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I remember when I was pregnant with Cohen and waiting to meet my baby, my mind was so full of dreams and wishes for him. Health. Love. Happiness. I would try to imagine how he would look. What he would be like. Who he would grow to be. And of all the things I wished for him, there were two things I secretly hoped we would share a love for, art and books.

From the first day we brought him home, we would read to him. Whether during tummy time, or as he was falling asleep, I read to him each day. As he got older we would sit together and I would read to him. Books from my childhood, books gifted to us by loved ones, library books. But by the time his second birthday came, he was no longer interested in reading with me. He would take the book off me and play with it or put it away. He would shut the book while I was reading or simply walk away. I hoped that it was just a phase and not a sign that he really wouldn't love books after all. I know it is probably too soon to tell. But I was concerned none the less. There are always so many little things one can worry about and I am one to over think...

Recently though, Cohen has fallen in love with a book called 'Grug has a birthday' by Ted Prior. I read it to him and he asks me to read it several more times and points to everything in the book. I ask him to read it back to me and he flicks through the pages making sound effects for the actions or asking questions. He carries the book around with him. He takes it to bed at night. And will even hold that book while I read another book to him.

Funny how quickly they change and how soon you have something else to worry about.

His love of art though has never been a concern.

Cohen's first canvas. A special gift for Dada for Fathers Day.

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Cohen and I spent a lovely slow afternoon together wandering around our three favourite op-shops yesterday, searching for useful items for the house or baby. While I pushed the pram, Cohen played with his toy crane and chatted away and we both scanned the aisles. We came home with an small embroidered pillow slip, a hand knit cardigan, a Meakin jug that matches a bowl I own already, an old handmade cushion and some crochet and knitting booklets, the oldest dating from 1937. 

And just in case you were wondering about the blue cardigan, we actually aren't finding out the sex of the baby. I just find it difficult not to buy things like this sweet cardigan for $1. I am hedging my bets evenly by buying a few boy things and a few girl things when I see them. Given that family and friends are having or planning to have babies, I figure that none of these darling little clothes will go unloved.

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Progress...

The ceiling has been removed throughout the entire top floor of the house, leaving behind the usually hidden beams, wires and whirlybirds. And the arch has been demolished as well. Fare thee well arch!

Test patches of paint colours are dabbed here and there. Choosing paint colours is more difficult than I remember...

The bathroom has been gutted, in preparation for asbestos removal. It is likely that as well as the bathroom, the eaves, shed, laundry walls and hardiplank cladding on the outside of the upper level all contain asbestos, which will all be removed. It is legal in Australia to remove it yourself, but for safety reasons we will be hiring an A grade licensed asbestos demolition company. There is a really informative article on asbestos in Australia here. It is an added expense and a pain, but at the end of the day we want our house to be asbestos free.

And a note for anyone thinking of renovating or buying an older house, any house pre-1990 could contain asbestos. Any board or cladding could contain asbestos. Breathing in the tiny asbestos dust particles when drilling, sanding or removing the board could lead to long term health problems like lung cancer. Building inspections carried out during the purchasing process do not report on asbestos. Only a licenced asbestos demolition company will be able to identify asbestos and remove and dispose of it safely. 

I shall report back next Monday on the ongoing progress.

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This little window into our babies world is just so remarkable in so many ways. Modern medicine is awe inspiring. To see my little one waving it's little arms and legs around as my toddler waves back, words can't describe the joy. And those little feet!

All is well and I am left feeling simple amazement, relief, excitement and love.

My Creative Space

A little bit of practical couch craft to keep my hands busy of a night time. I've been knitting a cotton face washer for Cohen, having modified a potholder pattern. It's so lovely and soft. I don't think I will be stopping at one.

Ravelry Pattern and my notes.

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More Creative Spaces here.

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Our first project with the house has been to replace the ceiling. It has done it's job the past thirty years without even being undercoated. Also, at some point a home handy man has had a go at 'repairing' the roof himself,  leaving holes in the metal, and thus water damage to the ceiling. 

After replacing the ceiling we will replace the roof and insulate at the same time. Being a low profile roof, we have to do things in this order, though it seems backwards. The insulation will be laid on top of the new ceiling while the roof is off.

The plasterer came and inspected the ceiling, gave us his advice, quote and directions for Dave to get to work removing the cornice moulding.

Goodbye cornicing...

Hello ants!

When the ants started spilling out from the roof cavity as the cornice moulding was removed I was just a little concerned and promptly demanded Dave call the plasterer. I could hear the plasterer laughing through the phone as Dave explained the situation. Who knew that black ants in the ceiling was common fare? "Welcome to the life of a plasterer." Indeed.

This weekend the electrician comes to remove the light fittings before Dave and his friends embark on a demolition party to pull down all the ceiling boards and time permitting, some of the other 'features' of the house.

Cohen and I will be spending the day elsewhere. A convenient time to be pregnant...

