The octomom

The documentary has just aired on UK TV tonight. Its like watching a horrific car accident. I just can't bring myself to turn it off and yet I'm cringing and feeling so angry at her.

Initially I thought I'd watch it with an open mind. I would not prejudge her and give her the benefit of being a loving woman who took motherhood into her own hands and on her own terms. But after seeing those poor children I just feel ill.

The programme starts with feeding time for the 9mth old octuplets. They are all just screaming and kicking fighting for food and spitting it out at the same time. Nayda and her two helpers just can't give the love and attention that these poor babies need.

What was even more sickening is the poor older children. The oldest girl is old beyond her years. When Nadya pokes the camera into her face and asks her Do you enjoy all the babies? The poor girl responds that she wishes she was an only child. So often she is shown caring for the babies. Sure I did that too as the oldest of 4 and resented the care I had to give but was also proud at the same time. But to have to help care for 13 siblings when is is still a young girl herself?

The autistic boy is given a shower of kisses and then pushed off to a minder while Nadya turns her back on him and attends to the other children.

Then the stupid woman shoved the camera in the face of a boy of about 6-7 years. He screams to get the camera out of his face. Nadya laughs and says he hates being on camera and she respects that. But she continues to hound the boy until he completely breaks down screaming at her and calling her an arsehole. Lovely. Its no wonder the boy cracks and throws a screwdriver at his mother cutting her nose. He screams out "F*%K You!" then tells her he doesn't like her talking about him. This is a cry for help, surely? These are healthy and well adjusted children.

The only saving grace is that the courts have been given some power to protect the children. I hope they step in soon and realise that this constant publicity is so destroying for these poor children.

Hello navel! I've missed you

Six weeks post baby and half the weight gone. I've become reacquainted with my belly button and some of my regular clothes. However that was the easy weight and the next half isn't going to be quite so easy.

Having been given the all clear by my doctor last week we went for our first family run on the weekend. It was a moment I have been waiting for for 10.5 months. My double jogging stroller was my first purchase when I found out about pregnancy number 2. I'd enjoyed my morning runs with Master R along the Hudson River and couldn't wait to start again. My single jogger was left in the caring hands of Mama A (I hope you're using it!).

When we moved back to London the main criteria for a house was proximity to a large park so I could jog. We're right near Victoria Park, one of London's best kept secrets. At one stage deer roamed free but now it's just a huge park with great running paths and gardens.

Mr M and I were a little concerned about Master T's head wobbling around too much but we secured it with blankets and did a few test runs and he seemed very content nestled into the side of the seat.

The last time I went for a run was December '08 so I wasn't expecting much. However I surprised myself, and Mr M, by running the full planned distance of approximately 6kms/4 miles. I did feel it the next day though.

Both boys loved it. Master R loves looking at the ducks and "eich", abbreviated German for squirrels, which we have to acknowledge every time he sees one. Master T just slept. Let's hope it continues because I still have quite a few lbs to lose!

Goodbye! It's been a great 3 years

Source: Image Shack

Following the birth of my second son just 18 months after the first, I've decided to take some much needed maternity leave. Saying goodbye to a business that I built was a difficult decision but my family must now come first.

Brittique was launched as an online boutique to support up and coming British designers. Looking back I feel proud to have worked with so many top names including the already well known like Amanda Wakeley and Maria Grachvogel through to the new stars such as Louise Amstrup and Merle O'Grady.

Of course we have stock to clear so we've cut all prices by at least 50% - including the new season collections from Caroline Charles and Peter Jensen.

Thank you for all your support over the past 3 years. It has been fun and now I'm looking forward to spending time being mum for a while.

In-flight refueling

Mama, Master R and Master T in-flight refueling.

For weeks before the birth of Master T I had a recurring nightmare. Each time I was in the park trying to breastfeed the new baby while Master R bolted towards the busy road. I just didn't know how I was going to cope with a newborn's frequent feeding demands and the high energy of Master R.

A couple of weeks ago I was running late for an appointment and Master T was screaming for food. So I maneuvered the baby Bjorn, lifted my top, lowered Master T's head and he started sucking. Problem solved! He suckled away and we made it to the appointment on time.

Mr M has called it in-flight refueling. Since then many of Master T's feeds are done this way. I even worked a full day at London Fashion Weekend while feeding my hungry babe. Only one woman asked me if my baby was sleeping or feeding.

I'd read about it on HRPMamas forum and I had seen a mother doing it in Tribeca once but can't believe that I didn't try it with Master R. It saves so much time. No more stopping for feeds, just feed on the go. I highly recommend it if you haven't done it before.

What to do with two (or three)?

Source: iCandy


Source: Bambino Goodies

Mama's A and H and I have been having an email discussion about the best strollers for transporting our expanding broods. I've opted for the Baby Bjorn option for Master T with Master R in the regular old Bugaboo and only have a double running stroller (which sadly is Master T is too small and wobbly for). Once Master T is too heavy I'll put him in the Ergo carrier. But after that I'm not too sure. There are some times when you just want to push them and not carry them. (And it limits your wardrobe options ha ha.)

I bought a buggy board before I left the US and subsequently discovered that they give them away for free here in my (underprivileged) borough to encourage safety. However Mama A and I both agree that our boys are far too energetic to be safely constrained to it.

Mama A saw was told about this British brand iCandy "pushchair" as above that is coming stateside in a couple of months. I don't know anyone who has one but will check it out in the next few days and see if it could be suitable for Master X.

