Hello.

These last four months have been good ones. I've been happy and busy. Busy with a baby boy who I'm madly in love with and busy with my big girl who's growing up fast. I've been busy with work too, a little too busy with work perhaps.

I've not been busy with this blog.

But I hadn't forgotten about it. Just laid it aside for a while. Predictable really, I kind of guessed I would back here. People who have babies and carry on seamlessly blogging I salute you. Jesus Christ, where do you find the time? Do you sleep?!

Not blogging has been good for me but hand on heart I can honestly say that it has had some negative affects too. I missed the act of writing most days but also I missed how blogging makes you look around you and notice things, it makes you take extra care with your time, makes you notice the days as they speed by and makes you focus on how you spend your time and construct your life. And I missed taking photographs, I haven't been taking enough.

I missed reading all your blogs too. I sometimes dropped in via my phone or iPad but just fleetingly, now and again, not commenting or engaging with anyone.

I've got a lot of catching up to do.

And although I strongly suspect I'm talking to nobody I hope you've all been well and happy and it's very nice to be back. 
X

rain at 2pm

Rain drops falling from the sky, making puddles outside and damp patches inside (gonna get that fixed soon...) If my hair wasn't already a complete state I'd be peed about that too. A messy top knot is my hair do of choice, well, necessity, these days. My roots are a crime scene. 

After yesterday's post about our summer bag today has blown a big raspberry at me by being all about the torrential rain. But days indoors are lovely too. The radio is on, the kettle's constantly on the boil and a sleepy post 8 week jab Griff is stretched out on my lap. 

It's clear I won't get much done today but I'm happy to let it slide. Sitting here with the baby, taking iPhone pictures and blogging with one hand, I'm happy even though it's hammering down out there. 

Hope you guys can keep smiling even when the skies are grey and heavy with rain. 
X 

the summer bag

Remember when summer days were gloriously sunny and stretched out from breakfast to bedtime full of long lazy wanderings, butterflies, bumble bees, bare toes in grass, the ice-cream van, sticky tarmac, splashing about in streams and water fights with old washing up bottles? It seems to me now that I spent the whole summer holidays outdoors, running riot and having a ball.

I was lucky to have those days. I fear my girl, and of course now my boy, wont have those hazy, golden, sun drenched memories that I have. We have these little burst of gorgeousness but no whole season to speak of. 

That's why every single warm and sunny moment must be snatched up. 

I'm on a constant sun watch (no good relying on the weather report, these sneaky afternoons, like yesterday's, are often not expected) and when the temperature rises a little and the sun peaks out from behind the thick layer of perma-cloud then I'm running around the house like an idiot grabbing sun hats and bathing costumes and sandals and lotion and money for ice-cream before rushing outdoors to get me and mine some summer fun. 

And so I've decided to pack a bag. A summer bag which will hang in the hall ready for me to grab and go.

the contents

Edie's bathing costume

Sun lotion

Alcogel

Baby wipes

Sun hats

A towel

Water

Money (for ice-cream and last minute picnics)

A sarong (for lazing about on, instead of a blanket which is too bulky for impromptu escapes)

Then I can just grab it and go, straight from the school run, to ensure no one has to walk through town in just a pair of leggins because their mother let them go in the outdoor pool in the park in their knickers and t-shirt. Next time their bathers will be there, ready, in the bag. 

Can you think of anything else I need to add?

last week

•walking in the sun •making this for my little one •lying in bed and laughing with my girl •solar powered fairy lights •saltwater sandals in tan •planning trips to the seaside •Lola's new haircut •picnicing in the woods •ice-cream and ginger beer •beautiful peonies •watching Girls on DVD •losing my voice •Griff's smile •getting caught in the rain •having 4 sips of beer and feeling tipsy •singing 'Firework' at top volume in the car on the school run •big crunchy Greek salads •being barefoot •breakfasting with friends •driving through the mountains in the golden hour •more ginger beer (obsessed with ginger beer) •dreaming of a perfect garden •designing and ordering a new iPhone case •Cos clothing •letter writing •fresh mint tea •carousel rides •banana pancakes •waking up every morning bright and early and feeling HAPPY!

awake

I had so many things I wanted to get done today but it's 2.30 and the baby has just fallen asleep after being awake since 6.  

Gah, I guess that's just how it goes when you have a baby to look after. 

I'm constantly torn between immersing myself with the sweetest baby boy ever, spending time with my girl, getting stuff done around the house (my god, this one is a desperate situation) and doing some work. Then there's my dog who's crazy in need of a walk, the shopping, my family... You know the list. 

