It's a playdress, it's a daydress, it's an okay-to-spit-up-on dress

I love buying playdresses for Miss L, and boy does she love wearing them. She picks out her own clothes each morning, and she always selects a playdress and leggings. What's not to love about the concept? They are comfortable, look nice and hold up to all her playing and running around. The dress in the photo above was a recent gift from her grandparents.

I have been wanting to add a few new pieces to my own wardrobe and it's been hard to find the right ones to fit my stay-at-home lifestyle. I most want to find dresses that I can wear while doing my daily activities, and more importantly that can hold up during my daily activities. I recently visited Antrhopologie hoping to find something feminine and stylish, but the dresses looked too delicate to withstand carrying an infant in an Ergo and being a target for spit-up. I am hoping you all might have some suggestions for where I can go dress shopping. I would like to add some color to my wardrobe, something I can pair with leggings and a nice cardigan for those foggy days and something that is a little durable for all the messes that come along with having little ones. I also wouldn't mind finding a few nice skirts to go with all those Steven Alan shirts sitting in my closet. Any suggestions for this fashion-challenged mama?

Food revolution!

I love Mama J's post about sharing simple, quick and healthy recipes. I've been making an effort to try new recipes to expand my repertoire. Mister T is getting tired of my roasted chicken with vegetables.

I purchased the Jamie Oliver app for my iPhone and I really love the recipes. He claims they are 20 minute meals, but they are definitely more like 40 to 60 minute meals (I guess if you weren't cooking in your own kitchen and did everything really fast not caring about how big a mess you made because you weren't going to be the one cleaning up then it would take you 20 minutes). The app comes with a ton of recipes and he does provide app updates you can download for new recipes.

Miss L's favorite Jamie Oliver recipe is the chicken tikka masala. I've also tried his vegetarian curry with paneer, potato and peas. He has a wonderful potato leek soup and the sausage and zucchini carbonara is out of this world. A really simple one is sausages with baked cannellini beans.

I love the range of cuisine and the recipes are really easy to follow. The meals look so nice when they are plated and most of all they taste delicious! Sometimes you need to make little adjustments because he is writing the recipes from a British perspective, like always skip step 1 which is to put your kettle on (electric kettles aren't as popular here to boil water). One recipe called for chipolata sausages which are very hard to find here so I substituted toulouse sausages.

I also have also made the Mexican family dinner from goop a couple of times. It is really easy and a fun family dinner. Essentially you make shrimp tacos with homemade guacamole and pico de gallo with a side of black beans that have been seasoned nicely to add more flavor. I thought Mama J may like this recipe since Mister R makes such a great guacamole.

Sorry I didn't include the actual recipes, but I don't want to get in trouble with Steve Jobs for not using my iPhone correctly, nor do I want to get in trouble with Gwyneth's people.

Easy Recipes- Whole Wheat Pasta & Swiss Chard

I seem to be in a dinner rut so I thought I'd see if any of you have any favorites that are:

1. Quick to make

2. Healthy

3. Don't require a million items you don't have

3. You can prep in advance during the day when your kids are napping or playing

I'm finding by the time I get home from the park/playgroup at 6:30- the last thing I want to do is cook.

So- to start this off here is one of my favorites:

Whole-Wheat Spaghetti with Swiss Chard and Pecorino Cheese

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 onion diced

1 bunch of Swiss chard/kale

3 cloves of garlic minced

1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes with juices (or fresh)

dry white wine to taste (original recipe calls for 1/4 cup but I do less b/c I like it less liquidy)
1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper
8 ounces whole-wheat spaghetti
Pecorino or Parmesan cheese to garnish

Handful of pine nuts to garnish

EARLY PREP:

Chop the garlic, onion and cut the swiss chard into small pieces.

AT DINNERTIME:

Saute onions until tender, about 8 minutes. Add the chard and saute until it wilts, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in the tomatoes with their juices, wine, and red pepper flakes. Bring to a simmer. Add chard and cover and simmer until the tomatoes begin to break down and the chard is very tender, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Season the chard mixture, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the spaghetti and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring frequently, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain the spaghetti. Add the spaghetti to the chard mixture and toss to combine.

Transfer the pasta to serving bowls. Sprinkle the cheese and pine nuts and serve.