This morning I saw a mother pushing her three kids - two in a double and the older on the buggy bike above. If it has a seat belt (doesn't look like it sadly) it might be a better option than a buggy board and much more fun for Master R. We'll have to fight to get him off rather than the usual getting him in tantrum.

What do you think? What are your plans or do you currently use to transport your babes?


Edit: Just saw this convertible pushchair to bike. Brilliant - for one only sadly.

Becoming a full time mama

Source: BBC

It's 9:30pm. I've run around after the boys all day and then tried to do a full day's work. I've thrown together a bolognaise ready to serve to Mr M when he walks in the door at around 10. I boil the water go to put the pasta in and realise I have no pasta. A frantic call later Mr M walks through the door with the pasta asking me how I can forget the pasta when I went shopping for a pasta dish. This isn't the first time it's happened.

You see it's not just the pasta I forget. I forget to have a shower. I forget that I put washing in washing machine the night before and now it's smelling musty. I forget to pay my congestion charge for driving in central London and now face a fine of £60/$120. I forget to put out the rubbish and miss the collection with an overflowing bin. I forget to take Master R's shoes to nursery so he can't play outside and I forget to take my keys out of the bugaboo the when I left it at nursery locking myself outside. Let's not even go into my personal finances where I forget to transfer money regularly and overdraw my accounts.

The issue is that for the past 20 months I have been juggling motherhood, running a home (a difficult and generally discounted job!), and a partner who works very long hours and is very reliant on me to run the show. All this on top of running a business full time. Not to mention attempting to look after myself and knitting.

While I don't feel that I'm on the brink of a breakdown or anything, I just feel constant guilt. Guilt that I'm not giving anything 100%. I'm failing as a partner, failing as a homemaker, failing as a business woman, but most importantly failing as a mother. Something had to give. I've made the decision to close down my business.

It wasn't an easy decision. I started the business naively thinking that it would be easier working for myself when I had children. The opposite is true. It is so much easier to be an employee and take your maternity leave while the concerns of the business are left with the business.

I am relieved that the decision has been made and this chapter has now closed behind me. I'm looking forward to a new start. I want to focus on looking after myself, getting fitter and working on a few other projects. Most importantly I don't want to feel guilty that the boys aren't getting the best mother and "wife" that I can be.

And still more finished gifts

As mentioned in a previous post I've been knitting so much for others that I forgot that my own poor son Master R doesn't have a hat or gloves for winter. After a little searching through Ravelry I found this free pattern for the Norwegian Earflap hat. I love the challenge of knitting this intarsia star pattern and yet the speed you can finish it since it's a small project.

After knitting Master R's hat I liked it so much that I made another one for a friend's little boy's 2nd birthday. I did it without a pompom. I personally like it with the pompom but wasn't sure about it - I'm always so insecure with my knitting and not sure that people will like it. That's why I've only just started gift knitting again. So what do you think? With or without pompom?

The final picture is the back of a coat I knitted. The pattern looks incredibly complex but it honestly just looks that way. When we moved back to London from New York in February I wanted to bring along one big project that would keep me going for the 12 weeks until our boxes arrived. This was the perfect project. It's all done in moss (seed) stitch (k1, p1) so it takes a while. And you do need to concentrate on getting the vines and flowers in the right place. I had finished it months ago except one sleeve which I finished just before Master T was born. I really do need to take some nice pictures of it though. The buttons are just beautiful

In hindsight I really wish that I'd done this in grey. I love wearing grey and don't enjoy purple so much. But I was really trying to get out of my grey rut where everything I was knitting myself was grey. I've given up now and will just knit in grey because then I know I'll wear it. So while this isn't technically a gift knit, I'll probably not wear it often and should really give it away. It's just about finding someone who does like purple handknitted coats.

Some completed gift knits

I had vowed never to knit a gift again following a bad experience. But since Mama J is a fellow knitter I decided it was a safe gift. Given how much Master A loves George I thought his brother would too so I made him a George the monkey. It's a great quick crochet project that is very cute! And believe it or not I actually ran out of the brown so I had to give him a tshirt and shorts.

Then I knitted up a vest for Master L. I love this pattern. It's normally done in thick yarn and is also a quick knit. Not wanting to leave out Master A, and because two boys look so cute in matching clothes, I also knitted him a vest. It's done on thicker yarn so was just as quick as the small one to complete. Actually it was quicker because I didn't put the grey around the sleeves. I didn't have the right yarn so left it off. It looks cute anyway. NB. The vests are the same navy but the lighting was different in each picture so one looks a bit washed out.

The top picture is Iggle Piggle a children's TV character here. Master R just loves the show and it's one show I don't mind him watching. If you saw the pics of me catching a bus to the hospital to give birth to Master T you'll see me crocheting this. It was my goal to give it to Master R when I left hospital as a little present. But I didn't quite get it finished in time. Unfortunately Master R showed zero attention to it. He's never liked any soft toys! Oh well, it looks cute on the chair in his room. Maybe Master T will like it.

The trend continues: introducing Timo

How can it be that I too have a boy? What's in the water in BPC? What's more, why is everyone I know having two of the same? Strange phenomenon going on. I'm thrilled though. I think secretly I wanted another boy. Master R and Master T will be so close in age that it will be nice to be brothers. Will just have to convince Mr M for another one and this time hope for a girl. Mr M by the way is chuffed to bits to have another boy. He's such boy man that I actually can't see him with a girl. But I know his heart would melt the moment the little girl said "Papi" and gave him a big cuddle.

