Saturday 31 August 2013

Day 85.

So much love for this little girl. Doesn't give me much rest, but puts the stupidest smile on my face.



Day 84.

Missy got weighed at plunket today, she has doubled her birth weight so she is right on track. Little 5kg beb on our hands.

Willow loves being at work..


Day 83.

Cute family selfies.

Day 82.

Willow was grumpy this morning, I offered her a feed, but she was disinterested. I thought if I took her for a walk it would help her to fall asleep.
This story ends with me breastfeeding on the side of the road in the rain.
I ended up surrendering the day to just being inside and looking at inspiring whole foods/vegan/yoga/gardening blogs all day, but as soon as Chris got home, I put him on beb duty and ran down to my garden and got my hands dirty. Hello pumpkin seedlings (that I found in my compost bin !) beans & kale.
The lady who moved in downstairs recently is into gardening so hopefully we can turn the whole back area into a big food garden c:
We have started trying to put Willow to bed at the same time every night, at 7pm. Then just before I go to bed I pick her up and feed her in her sleep to make sure she sleeps the whole night through.
It's so nice to have a couple of hours just Chris and I that are completely baby free to have dinner together where we can both eat at the same time without juggling a baby !
Tonight we watched Bill Cunningham New York which was so beautiful. I had wanted to watch it for such a long time but never got around to it, It was exactly the kind of inspiration I needed.




Thursday 29 August 2013

Day 81.

I wish I had something better to offer you, but I don't. So this is day 81.
Tomboys raisin' tombabies.


Tuesday 27 August 2013

Day 80.

We went away to Karekare to our friend Frances' family home out in the bush. Just for one night, but sometimes that's all you need. I always have such a deep sleep when I leave the city, and it feels so good to unplug and play cards somewhere with no phone reception.
It's kind of frustrating how much time I spend connected to my laptop now that I'm at home so much more with Plum. It's just such a convenient way to connect with friends, to learn & get inspired by reading millions of blogs, but also it's one of the only things I can do while breastfeeding or trying to get her to fall asleep.
Anyway, I'm trying to kick the habit !
Here are some photos of a little walk on Frances' property.
Chris was brave enough to wear Willow in the baby carrier, I was too fearful that I would slip in the mud.
We also scored a manuka tree for our garden from what was left of Frances' mum's nursery.













Monday 26 August 2013

Day 79.

Little cutie passed out on the couch.

Friday 23 August 2013

Day 78.

3 months old & very cheeky.



Thursday 22 August 2013

Day 77.

Throwback Thursday.
First days. I found all these photos on my mums iPhone.
Cant believe how much she's grown.






Wednesday 21 August 2013

Day 76.

This weather is pretty fucking miserable. However, it's pretty good to stay inside & paint.
We popped up out to catch up over coffee with my friend Rene. He basically couldn't have come at a better time. Rene is a really talented photographer that shoots predominantly fashion, and although I have no interest in working with fashion, it was so inspiring to talk to a photographer who has made such a good name for himself. I'm at such a tricky/awesome place at the moment, where I have so many options as to what I can do with my life, and it feels like such a big leap to choose one path.
Rene gave me the kindest pep talk/slap in the face that reminded me to stop fucking around. To just start making opportunities for myself and stop expecting things to come to me. I always find it so frustrating to watch other people with talent or passion but just not enough nouse or motivation to make it happen. I am being that guy !
Anyway, a little bit of a rant but it feels good to have something in cement.
Willow has a cute new hat.


Monday 19 August 2013

Day 75.

Things have been pretty crazy around here.
We keep ourselves pretty busy, every now and then it's nice to just stay at home, catch up on housework, sleep, knit, cook yummy meals. Being lazy is okay sometimes.
I forgot to mention earlier, Willow has started laughing. It's one of the best things that has ever happened to me. In my life.



Day 74.

Plum's new night light.

Day 73.

We went around to Naomi's for a cup of tea & to work on a portrait series that i am playing around with. Here is a little sneaky look see. & also just some photos of Willow for good measure.





Day 72.

We spent our Saturday perusing some of our favourite shops, Junk & Disorderly being our all time favourite. We go almost every week, so much of our furniture is from there, and it's such a great place to find interesting unique gifts.
We went to raw vegan yumminess Little Bird Unbakery for lunch, & took a little trippy out to Piha.
We got all snugged up, as it was absolutely wild and rugged & so so beautiful.
The west coast is always pretty rough, but I can't wait to go back once the weather warms up a bit and head in for a swim in the waterfall & a little climb up Lion's rock.





Day 71.



























11 weeks old.
We had a night off, tonight while my mum looked after missy.
Chris and went to watch George's band play. We had so much fun, but at half time we sneakily looked at photos of Plum on Chris's phone because we missed her, haha.

Thursday 15 August 2013

Day 70.

We got Willow all rugged up tonight and took her out to a new pizzeria and vino bar, Blunderbuss for Freya's birthday.
We get quite a few lectures about having routines and everything, but I find it really hard to apply myself to that kind of lifestyle. We are just so not those kinds of people, and I feel like it's best to not make things hard for ourselves by trying to force ourselves to parent in a way that is unnatural to us.
I remember Samara's dad gave me this awesome advice when he found out i was pregnant, he said "fit the baby into your life, not your life around the baby". It's pretty simple, but I think so few people do it ! They went camping with Samara when she was 3 weeks old and travelled the world with her as she was growing up. I think it's such an awesome method of parenting.
So we still go out all the time, we take Willow to bustling restaurants and dinners, and she always just handles it so well. She gets lots of cuddles from absolutely everyone, and always ends up just falling asleep in our arms.
I'm not oblivious to babies getting over stimulated, we are definitely cautious of that, but we also just try not to get too worked up about it.
And to be honest, I still haven't experienced those evening witching hours that everybody talks about. The impossible to settle, sleepless nights.
Willow sleeps the whole night through, every single night.
I'm not putting this down to my mothering skills, I am absolutely sure it has very little to do with me, and a whole lot to do with being blessed with a very laid back baby.
But in our case, it has really worked out to surround ourselves with a lot of people.
That saying, it takes a village to raise a child, holds so true for me.
I have seen quite a few women who are struggling with baby blues, or maybe even post natal depression, and I think a lot of it comes down to being isolated in their houses all day, spending little time with their family and friends.
We are so blessed to have Little & Friday, my family business where Chris and I both work.
We go there most days, even just to hang out and see all the staff, who are like a family to me. They all dote over Willow and take her off my hands, Giving her lots of attention and me a really nice rest to have a coffee and a chat. My brother, my mother, my boyfriend, and all my best friends are there, and I think it's because of this that I feel so supported, and like this whole thing is kind of easy peasy.
Enough babbling, here are some photos x






Bitches be pingin'

Day 69.

Plummy and I went to the plunket new mothers group today, which I really didn't think was something I wanted to go to, at first. I hated the idea of socialising with people who I had nothing else in common with, other than being mothers. Obviously because we are all in the same basket, we should just get along. I'm actually kind of surprised by how much I do enjoy it. Every week they have a guest speaker, and today we learned about baby sign language. I found it really interesting. It is a really simple method of helping your child to communicate, before they are able to verbally express their needs. Chris and I are going to a workshop in September so that we can learn more.

We also went to our friends flat for a delicious vegetarian lasagne, thanks Francis, Jordan, Beth, Gina, Naomi & Sam for a deee-liteful evening x







































Day 68.









































Monday 12 August 2013

Day 67.



























Plum's new mobile thanks to our kind work friend, Peter.

Day 66.