**You can also add olives too.

Please share more- especially Mama L with her great fish taco recipe!

My new blog

Hello Mamas! It's been a while since any of us have blogged. I know we're all so busy living life that it's often hard to write about it too.

As part of my new and exciting career path I have set up a new blog Not Just Another Cupcake. It is still very much a work in progress. It's a bit of a tongue in cheek wink toward all those mums who start cupcake businesses. As a "home creator" I'll be writing about crafts, food, style, parenting, health and gardening. Additionally, with the purchase of our new house I'll share the transformation as we renovate and make it our family home.

I have transferred a number of the posts I have written on this blog only to fill it out a little. I'll also post on this blog too as it's a nice open letter to my friends across the pond.

Mama N xx

Holy Sheep!

I finally finished this blanket for Master L. I had hoped to have it finished before he was born, but it took as long as having a baby- an additional nine months. Although Mama N sent me the yarn for the sheep and a book to try to encourage me to start crocheting, I was quite intimidated. Before Mama H had moved away, we had talked about trying to take a crochet class but it never happened. It wasn't until just before Master L was born that I became inspired. I signed up for a class at Lion Brand Studio in Union Square. It was not as much fun as laughing with over my weak attempts at crochet but I gave it a try. I thought I had about a month to work on the blanket but as you know Master L arrived three weeks early and all thoughts of crochet vanished in those foggy months.

In March, I decided to pick it up again. I went for some help again at Lion Brand and ripped the blanket out and started anew. When Mama N announced she was coming over for a trip, it was the perfect inspiration. I furiously worked to finish the blanket so she could help me with the trim and the crazy sheep. I would have never figured it out without her help here. If only she was still across the street!

I finally sewed the sheep on last week and with one sheep to go, I showed it to Aidan. He thought with one sheep in my hand, it meant the sheep came off and started pulling at the other sheep I had carefully sewn on there! Will need to put away for a little while. I am very happy with the results and it will be perfect for Liam in the fall. Just don't look too closely at the edges as they are completely uneven.

I'm also a crochet convert. As usual, Mama N was right, crochet is easy and fast.

My new toy

In a quest to make perfectly decorated cupcakes I purchased a squeezy bag type cake icing kit. The very first time I used it the bag split and I was in the middle of making cupcakes for Master R's birthday party at nursery. I was very peeved to say the least. I kept researching and found this cake and biscuit (cookie) gun type decorator. I'd read mixed reviews on Amazon but decided to give it a try.

These mini cupcakes were the first attempt. These are bite sized cupcake wrappers and a bit of a pain to spoon all the mix into them. Problem solved - add the mixture into the gun with the largest nozzle and squeeze it in. Icing them took a bit of practise and most of these were done one handed with squirmy Master T on my hip. But the decorator is really easy to use and user friendly.

Included in the set is a set of biscuit molds. I couldn't quite get the concept of them until I actually used them. They are little metal plates with cutouts which create different shapes as you squeeze the biscuit mix through creating "press cookies". I used this recipe but I didn't put the egg white on top.

It was so much fun! The cookies are really small and thin. I overcooked the first lot as you can see in the picture. They're a bit brown for my liking. They only need 6 minutes in the oven.

They are a lovely little biscuit and very elegant looking for gifts. Next time I make them I'll halve the recipe (it yields 8 dozen! I was sick of the sight of them and so were our neighbours) and make little hearts which I'll half dip in chocolate.

Baby clothes quilt

Source: www.ticcheandbea.com

In a recent newsletter for my local mothers' group an article featured crafts that capture and preserve memories of your child. There were many good ideas, such as turning your child's artwork into a poster or notecards, but the one I liked the most was turning your favorite baby clothes into a quilt. Now Mama N and Mama G could probably make such a quilt on their own, but for the rest of us there is a website that offers a baby clothes quilt kit. It offers two levels of DIY. You can cut squares from your favorite pieces that your child wore as a baby and mail them to be sewn for you into a quilt. Or if you are feeling a little adventurous you can buy the kit with instructions on how to sew the quilt yourself.