We've had a few comments about the name. I didn't actually think it was all that unusual but I guess if I wasn't living with a German it would be strange to me too. Timo is pronounced "Teemo" and is not and uncommon name in Germany/Holland/Scandiland. And yes it also happens to be another Formula 1 driver, Timo Glock, just like Ralf Schumacher. You can tell where we get our inspiration! Luckily for me, sadly for Mr M, our boys will most likely be too tall to be F1 drivers. Most are about 5'8 with shoes on. We'll have to focus on tennis, swimming, football (the round ball type) and rugby.

So how am I feeling? Apart from being sore from the c-sec and having sore nipples (Mama LS was right, it does hurt again the second time boo hoo), I feel absolutely fine. Master T just seems so easy. He sleeps, eats, sleeps, poos, eats, sleeps etc. He doesn't seem as alert or noise sensitive as Master R (oh dear, the comparisons have started already), and just seems like a calmer baby in general. If I could use one word to sum up how I feel it's lazy. Completely and utterly lazy. I don't feel like doing a single thing but lazing about on the sofa knitting. I don't even feel like walking up all the hideous stairs in this house to bed. Just sitting. And knitting.

My mum's here for another 8 days so I've decided just to spend that time doing as much sitting and knitting as possible. Then the fun will begin.

Master R on the other hand isn't doing quite so well. But that's another blog post.

My birthday surprise

I turned a year older last week. I begged the powers that be for a baby but instead I got this piano! It was a lovely surprise. I received a phone call around lunchtime asking if I'd be home at 3 for a special delivery (oh do I miss my concierge in NYC!). Of course I stayed in and it was worth it. Mr M had surprised me with a new piano.

From the time I was 6 until about 16 I endured the hours of practise required to be a pianist - not all willingly mind you. But now I thank my mother for making me get up at 6 each morning and do 1-2 hours practise before going out to groom my horses. I read an interview with one the mother of one of the current Billy Elliots and she said that making her son practise his ballet was a bit like making him brush his teeth - sometimes he doesn't want to do it but she knows it's the best thing for him and therefore makes him do it. That's how it was with my piano and I'm so glad my mother made me do it.

It was actually Mama V who first got my mind thinking about a piano. I visited her one day and tinkled about on her ivory keys for a few minutes and suddenly dreamed of sitting at my piano with Master R and playing beautifully. That's when I started to beg the man for a piano.

What a shock last week when I finally sat down to play. I really had forgotten everything. I'd forgotten even where the notes were apart from middle C. At least that's a good start! I tried to play something and could only get through a few bars of Fuer Elise. The other shock is how hard it is on my weakened wrists. Previously about 1 hour was done each day just on scales to strengthen my fingers and encourage agility but now of course they have neither.

I've been practising most evenings now and can kind of do a scale properly and pick out a page of Beethoven's "Mondschein". Mr M is really enjoying listening to me and of course Master R loves banging away at the keys. Longer term I hope it inspires some creativity in my son.

The urge to finish

I'm not sure if it has anything to do with being in the final days of my pregnancy but I've had this sudden urge to finish all those projects I've had lying around - some for nearly a year. While it looks like I've been ultra-productive, in most cases it has been about putting in a couple of hours to just get the project finished. That's what I've been doing the past couple of weeks so I now have a few finished projects to share.


First is this dress. I bought the fabric about 3 months ago. The style is the same as a $1 dress I bought off ebay and wear and wear and wear. With the elastic top it was great to breast feed in and it is just so comfortable. I'm wearing the old dress literally to it's death. The idea was to make this one for summer. As the nights get longer and summer draws to a close I probably won't get much of a chance to wear it this year but it's a great dress anyway and was so simple to make!

The fabric comes with the elastic already sewn in the top. You just whip up the side seams, top and hem. Viola! Easy! The yellow, red and green stripes mean it will look great with red sandals and red cardigan.

Sorry about the picture. I had to use the self timer on the kitchen bench.

Sorry also for this picture. But nothing I could do would give this cardigan justice. It looks wonky here but it's not. I'll take a live shot once I fit into it again. It is a stunning design with lovely 3/4 length sleeves in the same lacy pattern and a scalloped edge. However, this was the most difficult knitting project I have ever undertaken! Only because the pattern was written so badly. It was almost as if they wanted you to fail from the outset. Just terrible. Mama J and Mama H, I promise I'll always help you with any knitting and crochet pattern you do EXCEPT this one!

Just a very basic blankie. Master R is such a little blankie boy (which I find very cute). But his wonderful 3Marthas blankie is in a sorry state. No matter how much I wash it I can't get out the ground in dirt. They don't make them anymore and I couldn't find one in blue and white on any of the US sites I searched so I thought I'd make one. The knitting was very simple but sewing the ribbon around wasn't so easy because my poor old machine didn't like sewing through the thickness of the wool. So I'm rather ashamed of my sewing and won't own up to it!

I was concerned that Master R would reject the replacement blankie but as soon as he saw it lying on the sofa he screamed for it and wouldn't let it go. Mission complete!

Last but my absolute favorite is this cabled hoody. I started it in October last year and had finished it by February but hadn't put in the zipper. I tried to get to the haberdashery store in NYC before I left but didn't get there. Finally yesterday I bought the zip and sewed it in. However, there is a big problem with this hoody. Those with a keen eye will see that there is a lighter strip of knitting around the waist line. I was furious - I ran out of yarn and went back to The Point and was assured it was the same dyelot. As you can see it was not. I've considered ripping it back but decided to just live with it in the end. It's a lesson that I should ALWAYS check the dyelot and NEVER knit if it's not the same. Mamas J and H - this is a great pattern for you. The yarn is beautiful and the fit is wonderful. It's a quick knit too because it's on big needles.