Sometimes I wonder if I should forget about getting work done and just be a mum for a while but it makes me happy to make stuff so I guess it's the best thing to keep juggling and just get the hell on with it.

Yesterday was a different story and I had hours free whilst the baby snoozed to get some stuff done. And so I managed to finish the print I'd started for Griff's bedroom. It's the one above. 

I think it's pretty cute. Just like the boy himself. 
X

one of those perfect afternoons

We had a gorgeous weekend in the sun. I love those days when you rush to the shops to pick up supplies on your way somewhere green and shady for a picnic. Perfect afternoons spent barefoot on the grass. 

Being outside is so good for the soul!

Especially when the temperature is just right for warming you through to your bones without toasting you to a crisp within minutes. 

Thanks for your visits and comments. I'm not being the best commenter myself right now but I do love reading your beautiful blogs and really appreciate you all visiting here. 

Thank you guys. 
X

seven weeks

Griff was seven weeks old yesterday. 

Seven weeks of my beautiful baby boy. 

God, I'm so crazy about him. 

And the magnificent thing is that I can enjoy it all properly this time because my brain isn't spinning at a million miles an hour. 

I was prepared for the worst but hoping for the best and to be honest I still can't quite believe that this time I'm fine and dandy.

Hooray!

He's really chilled out and his smiles are just amazing. Baby smiles are so infectious, they can melt even the grumpiest of hearts. 

Basically I'm totally blissed out on my baby boy. 
X

stride

Just wanted to share this new print with you all. 

I'm kinda loving monochrome right now.

As always, available here...

big sister

One of the most wonderful things for me about having a second child has been seeing my first child fall instantly in love with the new addition. 

I saw her love for him in her eyes the minute she walked into the hospital ward on April 15 holding hands with her daddy. I see it now everyday as she wanders, runs, hops or scoots past and stops to plants a kiss on his little head. 

She has suddenly become the eldest child, a big sister proud to help out, eager to look after *her* baby. 

And if she's happy then I'm happy. 

The first couple of weeks she was bursting with excitement, excitement that sometimes bubbled over into an outburst of emotion. I'd look up at her whilst nursing the baby to see a little tear roll down her cheek.

'What's wrong sweetheart?' I'd ask.

'I feel sad and I don't know why' she'd answer. 

But those moments were few and far between and the vast majority of time has been spent giving kisses and cwtches and being a generally outstanding big sister. 

Griff is so lucky to have a sister like Edie, another heart full of love for him. 

I'm so looking forward to watching them grow up together.
X

little rainbow

Whenever I see a rainbow I whip out my iPhone and quickly take a picture. Rainbows make me happy. Beautiful and strange, streaking our skies with their refracted light to make a rainy day colourful. Aren't they awesome?

I made this rainbow print so I could keep a little rainbow at home with me everyday, not just when the sun comes out from behind a cloud on a rainy day. 

If you'd like one too then go here. They're only £6 at the moment. 

Who doesn't love a rainbow? 
X

introducing baby Griff

My little boy is here. 

He arrived in the small hours of a Monday morning. 

Monday 15th of April in fact.

This time was harder than the last. And I thought second time around was meant to be a doddle... Not always it would seem.

But he's here and he's gorgeous and I'm totally in love. 

And things are going OK. I'm going OK. More than OK. Compared to last time I'm kicking ass.

He loves being held, he loves hearing me sing, he loves staring at my face, he loves being fed. He loves being fed a lot. A lot a lot.

That's babies for you though, eh? Never happier than when there's a boob in the vicinity.  

And I'm slowly emerging from the baby fog. The one that allows your brain to only process thoughts that involve your little person and makes the rest of the world a little blurry, a little out of focus, a little less there. 

I love having an extra person in our family. And Edie loves having a baby brother. She is THE sweetest big sister, her love for Griff is huge already. You can see it in her face when she holds him. 

I feel so lucky. 

I am so lucky.

Lucky lucky me.

X

party plans for Edie - part 2

I've been making pom poms for Edie's birthday today. Her big day is just two weeks away now and as I HOPE her baby brother will have made an appearance by then I decided to get these done and dusted now rather than miss my chance to do anything much other than squirt milk out of my boobs and clean dirty bottoms. 

I used the tutorial I posted in this post... It's EASY!

Making these pom poms has been a good way of distracting myself from overdue-ness. Whenever I get a little twitchy I go make a pom pom! 

