duckcloth website and decided to get me a little something to inspire the next project. I was thinking of making miss annie a doll, complete with her own quilt. (thanks Julia for the inspiration)



Every time I look at her I want to make that little chicken something! This could be a very expensive relationship! Will share more on my little one in the next post.

Life at the moment...

...can be put into pictures. These pictures in fact.



Watching Miss Annie grow and develop more every day. A spot or two or renovating madness. And of course, the odd walk or two with Miss Maggie.

The only thing missing? My hard working graphic designer/carpenter/painter/musician husband. Will be sure to capture his mug in a photo very soon...

The Car Caddy

I had a massive surge of energy the other day and decided to clean out our car. It was a one off thing, and I'm hoping that the neatness of it all will inspire me to keep it that way.

Whilst I was throwing out old papers and remnants of Annie's daily diet I got to thinking. Perhaps I could put together some kind of caddy that could hold all of Miss A's things. She loves to read while we drive, and chat on her fake phone. And I am always looking for somewhere to harvest a dummy or two.

So....I made this:



The Tie at the top is measured to the same width as the top part of the car seat. This way it doesn't slip down and become completely useless.



The pockets are made from some cute fabric that I picked up at the Lock festival some months back.



The backing fabric was left over from the pillows I made on our weekend away.

So far, this has been a real treat. Miss Annie can reach her things and I can keep our little old car, nice and clean. 'Yeahs' all round.

Beach fun and new friends.

On Friday afternoon Miss Annie and I packed up our stuff and made our way down to Rye for a sewing weekend. As the lovely Sewjourn is booked out months in advance we opted for somewhere by the sea and oh boy am I glad we did!

Organised by the lovely Leslie, we were to be sharing our two story beach house with some other devoted bloggers and crafty people Jo and Julia. I have met Jo before and learnt so much from her and was excited about getting to know Julia.

As Ben has been too busy with the house I had to bring Miss A with me. Not that it was so bad. She moaned a bit and was kinda clingy, but overall she slept well and seemed happy to be somewhere a little different. Leslie and I took her to the beach. She absolutely loved it.



Not so keen on being sensible in the sun.







Miss A always squints in photos. I have NO idea where she gets that from.

These sewing weekends are great for so many reasons. We get to learn from each other and complete projects that haunt you as you tackle the day to day of house cleaning, cooking and baby wrangling. Usually these sewing weekends involve lots of great food (last weekend being NO exception) and if you're lucky you'll make some new friends. What surprised me the most was that not only did all of these things occur in Rye, but I also secured some confidants. People I could talk to easily. People who were on the same page as me, in motherhood, as a wife, in life.

Even with my little chicken there, I managed to get some things done. I was keen to make some pillow cases for European Pillows my sister had given me. I want our new bedroom to have white linen and then I plan on mixing things up every now and then when I come across some interesting fabric. I found this cute fabric in spotlight and was very happy with how they turned out.



I also made a little summer top for Annie that I'm going to put away for next year. I used the lovely grey and blue fabric that was left over from the pillows. After a marathon car clean on Monday I have decided my next project is a little car seat toy holder for Miss Annie's books. I'm hoping it will assist in keeping our vehicle somewhat respectable!