Now to get back to the sofa and finish some more outstanding projects.

A wonderful weekend with Mama V and family

Mama N and Mr M in the kitchen.

Mama V, Master K and Mr A at the farm.

Mama V and Mama N (looking MASSIVE) at the farm.

Chunky Master R and long lean Master K playing ball in our backyard.

Last weekend we had the pleasure of hosting Mama V, Mr A and Master K. Having not seen Master K since February I couldn't believe how tall he is! Such a little sweetie.

Master K and Master R played so well together. On Saturday morning they taught each other some great dance moves and thought it was hilarious. So did we! They were so funny jumping around everywhere, throwing themselves on the ground and then laughing uncontrollably. Master K is the only older friend Master R has played with recently who hasn't beat him up so he appreciated that.

Saturday night Mr M wanted to cook his famous lamb roast for our guests. I think they enjoyed it. He followed up with BBQ 4 course breakfast the following morning. It took so long to eat that we only had a little time to show them our local hangouts and take the boys to the farm. Both Master K and Master R loved chasing the chooks (Australian for chickens) and watching the enormous pigs snore in their sty.

All too soon it was time to leave and Mr A was getting anxious about getting to the airport on time. Once they'd left the house seems so empty and quiet. Master R was exhausted and slept for 4.5 hours! He was asking for Master K when he woke up. We really do want more friends to come and visit please!

Toddler toothbrushing tantrums

I'd really love some advice. I go through toddler tantrums every day twice a day with Master R when it comes to brushing his teeth. I feel ready to just give up! I've tried different toothbrushes, mine, Mr Mr's, electric and handheld, different flavours and brands of toothpaste and nothing helps. He'll gladly eat off the toothpaste or turn on and off the brush but he just won't give the teeth a brush. I try to demonstrate and get him to copy me but nothing. I then have to hold him down and gently attempt to brush them while he thrashes about and screams as if I'm administering torture.

Any suggestions or experiences welcomed!

Patchwork inspiration

Source: JenSport's shop

If you haven't yet discovered Etsy then you're in for a handmade treat. This website is a market place for thousands and thousands of crafters to sell their wares. Anything and everything handmade or home made or vintage or not. It's main downfall is that there is so much on offer that it can get confusing. But I've made a few fabulous purchases from recrafted vintage jewellery to baby bibs, vintage clothing, new clothing and now a patchwork quilt pattern.

I made my first patchwork quilt - or started my first quilt - when I was about 8 years old. Mum wouldn't let me use her sewing machine and made me sew each little hexagon and triangle by hand. I don't think I did ever finish it and I have no idea what happened to those little cut out scraps of pink and while fabric. Since then I have done a lot of sewing and inspired by Mama H's beautiful quilt am ready to tackle my own, this time with my trusty sewing machine.

My first project was going to be something boyish for Master R. However when I saw this Union Jack I just had to do it. While I'm not British. I've lived here since the end of 2000, with a two year stint in New York of course, practically all my adult life. I have a British passport and now so does Master R. I do feel a certain pull towards the Ol' Blighty but in a different way to my deep smugness and pride of being Australian*.

After searching ebay, I've bought some red, white and blue fabric and will be commencing this hopefully while my mother is staying so she can help me with the finer points of patchwork such as what backing and padding to use and the best method of finishing. Let's hope it's a quickish project and I can show you some finished pics in the not too distant future.

*During my very pompous group naturalisation ceremony the Lord conducting it turned to me in front of the others and asked where my allegiance lay in regards to the cricket. He said that was the true test of Britishness. I'm sorry to say I have zero interest in cricket but of course my allegiance is with Australia. If Australia and England play rugby, I'm rooting for Australia. If a Brit and and American are playing tennis, I'm all for the Brit. If Germany and England are playing football (soccer to you) I have to go for Germany or be booted out of my home. We are a confused household!

Admitting defeat

Sometimes with any handicraft there is a point where you just have to admit that it's not working out. It's best to cut your losses and either start over or set it aside.

A certain mama amongst us is due with number 2 in just 6 weeks. I thought I'd be extra early and knit her something now. I saw this pure wool in Austria and snapped up a couple skeins of each in navy and orange - 2 skeins is normally enough for a newborn cardigan style top. I had read that this striped pattern was particularly yarn hungry so I bought extra thinking that I might have enough to do one for myself if I have a boy.

After knitting about half the jacket I realised I was going to run out of yarn - despite the pattern saying I had enough. Other knitters had complained about this on Ravelry. I also decided that the colours were probably a bit out there for this mama's tastes. I love orange and navy but it's not to everyone's taste. So I frogged it - a knitting term for rip it, rip it, rip it.

Second attempt was this all in one seamless baby kimono. Again the pattern said 100g of yarn was enough, this is exactly what I had. I knew from the beginning it was going to be close but was determined to keep knitting until it was finished or the yarn ran out. As you can see, the yarn ran out. NOOOO! Not twice?

Today I did a speedy trip with screaming Master R to my LYS (local yarn store for the non knitters) and picked up some yarn and have started something tried and true. This HAS to work or a certain mama will be getting a store bought gift.

Or maybe a gift voucher hahahaha!

