WOOLY BOTTOM

Rafa's first time wearing the soakers I made him last year from a great book full of wonderful vintage patterns. The wool is from a great shop/label from Torquay, Victoria called Pear Tree Yarns and I have lots more stashed away to make him a winter vest. Can't wait to see him in the full outfit.

OLDIE BUT GOODIE

I made this bag for one of my nephews last year. Let me rephrase that, I finished making this bag last year, at which time I gave it to my nephew but, I started making the cross-stitch component of this bag around seven, yes 7 (!) years ago. I remember working on the cross-stitched little boy during a weekend trip from Toronto to Ottawa to visit dear, dear friends. It was intended as a pillow for my then 3 year old niece living in Calgary, now her 7 year old brother in Melbourne uses it as a library bag, and a car bag, and a ....for lots of things. At least I'm flexible!!! I finally remembered to take some photos of the bag during a recent visit to my sister and co's.

WINTER GAMES AND VALENTINES

Wooohooo, the 2010 Winter Olympic kicked off in Vancouver, B.C. yesterday and we were glued to the television feeling somewhat homesick but LOVING the spectical. We were particularly excited about Sarah McLachlan and K.D.Lang - they are amazing!!!!

SUMMER 'GARDEN'

We call them 'courtyards', we sometimes call them 'gardens' but sometimes we call them 'the front' or 'the back'. And sometimes I feel a little sorry for myself and sad for the kids that they don't have a big backyard to explore. I lived on 40 acres until I was 10 years old and then 5 acres for the remainder of my time at home / with Dad and Mum. And I do love expanses of space but feeling 'sorry' for them/us on this front is quite pathetic really and takes away from how special these places have become to us and how wonderfully we embrace these areas in our lives. So, here's a little celebration of our outdoor spaces, where in the summer we squeeze lemons, paint, dig in the sandpit, pick and plant all kinds of vegetables and herbs (and even a little fruit), paddle and splash, dance in an occassional sun-shower and...for those things and so much more I am very grateful.

A LITTLE BLUE

I started this top for Elsa way back in late 2008 in a much bigger size than was necessary at the time and I'm glad of it because, now that's it's finished a year and a bit later it a wonderful fit. PHEW! I wasn't enjoying knitting this cotton at all but I'm glad I persisted because I'm really happy with the final outcome. The pattern is from Simple Knits for Little Cherubs.

Notice the dummy? In the final days of my pregnancy (with Rafa) she discovered it in a box of baby goods I was going through and has clung to it ever since. It's so strange to see her using a dummy. I think she just likes to play at being a baby; part of that regression that can happen at this age. Perhaps.

Now on to that blanket I started knitting for an in-utero Elsa so that our infant Rafael can actually use it. This truly is the year for catching up on long forgotten projects. Actually I never forgot them, they just weren't getting air-time.

HIS FIRST MAMA CARDIGAN

I started this late in my pregnancy not knowing if Dot #2 would be a girl or a boy. It's done now just in time for Rafael to wear during those cooler autumn evenings. Where are they? The pattern may've been created for a girl but it looks just perfect on my little boy! Speaking of girls, I've just started this cardigan for Elsa from the same book. Looks like my Dottie, will soon be wearing Kim Hargreave's 'Lottie'.

NUTTY NESTING, BABY BOUNCING, SANTA AND SUMMER....

Oh dear, I've done it again. It's been literary ages since I posted on this blog but so very much as been happening. I have a tendency to get overwhelmed all the way into inaction. Rather than tackling things one at a time during busy periods, I sometimes simply 'let the ball drop' on a number of 'extra-curricula' tasks in my days. Perhaps it's a normal, even necessary, means of survival but it leaves me longing to regain some control mostly in terms of my desired creative exploits. I hope to get back into blogging because it helps clear my thoughts and reminds me of the 'stuff' that I am managing to complete, even it's not always apparent to me. Good news is that the children our thriving!

LITTLE BOY WITH A BIG NAME

"The children". It still sounds like someone else talking when I say that but, it's true...there are two now. Rafael Gordon Stathis was born on 30 October 2009 and he's just so lovely.

My little BIG boy was 9lb 9oz, or 4.4kgs at birth. This is him a hour or so after birth and already hungry for his THIRD drink!!

After months of preparing, imagining, dreaming, I am still surprised by his prescence. Where exactly did he come from!? While I know the biological explaination for his being here (!), it's still sometimes difficult to believe that he is actually with us. It still feels like a surprise. A wonderful surprise. A surprise we never imagined we would EVER have. We're all in-love with him and Elsa is a great big sister, just like we knew she would be. Rafa is a relaxed, content baby. He shows his happiness with wide, lop-sided smiles and gentle gurgles.

Before meeting our beautiful boy, I went into a frenzy of nesting...and I mean a FRENZY! For months!!! It really did get ridiculous...comical even.

Every little inche of this house was turned upside down, cleaned, sorted and re-sorted, sometimes with the help of friends. Mum was also here for two weeks before Rafa's arrival and she helped feed my nesting needs.

A word on Rafa's name. It's a name that Dino has loved since our time living in Barcelona and I also became attached to it, but not until the days leading up to Rafa's arrival. Rafa's two middle names are in honour of each of his grandfathers, both deceased. My dad's name was Gordon. Dino's dad's name was Stathis (Esthathios is the full Greek name but we decided Rafa was going to have a big enough name as it was!). He is certainly a little boy with a big name but we love the fact that it honours his Poppa and Poppou. We will always feel sad that he will never meet these two very special men.

CHRISTMAS 2009

We had such a lovely Christmas in Sydney with my family. Pictures tell the story better than I can...(more photos to come ...this isn't all I have to say!).