Now I need another project for tomorrow, to keep me busy... 

And maybe one for the next day.

And the next...

waiting

Today our illnesses, afflictions and conditions actually allayed enough for us to get outside for a 30 minute walk in the relatively balmy over-ten-degrees-Celsius temperature. We've been getting a little cabin feverish this last week or so. 

It was good to see Edie with a little of her energy back. She looked so happy to be outdoors. 

But when we came home she seemed to get suddenly unwell again, it's so hard to judge these things with little ones. 

And now I've just left her asleep in her bed dosed up on Calpol and antibiotics, holding her hand over her ear. Not the ear the doctor gave her the antibiotics for. The other one...

So tomorrow I guess it's back to staying indoors. Waiting for everyone to get better, waiting for a baby to arrive, waiting waiting waiting...

40 weeks- one way or another this baby is coming pretty soon

Me, at 40 weeks... eek!!!!

There's a very real chance that I'll disappear after I have this baby. That I won't be able to post on this blog. I hope not. I hope I'll have the energy, the inclination and the clearness of mind (mostly that one) to write a little here and there. 

I had a blog before I had Edie. I never wrote on it again after I had her and started this one instead many months later. I don't want to do that again. 

I like it here. 

The good news is it's my due date today and I'm still functioning as my almost normal self! This was not the case when I was pregnant with Edie. So who knows? I may be lucky this time and manage the whole thing the way it seems many other women do. 

That would be so nice. 

Really bloody nice.

*note* there is some kind of optical illusion going on in the above pic that makes my bump look quite small. It's not. Believe me, it's not. 

this last week

This last week has been one of 'those' weeks. An elderly family member passed away and whilst this was not entirely unexpected it was still obviously a sad event and It threw my 38 week pregnant self off course completely when it comes to this blog and other creative or work related endeavours. 

The funeral was on Tuesday and we said goodbye to my Great Auntie Jean; a beautiful woman who was gorgeous through and through. A real lady. 

Also my husband has been unwell, Edie too, and as for me, well, I've definitely reached the stage where doing the most simple things is hard work. 

I'm really feeling the need to settle down at home and prepare for our new baby. I felt the same way with Edie, like I needed to close down some of the other parts of my life and focus just on us, on home, on family, on the little life inside me. 

Now I have just four days until my due date. Wow. 

And there's a part of me that looks around and wants to 'get things ready', cleaning, organising, putting in place a system that we can just slot into when we return from the hospital with a newborn, but then there's a bigger part of me that says 'what is there to do except keep well and happy and just relax'. 

And so that's what I intend to do. 

I really hope you all had a good Easter. 
Thanks for reading. 
X

little ikea storage drawers make over- part 2...

My little project from yesterday has been added to today using washi tape from Seventy Tree.

Now it's definitely finished and definitely colourful! 

The beautiful vintage wallpaper was from Vintage Sheet Addict's gorgeous shop of lovely papers and fabrics. 

And again this washi-taping took just minutes to complete. 

Why do we always think things will be harder than they are? 

Imagine what we could achieve if we just got on and DID STUFF. 

I'm not saying that I've achieved wonders but I am saying that I've been half heartedly planning to revamp these drawers for years and it took me about 40 minutes tops to finish them once I'd started.  

Hooray for craft projects that take less than an hour. They're clearly the way to go with baby number two making his way into the world sometime in the next month...

X

little ikea storage drawers make over

I've been meaning to cover this shabby little set of Ikea craft drawers (like this one) with  wallpaper for years. Literally years. I finally got around to it yesterday and I swear it took me around 20 minutes. 

Here're the drawers in their sad pre-makeover state...

I drew around the drawer fronts onto some vintage wallpaper, cut out the shapes and glued them on using clear acrylic paint matt medium (I use this lots, seems to stick super well).

And it's done! How simple was that? 

Next on my list to be covered with pretty paper is the chest of drawers in Edie's room. No excuse now I know how easy it is to do. 

Right now I'm inspired to pay more attention to colour in our home. I treated myself to this book by Charlotte Hedeman Gueniau and although some of it isn't exactly our style it's still a beautiful book full of ideas and prompts to get you thinking about the space you live in in a different way. Love it! 

So my little chest of drawers should give our book shelves a boost of happy making colour. And with the skies still so grey outside that can only be a good thing. 
X

post

There have been times in my life when I've felt the urge to pick up a pen and a notebook and fill page upon page with rambling words. As a teenager, as a student, as a new mum. 