Merle O'Grady: Find of the month

Merle O'Grady has caused quite a stir in a very short space of time. Her feather weight perspex jewellery was snapped up by Beyonce while on a break from performing in Dublin. Since then customers have been clamouring to buy her unique and striking jewellery. The lightness of the perspex is particularly good for those who love big dangly earrings. You won't even notice these but everyone else will.

The fun of meeting other mums

I've told you all offline about my experience with the first mum I met. There's a bitter sweet story there that Mama J can fill you in or at a playgroup as I don't want to put it online. Needless to say that relationship has been nipped in the bud. But it doesn't get any less entertaining!

Met another mum in the playground. She is due with number two around the same time as me. Her little boy is a lively 2.5yr old. She seemed nice enough, different background to me, but hey, it takes all sorts in life. We met on Tuesday afternoon and her little boy was rummaging through her purse when he pulled out a small packet with dried green leaves. She laughed, grabbed it and then said she'd met with the dealer before meeting me to score for her husband. I'm just imagining a heavily pregnant mother with a young son meeting a dealer on the corner. Oh dear. I certainly can pick them. I told Mr M who agreed that while it's probably a little "harmless" stress relief for them, it was a little too dangerous to keep company like that incase we're implicated in anything.

I did meet another nice mother today at a fantastic local indoor softplay group. She has a 22mth old daughter and is expecting number two a month after me. We chatted about babies, of course, and about how it was nice that they charge for the class as it keeps the standard high (Oh dear we do sound elitist. We're not I promise. It's just the area we live in) then said we'd see each other next week. No stalking. Hopefully no drugs. Hopefully a new friend for Master R and me.

Using real nappies

Source: Green Baby

Following Mama H's post on World Environment Day I have taken a look at how eco-friendly my parenting is. I was a prolific user of paper towels using rolls a week to clean up after messy Master R. Conscience pricked I discovered that Green Baby had these fantastic washable wipes. They're so soft and durable. I've bought a couple of packs now and are so much softer on Master R's face too. He now uses them to clean his own face and hands during and after eating.

Encouraged by my experience with the wipes I thought about washable nappies. Because I live in an "underprivileged" postcode the council will pay £54.91 towards washable nappies. I received my voucher and went back to Green Baby to research nappy options. Many of them are really bulky with lots of different layers. I chose the Itti Bitti nappies. They have two layers that clip inside but don't seem bulky.

The downside is that I do have to change them more often than disposables. With the disposables I'd change Master R's nappy maybe 4 times a day now I need to do it about 6 times or he pees straight through it! I only have 4 nappies for the moment so I use them until I've run out and then switch to disposables. I guess I'm also lucky that Master R only does number 2s every 2-3 days so washing is easy. I just throw the wet nappies in the washing machine and wash them with the next load.

Verdict? I will buy some more and try to use predominantly real nappies. As for baby 2 I won't be using real nappies for a while - newborns poop far too much and I'm not scrubbing them...

Finished but ungifted gift knits

You can be forgiven for thinking that all I do is knit. I do actually look after a child, highly reliant partner and run a business too! I just squeeze in as much knitting as possible in the evenings when I don't have the brain power to do anything else.

These knits (and one crochet) are a little different. All but the top vest were started over a year ago and intended as gifts. For some reason they were never quite finished. Until today. While my darling Master R took a 4 hour nap I finished all four projects allowing me to cross them off my WIPS list. However, it's a bitter sweet completion because it reminds me of what a slack gift knitter I am.

The navy jumper (sweater) with the orange was intended as a gift for Mama V's Master K on his first birthday. I had finished all the knitting when I realised it was HUGE. It would fit a 5 year old. So I rushed to Borders and bought some books instead feeling really guilty that I couldn't provide a proper handknitted item.

The bunny blankie was intended as a gift for a friend who had her second baby in September. I actually knitted the whole thing while driving (I was a passenger obviously) from NYC to Philadelphia. But I never got around to stitching on the face until today. It will have to be a little snuggly for my baby now!

The crocheted bear/pig/monkey - can't remember what it's supposed to be - started life as a gift for an Australian friend (hence the green and gold Aussie colours) living in New York when she had her second baby. However this was the first thing I had ever crocheted and part of my learning process. As a result I was never happy with it. The arms and legs are all different sizes and the eyes look odd. Despite it's imperfections I stitched it together this afternoon and Mr M thought it was so cute and said baby 2 will love it. Not sure about that but it's too hideously made to give away!

The beautiful cabled vest at the top is my way of making it up to my friends. I started this on Saturday and already it was finished today. A wonderfully quick and impressive vest that will be wrapped and given to a friend's little boy on his second birthday next weekend. Of course I can see the imperfections, but I'm determined to overlook these and realise that it is a handknit and that's all part of the beauty.

I will wrap the vest and gift it next weekend.

A month today I'll meet my new baby

On 27 August I'll finally get to meet my new son or daughter. I'm actually starting to feel that it's real now after months of almost denial. This pregnancy is so different emotionally. I haven't had the luxury of spending the time to really feel the love or even bond with the unborn child in the way I did with Master R. When you already have a child, it's just so different to the first.

With the first pregnancy I spent hours singing and stroking my stomach. This time I'm lucky to get a 5 minute shower when Master R goes to sleep. I have no doubt that as soon as I meet him/her my heart will just melt and I'll be completely smitten - as Mama LS said in her debut post. But right now I'm so completely absorbed with everything else that I haven't had a chance to dwell on the baby - something I will change as soon as he/she is born.