I have started setting aside clothes as Master Q and Miss V grow out of them. Some of the hand-me-downs will be used for Miss L's quilt because they bring back such vivid memories of when Miss L was a baby. I love the thought of having a quilt for each of them that holds so many memories from their first year of life. I picture having the quilts on their beds as they grow up (until they hit those rebellious teenage years when I will box them up for safe keeping until they will appreciate them again as young responsible adults!).

I am tempted to try to make one myself. My great auntie has a sewing machine that she would like to give me. And I did notice a listing of beginner sewing classes at the end of the newsletter article which definitely caught my interest.

Royal Mail

When a package arrives at our home with the Royal Mail stamp Miss L and I are beside ourselves with glee. We know it must be a beautifully handcrafted item from Mama N. Yesterday one such package arrived!

Even Mister T was anxiously waiting to see what was inside. Since receiving the twins' handknit cardigans he refers to Mama N as a "professional knitter." All three of us sat on the sofa giddy with anticipation.

I tried to help Miss L open the package but she quickly motioned me to stop and told me very firmly, "this is MY present" with a special emphasis on the "my". As she unwrapped the tissue paper her eyes got really big as she said, "oooh, HOW nice." A lovely handsewn floral dress!!

In all of three seconds Miss L had taken off her clothes, put the dress on and started twirling around the room with a huge smile on her face. And I had a huge smile on my face. I am so touched by Mama N's kindness.

Miss L's dress is the most beautiful little girl's dress I have ever seen. It captures the whimsical and carefree summer days of childhood.

I think I know what Miss L will be wearing again tomorrow!

My laundry hell

Just a little something to make you smile. This is my laundry pile. You can't see all of it. This is about 5 loads of washing just for the past 4 days. There are 4 more loads of washing lined up to be processed. This pile lives on the dining room table until I have the time/energy to fold and put away. Quite often the clothes get folded but don't find their way to drawers. Luckily the boys' clothes live downstairs in the drawers behind this pile.

I'd love to show you the rest of my house but, as you can imagine, if I did show you I'd be sectioned under the British Mental Health Act.

Have a lovely weekend mamas and I should get to the laundry xx

Three little bunnies

Happy Easter! I wanted to give homemade Easter baskets this year to Miss L, Master Q and Miss V so I decided to knit three little bunnies for my little ones. I took the bunny egg cosy pattern that Mama N recently knit and first adjusted it to make a stuffed bunny for Miss L.

Then I thought it would be fun to make bunny rattles for Miss V and Master Q.


All three bunnies were quick to knit. Each one took two days. It took me one day to knit up all the pieces and a second day to do the finishing work.

Yesterday Miss L and I colored eggs we bought at the farmer's market and baked butter cookies in the shape of bunnies and eggs. After Miss L's swim class first thing this morning we will have an Easter egg hunt around the house. Then my parents and great auntie will arrive for Easter brunch. I came up with a menu using all our farm-fresh vegetables and fruit from our CSA. I am serving an artisanal ham along with roasted local asparagus topped with pecorino and mashed local potatoes. And of course, deviled eggs made from our Easter eggs. My parents are bringing a cake which we will top with local strawberries.

I can't wait for Miss L to find her Easter basket when she wakes up!

My first knitted object for myself

I can't believe I've been knitting for over a year and I've never actually made anything for myself. I've always been making little gifts that are quick knits so I don't get too bored or frustrated. With Mama N's help in choosing a pattern, I decided to make a Shalom cardigan. This pattern has been done hundreds of times on ravelry.com so it was nice to be able to see if I'd like sleeves or more buttons. I went with the sleeveless one button closure.

I picked up some yarn at a Patricia's Yarns, a yarn shop I found in Hoboken near my office, and started knitting. Mama N started work on the same pattern so she spurred me along so I finished much more quickly than I anticipated. It only took me about two weeks. Of course, Mama N finished quite a long time before me and was on to other projects but it was fun to work on it together. I miss running to Mama N's with a question and knitting with both Mama N and Mama H with the little ones running around.

The sweater was an easy knit and I was excited that it was one of the few projects I was able to get through without having to rip it out and start again. Since this spring isn't shaping up to be all that warm, I should get some use out of it.

The best cake pan!