Then there have been long stretches of time when I've only written with a keyboard and I swear my fingers have almost forgotten the mechanical function necessary for handwriting. You know that feeling? When you pick up a pen to write something other than your signature and the process of writing down words feels so awkward. 

But I am a writer, not in the professional sense at the moment but in the sense that I have a lot of words inside me that need to be written down. After my art degree I studied for a masters degree in Writing- Practice and Issues and worked as a freelance writer in London for several years after. Now my blog and my notebooks hold all my words. That's one reason I love blogging, so I can write stuff down.

When I heard about Miss Beatrix's postcircle I decided to join in. Writing letters is something it's fashionable to say you love, but it's something we hardly ever do. 

It's funny how intimate writing a letter can be, especially to someone you've never met. It's like opening yourself up to someone, becoming a little bit vulnerable. It doesn't feel like that here on this blog. It feels like I'm writing to friends, and to myself. 

But it felt good to write an actual letter to someone. Maybe I should write to some of the lovely people I've met through this blog. People I feel like I 'know' though I've never met. People who I have lots in common with. 

Maybe I will. Would that be weird? 

faking the sunshine

Still in the spirit of yellowness I've produced a Zig Zag print in a gorgeous golden colour. It brightens up our bedroom a treat. 

Even though it's raining outside and the temperature is chilly I still have my golden mantel piece display to bring me sunshine.

Those little daffodils smell so good. I love this time of year for it's cheap and cheerful flowers. No excuses for having no flowers around when they're just pennies a bunch. 
X

yellow cravings

Yellow, oh yellow, right now I crave your sunny hue so much. A little splash here and there to shake away the winter for good. 

Sunshine, sand, vanilla ice-cream, savingnon blanc, daffodils, bumble bees, lemons, buttercups, sun-kissed blonde streaks...

How wonderful yellow is. It stands for the sun. 

Vincent Van Gogh

Oh yeah.

I'm in a yellow mood.

my yellow at home Pinterest board

Funny how we get drawn to different colours at different times. Like a dirty blue, or a dusky rose or, like right now, a sunny golden yellow. But in small doses I think, too much yellow would be totally over stimulating for me. My brain needs a more calming

backdrop to stop it overloading. 

 

That gorgeous hour of hazy sunlight you get on summer evenings, that's what I really want to capture. And if the closest I can get is with a bunch of tulips on the windowsill then I'm happy with that.

Also, I should mention here that I've become a sponsor over at Little Birdie, so happy to see my little button on Jen's sidebar. She's one of the loveliest ladies I've met online and her blog inspires me every day. 

X

37 weeks

I've been struggling to do anything much this last week. 37 weeks pregnant and I'm slowing down big time. Just as well the community art classes I run are finishing Wednesday, I only run a couple a week but they're really taking it out of me. It's not just being tired that's the problem, it's the sheer weight of my belly, and the pressure 'down below' that can make me swear if I'm on my feet for too long. Didn't have that problem with my first pregnancy, I think I must have had more scaffolding propping my womb in place back then. 

But I did find the energy to play around with some shrink plastic for the first time, it's so easy and fun. I made this little Easter bunny as an experiment, it's about 5cm long. I'm going to get Edie to draw on the plastic sheets for me, so I can bake and shrink her little pictures and keep them as little charms. 

Her drawings are getting so good, I love to see her pictures of me as a spider and her daddy as a deer. And she's crazy about drawing, as soon as she wakes up she wants to get her pencils and crayons out. So glad to have such a happy little artist at home with us!

Hope you all had a good weekend X

on Etsy and on our kitchen wall

OK, so I decided to go ahead with the £6 offer on my new print on Etsy. Just initially to see how it goes. I've hung ours in our kitchen, what do you think?

It's in a wooden frame but I like how you can make a print almost change personality depending on how you style and frame it. I think it'd look lovely in a plain white or a black frame too. Need a trip to Ikea to pick up some supplies I think so I can try out some alternatives.   

The rainbow print in the above image is one of mine too but I've never put it up for sale in my Etsy store for some reason. Perhaps I'll add it this week.

Thanks for looking :)
X

a little cloud

My cloud print has finally been framed up. I love this combination of black, white and yellow at the moment. With a little grey thrown in too. These are the colours I'd like to decorate our little nursery in when we get around to it, mostly white with the other colours thrown into the mix here and there. 

Apologies for the not-so-great picture quality. My camera is still out of action and iPhone pics on grey days are a little lack lustre, I know. 

