Notable 'grams: Hamish Blake takes on Humans of NY

This guy seriously cracks me up. I love following Hamish Blake on Instagram because of his unique commentary on the normal. And I am particularly loving his cute-as pictures of his little one, Sonny, who is just a few months younger than my daughter. Enjoy. 

"I grew up on a ketchup farm in Mississippi. We would go out all day and dig up bottles of ketchup then sell them by the side of the road for 10 dimes, which most people just call a dollar now. It wasn't till I was 18 that my pappy told me there's no such thing as a ketchup farm, he was buying those bottles in town and burying them in the middle of the night just to give us something to do the next day. They cost him two dollars a bottle, so we were losing a solid dollar every bottle, plus the time spent digging them up and him sneaking out every night to bury them. After I found out I moved to New York to become a jazz dancer. I became a hit and danced privately for many well known celebrities and world leaders. I would sometimes dance quietly for Einstein in his study, he said it helped him think. I was dancing softly in the corner when he came up with the E equals Mc Squared stuff." "You seem quite young to have danced for Einstein" "You're very kind young man". @humansofny #hamishsofny

A photo posted by Hamish Blake (@hamishblakeshotz) on Dec 12, 2014 at 12:39pm PST

Why we all want Pinterest Perfection

It's a relatively new phenomena, but it's growing at a staggering rate. It is a desire. An ambition. For some of us, all consuming. 

The desire to portray Pinterest Perfection. 

Photo-a-Day Challenge

I've really enjoyed FatMumSlim's photo-a-day challenge for December. I've never done a photo challenge before and, in the past, have found it a bit annoying when my Instagram friends have spammed my photo feed with pictures of apples, grass or an artistic shot of their car keys. BUT, I had never tried it. I am particularly enjoying following #fmsphotoaday and seeing how much better blogger photographers have interpreted the day's challenge. Chantelle over at Fat Mum Slim also does a top 4 post each day of her favourite pics that have the challenge's hashtag. Pretty cute. 

So head over to Instagram to see my latest daily photo and maybe even jump on board with the challenge yourself!

Notable 'grams: Kylie Purtell - A Study in Contradictions.

A shout out to a recent blog discovery. Kylie is a mum of two girls and tells it like it is. I particularly like this post on Instagram of her daughter on the eve of her third birthday. A picture's worth a thousand words...

Asleep in one of her two Frozen dresses. On the floor. I think it's safe to say she had a pretty good day! When she wakes up she'll be three! #punkyturns3 #punky2014

A photo posted by Kylie Purtell (@kyl21z) on Nov 11, 2014 at 3:17am PST

A Teacher's Rough Guide to Starting Big School

Dear Parents, 

Do not worry. Do not panic. It is all going to be OK.

With love and care from

Your-Child's-New-Kindergarten-Teacher

Photo credit, Isaac Boateng 

Notable 'grams: Brooke Fraser

This lady is my hero. Anyone who's known me for a month or more knows that I LOVE her music!!! Brooke Fraser.

She's just released her fourth album 'Brutal Romantic'. 

I'm heading to her Sydney show March 18 next year and can't wait!!!!

📷 by @scottligertwood

A photo posted by Brooke Fraser (@brookefraser) on Nov 11, 2014 at 12:48pm PST

You can check out her website here! 

My Top 7 Baby Discovery Baskets

I don't know why I didn't do discovery baskets sooner.

They sound difficult to organise and fiddly and time consuming. They aren't. And babies love them.

Essentially, the idea is to fill a basket with everyday items (baby safe items, of course) from around the house or garden and make it accessible to bub in their play area. That's it. And my bub absolutely adores her basket. It is the go to play thing above so many other toys (that cost us a lot more than the contents of that basket). I would say they are better for a baby six months or older who can sit up and grasp objects easily. And make sure the basket is light weight and baby safe too as babies are often attracted to this as a toy as well.

Mix up objects from across different themes or have a specific theme in one basket.

Here are my top SEVEN discovery baskets:

Photo credit, D, Garding

So you're going to have a baby.... A rough guide of what to do first

A faint pink line, a plus sign, a digital read out that screams PREGNANT. However you first discover that there is a little life growing inside you, it's a moment you'll never forget and comes with a huge range and mix of emotions. After chatting to a few friends (new mums, hopeful mums, not too far off mums and any other life stage centred around 'two becoming three' mums) and reflecting upon my own experience, I've realised that there can be a fair bit of confusion about what you should do when you find out you're pregnant straight away. So here is a rough guide of what to do first (and a bit before and later)...

Note: I've tried to include a few different perspectives here. AND, this information is specifically for women based in NSW, Australia as other states and countries may have different systems and ways of doing things.

Photo credit, Ryan

I'm on Facebook

Like my Page on Facebook and share the love!!!!

Baby and Family Menu

I am often scouring Pinterest and searching on Google for family friendly meals that will easily convert into beginner finger food for my nine month old daughter. In my search it seems that there are many many other mums out there who are doing the same. I decided that since my daughter is not currently starving that I would track a week or so of foods that have happened in our house and share them here. Maybe if a few of us did the same there would be some excellent, practical resources out there for sparking creativity in the kitchen (and easy ideas!). I hope the list encourages you that you're probably already doing a great job.

Photo credit: Donnie Ray Jones 

I try to avoid a lot of packaged food and always love things that are simple. I try to include variety but this is by no means a perfectly balanced meal plan. It is me doing my best during a pretty average week with its normal change ups and routine. Enjoy!


Sunday

Baby Breakfast ~ weetbix and boiled water with some cows milk added, dry toast fingers
Mum's Breakfast ~ coffee, mashed avocado on toast and a hard-boiled egg (3 leftover hard-boiled eggs go in fridge for later. I write the date on them with a marker.)