I've been meaning to post on my new favorite thing for cakes- my Wilton 3D train pan. As it is all about the choo-choo in our house, I knew for Master A's 2nd birthday, I wanted a train cake. When I was looking online, I saw a lot of cute cakes that required sawing up several sheet cakes and I felt that could only end in disappointment (for me and Master A). Then, I found this great train pan- which has nine car molds with amazing detail on it. I did balk at paying $32 for a cake pan but I reasoned with myself that with two boys, it will get some use.

The day before Master A's birthday party with some family, I mixed up a snickerdoodle cake (great recipe on the pan) greased the pan well and prayed! After reading some reviews, I bypassed flouring the pan and did not tap the pan when taking the train cars out. Shockingly, all nine cars sprang right out of the pan. Decorating was fun- though I had problems finding the candies I wanted around town. In the end, I used animal crackers to make a circus car, small tootsie rolls for logs, snow caps for coal and smoke and M&M's for the wheels. Next time, I'll get gel icing so I can decorate more neatly.

I see many uses for the pan- whether for a polar express gingerbread train for the holidays, jello train, or having his buddies over to decorate their own car. I think I may make a train for our next book club meeting- though with all of the kids- I'll probably go easy on the icing :)

Farewell my Stokke

With a small lump in my throat I must announce that I have sold my beloved kelly green Stokke stroller. For months Mister T has been asking me to sell it. I must admit that it had been sitting in the garage unused since we moved to San Francisco. We recently purchased the Phil & Ted's Sport double stroller which can easily be taken up and down the stairs to our front entryway. And of course, a double stroller makes sense for Master Q and Miss V. Mama G recently sent me a link to the new toddler board that just became available for the Stokke and I felt a strong urge to return the Phil & Ted's and keep the Stokke just a little longer, but deep down I knew it was time to part with it.

I sold the Stokke to a nice couple who is expecting their first child. It is their "dream" stroller so I feel good that it went to someone who would appreciate it as much as I did. I actually couldn't bear watching someone take it away, so I made Mister T handle the transaction while I hid in the house. It's kind of silly that I became so attached to a stroller, but I think I understand why. My stroller was such an integral part of my life in New York. Wherever I went in lower Manhattan, I was pushing my green stroller with Miss L riding along. So parting with it is finally coming to grips with moving on from that part of my life. When I have a tough day I longingly look back to strolling along the Hudson or up that weird alley street with Mama J to Thursday playgroup.

But enough wallowing. I'm going to embrace my Phil & Ted's and look forward to pushing it around with all three children (two strolled and one carried to start with!) to get to know my new city better and make new friends.

On the bright side I pocketed some cash that I can spend frivolously on myself. I decided to put it to good use and I've purchased private Pilates sessions. I had my first private this morning, working on both the Reformer and Tower. I've decided it's time to get myself back out there, and I'm determined to get my old body back too. I want to wear pants that zip and button rather than pull up, and I miss my Steven Alan shirts! More on the Reformer for my next post...

Little bunny egg cosy

In response to Mama V's question this is the bunny egg cosy. I have been meaning to blog about it but where does time go? I have been doing a lot of knitting and sewing lately but can't post anything because it's all gift knits. When the various recipients have received their respective gifts I'll post because there are some really sweet things!

This bunny was the cutest knit I've done to date. I plan on making a full set with different coloured jumpers/sweaters. The next one will have a pink striped jumper and then a green one.

Most weekends we have boiled eggs with soldiers so these will be so cute on top. Master R loves his "hase" and wants to eat "ei" (two words he always says in German) every morning now.

PS. Note the floral oilcloth table cloth. Since I don't have a girl I've started filling our house with pretty girly things including tea sets, cake plates, table cloths, oven mitts and tea towels.

Bolinas cowl

My mom's birthday was last Friday and I decided that I wanted to knit something for her. She knit a beautiful hooded scarf for my birthday last year. She even dyed the white yarn for the trim in earl grey tea to create a softer white!

I decided a cowl would be something I could realistically finish in time and also something that she could wear a lot on her daily hikes along the coast in the fog. I found a nice pattern on Ravelry for a Dolores Park Cowl, which happens to be named after a park here in San Francisco. So I renamed it the Bolinas Cowl for my mom's quaint little hippie town in Marin.