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The mail man certainly showed the letter box a little love when he handed these over yesterday. The latest issue of Frankie and look! Hand knitted booties! Hot off the needles of the lovely Nell, direct from the UK. Such a lucky girl am I, I won these sweet pom pom booties in a joint giveaway between Nell's shop 'Happy Circus' and the inspiring blog, 'The Beetle Shack.' These little darlings have been packed away with my growing collection of handmade items for the bump. Thank you ladies!

In other very exciting news, Susie from Flowerpress interviewed me for the her Australian makers series of 'Show and Tell'. You can see the interview over at here blog here. Thanks so much Susie! What a thoughtful and generous introduction. It was my pleasure!

House tour

In an effort to document the renovations of our newly purchased house I've started with the before photos. The renovations are to come next. As a result I would ask that you keep one word in my while viewing the house - potential...

Here we have the internal stair case leading from the front door, which is next to that window down there.

Looking in to the lounge room, which currently features stained carpet that is probably as old as I am, original light fitting (sans glass shades) and original faded salmon velvet curtains on the sliding doors leading to the front deck. Please excuse the quality of the photos, it was an overcast day.

To the right of the lounge we have this lovely arch way leading into the dining room. They were all the rage at one stage, weren't they? They do waste an awful lot of space though.

Adjacent to which is the peach coloured kitchen.

The back door leads out to this nifty deck overlooking our backyard and the worlds largest tree right in the middle. You don't believe me yet. I shall get better photographic proof shortly.

Down the hall from the kitchen is this bathroom. Clean, functional and ugly.

On the other side of the hall is the first bedroom, also featuring original 70's curtains with wooden curtain rods.

Next to the bathroom, the third bedroom, smaller than the first and hung with modern faded blue curtains.

And the final, or master bedroom, which has rather hideous curtains, hideous mirror tiles and hideous purple painted built in cupboards.

Not to mention peeling paint and more stained carpet. We do have access to the front deck though, which runs the length of the front of the house.

Continuing back down the stairs we are greeted by a bright blue wall and brick bar next to the laundry. Both of which will be removed. The blue paint and the bar that is, not the laundry.

Opposite the brick bar are these brick walls. This room will eventually be my workshop / studio and be home to my jewellery bench and crafting supplies.

Some may be quite fond of these tiles in my otherwise sparse laundry, but I must say, I am not. I am fond of the size of this room though and the potential. Don't forget the potential.

Basically as it stands, this is our new house. Some of you may be wondering why on earth we brought such a house given my glowing description. Potential is my mantra. We also love the suburb and have renovated a similar house in the same suburb previously. An experience which taught us a great deal and enabled us to travel around the world for six months and still have a deposit for another house upon our return. That was pre-children. This house is going to be a much longer project. But I shall keep you posted. 

First things first, we need to replace the ceiling, replace the lights, replace the colour bond roof and install insulation. Then paint the ceiling and walls, pull up the carpet and polish the floor boards...

My Creative Space

My crafting journey really began with Cohen's pregnancy. The joy of finally being pregnant after all we had been through. I wanted to cherish every moment of that pregnancy. I wanted to slow down and make things for the new little person we were waiting to enter our lives, who would turn the two of us into the three of us.

Now that we are twelve weeks closer to becoming the four of us, those feelings haven't changed.

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Babies first blanket Ravelled here.

More Creative Spaces here.

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It's a strange weather day today. Rainy and sunny, cloudy and cool, windy and grey. The kind of day that suits a quiet mood and a slow pace. There's been a lot of that around here lately. Things seem to be winding down. Time seems to have slowed, as it does when you are waiting. I've been taking my time, relaxing, reading, knitting, napping. And finally, tomorrow, we get the keys to our new house and the renovations can begin, bringing us even closer to the time we can actually move in. Hooray!

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The joys and wonder of the fair, including snow cones, fairy floss, barn yard animals and pin wheels. A lovely way to spend the day while Daddy is off camping and fishing at Bribie 'for work'.

Hope you're all having a lovely weekend too,

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I have been gathering quite a few tutorials of late in my bookmarks and on my facebook page. It never fails to amaze me the time and thought that goes into these free tutorials and the new skills and inspiration they generate. I thought perhaps I would share some of those lovely and useful tutorials here.

Beautiful 'lavender bottles' for your linen drawers over at 'laundry etc'
Homemade laundry liquid recipe at 'Down to Earth'
How to weave in the ends of your knitting at 'Purl Bee'
Funky freezer paper stencil pillow cases at 'Metal & Mud'
How to make wheat bags with 'home life'
A lovely crochet flower square pattern at 'The Lazy Hobbyhopper'
Nature explorer bag for the little ones by 'Chez Bepper Bebe'
And these two cushions are a bit girly and sweet too.

Have you found or used any great free online tutorials lately?

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Yesterday while tea and conversation flowed, scissors, needles and fondant flew. Eight ladies were gathered for a crafternoon of wedding preparations for my sisters wedding. It was such a lovely day with such lovely ladies. We will all be quite proud I think, to see our handiwork decorating the wedding and knowing that a little piece of us has gone into such a very special day.

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PS. Ribbon flower tutorial here.