On Friday I went for the final scan. I didn't see Master R past 20 weeks so this was such a treat! I did get teary as I gazed upon the face on my child for the first time. Perhaps not knowing the sex of a child limits the bonding to a certain extent. I still can't tell if it's a boy or girl from the face. These images always seem so abstract to me. What do you think?

An overlooked finished object

Most of my knitting is done for others. Generally for my darling Master R. But as I look through my Ravelry queue I've done a lot for myself but I'm just never happy with it. If it's not perfect I can't wear it. I'll be embarrassed to say that I made it and will have to tell anyone who comments on it how terrible it is and point out its every blemish. Perhaps I'm too hard on myself?

This cardigan however is different. I actually started it while on a terrible 8 hour bumper to bumper traffic jammed trip to Boston last summer. I managed to finish the back, front and start each of the sleeves before we arrived home and it was cast aside in favour of more wintery knits.

In desperate need of a white cardigan I resumed the project a couple of months ago. What struck me is the way my knitting had changed in a year. Where I had restarted the sleeves there was a clear line of distinction. The older knitting was looser and less uniform while my new knitting lovely and tight with all the stitches standing as they should. I nearly ripped back the old knitting and started again but then I thought that this is what makes a handknit unique and beautiful. Maybe I need a little imperfection?


I'm really happy with how this turned out. It's small enough and tight enough to look great over dresses and the fine cotton (all knitted on size US2 needles!!) the perfect weight for the British "summer". It's inspired me to do a bit more knitting for myself. I just need to get through all these gift knits first. Everyone, stop having babies please!

My wonderful MIL

Oh yes you read the title correctly. My mother in law really is wonderful, and the FIL too. If I say anything bad about them again please cyber slap me!

We made a last minute decision to actually take a holiday and fly, yes fly at 32 weeks pregnant (!!?!!), to Munich and then drive the 130kms to our apartment in Austria. I was really apprehensive about the whole thing but the doctor signed off on it and the airline allows you to fly up to 36 weeks with a doctor's letter. So off we went. It's only a 1.5hr flight and Master R had his own seat on the plane and was really good the whole way. Same for the car drive into Munich to see Oma and Opa.

After spoiling Master R with lovely presents, Oma and Opa took us to a biergarten for lunch. I stupidly ordered fish and then had to reorder when it arrived and I discovered it was raw fish. My German doesn't extend that far and no one thought there was anything wrong with a pregnant woman eating raw fish! But I reordered and tried not to make a fuss.

There was a summer fair in the park and the grandparents took Master R on his first merry-go-round ride. I thought he'd be scared because it was really fast but he loved it and kept begging for more. Being grandparents they kept giving in and I think he went on it 7 times in total and cried when we had to leave.

The real suprise was when we arrived at our apartment just 130kms away. Knowing that I have OCD when it comes to being clean and tidy Oma had completely cleaned the apartment. I mean completely. There was not a single speck of dust anywhere and no item of furniture or trinket (and there are lots of them) was out of place. The best thing is that they had moved anything that Master R could get at and stored it in their room. It was truly amazing.

It's more amazing given the fact that Opa is currently recovering from surgery for advanced cancer. It's been a tough couple of months and we didn't know how much longer we'd have him with us. It turns out that he's responded really well to treatment and is likely to have more healthy years with us. It touches me that despite the pain he's going through they both made such an effort to have the apartment perfect for us. So much so that they made our bed, bought new artwork to replace the items we didn't like, shopped and filled the fridge so we wouldn't have to worry about food the first few days, bought toys for Master R, filled the terraces with beautiful plants and flowers (as you can see in the picture above), insisted that they wouldn't stay with us even though they'd love to spend all day with Master R, the list goes on.

I am eternally greatful and appreciate having a MIL who is as OCD as me about things being just so. As a result I will not complain when they drink too much, try to take over the parenting, paint our walls canary yellow, decorate the whole apartment to their cluttered taste, put numerous holes in the walls to hang their gaudy artwork, wash my clothes and sheets in so much fabric softener that it gives me rashes in "sensitive" places, dictate when, where and how things will happen, constantly point out any changes in my weight or the regrowth of my hair, order so many knitted items that I'd have to knit for a year to complete them, hmmm really my list is insignificant compared to the beautiful things they have done for us. I wish I had the level of German possible to tell them I appreciate it from the bottom of my heart. Right now though they have to be satisfied with vielen dank, alles is perfeckt!

Beaten by a pip - here's my finished vest too

I feel a little sheepish posting this after Mama H! She just beat me to it though. I finished this last night and was going to post before going to bed but then cast on another project instead.

As Mama H said, the inspiration for this vest all started with Mama V's mother in law knitting one for the incredibly sweet Master K. Mama J then requested the pattern and started knitting it. She would have been the first finished but, despite much coaching from across the ocean, had some difficulty on the neck. I believe hers isn't quite there yet. Keep going though! You'll finish it.

As I say on my Ravelry page, this is terribly cheap but soft acrylic. The total cost of this vest was actually £1.25. But I wanted something that I could just throw on Master R when it was a touch chilly - which is often the case during a British summer - and not worry about curry stains. It also does very well in the washing machine, something I would NEVER do with wool - not even the machine washable stuff.

I'm quite pleased with mine. It's a touch big for Master R as you can see, and I accidentally over blocked it and it's a bit flat looking at the bottom. But one wash and it will be back to normal.

Please excuse the picture of my cheeky monkey who is still in his pjs and has breakfast all around his mouth!

