my creative space: a sweet doll

 In my last post I mentioned that I spent my day sewing up two little dolls. This is doll one, a sweet little girl destined for my friend's brunette baby. I like to think her name should be Mable, or maybe Maple (yet another favourite girl's name my husband hates!). She's the same black apple doll that I made back in December, with slightly tweaked proportions. You can find the pattern for free here.

Sometimes making something completely impractical and whimsical is the best kind of crafting, especially when you're in a funk. Doll two will be blogged next Thursday...

Thanks again for all of your kind and heartfelt comments this week. It's meant so much to me.

thank you and an update

My grandmother died today. When I wrote my post last night, I said that her cancer was progressing fast, but I don't think any of us realized how fast. I woke up to the news, and I was am so shocked at the suddenness of it all. I was praying that she would get to meet her great grandbaby, via skype at the very least. I am grateful though that she passed very peacefully surrounded by her husband, children and grandchildren. And I'm glad that my mom flies to Bogota tomorrow, where she will at least have the comfort of her family.

Today I thought about my grandmother, her deep love for her family, her practicality and her ability to make absolutely anything. She crafted every piece of clothing that her 5 children wore, and that includes socks and underwear. Having inherited her crafty gene, I decided to spend my day sewing. I made two dolls (will be blogged on Thursday) and it was exactly what I needed.

Finally, I just wanted to say thank you for all of your sweet comments on my post yesterday. I got to read them after I heard of her passing, and they made me feel so comforted and loved. So thank you xo

worst saturday ever

{my mom and her mom}

I feel like this post could also be titled, "crap that only happens to me." Because honestly, what kind of a yoga teacher injures herself so badly while teaching that she has to stop and go to the hospital? But I'm getting ahead of myself...

I was teaching my regular Saturday morning prenatal yoga class yesterday. We had about 10 minutes left and everyone was relaxing, when I walked back over to my mat and stubbed my toe against the wall. This isn't the first time this has happened, so I immediately knew that it was dislocated. Right away, I crouched down and pulled. My toe. Hard.

No go. It was still dislocated and quickly turning purple and swelling up. Epic fail. As calmly as I could, I told my class full of pregnant women that my toe was dislocated and I would need someone to get the manager to come help me. Amidst the chaos, a yoga teacher who had just finished teaching a class in the other room came in to finish teaching my class, while I hobbled downstairs with two people helping me. We called husband who came straight over and whisked me off to the emergency medical unit - by the by, EMU has got to be the best acronym ever- at the hospital.

I really thought that they would take pity on my heavily pregnant self in the emergency ward, but they could not have cared less. And so I waited in the stinky, gross emergency room with a dislocated toe for 3 and a half hours before I finally saw a doctor! For most of that time, I had no ice and no pain relief. Of course, once I did actually see a doctor it only took 10 minutes to fix the problem. Ten very uncomfortable minutes in which I got to practice my Calmbirth breathing and relaxation techniques while 2 needles were jabbed into my bony foot and the doctor manipulated my toe back into place. Once the ordeal was over, husband (always looking on the bright side) said: "I'm actually kind of glad that just happened cause we got to practice what we learned last weekend." Um, thanks. I can also now report that getting a toe relocated in Indonesia is faster (including a 1 hour taxi ride) than it is in Sydney. Good times.

So yes, we had grand plans for our Saturday, the husband and I. Spending all day in emergency was not one of them, and yet, this wasn't even the worst part of the day. While we waited, I got an email from my mom, one I had been hoping wouldn't come. She told me that my grandmother, my abuela, has terminal cancer that's progressing very fast.

My abuela - mother to five, grandmother to eleven - is so excited about her first great grandchild. After years of not making anything thanks to her failing eyesight, she actually knitted a sweater for the wriggle bum in my tummy. As for us, we have plane tickets for a trip to Canada and Colombia this summer (Australian winter). Husband couldn't wait to meet my family and I couldn't wait for my abuela to meet her first great grandbaby. At this point, it doesn't even look like she will get to hear of the birth of this little one. There's also no way that I can fly over to say goodbye this far along in my pregnancy. Instead, I will sit here and look at the beautiful photos I have of my abuela and tell my husband about what a great person she is. And from the other side of the world, I will be there for my mom.

p.s. my family, vintage 

to do

 

Today I prettied up my desk so I would feel inspired to plug away on my list-of-things-I-don't-want-to do-but-have-to-anyway. All I really want to do today is sit around, read the new issue of Kinfolk that just arrived in the mail, have a bath and maybe eat a croissant (or two, or three...). But there are classes to plan, playlists to make, emails to answer and laundry to do.