The pattern is really simple so I wanted to find a unique yarn to make it look more textured and patterned. When I went to Atelier Yarn in my neighborhood I could hear Mama N's voice warning me not to pick out one of those multi-colored granny yarns that comes out looking like a frumpy country mouse knit. I hope Mama N will approve of the yarn I chose.

I knit the cowl each night while Miss V took her 2:00 am feed and slept. Master Q only interrupted to feed on a few occasions. Last Friday we packed all three children in the car and took a day trip out to Bolinas to spend my mom's birthday with her. It was a beautiful day - sunny and warm. We spent the day lounging on the deck while Miss L chased after my my mom's dog and watered the flowers with her little water pail.

Currently I am trying to knit three little bunnies for Easter. The twins' bunnies will have jingle bells stuffed inside to make them into rattles. I have been inspired by Mama N's absolutely adorable bunny egg warmer. I hope my bunnies will turn out as cute!

Fire Truck Cake!

Months ago Master K and I discovered the joys of YouTube (and just this morning, gasp, he has worked out how to use the mouse, so he will soon be surfing all on his own!). Having multiple computer monitors, downtime on YouTube has meant that Mommy can simultaneously check email while Master K keeps up on the latest "diggers and dump trucks and fire trucks and cranes" (his requested YouTube search). And in the course of one such search, we found a video, an 8-minute wonder of domesticity. This video has repeatedly kept both my husband and son rapt, as they watch two women make a cake.

You see, it's not just any cake -- it's a scarlet red Fire Truck Cake: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuXQVAg4Cqk

Well we were pretty blue last weekend, so we decided to focus our energies on replicating the YouTubian wonders of this cake. Dad and son were the primary forces behind the baking; in the tradition of many moms before this one, I quietly kept the kitchen from falling apart during the experiment, laying out ingredients, setting up the mixer, and making a quick run to Duane Reade for off-the-shelf frosting when Mister A's butter-heavy homemade efforts resulted in a gooey glop not fit for any self-respecting firefighting vehicle.

The boys had fun mixing:

And, frosting:

You may notice that they did not quite achieve Betty Crocker's scarlet red hue -- this, despite squeezing an entire tube of red food dye into the frosting. Mister A realized we didn't have nearly enough frosting (or patience) to "crumb coat" the cake, as the video advises, which involves smoothing on a preliminary layer of frosting and refrigerating until it is hard enough for a second coat. We persevered with the production. The truck came out a kind of "hot salmon" color, but we were not deterred. We had some friends over and gorged on the fenders and rear. One friend was of the frank sort, and soon informed us that the cake was dry to the point of inedibility. We were not deterred. Our friend's son stripped the cake of its gummy-bear flashers and popped off two of its Oreo-wheels. But it was still beautiful, if a tad droopy, because it was our Fire Truck Cake. After several days (and no more dining invites to ingrates posing as friends), we had to retire the front-end of the cake to the trash, but only after solemnly eating the frosting windows and front wheels. Master K has continued to ask for more Fire Truck Cake, so I think Mister A has his work cut out for him come third birthday in September...

Wafels & Dinges fun

As you all know I love food and since the boys, my quests for treats are those that are kid friendly. One day a few weeks ago, I read about a waffle truck online and was excited to see that it was parked in Hanover Square on Wednesdays. Since Mister R is home and it was freezing cold, I sent him out for the waffle expedition. No, the title is not spelled wrong, wafel is apparently the Belgium spelling and dinges are toppings.

There are two types of wafels sold- the Brussels and Liege. I prefer the Brussels- light and crispy (apparently first came to NY for the World's fair in 1964). My preferred toppings- Belgian chocolate fudge and strawberries. Mister R preferred the Liege waffle- light and chewy- with speukoloos spread & whipped cream (an awesome spread that tastes kind of like peanut butter with graham crackers). They will give you a taste of it to try.

If you check their blog before you go- and call the wafel hotline- they have a question or thing of the day (i.e. what is a curling stone made of- answer correctly and you get a free dinges). In case you are dying to know- a curling stone is made of a Scottish granite. Look for a big yellow truck- usually not much of a line (but a loyal following). It's all a bit quirky and fun.