Reflections on Wardobes

Ergh. We all know that sound we make when we're fed up, trivially annoyed at something or slightly disgusted at ourselves or our situation. 

Just ergh. 

Like when you open the fridge after feeling sick for a week and you still don't want to eat anything inside it. Or when you have just spent an hour making amazing pumpkin soup and the very first mouthful ends up on your light-coloured T-shirt. 

It was exactly the sound I made when I pulled down the stashed space bag from the top of our wardrobe and started sorting my pre pregnant clothes. 

Notable 'grams: Love My Bambino

This lovely lady's online store is making me all excited for Christmas with the littlies. My notable 'gram of the week goes to these gorgeous chrissy baby girl headbands!!!! Get on down to Love my Bambino to pick one up or just oggle the very gorgeous baby and kids range. 

Lessons Learned: Family Road Trippin'

I think the first family holiday must be some kind of rite of passage for a mother. It puts your planning and list making skills to the test and reveals the type of parent you really are. In my case, I was that mum who had the wall space above our spare bed covered in colour coordinated lists with squares instead of bullet points for easy tick-offing. The suitcases were open and piles of clothes and necessities were stacking up a week or more before the day of departure. This was going to be an almost three week trip. And I was going to be prepared. 

Overall, it was such a special time for our new family and the hundreds of photos we did take just don't do it justice. It's one of those times in your life you wish an invisible cameraman was following you and later, whenever you want, you could pull out the video archives and replay the memories. I'd like to think all the hard work I put into planning helped it be such an enjoyable time. Here are some valuable lessons I learnt throughout the process of planning, packing and travelling on that first family holiday. 

Photo credit, Jim Champion

Find me on Pinterest

When I'm not dealing with the realities of being a new mum (I witnessed my bub's first meatball tan during dinner tonight and, subsequently, my first bath grease ring from cleaning her up. I have a feeling Jif will be my new best friend and I should start purchasing bulk packs) I am usually blogging, reading, watching Once Upon a Time or Downton Abbey or attending to my inescapable addiction to social media. Namely Facebook and Pinterest.

So the big news of today is that you can follow me on Pinterest: 

Wannabe Real Mum

My Mummy Must-Haves

I have already posted here about bub's favourite things but, in creating this list I realised that MY favourite mummy things are just as valid! So here is my (work in progress) list of top Mummy Must-Haves!

Photo credit, Janine

The First Foods Fiasco

I love food. A lot. And I don't always like 'good' or gourmet food. I just like food. My relationship with food isn't an unhealthy one. (My health is suffering more due to my relationship with exercise. We're not really getting along.) I don't binge anymore than most fertile women who experience monthly emotional upheavals or slightly worn out stay-at-home mums who grab the easiest thing between sleep times and are starving by ten pm. But I do very much like to eat. If you have read Eat Pray Love (I haven't seen the movie) I now crazily desire to return to Italy with a pants size up packed in my suitcase. I think you get the picture. I'm an eater.

So when my daughter was not gulping down enormous amounts of blitzed pumpkin the moment I placed the spoon before her lips, I was stumped.

Photo credit, F. Voisin-Demery

Notable 'grams: Zoe Foster Blake

On her Instagram profile, Zoe Foster Blake (wife of the radio/TV comedy personality Hamish Blake, but well known in her own right as a popular journalist and the founder of new skincare range Go-To) posted this photo capturing the well wishes and new mum advice passed on from a good friend. I thought it was awesome: 

Today was one of THOSE days

It's 8:22 AM and hubby has just raced out the door for work ten minutes late. He's always ten minutes late. I never understood how someone could get from being half asleep and horizontal to running out a door so quickly. I like taking an hour to get ready, half an hour if I deserve a sleep in. I guess that was before baby. Now I need at least two hours to make sure we will both cope after we step outside. Two and half if I attempt a shower. But what am I kidding. Showers are a luxury. Like going out the front door...

So it's 8:22 AM and I've been asleep for about four hours. And before that for about an hour. Let me explain. We'll just revisit the previous evening. I believe some of you may relate:

Photo credit, D. Garding

Bubba's Favourite Things

We all have those baby books. Some of us love them, meticulously penning the dates of each miraculous milestone as they occur; printing the photos we snapped at exactly the right moment and scrapbooking them into place with pride. And some of us begrudgingly fill them in for the fourth child, sneakily fudging a few (most) dates since we have no idea about when tooth eruptions and first rolls actually occurred. I sit somewhere in the middle. A few milestones are haphazardly kept on my Sprout App on my phone, some are in the baby book and for others I am relying on the date sticker in my camera to help me remember if my daughter ever asks, or when I actually transfer every detail to her baby book. Whichever comes first.

Inside these beloved, or 'buried deep amongst the baby clutter', books is the "Favourites" section. When my now eight month old daughter was around twelve weeks I excitedly noted her favourites as anything she smiled or reached for. Which, of course, was everything. She loved her mobile, her parents, a particular stuffed giraffe we always gave her, Sophie (of course Sophie!) and anything we sang to her. It was wonderful! And probably a little far fetched...

It's amazing how their personalities grow so quickly though. Now I can definitely see true tastes and preferences emerging from my pint sized companion. So here is a list of just a few of her favourite things, and experiences:

Photo credit, Pietro Motta

Going Out

I'm in the grip of turmoil and only just emerging from some kind of hazy fog (thanks to sleep training, my husband's willingness to bounce on a fit ball at three thirty am and red, red wine). It has been a beautiful turmoil as anyone who has made it through the first year of their first child's life can attest to. This past week I have slept my first six plus hours straight since halfway through my pregnancy (just over a year ago). Longer baby sleeps means the return of a glass or two of red in the evening, more civilised conversation between myself and hubby and a vague glimpse that the 'real world' is still going on outside my mummy bubble.