I'm considering putting this print on my Etsy for a reduced price as I'm using different paper and would like some feedback. I usually sell my prints for £12 but I'm thinking maybe half that. The new paper is cheaper than the usual stuff I use but I think I was paying a stupid amount previously and the new paper is still archival grade blah blah blah. Looks just as good framed up to me anyhow. 

What do you think? 

X

spring mood board

As I'm rather determined to keep the thought that spring is officially here in my confused, slightly wind chilled head (it's bloody FREEZING here in Wales) I decided to turn my fridge into a little spring shrine. 

I have a cork board in the attic which keeps failing to materialise here in the downstairs world no matter how many times I request for it to be bought down with the mountains of baby stuff we're currently sorting through but I thought the fridge door would make an excellent alternative. Especially as I open it at least, ooo, 58 times a day (I drink a lot of tea and I'm very, very greedy).

Yellows, oranges, florals, blue skies, corals, turquoises, happy bright and sunny. Little green shoots and blossoms on trees. Hazy mornings, bird song, bare feet and blankets on the grass. The great outdoors, adventure, wanderings and who knows what where the day will take us weekends. 

I just LOVE the spring. And below freezing temperatures and snow flurries are not gonna stop me getting in the spring mood, no way. 


X

pasta necklaces, cheese and being a mum

hiding- sooo hard to find (not)

Edie had been excited for Mother's Day for a week or so. Every night at bedtime she asked me if it would be Mothers' Day in the morning, she was just itching to give me her card and gift. I'm not sure what she was expecting but as it involved her giving me stuff she'd made and a lot of cake eating she was pretty happy.

love this card! love this girl.

Obviously I loved my card and my pasta tube necklace which I was instructed to 'wear all the time'. We compromised on 'for special occasions' but right now I'm happy to wear it all day every day. Until it rains at least and I have to whip it off in fear of being left with a purple and yellow chest and four soggy pieces of pasta hanging on a string around my neck. 

For lunch we went out for a cheese buffet at Madame Fromage in Cardiff. Heaven. It's made me think of having a mini cheese celebration myself at home sometime after I give birth, and then I can really go to town and not have to avoid some of the gooey, runny or blue types that I had to refuse because of the probably minuscule threat of listeria whilst pregnant. And then I can get jolly on a glass or two of wine! I'm so doing it. Cheese just really does it for me these days. 

After the cheese fest we went to my Mum's for a mountain of cake. How can you beat that? You can't. 

So thank you Edie for making me a mum and giving me the excuse to gorge myself on cheese and cake all day. 

Hope you had a fun weekend too and that it involved spending time with someone you love as much as I love Edie. And cheese.
X

me party

Tomorrow night my husband is out of town for work and so I'm home alone with Edie. Maybe some of you will know what I mean when I say that it can be no bad thing to every once in a blue moon have the house (almost) to yourself?

Of course I'll be over the moon to welcome him home come Friday night but for that one evening I'm intending to focus entirely ON ME (that's after I've fed, washed and gotten Edie off to bed of course). 

A me party.

A party just for one. 

One very pregnant, tired out lady who could probably do with going to bed at 8.30 but hey, you gotta take your me party kicks where you can these days.

But unfortunately, what happens at the me party stays at the me party, so that's all I can say on the matter.

time is slippery

Right now time is slipping away from me at such a rate of knots that the days in a week can disappear before I can even register that the previous week is over. I'm constantly playing catch up. The classes I run are coming to an end very soon and I'm trying to pack in as much work as I can so that things are organised for me to go on maternity leave. I'm also trying to make the most of every available minute to focus on my art work and writing. But life keeps getting in the way of me being able to focus on anything as much as I'd like. I've got appointments coming out of my ears, work to be done on the house and even just a couple of simple but necessary tasks seem to be able to eat up a whole day. 

So I've stolen just this few minutes to sit and write these few words. Because I want to commit to writing on this blog as much as I can, because I find it propels me into getting other stuff done. It makes me focus on my minutes, hours and days and plan them more creatively, so that stuff happens.

Do you know what I mean? 

And now I look ahead to the rest of this week and realise that again I have no spare time. Or at least not enough. 

But that's how it is sometimes and in all honesty that's often how I like it. Stolen moments are where I'll have to find the time to write here. Before work, before bed, here there and in between.

Until I have this baby and then I'll have all the time in the world to write and draw and dream.

Not. 

Ah well, it can be done, as so many of you out there prove to me over and over each and every day. Isn't it amazing what you can achieve even when you have no time to achieve it?

X