The waffles are a bit pricey but they are delicious. I hate to say it, but the second time we got them, we debated whether to wait to eat them when Master A was napping, but we decided it would be too cruel. As you can see, Master A enjoyed quite a nutritious lunch. They travel well in cute little boxes.

I can see many a fun spring/summer outing spent with the boys running around Hanover Square covered in wafels and dinges. Let me know if you want to join us.

http://www.wafelsanddinges.com/

2 in 1

I am definitely no expert, but have been requested to share my experiences with 2 Masters sleeping in 1 room. There really is no trick to reaching the bliss that parents feel when their kids are sleeping soundly in their "own" room. Here in NYC, space is a premium, so we could not imagine both little ones in their own room. Knowing that in most places all over the world kids (and sometimes entire families) sleep in one room helped to ease my initial anxiety. I spoke to friends who had done it and posted on HRPMamas and the advice I remember the most was not to fall in to the trap of playing musical beds. In other words let the kids get used to each others sounds and do not be too quick to run in and save one from the others waking.

My desire was to have them in bed at the same time and up at the same time (ambitious but what the heck.) At that point Master D was sleeping roughly 7-7 and I planned to sleep train Master G and set his clock for the same hours.

Here is what we did...At 6 weeks I started G's night time routine (bath, book, bottle) and put him down at the same time Dorsey went down in our room. Over the next 3 months he went to bed around 7 and I would feed him on demand throughout the night. I attempted not to go to him at the first sign of him waking but allowed him to try to soothe himself but as we know its just too hard when mom and baby are sleeping in the same room. When he was 12 weeks old we put his crib (what he would be sleeping in his own room) in the TV/guest room. I continued to feed him on demand but I think it helped that I wasn't right there and he seemed to do a bit better and it took me a bit longer to get to the other room in the middle of the night so there was some delay. He was waking 2-3 times/night at that point and at 16 weeks we sleep trained via CIO. The first night was alot of up and down, the second once or twice and the third he slept 12 hours +/-. That was pretty consistent (luckily Master G is a finger sucker so he soothed himself quite well) so in 2 weeks we moved the crib to Master D's room and put them down together at 7. For those who do not have a third room to sleep train in it is advised you keep the baby in the room and Mom and Dad sleep in the living room for a few nights.

For naps we have a Pack and Play in our bedroom so that Master G can nap in the afternoon in our bedroom and Master D in his crib. When Master G turned 1 year and the 2 were pretty consistently going down around 1 for their afternoon nap we tried to put them together to nap but because it was a novelty the wound up standing and laughing and fooling around so I went back to separating them for nap time.

There has never been any issue with the middle of the night. They do not wake up fully in the middle of the night. There are occasions when they cry out but quickly put themselves back to sleep. I can see on the video monitor that their eyes are closed and just feel around for their lovey and or suck their finger and go back off to sleep all while the other child sleeps soundly without even a flinch or a little roll to their other side and I am sure are unaware of it.

Back to my earlier point, I would hesitate to go in and scoop up the crying one so they don't wake the other because you get in to the habit of rotating beds, pack and play, cribs etc and makes for a disruptive night(s). In my experience the kids are completely used to one another and don't even notice.

In the morning it is a bit more tricky and this is where we have tried to adjust accordingly as sleep habits are ever changing in these little ones. For the most part Master G sleeps later, as he needs more rest than Master D even with his marathon naps. In the beginning we were able to go in and sneak Master D out in the AM and let the little guy sleep but now that he is just more alert he will pop up even when we go in as quietly as we can. We then shifted Master D's bedtime to 7:30, and unless he is sick, do not let him nap for more than 2 hours so that he sleeps a bit later in the morning. At this point Master D wakes up somewhere between 6 and 7, occasionally later and will wake up Master G. He yells for G and tells him to "come on" "what are you doing?" No one is screaming for me so I let them hang out for as long as possible. Often they stand up and "talk" to one another and lie back down and go to sleep.

For the most part they just get used to each other and you have to be on your toes to work out the best way to get them to both sleep the longest they can. I think if one gets less night time sleep than they need it is made up in the nap(s) theoretically.

It is working for my kids but of course everyone's situation and kids needs are so different. I do not know if there is a magic trick to making it work but I can say for us it was not as much drama as I thought it would be. And I know it has brought them together and closer which is the cutest thing.