And that list, well it now includes things like: plan blessingway, buy a dryer, buy cloth diapers, clean stroller, book flights, buy travel insurance, figure out maternity leave and on and on... Less than two months to go, not that I'm anxious or anything.

bump: 32 weeks

We took these photos last night, when the husband was tired from work and I was tired from the constant jack hammering going on in the construction pit next door. We were both a bit grumpy, which is why I'm extra glad that I have some lovely ladies who have offered to shoot my bump over the coming weeks. Husband can have a well-deserved break from being my photographer.

To be honest, it's not quite 9am and I'm feeling grumpy again thanks to those aforementioned jack hammers waking me up nice and early this morning after a terrible night's sleep. I think I'll make myself some tea and read through my Calmbirth book. Despite my whinging, we did have a lovely weekend. The two of us drove to Bowral on Friday night to attend Calmbirth with Peter Jackson. We stayed at the sweetest B&B, where we relished having a king sized bed, a body pillow, and the kind of quiet you only get in the country.

Saturday and Sunday were spent with a group of other couples, preparing for our upcoming births. Peter's wisdom and gentle encouragement was exactly what we needed. Husband came away with a greater sense of what to expect on b-day (as Peter calls it) and the tools to be a wonderful support person. I came away feeling excited to birth our baby. Eight more weeks...

p.s. Check out Jodi's blog today to see some photos that Luisa snapped of our lunch date in Surry Hills...

a quiet week

 

Wow, I've been rather silent this week, haven't I? It's just been one of those weeks where not much is happening, definitely nothing to write home about. The most exciting thing to happen is the arrival of my Vitamix, which I managed to buy gently used from a friend who upgraded to a Thermomix. I've been silently, and sometimes not so silently, pining for one of these blenders for a long time and I'm so happy at how this all worked out. A perfect example of 'ask and ye shall receive.' I've used it 2 or 3 times a day since I've had it, making myself a daily green smoothie, nut milks, sauces and desserts.

In other news, it's still so hot here. It feels just like a Vancouver summer, and not at all like autumn. While the beach swims are nice, I'm still looking forward to the day I can sleep without 2 fans on me. We're heading away this weekend, to a country town which will, allegedly, be cooler than here. I hope so.

I hope you're all having a wonderful week!

how did you choose your baby's name?

{via}

We are having such a hard time thinking of names for this here baby of ours. My husband and I have wildly different taste in names; it's something we've been joking about for years. I suggest something like Cedar (for a boy) and he counters with, "what about William?"

Luckily for him, my taste in names has evolved and I now find myself mostly drawn to old fashioned English names, as well as French and Spanish names. But there's still a fair amount of compromise involved when we get talking about naming the little one. I have to sacrifice anything remotely unusual and he has to consider the possibility of names that aren't currently in use by an English monarch.

I chose this photo because we do seem to gravitate towards what are considered 'hipster names.' But I'm getting frustrated because a lot of the names we agree on are becoming more and more popular. Husband doesn't care at all whether or not a name is common; I really do.

So... how did you choose your baby's name? Do you care if your baby's name is common? Did you try to find a name with meaning? Did you name your baby after someone? Do you have any name suggestions for us? Pretty please...

bump: 30 weeks

This week marks 30 weeks of baby growing, 10(ish) weeks to go. Yesterday I had a wonderful midwife appointment. My husband was able to come with me for the first time, and we spent a bit more time asking questions and checking out the bump and the baby. Both seem to be right on track with baby appearing to be head down. I also got good news from my chiropractor later that day - my pelvis is looking better and my legs are the same length, hurrah!

This week I'm hoping to sleep lots, take it easy on my body amidst all the yoga teaching and order myself some maternity jeans. And then I should probably turn my attention back to my to-do list, which I titled 'things I don't want to do but need to anyway.' Oh yes, there's a lot to be done these next 2 months!

cook-off

Autumn arrived right on cue on Friday with stormy weather and cooler temperatures, which was perfect timing for the cooking party my friend and I had planned. We wanted to try out some recipes from My New Roots and from the whole foods course we're doing; we settled on the life changing loaf of bread, crispy cornmeal sweet potato fries, and some roast chickpeas.

We'd never made any of these before, and to be totally honest, each of the above had some 'issues.' I think though, that when you're learning a new way of cooking, buying food, and eating it just takes some patience and trial and error. For example, the fries were yummy but would've been better if we'd followed the recipe more closely. And next time I attempt the loaf of bread (gluten free! flour free! yeast free!) I'll make sure I have the exact quantities of everything needed, let it sit for longer and enjoy it as toast, as Sarah suggests.

That said, it was a really enjoyable morning of pottering around, making, and taking photos of Katie's cute kitchen. We already have plans to do it again in a few weeks with different recipes. I'll let you know how we go!

What's been happening in your kitchen lately?