24 days old today . . .

He is perfect ... so soft and sweet. 

x

winter sun and a slow day . . .

 today we took things slow . . . 

slow play in the gorgeous winter sun ~ role playing pirates and sailors  ~ 

and

 slow nesting . . . washing soft baby blankets and making

 little lavender bags to keep baby clothes scented and fresh. 

i drank copious of amounts of fresh ginger and lemon tea ~ helping to sooth my sore throat. 

i am thankful for a long weekend  . . . and the pear and raspberry crumble i am about to pull out of the oven x

and we wait . . .

one month left  . . . just the three of us and my big belly.

anticipation and excitement is mounting as the three of us snuggle in bed morning and night 

counting down these last few weeks

 we wait for those strong kicks that tickle under my rib cage ~

we wait for your familiar little dance that makes us giggle ~

we watch and smile as your big brother kisses, cuddles and chats away to you almost all the time ~

 he loves you and includes you in everything that we do . . . 

we love you and patiently we will wait our sweet little one.

just for fun on a warm winter morning . . . 

ps. and they taste delicious in our salad wraps x

local charm and produce . . .

 . . . sunday . . .

 just the 2 of us and of course the "big belly" slowly exploring and negotiating our way around our

local organic markets.

our recent farm visit has inspired our little family to enjoy more of the 

fresh produce at our city farm. 

a basket or oranges, banana's and a bunch of kale purchased.

 herbs and fruit trees inspected and of course chickens to visit and chat with.

home to bake apple and cinnamon muffins . . . 

snuggled in for books and we slept the afternoon away . . . just what we needed really!

we made these with our fresh kale. you can't just stop at one, two or three. yum!

autumn escape . . . part two (the chicken coop)

the more time we spent by the chicken coop ... the more i want one ... 

so much to discover and so many sweet questions asked by this little boy who loves nothing more than using the words explore and adventure.

chickens following us, eggs laid and collected, feathers, seed pods and autumn leaves now part of our autumn display at home ... 

... so much adventure had and so much to explore ...

so much mystery down by the coop

 ~ even when the foxes came to visit and take more 

than 4 of our little feathery friends ~

autumn escape ... part one ...

our little escape ... a weekend on the land ... baked bread, toasted marshmallows, 

sipping warm milk and snuggling by the fire ...

...excited chatter, soft cuddles, time spent in the moment with no need to be anywhere...

the ducks found him ... and followed him ... he called them his special friends...

eggs collected and cooked at breakfast, rock pools explored, moments to sit, watch and reflect

crisp morning and cool nights ... time melted away and all we had to do was be ... just the 3 of us and one little squirming "baby button" who who will join us very very soon.

excited anticipation ...

10 weeks to go and slowly counting...lists are being written and tiny little white baby grows have been washed.

I am on the hunt for a vintage cupboard and waiting the arrival of some gorgeous fabrics...

This "baby button" as we fondly refer loves to wiggle and kick late into the night after snacking on lindt dark chocolate ... and seems to love the sweet taste of raspberries. With excited anticipation we talk and think about you daily.

ps. Tomorrow i have a dream afternoon planned with a very dear friend ... a friend who is just so special you want to hold her close always.

 We are heading to this to be inspired and swept away by the seriously talented and creative Pia...

Pia Jane Bijkerk one of the very first blogs i ever discovered and saved in my favourites bar. Yep from those links you can see ... a dream afternoon in the planning.

A little reminder ...

Today i had a little reminder of why i love this creative space so much ... we are still here. 

The bump has been growing and the time going so quickly now that i am at 25 weeks.
Our days have been taken up with moments of resting, creating, playing,
 collecting, nesting, baking, lemon tea drinking and quietly

savouring precious moments.

Thank you for the beautiful emails and kind comments ... we are safe and well x

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. soulemama