I hope this is somewhat informative!

Am I bored?

Source: Isisthescientist

Now that I've sold my business and am officially a fulltime mum the question I get asked the most is "don't you get bored?". A working mother even asked me what I do all day (ha! She should try being at home all day and realise just how much more demanding it is than going into an office. Trust me I've done it). Just today I got asked if I get lonely for the 3rd time this week.

Until today I haven't had a chance to even think about being bored or lonely. But this evening Mr M is travelling, the kids are tucked up in bed and I'm working on an uninspiring knitting project. This has given me an opportunity to let my mind actually turn the cogs.

I can honestly say that I never ever feel bored. The last time I remember feeling bored was whining about it to my mother when I was about 12. With so much going on at all times it isn't a feeling I ever get. But loneliness? My days are filled with mothering and homemaking and I guess I haven't had a chance to think about this either.

The past week or so I had an urge to go and meet people. Not really for my sake but for Master T's. From the time Master R was 8 weeks old I was actively attending mama's groups around Battery Park. For Master T I've done nothing. He's never really had a play date. The problem is to find a group of mothers with babies the same age as Master T. Finding a group for your first child is relatively easy. Will the mothers relate to me with two kids? I'm not sure. I've started looking at music and "gym" classes. It might be a good place to start. I just hope I don't meet any more stalkers or drug dealers!

As a side story do you remember before you were a mum going to dinner parties or other events and meeting a new person. You pretty soon get to the question, so what do you do for a living? When the woman would respond, I'm a stay at home mum, my eyes would glaze and I'd start scanning the room for someone more exciting to talk to. I had to chuckle to myself. On Saturday night I was that mummy! A newly graduated MBA had just landed a fantastic job and was telling me all about it. When she asked what I do I told her and instantly saw the frozen smile and then the "oh, how nice for you". I just laughed and showed her the photo on my phone of my darlings. I'm proud to be a stay home mum and feel privileged to have the opportunity to just be mum.

First finished object with 3 under 3

It feels absolutely wonderful to be blogging again after a very long hiatus. Thank you to Mama V for introducing my two bundles of joy who arrived in December - Master Q and Miss V.

Taking care of newborn twins and a very energetic two-year old, along with having to cope and address some serious medical concerns for Miss V, has not left me with much time to think about blogging or knitting or yoga or anything else that I enjoyed in my prior life.

However, about two weeks ago I started to think about a knitting project that I left unfinished while on bed rest. Last week I started taking notice of my knitting bag sitting in my closet. Then I decided to I take out my knitting bag. It sat on our bar for the rest of the week and I thought about knitting every time I passed by to go to the kitchen.

This week I actually started knitting again (inspired by a few emails from Mama J about her current knitting projects). I decided to start knitting during Miss V's early morning feed from 2 to 3am. It is one of the few times the whole house is quiet and I don't work with Miss V on her feeding therapy (I let her sleep through the feed so she gets her rest). The first night the only thing I accomplished was figuring out where I left off and what I was doing and by that time Master Q had awakened and was ready to feed.

The next night I knit two rows and I was hooked all over again, just like when we knit our first hat project with Mama N over a year ago. Knitting again has really made me feel rejuvenated. All week I couldn't wait to get back to my knitting. It was so nice to throw my mind into something else and I find knitting really helps calm and center me.

Today I finished knitting the Debbie Bliss Stripey Hat for Master Q. It felt so gratifying to accomplish something. Master Q really needed a hat too. He has outgrown all his newborn hats and all the infant hats are pink, which Mister T says will not do for Master Q.

It rained all day today, but in the late afternoon the storm ended and the sun and blue sky reappeared. I took Miss L and Master Q out in our new Phil & Ted's Sport double stroller and we walked over to our favorite neighborhood park near the Presidio. It was the perfect opportunity for Master Q to wear his new hat. In the photo above he is also wearing the lovely cardigan that Mama N knit for him. Miss L enjoyed jumping and splashing in all the puddles at the playground and Master Q hung out in the stroller bassinet.

I'm going to go now and search for new patterns on Ravelry. I'd love to knit a rattle for Miss V and I need to start working on a birthday present for my mom.

So happy to be back knitting and blogging with my dear mama friends!