A ball gown fit for a bump

Normally an invite to a swanky black tie masquerade ball would be so exciting that I'd barely be able to sleep. But being so heavily pregnant I was dreading it. What to wear with such a big bump? And black tie means to the ground. The lovely Louise Amstrup offered me a beautiful black dress with a beaded bodice. But sadly it didn't fit the belly.

However I did manage to find some silk I'd stashed probably about 10 years ago waiting for the right pattern. So Saturday I did some manic sewing. Thankfully I did manage to get it completely finished and pressed with a couple of hours to spare. It was actually a very simple bump friendly and colourful dress just as I'd envisaged.

The event was a 40th birthday party for the wife of an ex-colleague of my man. I'd actually never met the wife. It's very odd going to a party not knowing the birthday girl. And I didn't even meet her on the night.What a party! Most weddings are not this extravagant. Held at the V&A Museum the surroundings were just beautiful. It had a Venetian theme, hence the masks. I'd bought ours online and hoped that it matched my dress - luckily it did perfectly.

Back to the party. There was a string quartet on gondola in the middle of the lake in the garden. After we moved inside past the sculpture gallery there was a live band. The daughters aged 13 and 10 sang a beautiful song from Hairspray where they had adapted the words for their mother. They were incredible! Such confidence. I had tears in my eyes. Following the band were opera singers. Other entertainment included massages, makeup sessions, an ice cream stand (see picture above!) and a photo booth.

I'd actually managed to slip my feet into these Gil Carvalho 4 inch heels for the occasion. While the shoes were very comfortable for my feet, it was my legs that had the problem. My legs held up quite well until about 11pm. By then I was ready to limp to the car and go home to my lovely soft bed. You can imagine the relief when I took off my shoes and walked on flat ground. Bliss! But beauty means suffering, even when pregnant!

Masquerade evening of glamour

No knitting this weekend but there was some sewing. Saturday morning I delegated childcare responsibilities to Mr M and locked myself in my sewing/guest room to finish this ball gown in time for the party on Saturday night. Thankfully I did manage to get it completely finished and pressed with a couple of hours to spare. It was actually a very simple bump friendly and colourful dress just as I'd envisaged.

The event was a 40th birthday party for the wife of an ex-colleague of Mr M. I'd met him a couple of times but never his wife. It's very odd going to a party not knowing the birthday girl. And I didn't even meet her on the night.

What a party! Most weddings are not this extravagant. Held at the V&A Museum the surroundings were just beautiful. It had a Venetian theme, hence the masks. I'd bought ours online and hoped that it matched my dress - luckily it did perfectly.

Back to the party. There was a string quartet on gondola in the middle of the lake in the garden. After we moved inside past the sculpture gallery there was a live band. The daughters aged 13 and 10 sang a beautiful song from Hairspray where they had adapted the words for their mother. They were incredible! Such confidence. I had tears in my eyes. Following the band were opera singers. Other entertainment included massages, makeup sessions, an ice cream stand (see picture above!) and a photo booth.

I'd actually managed to slip my feet into some 4 inch heels for the occasion. My legs held up quite well until about 11pm. By then I was ready to limp to the car and go home to my lovely soft bed. Y can imagine the relief when I took off my shoes and walked on flat ground. Bliss! But beauty means suffering, even when pregnant!

Another finished object

I'm exhausted here so just a quick post to say that I actually finished something! Hurrah. This is my lovely new blanket, Sweet Lorraine Lace Throw (for those on Ravelry). I'm quite "hooked" on crochet at the moment and the speed that you can finish something spurs you on. It looks like a berry red in this picture but it's more of a deep blood red.

When I showed Mr M his comment was "It's not bright enough. I thought we were decorating this house with bright colours?". Ummm since when is red not bright? It's going to be part of a stack of blankets and cushions I plan to knit/crochet/sew and have in the hole that was once the fireplace until the owner unsympathetically covered it during renovation.

Now I'm going to sit on the sofa with my legs up and try not to fall asleep while knitting/crocheting something else. Just not sure what to start now. I'm not doing any baby things until I know what I'm having. So it's just knitting for the home and me!

So excited about these shoes

Of course I love all the shoes I stock but some I love more than others. These Verity by Bionda Castana fall into that category. They are so elegant and, the best bit, they're orange! I do have a thing for orange. Remember my ginormous Chloe Heloise handbag? These shoes are going to look great with that. They'll also look great with the new AW09 collection from Louise Amstrup with the hint of orange in the print.

Preorder Verity now to avoid disappointment.

Surprise in Spain

Source: Baby Surrey

I met Suzette and her daughter Honey recently at a mothers group in my area. We then met up again recently with another mother for a playdate in the park. Our kiddies are all around the same age so it was nice for them to play - and yes, nice for the mums to chat!

As mums do we got to talking about our births. Suzette them told us about her horrific experience with Honey. She had 12 weeks to go and thought it was fine to go to Spain to visit her family. Unfortunately her waters broke while she was there and needless to say she had a terrible experience. This is an interview that appeared in Baby Surrey*. It's well worth the read but be prepared - this story is a tearjerker. Especially how wonderful her husband is. Thankfully Honey is now a perfect little 18 month old toddler.

I just hope that my baby 2 doesn't decide to come early. As much as I'd love him/her out from a discomfort perspective, my little baby is much better off cooking for 10 moreweeks.

*I couldn't find a link to the article on their website but you should be able to click on the images above and they'll be large enough to read.

