Taking Stock

Making : A 9ct Yellow Gold Opal Ring
Cooking : Simple meals at the end of long hot days.
Drinking : Tall glasses of water filled with ice cubes.
Reading: 'The Essence of the Thing' by Madeline St John
Wanting: A self weeding veggie patch.
Looking: At big grey clouds, threatening rain. (Hooray!)
Playing: With my project life album each week. Pics to come soon.
Deciding: What kind of blanket I want to make for this babe.
Wishing: Our friends and neighbours all the very best of their six month trip around Australia.
Enjoying: Homemade ice blocks of blended mango and coconut cream. Yum!
Waiting: To see my dear sister again. I miss her already.
Liking: Overnight oats with frozen berries for breakfast.
Wondering: How Emerson is going to react to her brother going to school each day.
Loving: The feeling of writing in a brand new notebook with a brand new pen.
Pondering: How many lifetimes I would need to be all the things I want to be - interior designer, painter, sculptor, book shop owner, novelist, travel writer...
Considering: All that I want to achieve at home and in my business before the baby arrives.
Watching: Cohen build a cubby from sheets and pillows.
Marvelling: At the hiccups I can feel emanating from the little one in my tummy.
Needing: A little more peace and quiet than I am currently being afforded.
Smelling: Everything! The gift of pregnancy.
Wearing: Fewer and fewer clothes from my wardrobe as my bump gets bigger.
Following: Claire Atkin's 'Make Marks Daily' Project on Instagram @pinkyandmaurice
Noticing: That the best time to hang out laundry in Summer is at night.
Knowing: That my floor needs mopping, but the rest of my house is clean.
Thinking: About applying for Brisbane Finders Keepers market again for November.
Admiring: My new logo design in progress. Can't wait to share it with you.
Sorting: Through the last little pile from a stack of 800 photos, spanning the last two years. My photo albums will soon be full and up to date! (Phew!)
Buying: New notebooks and goldfish
Getting: More chilli shaped capsicums from the garden than we can eat.
Bookmarking: Klimt02 Internation Art Jewellery Online, Thank You Shanna, The Weekend Edition Brisbane, Karina Sharpe, Artisan
Disliking: Bananas in Pajamas (two dense bananas and a rude rat), Blinky Bill (questionable role models indeed), Small Potatoes (enough said)  and Fireman Sam (most annoying voice artists ever)
Opening: Exciting packages.
Giggling: At five year old questions like, "Does the baby have a pillow? Is it wearing a shirt?"
Feeling: Excited and nervous about my first born starting Prep.

Joining in with Pip.

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A new beach bag for Mama, ready to be filled at a moments notice with books, towels, suncream and other beachy goodies. (Kmart $19) And inspired by Amanda's book, The Creative Family, I brought Cohen a spiral bound sketchbook today, in order to preserve his drawings for prosperity. He has already delighted in a bit of drawing and I plan to photograph these colourful scribbles to make Christmas cards. 

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Reading - 'My Life in France' Julia Child with Alex Prud'homme

Listening - 'Farewell to the World' Crowded House

Eating - crumpets drowning in butter and honey

Looking - for the perfect yellow wool for the granny blanket

Loving - early morning cuddles in bed with bubba and kitty this morning.

Seeing things...

Sorry, the sun was on it's way down when I snapped these pictures of a building in the Gold Coast. We were on our way to a lovely dinner in a revolving restaurant.

But tell me, do you see a pattern that looks very quilt like too?

Books, beetles and babies...

I have been tired and overwhelmed with all that has been happening of late and while I had no intention of taking an impromptu break, I think it may have been what I needed. I'm afraid we have been living amidst the difficulties of illness, mastitis, teething and the first stages of weaning.

And yet, there have been so many wonderful things happening too...

I have been reading - The Scarlet Letter and A Movable Feast. Reading feels like such a wonderful luxury when you have a baby. While feeling ill I gave up on the house work and spent my windows of free time while Cohen slept, curled up on my own bed reading. I wonder if I could get away with that more often... Thanks dearest sister for the wonderful books and for your blog post while I was sick. (I will have to get you a wonderful birthday present!)

I baked my first cheesecake and was surprised by the delicious results! It is wonderful to try something new. Why do I wait so long to do these things? I need to challenge myself more often with new things, be it baking or something else.

I have celebrated with my friends and their children, as each of the babies reaches there first birthday. My dear Cohen is next and I am so looking forward to his first birthday party.

The first Christmas beetles have arrived, which has always been a sign to me that Christmas is on it's way. Do you have Christmas beetles where you are? I love the silly things with their big bodies and tiny legs. I only wish they would stop trying to get into my kitchen.

There has been lots of photos taken, of Cohen, our adventures and the everyday. It's wonderful to take a camera with you, it makes you slow down and really look at things.

There has been lots of baby cuddles, there has been long and meandering phone calls that make you smile the rest of the day, there have been flowers from loved ones surprising me and nodding their heads on the dining table, there have been hexagons stitched, there has been long walks and there has been movies to watch while snuggled up on the couch.

I am so thankful for my husband and baby, my family and friends and all the little things that add up to make a wonderful life. I think sometimes you just have to take a step back to appreciate them.

A few photos from a lovely long walk around the lake yesterday.

PS. Do you like the new simple blog design? The background was looking a little to fussy and I have been admiring the simple white backgrounds I have noticed in blog land and the mosaic headers.