Thank you mamas!

At my send off in February I was so surprised at the generosity of my wonderful mama friends - I received a rather large gift voucher to a yarn store in London! It's taken me a while to actually get to the store All the fun of the Fair (ATFOTF) but yesterday it was right near my dentist so I had to pop in.

I have to confess that yarn stores in the UK are nothing like the US. I'm really disappointed in general. Not at ATFOTF mind you - the lady who runs it is just lovely, they have a smallish range but make up for it with heart. I was just so spoilt with yarn.com, The Point (RIP) and all the other yarn stores I could click and shop or visit frequently.

It saddens me that I have all these ideas for projects and I can't knit/crochet them because I just can't get the yarns here. What am I going to do? I'll probably end up ordering from the US and paying the extraordinary shipping and duties.

However, I did see some beautiful yarns at ATFOTF and just need to plan some projects around the yarn rather than the other way around. I didn't walk away empty handed though. I saw this lovely Baby Doll Dress while searching for a crochet blanket/throw type pattern on Sunday night and thought it will be a great post baby dress - the top should be stretchy enough to pull down for feeds (or I'll put some buttons in it) and it's nice and forgiving around the tummy area for the few months it takes to get my belly down. I'll just get a nice slip to wear under it.

Although I have so many grey things and it makes me look like a dishrag, it's such an easy colour to accessorise and hopefully won't show up the dirt like a lighter colour - or puke for that matter. It will look fabulous with one of my many red pairs of shoes and a great scarf. I might even thread a red ribbon through the bodice. We'll see.

I started it today and am hoping that it's a quick crochet. I'll certainly show you the finished result but I probably won't be able to model it personally for a while - I'm HUGE!

Thanks again mamas and you really are missed...

A finished project - finally!

Moving, sorting, working and just living have taken up so much time that I've had very little time to do any knitting/crocheting recently. Luckily though having grown up with me crafting, Master R doesn't mind playing while I sit on the sofa watching and working away with my hook or needles. It's during this time that I get the most work done on my projects.

I actually bought this yarn about a year ago when a friend told us she was having a girl. But when I started work on this crocheted blanket I decided there was far to much work involved to give it away and I'd keep it for my girl - if I have one!

I'm so pleased with the result. I didn't do the vertical embroided stripes, just the red horizontal ones mainly because I didn't like the way it looks where you secure the threads to the edge. It looks too messy for my liking. It also looked exactly the same as a Burberry plaid and that's way to chav (British word of the month). All I need now is a baby girl. If not the next person to have a girl can have it since the way I'm feeling right now, there will only be two kiddies in our family.

I've been DIYing too!

You can tell that Mama H and I have recently moved with our DIY projects. When we moved into this house the owner asked if we'd mind keeping the table as it didn't fit out any of the doors and would have to be cut up if we didn't want it. Although I love our dining table (that Mr M painstakingly sanded back and stained) I was happy to adopt this beautiful solid timber table. And it meant that ours didn't get damaged by little kiddies. This table was in the house when the current owner moved in 15 years ago so who knows how old it is.

The issue we had though is that our dining table has matching bench seats. We needed to find chairs. Being a rental I don't want to spend a lot of money either. Inspired by my mother in law's love of all things colour, a Peter Jensen scarf I own and the purple splashbacks I've grown to love it struck me that we had to have different coloured chairs.

I thought a simple trip to Ikea would solve this problem but they only had some horrible acrylic chairs in softer colours and I wanted bright. But I saw these chairs that come in red, white and black and decided that Mr M, being the wonderful handyman that he is, could paint them. However Mr M thought the chairs were too hard for his precious behind so I convinced him that I could make cushions for them. So we bought 6 white chairs, 3 different patterned bright fabrics for the covers and 6 cushions (at £2.95 each!!! How do they do that?).

We took my rainbow scarf into the local hardware store and they customised the high gloss paint to match. It took 6 weeks for Mr M to paint them because he could only do it on the weekends and only 2 at a time with at least 24 hours drying time between coats. Plus there was trial and error with just how many coats they needed. In the end he really did perfect it and after 3 coats they look incredible.

My job was to create the bright, vibrant, random cushion covers. My machines had been in storage here in London for over 2 years so they really needed a service before I could use them. Once I got them back I had to develop a pattern and create the cushions. After working on one cushion and being delighted with the result I made the remaining 5 finishing each with vintage buttons I'd bought off ebay a while ago.

Saturday morning we both finished the chairs just in time for the unveiling to friends over for a BBQ. They were really impressed and couldn't believe 1) we thought of the idea, 2) they were painted so well, 3) the cushions were so great and 4) we were brave enough to have all those colours together! We're very proud of ourselves and wonder what we're going to do with these chairs when eventually we move out and have our own walnut stain table with matching bench seats again.

My blog on Blossom Mother and Child

Source: Blossom Mother and Child

Just a quick note to let you know that my pregnancy blog is up and running on Blossom Mother and Child. I sat next to the head of marketing for Blossom at a Fashion Business Club event. We chatted for a while about the maternity clothing market and my loathing of in store shopping. A couple of weeks later she contacted me about blogging for them. I was thrilled at the chance to connect with even more mummies so accepted.

My first post is about test driving some jeans. After wearing one pair through the last trimester of pregnancy one it is nice to have a couple more at my disposal - especially now I go through a pair a day with messy Master R's sticky fingers.

Thank you to Blossom for the opportunity to write for you and Mamas, I'll keep you up to date with my posts.